Fishing Report

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]There’s going to be some folks out on the water this weekend. With temps near 70’s, and minor flooding shutting down a few streams around the state, we expect to see plenty of folks on the Missouri. We’ve had plenty roll through the shop this week. Fishing reports are all over the place, but yesterday we heard more bad ones than good. Here’s a couple pieces of advice that we hope brings you some success this weekend.

Let’s Get Small

Downsize those flies! Most Missouri River anglers throw a big “bomb” fly on the lead of their nymph rig during the spring. Usually it works. But not always. If you’re rolling through known spots and not getting any response, consider going to two small flies. Both small mayflies and midge patterns will work, and we wouldn’t hesitate to try a #18 sow bug. It may not be as fun as that big BH Pink/Gray scud, but you’ll actually be eating the primary food source for trout in March. Midges.

You will need to add some shot to your leader to achieve the right depth instead of relying on a heavy tungsten bead lead fly. I commonly switch to a weighted nymph rig with two contrasting midge beadheads (1 black, 1 cream or red) in the winter/spring, especially if; a) I’ve found a few fish in a spot and want to catch more, or b) am in water I know should produce but isn’t, or c) it’s cloudy and the midges are hatching. And I can’t stress this enough: If you are in a good spot that you know holds fish this time of year… do not leave until you hook at least a few!

Get Out of the Boat

Sometimes it pays to slow down. Even on a slow moving river like the Missouri, you are covering water much quicker from a boat than you would while wading. If you’ve hit a few of your favorite boat spots and still have a Zero on the scoreboard, stop the boat at the next one and spend a few minutes wade fishing. Mark and I did this the other day in a handful of spots and were rewarded in each of them (photo above). Sometime those fish need to see that fly a few times before they eat it. And i’m always amazed at how they will eat that big “bomb” fly if they see it go past their nose a dozen times.

Most of us have spend $250-700 on a good pair of waders. Use them.

Have Fun

We hope everyone enjoys the warm weather this weekend. We will be open and ready at 8am, and likely at the shop until dark Saturday evening. Swing on in and get the lowdown. The middle river is fishing well, so don’t feel the need to head to Holter. Humans are not heard animals. Izaaks won’t be open for another week, but you can grab a Tombstone at Joe’s, meander up to the Oasis in Wolf Creek, head down to Cascade, or throw the Hibachi in the ring and cook some food at the campground. If you plan on camping Saturday night, I’d probably grab a spot before you fish. I bet the Craig FAS is full tomorrow evening.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The ice is gone on the upper river, most of the ramps are clear and the first thunderstorms of 2017 rolled through unannounced last night. We’ve just experienced two consecutive days with temperatures around 60 degrees and the forecast for the next week looks pretty darn good. There will probably be some wind along with the moderate air temps, but there’s often a little wind around these parts. I’ll take a day of fishing in just a puffball with a breeze any day in February.

I’ve had a chance to spend a little time on the water this week, and have been in the shop listening to incoming reports form a wide variety of single and two-handed anglers. Reports have been either “very good” or “blanked” for the most part. I blame the division among anglers on our new administration…

Or, it could be that the water is super cold (and feels it), and the fish are both tanked up and lethargic.

My findings this week? The cold water definitely has the fish tanked up in slow water, and even when you find them you really have to pay attention to detect a take. With water temperatures right around 35° (my feet say 25°), you’ll get more of a “grab” or a “stop” than a “hit”. You almost need to anticipate that tightness in your line or full stop in your indicator.

Like many of the anglers I’ve seen and talked to this week, I’ve been swinging the two hander exclusively. My best setup has been a Skagit rig (OPST Commando) rigged with a 5×5 MOW T8 tip. After that, 4 1/2 feet of 2X. As for flies, I’ve had success on both black and olive leech patterns like the Pig-Pen Leech. All of the patterns I’ve used were unweighted or weighted lightly. I’ve also heard some angler talk of Foxy Clousers and other minnow patterns producing. While I’m usually a big fan of the minnow pattern, when it’s really cold I like to imitate a slower moving food source like a leech, and fish it that way. I’m using a very slight twitch (not strip) while swinging the fly through a variety of depths, but always very slow water. I would describe it as the slowest water you can get a full swing in. I probably should be using a heavier tip like the OPST Riffle in some glides, especially with the unweighted flies I’ve been using. But I’ve been catching plenty of fish, and missing at least as many as I’m hooking.

The anglers I’ve talked to who are having a very tough time finding fish all think they have the wrong fly on. Doubtful. All are likely spending too much time in the wrong water. Look for that slow, soft-bottomed gradual drop-off into a deep pool, and you should find fish. If you have to make a cast into it to see if there is any current, then you’re in the right spot. Forget about that favorite July spot, seek that winter water.  That deep holding water is a necessity in the winter, You need to be at least near some big tank.

