Flyin' By

I cannot believe that tomorrow is the last day of July. This summer is already going by way too fast for me. I think having had such a cold and wet June has set us up for a shorter summer psychologically. The good news is that fishing has been great, and should get even better as we get into August. The Snake River is now well below 4,000 cfs at Moose, and most of the tributaries are now low and clear. The Green River is below 800 cfs at Warren Bridge...a great level to wade or float fish. The South Fork of the Snake is at 11,700 cfs which is a good level going into August. Fishing the big bugs on the South Fork has been a little tough, but if you're willing to fish a little smaller (PMD's, Sallies and Caddisflies), then you'll likely have great dry fly fishing, particularly in the Canyon section. The Green is still fishing great on top...a variety of dry fly attractors should nail them. Get on early...the lower the river gets, the warmer the water will get and fishing will be tougher in the afternoons. As for the Snake, it is still a little high to wade fish, but if you can drift it, you should do OK. Fish are definitely looking for dries up and down the river. Most Chernobyl Ant patterns and mayfly attractors are working very well. It is still mostly smaller fish that are around right now. I have not seen a fish larger than 16" in my net on the Snake yet. Until the water gets lower in a few more weeks, the bigger fish will be holding tight in deeper water and in the spring creeks. This should make for a great September on the river. Don't miss the Flat Creek opener on Saturday...better be there at dawn. Here is a shot from last summer on Flat Creek on the National Elk Refuge with a big fish on. The second shot is of a pair of eagles, one mature and one juvenile bald eagle south of town this week on the Snake. More soon!

Monster Brown Trout

I finished this past week of guiding with a couple of days on the Snake below South Park bridge, all the way down to the West Table ramp. The fishing has really turned on down there. The water is still a little high at over 5,000 cfs, but the clarity is great. Small fish are around in the mornings on a variety of dry fly attractors, and the afternoons are seeing bigger fish on larger dry flies including the old standby: the chernobyl ant. The South Fork is still nymphing well, with dry fly fishing improving as the water temperature starts to rise. PMD's in the riffles, and dry attractors close to the banks. The Green is still dropping and clearing, with great dry fly fishing. As we move into August, look for better fishing in the mornings on the Green; the hot, bright conditions are not favorable for those large browns. I spent yesterday fishing on my day off with good buddy Stan Czarniak. We floated the North Fork of No Tell Creek and absolutely hammered brown trout on streamers. The cloud cover we woke up to stayed all day and really helped the fishing. Here is Stan with one of the largest fish I have seen in my boat in a very long time. This brown ate a black Sex Dungeon in deep, slow water. We measured him at just over 24" and estimated the fish to be between 5 and 6 pounds. Nice fish Stan! Can't wait to do it again. Coming soon: the opening of Flat Creek on the National Elk Refuge...see you there August 1st.

Rototilling

I spent the past couple of days guiding two of the nicest people you'll ever meet. Tim and Katie Stoner come up from Colorado to fish with me every year, and we usually have great fishing. This week was no exception. We floated the Green River the first day and had a blast. The morning saw countless smaller fish on drake patterns, while some larger fish made it to the net in the afternoon on large stonelfy dries and nymph droppers. Tim landed five that were 17" or better between 2 and 4 o'clock. The Green is in great shape right now...don't miss out. We tried the Snake today and did the Dam to Pacific run, which is still fishing very well. Situated above the silty Buffalo Fork, the water is gin clear and the fishing is great. The Snake is not generally known for having thick insect hatches, but just below Jackson Lake Dam is a different story. Caddis flies in the morning, followed by a very thick yellow sally hatch in the afternoon kept the fishing red hot on dry flies. The fishing is improving daily below Pacific Creek, with smaller fish starting to look up. My guiding buddy and friend Bart Taylor taught me a term a couple of years back called "Rototilling". (He's kind of a comedian). After asking him how fishing had been one day, he replied: "Hell...We rototilled fish all day." The image in my head immediately turned to a machine pulling fish up left and right. This is how fishing was today for Tim; he rototilled them from the Dam all the way to Pacific Creek...lots of fun! Here's Tim with a great Green River Brown. I've got a great new link on my list...check out Focus Productions. www.focusproductions.com .

