Gettin' Hotter

I had a couple of days off the oars this weekend, and since there's not too much fishing other than the South Fork just yet, Rachael, Charlotte and I decided to go car camping. We had a great time up on Pacific Creek in the Bridger-Teton National Forest with some friends. The temps are getting even warmer, which should speed up the runoff a little more and maybe get some bugs movin'. I'm booked all week on the South Fork, so stay tuned for some detailed reports...hopefully the salmonflies are starting to stir! I just got an email from long-lost friend Gary Wilmott, aka "The Wedge". For those who do not know him, he's one of the greatest guides that the Snake, Green and New Fork Rivers has ever seen...no joke. He hung up his trout gear a number of years ago for Pacific Sailfish, Marlin, Tuna, Roosters and just about anything else that will eat a fly in blue water. He now resides in Costa Rica, and takes people fishing there, as well as Panama and Guatemala. He's a legend... it was great to hear from him tonight. Here's a photo of a typical Costa Rican sunset.

Lewis Lake

I guided a single angler today on Lewis Lake in Yellowstone National Park. He had hoped to do a float trip, but all of our allowed slots on the South Fork were already full. The Green and New Fork Rivers would normally be another option in late June, but they are actually still rising and nowhere near clear. It still may be ten days before we're seeing any decent fishing in Pinedale. Fishing today was fair. My sole angler fished and casted quite well, throwing a Teeny 200 grain sinking line all day with limited success. We netted two lake trout and two browns. He lost or missed another six or seven. The best fishing was in the Lewis-Shoshone channel on leech patterns. I've heard some better reports on the South Fork the last few days. The lower section of the river is nymphing very well on stonefly patterns, and there have been fish seen swiping at orange strike indicators...you know what that means. (There ready for the big bugs!). Here's a shot of a typical Lewis Lake brown taken from the channel.

Heavy Runoff

Finally, everything in the region is in full runoff. The hot days and warm nights this past week have kicked things into high gear. The Green River is over 2,000 cfs, the New Fork River is over 3,200 cfs and the Snake is over 20,000 cfs in the Snake River Canyon. Needless to say, they are all very muddy and unfishable. The only game in town right now, as far as rivers go, is the South Fork of the Snake in Idaho. It is still at 11,900 cfs and is nymphing well. Dryfly should be just around the corner...come on stoneflies! We often hit the Big Hole River in Montana this time of year to catch the salmonflies, but the bugs are still not around. The river is running almost 5,000 cfs, which is very high for late June. Rachael and I took Charlotte to Jenny Lake yesterday for her first outing in a driftboat. She did very well! We managed to land a few lake trout in the process. Here's Charlotte (6 months old) on the water! More soon.

Summer is Here

The warmer temps are finally here, along with all of the RVs. We're seeing daytime temps into the high 70's with nighttime lows now above freezing. Summer has officially started in Jackson Hole. Along with it, most of the area freestone rivers and streams have doubled in size and completely muddied up. I guided on the Green River on Monday, from campground #2 to the Daniel Fish Hatchery. The river was slightly off color and slowly rising. Fishing was surprisingly good in the afternoon. My sole client netted three measurable browns and a handful of small rainbows on chernobyl ants. It was probably the last day for awhile...the river has more than doubled in size since then and is now totally blown out. I spent today on Jenny Lake with good friend, and fellow Jack Dennis guide, Scott Smith. We had a great day of fishing, landing numerous lake trout as well as some nice cutthroat on leech patterns. Here's a photo of Scott trying to spot some fish.

Wind River Canyon

My good friend John Holland and I left town Friday night for Thermopolis Wyoming, to fish the Wind River Canyon with Darren Calhoun on Saturday. It's quite possibly one of the greatest brown trout streams in the lower forty-eight. I try to get over there a couple of times a year with Rachael or John. The river was a little higher than we would have liked...3000 cfs out of Boysen Reservoir. Typically by mid-June, the cicada hatch is popping and the river is about half that flow. Since it has been so cold, the hatch has not started yet and the downstream irrigating demands are keeping the river higher. The fishing was a little tough, but we still managed to wrangle in some nice browns on streamers and large drys. It was a great day. For more info on this incredible fishery, please click on the link for Wind River Canyon Fishing, and also check out issue 8 of This is Fly. The article Conversations With the Wind was co-written by myself and Darren Calhoun.

One Last Snow Storm

It looks like the record winter of 2007-2008 had one last punch for us this week. We've had a rain/snow mix for the last couple of days here in the valley, with significant snow accumulating in the mountains and in Yellowstone. The Green River has dropped and cleared dramatically and the South Fork now seems to be stable at 12,000 cfs. I guided on the South Fork on monday and had decent fishing with some return clients. They boated about a dozen fish, mostly rainbows, on stonefly nymphs fished deep. The biggest was this 16" bow netted by Lil Parker. Nice fish! The forecast is for much warmer weather for the weekend with a drying trend. Summer may arrive yet. I'm heading to Thermopolis to fish the Wind River Canyon with Darren Calhoun on Saturday...look out for the next report!

South Fork Turns On

I floated the South Fork of the Snake today, from Palisades Dam to Spring Creek bridge with good friends Stan Czarniak and John Holland. The flows were down to 13,200 cfs, which is a much more reasonable level. Although it is still a little fast and green in color, it actually fished quite well. We picked up a few nice browns on streamers early in the day. The streamer fishing slowed, but the nymph fishing really turned on. We boated numerous rainbows all the way down on Pat's Stonefly in a size 6. None of these broke the 16" mark. The fish of the day was a Cutthroat on Stan's line that was lost just shy of the net...it looked like it would have easily gone 20". Here is a photo of Stan with a typical South Fork rainbow. More soon!

Springtime in the Rockies

Well, the weather just does not want to cooperate. It still continues to be cool and wet here in the region. The runoff is moving very slowly still, so we're still in a holding pattern on the Snake, Green, New Fork and most of the tributaries. The good news is that the Firehole continues to fish well and there have been good reports from Jenny Lake. Scott Smith went up on tuesday and did well, netting both lake trout and some cutthroat. The salmon flies are still around on the Henry's Fork, but the water is still somewhat high and off color. Despite this, it sounds like it's been decent fishing. The South Fork peaked late last week at 19,500 cfs and they are now dropping the levels. It's at 15,500 cfs today and will hopefully go a little lower. Within the next week or so, it should turn on nicely. Stay tuned. The above picture is a beautiful South Fork cutthroat taken on an adult PMD last July.