Dry fly action slowly improving….

The Bitterroot continues to run a bit above normal but clear due to recent rains and some snow melt. Water temperatures remain cold and the best of the Skwala hatch has yet to come. The best time for dry fly action is mid afternoon, later if it stays warm. We are catching fish on dries but the action has been just OK.. Best time to be on the water is about noon-6pm when the water begins to warm. You can still catch good fish underneath on nymphs and switch to dries when you start seeing bugs or risers. There are lots of other hatched coming off as well as skwala, look for Nemoura’s ( small black stone ) and we are beginning to see the mayflies coming on. BWO’s, March Browns, and Gray Drakes  are just getting started and will soon grabbing trout’s attention.. If we can get some stable water levels, April dry fly fishing should really come on.. See ya on the river…..

River rising!

Heavy rain brought the river up  last night almost doubling volume.. That should slow the fishing for the next 2 or 3 days until the river stabilizes and begins to drop.  The good news is the moisture is falling as snow in the mountains and adding to our already healthy snow pack of 104%. I was on the river yesterday and did well on dry flies. We fished the upper river above Hamilton. Not many Skwala’s but there were several rising fish taking midges and Nemoura’s ( small black stone ).  The lower river ( Hamilton- Missoula ) has a better Skwala hatch right now and it should continue to move upstream as the weather warms.. Looks like it will be back to nymphs and streamers if you choose to fish this weekend. A better bet would be to ski some fresh powder until next week……………….><(((*>

Weather and fishing heating up!

Spring weather has arrived and we have had several days with highs in the 50’s & 60’s. A few adult skwala’s have started to emerge but most fish are being caught underneath on nymphs. Large numbers of skwala nymphs can be found on the edges of the Bitterroot and the fish are keying on them. Dry fly fishing should continue to improve as the weather and water warms. Look for the other spring stones ( nemoura, capnia) to be out and drawing trout’s attention. Consistent dry fly action is about a week away. See ya on the river………………