Mountains, Rivers, & Trout: November Fishing is HOT!!

This November has been warmer than I remember. It's not even as windy as usual years (there are brutally windy days but feels much less than usual years). Fishing has been good!!

One of the best options around here is nowhere but DePuy's Spring Creek (www.depuyspringcreek.com). I guided a family I have known for the past several years. They fish hard! It was very good to see them this late in the year!!

There are still lots of browns and rainbows coming into the creek from Yellowstone River. Insects activities may vary day to day but I'm sure one can find a pod of rising fish to challenge a while.
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After a long road trip (indeed a long story😄), we were back to fish!
Just one of town-spots on Yellowstone River.

Then we drove to............. Can you guess where this is?

The early mist on Bighorn River.

We walked from the access point and wade-fished.
As always, we started with nymphing. Fair Advise if you head that way: aquatic weeds are starting to die for the season. Loosened weeds are floating on the surface in various sizes. I don't mind saying those can be nuisance oftentimes.
............We first spotted so many midges already hatching that we saw on snow and on the river surface!! We did spot rises here and there. But not quite convincing to focus with dry-flies. Yet we didn't have any bites on nymphs and weeds were annoying........ Getting enough.......... Then we started to spot more doable and constant rises.
Gotcha!!

Learning and decoding.

This was the trophy for me!!

As you can see, baetis were hatching in good numbers!!

I never meant to be the "minimalist" however considering the condition, I didn't carry many midge patterns, just two Lefty Angler Boxes, and certainly NO baetis patterns with me. It was far away to get back to my truck. However I somehow felt I could get by with patterns I had. A couple of my midge patterns do look like small mayfly patterns. I never meant them to be multi-purpose patterns. But when trout think so, I don't mind!! One of the most efficient patterns was my Split Shuck Floater with Hi-Vis Post.

Along with Coming Out APE.

It's exactly 8 months since Renee first fished this magnificent river. She has grown up as a fly angler. She's willing to challenge on selectively feeding trout with tiny dry-flies.

Her first one was actually a nice brown, which got away right in front of my net - of course she blamed her incompetent guide😅. Finally she made a solid hook-up!! Ahhhhh......Whitie😆!!