To put it in perspective, if I were floating Wolf Creek to Craig on a nymphing guide trip tomorrow, I would concentrate all of my effort in 6 spots (doing some visual floating in my head right now). I wouldn’t even bother casting from a moving boat in between those spots. I would argue that 90% of the fish between the bridges are in those 6 spots right now. With one exception: I often find big solo Brown Trout hanging by themselves in faster, shallower water this time of year. But it’s a lot of searching to find them.

But not everyone is swinging a two hander, right? Of course not, but the fish don’t move when you change rods. You will still want to concentrate your efforts in those same spots described above. The usual winter pink and gray scuds and lightning bugs will work, along with some Zebra midges.. Start around 5 feet to a B shot and adjust from there. The most important part is to keep your indicator ahead of your nymphs. Yes, a little drag is OK in slow winter water, and keeping your mends to a minimum can be all the difference when it comes to detection a nibble with your bobber.

And speaking of midges, there are a few out, and there are a few heads up. Mostly I’ve seen the random, rolling, one-and-done fish on top, but I have seen a few fishing feeding somewhat consistently in glassy pockets near the banks. Not so many I’d head out expecting it, but enough that I’d make sure to have few midge dries, some desiccant and some floatant on me. The weather will have to be right for a really good midge session until later in the winter. But it is a possibility.

We’re doing shuttles and we’re open every day. We get plenty of calls from guys and gals “just checking” to make sure we’re open. Don’t worry, we are, 7 days a week. If you need us to hang around a little past 5 for anything just let us know.

All boat ramps look doable with the exception of Pelican Point. I didn’t check it last night, but the evening before it looks more like a glacier than the big old dirty snowdrift that it was. Still a ways to go on the north slope.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][us_image image=”26129″ align=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Continued COOOOOOLD conditions have hampered our fishing efforts. But not our enthusiasm. The only nice weather we’ve had recently coincided with last weekends spey clinics. It was beautiful, but we were teaching, not fishing. There were folks some folks out on the river, but we just haven’t had enough water-time to give you a reliably accurate fishing report.

Yesterday (0) and today (+10) remain too chilly for us to don our waders, but beginning Thursday, we are looking at some prime time winter conditions with daytime highs approaching 50 degrees, and nighttime lows in the upper 20’s and 30’s. Wahoo! Break out the bobbers, midges, two-handers and tips! Hopefully the forecast will hold, although the skier in me wants it to keep dumping and remain cold. So does the August fisherman in me.

SNOW

Speaking of snow, you might be interested to know that we just received and incredible storm resulting in 5 feet (yes, FIVE FEET!) of snow for many locations to our immediate north. The Bob Marshall and Glacier National Park received the biggest snowfall totals, with our local shreddery Teton Pass Resort topping the list at 65″ of snow from Saturday am through Monday. Julie, Adair and I were ripping up the waist deep and trying to stay warm camped in the resort parking lot over the weekend. We can attest that those numbers are true. Here’s a shot early Sunday morning at the 30″ mark during the storm. That dudes going to make the first chair for sure…[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][us_image image=”25972″ align=”center”][vc_column_text]We will get some new SNOTEL total later in the week, but a cursory look at the site suggests that several drainages may have had significant increases in snowpack. And that’s good. I’m happy to see the Front Range get such great snowfall this winter, as it’s been pretty drought stricken along there for the last several years. Because there aren’t really any river fisheries of note along the front, many fly anglers are not aware of this. On the flip side, Kings Hill Pass – headwaters of the Smith, Judith and Musselshell drainages – has not received great snowfall this winter. That area has been a bright spot with plenty of snow over the last few seasons.

BACK TO FISHING

So, we don’t have a large enough sample to give you a super accurate fishing report, although Dewey and Braden have been out briefly during a few windows in the weather. The good news is that it’s winter on the Missouri. Nothing changes, Dude. Keep at it with the pink scuds and lightning bugs, worm patterns, Zebra Midges, and black leeches. It should all be good for the next week.

But don’t get too ambitious and try to hit the lower stretches, at least not for a few days. The river froze back up last week, and while it’ll begin to break-up quickly on Friday, there will still be lots of slush and drifting ice chunks. And the boat ramps will be difficult. We recommend staying on the upper stretches, and maybe even stick to some wade fishing.

And while it may feel great to humans, it’s still going to be fridgid underneath, so keep that rig in the slow stuff. We always recommend trying to gently lead your nymph rig with your bobber tight to the fly. Barely tight, but tight. The fish don’t care about a tiny bit of drag this time of year, and it will help you detect strikes that can go unseen with any slack in your system.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]