Driving For Dollars

From a guiding standpoint, it has certainly been a tough, slow start to the fishing season. Cold, wet weather during April and May, coupled with an enormous snowpack and raging muddy rivers has put local fishing guides behind the eight ball from a work standpoint this season. Unless you are lucky enough to be licensed on the Henry's Fork, area fishing guides are experiencing a lean start to the 2011 season. With the Snake River and Green River running very high and muddy still, there are not many options yet on places to take eager clients. The South Fork is slowly turning on, as levels drop, and the water clears. It is by no means "on fire" yet...deep, weighted nymphs being drifted through murky water is the name of the game over there now. That leaves us with Yellowstone. I'm fortunate to be a licensed fishing guide in Yellowstone National Park. The good news is that the Firehole River, as well as Lewis and Yellowstone Lakes are all fishing well right now. Despite this, it is harder to convince clientele to pull the trigger on these trips. Although wading the Firehole, or fishing the lakes has been productive, most folks that arrive here want to float the big rivers. Depending on where we are heading, you are looking at least an hour and forty-five minute drive...maybe as much as two hours and fifteen minutes...each way. This adds up to a ton of windshield time. I'm happy to have the work, and good fishing, but they are long days.

Native Cutthroat

One of my favorite outings on a day off (or as a guide), is to spend the day on Yellowstone Lake looking for Native Yellowstone Cutthroat trout. They are a strong, beautiful strain that takes streamers easily this time of year. Casting sink-tip lines with small black buggers is a sure ticket to success on the lake right now. When I first moved to the valley and discovered the lake, two anglers netting 40 or 50 fish a day in the 14-16" range was not uncommon. The illegal introduction of Lake Trout in the early 90's has changed this, though. Fish numbers are down drastically; a couple of good anglers may net 8 or 10 fish on a good day right now, with sizes now averaging a healthy 18-21". Fortunately, the park service is in the process of adopting new policies on how to deal with the non-native Lake Trout, and are now taking more aggressive measures to get them out of the lake.


I spent the day yesterday with my good buddy Charlie Howarth on the Lake. He had never fished it before, and was pleasantly surprised. With most rivers in the area still high and muddy, don't miss the lake right now!
The South Fork is now back down to 15,000 cfs, and slowly clearing. The riffles in the Canyon section are starting to nymph well with rubber-leg Stoneflies. The Firehole also continues to fish OK...it's still high in volume, but quite clear. Look for small Stoneflies in the afternoon. Don't be afraid to throw a streamer either. The tributaries in the valley really took a jump this week with much warmer weather and thunderstorms. Pacific Creek, the Buffalo Fork, the Gros Ventre and Spread Creek all spiked to much higher, muddier levels. We're gettin' there!

I want to thank my good friend Scott Smith for organizing the Rafter J kids fishing day that will be taking place tomorrow. Rafter J is the subdivision south of Jackson that we live in. Scott took charge with the homeowners association to come up with a plan to stock more Cutthroat Trout in our ponds for the many Rafter J kids to enjoy. You gotta turn them on young! More soon...

Still Wet

Rachael and I returned last night from a road trip with the girls to Winthrop, Washington, where we attended a friends wedding. By the looks of things around here, it has been unseasonably wet and cool still while we were gone. The high country is still loaded with snow, and area rivers remain high and muddy. The Upper Snake River drainage is at 677% of normal snowpack, and the Upper Green River drainage is at a staggering 1162% of normal as of today. This essentially means that there is an abnormally high amount of snow left for this time of year in our local mountains. Each day that the weather remains cool, or we pick up more snow, the numbers will increase. It will be hard to say for sure exactly when we will be able to fish on the Snake and its tributaries, or the Green River for that matter. Although the South Fork is now back up in volume to 17,100 cfs, it sounds like the nymph fishing is really turning on. The river is clear enough to fish, and fish are likely beginning to look for stonefly nymphs.

While on our road trip, we crossed over some very hallowed trout water, including the Henry's Fork, Beaverhead, Big Hole and Clark Fork rivers. With the exception of the Beaverhead, all of these watersheds were well above flood stage, with a muddy torrent carrying debris downstream. I had never been to Winthrop, Washington before. It is located on the Eastern side of the Northern Cascade mountain range. It's a very pretty mountain town, with the famous Methow River running right through it. Winthrop is serious Steelhead and stillwater country. Although the Methow (and every other river in the area) where also high and muddy, I was able to get some fishing in on Davis Lake for some really wild Rainbow Trout. It was good fun.
Here's a couple of shots from the trip. Davis Lake, with a lone float-tuber; the Big Hole river at Melrose, raging at over 10,000 cfs; the Clark Fork River at Missoula, at least 3 feet above flood stage...wow!

