2014 Rockies Fishing Conditions

[neckdeep]

Got first tracks into the canyon section of a local spring creek. Wow, did I ever learn a brutal lesson about snowshoes, rain and rotten snow. We hiked down 150' vert between the snow machine trail and the river on a crust so firm we barely needed our snowshoes. Fishing was decent, thanks to warm springwater and humid 48 degree air. #18 midges bringing fish to the surface along with a scattering of #12 grey caddis. No BWOs observed. Two rods got about a dozen fish each, with a couple 14-15" rainbows and a 15" brown the highlights of the day. Mostly nymphing, fish were not picky, took a variety of nymphs. Seemed like a great day....until.....

Started raining about mid-afternoon. When we went to climb out at 5pm, the rain had melted the crust and the underlying 6 feet of snow was totally rotte
n. I was breaking through up to my waist and getting my shoes hung up in bushes and covered with snow. By the time I got out of that sucker trap, my waders were so full of sweat I was soaking wet and I was literally staggering back up the trail to Bear Gulch like a drunken sailor who lost a bad fight. Totally humbling experience. Never. Ever. Again. Now I understand why lost out of bounds skiers keep going downhill instead of climbing back up into the resort.

Teton River is still too cold. Ice broke out last week. We tried it for three hours on saturday and couldn't even get a whitefish to take a beadhead. But the season is off and running; saw a couple boats headed to the lower Henry's and wade anglers working it around Stone Bridge. BWOs should be starting up soon.

[schwerty]

I learned that lesson a bunch of years ago. Classic skiing and snowshoeing to get to good fishing is fine in a shallow snow pack when you don't have much vert to deal with. When it warms.....no way!

The Snake over here in JH has been good. Heard from a bunch of guys out over the weekend both here on the lower HF. All good reports. Cutties have been pounding a variety of streamers on the snake. Midging has apparently been good to the wade anglers. Nymphing with black rubber legs and small attractor nymphs has been producing too.

I've been gone for a week on work/play so I'm on kids duty for a couple weeks....so the above is all second hand info. Hope to get out for an hr this wknd if conditions at home line up.

[snapt]

My house came with a 16' LP Clack so I guess it's time to dust it off. Hopefully I can actually find time to fish of some of y'all this season.

[Lexi-Bell]

Heh, haven't got a line wet since November until yesterday so this thread is timely. Decided to forgo the rain at the ski hill and throw some junk on the Lower Madison with marginal results despite the fly-shop dude's claim of 23 AND 25 inch pigs stuck this weekend.

Sooo when's the summit cause my summer's fillin up quicker than a two-bit whore during fleet-week.

[Aenigma]

I've been fishing around Bozeman all winter whenever the ice has been off the rivers, and it's been pretty good most of the time. Last time I got out was on the 8th, and I managed to pull in 12 on the East Gallatin in under 2 hours--not too bad! It looks like the rivers are up now, though, but I may try and get out today anyway.

[teleee]

My house came with a 16' LP Clack so I guess it's time to dust it off. Hopefully I can actually find time to fish of some of y'all this season.

How is your mid week schedule? I sometimes find myself running up to your neck of the woods for work and could easily slide in a float....

[schwerty]

I could shoot over for an afternoon float too. Business trip.....

Snapt and Teleee - lower hank or an upper SF afternoon the week-weekend btwn 3/23 and 3/31? I wouldn't mind the HF simply cuz it's not likely all that crowded yet and that will change soon. Might even see the ski crowd take over the lower HF but that time.

I'm open to a day next week too and can drag my boat over if someone else wants to join.

[snapt]

Afternoon floats are better right now, need to be in the office for a few in the morning as I maxed out most of my sick and pto on pow days already, whoops! Back in CA the 20th-25th for a wedding, free after that. Lower hank or Slide-Spring Creek would be my preference. Oh and I have enw lines I need to put some miles on so I'm happy to have you guys help with that.

[dfinn]

if you do it on a weekend I'd love to join, I've been thinking about heading up there soon.

[schwerty]

I'm happy to try out new products!

Wknds work for me.

[teleee]

I think I can swing a weekend as well.... Week days are easier but I can probably pull off a weekend day. I can drag my boat up and dfinn you can ride up with me.