Bows on Drakes

Local fishing continued to improve this past week in all directions. The Green River is continuing to drop and clear each day, with great hatches still pouring off. The mornings have seen thick grey and green drake activity, with stoneflies and PMD's in the afternoons. Floating is still the best option...the river is still a little high for wading on the BLM sites. The South Fork is now fishing with much better consistency. I guided through the canyon and upper sections this past week. Fishing was good on both. We picked up fish with everything we threw at them. Nymphing with strike indicators worked well; a rubberleg stonefly on top, with a yellow sally nymph trailer behind. Large stonefly dries, with beadhead droppers also picked up fish. By early afternoons, look for fish on PMD's feeding on top in the riffles. Although the river has only just recently turned on, these fish are already quite educated. We had many lookers and refusals on our big dry flies; the larger cutthroat in the riffles were also somewhat picky already. When I pulled out at Spring Creek bridge on Thursday, I counted over thirty driftboat trailers in the parking lot, so don't expect to have the South Fork to yourself anytime soon. I fished a marathon day with Stan Czarniak and Brian "This Is Fly" Hodges near Pinedale yesterday. Big rainbows on drakes...very fun. Don't miss the latest issue of TIF at http://www.thisisfly.com/. More soon!

Grey Drakes

I guided a couple of great local guys on the Green River yesterday.Scott Houfek and Dave Decker booked a trip with me for some Pinedale fishing. The river is improving, but is still moving fairly fast, and unfortunately, the section we decided to float (no tell section), was still a little too high to fish dries for large trout. The river has actually come up in volume the past few days...it is now hovering around 1,400 cfs. There is no shortage of bugs...plenty of grey drakes in the morning and a smattering of stoneflies in the afternoons, but very few fish were up on them. The nymphing was also lackluster. We picked up fish here and there through the day, but with no consistency. I'm headed to the South Fork Canyon tomorrow to see what's happening over there. With the river finally down below 13,000 cfs, and lots of bugs being reported, the fishing should be great. I think we'll be on the Snake in another week, as it is starting to show better clearing. Here is Dave Decker with our best fish of the day...nice fish Dave!

Finally Starting to Happen

We've finally turned a corner this week with some of the local fishing. The South Fork is now down to more reasonable flows...about 16,000 cfs and I've heard through the grapevine that there are lots of bugs up and down the river. It sounds like it will level around 13,000 cfs in a few more days. Once those fish have settled into their new water level, the dry fly fishing should light up. Until then, stonefly nymphs should work very well. Keep your eyes peeled for salmonflies and golden stones, along with caddis and maybe even some PMD's. The Green is now below 1,600 cfs and clearing; the fishing in Pinedale has drastically improved this week. Fish are being taken on gray drakes, and most stonefly patterns. The morning drake activity has been very thick. Dam to Pacific Creek on the Snake is still doing well...the rest of the river below the Buffalo Fork is still off color, but clearing daily. We should see good conditions on the Snake within two weeks. Here is Bob Maclean with one of a handful of monster browns that fell for dry flies near Pinedale on Tuesday...nice fish!

Dam To Pacific

I guided on the Snake today from Jackson Lake Dam to Pacific Creek, a short 2.5 mile float. I finally had quite a day up there; the dry fly fishing really turned on as we slowly worked the short section. The river is dropping day by day, and it has really helped the fishing. Below Pacific Creek is still muddy, and won't be fishable for a couple more weeks yet. We found many fish today, all on dry flies; Parachute Adams and red Chernobyl Ants were the ticket. There were good hatches all day, including Caddis flies and Yellow Sallies, but the fish were not picky. I went with good client Brad Shore, and his son Mikey. Here is Mikey (who just turned 7 years old), with his very first trout on a fly rod...caught on a dry fly no less. Nice Brown Mikey...great job! He also successfully landed a handful of nice Cutthroat today. A guide in the making! The second photo here is of my good buddy Fred Thranhardt...he just sent me this shot from his camera from a trip we did in June. It was a very memorable day...I guided him with local legend Charlie Howorth down the South Fork Canyon. It was the last day before they bumped up the water level to unfishable flows. These guys traded landing big fish all day...can't wait to do it again! More soon.

