Yellowstone

Just more great picks from this weeks Yellowstone trips. The fishing's been great!!

Missouri July 26th

Jordan and I headed to the Missouri and had great fishing all day. It was 96 today so we made it short and sweet but picked up 17-20 inch fish all morning. Lots of caddis around with a few pmd's still in the mix. The tricos have also started but fish didn't seem to be on them on the lower river. Check with the trout shop for up to date information. Nice Whitie huh!! I guess a couple of nice trout as well!! Have fun out there peeps.

July 25, Big Rainbow

Caught this giant yesterday... I could tell you where, but then I'd have to kill you!
-Daniel

July 24

I spent yesterday chasing our little silver friends on the Gallatin River armed with dry flies and clients Nick and Christine Lux. Early in the day we had a fair number of Caddis with a few Yellow Sallies mixed in but for the most part the bug activity was a little on the light side. Though the we found few bugs on the water we did manage to find a few fish willing to pounce on a well placed Trude. If you go and you're familiar with the Gallatin River, be prepared to relearn the elbows and buckets because none of the structure is where it was four months ago.

TY

July 24th

Had a day off from the guiding world today and snuck away to one of our areas many streams. These little trout were ravenous today, eating pretty much any dry I threw on. Back to the Yellowstone tomorrow and more pictures to follow. Good Fishing everyone!!

Yellowstone July 20th and 21st

The Yellowstone has been on fire the last couple days with some great fish being caught in the valley section. With flows dropping the fish are starting to feed like crazy. Lots of yellow sallies and caddis out there and rubberleg stones have also been productive. Watch for mud plugs over the next couple of days as we have had some storms in the park. Give us a call for up to date info. This next week promises to be even better as the water continues to clear and different areas of the river become fishable. Good fishing everyone!!! Quick note the Upper Madison is also fishing well and I will update my trip from yesterday asap!!

Yellowstone

I have been on the Yellowstone almost everyday this last week and each day the river is fishing better and better. With the flows steadily dropping its only going to get better!! Nymphing has been the most productive with rubber legs, iron sallies, and big lightning bugs uh oh watch out for the whities. Some dry fly action is beginning though as the river does get a little more visibility. Try big attractors trailed with a yellow sally or a caddis. From all the mud this year the fish look like they have been sand blasted by all the silt but most of the trout we have caught look healthy otherwise and are putting up a good fight. I am looking forward to the next week here as the river should really fire up. Go get em!!

Madison Early July

The Upper Madison has been fishing great over the last two weeks with some really nice fish being caught both on dries and nymphs. Lots of caddis and yellow sallies still around and with the water temps where they are we should have great fishing over the next few weeks. The kid in the photo was only six years old so we should all congratulate him on his first Montana Trout, way to go buddy. Good Fishing everyone, enjoy what is going to be a great summer!!

July 13 Ruby River

Yesterday I had the pleasure of fishing with trout junkie Rolf Wilson from next door at the Main Street Gym. Man, what a day! Bugs, bugs, bugs. We had PMD's, Caddis, Baetis, and the occasional spruce moth almost the entire time we were on the water. For the most part the fish we found were feeding in pods of four or five. The fish feeding in the broken water were willing to eat a well placed dry but the fish in the slick water had me constantly shuffling through my fly box until I found something they liked. Later in the day when we decided to make our way back the truck we threw streamers as we walked down stream and managed to move some larger fish. The river is running at a perfect 326 cfs and is gin clear making feeding fish easy to spot.

If you go you will need,

Para PMD's, PMD Sparkle Dun, CDC Emergers, Para Caddis, Para Adams.

Military Nymph, PMD Soft Hackle, Sparkle Pupa, Scuds.

Olive Zonkers, Big Horne Buggers, Wooly Buggers.

TY

Fishing Report, July 12

Hello readers and fellow fish bums. The new website has been a great transition, and the concept of the guide blog has been talked about all over town and beyond. The blog provides a more personal and specific touch to reports and fishing banter, and (though it hasnt happened too frequently) provides you, the reader, a chance to respond and communicate... But a full and wholesome river report is not always easy to find, so here it goes.

