News from Blue Ribbon Flies

Fishing Report
Weekly Conditions and Tips

By Craig Mathews
30 June 2011
Photo by Travis Lowe on O'Dell Creek with Craig and Yvon last week - read more about it here...

I got up this morning before the sun rose over the Madison Range of mountains east of our place. At 5am it was 44 degrees. I went out to sit on our deck and listen to the roar of the Madison River. I felt it first, even before hearing the drumming-booming of a male ruffed grouse. I checked my journal and found the latest I'd previously heard spring drumming was June 12th. This past Monday our 2 youngest German Shorthairs were patrolling our front yard when Finn, our 2 year old you often see at the shop, locked up as Leksie, our 7 year old, backed his point. I walk in to see what they were pointing and saw a hen ruffed grouse sitting on her nest. Yesterday when she left the nest to feed on clover in our yard I snuck in to count 9 eggs. A few years back, the last time I wrote in this report I'd found a ruffed grouse nest, the brood hatched out on June 21st my notes indicate. It has been a late spring but now, as we move into early summer, it looks like we may be catching up to something we refer to as "normal", whatever that is.

By yesterday afternoon it was 90 degrees and windy. I've never fished in winds like we had yesterday. My 2 fishing companions, Tim and Dick, won the trip to Odell Creek via the Madison River Foundation's fundraiser last year. Rusty came along to photograph the day and at first I was worried we wouldn't have any luck at all owing to the stiff breeze that greeted us on our arrival. We had planned to arrive at the creek by 9am but Tim had to join a conference call so we were a bit late, arriving at 10:30am. As we slipped into our waders the winds came up even more, now howling out of the southwest. I grabbed a light long-sleeved shirt from my Patagonia Stormfront pack thinking about covering up from the mosquitoes. We headed upstream and found a few trout coming up for Callibaetis and pale morning duns skittering along the surface as they emerged.

It was not long before Rusty was giving his camera a workout. Fish after fish came to our flies and we had a wonderful morning despite the 20-30 mph gale force winds. It turned out I did not need the long sleeve shirt as the biting insects "were blown all the way to Canada" according to Rusty.

The Stormfront pack has become my constant fishing companion. While I often wear it as a backpack and carry everything I need from lunches and water to raingear, cameras and added layers of clothing, this ultra-simple, waterproof pack with its detachable backpack harness and hydration reservoir pocket that easily converts to a stand-alone dry bag is one of the best investments serious anglers can make. I wear it as my carry-on when traveling on planes and I'm guessing it can even be used as a flotation device if needed. I can't think of a better investment to anyone's fly fishing gear list. I'm so sold on mine which I have used and abused for over 3 years now that I will personally tie you a dozen flies, my tie, of our X and Iris Caddis, if you buy one from us!

After lunch we tried the stream below the truck and had the same results as the trout came readily to our offerings. It amazed me that we saw no small trout yesterday. Only big browns mixed with a few rainbows came to our flies. I took a couple short video clips which we will post soon either on our blog or in this report so stay tuned.

Now to the fishing.

The Firehole River in the park has fished very well during late day caddis times. This river is the most constant on warm clear afternoons and evenings when caddis emerge. Pale Morning Duns and some Baetis are coming off on the upper river now. The same can be said for the Madison River in the park. As the Madison comes down it will continue to offer up some very good dry fly fishing both during PMD times as well as evening caddis. We should see a few more strong weeks of strong PMDs. Look for great PMD spinner falls in the morning hours, 9am to noon. Duns might come off around noon and then again in the afternoons around 2:30-4pm. If we are to see gray drakes they should emerge strong this week and for the following 2-3 weeks. Evening caddis are hitting their stride here and will continue for the next couple weeks. Salmon flies can bring some very nice fish up in the riffles around Riverside and 11 Mile run. Looking at the flows of both these rivers we can see that they are stabilized and heading down. The end of spring runoff has certainly arrived. And, these fine waters will offer you the best dry fly fishing in our area this week.

The Madison below Hebgen is running 1950cfs. If you check the charts you will see a downward flow trend here too. The water is still off-color in the wade stretch but fishing extremely well with nymphs and streamers. Streamer anglers will want to be on the water around 5am - yes, that early! Nymphers can do well all day using rubber legs, both Micro and Macro-Madison Mayfly Nymphs, and other small BWO nymphs too. You will see some fish rise in the late day and for them try a big Amber Iris, X and Elk Hair Caddis. The fish want to begin rising and any surface activity will bring a rise of trout. I have seen some caddis in the eves around Big Bend. The river below the dam is fishing well but getting beat up by spin anglers so not recommended. Also, our good friend, Don Prentice, was run down by an angry cow moose with calf and injured last week there.

The Henry's Fork has been hot.. .. ..and cold. Some very strong PMD spinner falls along with caddis emergences in and above the RxR Ranch stretch. The Box has fished well at times too. Still very few green drakes but if you are in the areas this week you will be pleasantly surprised on this front! Sparkle Duns of the Green drake variety as well as PMDs, both in foam emerger style and hackle wing spinners will produce nicely. Caddis patterns would include Iris and Spent Sparkle along with Henry's Fork Caddis and #18 Missing Links. An ant pattern like our foam flying ant might save your day too!

Lakes like Cliff and Wade along with Hidden, Hebgen, and Elk are producing well. Callibaetis mayflies, the first summer brood, are bringing up some fine fish. You will need nymphs, cripples and impaired dun patterns like our Sparkle Dun. Have Deer Hair Spinners too. I thought Hebgen's midges were done only to find 2 days ago fish rising to them again so be prepared. Henry's Lake will see damsel activity heating up this week for sure.

Not much going on as to small water but the Nez Perce is always a good bet as is Straight Creek and Joffe Lake.

Our sleeper bet of the week is the Gibbon both above and below the falls. Fish salmon flies and golden stones below the falls with streamers and golden nymphs as well as Little Yellow Stones above. And, since stream and hatch conditions seem to be changing here hourly give us a call or stop in for current information, free coffee, BS, and advice!

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