South Fork

South Fork 6-29-12

Stream flow on the South Fork is stable with 13,600 cfs coming out of Palisades Dam, and 14,900 cfs at Heise. Nymph fishing in the morning with a Brown Rubber Leg ( size 8 ) and a Bead Head Crystal Pheasant Tail Nymph  dropper( size 16) has been the most productive till about 12 o’clock. From about 12 o’clock, riffles have been good with a CFO Yellow Sally ( size 16 and 14 ), and Olive Hares Ear Parachute (size 12) . There is a good emergence of salmon and golden adult stones along the bank near Heise, but fish still haven’t been eating them yet but that should change any day. Along with  yellow sallies in the riffles there will be good hatches of pale morning duns and some green drakes.

South Fork 6-27

Flows were bumped again yesterday afternoon to 13,000cfs. Again this is response to irrigation demand downstream. I don’t know how much more the water will increase but I will keep you all updated as soon as we know.

At this point I would only be fishing nymphs and streamers. The river has been raised 2,000 cfs in 2 days and that is a lot of water. Enough water to cool things down and slow any hatches that were happening and mix things up enough to have the fish a little confused. The good news is it doesn’t take long for things to settle down and the fishing to pick back up again. If we don’t have anymore increases tomorrow we will be back in action.

I had thoughts of Salmon Flies sometime this week but the increase in flows could very possibly push that back into next week. Call the shop for any and all questions or just stop by and we will be happy to help you.

South Fork 6-25-12

As you can imagine we are getting a lot of calls to see if the big salmon flies have started to hatch in the lower river around Ririe.  We still haven’t seen any of the big bugs but we are seeing a lot of yellow sallies and pale morning duns. The big stones should appear sometime this week.  Over the weekend we had had some good but brief action on the riffles in the afternoon. The most consistent action is still with nymphs and streamers.

South Fork 6-20-12

We wanted to give you an update on the water conditions and hatches for the South Fork .  We are seeing more Pale Morning Duns and Yellow Sallies each day from Swan Valley down river through the canyon. By late next week there should be big stones on the lower river near Lorenzo. The flow is still at 10,200 cfs and clear. Palisades Reservoir is filling slowly and if it does fill in the next week or so the increased flow should have little impact on fishing conditions and hatches.  Nymph fishing is still the most productive and some fish are taking Chernobyls from Byington down.

South Fork 6-14

Fishing is getting pretty good on the South Fork. We have been hearing many good reports of lots of fish being caught on the gravel bars and the tailouts below the riffles. There is not much action on the bank right now but I would defiantly be fishing them between gravel bars. The streamer action is picking up every day. I have heard a mixed report on which streamer patterns are fishing the best. Be sure to bring a good selection with different colors and sizes. Fishing is still great with nymphs. big stonefly nymphs, yellow sally nymphs and an assortment of bead head flies have been working. Don’t overlook the san jaun worm, there have been many fish hooked on that fly.

We have been getting a lot of questions regarding the Salmon Fly hatch. As of right now we haven’t seen anything. I don’t expect to see any salmon flies until the last week of June. We all have our predictions but the truth is when they hatch we will let you all know by updating the fishing report.

Flows have stayed steady since the last increase over a week ago. Flows are 10,100 cfs. This is a great flow for fishing. This is also a great time to get out and do some fishing before all the crowds get here. The Canyon is really pretty right now and there is so secluded overnights to be had in the canyon for the next few weeks.

South Fork 6-11

Flows on the South Fork were increased to 10,100 cfs. Not a big change and the river is fishing really well with nymphs and streamers. Rollin got to fish a few days last week and said he was doing really well on a  nymph rig that was about 4 feet deep. He also got to fish the lower river below Lorenzo and the group he was with were able to get a few fish to eat big stoneflies off the surface. There are no salmon flies hatching yet but the fish are starting to look up so try a dry fly next time you on the water. As soon as we hear about stoneflies hatching we will be updating the fishing report. Feel free to call the shop if you have any questions.

South Fork 6-6

Flows into the Reservoir have increased tremendously which is good cause they actually might fill the reservoir now and that means cold water all summer. Cold water is good for insect hatches when August rolls around! Fishing on the river hasn’t changed much, your best technique is nymphing and Streamer fishing. This is the time of year when you can have a really good streamer day if we get some overcast rainy weather.

South Fork 6/4

This river looks so good right now it’s unbelievable! But and this is a big BUTT! The water temps are still really cold. so most of the fish are still concentrated in the buckets of the riffles and Eddy holes. Still not much action on the banks yet however it’s coming and I would expect to see the bank action pick up in about 10 days. The streamer fishing has been picking up as well. I had a few guys tell me they had good success on a rubberleg and a large red Zebra midge….hmm imagine that. Also try San Juan worms and some brighter bead head nymphs. Jimmy said there are really good Blue Wing hatches on the river but nothing was rising to them. Double check side channels if you see BWO’s and watch for sippers every day is different.

Flows are still at 10,000 cfs, I don’t expect them to change unless irrigation demand is increased.