"I Just Got Back"
I recently spent the day up on the South Fork Boise River. It had recently snowed but the road in was freshly graded and I easily drove down to the river. I drove the length of the river from the dam down to Danskin Bridge. Driving of freshly plowed roads makes it nice for driving but a pain in the ass for fishing. All the plowed snow was of course piled up along the side of the road making parking impossible. The few parking turnouts that had been plowed were few but enough to safely park and get down to the river.
The limited fishing reports I'd managed to get from a few anglers who had been to the South Fork proved correct when after only a few minutes I was in contact with my first white fish. Fishing the South Boise in winter is a real treat and must be taken on with the attitude of "I'm going to catch some great white fish and if I'm lucky I might even catch a few trout in the process"
If you go, have two fly rods ready to go. The first should be your nymph rod and you will be well advised to have a couple of small bead head nymphs on in sizes 16 and 18. If fishing is slow try changing to a black or green bead head nymph in like sizes. Fish this rig with a split shot or two and work the tail outs from top to bottom. The Second rod should be your midge rod and you should probably lead off with a size 20 black Midge or Adams. Drop one or two Midge Pupa behind your dry fly about eighteen inches down. If you run into fish feeding on top you will be ready with your midge rod close by. If the action on top heats up switch off the dry Midge fly with a strike indicator.
If you go, the best time to be on the water is from about 11:00 to 3:00. You should see plenty of adult Midges on the water so if you have time, drive around and look for rising fish. It can make the difference. The river closes for all fishing after March 31st.
Spring has Sprung
It doesn't matter what the weather man says or what you've read in the newspapers, spring has arrived and there's no way to change that. It's now time to start thinking about getting back on the rivers. If you are like me, then usually the first things to be taken care of is getting your gear in order. That may mean replacing lost flies or patching those holes you made in your waders last fall. For me, I've been getting ready to start fly fishing all winter. All I have to do is change out a few leaders and I'm good to go.
Many rivers and streams of low altitude remain open all year or at least until the spring spawn. For many of us anglers in Idaho we make the pilgrimage to the South Fork of the Boise River until the end of March when they close the season for the spawn. It's really the perfect time of the year to fish when you think about it. There is no run off or stained water, the weather is never hot, the trout have not seen many anglers and you can usually fish just about anywhere you want.
A real nice gift this time of year is the availability of mountain white fish. White fish are winter spawners and tend to school up just behind the trout. With trout still being a little lethargic from a long winter, you have the benefit of enjoying the antics of a large white fish when the trout fishing is a little slow. But what's really nice about spring fishing are the wonderful Midge hatches that always precede the Baetis hatches later in the spring.
Trout just seem to wake up when food starts drifting down to them. There are arguably only a few things better in life than catching an 18 inch trout on a tiny dry fly for your first trout of the year. So it's time to wake up and smell the trout! See ya on the water...
Emergers
When I first started fly fishing I had a hard enough time just learning what a dry fly was let alone what an emerger is. Back in the day it was all about floating an Adams or bouncing a Hare's Ear along the bottom. There wasn't a lot written about a streams ecosystem or entomology in the sixties. What most fly anglers learned, including myself was from time spent on the water and our own little network of fly anglers. I have always been an avid reader of all fly fishing literature and it wasn't too long before I stumbled upon the phenomenon of emerging insects in some book or magazine. I didn't understand at the time how important emergers are to a fly fisherman but I at least became exposed to the occurrence.
It really wasn't until I started becoming interested in stream born entomology that the emerger phenomenon really started to make sence. That there was a whole stage in the life cycle of a Mayfly that keyed a trout's feeding behavior into a feeding frenzy was exciting and I needed to study it more. The problem was as a young fly angler raised in a town of bait fishermen I had little or no input on the subject from other fly anglers. To read about something as important and interesting as emerging stream born insects and not be able to talk about it with other fly anglers was frustrating to say the least. About the only picture I could get in my mind was a fantasy of what effect an emerger must have on a hungry trout.
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MR Fly Rod 9' 0" | 5 wt. $176.00
Our Madison River Series Fly Rods are the best fly rods on the market for their value. They are light weight and perfectly balanced for the most delicate dry fly fishing challenge to big water nymph and streamer fishing. There is a quality rod priced especially for you. Limited life time warranty.
MR Fly Rod 7' 6" | 4 wt. $146.00
Our Madison River Series Fly Rods are the best fly rods on the market for their value. They are light weight and perfectly balanced for the most delicate dry fly fishing challenge to big water nymph and streamer fishing. There is a quality rod priced especially for you. Limited life time warranty.
MR Fly Rod 9' 0" | 7 wt. $183.00
Our Madison River Series Fly Rods are the best fly rods on the market for their value. They are light weight and perfectly balanced for the most delicate dry fly fishing challenge to big water nymph and streamer fishing. There is a quality rod priced especially for you. Limited life time warranty.
Merlin's Trout Shop 