A MATTER OF CHOICE

THE BEST WATERS

Not For Roadside Angling

all the neighborhood kids know

DARK HOLE - ONE PERFECT CAST - 25" FISH

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.. Most of the neighborhood kids, (bless their hearts,) are dragging in  the most - AND BIGGEST - fish of the anglers fishing our neighborhood waters.

Armed for bear - and fish.

.. They are not, usually, on Hebgen Lake. They are not, usually, on Quake Lake. They certainly are not between those lakes.
.. Despite the fame of our ice out catching and the large spawners Between the Lakes, the kids have chosen to fish for the genuinelly big fish right now.
.. Off they go: down muddy roads with muddy ruts, through thick tangles, up slippery slopes, into the slush of melting snow, and to the haunts of fish that never see the light of prose by corporate fishers or the popular writings of famous fishing personalities.
.. Some of the kids walk for a mile or two. Some of them are still riding snowmobiles. Most of them are using fire-breathing-death-machines. They all carry bear spray. They all have freshly charged cell phones. Most are well armed. They all fish for trophy trout. They also tie on the biggest fresh water flies we've ever seen.
.. A few, not many, of the kids fish with worms. Some fish with flies and fly rods. some fling monster bunny strips with a spinning rod. They all have cell phone pictures of wall hangers that they have let go after an heroic tussle.
.. Sometimes they keep a small fish of 16" or 18" for dinner. They let the bigger ones go to continue their spawning activities. Unless you are in the right pub, at the right time, you'll never hear about the locations of where to catch these fish. There's no secret about the locations. Everyone in the neighborhood knows where they are.
.. The places, however, are not for the itinerate anglers that frequent the roadside hot spots. These are places where the biggest fish hang out and make love. These are places where giants from the depths of our local lakes hide from the mysteries of shallow water. These are places where the kids go - why not?

Size 4, 2xl, Frightens Small Children

.. They eschew the redd tromping festival of the fishers between the lakes. They ignore the edges of the ice that require boats. They are allergic to the lawn chairs and easy beaches along the lake shores.
.. We'll catch hell for this post. But not in any nasty way. The kids will tell you right where to catch the fish. It's really nuisance fishing. You have to discard 15 to 20 fish an hour to gather in the big ones. Most visitors would brag about the 16" young fish. They might even quit and call it a good day after dancing with  all those fish. But the kids know better. They are adept at letting a fish go: quickly, safely.
.. We have a fondness for this bunch of rascals. They do us favors. They tie miniscule flies on bits of tippet so we can fish the wee small bug hatches. They take us to the good spots that the counter help at the feather merchants' shops never would go to. They buy us liquids to bolster our vitamin levels and enhance our spirit.
.. These kids know fishing. They know catching. They are wed, not to the corporate fishing scene, but to the fish of our neighborhood. Bless them all.

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Rasty Access To Some Giant Fish Holes - It's Closed Right Now

Pour la Pêche Du Jour

THE FLY OF THE HOUR

For All Open Water

swift or still

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.. The neighbors are smarter than we are. They are also way smarter than the trout in our neighborhood. They are even a wee tad more intelligent than the itinerant guides and feather merchants that will soon show up for their share of the pie, (just a few weeks from now.)
.. As we speak read write this, the catchers of fish are using one fly; to the near-exclusion of all others.
.. It's a simple fly. It's easy to tie. It has no fancy name. It's not in any catalog. AND, it's catching fish in all the open water around the neighborhood.
.. You won't see it in any fly shops: it uses no exotic bits of fluff, it is a standard nymph form, it is not "innovative," it's not designed to catch fishers, and it is very pedestrian in appearance - bless it's metallic soul.
.. Unless you see it here, you will never know about this fly. There is no drum and bugle corps touting it as the wonder of the moment. There are no high priced celebrities endorsing it as a miracle of invention for the exotic fish of the exotic waters nearby.
.. It is tied in just about all sizes. The larger ones are cast with ultralight spinning rigs and 4# test line. [[40' of fresh 4# test mono is an exceptionally good shock absorber.]]
.. The little ones are chucked to the edge of the ice and pulled into the water and sink slowly to the gaping maws of submerged trout.
.. The others are greased and floated like a dry fly. Some are fished just like a nymph ought to be fished. Such a delightful bit of fish foolery.
.. Right now, in the runs, and riffles, and pools, and glides, and cavitation sinks, between the lakes on the Madison River it is a "KILLER FLY."
.. In the legal bits of the extended tongues of various estuarine waters poking into Hebgen Lake, it is a "MURDEROUS FLY."
.. At both the inlet and outlet of Earthquake Lake it is a "DEVASTATING FLY."  It is even in competition with the garden hackle for take rates. Now that's an endorsement for ya'.

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The Gnats Have It

IT'S SNOW FLY TIME

Buzzers, If You Will

warm and periodically still

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.. Mom is fooling with us again. This is the time of year when we normally plunge to the depths of the freezer.
.. Au contraire; despite the recent winter storm warning our high temperatures continue in the 20's and 30', (punctuated by an occasional 40-something.) The lows are not quite in the single digits and, the winds have slowed.

.. Bright overcast interspersed with a bit of blue sky has the midges swarming.
.. The Rainbow Trout are beginning their amorous phase, and fishing is good in the neighborhood.
.. Drag out the "itty-bitty" box and fish any and all of the small nymphs and dinky floaters. Griffiths Gnat is the current neighborhood favorite for floating flies. The bi-colored Renegade is a close second place.

.. Small dark nymphs, or small bright nymphs are equally productive right now.
.. It's about time that the "real fly fishers" caught up with the "ice fly fishers." The hearty hole-drillers have been fishing very small flies for about six weeks now, (LINK #1, LINK #2.)
.. The snow has been deep enough that only a dedicated few nuts fly folks have wandered around the lower stretches of the Madison River at Campfire Lodge.
.. They report, (bless their young legs,) that a few, (probably a gross understatement,) fair-sized fish have been taken.
.. These fish begin to leave Quake Lake about this time each year and spawn in the gravels of the Hebgen Tailwater. Right now is the time for fishing. In just a few weeks, (gadzooks the winter is flying by,) they will start building redds and it will be time to leave them alone as they engage in fishy frivolities.
.. Because of the deep snow on the shoulders of the roads, parking places are at a premium. This is dangerous territory for wader-clad fishers. Please be careful about where you park. Leave an unobstructed width of roadway. Do it legally. Tickets and towing started last week!
.. Below is the annual photo of the "Quake Lake Dancing Nymphs" - by popular request.

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