We are having a really nice August for fishing and it looks like we should continue this excellent trend into the fall. Water conditions have held up nicely, with lower temps and good oxygen levels. This has made for one of the best Trico seasons in some time and has also made our Hopper fishing much better than last season.
Silver Creek is a show in the mornings! The Trico spinner fall has been great, with many an angler complaining about too many bugs, which is exactly the kind of problem we want to have. Early in the morning is the time to be on the water. Go as early as you are willing and stay to at least 11 a.m. After lunch it is Hopper time and Callibaetis on the ponds. There are also some good Damselfly days as well. Watch for the short Baetis spinner fall as the Trico is winding down. This is also a good time to present a Hopper to all those rising fish in order to see if there is a greedy one. In the evenings the river is alive with all kinds of actions. Brown trout are chasing baitfish, micro-Caddis are emerging, Baetis and Callibaetis are spinning, and the Creek sees the fewest anglers during any point of the day.
The Big Wood is a much more technical fishery this time of the year and is best early in the morning and late in the evening, with the afternoons reserved for Hopper/Dropper fishing and Streamers. Don’t forget how much the fish in the Wood love to eat the Wood River sculpin! If you are fishing the Wood, move slower, scale your fly sizes back and watch the water closely before you fish. Undisturbed fish in the mornings will sit really close to the bank in nondescript water.
The Lost River is fishing well. Very small Tricos are on the menu in the mornings, with the afternoons becoming Hopper/Dropper time. The river is fishing well both above and below the reservoir, although both are seeing a fair amount of angling pressure. Some of the afternoon storms have made the upper Lost blow out and turn to chocolate milk, so be sure to check the forecast for storm cells if you head up there. It’s a long drive to find poor conditions!
Happy fishing, everyone!
