Nymphing still key for all day sucsess on the Mo

The Missouri River is fishing great but it's a bit more work than normal.  There are some fish up on dries in the evening but it is not really worth the time.  Streamers were also weak the past couple of days due to the bright-ass sun.  The fish are really hot on small mayfly nymphs though.  Fish them deep in the sun, even in the afternoon.  I did better climbing around on the rip rap in the canyon today than floating through it.  I was fishing winter-like water and fishing it deep.  I caught some great fish and my biggest brown of the year so far.  Tomorrow looks like it may be the day for streamers!

The stars have aligned

I've got a short window of opportunity to get over to the Missouri River and I'm going to take advantage of it.  The next couple of days are supposed to be rainy and cloudy and I could not be more excited.  Stay tuned for a report and pics from the mighty Mo.

Dragonfly Larvae are as bad-ass as it gets!

This is one of the coolest nature videos I have ever seen.  One of my favorite hatches of the year is the damsel and dragonfly hatch on Georgetown Lake in Montana.

Tie up some of these bad boys in the nymph and adult forms.  Watching a 25" rainbow sip your damsel dry in 3 feet of water is pretty fun.

Missoula area fishing report

Downtown March browns getting pelted with raindrops

Gorging swallows

Brown water fishing report:

The rivers are all huge!  There was a drop yesterday but the upcoming warm weather is going to make everything crazy.  This spring has been tough for fishing with all the low elevation snow.  Every time it rains or gets warm, there is a huge push of water on top of the already elevated flows.

Clark Fork (around Missoula)
Big and brown with the occasional tree.  Two days ago, I witnessed a very heavy March brown spinnerfall during a light rain/snowstorm.  There was a massive showing of shore swallows.  Some dinks noticed them as well.  The large trout are eating other things subsurface.  If you just need to fish and you don't have a plan B, you can make it happen here.

Fishing the Clark Fork during high water is possible and can actually be really good sometimes.  You just have to safely locate the various places in the river where the fish go when the water is high.  When the river is high and crazy, the amount of places that trout can hold is reduced.  Find these places and you'll find happiness. Don't be afraid to fish irrigation canals, side channels, and slow winter-type water (if you can find it).  The mouths of the tribs are the safest bet.  Throw your junk into the mud and let it drift into the clean.

The Clark Fork trout are generally less put off by colored water, relative to the other streams in the area. Sometimes, they will even eat on top.  Generally though, using bright worms, large rubber legs, bead head nymphs, and eggs is the most effective.

Bitterroot River (around Missoula)
See Clark Fork Report.  The upper river is fishing great but I have not been up there to give an accurate report.

Lower Rock Creek
The creek is also huge.  It will be a struggle to access fishable water on the lower stream but if you find it, there will be a lot of fish.  Going around the P-burg way and fishing the upper reaches is the way to go.  The problem with that is, you drive right past Flint Creek.  Flint Creek fishes great during high water.  Those brown trout love it.  Anyway.

Area Lakes/Ponds
This is a great time to diversify your fly fishing world.  All of the area lakes and ponds are fishing great.  The lake hatches should start with the warm weather and I'll report on that when it happens.

CSI Montana

I came across this crime scene on my walk home from fishing downtown yesterday.  I suspect this trout was dropped by an osprey due to a lack of any other logical explanation as to why there was a rainbow trout in the middle of 3rd Street.  The missing head provides further evidence, as trout heads are a known osprey delicacy.

Looking west on 3rd St. in Misosula

Rainbow trout crime scene

Just imagine if it fell on your windshield - or shoulder. Ha!

Three flies for spring BWOs

For the nymph stage:

The Beer Head Nymph

For the emergent stage:

The Flashback Purple Haze Soft Hackle

For the surface emerger/cripple/adult stage:

Purple Haze Quigley Cripple