Can you believe Labor Day weekend is here? The older I get, the faster the summers disappear. But the good news is fishing at the present time is terrific and should only get better. New hatches should begin to appear which should get the attention of all the fish, especially the larger ones. In general the fishing should get downright easy. Let's take a peak at what you can expect to find out there.
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· SILVER CREEK—Trico is gone but Beatis hagena is still strong mid-morning into the early afternoon. A Mason Quill Spinner #22 is about all you need to take fish. We might get another week out of this hatch before it starts to dwindle. But the afternoon hatches of Callibeatis duns in the upper and lower ponds will get better and better. A variety of imitations need to be carried for success. Thorax Callibeatis Dun #18, Crippled Callibeatis #18 and Callibeatis Nymph#18 should do the trick. It's wise to carry a few of these patterns in size 20. That's because the insect gets smaller as time moves on.
· BIG WOOD RIVER—Spent a wonderful Saturday on the water and the fishing could not have been better. Most of the hatches came mid-afternoon. They were Beatis, the Chocolate Duns of S. tabilis and a very few Red Quills. Yes you heard me—Red Quills. It's still very early for this big bug but I suggest you start carrying a few Mason Red Quills #10-12, and our new Crippled Red Quill #12. The fish are not really on them yet but with each passing day, this hatch will become a major player. Other than that, fishing with Parachute Adams #18, Yellow Parachute Adams #18 and Regular and Olive Hares Ear #18 all take fish. I tried to cheat a bit by fishing size 16 of each pattern but got more refusals. Hoppers are abundant. Parachute Hopper #10-12 and a Dave's Hopper are taking fish. Have fun.
· BIG LOST—The East Fork is fishing reasonably well in and around Wild Horse and Starhope Creeks but it's a little sparse in-between. Elk Hair Caddis #14, Para Adams #14 and Para Caddis #14-16 are all taking fish. The river below the dam is still running very high for this time of year. The word out of Mackay is that they have a gate problem at the dam that needs fixing and in all probability, the water levels could remain high for some time. One thing for sure is that when the water does drop, fishing could be off the charts. I will keep you updated.
· WARM SPRINGS/TRAIL CREEK—Both are fishing very well. An occasional good fish is being hooked, but the fish are generally smaller in both streams. Fortunately the activity level is good. Parachute Hoppers #14 Regular and Parachute Adams #16, Royal Wulffs #18 and Bead Head Prince Nymph #16 are catching fish.
· PENNY LAKE/LAKE CREEK—Both should be heavily planted for Labor Day weekend so the fishing should be great for the kids. Bait and flies should work equally well.
