Warmth

Forecast for the next couple weeks has highs in the mid forties to fifties... give us a call and let's go fishing. Lots of hungry eager trout out there. The weekends have  been kind of busy and by that I mean 5 or 6 boats. Mid week sees little to no pressure.

Lets go.... brooooncooos

Fishing Report - Bighorn River, WY

Did a lower river float yesterday it was nice to fish some different water, though it was good only in a few spots. And the boat ramps are still very icy.... took us about twenty minutes of chipping ice with the spare oar to get up the ramp last night. Weather has been great the last few days mid thirties to low 40s and the midge have been popping getting those fish active on pupae in the right spots. Not much in the way of dry fly fishing right now but we have seen sporadic rises to midge adults here and there. Nymphing the deep and slow water is the most productive way to catch fish right now, and we're starting to see more browns in the mix whereas a few weeks ago we were only catching rainbows. You just never know what you're gonna lift off the bottom of the river...

Ate the worm.

Fishing Report - Bighorn River, Thermopolis, Wyoming

Flows out of Boysen Reservoir are 825cfs. Water temps are cold. Fishing has been good. Catching a lot of nice fat rainbows nymphing. Red worm and a natural sow bug have been our go-to this week. Other patterns that will work are gray Ray Charles #16, red midge larva #20-22, and black zebra midge or other comparable midge pupa patterns in #18-22. Fish with long leaders (9 foot) and heavy lead and focus on the deep slow water. Fish are stacked in certain holes, take your time in the good water. Watch for ice flows on the lower river north of town and icy boat ramps. Cold snap comes in the next few days but it looks like things will warm up next week. We are still running our off-season special...$100 bucks off full day trips...on the water at 9:30 or 10 and off by 4:00, fishing during the warmest part of the day...lunch included.

This guy zipped around the pool like a steelhead 

winter fishing

Bighorn River, Wyoming 

Long time no update. I was out of the game for a few weeks with a shoulder injury, which happened to be good timing as temperatures were well below freezing. We just returned from Arizona visiting family and then we're headed to Oregon for Christmas to visit more family. Unfortunately fishing isn't on our list of things to do, so we've been hitting it pretty hard the last few days. And fishing has been pretty good, so why should we fish anywhere else?

 Lots of nice fat rainbows on steamers and nymphs. And the fish are definitely stacked in the slow deep water as water temps are very cold. The browns are off the redds but ya might get a few fish to eat the egg. I would focus more on midge larva and pupa and sow bugs or worms for point flies and 9ft leaders.

For streamers we've been using 300 grain sink tip lines and tungsten headed flies to get down deeeeep with slow retrieves combing the troughs and deeper pits. White has been our best color. And we are still seeing a handful of baetis on any given day and plenty of adult midge on the surface, but not very many fish rising. This should change in the coming weeks as the days get longer.

Happy Holidays and we hope to fish with you this year.

Fishin with the James brothers

Went fishing with the James brothers today lookin for a big one. Saw a couple but didn't stick em. We did however catch a bunch of these

The James Bros.

And there are fish on redds. Please do not walk on clean gravel or attempt to snag spawners... it is not cool. On that note they are eating the bead really really good right now.

on the water report

Fished with Jeff and Frank from California yesterday,  they've been out here hunting and decided to take a day fly fishing. It proved to be a good idea,  we caught a lot of rainbows and a couple nice browns nymphing. The weather was pleasant minus the wind. Had some good days fishing in the snow last week and we're seeing more big baetis, with more big browns eating them under the olive trees. Flows are still fluctuating between 800 and 850 cfs. The nymphing really seems to be better in the morning until they turn onto the baetis around noon one o clock. Streamer fishing is day to day.

Alyssa did a presentation on tying steamers last night for the Wyoming Womens Fly Fishing Club at UW in Laramie. Sounds like it was a sold out crowd and the ladies had a good time.  We look forward to fishing with them next spring.

Used Drift Boat For Sale - 2007 Clackacraft SOLD!

SOLD the ol' high side Clacka. We just don't need it now that we've decided not to head back to Washington for the winter. It's a 2007 Steelhead Deluxe, great starter boat or for big rivers and heavy water. I bought it from the Clacka dealer in Portland in 2013 where it was refurbished. I've put it to use, almost 200 guide days plus on the water and it has some scratches, but no leaks. Great boat. Comes with trailer (new tires and bearings installed April 2015), 30lb. anchor, and 9 1/2 foot Sawyer oars. SOLD!