Snake River
A smorgasbord of bugs – PMDs, yellow sallies, golden stones, and leftover caddis – continue to dominate the scene on the Snake. Slow current targets like side channels, eddies, and the inside turn of riffles can offer surface consistent action from 10am (or earlier in some cases) until approximately 4pm. Riffles, seams, and troughs start to fish around 12:30pm and can continue to produce until dusk.
Double/triple nymph rigs are working best on the lower reaches from South Park Bridge down to Alpine. There is, however, some inconsistency in terms of the part of the water column offering the most action. The best approach is to go with five to seven feet in the early morning hours before 9:30am, eight to ten feet from 9:30 until noon, and then back under seven feet through the afternoon until dusk. Target eddies, riffles, seams, and submerged structure. Dry-dropper rigs are working better from Pacific Creek down to South Park with three to five feet of dropper tippet. Focus on side channels, seams, eddies, confluences, and riffles (the latter two in the afternoon especially).
Streamers are providing respectable action but should kick into gear in the coming weeks. The best action is happening on the upper reaches from Jackson Lake Dam down to Deadman’s. Go with floating lines or sinking tips in the INT to 6ips range and target banks, structure, seams, eddy current margins, side channels and bankside troughs. Fish small to moderately sized baitfish imitations with fast to moderate retrieves.
Dry flies – Circus Peanuts, Purple Bruces, Mary Kays, Will’s Winged Chernobyls, Stimulators, Hackle Stacker Sallies, Red Butt Parachute Sallies, Elk Hair Caddis, Tent Wing Caddis, Mathews’ Sparkle Caddis, Parachute Adams, Parawulffs, Quad Drakes, Booty’s DL Drake Cripple, Snowshoe Duns, Pink Parachutes, Booty’s DL PMD Cripple, Quigley Cripples, and Film Critics.
Nymphs – Pat’s Rubber Leg, 20-Inchers, San Juan Worms, Duracells, Rabid Squirrels, Brillion’s Lucent Jig, Mercer’s Woven Caddis Pupa, Mercer’s Glass Tail Caddis, Biot Bugs, Sexy Lexy Sallie Nymphs, Copper Johns in red or olive, Batmen, Booty’s Deep Stinker Nymph, Lightening Bugs, Rainbow Warriors, Egan’s Iron Lotus, GT’s Super Flash, and Perdigons.
Streamers – Goldilocks, Craven’s Swim Coach, Baby Bunnies, Booty Call Minnows, Arum’s Lil’ Kim, J.J. Specials, Woolley Buggers, Craft Fur Clousers, and Clouser Minnows.
South Fork
Flows from Palisades reservoir are at approximately 11,500cfs. Visibility is around three and a half to four feet, giving fish good opportunity to see surface patterns and fly fishers opportunity to see eats, rises and chases. Expect visibility to reduce noticeably and fishing to be more challenging when flow from the Dam are bumped up. It typically take a couple of days for things to settle and fish to acclimate.
Salmon flies are in the Canyon but there are almost overwhelming emergences of yellow sallies and good hatches of golden stones as well as PMDs and drakes (the latter two later in the day). Surface action has been most consistent from Conant down to Lorenzo with eats occurring around 11am most days and continuing until 6pm or so. Larger attractors have been performing best of most options. Target banks, submerged structure, riffles, side channels, and seams.
Nymph rigs are working well in the morning and through the afternoon, especially on the swan Valley reach below the Dam. They are playing second fiddle to dry flies later in the day below Conant at times. Going deep with seven to nine feet of leader from line/suspension device to trailing fly produces in the morning but it is best to go shorter with six feet or less after 11am. Target submerged structure, riffles, seams, and confluences.
Streamers are starting to work well on every reach. Slower retrieves are the name of the game above Conant, while moderate to fast retrieves do better on the lower reaches. Banks, structure, eddy current margins, seams, and the inside corner of seams have been the most productive waters to target. Go with floating lines or sinking tips in the INT to 6ips range. Moderately sized streamers are producing better than larger patterns.
Dry flies – Snake River Water Walkers, Thing From Uranus, Barrett’s Ant, Bean’s Orange Crush, Stimulators, Parachute Sallies, Red Butt Sallies,
Nymphs – Pat’s Rubber Leg, Duracells, Brillion’s Lucent Jig, Foxy Sallie Stone Nymphs, Two-Bit Hookers, Panty Droppers,
Streamers – Galloup’s Peanut Envy, Silvey Sculpins, Rustic Trombones, Goldilocks, Geisha Girls, Mojo Minnows, Arum’s Lil’ Kim, Booty Call Minnows, Galloup’s Mini Dungeon, J.J. Specials, Marabou Muddlers, and Krystal Buggers.
