Fly Fishing In Yellowstone National Park

Thursday, June 06, 2013

Wednesday, June 05, 2013

Monday, June 03, 2013

The Great Debate

SOME SAY IT'S OVER

Some Think It's Just Starting

is the early season really screwed up?

DOUBLE REFLECTION - WINDSHIELD SAFETY GLASS - DOUBLE GOOD ??

-------

.. There is an old adage about fishing in Yellowstone National Park. It goes something like this: "FISHING IN THE PARK IS JUST AS GOOD AS THE FISHERMAN."

A NOT SO SUBTLE INVITATION

.. Right now the fisher folks are grumbling - OR - rejoicing about the stonefly hatch on the Firehole River. Empty shucks have been seen. Does this mean the hatch is over? Bugs have been seen. Does this mean the hatch is starting? Ask the fish.
.. We infrequently chase the big bugs in the Firehole River Canyon below Firehole Falls. It's hard on the pins. We've learned that it's about 300 feet down the canyon and about six miles back up.
.. There are boulders and deep holes in the water. All the good spots are always on the other side of the river. It's a nuisance. There are some pretty fish to be had. There are some big fish to be had. Bark your shins - have at it.
.. Yesterday we looked at the canyon. Reminiscence is a tough mistress. We got out of the car at several familiar places. We looked at some old trails and some new trails. We saw the tiny green shoots and red-stemmed beginnings of the wild strawberry plants. We thought long and hard about the descent, and the ascent. Pass! Took a few pictures.
.. Up top, out of the canyon, we paused at a nearby familiar pull out. We thought about what we ought to tie on. Made the decision. And as we were about to leap into action, (or some such,) a winged monster landed gently on the windshield. It whispered to us in a very soft voice, "There are just as many of us above the falls as below." We knew that.

HOME OF THE STONES

.. We, as we so often are wont to do, ignored the invitation and tied on a gawdawfulbig yellow thing and went about our catching. We were chastised soundly for our fly selection, (it did gather up an insufferably large amount of fish though,) as the shunned arthropods slammed into our exposed body parts. There were quite a few dive-bomber kamikaze attacks that found our head and face.
.. Moral: Pteronarcys californica is a sensitive creature with easily hurt feelings. By our reckoning the big bugs are hatching right now. This is just a guess on our part. Being battered by the flying monsters is not a definitive indicator. However, it will have to do for the moment.
.. The Firehole River is attracting all of the attention right now. Go figure. There are PMD's, Baetis, Caddis, and some funny little white winged beasties along the length of the river. The fish are enjoying it.

-------

.. The fish in the Madison River are enjoying being neglected. They are eating lots of good food and they can see it very well, thank you.
.. It's, for sure, not going to last much longer - BUT - there is a good 6' or more visibility in the river right now. It's not gin-clear but it's awfully pretty, nevertheless. Even the warm days have not turned the river to mud.

GAWDAWFULBIG YELLOW THING - catched sum fishes too

.. This year's mid-elevation snow pack was dry, dry, dry. The snow moisture content has been rung out of the small snow fields in the mid-elevations and it's going to be a few days, (maybe 10,) before this runoff event kicks up a notch or two.
.. The Madison River is running at about 350 cfs below the seasonal median discharge rate. It's cool but not cold. The Gibbon River is running at about 110 cfs below it's seasonal discharge.
.. The Firehole River is very low and heating up again. Current discharge is about 200 cfs below seasonal median. Temperatures have spiked again to 72° F on June 1. That's enough to put the fish off their feed. Start looking at Nez Perce Creek and bears should you delay your visit much longer.
.. We're headed to the Gallatin River. It's cold, clear, low and full of fish that are avoiding the mud further down the canyon. Hell's bells, it's even running about 800 cfs below where it usually is at this time of year - a bit dirty down low though.
.. More to come - - - - soon.

-------

BARNS' #2 - ABANDONED AND FULL OF HAPPY FISH

Sunday, June 02, 2013

Bits O' Fluff

BLESS THE HOOLIGANS

Flies Tied In Advance

don't use these right now

-------

.. So, the neighborhood kids have come through again. They heard us talking about the current magnificent hatches and easy catching on the Firehole River.
.. They took pity on us and gifted us with the appropriate flies for the soon to be encountered "other fishing."

Yellow Belly Parachute

.. The "other fishing" occurs immediately after the poor fish get hammered to a bloody pulp by the current crop of visitors. Despite rumors to the contrary - fish in the Firehole River will not eat just anything.
.. Very, very soon now they will become fussy. They will eyeball your flies and not eat them. They will confuse the experts by eating anything but the stuff sold over the counter at the feather merchants' shops.
.. This fishy behavior will engender a tying frenzy by pros and amateurs alike. They will invent. They will innovate. They will create. There will be a new crop of latest and greatest flies. New materials will be incorporated into old flies. Old flies will be re-named and called something catchy - contemporary merchandising - dontchaknow.

Copper Nice-N-Easy

.. The kids in the neighborhood just made a raid on the local fly shops. They were well behaved. They didn't smirk or giggle. They didn't guffaw 'till they soiled their shorts.
.. They gently cruised the musty aisles. Aisles filled with bins of flies. Aisles decorated with cute gadgets and plastic packaging. Aisles surrounded by pink and chartreuse pastel shirts designed for the liberation of $100.00 or more.
.. And, then, (with eyes as sharp as the visiting ospreys,) they have decided what they should tie, (or modify, or copy.)
.. These kids are on the water every day. They see stuff. They remember stiff. They tie stuff. They fish the stuff. These are just scraps. They call the stuff "Bits O' Fluff."

Brown And Tan Flossy Spinner

.. They tie these flies while watching old movies or the "X" Games. on HULU. Sometimes they rent a "tying movie," such as an old Abbot & Costello flick - easy to follow without watching.
.. They crank out buckets of flies. On rare occasions there are even two or three flies that are the same. (or nearly so.)
.. Mostly the flies are quick to tie. Mostly they are devised from scraps and other readily available bits currently strewn across the tying bench, (or whatever.) Bless their hearts, they give us some. A dozen of each, more or less.
.. These flies are in no way standardized. They are often too small for us to understand. They infrequently have names. When they have names they are certainly not names that would entice most of the sophisticated technical fishers of the fly.

Loop Wing Cripple

.. As we've mentioned before, the flies usually come with a foot or so of monofilament securely attached. Bless the kids. We asked them for a few without tippet material for some photos.
.. This time they did soil their shorts. The thought that some serious anglers might see the flies and actually use them made the kids roll on the floor holding their sides. They thrashed our miniscule living room to a froth.
.. Happily, not many serious or technical anglers read these posts. They are too busy avoiding catching by fishing the correct flies. The flies fished by the bejeweled and highly decorated, and heavily armored fishers have names that would make any advertising executive swoon.

Itty Bitty Caddis

.. These flies are presented here for your amusement. They come with no guarantee or implied warranty. We've censored the names in the interest of modesty and our lack of prurient interest.
.. We can tell you that they, (or reasonable facsimiles thereof,) have been fished by the kids.
.. The kids have caught fish with all of them - BUT - they fish where most do not - AND - they do things unheard of in the guide books and expert publications.
.. Carry, in your hand, bear spray, and by the way, watch for signs like those shown below.

-------