It has been a great week over here in Paradise Valley. A ton of bug activity has kept fish on the rise and the bite has been outstanding. The Salmon Flies seem to be mostly on the upper stretches of the Yellowstone near Gardiner and above. You will see the occasional adult fluttering lower. Fish have been more willing to come up and eat the smaller Golden’s as of late. An olive, gold, tan, brown, red, purple, or pink chubby in sizes 8, 10, and 12 are all good flies to throw. Drop a small rubberlegs in black, brown, coffee, or peacock underneath and you should get some eats. A royal or peacock colored PMX size 8, 10, and 12, or the Designated Hitter Golden Stone are also killer patterns this time of year. Other bugs that will be of significance during the day are your PMD’s, Green Drakes (on the upper river), and Yellow Sallies. Matthew’s Blue Ribbon Cripple and Sparkle Dun are great imitations for the PMD’s. Try a Furmsky’s Foam Green Drake and Lawson’s Paradrake for the big Mayflies. Yellow Sallies are imitated well with a lime trude sz 12,14,16, Larimer’s Yellow Sally sz 14, 16, and Stenrsen’s CFO Hummer Sally sz 12, 14.
Another major insect to notice are the Caddis! Plenty of big chocolate, and smaller tan caddis. A brown Elk Hair Caddis sz 12 and a Bloom’s Para Caddis Tan in 16 work great to imitate these bugs. X-Caddis and JC special are also good patterns to use. Early morning and late evening are the best time to fish these!
Check out this nice brown caught on an Angler’s West guided trip by our good friend Don Harp! Nice Fish!