The Magic of Fresh Snow

It seems winter decided to come roaring back from the shadows after a week so warm the flowers and spring peepers were coming out. We had a lovely light snow on Friday and are in for a really good storm Tuesday. There is the possibility of snowfall in the 18 inch range. All the better for the trout streams that are in bad shape. The Salmon river is looking like it usually does in late May right now flow wise, so this snow is a godsend. I cannot emphasize that enough, we could use two more big nor'easters on top of that and it still wouldn't make up for the last two years. Luckily the snow packs are the best they've been in years in Montana so I should be in for a treat in August. See, snow haters, it is good! My livelihood is dependent on big winter snowfalls. So I'm more than happy to take this mid March beating knowing that it will mean better trout fishing, better striper fishing, and better smallmouth fishing, and will therefore not appreciate everyone's "why does it have to snow in March" shtick.

Friday was beautiful. I absolutely love fishing in a fresh fluffy snowfall that is less than 4 inches deep, especially when it decorates the trees with a heavy frosting like coating. Like leaves that snow closes the gaps and blocks the sun and makes the trout stream feel more homey and intimate. And it's just so gorgeous!

To add to the snow and the clear clean water and the trees, a bald eagle flew over and was set upon by a raven. The massive eagle eventually latched onto the ravens tail and the birds tumbled into the canopy and out of site. What an evening!

I caught a lot of fish using my favorite nymphing method, good old Joe Humphrey's style tight lining. No fancy leaders, no sighters, no multi fly rigs. Lots and lots of fish were caught. I got a few lazy eats on mice from more giant brookies. That was pretty darn cool. And I caught some on articulated streamers too. Honestly this was my favorite day on this river so far this year despite no large fish coming to hand.

Shadow Play

It was a little breezy out yesterday. When I hit the river with David and Elwin we were catching nothing but sticks, leaves and other various non-fish items, whether they were on the water, on the bottom or somewhere behind us. The sun was likely to blame for the lack of feeding since the wind was blowing downstream. It is an upstream wind that kills the bite, so I'd guess the bright sun and clear water kept the fish hunkered down until the shadows began to creep over the surface.

We did move some fish, particularly wherever a shadow hit the water, but it was slow. Eventually El and Dave had to head out but I stayed, refusing to let home waters and stocked trout get the best of me.

Eventually in a deep deep pool, when the shadows had stretched from bank to bank, I caught four fish indicator nymphing. That gave me the confidence to tie on the mouse. Soon I was getting explosive strikes but the fish missed the fly time after time, often just tail slapping it. But finally as the sun ducked behind the hill a large brook trout rose to the fly and made the most beautiful slow motion take I have ever seen. It closed it's huge mouth around the fly and turned down, showing its big square tail on the way. I set the hook and was in for a short but nail biting battle. Soon I had a 19 inch brook trout at hand.

That made my day, and though I had a few more fish come up and take the mouse I was not nearly as impressed with them as I was the brook trout. That was a stunner.

Big Trout and Mice

When I went to sleep last night I wasn't sure I would even fish today. The forecast didn't look too good and I had just polished up the "river rider" so I really did not feel like getting it muddy on the first go. But it was warm and the Salmon was calling. When I got to the first spot I took a few casts with a nymph just to see how quickly I could get the skunk off. With cold water temps for a number of days I was unsure how well the mouse would work. After a handful of casts that should have produced fish but didn't I tied on a foam waker as an indicator and immediately started hooking fish. For half an hour I caught feisty rainbows one after the other. 

I'm not going to lie, watching that waker stop dead and then get yanked down was pretty entertaining, and that sharp lift and the sound of the line coming tight is just satisfying. And eventually one of those fish that I came tight to was a good one, a fat chrome 17 inch rainbow. It did some powerful runs and a few beautiful somersaulting jumps but it did not throw the barbless hook.

