Flathead River Winter Fly Fishing

“Coon Dogg” with a nice Flathead cutty on the swing.

It’s still winter but we are in the midst of our January thaw. It’s amazing how warm 38 feels this time of year.  There have been a few anglers out on the water as of late catching some fish. Swinging streamers and nymphing with stones and pink junk is still the deal. If you’re lucky some midges will pop and you might get a few on dry flies. A calm day above freezing is ideal but you can certainly catch fish is less desirable weather.

Our winter rates are in affect and now is a good time to catch our big migratory cutthroat. Have one of our licensed captains take you out for a jet boat trip, it’s a really fun way to get around and allows us to focus our energy more efficiently on the winter runs. Winter months are also a great time to try swinging with a spey rod. The Flathead has some classic swing runs and we know a few that are only accessible with a jet boat. We like to mix it up – nymph a few holes and swing a few runs… it keeps it interesting.

Today was another solid powder day at Whitefish Winter Resort Big Mountain. Keep it coming! Most of the river basins in western Montana are showing 80-90% snow pack.  We’d like to see at least average. The forecast is looking promising for some tolerable fishing weather with highs above freezing and even into the 40’s this coming week.