Happy Thursday, who’s ready for the weekend and some fishing? You’ll be ready to roll after reading this week’s fishing report.
River Flow: Palisades reservoir is 91% full, down 5% from last week as inflows drop. The outflow has also dropped about 900 cfs to 11,400 cfs, just a bit lower than the historical average and last year where we were at 12,300 cfs. The water is still cold, clear, and perfect!
Weather: Yesterday’s cloud cover really turned the fishing up a notch and reports from guides and guests were positive on the entire river proving once again that after a string of sunny hot days, cloudy days are just what the fish want. It looks like we will be back into the sun this weekend with just a slight chance of afternoon thunderstorms.
Fishing and Flies: The entire South Fork of the Snake is fishing well right now with our guides reporting the upper river from the Dam to Conant fishing especially well this week. Standard summer flies and tactics apply with a dry/dropper rig being the most popular set up for our guides. A nice foam Golden Stone pattern trailed by a dropper like a Duracell Jig or Pheasant Tail Jig has been productive. A second rod rigged for riffles and foam lines with a PMD pattern like a Sparkle Dun trailed with a PMD emerger is recommended. To avoid the crowds and get in on some of the best fishing consider fishing early or late. Caddis fishing from 6:30 to dark has been really good and a good time to try some streamers.
- Dry Flies – Golden Stones, PMD’s, Caddis, it’s not too soon to try some terrestrials like small hoppers, ants, and beetles.
- Nymphs – During the brightest parts of the day nymphing may be the best option. A two nymph rig is also a great set up for beginners as you have equal shots at catching trout or a whitefish.
- Streamers – We haven’t had too many anglers throwing streamers but those who have, have caught some nice fish. I would focus streamer fishing during the low light times of day.
Come visit us at the shop or call if you need anything 208.483.2222. Our fly shop is fully stocked with all the flies you might need for a successful day and all the other gear you might need. Thanks for reading and have a good time on the water.