March Madness on the Poindexter Slough

The Poindexter Slough of the Beaverhead River

The Poindexter Slough in Southwest Montana flows through one of the finest pieces of public land in the entire country.  The Slough is America's spring creek and although it is on public land, the skill and physical fitness level required to fish it keeps the crowds very much at bay.  In fact, I fished just about the entire reach and I saw nobody else all day long.  The only people I did see were two bait fishermen fishing frog water while I was limping back to the truck in the dark.  I was too tired to tell them that fishing bait is still illegal for two more months which turned out okay because they were really nice and told me they hadn't caught a thing.

I, on the other hand, had a 40+ fish day and one of the most fun days bushwhacking and catching large browns and rainbows so far this year!

Brown on the line

The Slough is not the place to bring a beginner.  Your roll cast needs to be in top shape here as the banks are lined with thick willows.  You're also going to want to leave lollygaggers and the timid behind.  If your not getting your ass kicked by the willows and your skin and clothes ripped by the roses and currants, your not getting in deep enough.  Effectively getting to where the big fish are is as close to going guerrilla in a jungle as you can get in MT.

Underwater Brown

  


























The Slough is chock full of very large, very wary brown trout and some big-ass rainbows too.

Brown Trout sucking on the Meat Whistle

I fished streamers downstream all the way down to where the Slough hits the Beaverhead and was absolutely blown away by the number and size of the browns in that small piece of water.  The MeasureNet works on a number line centered on 0.  To get a measurement, you add the value at the head and the tail of the fish.  As you can see here, this guy was pushing 20in. (51cm.)  John Barr's Meat Whistle in green was the ticked to getting some vicious hits from the browns.

Another brown sucking on the Meat Whistle

Once I reached the mouth, I set up a nymph rig and headed back upstream.  I put on the Soft Hackle "Sow Bug" and all of a sudden, started to catch huge pre-spawn rainbows.  Surprise!

Soft Hackle Sow Bug in a big rainbow's kype jaw

I'm talking BIG rainbows!  Check out the kype on this big guy.  He was pissed about getting caught.

Female rainbow release

This large female was never lifted out of the water and released faster than a toupee in a hurricane.

Underwater rainbow

It's getting to be the time of year where you have to start looking out for redds.  More on that soon.  Once irrigation starts in the Beaverhead Valley, half of the water going into the Beaverhead and also the Slough ends up going down ditches.  The weeds grow long in the Slough and the fish become almost un-catchably spooky.  I'll see these guys again in the fall...

5 sure bet flies for the Missouri River for the next week or so

Heavily used Firebead Soft Hackle Ray Charles

The Ray Charles is the perfect top fly for the double nymph rig.   It was extremely effective yesterday in the wind and sun.  Your nymph rig will need to be deep and have split on it.  6-8 feet from bobber to splitshot.  I used 1 or 2 BBs for weight.  Fish the slow inside curves and pocket water at the tail-outs of the swirlies. The big swirly just downstream from Craig is fishing great, just be careful in those hydraulics; it would not be the best place to fall out of the boat or drop an anchor.

Rainbow Czech Nymph

The Rainbow Czech was the perfect bottom fly in tandem with the Ray Charles when the baetis stuff wasn't working so much

Beerhead nymph/emerger

Although there were no massive baetis hatches over the past couple of days, the trout were onto the nymphs during certain times of the day.  Sometimes they would eat the baetis nymph, almost exclusively, over the others.  In the current conditions on the Missouri R., you'll want to have this as your bottom fly in a double nymph rig.  Sometimes I'll have a size 18 as a lead and a size 20 as a dropper.  The Beerhead is super versatile though and its specialty is as an emerger on a short leash or in the film with a greased leader.  It is one of my favorite flies of all time.  I'm a BWO guy through and through.

Firebead Soft Hackle Sow Bug

This egg pattern also worked as bottom fly.

Black Conehead Bugger

The Mo is one of my favorite places to fish with streamers.  I love slow swinging a bugger through the runs and feeling it get whacked a couple times as it glides through the zone and finally gets grabbed by a mean old brown.  You can get as technical with streamers as you want but a green, black, or white weighted bugger will fish as good, if not better, than anything else.


I have got a couple good stories and pictures of my Missouri trip to come soon.

Missoula County Fishing Report

I'm too broke to leave town.  That's ok, it's a big week for fishing here in town.  There is a lot going on with the fish and a lot going on for those who love them.

that downtown brown

Bitterroot: 
All of the local streams experienced a small push of water with the rain and then nice weather.  The "numora" is king on the lower half of the Root.  If you want to fish dries, it is where it's at.

For nymphing, use the same stuff you've been using all spring.  The worm in red is hot right now as is the SH Sow Bug.

I spotted one osprey on the Bitterroot yesterday, now it is really spring.  I'll keep my eye on osprey cam.

Clark Fork:
The river above the confluence with the Bitterroot just can't settle in.  It was close, but it got a push of cold water last week.  It basically ended the dry fly fishing that was shaping up and even put down the good nymphing.

Last week I hit the river below the Bitterrroot confluence on a cloudy day.  For a short while it was all out BWO heaven.  The big boys were up in the swirlys taking the adults (which look the size of green drakes after looking at midges all spring).  I love to go after the swirly fish with a "short leash" setup.

Blackfoot:
 I've seen boats heading up that way.  I would bet that the nymphing is good to great up there right now.  Deep nymphing big stonefly nymphs, small mayflies, worms and eggs will produce in the winter/spring type water.  Dry flies are probably a ways off.

Rock Creek: 
Shit-hot nymphing with stones, worms, and eggs.  No dry flies on the lower end.

Area lakes and ponds:  Beavertail and Frenchtown are 100% thawed.  Harper's will thaw next.
Walk the banks of Beavertail and look for red sided submarines.  Throw brown/green/white bugger at leading edge of submarine.  Hold on!  Repeat.

Rock Creek, MT is Sacred

I could sit here and write a 5 volume novel on what makes Rock Creek (tributary to the Clark Fork) such a wonderful place.  Honestly, I don't have the literary skills to do it justice.  I'm talking about everything too, not just the fishing.  I'm in love with the geology, the plant communities, the wildlife, and the local community.  I could go on and on but it is easier to just state the only thing that I don't love.  Sometimes, especially on weekends in the summer, I have to avoid the creek because everyone else loves it too.  That's ok, I can share.

I wanted to do a full spring photo essay but the lighting sucked.  While it ruined my chances at some vibrant pics, it made the fishing great!

It's at this point that my troubles disappear 

Pre-spawn female rainbow eats a SH sow bug

Lower Rock Creek Early Spring

Rock Creek last Fall

Here's some tips to make the Creek more fun for everyone.

• Pinch your barbs!!  This is an extremely important reproduction area for trout/char, whitefish, suckers, etc.
• Follow the old Montana "stay out of sight" rule.  It works because there is plenty of room for everyone here.  This is not NY or WA.  If you see another fisherperson don't jump in and start fishing, keep going.  Lot's of out-of-staters are unaware of this part of MT fishing culture.  It's best not to get mad at them but to tell them about our culture.