Bill with an 18.5 inch Yellowstone River Brown Trout
Summary:
Alright this has gone to just plain sweet spring fishing! If you can get here in the next 4 to 6 days do it. Yesterday and today were great fishing. When neither the guide nor the anglers can remember how many trout were caught we consider that a great day of fishing.
The weather is predicted to stay cool so spring run off should be delay until at least after the weekend. Today was the warmest it’s been in three weeks at about 55 degress, the wind was still blowing a bit but at a reasonable level. As expected at about 2pm the
March Browns and Baetis showed up. At 3pm or 4 pm the
Mother’s Day Caddis kicked off and it was the largest emergence we’ve seen yet this spring. Dry fly fish was very consistant – those fish are starting to look up. The rest of the week should be great so we’ll see you out there!
Best Technique:
The Dry/Dropper technique was most effective, however in the larger foam holes a shallow nymph rig (15-30 inches) with an nymph and emerger was best.
Weather & Water Conditions:
Mid-fifties at the warmest part of the day with variable ENE wind to about 15mph. The water was flowing at 2,010 cfs and had been relatively stable for a few days. The water color is a great caddis-y green with 2 to 3 feet of visibility.
Hatches:
Light Baetis, great March Browns and best Mother’s Day Caddis hatch to date. All starting around 1pm or 2 pm, caddis are starting later around 3pm.
Best Bugs:
Our best dry was a parachute March Brown sz 12, best emergers Cat Puke and P.T. Soft Hackle sz 14, best nymph Glass House Caddis sz 12.
Mother's Day Caddis Hatch from 2009
As many of you know (since we love talking about it!) we are getting close to our annual Mother’s Day Caddis hatch on the Yellowstone River. We have seen some – I repeat some – caddis on the river. In total we’ve seen a few dozen adults over the past several days and plenty of pupa starting to drift and migrate. So, we are getting close.
The recent warm weather has melted some of the lower snow and the Yellowstone has come and cooled off a bit. The magic number for the full blown hatch is when the water temperatures go upwards of 54 degrees.
So if we had to guess? Within the next week we should start seeing some good caddis fishing. So keep your thermometers handy and check the river temps often over the next several days – or you can just read our blog and we’ll let you know.
Remember we do have a great spring fly fishing rate from now until June so come on out and enjoy a Montana fly fishing trip this season!
Dave Goff with a beautiful Brown
Wow! What a beautiful couple of days we’ve had in the past few days. When it’s warm this time of year AND the wind doesn’t blow upwards of 15 mph that’s a great day to go fishing around Livingston, Montana.
There’s not a whole lot of insect activity right now, but there are some midges in the afternoon, a few random baetis, and every once in a while you see those tiny black stone flies crawling long the snowy banks.
Regardless, of the insect activity the water is a balmy 39 degrees and flowing at 1,160 cfs so a small pheasant tail (sz 16-20) and a zebra midge dropper (sz 16-20) is a good nymph rig. You won’t have to go too deep as the water is low, plus you’ll want to concentrate on the inside riffle corners, side channels and tail outs of the pools. We’ve also been picking up a few nice Rainbows on white streamers dragged slowly off the banks.
Mother's Day Caddis Fishing on the Yellowstone River
Spring fly fishing in Montana on the Yellowstone River, Madison River, and the Spring Creeks of Armstrong, DePuy, and Nelson can be some of the best of the year. In fact many of our summer guests ask us when we get time to fish. The answer – spring time! While the weather can be variable the fishing is quite consistent. Those of you considering an early season get-away, here’s a rundown of what you can expect.
The weather and conditions are varied so come prepared for temperatures from the low 40’s to mid-60’s. On occasions there is snow, which should not stop your fishing, but if it does, this is also the prime time for wolf watching in the nearby Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park. Buffalo, elk, and other game, that grew weary over the harsh winter, often fall prey to the wolves at this time and the packs can be seen from the road! This wonder has drawn world-wide interest and many people are coming to our region specifically for this event.
The benefits of springtime travel in Montana have not caught on nationwide, but for the passionate community of people who love the West, it is the only time to be here. For “locals”, this early fishing season is a treasured un-crowded time unlike any other. It’s often been suggested Montana natives named it the “Mother’s Day Caddis Hatch” so they could have the best dry fly fishing for themselves for three weeks before.
As for what you can expect for the fishing:
A Beautiful spring time Cutthroat
March – early April bring us great midge and baetis fishing. The water is usually low and clear, so good presentation is the key to fishing success. That said, the fish are eager to eat after the long winter’s cold. Water temperatures warm and the fish get active. Warm afternoons are best, especially on cloudy days even if it’s snowing outside. The added bonus is that if the weather turns cold and snowy Bridger Bowl ski area is only 35 miles away – ski in the morning and then fish the afternoon hatch!
Mid April – early May really gets us excited. One of the most spectacular hatches anywhere in the world is right around the corner – the Mother’s Day Caddis hatch on the Yellowstone River. Describing this hatch, when it’s full blown, is almost impossible. You might think we’re exaggerating, but that’s why we’ve included some photos so you can judge for yourself. The river has an orange hue when the hundreds of thousands of caddis hatch in the afternoon. In the beginning stages of the hatch trout are eager to feed on these tasty morsels along the river banks and in back-eddies. While the caddis hatch gets most of the attention the March Brown’s can be just as spectacular. What trout wouldn’t want to eat a size 12 to 14 mayfly after a long winters slumber?
In an effort to get some of our long time summer fishing clients to get a taste of the greas Montana spring fishing we offer a 15% discount from our standard guided fishing rates. So if this sounds like an interesting time of year let us know and we can fill you in on more details. This opportunity is available from March until the first week of June.
