The Latest Report for Early August

Snake River

Water temps have cooled some with gauges peaking around 65-66 degrees after 5pm each day.  However, above average air temps have returned, so be prepared to alter your fishing practices in the coming days/weeks.  On August 2nd and August 3rd, the gauges at Moose and Swinging Bridge broke 68 degrees. We should see more of this going into the first full week of the month. Hatches have waned some but there are some caddis in the morning and PMDs after 11am.  A few yellow sallies will be around in the afternoon as well.  Add to this some grasshoppers that are around after 12pm, and you have a light smorgasbord from around 8am until 1:30pm when both hatches and surface activity subside noticeably.  All reaches are fishing well with the lower reaches in the canyon taking a slight edge.  Fishing has been most consistent with dry-dropper rigs in riffles, seams, deep inside turns, and troughs.  Single and tandem rigs are producing along banks with slow to moderate currents and in side channels and eddies.

Streamers continue to produce with a little more of an uptick with each passing week.  Key waters to target include banks, structure, troughs, seams, and eddy current margins.  Go with floating lines or sinking tips in the INT to 3ips range.  Slow to moderate retrieves are doing the trick with moderately sized patterns.  Larger patterns mostly need a moderate to fast retrieve.  Bright and neutral baitfish imitations are outperforming darker counterparts.

South Fork

Flows from Palisades Reservoir stand at approximately 8,500cfs. Golden stones have waned, but grasshoppers are out strong along the banks in the afternoon.  This is producing opportunities with foam attractors, heavily hackled attractors (think stimulators and double humpies, and hopper imitations when fished along banks, structure, troughs, seams, and bankside eddies.  Expect to see a smattering of caddis in the morning. PMDs are the dominant hatch. They start to appear a little after 11am and can carpet riffles, side channels, flats, and eddies from around 1pm on.  Tandem dry rigs is the best way to go, especially with an adult-emerger combo.  Nymph rigs are producing as well as dry flies, but the surface action is good enough that a dry-dropper rig is as solid of a technique as a double/triple rig.

Streamer fishing remains strong with all reaches producing and is working as good as or better than dries and nymphs on the lower reaches below Byington.  Both moderately sized and large articulated patterns are producing, with moderately sized patterns working slightly better.  Floating lines and sinking tips in the INT to 3ips range will get into fish when fished along banks, structure, parallel drop-offs, seam margins, and side channels.

Salt River

Fishing remains fairly consistent on the Salt River with the higher gradient reaches – upstream of Tin Cup and downstream of Swimming Pool – offering the best fishing.  Tricos are out around 10am and PMDs emerge around 11:30am.  Grasshoppers and carpenter ants are the main terrestrial fare after 11:30am.  Dry-dropper and tandem dry rigs are producing in eddies, seams, and troughs.  After 3pm, hatches wane and dropper nymphs become the primary source of action.  Still, keep your dropper tippet short – in the 12” to 24” range.

Flat Creek

Fishing opened on August 1st and the best action over the past few days have been in the morning hours from around 7am until 11pm with the sweet spot being from 7am until 10am.  There is no dominant hatch other than midges, but we have been seeing a few caddis, infrequent PMDs, and craneflies out.  Midge larva/pupa patterns have been producing in eddies and along undercut bank edges.  Caddis and PMD nymphs and dry patterns are doing the trick in riffles and seams.  Cranefly larva patterns are performing best along undercut banks and submerged structure.  Fishing in the afternoon has been spotty, although there are reports of decent action after 8am.