YELLOWSTONE FISHING HEATS UP - WEATHER COOLS DOWN

FIREHOLE RIVER CLEARING RAPIDLY
Madison & Gibbon Following Close Behind
hatches thin but productive


<-- Photo courtesy of Jason Neuswanger: "The Trout Nut"





-- Memorial Day dawned grey and with snow flurries. A leisurely breakfast and a view of the race at Indy seemed in order. By 2:30 PM we had a "SUN-dershower" warming the meadows along the Firehole River and there was a hatch to fish. The river has cleared rapidly these last three days, and the suspended load poses no problem to fish, fisherfolk, or the bugs.
-- We fished Blue Winged Olives, Pale Morning Duns, and some Yellowstone Cinch's. We had a SPARKLE DUN that seemed to fish better than the others, but we broke it off early. The Sparkle Dun was originated by Craig Mathews a while back and has become a standard fly for the Firehole. When the sparse hatch pooped out we switched to Yellowstone Badgers and Prince Nymphs. The fish kept taking.
-- Stopped along the Madison River and visited with the neighbors. The Madison is still bank-full and very fast, but clearing. Some good fish were taken, but the fishing was hard. Nymphs were the order of the day, until a sparse caddis hatch occurred about 6:00 PM at the Barns Holes. We took some Whitefish and one ultra-thin snake - poor spawned out fellow must have been waiting for the water to clear and get some food.
-- It snowed again last night; big fluffy flakes that left only a residue on the cars this morning. This cooling trend is slowing the rivers in Yellowstone, and making fishing exceptionally good. The Madison River will continue to clear, The Firehole River is close to perfect, and the water has left most of the meadows along the Gibbon River.