August 13th – 20th

“Well, if it rains, I don’t care/ Don’t make no difference to me…” -The Doobie Brothers

Fisherman are a patient lot. The rivers we fish have taught us this trait. One moment the Creek is too low and the water temps too high. So we wait. The next moment, rain has swollen the Wood and turned it brown. We keep waiting. We learn to treasure the moments we have on these rivers and look forward to fishing them again when they return to form. Despite the adversity our waters have faced this summer, we are still are having a great season. The best is still yet to come.

SILVER CREEK
Thanks to the rain we have had since first of the month, the flows on the Creek have come up to average, water temps have dropped, and the dissolved oxygen content has increased to tolerable levels. Still, play and rerelease fish as quickly as possible as always.  The Trico hatch continues to get the fish looking up in the mornings. Simultaneous to the Trico spinner fall, Callibaetis spinners often steal the show. Of course,  Baetis are ever present during the morning hatch and if your Trico and Callibaetis patterns are being ignored, try a Harrop’s Hen Winged Beatis Spinner in a size 24. The midday action can consist of continued appearances from Callibaetis spinners, duns, and emergers as well as a Damsel flies. Terrestrials have been very good as well with hoppers and ants being best. The evenings have been great with a bug stew so complex it is hard to identify all the bugs present at the same time.

BIG WOOD
The Wood below Warm Springs is too thick to drink and too thin to plow at the moment. A mud slide on Rooks Creek up Warm Springs has turned our beloved Wood chocolate and this will take some time to clear. However, the upper Wood, turned muddy by heavy rain up Baker Creek, is beginning to clear and should fish well later this week. Expect to find plenty of Spruce Moths as well as Flying Ants especially along the heavily wooded stretches of this river.

WARM SPRINGS, TRAIL CREEK, NORTH FORK
Warm Springs is quite muddy and will remain so for a while. Small stream fishing can still be found on Trail Creek and the North Fork of the Wood. Take along your attractor dry box and the Rhodo Tenkara rod and have some fun picking your way through these small pocket water style streams.

THE BIG LOST ABOVE MACKAY
The flows seem to be holding steady at 137 CFS. Tricos and Baetis are the main attraction, starting with Tricos in the AM and transitioning into Baetis as the day wears on. These bugs have been around for a while and with the lower than average flows, the fish are getting selective. Be sure to have plenty of Silver Creek style flies and bring your “A” game with long and light leaders. Crane flies can still take some fish before and after the hatch activity, but in the afternoon, nymphing with small Zebra Midge, Rainbow Warriors, Bishop’s Dynamite, and WD40s in size 18-22 is most effective. Fishing above the reservoir has been good and we can expect the Kokanee run to begin earlier than average.

THE UPPER LOST
The water of the upper Lost continues to run clear and cool with the best fishing opportunities on the main stem of the river above the diversion all the way to the North Fork confluence. This is a great place to go with the Wood blown out. The early morning fishing can be good with small dries like Purple Haze and Rusty Spinners in size 14 and 16. During the mid day warm up, hoppers are the way to go. The key to success remains covering lots of water. Don’t expect big numbers of fish, but the quality can be exceptional. The upper branches are fishing well enough to take a look if you want to escape the crowds.

THE SALMON
All the tributaries to the Salmon have been running muddy as of the 8th of the month. The river below Stanley is beginning to clear, but slowly. Please check with us if you have a trip booked this week or plan on fishing the area and we will give you an up to the moment report. At the moment the best fishing is above the town of Stanley.

SOUTH FORK OF THE BOISE
The dry fly fishing on the South Fork has been spotty at best, but nymphs and streamers are producing. The upper river is fishing best and boat anglers are having success with hopper dropper rigs. Still, working the riffles and side channels with a combination large nymph trailed by a small nymph is best. Try a Rubber Legged Stone Fly or a San Juan Worm matched with a Zebra Midge or Iron Lotus under an indicator or fished Euro Style. Some Pink Alberts and Baetis are present and there still are some Caddis in the evenings.

LOCAL PONDS
These are a good option if you are looking for a place to introduce someone to fly fishing or a place to catch supper. All these local fishing holes (Penny, Lake Creek and Gaver Lagoon) have been recently stocked. We can take care of you no matter what style of fishing you choose to do so come on by the shop and we can provide you with the appropriate bait or suggest some flies that will work.

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Water Flows – August 13th