Small Streams, May 2nd, 2023

Our snow-water equivalents (SWEs) range from about 130% of normal in the Snake River drainage above Palisades Reservoir and Henry’s Fork drainage to 375% of normal in the Blackfoot River, Portneuf River, and Willow Creek drainages. These combined with what weather-wise looks like a fairly normal run-off season suggest that the upcoming fly fishing months will abound with cool stream flows that will benefit trout activity. It’s all great news! True, this means streams will be high with run-off a bit longer than many fly fishers would prefer, but getting to such waters may also be interesting. With so much snow yet to come off, back country roads that approach so many of these waters may not become passable until later than normal. So road maintenance agencies ranging from municipal to federal have issued closure statements cautioning the public on traveling such only after they are cleared of snow and dried enough not to be damaged by traffic.

We at Jimmy’s All Seasons Angler will watch both road and water situations and provide on this website information that will help fly-fishers decide which streams to visit and when roads to them are open.