More Options!

With the arrival of mid-June, a couple of more fishing options have opened up for us around here. The Henry's Fork Ranch, as well as Yellowstone Lake opened to fishing for the season yesterday. June 15th is always a welcome date in this region, particularly in years like this where most fisheries are high and muddy. The "Ranch" opener is a big deal with Henry's Fork aficionados; the first day on this hallowed piece of water offers anglers a better chance to stalk large, educated Henry's Fork Rainbow Trout and actually have a decent chance of sticking one.
Not much else to report around here. The Snake and its tributaries, as well as the Green River drainage are high and muddy. The South Fork has been lowered to a reasonable 15,000 cfs. This is great news...as it starts to make its transition from brown to green, it will start to fish.
The birdwatching in the area is fantastic right now. Here's a couple of shots of a beautiful Western Tanager that has been visiting our yard. More soon!

Where to Fish?

The most asked question that I have been fielding lately from friends and readers is just where should we be fishing right now? Needless to say, virtually all of the rivers in the region are high and muddy. Most of Idaho and Montana are also facing the same issues right now. The Firehole River in Yellowstone National Park remains the best option if you want to wet a line on a moving stream. Although it has come up in volume significantly (1,450 cfs near the confluence with the Madison River, which is at flood stage), it is still clear enough to fish the good June hatches near Old Faithful. Don't be afraid to throw small streamers as well, especially in the deeper areas. Although the Henry's Fork below Ashton has had good reports of Salmonfly activity, the boat and wading traffic has been record-breaking...good luck.
Stillwater fishing is probably your next best option right now. Henry's Lake, Hebgen Lake and Jackson Lake all have been putting out decent reports over the past week or so. Yellowstone Lake will be opening on June 15th. It typically fishes very well out of the gate with plenty of elbow room.


My buddy Chris Stump and I, (along with his 2 year old son George!), headed out to Jenny Lake a couple of days ago for a test run. Fishing was good. We saw a few Cutthroat and Lake Trout on streamers, and the flying ant hatch was starting to happen as well. We saw numerous fish on top taking advantage of them.
Much warmer weather this past weekend, along with thunderstorms, has really caused a bump in water flows in the area. Check out these incredible water graphs from the Snake River above Palisades Reservoir, the Big Hole River, near Melrose Montana, the Bitterroot River near Missoula, Montana, and the Clark Fork River near Missoula, Montana. Wow!
Here's a couple of shots from Jenny Lake the other day, including young George with a Lake Trout...nice one!

Fishin' With Currier

I had the chance yesterday to spend the day with Jeff Currier fishing Island Park Reservoir, in Southeastern Idaho. It was great fun. Jeff spent over 20 years running the Jack Dennis Sports fly shop in downtown Jackson (where I first met him), and has since left to work for himself. He is a highly talented artist and angler that has truly figured out a way to make a living doing exactly what he loves. He lives and breathes fly fishing. While spending time with him, you quickly realize that his passion for the sport is highly contagious. Jeff's angling experiences, artwork, photography and stories has allowed him to be a freelance steward for the sport. Most notably, he has caught over 275 species of fish on a fly, in over 40 countries. This is why Jeff is the go-to authority on exotic fly fishing travel.

Jeff called me this week to see if I wanted to join him on an exploratory mission. With the lower Henry's fork jammed with boats hoping for a Salmonfly sighting, and the rest of the rivers in the region high and muddy, we decide to try something different. We set out for Island Park Reservoir in hopes of hooking into some large Rainbow's. Windy conditions made for tough fishing, but we spent the day trading some truly great stories. Make sure to check out Jeff's Global Fly Fishing Blog to see what he has been up to lately.

I was able to get up on the Firehole this week as well, guiding some folks from Louisiana. The river is in great shape...flows are tea-colored and relatively low. The winds gusted toward 30 mph, which made it tough on these greenhorns though. Relentless tangles and a broken rod tip made for a long outing.

Temps are trying to climb into the 70's this weekend, which should help the runoff to kick in again. Cold nights, though, have been stalling the effort...the past two nights have seen temps in the high 20's. The Green is back up over 1,100 cfs, the South Fork is at 23,000 cfs and the Snake has been lowered to 3,990 cfs out of the dam in anticipation of the tributaries coming up any day. The most staggering stats can be seen on the Wyoming Snowpack Data website. The Snake River Basin is now well over 300% of normal snowpack...wow! Check out the other amazing numbers on this site. Will the snow ever melt?

