Hidden Treasures

JUST THE THING
FOR AUGUST

Trees Trout Timeout

sorta secret hatches & places

.. It happens about this time every year. Our home waters fill up with visitors and 'discovery' is the theme for every one of them. We retreat to better fishing in more secluded areas where the fish are eager, relaxed, and very willing dance partners. There are no secrets about the fishing in Yellowstone National Park. Happily, this time of year, people continue to visit the fabled glory waters and leave the good fishing alone.
.. The bits of dust on the Obsidian Creek trail are becoming clouds as more and more people wend their way along this stream. Interestingly, the trails along Straight Creek and Winter Creek are still a bit obscure. The late spring and cool Summer temperatures, (so far,) have delayed one of the sorta secret hatches in Yellowstone. It'll be over by the end of next week, but right now there is excellent dry fly fishing to explosive Brook Trout. Your favorite Green Drake imitation in sizes 16-20 will keep you busy for as long as you care to cast. Watch for the bigger fish to be close to the dead fall and snags. Take your 3-weight and enjoy the scenery.
.. Digestion of your leisurely picnic at Grizzly Lake will not be aided by the eager Brookies in the lake smacking anything on the surface. If the day is calm it's fun to cast to the cruisers. If it's windy get to the windward shore for big fish on foam ants.
.. The grasshopper nymphs along Blacktail Deer Creek will have wings by next week and the hatch will blossom along with the beetles by the second week in August. This is one of the places where angry Mountain Whitefish will keep you guessing longer than usual. Little scorn should be wasted on these tigers, they are almost as selective as the Brook Trout.
.. If you still have legs that still work well, now is the time to fish Cache Creek. It's clear, cold and nearly devoid of fisher folks.
.. Eager native Cutthroat Trout have been enjoying the summer so far, (judging by the trail.) The area around Waab Springs shows some usage but this bit of mosquito fodder is well worth fishing right now. The ants are out and they are feeding on first stage grasshopper larvae. Get there early as the temperature really accelerates this hopper hatch.
.. Tower Creek is enjoying a resurgence in popularity this year, as is Solfaterra Creek and Indian Creek. The campgrounds are sprouting more fly rods than camper trailers -- for a change. These are still good August destinations, but the upper Fan Creek meadows are probably better for solitude. Of course bears like solitude too.
.. These are the sorta secret places that we used to visit this time of year. They are getting crowded as 'discovery' continues.
.. We have a couple of places that we've been fishing that are less discovered. The fish are eager, the trails almost indecipherable, the mosquitoes absent, and the water is still cold and clear. Ants abound and the hoppers are over 1/2 inch long. We'll be surprised to see you there.