Whelp. Ummmmmm. Hmmmmmmmm. Don’t even know where to start this week. I’m not a doom-and-gloom kinda guy, mostly, but things have not been all that great around here this week. I’ve spent a fair amount of time walking the Ranch, sitting out here behind the shop, and driving Wood Road to Millionaires to The Box takeout looking for heads up. Key words there: walking and sitting and driving; general reports from everyone are mostly the same. We did have some normal messy June weather roll in earlier in the week and a couple of very buggy mornings, but with that came a series of bumps in flow. We are at 1600 cfs out of IP Res as I type this Saturday afternoon with the probability of it going to 1800 soon. She’s high and a touch off-color but certainly not unfishable, however, we are approaching the threshold of flows when the old-timers say the river shuts down. Talk with those out this week, they’d probably say it’s already shut down. That said, some anglers are still finding some targets. We are expecting a warm up into the mid-80s for a couple of days and then a return to more normal highs with a slight chance of afternoon showers. The forecast for “W” doesn’t seem to be too bad this week which is a bonus. Man it’s been blowy! Water temperatures are still holding in a good trout place, but fishing has been better early and late. Short and sweet, folks. It’s never a good start when the weather and flows make up most of my introduction.
Box Canyon (1600 cfs, about 1800 below the Buffalo): The Box was pretty good this week for the most part. Some of the guides did well running dry Golden Stones through the canyon and found some fish up eating Gray Drake Spinners coming into the boat ramp. We should see more Gray Drake activity with the higher flows as they like the big water. Nymphing Rubberlegs and small bead heads or running a couple of small flies has been the most productive method. Have your Perdigons, Daggers, PTs, Zebra Midges, Leeches, and Streamers. Be careful if you’re pleasure-floating in tubes or don’t have much experience rowing. It’s cooking in there and can be very dangerous if you’re not paying attention. We always have some river rescues at these flows.
Last Chance and The Ranch: It’s been very section-oriented in The Ranch this season. The most consistent reports of rising fish are coming from the middle areas and lower section below Osborne Bridge. There are pockets of good insect activity. I’ve seen way more PMDs this summer than last, so that is encouraging. It’s just been more a matter of right-place right-time, finding numbers of rising fish, fish that aren’t one and done, or fish maniacally cruising making it difficult to get any kind of read on the next rise. I chased a fish for 50 yards and 30 minutes the other morning before it gave me the fin. Brown Drakes have been pretty solid but seem to be on the wane, however, there are still some duns and spinners around. Expect Flav, PMD, and Rusty Spinners in the mornings as well as Caddis of all sizes. We are still seeing some Green Drakes, but I think that’s petering out as well. Flav and Gray Drake activity has picked up here behind the shop and should be good for the foreseeable future if the trout will cooperate. Talk about early… there are Tricos and Callibaetis around already, which is just adding to the weirdness of hatches this summer. Normally, we don’t see those bugs until late July into August. Have your Ants and Beetles handy. At this rate, we could see Honey Ants tomorrow. Haaaaaaa. Just kidding. Kind of. We should really start seeing fish holding on the banks at these flows which is always fun, so tread lightly, walk slowly, and pay close attention. All we can do is keep plodding along at this point; no use pissing and moaning as we’re all in the same boat here. I went two days without making a cast and then had a decent morning. Heads up, friends. Keep hunting. On a positive again, the fish being caught are healthy and biiiig!
Warm River to Ashton: “Old Steady” continues to be one of the more reliable stretches of water in the area. The boys have been running Golden Stones, Chubbies, etc with dropper setups and doing pretty well. There are Caddis, PMDs, and Flavs around as well. I wouldn’t hesitate to start throwing some terrestrials around either.
Below Ashton: Hit and Miss. The afternoon bite has been tough, but mornings have seen good PMD and Flav spinner falls, some Caddis activity, and some fish up. We are getting a few fish to look up at a Golden Stone as well. It just hasn’t been its reliable dry fly self off the hill lately.
The Madison (700 cfs at Hebgen and 780 at Kirby): A slight bump in flow this week out of Hebgen Lake is a welcome sight. It’s still pretty easy to get around on foot in the wade stretch. If you’re chasing Salmonflies in the float section, expect massive crowds and limited shuttle services after lunch as they try to keep up with the throngs of floaters. That said, The Maddy has been fishing well, hence the crowds. Salmonflies, Golden Stones, PMDs, and Caddis are on the menu.
Yellowstone NP: The Madison, Gibbon, and Firehole are still on “Hoot Owl” restrictions, so no fishing after 2pm. Honestly, it’s best to simply leave them alone for now. The Northeast Corner is coming into shape and fishable barring any afternoon storms. Your best bets continue to be the Gallatin and Gardner Rivers. The Yellowstone River below Fishing Bridge opens on July 1st and looks very fishable. I’m looking forward to reports from the opener. If you’re heading into the park, have Caddis, PMDs, Salmonflies, Golden Stones, Green Drakes, and a variety of other fishy flies. Don’t get sucked into the Usual Suspects in Yellowstone. There is such an enormous variety of water that often goes untouched. Grab the bear spray and take a hike!
Stillwaters: There has been some good dry fly fishing on Hebgen as the Gulpers are starting to wake up and are looking for Tricos and Callibaetis. Have Damsels, Caddis, and Midges as well. Hanging a PT, Turkey Tail, or other Callibaetis nymphs or Chironomids off an indicator fly can be productive if the gulpers are not cooperating. Not getting many reports out of Henry’s Lake, but I suspect the fish have moved to the creek mouths and springs. I may try to head over there one morning this week and drag some Thin Mints, Leeches, Scuds, Renegades, and Damsels around.
Have a safe and wonderful 4th of July weekend. We will have fireworks on the 4th at dark. We are here in the shop from 7am to 8ish pm. Stop in if we can help.
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