While my mind was flying somewhere over the Bighorn and then while I was physically there, Livingston's area rivers fished really well for what I heard from my contacts and what I saw on social medias. I think this average-to-cooler summer contributed a lot all through the season. At the turn of the fall, I had a series of trips around here.
YES!! Yellowstone River is still fishing well with dry-flies. Of course, nymphing is effective earlier in the day or all through the float. Baetis and some terrestrials that still roam river banks offer good dry-fly fishing.
Ants worked for me but not hopper as I heard. But I'm sure it just happened to me and my people. I spotted this one at around my lunch spot.
I believe she was carrying the egg sack😍. She didn't hop, barely walking on the sand😊
Lower Madison has its own mood as always. One method may work better than the other and then some nice fish show themselves from nonchalant structures😶
DePuy's Spring Creek has been fishing well all summer as insect hatches continue. Indeed this has been an incredible season on the creek👏. We guide team welcomed the annual big group to the creek. This morning I was able to show a couple of spots with rising trout for my clients.
But catching them was not easy😏
Then in the afternoon, PMD still hatch😲 and baetis follow😆❗❗
Then we floated Yellowstone River. We shared our methods and catches as we go on. My people and I figured out what worked for us and so did others. All 5 boats had great times on the Yellowstone🙌
Of course I was shining among the rest of outstanding guides❗❓See what I can get my clients hooked up with😅 I seldom hold fish for clients just to take good looking pictures (I want clients to hold and be in pictures, not me!) but for this I sacrificed my hands 😖 and we had good Sushi lunch🍣😂
We caught many good looking trout and this was particularly memorable😆Of course this good looking trout itself, but also as we were going through the cascading riffle, I couldn't let my hands off of my oars. So this client performed tugging in this strong Cutt and then a one-man YOGA netting all by himself👏😉
Well-done😬🙌
Let's see what the fall offers us in Yellowstone Country😉
See you on the stream👏
Oh, what a great trip on the Bighorn River✌😁I just got home from another great Trico hatches on this legendary river with Mr. Chuck.
For two seasons in a row, due to heavy snow accumulations in Montana and Wyoming, the Bighorn has been experiencing unusual flows from the past. We can't deny some effects on the river, though we may not be able to how & what at this point. According to fishing reports, the river and fishers sounded experiencing some challenging conditions. However we were up for challenges and were willing to figure out what to do😏. Following visual materials will explain to you😎.Our theme for this year was Livings The Dream Volume 2✌
Before I go on, I'd like to go over Trico hatches and how the fishing goes during this period.
Size 18-24, female has olive/green abdomen, while male has almost all entirely black.
Male Tricorythodes hatch at night. It can be 7pm to midnight. During the hatch, if one happens to be on the river, it's possible to fish for rising trout. Over night they molt into spinners and sit tight in the bush, grasses, or trees.
Female Trico hatch right just around at the first light of dawn = 6:00 to 6:30am. Sometimes it can be 7:00 to 7:30am. During the hatch, like any other mayfly species at any other streams, trout will rise and we can fish with match-the-hatch flies (dry-flies, slightly subsurface, etc).
Then immediately after the hatch, females molt into spinners😲
Male spinners, that have been waiting for this opportunity, start to fly and they mate to reproduce next generations.
Now the sky is buzzing with literally billions of spinner, as far as eyes can see😲
Right after mating, they start to fall into the river (and die or have died already). And trout gorge on them.
River will literally boil with rising trout😲
There are days when there's a gap between female hatch and spinner flight (rises pause), while there also are days when it overwraps and continues without a gap (rises keep going).
Spinner flight can start at around 8am or 9am, that range.
And can last till noon. Depending on winds and other factors, it can be longer or shorter.
And this can happen from August to October on the Bighorn😲
With all of these in mind, let's move over to our fishing reports😁
For the first time ever, I tried and learned how to edit and compile videos and photos into a documentary🎥😏I'm very pleased to what I came up with✌
Then below is the photo essay, as it has been the format of choice for the past couple of posts.
I may narrate here and there, that is not done on the video above.
For some of you who have fished from my boat, you know I always have a secret fly😆
One of the most beautiful dawns I ever see😇
I was able to fish some during the scouting. This rainbow was very satisfying😁
We caught up in the evening.
This is the MUST item for early rising fishers😋
Volume 2 has begun😬
Super good start✌
This has to be seen in the video😬
This was a very satisfying brown on the first day, which turned out to be the BEST👍
Always learning
This morning, trout were super selective or just doing whatever they wanted to do😑It was very technical and challenging but we did manage a few nice ones✌
Kind of a comic relief, as we saw a bird on the floating weed patch😊
On this morning, we were beaten on the race to Hot Dog Hole (long story😂) instead we had real hot dogs🌭😋
Afternoon hopper fishing was also good😏
Howdy stranger😉
Mr. Chuck is a serious amateur entomologist😲
I can do hot one too👍
This morning, brother John fished with us.
I was busy netting back and force😅
It was very interesting to see a fox popped out of the bush and wouldn't be frightened at us🦊
Again, I strongly suggest you to click & watch the video. Seeing is believing.
It was very intense😵😬As of this writing, I'm still recovering and reminiscing. And am already thinking of next year.............😉 As much as we enjoyed a lot, we learned a lot from the river and trout. I brought back some homework with me for next year.
This is all the reasons I've been promoting Bighorn Trips. Come and experience with your own eyes and hearts😆
Guide season goes on. It has just turned the corner into the fall season😏
I may still see you on the streams👋
