Jackson Hole Fly Fishing Report- July 13, 2013

It has been Fireworks Season for sure in Grand Teton Country, not just in the sky but on the water as well. Most years by the later part of June runoff is subsiding and summertime conditions ripen the invertebrate biomass to the point it literally explodes with life. Trout that have been lazily looking up are now chowing on the surface and for a couple weeks it is a rare day to tie on any form of a wet fly. The downside to all this exciting fishing is the trout wise up fairly quick and the crowds can be tough on the popular rivers and sections... and we have fly fishing in the modern world.

Henry Cadwalader hoists his fish of the day, nice bow!

The Jackson Hole weather has been up and down and all over the map... very hot or chilly, windy and rainy ultimately keeping our flows cool for the first half of July. Flows jumped up after a few days in the 90's triggered a rush of high country snow melt. Overall I am happy with flows in the Pinedale area but will keep a watchful eye in the coming weeks. In JH we are dealing with the typical high flows on the Snake River(6000cfs @ Moose) that are associated with drier winters like we had in '12/'13. Idaho irrigation demands will draw down Jackson Lake, a scenario we see about every 3-4 years. Never fear the trout are still there and the best guides know how to find them and put our JH visitors in a good position to experience our native cutty's!

Susan Cadwalader showing mom has the right stuff from the back of the boat... all day on the South Fork.

The official fly fishing report from me is just go, it is all good! On the Snake we are fishing chernoble ants of various forms and colors, nothing new there. Do realize the flows are super fast, seek out slower side channels and investigate every riffle. Most importantly, BE CAREFUL! 

 The South Fork has been very good but be prepared for crowds. I think July 5th was the busiest I have  ever seen, perhaps nearly 80 boats from the dam to Conant. This river can handle major traffic and always remember... 90% of the fish are caught by 10% of the anglers... good fly choice and presentation always win. Here you can expect caddis, sallies, PMD's and golden stones. Flows are just under 13000cfs so stay alert if you are on the sticks, or give Heise a call for some top notch guides.

Found this big bow sipping trico spinners the other morning.

GTNP grizzly makes an appearance.

 South of Jackson has been very good but can be slow in the afternoon heat. Here I am still seeing grey and green drakes, caddis, sallies, tricos, golden stones and terrestrials are starting to get some attention, the other day a flying ant put two 20" trout in the net in about 20 minutes... BOOM!

Bill Imes of Teton Village, WY sneaks the fish of the day from the back seat again...  23" brown!

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