Bozeman's local rivers are clearing up, fishing is good and only getting better.

UPPER MADISON: Flows have been consistently falling over the past 10 days and currently the flow is at 1680 at Kirby Ranch. Salmon flies are the name of the game at around Macatee,though some have had trouble getting the fish to eat on top. Along with the Salmon flies, Yellow Sallies, Golden Stones, Caddis, and PMD's have also been hatching in considerable numbers. Now, the river could give up an great day or a slow one as it transitions into "summer mode". In another week I think the consistency will be there.

LOWER MADISON: At 2800 CFS and falling the lower is a good option for fishing right now. At only about a 25 minute drive from town, it is a convenient afternoon float or post work wade. Water clarity is better and the fish are beginning to move out from the banks. The only problem here is the number of floaters on the water with you. What has come to be called the "Bikini Hatch" is out in full force, and on the weekend forget about it.

YELLOWSTONE: The stone has been constantly falling for the past week from around 20,000 CFS to 11,800 right now. There have been boats on the water this week with reports of a few fish and fishability at least. When the river reaches 10,000 CFS Im predicting the fishing to turn on in a big way. In a week's time the Yellowstone will be back in full swing. Floating this river gives a huge advantage, so dont wait and book a guide for next week some time.

GALLATIN: The mighty Gallatin's huge runoff flows have begun to subside with a current readings at 2200 CFS in Gallatin Gateway. There's many reports of Salmon Flies at the top of the canyon near Big Sky, moving up into the meadows. Caddis and PMD's and also in the mix. Be careful where you wade because its still chugging along, but those picturesque Gallatin days are back and only getting better!

MISSOURI: The MO has been interesting this season, to say the least. A flush in early June lasted through the month and made anglers fish deep and heavy nymph rigs, with not too much dry action. The river still produced just fine, and anglers still congregated in Craig for a different kind of June than they've seen in recent years. With flows dropping steadily (currently 7,340 CFS) the classic MO fishing that were all used to is starting to show through. As the river drops dry flying gets better and better. Caddis and PMD's, with a mix of a few Sallies and Drakes. Trico's are just around the corner.

BIG HOLE/BEAVERHEAD: The "hole" and the "beav" provided us a great opportunity in the recent weeks to find some hot fishing, and still is. The Salmon Flies in the upper stretches of the Big Hole were great this year, as well as many other prolific hatches throughout both streams. At 1260 CFS the river is still fishing good if you are willing to make the drive. Yellow Sallies, Golden Stones, PMD's and Caddis are the name of the game. Both nymphs and dries are on right now. The beav's flow has been consistent now for about a week and many of the same bugs as the Big Hole are being seen here. Early morning and evenings are the time to dry fly, but during the day nymphing has dominated.

The moral of the story is that its time to go fishing people. Break out your rods, call your friends, and get on the water!

See you out there,
Daniel

July 7, Slowly but surly.

Slowly but surly the local rivers are clearing, coming down, and should continue to improve over the next couple of weeks. The Salmon Fly Hatch on the Madison has jumped the lake and is just now starting on the upper, so throw your Pat's Rubber legs and big Prince Nymphs along the edges of the river and keep your eyes out for fish chowing on adults.

July 1, Back to the Big Hole!

We had so much fun on the Big Hole last week we decided to go back and do it again. Yesterday we floated up high in the slower Brook Trout water and found that our little Char friend lives there in big numbers and willing to try to eat bugs bigger than their mouths would allow. The bug of the day was a size 12 yellow Stimulator with a Soft Hackle trailing about 2' behind in the film. Late in the day rain clouds moved in making for happy trout and perfect conditions for ripping streamers....So I did. The fish in the picture fell for a yellow Cone headed Madonna stripped just off of the bank.

If you go....

Bugs to look for- PMD, Yellow Sally, Golden Stone, Salmon Flies, and Caddis.

Patterns- Para-PMD, PMD soft hackle, Military Nymph, Iron Sally, Yellow stimulator, Para-Caddis.

TY