Welcome to the Blue Ribbon Flies Newsletter!
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Thanks for taking the time to read our weekly newsletter, and as always if you have questions or comments don't ever hesitate to give us a shout at 406-646-7642! We are currently open seven days a week,
from 7:00am-8:00pm MST.
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What's Happening in Yellowstone Country
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A look at Slough Creek
Photo by Josh Almond
Introduction by Cam Coffin
September is all about terrestrial fishing as the river's aquatic insect life lays somewhat dormant. However, a few of our rivers do have good hatches, and let’s not forget the lakes as well. September is a month when the nights are just a bit chilly, and the chances to fish some unbelievable Baetis hatches grow greater each day. Flexibility is key, though, and streamer fishing can also be good, though this method really depends on the weather and how far along the trout are coming out of Hebgen to spawn. Typically, the streamer fishing really picks up at the end of the month; however, you can take some large trout on all sorts of subsurface flies, and nymph fishing is typically good all month long.
Over the past week we have had several folks come into the shop a bit frustrated about their fishing experience, and most of the time the lack of success has come from fishing a particular body of water at the wrong time of day. The time of day you choose to fish can be just as, if not more, important than the body of water itself. With the cold evenings that we experience throughout the fall, fishing hoppers in the early parts of the day when the water is still cold won't be as productive as fishing the same water with hoppers in the afternoon once things warm up. Seems simple, right?
While this can be simple, several other factors play into this, and one of the biggest is the weather. And not just the weather for that particular day, but the weather from the previous day also can play a role in your determination on what body of water to fish and what time to fish it. With this in mind, this is the time of year that splitting the day between a couple different bodies of water and being flexible makes good sense. For example, the fish are now starting to run from Hebgen up to the Madison in the park, and typically these fish tend to be a more active during early morning or late evening hours on a sunny day, but may remain active throughout the entire day under overcast conditions. On a sunny day, spending a few hours swinging, nymphing or streamer fishing in the morning in the park sections of the Madison, then making your downstream below Quake Lake for a bit of hopper fishing once the water warms in the afternoon will lead towards more success for the entire day.
During an overcast day, fishing the morning hours in the park sections still holds true, and your success in these hours will most likely determine whether you head elsewhere or stick around, since the swinging may stay good all day with cloud cover. Heading downstream in the afternoon to Raynold's or $3 Bridge, or upstream to the Firehole, on a cloudy day you wouldn't expect to see hoppers but rather Baetis, and in some cases, blankets of them! This is just one example, but there are tons of options and combinations of rivers and lakes to choose from during the month of September. Remember, we are always here to help you sort it all out, so stop on in or give us a call whenever you're looking for suggestions!
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Angel Otero with BRF guide Scott Clark on Soda Butte
Photo courtesy of Angel Oterotr
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Despite the recent cold weather we've had, the Madison below Quake has continued to fish well with terrestrials. The dry fly action has been limited to the afternoons lately, so if you're looking to fish dries only, don't get there too early! Nymphs have also been productive during the earlier parts of the day, but the fish have had a tendency to be a little sluggish first thing. The weekend looks perfect for some hopper fishing with temperatures crawling up into the 80s. For flies, have size 14 Morrish Hoppers in tan and gold, and #16 cinnamon Ant-Acids. Attractor patterns are also a great bet, and #16 Parachute Adams and Royal Wulffs will take a few fish more often than not. If you're nymphing, brown #16 $3 Dips, brown #16 Montana Bullets, #16 Copper Quill Nymphs, #16-18 Red Necks and coffee #8 Pat's Rubberlegs will help put a bend in the rod.
The Gallatin has had some good fishing and hoppers, beetles and ants are a great bet for the afternoon hours. Pink or tan Thunder Thighs and Morrish Hoppers in #10, #10 Longhorn Beetles and #14-16 Gulp Beetles, and #14-16 Para-Ants fished with a #16 Split-Case PMD or Beadhead Hare's Ear underneath will be good bets. The canyon stretches will be the most consistent overall. You'll want to let the upper park section warm up a bit and hit it in the later in the day.
Hebgen Lake is certainly not out of the question and while the Callibaetis won't be as prevalent from here on out, you may still find a few gulpers sipping off the top. We've had some great reports in the Madison Arm from anglers that have been throwing streamers to fish that are starting to stage for their run up into the park.
