Monthly Archives: July 2009

Montana Fly Fishing: Alpine Lakes Beat The Heat Of Summer

It’s the heat of summer and often I hear anglers complaining about how slow the fishing is.  But it doesn’t have to be that way.  There are many options for beating the heat and hooking up with nice fish at the same time.

If you’re used to fishing from a drfit boat, and it’s become you’re primary mode of fishing, perhaps it’s time to leave the boat in the driveway and use the quads God gave you.  Take a hike into an alpine lake with your float tube and get up into the backcountry.

Float tubing is becoming increasingly popular and for good reason.  Alpine lakes offer a great way to beat the heat of summer since it’s cooler at higher elevations and often provide a more solitary experience as well.  Todays tubes are designed to be lightweight, have plenty of storage at hand for things like a few flies, lunch, a bottle of water, and they’re easy to pump up.

Most alpine lakes offer great fishing here in Montana.  Float tubing alpine lakes is also a great way to introduce novice anglers to the sport as well.  Fishing from a tube is very easy.  There’s no trees to catch a backcast, and generally fish in alpine lakes are very user friendly from a catching point of view due to short feeding season.  One of my guides, Sean McAfee likes to tell clients, “Actually, you don’t need to bring any flies…the fish up there will eat a peice of your shoelace.”  And while he’s kidding, there’s a certain amount of truth to the statement.

Getting to and from alpine lakes is often an adventure in itself.  Here on the Kootenai National Forest we often see cougars, bears, moose, deer, elk, badgers, and any number of other species while driving to the trailheads high in the backcountry.  It’s a thrill for most people and the fishing becomes an additional bonus.

Next time you’re bemoaning the summer doldrums on your local river, consider getting high and heading into the backcountry for some float tubing on an alpine lake.  float tubing alpine lakes

Montana Fly Fishing: Better Hopper Fishing

Tom Ukena-hopper:30

Tom Ukena-hopper:30

Generally speaking it’s true that drag free dry fly drifts increase opportunities for catching fish significantly.  But there are times when purposefully imparting a bit of motion is a good thing and fishing hoppers is certainly a case in point.  

Yesterday while floating the Kootenai, Bostonians and like minded Red Sox fans Tom and Sue Ukena and I had a great morning sniping trout with long leaders and size 16 pmd spinners.  During lunch, with bright sunshine and the heat of the day coming on, we decided the best plan of attack was to switch to big bugs and try some hoppers. 

I shoved the boat out of the shade, felt the blast of heat from the sun, and readied myself for bank slamming hopper:30.  From the front of the boat Tom snapped a cast and landed his hopper six inches from the bank.  Sue fired hers next and both anglers got great drifts down the edge of the boulders through one of the best runs.  But neither got a strike.  Hmmm…that’s not right.  It’s the end of July and these fish should at least be looking up for something big once in a while I thought.  After about a mile and no strikes, I decided to try something different.

“Guys, start skitching those hoppers a little bit as soon as they hit the water, ” I told my anglers.

Next drift, as soon as their hoppers hit the water, Tom and Sue gave the bugs a little movement.  Bang, a nice rainbow slammed Tom’s hopper and a second later, Sue was hooked up too.  Our first double of the day.

The above anecdote clearly illustrates the fact that there are times when it’s very effective to purposefully break the rules surrounding drag free dry fly drifts.  Fishing a hopper with motion can bring big success.  But it’s not a free for all when moving your hopper.  There are a few rules to keep in mind.

It’s important to consider that a little bit of movement goes a long way.  Be sure to go easy on the movement you give your fly.  Think more about vibrating the fly, much like natural hoppers act, and not swimming it two feet at time.  I like the word skitch.  ”Skitch it, then let it ride ten feet,” I tell my clients.  That way, the fly hits the water, immediately vibrates and struggles, and then floats downstream without motion for a while.

Be aware that fish react differently to hoppers.  Sometimes immediately after you skitch the fly, they’ll crush it.  Sometimes they’ll come up slowly, follow it downstream, and then hammer it.  Often they’ll bump it with their nose, see what happens, and then slurp it down.  It’s important to keep your adrenaline in check.  Depending on how the fish rise to your hopper after you skitch it, obviously determines how you strike.  Hit hard if they hit it hard, strike slowly and give them time to close their mouth if they nose up and slurp it.  If they bang it but don’t eat it, get ready for them to hit it again since it’s likely they’re trying to drown it.

By imparting movement with little skitches of your hopper, you can increase hook-ups on days when trout are wary and not necessarily inclined to hammer the big bugs.  By keeping a few simple rules in mind, and by not overdoing the action on your fly, you’ll find increase success with hoppers during the heat of the season.

Montana Fishing Report: Kootenai River

Discharge from Libby Dam is 7000cfs and water temperature in the stilling basin is presently 60 degrees.   All things considered the Kootenai is in good shape and fishing pretty well.  It’s the height of summer here and with hot, bright, sunny weather, bug activity is concentrated in the early mornings and late evenings.  Pmd’s are still popping just before dark and caddis swarms are thick as the sun goes down as well.  Throughout the day hoppers and droppers will keep things interesting but big fish are a bit more difficult to find during the heat of the day.  Nymphing through fast, deep runs and rapids will bring nicer fish and if you have the inclination, jerking streamers might well thrum up a dandy.

