Sun Valley Fly Fishing

Sun Valley Area Fishing Report 06/21/17

Summer begins anew in Picabo and Sun Valley this week as daytime highs are warm, the wind is finally coming down some and there is no return to spring like conditions in the forecast. Silver Creek continues to fish very well, despite the inconsistent weather we’ve had the past few weeks. With some consistency we should see the Creek really turn on as hatches stabilize and we see some rhythm to it all.

Currently we are seeing the Brown Drake come back to life in the Willows. This action could pick up as we head toward the weekend. It’s hard to say. It could fade away again quickly, but I know there is only one way to find out…

Green Drakes are a daily occurrence on the upstream reaches of the Creek like the Silver Creek Preserve. Some days the fish are on them and others they are being ignored. In any case, there again is only one way to truly find out…

The PMD and Callibaetis action remains strong and we should definitely see more consistent hatches and spinner falls of these bugs this week. Damsel Nymphs remain among the best subsurface flies anglers have been casting when the hatches don’t show. The adults will start getting eaten more as the weed beds reach the surface of the Creek in the next few weeks.

The flying ant remains the best fly on the river for the slowest times and for catching the biggest fish. We have heard and seen of more incredible fish being caught on ants than on any other bug thus far this season.

With the weather warming quickly, it’s time to put Tricos in your fly box and begin to watch for this incredible spinner fall in the mornings. You don’t want to be on the river when the fish lock in on this bug without some quality patterns.

There is not much else to report this week. We are waiting for the Forest Service to reopen the streamside areas and boat ramps on the South Fork of the Boise. There is good Green Drake and Brown Drake action on the Henry’s Fork. Watch the Big Wood north of Ketchum as it clears, but remain wary of strong flows and leave your dog at home until the CFS comes way down. Magic Reservoir is still worth a look near the dam and the surrounding shallow water bays.

Happy Fishing Everyone!

Sun Valley Area Fishing Report - December 2, 2015

Jack Frost and Old Man Winter teamed up this past week and made a pretty good case for staying in the house to tie some flies! Don’t fret as the conditions should change by Thursday back to what we would consider “normal” winter fishing conditions. This means we get back to fishing windows that should last from 11:00 a.m. to about 4:00 p.m.

If nothing else this past week reminded us of why we carry tire chains, extra food and water, as well as a change of clothes. Are fun level is often dictated by how prepared and safe we can be. Take this to heart and always be prepared when heading out into the wilds of Idaho. Even if you are only 4 miles from town – Town is still in the middle of wilderness!

Getting back into the swing of winter fishing, anglers should be prepared to nymph the standard winter flies. Try Zebras Nymphs and Brassies as primary flies and fish them under a strike indicator. One and a half the waters depth is the standard rule for the depth to set your indicator, or about an arm length on the Big Wood.

Approaching the Christmas Holiday means we also approach the winter dry fly season. Low pressure and warmish days could provide the first significant Midge hatches of the winter. This means fill your fly box with Griffiths Gnats, Tie-Down Midges and Trailing Shuck Midge patterns. Have some dry shake as well. If you find rising fish, use the Griffiths Gnat as a lead fly. They are easy to see and will help you locate your Trailing Shuck patterns. Tie your Trialing Shuck patterns 18 inches behind the Griffiths Gnat from the bend in the hook. Dress both flies well with a dry shake type floatant, being sure not to get any on the tail of the Trailing Shuck. You want the shuck in the water or the film on the surface. This easy target is what the fish are keying on, and is what will make them choose your fly over thousands of real Midges!

Road conditions by the weekend should be pretty decent and allow anglers to travel to the Lost and the South Fork of the Boise. Silver Creek should start producing nice fish being taken on Streamers. Remember, Silver Creek is only open from the Highway 20 Bridge downstream for the months of December through February.

Happy Fishing Everyone!

The Brown Drake Continues

We had some rough weather for a few days, but after a nice day yesterday, the Drake Spinner Fall began ramping back up. What anglers can expect the next few nights is great action around the Willows Access and near the Hwy 20 Bridge. The last week of the hatch also means sporadic events, like daytime hatches and spinner falls up and down the river. It is a bit of be in the right place at the right time, but if you are looking for something to do in the mornings, try looking for the Drake from Picabo upstream. You just may find the best hour of fishing this season!

