Roaring River Up And Running Well

[timsfly]

I did this for the guys that didn't winter fish and come down to fish on march 1st, the water is up and looking good, this shows the upper half of the river from dry hollow to the twin falls, it ain't much but I've had some calls from

people wanting to know what the river looks like after the work was done.

http://s171.photobucket.com/albums/u294/ti...nt=P2170002.flv

[Danoinark]

Neat Tim, thanks...Dano

[timsfly]

I'll bet there were good #'s of fish that moved down stream, that happens when there is a good flood, and this was a good one, not bad on the top end, but the bottom(zone 2 and zone 3) got a good flushing.

Should make for some good fishing below the park this next week, if the water level drops.

[timsfly]

http://s171.photobucket.com/albums/u294/ti...nt=P2240009.jpg

http://s171.photobucket.com/albums/u294/ti...nt=P2240006.jpg

http://s171.photobucket.com/albums/u294/ti...nt=P2240005.jpg

The water is high and muddy right now, I fished a bit today below the park, there are a lot of fish in the river right now, I managed to catch 3 in about an hour. I caught all my fish today on a big #8 conehead woolybugger in olive color, had a few strikes on a black one the same size but didn't land any on the black. Had a few hits on orange glo-ball, but again didn't land any on the egg pattern.

I suspect the water will remain about where it is for now, it may drop a little, but even if it does it will still be higher than normal on sat.

Now this won't ruin fishing at all, it will help some and hinder others. There are still some huge fish in the water, and I would expect some bigger ones could have made their way out of the spring, the water has sure been high enough, there is no telling how big a fish there could be out there right now. This will also keep the march 1st snaggers at bay

The egg and worm fisherman will have it made, this water is great for that type of fishing, just remember extra water, means you need extra weight, and I'm not talking a BB or two, you will be better off fishing worm weights and bigger #3/0 and #7 split shot.

You can use a bit less when worm fishing.

I like to put on a 1/16th or heaiver bullet style weight, and then tie on your egg hook, now the keep the bullet weight away from your hook and to allow your hook to float up off the bottom you will put a B or a BB shot about 24' above your hook, just make sure the bullet weight is above the shot, this will give you plenty of casting weight, and allow the fish to eat your egg pull on the line and not feel the worm weight. The worm weight will not snag as bad as the removable shot. So you might give that a try, it really works well.

Now I think most people will be just fine with 4lb line this weekend, I don't think you will need the 2 or 3 lb line we normally use.

With worms or eggs, you should use #10 or #12 hooks.

Roostertails will work great in this type of water, if you find yourself fishing where the water is really fast and you can't get the roostertail down fast enough, add some weight, those big fish will lay right in that white water comming over the baffles, and extra weight is really needed in that area. With the water like it is, I would use the black, skunk, olive, or a roostertail with some flash.

In this type of water a small crankbait is very good, the little rebel crawfish, the flatfish, or rapala minnow lures work very well when the water is up.

Marabou jigs will work, you'll need to use the heaiver jigs to get down in some of the holes, but on the lower end where the water gets a bit wider and slower, you can use a smaller jig sometimes, a lot of times when the water is up like this the little white thread jig is a very good fly, or a brassie, you fish both the same, you'll need a indicator (bobber) and some time to fish. Just tie the little jig on, and put the bobber up the line 2 or 3 feet from the fly, and cast upstream and let the current do the rest of the work, you have to keep the slack out of your line, you'll need to set the hook very quickly, they won't hold the little thread jig or brassie very long, both are good when the water is up, they sink fast and the fish like them, you can fish this set up on a fly rod or a spinning rod. Glo-balls are fished in the same manner when the water is up like this.

Now Fly rods can be tricky when the water is up, big conehead buggers, heavy streamer, glo-balls, san juan worms, heavier pricne nymphs will all work, you'll need to change your fishing method a bit, I like to fish just nearly straight tippet when the water is high, I don't have a problem fishing just straight 4lb tippet, it isn't pretty to cast, but it drags less in the water, sinks faster, and stays where the fish are longer, I still use 7-9' of tippet, and a longer rod really works better when the water is up like this, this will be a good day to leave the short 3 or 4 wt at home and string up the ole 5 or 6 wt.

Bring the short rod if you want, even with the higher water there will be some caddis and midges comming off, and I've seen a few baties this week, and the tricos will be along shortly. I have had days when the water was up and had good luck on cracklebacks especially in the afternoons, and it gets even better if the sun comes out, the weather is supposed to be nice for now, up in the 50's on friday and even up to 60 on sat. so it should be a nice weekend. Holler if you want more info, thanks for reading all my ramblings.