The Blackfoot is still way up and very muddy. Don’t even think about trying to fish it for at least another few weeks. Instead, head for the tailwaters or a local lake or pond. It is kind of nice to mix your fishing up a bit every now and then.
Al the Pal
As you can see from the flow chart, the Bitterroot is running ‘high and mighty’ these days. She hit flood stage in the Darby area yesterday and probably will again today. One of the shops in Missoula is reporting that the river is muddy enough to walk across, and I almost believe it after […]
Nope. No way. No chance. Nada. The Clark Fork is blown top to bottom. There are trees, small buildings, and the occasional cow being washed through Missoula these days. Flows are running and will likely go even higher this week. See you on the CF in three or four weeks; she’ll be the last of […]
Rock Creek is still blown out. Don’t even think about trying to fish it right now. As you can see from the flow chart, a new record level for today has been reached. Flows pushed up over 5,000 cfs in the last few days. Salmonflies should be showing up here soon, we’ll let you know […]
Blown top to bottom and rising. Don’t be fooled by this seemingly ‘calm’ face of the river in many places – there is a tremendous volume of water flowing. I’ve seen some drunken rafters drifting sections they should never be on this weekend. I know I sound like a grouch, but I’m on search and […]
Warm temps, rain, and a rising river. She’s gonna flood again. Sigh.
The Blackfoot is completely blown out. I drove down the other day with the intent to get a few pictures, but the view made me so sad I couldn’t bring myself to snap a shot. Flows are on their way back up this week with some warmer weather and possibly rain on its way. It […]
For the time being, the Rock is gone. Flows are at almost record levels and are still going up. Needless to say, visibility is shot to hell. Chocolate milk anyone? The Salmonflies will be showing up as soon as the water clears. A great thing about the Rock is the fact that it always clears […]
I hate to say this because I love fishing the Blackfoot, but don’t even bother giving her a try for a while. Flows really jumped yesterday and will continue to rise dramatically today. The forecast is calling for temps in the 80s today, and 60s and 70s all week which is going to push a lot […]
This is for all intents and purposes my home river; she’s been on the rise now since late on the 16th and really, really pushed up yesterday and through the night. There had been some fishable Caddis and MBs on the river above Hamilton, but conditions are rapidly pushing into full fledged runoff, and flows […]
The days are numbered even on the upper with flows really starting to push up starting with yesterday’s highs pushing 85 (at least at the Missoula airport). If there is a shot to be had today, it’s going to be on the highest parts of the river (above the Rock for sure). A friend who […]
I must admit that I was almost surprised when I got a call from a friend of mine yesterday saying that Rock Creek is still fishing decently well. I had figured that it would have been blown out by now. The cooler weather this week has kept flows at a manageable level, 1290 cfs as […]
Sadly there’s not a lot to report regarding the Clark Fork today. The river is once again on the rise basically throughout its length, and she’s pretty much blown below the Blackfoot confluence. Fly fishing options at this point in time are pretty much the upper river, and conditions are far from optimal up […]
Remarkably, the Blackfoot continues to fish reasonably well. Flows are starting to come up, and they should really rise this week with warmer weather. Visibility is good for this time of year at one and a half to two feet. Nymphing continues to hold sway, as not much is happening on top. Double rigs of […]
Like most of the rivers over here in the southwestern corner of the state, the Bitterroot is fishable but far, far from being anywhere close to ideal conditions. If you’re headed for the ‘Root today, the upper river again this week provides the most reasonable conditions. You’ll be holding onto your rain hat most of […]
