September is upon us, October coming soon!
Fall is on the way. Yep. But not before some more summer. Fall does not officially start until September and the Autumnal Solstice beginning the 4th week of this pivotal month.
Water temperatures will be falling and the days will becoming shorter. We are looking forward to tearing off August from the calendar. September is much more fishy than August. I don’t want to poo poo the month, but after a long and hot and rainless August, I for one am ready for a change.
So you oughtta think about your fall fishing plans. September will fly by and October and then November will be upon us.
What do the next few months bring?
Nymph Fishing is good!
September is one of our favorite nymphing months! With the slipping away of the summer weeds we like to see the nymphing bite go from variable, to solid. Pseudo’s begin coming off daily and we fantasize about the bigger BWO cousins that we will not see until October sometime.
October caddis are present sub-surface as well as the tiny Pseudo’s. Cezh nymphs and sow bugs will fill our boxes as we move through this historically good nymphing month. Dam to Crai his always a good stand by but the remainder of the river is wide open too. Craig and beyond, the canyon becomes popular again, and the Cascade lovers will be sniffing around looking for some early BWO action. Those who are damn good at skittering flies, which is actually very few, can get a few on the lower reach.
September Dry Fly No-ish. October Yes.
September is not always the best dry fly fishing. Can you get them on those awful small mayflies out there? Sure you can. But it is not for the faint of heart, or those who are not really quite good at putting flies near trout and drifting perfectly. You can throw a dry even if you are not a great caster/drifter. Ants, hoppers and the like blind fished during those sunny afternoons will ring large browns and rainbows to the net. So there is hope. Blind fishing is always a stepping stone to the techy dry fly stuff.
And as I have mentioned in lengthy blogs in the past not everybody wants to be a stodgy dry fly dude. Some just like to catch a few fish. Not everybody strives to be a DFO feller. Honest.
The beauty of the Missouri River is, as I like to state often, that it presents challenges for every angler at whatever skill level he/she is at. You don’t have to go looking for the hardest stingy brown trout that you can find. You really don’t and those who try to say that can go climb a tree. It is cool if you want to fish the grass flats. Get after it.
The trout certainly are more active as the water temps fall the next 2 months.
October Dry Fly Fishing is Good. Some years better than others. BWO’s mid-month sometime. Hopefully. The past couple years not as good on the BWO as we would like. This year could be different? Maybe?
Back to the plot we have set out here...September is generally known as great nymphing month. Deeper in the morning, shorter in the afternoon. Rig 4′-6′ in the morning session moving it up to 1′-3′ as the bugs move upwards in the water column. Some of my best nymph days have been in September. Shoot, some of my best blind fishing terrestrials have been in November. The fish do break free of that August slump and begin to fatten up for fall and winter!
Where do I stay this fall?
Our local lodging has nights and great periods open during the next 10 weeks. Check out our comprehensive lodging site, 20+ cabins starting @ $110/night www.CraigLodging.com or the premier nightly rentals in downtown Craig Montana with the rivers most popular spot including 4 rental properties at the Craig Trout Camp.
Streamer Junkies like the Fall Period
Streamer fishing is good. Some say the spring is the best on the Mo. Could be. But that is too many months away and the fall is approaching. Get out your buggers and beyond. Start getting after those streamer casting arm exercises so you are prepared for an all week long streamer adventure. You don’t have to throw it that long, but mornings are good. Rain wetted cloudy days are also good. The weeds should go away making the Mighty Mo a Disneyland for Streamer Junkies.
Call the Missouri River Hotline
Summer is not over. No-way. We can prepare ourselves for the fall fly fishing season. Call anytime any-day to speak with Julie or Sara or Ben or Dewey or Braden or…we are standing by 406-235-3447. Your Missouri River Direct Information Line.
Fall is coming. We like it. We’ll see you on your favorite dry fly flat ohhh so very soon. Take care, enjoy your Monday, and call today to set up your fall dream trip to Craig Montana’s Missouri River.