No Tell Canyon...Part Deux

The only upside to guide bookings being a little slow to start the summer is that I am able to get out fishing more. Brian Hodges and I spent another marathon day yesterday visiting our neighbors to the north in Big Sky Country on one of their finest stillwaters. Large fish were seen all day sipping adult drakes on the shore. It had its challenges, though. Once a fish was spotted, setting up just the right angle to cast was the key...without spooking the feeding fish. Another great day with Mr. Hodges...thanks Brian!

Still Limited Options

I cannot remember the last time we started the month of July around here with so few fishing options. Our huge snowpack combined with such a cold, wet June has given us a slow start to July. The Snake and its tributaries are still high and dirty. The South Fork of the Snake in Idaho is running very high...23,600 cfs. That is an unheard of flow for this time of year, if you look at its history. Palisades Reservoir is at capacity, and they are having to match outflows with inflows. Between the Snake, the Salt River, the Greys River and all of the Palisades tributaries, there is a lot of water still coming in. We are normally coming into prime time for the South Fork right now...not sure what the next week will hold. The Green is still high, but finally starting to drop. I guided there on Sunday with a few other guides and had very tough fishing. The water was fast and murky. Amazingly, we picked up a handful of Brown Trout on stonefly nymphs. Realistically, I think the Green will be at least another week away from better fishing. The Firehole River and Lewis Lake in Yellowstone are fishing well still, however, there is so much road construction in Southern Yellowstone, that it could take you 3 hours to get there from Jackson. Not great news for fishing guides. Now the good news: fishing will be phenomenal later this summer and fall...you can count on it! Here is Joseph Matuk with a nice Green River Brown from Sunday, netted in tough conditions. Nice job Joseph. More soon!

No Tell Canyon

Most anglers out there would admit to having at least one special spot, one great fishing hole, one secret little paradise that they can turn to now and then for some reliable, unspoiled fishing...a place that virtually no one knows about. That's what I call "No Tell Canyon". When I stopped by the fly shop late on Tuesday to pick up some drake patterns, one of the new guys working in the shop asked where I could possibly be going. After all, everything is high and muddy right now...there's no dry fly fishing, right? Where would there be drakes pouring off? Somewhere in Idaho...or was it Wyoming? Fortunately, I was able to spend the day Wednesday with This Is Fly editor Brian Hodges in No Tell Canyon, casting dry flies to 5 pound Brown Trout. Very memorable, and a beautiful day to float. I hope you all have at least one No Tell Canyon to visit now and then. Until then, we're still dealing with a high Snake, Green and South Fork. Things should be looking up in the next couple of weeks.

Tough On The South Fork

After a number of great days in the South Fork Canyon, it finally got tough this week. The powers- that- be in Idaho decided to bring the river up over 18,000 cfs on Wednesday. That was an increase of about 8,000 cfs. It has virtually brought the fishing to a halt. Not only is the water very high, it is stirring up debris and silt, further complicating things. I guided a newlywed couple on the upper South Fork on Wednesday, as they were bumping up the water flow. Despite the conditions, we picked up a few fish here and there. Julia and Jim had never fished out of a driftboat before, and their first experience with me was certainly a challenging one. They did great keeping their stonefly nymphs in the zone all day. We decide to skip the Canyon the next day, and headed for the Firehole. It's still fishing OK there, provided it is not too bright. Hopefully these high South Fork flows are not going to last too long, but no one has heard much yet. All of the reservoirs in the Snake River system are full, or near full, which is why they are moving the water; there is still some snow left to come down, and with the cooler weather these past two weeks, the runoff has stalled a little. Hopefully we'll see some hotter weather soon. Here is Jim Childress with a chubby brown we nailed on Wednesday. Nice fish Jim!

South Fork Canyon

My last post on Friday was after a tough day on the lower South Fork with Tom Smith. We fished streamers hard all day, with little luck. I took Tom down the Canyon section on Saturday and had a great day. We nymphed the entire day with fantastic results...many Brown, Rainbow and Cutthroat on stonefly nymphs in a variety of water. I guided again down the South Fork Canyon today with Fred Thranhardt and Charlie Howorth, a couple of great guys I take each year. The fishing was phenomenal. From the first cast, to the last, we had tons of action on stonefly nymphs in riffles, flats and many of the faster banks. Although Fred netted the biggest fish of the day, a 21" Brown trout, Charlie won the contest on numbers. He caught an obscene amount of fish, all from the back seat of the driftboat. He was like a Hoover vacuum today! Lots of fun! The river has been holding steady at 10,700 cfs for quite a while now, but I heard late today that it will be going up to at least 16,000 cfs on Thursday. So much for the good fishing in the Canyon. In my opinion, anything over about 14,000 cfs is very hard to fish on this river. Here are a couple of Charlie's fish from today. More soon!

