Henry’s Fork 8-19-11

Big news here is that construction will soon begin on the Ashton Dam.  To begin, the reservoir will be drained by 17 feet over the near future after an outlet tunnel is blasted.  We are all hoping that this will be done in a manner that will not silt the downstream river bottom.  Nevertheless with increased flows of warm water, fishing will be impacted downstream likely through the Chester Dam backwater.  Terrestrial patterns presented along vegetated banks, outcrops, and overhanging logs should bring interest during daytime. Evening caddis activity should bring action, too.

Flow out of Henry’s Lake has been well over 100cfs all summer, so a lot of large lake fish have been washed into the river below.  Yesterday flow out of the lake was dropped to 98cfs.  That means those big fish escaped from Henry’s Lake will move downstream. Want  a chance to catch a really large cutt, hybrid or brookie? Try the Flat Ranch reach within the next few days. Try streamers or terrestrial patterns for the best chance to encounter these big guys.