Here's a few shots from our outing yesterday, including a classic of me with a monster sucker and one of Jeff's famous tailgate. FYI...catching a sucker of this magnitude takes quite a bit of skill on a flyrod :) More soon!

Western Wyoming Water Report

I wish that I was able to report more information to my readers on actual fly-fishing conditions lately...instead, this journal has temporarily turned into a "water report". With each day of cold, wet conditions that has passed this week, the snowpack figures have climbed. As of yesterday, the snowpack around Jackson Hole has climbed to a staggering 230% of average for this time of year. Since virtually nothing is melting yet in the high country, the figure keeps climbing. The Snake is still holding at almost 10,000 cfs near Moose, and the South Fork is running a very muddy 21,000 cfs near Irwin, Idaho. The Green River has been fluctuating between 700 and 1,000 cfs this week, and the Henry's Fork is also running huge. I guided on the Green last Monday near Warren Bridge, and had lackluster results. The clarity was about 2 feet, and the fishing was slow. We picked up a couple of Browns in the 17" class on nymphs. Next week looks like it is finally going to warm up and dry out. Bridger-Teton National Forest officials this week predicted that the Snake will not peak in the Snake River Canyon until the fourth week of June; this would be very late. I'm hoping we will at least get better conditions by late June on the Green or South Fork. I would imagine by next week, we will see the Snake river ramping up into the high teens around Moose.

Fishing in Yellowstone National Park opens today. Although the lakes are still under ice, the Firehole is probably fishing nicely right now. Since it's the only game in town, I would be aware of crowds. There's a forecast for snow all weekend in Yellowstone...should spark some good dry fly fishing on the river. I'd love to hear any reports from the weekend if anyone is on the Firehole; I won't make it up there until late next week.

Also, it looks like they are about to get one lane of traffic open through the Snake River Canyon at the site of the mudslide...good news for commuters. Check the WYDOT website for road conditions. Here's a picture from the Green River from this week...a typical scene lately with dark, cloudy conditions.

Canyon Still Closed

US Highway 26/89 remains closed through the Snake River Canyon since a massive mudslide hit the road on May 16th. The mudslide has finally stopped creeping across the road, and WYDOT has now hired an excavating company to begin the process of removing the debris. They have cautioned that if any instability in the slide begins again, they will need to stop removing debris until it is safe. This past week ended up being a little drier than was forecast, which probably helped the situation. If the rains return, we may see the mudslide come back to life. Check out this video below that WYDOT released...it's an incredible time lapse shot of the moving debris from last week. When it was filmed, the slide was moving about 1 foot per minute. Make sure to visit the WYDOT website for the latest.

On Thursday night, I attended the spring water meeting held by Mike Beus, the operations manager for the Bureau of Reclamation. Dozens of anglers, river runners and ranchers were in attendance to hopefully learn details of how our water will be managed this summer out of Jackson Lake. Although Mike was well prepared with tons of historical data on the river and snowpack, he fell short on predicting what our summer flows will look like on the Snake. The situation we are in most resembles the 1996, 1997 and 2010 years, with a cool, wet spring on a very large snowpack. With our regional snowpack at 200% of average, and no crystal ball available on our weather forecasting, it's just too hard to tell exactly what the runoff will look like right now. Mike Beus certainly has a tough job. He's in charge of managing flows from Jackson Lake Dam, as well as Palisades Reservoir downstream. It's a balancing act of predicting runoff levels with how much water they want to end up in the lakes at the end of the summer. Anglers, rafters, kayakers and ranchers all have different questions and needs in years like this. Hopefully, we will begin warming soon and the Snake and its tributaries will peak by mid-June.
I spent the day near Pinedale last Wednesday with Scott Smith and Ben Brennan exploring the lower New Fork River in search of a spring fishing option. With some clients showing up tomorrow to fish a few days, I am in need of somewhere to take them, and this seemed like a good option. It was tough; relentless streamer action and nymphing only netted us a couple of fish. The water was still cold, and the clarity was marginal. It was a fun outing with some good buddies...here's Ben and Mokie doing a great job keeping Scott on the goods. Not sure where we'll fish this week...

