Gulpers & Gulpers

SOME ARE JUSTLY FAMOUS

Others Nearly Unknown

it's heating up now

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.. The world famous gulper action of HEBGEN LAKE has started in earnest.The far less famous gulper action at the neighborhood's secret spot has also started.

.. Calibaetis is the word on every pub-crawler's lips. It's whispered and shouted. It's the critter that's praised and cursed. They have been here for a couple of weeks, but their numbers have finally reached heroic proportions. They're everywhere.
.. The weed beds and soft bottom areas of Hebgen Lake produce prodigious numbers of these big-eyed bugs.
.. They appear at mid morning and the lake erupts with the dimples of fish noses. On the best mornings, (bright, still, warm, and the fog just cleared,) you can hear the slurping from all sides. Popcorn comes to mind, (but it's not nearly so prolific and is much louder.)

.. Near shore and adjacent to some tributaries and springs there is frequently a second hatch of trico's. The males hatch in the evening and hang out in the weeds and trees until morning when the females hatch and take wing. The clouds of diminutive bugs are sometimes thick enough to obscure the trees and willows.

.. Several times during the next few weeks these monster hatches will occur. When it happens, (and it's a spectacle to behold,) catching is hampered by the sheer quantity of bugs. The trout just rise and gulp and rise and gulp and the gulping of your fly is a statistical event.
.. It's a little easier at the neighborhood hole. It's a smaller area. There's just a mite fewer bugs. Casting from shore is possible. The trout see your fly as an individual entity. Catching is glorious.
.. Sometimes the fish are more or less selective during the monster hatches. Other times they seem to be very indiscriminate. Fly offerings are usually best presented on the surface. Sometimes, cagy anglers, will present both imitations.
.. The feeding frenzy can last for up to four hours, but taking of fish can continue to the early afternoon over some weed beds. Bring your sunscreen and wide-brimmed hat.

.. There are various local favorites for flies. There are standard patterns as well. We have a large selection of OPF's that we tie on. The small ones are kindly tied on 6x tippets by the dexterous neighbors whose eyes are better than ours.

..There are several places at Hebgen Lake where the weed beds are near enough to the shore that gulpers can be taken by wading into the lake.
.. Mostly this is a tube or boat proposition. Gentle presentations, sharp eyes, patience, and a smattering of good luck are all rewarded with fish bigger than the net you wear while "stylin' " on the streams.
.. Local knowledge is not necessary but a morning with a good guide will prepare you for a lifetime of spectacular catching. Get here now - or wait a week or two. It won't matter. They are here and it's worth the fishing -- if just for the catching.
.. The image below is from a very interesting site "Harvey's Spiders N Stuff."  Click HERE for more great images and a bit of information as well.

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