Bigfork Montana Fly Fishing – River Report 4/26/11

Got a few nice browns on Easter.

General Outlook: With the exception of the Flathead drainage, the rivers haven’t seen much flow increase from the rain or warmth we received recently. The forecast is calling for more cool weather so barring any heavy rain event, we should still have plenty of river options. The lakes are starting to open up and we have some good Rickard’s patterns in the shop. The pike should be moving in to the shallows too so come in and get your Chuck’n Duck red and whites.

Blackfoot: The flows remain stable on the Blackfoot. If your looking for good numbers of dry fly eats then skip it.  If you want to catch some nice fish underneath and have the river to yourself, then it’s a great option. Tandem nymphs under an indicator will produce. A large stone nymph for your weight fly followed by a prince or SJW should do just fine. Streamers on a tip fished slow will work too.
Fly Patterns:Girdle bugs, db Stones. SJWs, general beadheads, Glo bugs, buggers / streamers

Lower Clark Fork: The flows are up a tad but not enough to mess with your fishing. Try a foam skwala with a deep dropper to start. If your not getting enough action throw the tandem bobber rig with a stone and a beadhead trailer or Worm. Streamers on  a tip……mid sized in the olive and black flavor will do. Look for March browns, bwos, skwala, & grey drakes to give you an afternoon dry fly window. Especially in the clouds.
Fly Patterns:Girdle bugs, Double bead rubber legs, prince nymphs, fb p-tails, SJWs, buggers / streamers, purple haze chutes, p-tail cripples, foam skwala stuff.

Flathead: The North Fork and Middle Fork are up enough to slow the fishing. The main stem isn’t up too bad but the fishing might be a little off until the graph flattens out for a day or 2. The weather is calling for below normal temps so it could come back into shape if we don’t get a bunch of rain. It fished well a few days ago and we even got some fish on top with skwala dries. It’s probably still worth a try.
Fly Patterns: Pats rubber legs / girdle bugs, db epoxy stones, 20 inchers, general beadheads, pink stuff, glo bugs, sj worms in pink or red, buggers, streamers, foam skwala variations, midges, bwos.

Swan: The upper is closed through the 3rd Saturday in May. Now is the time to hit the bay in search of a big lake run bow or cutt. Some lake trout should start to show up soon too and they will keep you entertained on a streamer. They seem to like flashy and white. The skiddish smolt is a great lake trout streamer.
Fly Patterns: Pats rubber legs / girdle bugs, db epoxy stones, 20 inchers, general beadheads, pink stuff, glo bugs, sj worms in pink or red, buggers, streamers