Sun Valley Area Fishing Report - May 18, 2015

If you listen closely you will hear the sounds of zippers being pulled closed on wader bags, float tubes being aired up, click and pawl drags being tested, and the sound of fly boxes being snapped shut. Opening Day is upon us Idaho!

Silver Creek is the place to be this weekend as recent rains have blessed this special body of water with a nice cleansing and levels high enough to spread the fish throughout the system. Partly cloudy conditions coupled with warmish temperatures spells great mayfly activity. Expect Baetis and P.M.D.s to take center stage, but also be aware the Callibaetis has been very strong here on warm days. No matter what, be sure to have Beetle and Ant patterns!

The Brown Drake is still a week or more away and will most likely appear once we return to a weather pattern of warm sunny days and temperate nights. Keep an eye on the forecast, or do it the fun way and just show up at Picabo Bridge every evening after the weekend and wait for the first big night!

The Big Wood may fish a little on the weekend, it really depends on the rain and how hard it is coming down. The clarity seems to be changing day to day, and although the flows aren’t huge, there are probably better places to be for now.

The Lost River is fishable as of now, but again, there are a lot of variables here, both above and below the Mackay Dam. Keep an eye on the CFS below the dam, if it doesn’t jump to high you may find some o.k. fishing. The upper Lost will fish depending on the clarity.

The Little Wood River will have some fishing above and below the Little Wood Reservoir Dam. Think big Stone and Salmon Flies.

The South Fork of the Boise is also worth a look, but this river is generally better the later we get into June.

All in all, Opening Day presents a few challenges to finding the best fishing. Pay close attention to the details like CFS and Weather before you decide where to be. You can count on Silver Creek fishing, and of course Picabo Angler and the Nature Conservancy will  hosting our annual Opening Day parties, so no matter whether you fish or not on the opener, come on down to Picabo and enjoy a wonderful day with friends and all your brothers and sisters of the fly!

Happy Fishing Everyone!

Overlooked Fun!

Several times a summer we like to take a night off from Trout fishing and pursue Bass. Carey Lake, found just a few miles from Silver Creek is a super easy place to go do this. The Bass are not big, but they love to hit poppers fished on the surface, stripped hard with lots of noise and bubbles. They demolish these pieces of cork and feathers and each one will make you laugh harder than the one before. A canoe or drift boat is all you need. Motors are not allowed on Carey Lake. Fish poppers or frog patterns on a 5 foot 1X leader. The lower the light, the better the fishing. Mornings could be good as well.

Carey Lake is actually divided between the “Lake” and the canal system, which is where we fish. To reach Carey Lake, drive to Picabo, continue on Highway 20 until you reach the town of Carey. Take a left. Go through town and as you leave town on the right you will see signage for the lake. Turn right and drive 40 yards to the boat ramp, which is a small concrete ramp. There is also a pit toilet there. Don’t be discouraged by the moss and algae you see, there are many opens places to fish once you leave the boat ramp area. Fish any of the canals and have a great time!

July 14, 2014 Sun Valley Area Fishing Report

Sometimes the fishing around here is so great, there just isn’t enough word count for a good report! Here we go anyway! TRICO! The heat and the cyclical nature of the Trico hatches and spinner falls over the years have met perfectly this summer. It is safe to say the SHOW is back in the Creek. Many an angler has seen the Trico madness on Silver Creek, and many an angler has decided to make the Sun Valley area their home because of it.

If you have not experienced the Trico Spinner Fall on hot summer mornings on Silver Creek, this is the time! The volume of insects can be comparable to the Brown Drakes, only smaller in size. Almost every fish in the river comes to the surface to eat this tiny mayfly, couple the intensity of the fish mopping the surface of bugs, with the technical side of trying to get them to eat your offering, and you have a recipe for fly angling at its highest level. If you want to learn more, come on down to Picabo and visit with Bob, Nick or John and we’ll set you up for a crazy morning of fishing! If you’ve been at it for a while, and need a “better” fly than the one your casting, we have a few staff favorites that will help get the deal closed on some of the Creek nicest fish. Expect a solid month of this activity. Now, would be a good time to ask your boss for an afternoon shift. Once the air temps hit 70 degrees, its game on!