After a couple more one the Sexy Walt's I called it quits on the nymphing and went to find some mouse munchers. After working a good run for a little while and moving a handful of decent fish that didn't commit to the eat I watched a very large rainbow come out from the shadow of a boulder and swirl on the fly. It returned to its lie and I decided that there was no two ways about it, I was catching that fish. It took some convincing but eventually I got it to take. It chased for about four feet and then absolutely flushed that mouse. Just a huge swirl. After a fantastic battle on the glass rod I was holding a fish that taped out a hair under 20 inches, but what it lacked in length it made up for in girth. Definitely the heaviest rainbow I've landed, and way cooler than any other since it was a daylight mouse eat... the stuff my dreams are made of. 

After that fish took off, getting me even more soaked in the process, I was in for a lull that lasted about 20 minutes. Then I had a little burst of activity and landed three more smaller fish. Then, in the very run where I discovered last year that stocked trout will hammer a mouse in broad daylight, I had a look from a bohemoth. A few casts and some more looks later the fish came up and sucked down the mouse. Soon I was holding the biggest brookie I've caught in this river. 

I'm used to a 16 inch fish being the brute of the day on this river and I'm not one to overstay my welcome so I called it quits on a high note. Three of the better fish I've caught in this river made this one heck of a great day that almost wasn't. 

PTHW Ep. 7: One on a D&D and Indicator Nymphing

Rik and I hit my PTHW today intent on getting some nice wild browns. I was planning to chuck streamers all day and after for casts with a Drunk and Disorderly that was seeming like a pretty good idea! The fly got throttled and for about 20 seconds I thought I had buttoned into a monster. When it started splashing I realized in was a solid and very fat fish but certainly no 24 incher. It was, however, a familiar face. In fact this is was the first trout I caught in this river a few months ago when I dedicated myself to learning it. Catch and release works folks! 

Further downstream I had on a mini Double Deciever and a very large fish absolutely smashed it. I was of course paying no attention at all and missed the hookset.

After a bit longer we decided to go to a different spot and a short time after arriving we were hit with a bit of a curve ball... stocked trout! Yuk... we weren't expecting to bump into any of these today.

After I caught a few on the streamer and discovered that unlike the Salmon River fish, these ones would not touch a mouse, Rik and I were both indicator nymphing and putting a serious hurtin on some sewer trout. Some fought in the usual pathetic manner, others did some awesome runs and jumps!  And in between tons of stockers I got a gorgeous wild brownie to chew on my Sexy Walt's. Once again, it looked wildly different from every other wild brown I've caught in this place.

As fun as catching fish after fish was, I couldn't get over the fact that these stockers wouldn't touch a mouse and weren't too into the big streamers. Maybe it was the cold water, maybe they just weren't hungry enough. Who knows! But for me the only good thing about stocked trout is their eat anything attitude, so when they won't munch meat flies in the middle of the day I could take em or leave em.

Is it Mouse Time Already?!?!

Conventional wisdom would suggest that no it is not... but this fish told me "good riddance conventional wisdom" and promptly turned my yellow Master Splinter inside out. In the daylight, sub freezing temperatures, big stupid bright fly...

HOWEVER this is really more of a show of the naïveté of stocked trout than it is a show of the conditions. These fish are used to responding to some a noise on the surface and than eating things quickly in order to beat their tank mates to the meal. So really a mouse or popper is a good way to get these buggers to feed and frankly, I don't care if they are tank scrubbers it is just so fun to see a trout go zero to sixty and trash a big floating mouse or waker. So after I got one on a bugger today that is all I wanted to do, throw big foam bugs.

The first few topwater eats I got were on the black and chartreuse foam Waller Waker. After I was satisfied with that I stuck on a yellow and tan Master Splinter with a sticker hook to try to get at least one on a mouse, just because it would be pretty freaking sweet to get a mouse trout in winter. As it turned out I got four of them. The last one followed the fly 40 feet, boiling behind it the whole way. It was incredible. I was smilin' like a butchers dog (You get it if you are a Pens fan). 

It is going to be frigid tomorrow. My plan is to get my bike all tricked out and ready for the season then finish off the last of a 32 dozen fly shipment to send out on Monday.