Sun Valley Area Fishing Report--December 11th
More warm days, some cloudy weather and a little bit of snow melt will all contribute to good fishing this week. Thus far it has been a very mild winter for our local fish populations. This is probably not a bad thing after a stressful summer for them. With the ash from the fires of two years ago in the Big Wood, the drought that hit Silver Creek hard and the flooding and landslides that covered the South Fork of the Boise, perhaps it’s not a bad thing that our fish get a little bit of a reprieve and some time to catch up on fat stores for the rest of winter.
Nymphing and Streamer fishing are still the name of the game. Think about primarily fishing nymphs and tandem rigs of nymphs when the sun is out. When the cloud cover gets heavy, especially on Silver Creek, get your Streamers out and plan on catching the rivers biggest fish!
The rivers get busier during the holidays, so if you like your winter solitude, try to get out there this week and this weekend. It is also the time of year when Fly Fishing Guide Rates drop quite a bit. Down here in Picabo we run half day trips for $300 for 1 or 2 guests, all inclusive. We also offer a great opportunity to fish some great private water.
While the warm weather persists, it does open up a great opportunity for Chukar hunting the nearby ridge lines. There are plenty of birds out there this year, and the low hills are also full of Hungarian Partridge. If you’ve never upland hunted, this would be a perfect week to get out there and give it a try. You may need to find a friend with a hunting dog, but hey, it’s Sun Valley, we all own hunting dogs!
The Ducks and Geese are a little scarcer and spread out lately. Once we get some colder days again, the waterfowl hunting should pick back up. In the meantime, small water techniques are probably the best. Use very few decoys, call softly and be VERY well concealed in whatever blind you are using. It is tricky hunting right now, be very comfortable temperatures. For the best action head down to the Snake until we freeze back up and the hunting returns to Silver Creek.
Happy Hunting and Fishing Everyone!