Slough, Lamar and Soda Butte Don't be without hoppers, beetles and ants if heading this direction, but also be armed with #12 Drake Mackerel Cripples and Sparkle Duns, #22 Baetis Sparkle Duns and #20 cream Almost There Baetis, as these mayflies are becoming more and more common with each passing day. For terrestrials have #10 pink or yellow Thunder Thighs and Morrish Hoppers, #10 Longhorn Beetles, #14 cinnamon Arrick's Para-Ants and Ant-Acids, and #12-14 Gulp Beetles.
The Madison in the Park is coming into play and it's well worth a couple hours of your time, especially in the early morning hours. If you're swinging, try #10 Shakey Beeleys in both orange and purple, Montana Intruders and Blue on Blew soft hackles. For nymphs it's hard to beat a #8 Rubberlegs with a #16 Shop Vac. Also, purple San Juans and #8-10 Princes have fooled a few fish over the past few days.
The Firehole has reawakened from its summer slumber. The water has cooled down and some White Miller caddis and Baetis mayflies are emerging again, and fish are starting to look up. The water temperature has stayed below 60 the last few days, so take advantage of the cool mornings. Be sure to try #14-16 White Miller Razor Caddis, #20-22 Baetis Sparkle Duns and #20 Baetis Razor Mayflies, and #14 Partridge & Orange or Peacock & Partridge soft hackles.
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The Almost There Baetis comes from our own Bucky McCormick. Bucky first showed us this fly a few seasons back, raving about how effective it was on local rivers like the Firehole and Madison. When we finally tried it ourselves, we couldn't argue with him; it is, hands down, one of the best Baetis emergers that we've ever fished. We use the olive version both spring and fall on all of our local waters, and we love the cream version for fishing lighter-colored Baetis on Slough Creek in the fall, as well as for matching tiny PMDs on the Livingston spring creeks and Henry's Fork.
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The original orange Shakey Beeley was designed by the late Nick Nicklas, adapted from his large eastern March Brown Soft Hackle to target fall-run browns and rainbows on the Madison inside Yellowstone Park. We're not sure what it is about this fly that drives these fish so nuts, but it has easily been the best soft hackle for swinging up these big fish year in and year out for the last several decades. We later added a purple version of this fly to the lineup since these big fish also seem to love that color, and it has been a winner for us ever since also. More often than not, this is the fly we choose to start with when swinging for fall runners, and we never send anyone to the river without a few of them in September and October.
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These are all prime, magnum plumes! We use them on flies like our famous Shakey Beeley and Ephemerella Emerger, scud & shrimp patterns, and damsel nymphs, as well as many other top patterns. You will love these feathers!
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We are moving into full-on soft hackle time here in Yellowstone country and it's once again time to hit the vise. When you talk about materials for soft hackles, Collins hen sets are one you don't want to overlook. Collins hen sets include both the cape and saddle, making them great for soft hackles, wings on dry flies and classic feather wing streamers. The natural colors are absolutely beautiful and at $24.99 they're a fantastic value. Each set is unique and often the cape and saddle will differ just a bit in color, giving you two different colors for the price of one. We post photos of every single set on our website, so head on over to check out each beautiful option!
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Fishpond boasts that the Summit Sling is the most comfortable, durable and feature-rich sling pack on the market, and they may just be right. As with all Fishpond products, it's been thought out extremely well for maximum functionality on the water, and it's a great choice when you need to carry a fair amount of gear for the day, but not so much as to require a full-size backpack. And it's made of Fishpond's recycled nylon material, so you can feel good about helping the planet, too. Features include:
- Spacious main compartment that will hold multiple large fly boxes plus lunch and other essentials.
- Integrated water bottle holder on the outside of the pack so that your bottle doesn't take up all the space inside of the pack.
- Fishpond's signature molded fold down work bench on the front of the pack, with velcro for removable fly patch.
- Padded back panel with pass-through slot for a net handle.
- Plenty of Hypalon tool attachment points all over the pack, including on the padded shoulder strap.
- Water-resistant zippers.
- Flexible TPE lash tabs on the side for attaching a rod tube or rain jacket (straps sold separately).
Dimensions: 13" x 8.5" x 9"
Weight: 2 pounds
Capacity: 549 cubic inches
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The best little nipper we carry. The gritty rubber lining makes them easy to handle. There is a wide gap between the teeth for easy use. It also has a spike on the back for cleaning the eye of the hook. These nippers are straight forward and simple.
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October Caddis cases.
Photo by Patrick Daigle
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Until Next Week!
The Gang at Blue Ribbon Flies
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Blue Ribbon Flies
(406) 646-7642
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