"Seeing the first trout of the year was more than a relief – it was a form of spiritual survival. The trout were still there; something important had continued." – Ted Leeson After months of anticipation, it is reassuring to find the moose, the birds, the bugs, and the trout where they should be. Silver Creek Thanks to inclement weather,…
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"The irreducible constant of fishing is water." – Ted Leeson Opening day for the Big Wood, Silver Creek, and the South Fork of the Boise is Saturday, May 28th. Time to gather and prepare the ingredients for a successful day of angling: patch waders, replace laces, organize fly boxes, check tippet, rebuild leaders, clean lines, fill float tube, call a…
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"Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it." – Charles Dudley Warner One thing we do when it comes to talking about the weather is: make predictions. Four weeks ago the summer water forecast for the Valley looked grim, but moisture keeps coming to our mountains. As of April 1st, the Big Wood Basin snow water equivalent…
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"They both listened silently to the water, which to them was not just water, but the voice of life, the voice of Being, the voice of perpetual Becoming." – Hermann Hesse April has been a good month for moisture around the valley and the next ten days also promise more cool, wet weather. The rain dance worked! While this is…
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"Do you know why the Indian rain dances always worked? Because the Indians would keep dancing until it rained." – Sherman Alexie Despite a strong December and early January, the snow water equivalent around the region is between 60 and 80% of normal. While precipitation in April and May might help matters, it is very likely that we will be…
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"Spring is the time of plans and projects." – Leo Tolstoy Spring plans and projects should involve fishing in some form or fashion. Everything else can wait until the rivers swell with runoff or close for the season. Silver Creek This is the last chance to fish the Creek before it closes like the Wood and the South Fork. Tubing…
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"To catch a river unguarded is less a matter of where to look than of when, and so while other fishermen have secret places, I have a secret time." – Ted Leeson, The Habit of Rivers Can you keep a secret? The best time to fish is March. Silver Creek The lower Creek from Kilpatrick Bridge down through Point of…
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"September days have the warmth of summer in their briefer hours, but in their lengthening evenings a prophetic breath of autumn." – Rowland E. Robinson On a typical September day, anglers begin bundled in fleece and waders, but by the early afternoon wish they were wet wading. Then, as the sun drops, the prophetic breath of autumn returns. Such are…
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“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” - Loren Eiseley Despite a wet end to April, the Big Wood, Little Wood, and Big Lost Basin are suffering from a severe drought. For the month of May, we are expecting a drier than average weather pattern to dominate the region. Most of the low altitude snow…
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“I think the best teacher is the stream, the best way to learn is again and again.” ~from Trout Tactics by Joe Humphreys Thursday, June 20th you will have the chance to meet fly fishing icon Joe Humphreys. Joe, along with the cast and crew of the documentary film Live The Stream, will be on hand at the Sun Valley Opera House. A…
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