Mudslides

If anyone out there is doubting just how much snow and rain we have had this winter and spring, just check out these pictures. A massive mudslide has closed US Highway 26/89 through the Snake River Canyon south of Jackson. Huge amounts of melting snow with a heavy rainfall on top of it caused the slide at milepost 127. Early attempts to clear the slide have failed, and WYDOT officials have said that it could be many weeks before the highway reopens. As of yesterday, the mudslide was measured at 300 feet wide, 40 feet tall and 2,000 feet long. Check out this link to learn more from the Jackson Hole News. Here's an additional link to WYDOT to help keep you informed on the latest.


Rachael and I took the girls to Yellowstone National Park on Sunday for an outing up to Old Faithful. Here's a couple of photos that I took of the snowpack from the Lewis Lake boat ramp...impressive!

Finally Warming Up

As I write this report, the skies outside today are sunny and the temps are in the low 60's...finally! Tomorrow is forecast to be even warmer. With near record amounts of rain last week, and a warming trend this week, rivers in the region have surged. The Snake is approaching 8,000 cfs at Moose, the Green has spiked up over 500 cfs, and the South Fork is back above 18,000 cfs. With the Henry's Fork also huge, there are virtually no options right now in this area to wet a line. The 10-day forecast has temps cooling a bit, but with rain moving back in; this should still help get the snowmelt started. If you're lucky enough to find some private water (like Scott Smith did in this photo), you may bump into a trophy. My buddy Scott was invited over to the Legacy Ranch in Southeastern Idaho last week to fish some private stillwater. The ranch is listed for sale through Livewater Properties, a local real estate company specializing in fishing properties. I'd like to say that Scott was in the market for purchase, but he was just on an exploratory mission with a friend who works for Livewater. The fish of the day was this 11 pound, 30" Rainbow Trout. Nice one Scott! Casting to trophy fish is just what Scott needed...it was early practice for an adventure Scott and I have planned for the Fall...more on that later.


I'd say that the next thing to put on the fishing calendar would be the opening of Yellowstone National Park to fishing on Memorial Day Weekend...the Firehole should at least be fishable by then, although there will probably be more snow visible on the banks now, than in this photo. Stay tuned...

Water Everywhere

I have had a number of fishing clients and friends get in touch with me recently with concerns about their upcoming fishing trips to Wyoming this spring and summer. The worry is that when they arrive, the runoff may still be happening, and clear water may be hard to find. Well, looking at this photo (click to enlarge) would make me wonder too. The University of Wyoming Water Resource Data System has updated their water-content map. These numbers are incredible. After a very wet winter across the state, you can see that the driest area is still at 129% of normal for early May. From there, the numbers just get higher. On top of this, the weather around the Western part of the state has still been wet, and very cool...there has been virtually no runoff yet. So what does it all mean? I guess the worst case scenario is that May and early June continue to be cooler and wet (which has happened before), which means a delayed runoff. If this happens, we may not see many low, clear streams and rivers until early August. Hopefully, we will start to see a warming, drying trend which should get this snow melt started. Bureau of Reclamation officials are emptying both Jackson Lake and Palisades Reservoir on the Upper Snake River to make room. I would think that the best case at this point, is that the Green and Snake Rivers would be ready to fish by mid July, at the very earliest. In reality, we may not have the Snake and its tributaries until early August, and the Green and South Fork will be higher than normal...which is OK. In the end, it is still good news...we are certainly out of any drought scenario; fish and insect life will prosper! Visit WRDS to learn more.
This second photo is a great shot that my buddy Bobb Cannella took near the Upper Snake River a few days ago...a spring Griz looking for food. Keep your eyes open out there!

Still Winter

Scott Smith and I guided our first trips of the season yesterday on the Snake River. It was a tough decision on where to take our anglers. The South Fork is still running large, cold and green at over 18,000 cfs, and the Snake is also rolling at a good clip at well over 5,000 cfs at Moose. We had initially thought of heading toward Pinedale to try the Green River, but yesterdays forecast called for wind, cold and snowy conditions. Since the Green is at a much higher elevation than Jackson, we were nervous to try an area that could have been even colder and windier. In addition, the flows at Warren Bridge right now are extremely low...under 100 cfs. We decided to try the Snake, from Wilson to South Park. It is a very braided section, with numerous sidechannels to explore, and many spring creeks joining the river where hungry trout may congregate. The fishing yesterday was tough...no surprises there. It was cold the entire day (even when the sun tried to peek through), and the wind did not help either. The few fish we hooked were found in very slow water on nymphs running deep. Some of my favorite channels actually were even running too fast, so finding fish was tough. It's always nice getting that first trip under the belt each season...I wish the fishing had been a little easier for these guys though. Weather today: still cold with wind.