Looking elsewhere, the Big Wood and the upper Lost are putting on their own morning show, with a variety of spinner falls. Green Drakes, PMD, Trico, Little Yellow Sally, Golden Stones, and more are all present on most days. Expect the action to start around 8:30 and last a solid 2 hours. After that, big flies like Cicadas, Turks Tarantula and Stimulators will still bring fish up. Normally, we’d suggest a dropper fly, but with fishing this good, anglers may want to take advantage of the fish looking hard at the surface this time of the year.

Finally, the South Fork of the Boise is fishing pretty well and we’ve seen a few rafts tackling the new rapids below the boat launch. We still haven’t seen a hard sided boat go down, but we’re sure someone has tried it. SCOUT IT FIRST! Wear you vest, and Please be safe. Oh, and take your Pink Alberts.

Happy Fishing Everyone!

June 30, 2014 Sun Valley Fishing Report

Oh, how we love fly fishing around Sun Valley in July! It is a magical month around here. We are finally free of Spring’s high water and we are not yet to the low flows of August. It is safe to say, at least this season, that July is the perfect month to fish! Add to this the fact that we are at the beginning of our Summer hatches as well, and an angler can quickly deduce that now is the time to be on the water.

On Silver Creek, the Prairie Caddis and the Trico are starting to steal the show in the morning. The Trico has been spotty as it continues to ramp up, but if you are in the right place, you should be seeing fish starting to rise by 8:30 in the morning. They could rise even earlier on a really hot day. The key is be on the water when the air temperature hits 70 degrees. Anglers can start the season with larger Trico patterns like a whopping size 18 CDC Biot Dun. If the Caddis are still out, try using a Goddard Caddis or Hemingway Caddis and fish them in a skating fashion.

During the afternoon on the Creek the Damsel action has been pretty good, and the Baby Hopper is now out in force. With the recent hard winds blowing fish could easily key on the Baby Hopper for a day. Don’t leave it out of your fly box.

The Big Wood continues to drop and settle into a Summer flow, but we’re almost there. The Green Drake is putting on a show up and down the river and Stoneflies are active also. A note on Stoneflies, we don’t see huge hatches of Stones on the Wood, with the exception of Little Yellow Sallies, but they are there in frequency and in variety. So, even if you don’t see huge hatches, the Stimulator, Turk’s Tarantula, Sofa Pillows and like flies will work very well as searching patterns on the Wood. This can also be said of the Big Lost. There are better hatches than Stoneflies, but there are few better flies to fish!

We still haven’t made it down to float the South Fork of the Boise at the new higher flows. If you have and would like to help report your findings (mostly related to how the boating is) we would love to hear from you and put your findings on our blog. You can help keep your fellow angler safe on the water! Please send your comments to info@picaboangler.com

Happy Fishing Everyone!

June 26, 2014 Fishing Report Weekend Update

The weekend should be a fun one for fly anglers around the valley. A little bit of cloud cover should make the fish a bit bolder on Silver Creek and should also ramp up the BWO activity. The Callibaetis is really starting to come on strong as well. Things to expect would be small Trico spinner falls and a lot of fish focusing on Damsel Flies! The fish have been slashing at Damsels for several days now, so we expect this action to continue.

On the Big Wood the Green Drake is coming on stronger and stronger. This is a super fun fishery when this hatch is on. The fish aren’t Silver Creek size, but they are eager to eat the Green Drake! Sunday may be a better day than Saturday as the weather should be hotter and the Drakes love to hatch in the heat!

So, if you plan to fish both days, think Silver Creek on Saturday and the Big Wood on Sunday. Have a great weekend and come see us in Picabo!!!

June 23 Fishing Report

Green Drakes on the Big Wood and more and more fishable water appearing every day means happy anglers throughout the Wood River and Silver Creek Valleys.  The heat of summer is finally upon us and with it comes a return to almost all our fisheries. The freestone streams like the Big Wood and the Upper Lost are entering one of the most prime times of the season to fish them! Stoneflies and Green Drakes are the bugs with a mix of Caddis and BWOs also.