Bass On The Fly

I had the chance yesterday to participate in the second annual Jackson Hole Bassmasters event on Ririe Reservoir, in Southeastern Idaho. It's an unlikely event situated in the heart of trout country, organized by local bassmaster Kevin Brazell. It was a blast! Seventeen teams of two fished from 8 am to 4 pm looking for the five heaviest fish they could find. An aerator in our cooler kept the fish safe and healthy until the 4 pm weigh-in. The fishing was great. We had excellent topwater action with medium sized poppers. I've always heard about the good smallmouth fishing on Ririe Reservoir, but in all the years I've lived here, I've never been. Scott Smith asked me to be his teammate and I gladly accepted. We actually placed 6Th, to my surprise. A pair of Victor, Idaho ladies took first place and the $1000.00 purse. There were some heavy fishing hitters there, including Will Dornan, Jeff Currier and Carter Andrews. I'm already looking forward to next year! As far as local trout fishing, the Firehole continues to fish well. I spent the day fishing there with good buddy Stan Czarniak on Tuesday. We did well on streamers and nymphs in the morning, and PMD's on top by mid-afternoon. The water is still fairly high, so be cautious when wading. I guided a pair of regular clients today on the lower South Fork...it was lackluster. Although the water level has come down, it is still murky. There is not a whole lot of visibility yet. The recent heavy rains (including today) are not helping. We struggled with streamers and netted a handful of smaller fish on stonefly nymphs. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks, we'll see some dryfly action begin. Here's a couple of shots of me and Will Dornan with some typical Ririe smallmouth. More soon!

Water Everywhere

After receiving above average snowfall this winter, most of the watersheds in the Intermountain West are reaping the benefits. Reservoirs are full, and the rivers are flowing big time. To top everything off, much of the region has been seeing heavy rains this past week which is the icing on the cake. Virtually all of the freestone rivers are high and muddy, and the tailwater rivers (dam release) are running very high. It's bad news for current fishing conditions, but it is like money in the bank for the summer and fall. The trout and insect life will benefit long term with these conditions. We will certainly see great fishing conditions this summer and fall, with eager, healthy trout on the hunt for food. The Snake River around Jackson is very high and muddy, and is most likely at its peak this weekend. The Green looks like it has peaked as well, with high flows. The Snake near Wilson was over 17,000 cfs yesterday, with almost 22,000 cfs entering Palisades Reservoir in Alpine. The Green is down a bit to 2300 cfs, from its peak last Wednesday of 3200 cfs. Recent drought areas from our neighbors in Montana are looking very good as well. The Big Hole River, which is part of the Missouri River headwaters, is looking great with plenty of water. Flows on the Missouri below Holter Dam last week were approaching 12,000 cfs, a level not seen in recent years. Great news...should be a great summer and fall up there! This Big Hole River brown is sure happy about it! Check out this shot of the Snake River from Wilson Bridge yesterday...over 17,000 cfs.

Thunderstorms

June has finally arrived, and with it has come some severe afternoon thunderstorms, more reminiscent of August. We are in a weather pattern right now that is giving us warm, clear mornings, and heavy downpours with lightning in the afternoons. All of this is helping our runoff continue. The Snake is at about 16,000 cfs at Moose, and quite muddy. The South Fork is slowly, but surely, turning on. I guided a trip there on Friday with some beginning anglers. We boated about a dozen fish on nymphs. The water is still green in color, with a few feet of visibility. The dry fly action should be turning on there in a couple of weeks. It's holding steady just below 13,000 cfs. Issue 17 of This Is Fly magazine just came out today...it's a great one, don't miss it! Go to http://www.thisisfly.com/. A great photo essay by Brian Hodges, a look at "gripping fish" by John Holland, and a look at some "fly doctors" are among some of the content of this issue. This photo of Chris Stump exemplifies one of the great joys I have in fly fishing...choosing just the right fly. More soon!