Check this link to Trout Unlimited to enter yourself in a sweet photo contest...good luck! Didn't snap a single picture yesterday...too cold! Here's a couple of shots that I took last week on the National Elk Refuge...my daughters Charlotte and Hannah love to look for wildlife!

Easter Getaway

My buddy Stan Czarniak and I returned last night from a great spring getaway to wonderful Melrose, Montana and the Big Hole River. With rivers around here high and off color, a trip North was in order. We floated three days and had a blast. River flows and water clarity were perfect for this time of year. For those of you not familiar with the Big Hole River, it begins its journey near Wisdom, Montana (in Southcentral Montana), and meanders through miles of pristine public and private land before joining the Beaverhead River near Twin Bridges.

It is an extremely beautiful river, with something for everyone; Brown and Rainbow trout dominate through alpine meadow, canyon and cottonwood environments. Although the most famous hatches are the Mother's Day Caddis and June Salmonfly hatch, early spring can often produce great topwater action on Skwala stoneflies. This weekend was no exception. Warmer temps and nice skies awaited us in Big Sky Country. We picked up fish on streamers, nymphs and Skwala dries.
The fish that were eating on top were in some very specific water. Fast water and riffles did not do the trick; these fish were holding off banks with a medium speed and depth to them; the tailouts were the best.
It's fun being able to fish large dries this time of year!

As always, Ryan Barba, owner of the Sunrise Fly Shop in Melrose, took excellent care of us. Flies, shuttles, gear (and an excellent Lasagna dinner!) awaited us there. If you're thinking about the Big Hole, check these guys out. The weather around Jackson today: back to snowshowers and cooler temps.

I'm ready for it to warm up...time to get this runoff started. The Snake is rolling at over 5,000 cfs at Moran (and very green in color), and the South Fork is now over 18,000 cfs and also very green. Stay tuned for a Pinedale report. More soon!

Getting Organized

We woke up yesterday morning to a few inches of wet snow in our neighborhood, and reports of 11" of snow near the South gate of Yellowstone. This winter weather has certainly had a stronghold on us. I've got some guided fishing trips on the books for next week, and am starting to wonder where I am going to take these guys. The conditions right now around here could be tough on beginners. The Snake is now running a cold 4,950 cfs out of Jackson Lake Dam (with a dark green tint) and the South Fork is now above 16,000 cfs (and also cold), and may climb higher. Some buddies are heading South to do some Pinedale reconnaissance this week, so hopefully we'll get a decent report.
I'll be heading up to Southcentral Montana for the weekend to get my first few days on the oars and some much needed playtime with some friends on the river. The Big Hole looks like it may be in prime spring shape...my fingers are crossed!


I've been spending the past few days tinkering with gear, and getting ready for the season. The boat is about ready and the flies are almost organized. Streamer organization in particular is fun...they are easy to see and I love the colors.

Check out the latest video from Scott Smith...this should wet the appetite!

Thanks Everyone!

As the Western Wyoming Fly Fishing Journal breaks the 20,000 pageview mark, I'd like to say thanks to everyone who has checked it out and stayed in touch! It's been fun sharing photos and stories, while also trying to give a no-nonsense fishing report for the region. The snow and water continue to accumulate around here. It's been a very wet week, with more forecast for next week. The Snake River is on its way up to at least 5,000 cfs (it's at 2,640 cfs today). The river is starting to look more green (and less clear) at the Wilson Bridge. If you did not hit the Snake over the past month, your window may be closing. Cold, high flows in April will make for some tougher fishing. Bureau of Reclamation officials are dumping water all over the region to make room for the large snowmelt that is looming. The South Fork is climbing also, with a reading today of 15,000 cfs. Although the water is cleaner over there, the temps are likely very cold, so fish it deep and slow.
The Green River is nearing 200 cfs near Warren Bridge...the shelf ice is starting to break up there, and probably very cold still. The elevation there is over 7,000 feet, and usually warms up a bit later. Even though it does not feel like spring (see the snowy photo I snapped from our kitchen window this morning), the local wildlife is starting to move around.

This is a great time of year to not only find Moose, Elk, Deer and Bear on the move, but also the fantastic bird life. An early morning walk a few days ago with the kids was productive...numerous raptors (like this one), and Red-Winged Blackbirds were abundant. The Red-Wings are one of my favorites. They tend to hang out near the the willows and trees along the river bottom. Flat Creek runs through our neighborhood, and the the Red-Wings are staring to settle in now near the water. When I hear their unique call, I think of fishing!