Expect the Green Drakes to begin moving north on the Wood. Anglers have been seeing a few mid-valley, but it is early enough they could show anywhere on the river given the right day. Keep in mind the Green Drake is a fair weather insect that likes to hatch in the heat of the day. Often this happens in the afternoon around 2:00 or 3:00 p.m. Sometimes it will be earlier on a really hot day. Another thing to keep in mind is the Green Drake likes to spin in the early morning coolness. 8:00 a.m. is not uncommon. The Drakes spin over heavy fast water and the fish know it. If you see a lot of Drakes flying in the a.m. and you don’t see a lot of fish taking them then try this: Take a Colorado Green Drake and pull the wing apart so it looks like two wings. Then soak the fly and even put a little split shot above it. Now place an indicator on the line and fish the drowned dry fly like a nymph. Fish the fast water and especially the water where the rapids slow to deep or glassy water at the end of the fast water!

Silver Creek is fishing better and better as the more consistent warm days are making for more consistent hatches and spinner falls. The Baetis and PMD are still the two main bugs out there, but the Hoppers and Trico are coming on strong. The evening Caddis action has been getting fish to the surface as well. Skating a Goddard Caddis is our favorite technique when we see lots of Caddis activity on the Creek.  

It’s a great time of year out there! There are lots of places to fish and anglers can spread out all over the valley. We expect some great fish this week. If you get a great pic, send it to us for our blog at info@picaboangler.com.

Happy Fishing Everyone!

Sun Valley Area Fishing Report, October 1st 2013

Fall has arrived in Sun Valley and on Silver Creek. The evidence is in the bugs and fish. Brown Trout pairs are moving through the river as they get ready to spawn and many of the big fish are coming into the open as the drive to reproduce makes them leave the safety of the cut banks. This is a great opportunity to see the biggest fish in Silver Creek in the middle of the day. Mahogany Duns are trying to hatch daily, despite the inclement weather and the first fall Baetis are hitting the water. Both of these hatches drive the fish crazy and the “Educated” fish in the river suddenly act, well, less educated.

Keep an eye on the sky and be ready for those cool, crisp fall days that are coming. These days should light the Creek on fire with rising fish. If you go, take Mahogany Duns in size 16. Simple patterns are best, like Thorax patterns or CDC Biot Fan-Wing patterns. We have some great flies here at Picabo Angler and we also have a new fireplace in the store! Its great place to warm up after a few cool hours on the stream or whenever the need strikes you. Stop by for a bite and a thaw! We also have a huge selection of fall Baetis flies and guides standing by to take you and yours fishing on any of our major rivers.

Unfortunately the Big Wood River and the South Fork of the Boise remain unfishable, but don’t let this stop you from fishing other rivers. The Lost is fishing great with Baetis and a lot of Nymphing. If you fish subsurface on the Lost, keep the color red in mind. The fish key on this color as Kokanee that have spilled through the dam lay their eggs and then die. Both the flesh of the Kokanee and their eggs have red hues to them and the fish get used to seeing it. If you go to catch the fish rising on Baetis, take small flies in 20 and 22s. Have a few larger just in case. Hatch Matchers, Parachutes and Hackle Stackers are all excellent choices.

Finally, keep in mind the severity of the weather lately and couple it with the change of season, and it’s a no brainer to go into the field well prepared. Always bring extra food, water, a change of dry clothes, and also not a bad time to throw your sleeping bad in the truck for the winter!

Happy Fishing Everyone!

52 RIVERS IN 52 WEEKS

We recently hosted angler Shelley Walchak as she nears the finish line to her project 52Rivers! Shelley is fishing 52 Rivers in 52 Weeks and blogging as she goes. The plan is to write a book about this amazing journey when it finally winds down. Shelley is a fine angler and an inspiration to anyone who has ever thought about dropping what they are doing and choosing to follow their bliss! Way to go Shelley! Here is a link to her site and a blog about her time with us.