Say It Now - Say It Loud

SNEAKY BUGS
ERUPTING EARLY

Gulper Fishing May Be Here

can it be true?

.. The simple truth of the matter is that the worm fishers get there first. Be there more of them, or be they more persistent, or be they sharper than the rest of us - it's true.
.. Rafts of mayflies have been reported by the wormy folks at a seldom fished, (by fly folks,) area of Hebgen Reservoir. Of course we investigated. It's true, and it's early.
.. Say Callibaetis, and Yellowstone Lake and Hebgen Reservoir come to mind - IN MID-JUNE!
.. Say gulper fishing, and Hebgen Reservoir springs to the lips - on the north side, or the east end. And, truth-be-told these areas are both productive and easy to access from town.
.. However, the rocky shores at the tip of Rumbaugh Ridge in the area known as Rumbaugh Point, (or locally as just "Rumbaugh,") get the sun earlier and more persistently than other places on Hebgen Reservoir.
.. The ice leaves here earlier, (although it takes a snow machine to get there early.) The coves are sheltered and fairly shallow. The bugs are prolific and healthy, (and the fish find them just before the fishers.) They're there now.
.. With all the concentration on opening day in Yellowstone National Park, the gulper fishing buzz will have to wait - for the orthodox fanatics. For the catchers of fish, (flies, worms, gear,) Rumbaugh and the South Fork Estuary are the places to be.
.. Not only are the bugs present, but it looks like there is a population explosion of leeches as well. They love waders, they love float tubes, they love to attach and stay. If they don't get some blood it's O.K. they are just along for the ride and it's their means of dispersal.
.. Currently the fish are eating everything. If a nymph, or emerger, or dry won't work - try a leech and troll around the mud and rock interface.
.. The tube fishers are using floating emergers like the Challenged Callibaetis and Hackle Stacker as their primary weapons. We're happy to see some greased Feather Dusters in the mix as well. Sizes are on the largish size - 14 and 16 seem to be the ones most commonly used. Color at this time seems less important than size, and if you have some PMD's in the right size - use 'em!
.. Woolly Buggers are always popular for trolling. Be sure to keep the sizes down and the action slight. Trolling with only the wind as propulsion is a good place to start.
.. Right now it's not a bad idea to put the tip of your rod in the water and keep a short line and only a 7' leader. Remember, your fly rod won't shrink if it gets wet.

Click on map for larger image.

Fish Now - Water Disappearing

WHAT TO DO?

go grouper fishing

.. Not to be too much of an alarmist - BUT - the snow pack is dismal:
-> In the Gallatin drainage, there was only 27 percent of average as of Thursday.
-> In the upper Yellowstone, there was only 32 percent.
-> In the Madison, there was 20 percent.
.. There are other complications:
-> Without well-timed and abundant rains, the coming summer could bring stressed fisheries, dry farm fields and big forest fires.
-> “I'm always crossing my fingers for lots and lots of rainfall,” said Ray Nelson, a firefighting logistics manager who sits on the Governor's Drought Advisory Committee. Nelson noted that National Weather Service long-term predictions say there's a chance of slightly warmer and drier average temperatures through August.“From our standpoint, that means hot and dry,” he said. “And that means fire activity. If that forecast pans out, we'll have an active fire year.”From The Bozeman Daily Chronicle.
.. It can get worse:
-> It's bad enough that snowpack isn't what it used to be, but when what's there melts early, rivers and streams can't maintain healthy flows through the summer. That plays havoc with fish, irrigation, recreation and, in a few cases, municipal water supplies.
-> "May and June are usually our wet months, so that has me a little worried," Meier said.
-> "We're on such a thin margin, things can change on a dime," Meier said. From Billings Gazette.