Green River
Many o’ bugs poppin’ on the Green with an abundance of gray drakes, PMDs (in the morning hours), yellow sallies, golden stones (especially on the upper reaches above Warren Bridge), and leftover caddis. Action starts around 10am and continues to build into late afternoon – say 5-ish. Just about every piece of holding water has action. Windy days can put dry fly eats into overdrive as fish consume blown over duns and stoneflies blown from streamside vegetation.
Nymphs are performing just as strong as surface patterns and are producing much better than the latter in the morning before 10am. Go primarily with drake, mayfly, and sallie sallies nymphs and target submerged structure, bankside troughs, seams, eddies, and the head of riffles. Confluences are a decent choice as well.
Streamers are working well on every reach. Banks, bankside troughs, confluences, and eddy current margins are the key water types to target. Fish large and moderately sized baitfish imitations on floating lines and sinking tips in the INT to 6ips range. Go with moderate to fast retrieves and keep the cadence even.
Dry flies – Snake River Water Walkers, Circus Peanuts, SRA Chernobyls, Will’s Winged Chernobyls, Mary Kays, Turck’s Tarantula, Parachute Sallies, Hackle Stacker Sallies, Lime Trudes, Stimulators, Elk Hair Caddis, Goddard Caddis, Tent-Wing Caddis, ARF Hairy Caddis, CDC Caddis, Paradrakes, Thorax Drakes, Ribbed Parachute Drakes, Booty’s Drake Emerger, Parachute Extended Body PMDs, Parachute Adams, Copper Hazes, Pink Parachutes, Comparaduns, Booty’s DL PMD Cripple, and Quigley Cripples.
Nymphs – Pat’s Rubber Leg, Biot Bugs, Larva Lace Stones, Holiday Stones, Juju Sallie Stones, Iron Sallie Nymph, Quill Sallie Nymphs, Mercer’s Woven Caddis Pupa, Mathews’ Sparkle Caddis Pupa, Mopscicles, Flashback Hares Ear Nymphs, Panty Droppers, Redemption PMD Nymphs, Toddlers, Psycho Princes, Copper Johns in red or olive, and Lightening Bugs.
Streamers – Galloup’s Boogey Man, Booty’s Quad Bunny, Silvey Sculpins, Sculpzillas, Coffey’s Articulated Sparkle Minnow, Goldilocks, Craven’s Swim Coach, SRA Bunnies, Galloup’s Mini-Dungeon, Arum’s Lil’ Kim, Booty’s Tri-Bunny, Mojo Minnows, Gongas, Badger Muddlers, and Kreelux.
Salt River
Caddis, PMDs, yellow sallies, and the small golden stones are all popping and the Salt if offering some very solid surface action from the narrows down to Palisades. Production is decent in the morning and gets continually better as things progress towards into the afternoon. Eddies, submerged structure, seams, confluences and banks with relaxed currents are all producing. Tandem dry rigs are worth considering with a mayfly/caddis/PMD as a lead fly and a moderately sized attractor as a trailer.
Dry-dropper rigs are the best way to go if you are fishing nymphs (both singles and tandems). Adjust your rigging for general depths and target eddies, seams, and confluence primarily. Action has been good from start to finish but is best from approximately 10am until 4pm. Cloudy days with a little precipitation can kick production into gear even more.
Streamers are hit or miss but have been working best on the middle reaches from Grover down to Etna where larger 15-plus inch cutties and browns have been active. Go with small to moderately sized baitfish imitations and target banks, structure, eddy current margins, and seams primarily. Floating lines and INT to 3 ips tips are working better than heavier tackle.
Dry flies – Mary Kays, Bart’s Lipstick, Snake River Water Walkers, Micro Winged Chernobyls, Micro Peanuts, Lawson’s Sallie, Hackle Stacker Sallies, Stimulators, Galloup’s Ant Acid, Elk Hair Caddis, Coles U-Con, Parachute Adams, Parachute Extended Body PMDs, Royal Wulffs, Pink Alberts, Copper Hazes, Booty’s DL PMD Cripple, Film Critics, and Pheasant Tail Emergers.
Nymphs – Nymph Formerly Known as Prince, Duracalls, Hustler CDC Lights, Rabid Squirrels, Copper Johns in red, olive, or copper, Batmen, Egan’s Dart, Peasant Tails, Booty’s Deep Stinker Nymph, Soft Hackles, and Perdigons.
Streamers – Baby Bunnies, Arum’s Lil’ Kim, Baby Clousers, Lite Brite Zonkers, Marabou Muddlers, Beldar Buggers, Pine Squirrel Zonkers, Slump Busters, Rickkard’s Seal Bugger, and Krystal Buggers.