Ranch
The Ranch has been amazing over this past week. When the weather moved in things picked up! The best fishing has occurred on the cooler over cast days. There are a lot of different hatches happening. I have seen Blue Wings, Mahoganies and Tricos all going at the same time. Personally I like to fish flies that I can see so I have been fishing #16 Mahogany No Hackle I have also been using #16 Mahogany Last Chance Cripples and have had good success by ranch standards. We have rain in the near forecast so if you’re in the area get up here and take advantage of some of the best ranch fishing of the season!
Box Canyon
The box flows have come up just a bit 207 cfs. Again unless you want to leave large amounts of gel coat along the way I would not float the box with a hard boat. The fishing in the box has really been good lately. Not much has changed in the way of fly selection. Small bead heads are the way to go. #16 and #18 Zebra Midges will serve you well in the box. Also there are many access points in the canyon so leave the boat at home. Spending the day wade fishing the box this time of year is the way to go!
Lower Henry's Fork
The lower river has been amazing this fall. This week Shaun Lawson and myself got a bit of a late start and headed down to Ora Bridge. When we arrived the Blue Wings were thick! At one point it seemed as if every fish in the river was up feeding. Shaun was using a #18 Parachute Adams and I had a #18 Moorish May Day. We both did well until the clouds disappeared. That was the end of the hatch. I did have success with the #16 Para-wulff and a #18 brown Two Bit Hooker dropped a couple of feet below. Again look for the overcast cooler days. If you get up and see it’s raining or even snowing and it’s blowing sideways grab your gear call in sick and get here, you may very well have the day of a lifetime!
Teton
The Teton has also been fishing more than good this fall. Multiple hatches of May Flies has fish looking up! Look for fish eating Blue Wing Olives on the Teton. On bright days you may want to fish dry/dropper rigs. I like a #16 Para-wulff with a #18 brown or black Zebra Midge. Don’t rule out streamers on the Teton River. I would have a few #4 Little Kim’s in both gold and silver.
South Fork
I don’t have much in the way of new info on the South Fork. Again try to focus on the overcast nasty days. Look again for Blue Wings and Mahoganies on the days when the weather will cooperate. Also if you’re fishing the banks on the South Fork don’t be afraid to try the Hopper/Dropper rig. On the bright days a couple of #16 or #18 Zebra Midges fished in the back eddies will work very well.
Madison
The Madison has also been fishing well. I hate sounding like a broken record but again small bead heads are the pick of the day and again time your trip with some bad weather. I would have #18 Zebra Midges and some San Juan worms. Also again look for fish rising to Blue Wing Olives when the conditions are right. Also as always bring your streamers with you. Regardless of the pattern make sure you have a good color selection.
Yellowstone
It’s a great time of the year to visit the park. It seems like fall is always your best bet to see a Grizzly Bear or a really big bull elk. The Yellowstone River has been a little tough but there are still a few fish around I would focus your efforts in the deeper runs and holes on the Yellowstone river this time of the year. I would also suggest you fish with streamers. The key being once again having a good color selection. The Fire Hole has been fishing very well with small dries. I would fish a #18 Parachute Adams to rising fish and I bet you will have a great day on the fire hole. The Madison in the park this time of year can fish very well. Look for large Brown Trout eating everything from nymphs to eggs and streamers on the journey out of Hebgen Lake. I also really like the Gibbon this time of the year.
Area Lakes
Henry’s Lake continues to be the spot this time of the year. Look for large Hybrids eating everything from leeches to small bead head nymphs. Most folks are focusing on the state boat ramp but I would also look around Targee Creek and Duck Creek.