As other options, alpine lakes are in perfect shape.  Consider hiking into the backcountry with your float tube and picking off rising cutthroats with ants or small attractors.  It’s also cooler up there!

Montana Fly Fishing Report: Clark Fork River

Clark Fork flows are currently around 5700 cfs and still above average for this time of year.  Conditions this season are the best we’ve seen in long while.  Water temps are still nice and cool and there’s plenty of it covering the riffles and runs.

Fish are still eating big bugs and hoppers and droppers are a great all around rig.  With any cloud cover at all pmd hatches will be good.  Otherwise, with high sun, look for caddis and pmds mostly in the evenings.  Keep in mind the fish are seeing lots of both species this time of year.  Pmd and caddis cripples and emergers are good bets as droppers especially if you see rising fish. 

With good water volume fish are still holding in riffles and are active throughout most of the day.  And as always, the “hour of power” is there to be had for the hearty just before dark.

Montana Fly Fishing Report: Kootenai River

Dishcharge from Libby Dam is 7000 cfs and will remain there through September offering great wading opportunities on the river this season.   Conditions on the Kootenai have settled into the standard summer routine with pmds and caddis headlining hatches.  All in all the Kootena is fishing pretty well.

Caddis have been active and popping out of faster water throughout most of the day.  Pmds are late, what with bright sun but look for that “hour of power” just before dark when both species start returning to the riffles to lay eggs and die.  Just what we love!!!  Also, look for pmd spinner falls around 9:00 am as well.

Hoppers and droppers are bringing some nicer fish and nymphing in faster water and through the rapids will produce.  Get those nymphs down.  Keep in mind the Kootenai is a big river even when flows are in the lower range.  You have to penetrate the first two feet of the current in order to really be effective.  Tungsten bead heads are best best.

Lime green midge are starting to show up on the upper river and there have been some noses poking through the already gin clear water looking for the tiny stuff.  6X and long casts will help if you feel like testing your skills.

Montana Fly Fishing: Clark Fork River Report

Flows are dropping steadily and are now approximately 8500cfs.  The entire river is verrry fishable and hatches of caddis and pmds are starting to increase.  Big bugs with droppers are still producing fish and for the most part the fish are really starting to look up.  Look for increased hatches in the coming days and definitely target rising fish.  Generally speaking the fish that are rising are very willing.  Fish droppers with at least three feet from the dry as flows are still a bit high and it’s necessary to get the dropper down in the zone.

Montana Fly Fishing: Kootenai River Report

Discharge from Libby Dam has decreased further and will arrive at approximately 7000cfs by Friday, July 10.  Hatches of pmds and caddis are pretty good in the lower river but spotty above Libby particularly if day is hot and sunny. 

Hot patters include parachute adams, Barr’s pmd emerger, Quigley pmd cripples, and Rosenbauer’s rabbit’s foot pmd.  Goddard caddis are moving fish in faster water and generally speaking it seems fish are concentrated in swifter currents.  Look for bigger fish in really deep runs, like twenty feet, and try sink tips and deep water nyphming if you’re really looking to bang a big one.

The Koot is really starting to turn on and hatches will be increasing and the dry fly action will be picking up significantly in the coming days.

Montana Fly Fishing: Tips For Choosing a Guide

Choosing a guide or outfitter for your fly fishing trip in Montana can be daunting to say the least.  After all, there are literally thousands of professional fly fishing guides in the state each claiming to offer something different.  So how best to choose the right guide for you?  Below you’ll find a few helpful hints on the subject.

When choosing a fly fishing guide for your trip the first order of business you might want to consider is location.  Where exactly do you want to fish in the state?  Kootenai River in the northwest corner?  Missoula area?  Perhaps the Yellowstone country would suit your needs.  By starting with a general location, you can narrow down your choices considerably since each location will have professional guides that specialize in their home area.  

Keep in mind Montana is a big state and offers some of the greatest fly fishing opportunities on the planet.  Don’t try to bite off more than you can choose.  Each year I get a call from an enthusiastic angler hoping to fish every river in Montana in two weeks.  Indeed that would be fun.  But unfortunately you’ll spend most of your time driving and not on the water.  And you’re likely to go home from your “vacation” completely exhausted and not refreshed and relaxed which is the preferred end result for the trip in the first place.

Websites now provide all the necessary tools you need to find the right guide for you.  But I’d suggest you always call and have a conversation or two with whomever you might be considering hiring.  It’s important to get a sense of who someone is by hearing their voice instead of just knowing how well they type e-mail.  By having a conversation you can more effeciently decide what guide is best for you.

It’s also a good idea to be very straightforward about what you hope to accomplish from your guided day of fly fishing.  If you’re after lots of instruction, make sure you mention that.  Be honest about your abilities up front.  If you you’re looking for native trout, mention your desire for that particular goal.  Each guide will offer something different and may or may not have what you’re looking for.

By doing choosing your location ahead of time and by having a few conversations about what you hope to accomplish for the day, you’ll have an easier time picking the right guide for you.