While we continue to deal some smoky days here in the Wood River Valley fishing is one activity that is certainly not affected, the fish have no idea it’s smoky. In fact, the hazy skies may actually enhance fishing. The smoke has been variable, so we’ll have clear skies off and on as the winds change. As heavy exertion is not suggested when the smoke rolls in fishing is an excellent alternative, and fishing is good.

Time of day is likely to be the most important factor right now. With the water being at it’s lowest and warmest of the season it will pay to start fairly early. On the Big Wood I would suggest being on the water by about 9:00 a.m. and things will slow down substantially after the noon hour. In this morning window we are seeing a good number of small mayflies, namely Tricos. While fishing size 20 trico patterns on the Big Wood presents quite a challenge, there are some easier ways to approach it. A large indicator fly with a small zebra midge trailer will fish well, and small dries such as parachute adams in sizes 16 and 18 will work just fine. Look to the shallower riffle water to be holding a lot of the fish now as it provides good oxygen and cover. The heat of the day will be challenging, but hoppers may attract some attention, run a zebra midge as a trailer for best success. The action in the evening has been decent. While there have not been any really strong hatches, the fish are active and feeding. Pick your favorite mayfly or caddis pattern for the evening and cover as much water as you can.

Silver Creek is in a bit of transition right now. We’re seeing the remnants of a rather inconsistent trico hatch this season. There are some callibaetis in the ponds and a mix of baetis can happen any time of day. Hopper and damsel fishing in the afternoon has been nearly as good as anything. With the weather pattern changing a bit and the nights cooling down we’ll begin to see more consistency. We’ll start to see stronger hatches of baetis mid morning and the mahogany duns should be right around the corner.

As we often reference to our customers, the best time of season to fish is after Labor Day. It’s hard to believe it’s already here, but it is a great time of season and we’ll look forward to a lot of great fishing ahead. Stay tuned and enjoy the weekend!

– Fishing Report by Jim Santa