Edit to add Slide to Spring Creek is perfect.

[snapt]

Sweet, anytime after the 25th that works we'll see what the waters doing and hit something. Have a futon in IF and plenty of floor space in the house.

[dfinn]

weekend of the 29th?

[snapt]

Works for me.

[schwerty]

Alright fellas - my family is gonna be in Florida. I'm home with the dog. That means I am going to be a bumbling, drunken mess. My place in JH is open to you if you need a place to stay.

Teleee - no need to trail a boat unless u want to. Two should be good.

FYI - timing conflicts with the best fishing of the day but steel pulse is playing for FREE on Friday evening and Michael franti and Karl Denison for free on sat evening at JHMR. I'm more into fishing while my family is gone but just sayin....it is another good reason to come up here. Like the music or not, free shows at the end of the season are always a good time.

[schwerty]

Alright fellas - my family is gonna be in Florida. I'm home with the dog. That means I am going to be a bumbling, drunken mess. My place in JH is open to you if you need a place to stay.

Teleee - no need to trail a boat unless u want to. Two should be good.

FYI - timing conflicts with the best fishing of the day but steel pulse is playing for FREE on Friday 3/27 evening and Michael franti and Karl Denison for free on sat, 3/28, evening at JHMR. I'm more into fishing while my family is gone but just sayin....it is another good reason to come up here. Like the music or not, free shows at the end of the season are always a good time.

[dfinn]

I wouldn't be opposed to that if the fishing was also decent closer to you.

[teleee]

I wouldn't be opposed to that if the fishing was also decent closer to you.

It's frisking awesome - cutties on streamers! Let me work on that, it may entail more than I can swing but I will see what I can do.

Edited to add - CRAP im out for that weekend. Just realized i have a bunch of family in town for my daughters birthday. Best i could do is Friday.

[schwerty]

I will fish Friday

[teleee]

Cool let me check with Dfinn, he may want to come up separately that weekend. I would look at leaving Thursday night, fish Friday and be home Friday night.

[CascadeCement]

I'm swinging through Missoula early next week. A buddy of mine is gonna be hitting Brennan's wave on the Middle Clark Fork, I'm not much of a surfer so I was thinking about throwing in a line. Streamer or Nymph patterns working best in those parts this time of year? (Close enough to the Rockies right?)

[neckdeep]

Teton is fishing ok with streamers. Shore ice is gone. Minimal hatch of #24 midges and the occasional #12 little black stonefly. Got 6 over 4 hrs, all 14-17" cutts, all holding in slack water cuz the river is still wicked cold. Vis barely 2ft, fished chartreuse and with 50 degrees predicted today, probably about to get too muddy even for chartreuse. Have to go with the crowd over to Henry's. Saw more mallards than I usually see all year. There are thousands of them in the basin right now. Wonder if that affects fishing, having 100 ducks explode off the hole right as you walk up to it. The best hole in the section I was on produced nothing after the duck amok but when I went back to it three hours later, boom, 17" cutt on the first cast and a 15" a few casts later plus two strikes. Fucked by ducks...thats a new one.

[kokomas]

any reports from the Weber, Provo, or Green yet? heading to utah tonight for 5 days and can't find much. i'm assuming mostly midges and some early olives on the provo/green over the weekend if its rainy?

[YoungManofTheMountain]

any reports from the Weber, Provo, or Green yet? heading to utah tonight for 5 days and can't find much. i'm assuming mostly midges and some early olives on the provo/green over the weekend if its rainy?

Its all good. Dont forget your sow bugs.

Sent from my SM-G730V using TGR Forums

[dfinn]

any reports from the Weber, Provo, or Green yet? heading to utah tonight for 5 days and can't find much. i'm assuming mostly midges and some early olives on the provo/green over the weekend if its rainy?

I've been out on the middle provo a few times over the past week or two and it's been OK. One day there was a really good BWO hatch but mostly it's been tiny, tiny midges. I've been having pretty good luck with small black and chartreuse streamers as well. I've just about given up on nymphing but when I have to resort to it, it's been sow bugs like young man said. I haven't been out to the green in about a month but if I had 5 days to spend around here I think the majority of them would be out there. I'm not sure what's going on with the weber, I think it's still pretty low.