Hello new member with introduction and inquiries

[czoscar]

Hello I wanted to introduce myself having just found this forum and to ask a few related questions if I could.  I am currently living in the DFW metroplex and far from Montana where I lived for many years and learned to love fly fishing for wild trout in their many excellent rivers and backpacking in the numerous wildernesses.  I have not fly fished in many, too many, years, and in isolation in this pandemic dug around and found my old Sage rod and a few flies which got me to search for somewhere within driving distance where I might enjoy the pleasure of wetting a fly in a running stream/river and found this site and area.  I am probably very far from being proficient fly casting/fishing but it’s the time on the water that matters to me at this stage.

i am hoping, and planning, to make an initial exploratory visit with my family this summer and hope to get acquainted with your river and return to the enjoyment of spending time wading and fishing and what brought me so much enjoyment in the many years I lived in Montana.

My inquiries are related to equipment that I will need to equip myself related to fishing in your area.  Would you recommend chest waders or would waist high waders be sufficient?  Plain rubber wading boots or metal cleats is best?

I have a 9 foot 6 wt rod with WF floating line and asking what length leaders and tippet size you would recommend, and of course, what dry fly patterns and recommended sizes, would be best for summer and again in the cooler Fall months.  Perhaps same suggestions for nymphs if those would be better in the summer or Fall.

Also do you have predictable hatches that might require specific patterns and sizes of flies?

i know these are many questions but hoping to get some recommendations as I plan to shop and buy some of the aforementioned accessories in the near future.  Any other recommendations on where to stay, eat, fish, etc., is greatly appreciated.

i feel fortunate to have found you and look forward to my first of, and hopefully, many visits.

I thank you - Oscar

[darrelln09]

Your 9ft 6wt rod should be fine for the Lower Mountain Fork River. I think most people use 5X leaders and tippet for nymphs and dry flies. Something a little heavier for streamers is usually a good idea. Some of us use the Euro Nymphing technique with longer 3wt rods and 6X tippet but that is less common.

For waders, you definitely want cleats as a minimum. Some people use a combination of cleats and felt soles. There are some really slick, flat rocks in that river and every bit of traction you can muster is highly recommended. A walking stick is a great idea in some places as well assuming you don't have the balance and coordination of a frisky cat. I think you would be pushing it in some of the pocket water if you only used hip boots.

For nymphing, the universal Pheasant Tail, Hare's Ear, and Copper John flies are worth a shot. Jig nymphs and midges are popular as well. The fish there tend to see a lot of pressure so smaller flies tend to have a little more success. I typically tie on a Size 20 or 22 midge, midge emerger, or RS2 as my dropper fly on a nymph rig setup.

For dry flies, I have attached an older hatch chart for the area. I think it's still fairly accurate but your best bet would be to go to the Beavers Bend Fly Shop, located within the park, and talk to them about what to fish, where to fish, and then patronize them with your business for anything you might need. You should also consider hiring a guide at the fly shop to get you going in the right direction early on. There are lots of different types of water there and they know best as to what flies and techniques are working at the time up and down the stream.

Attachments:

LMFR Hatch Chart 2.pdf (21.92 KB)

[jonbo]

BBend Annotated Fishing Map.docx (376.9 KB)

Here's a really good map I found a long time ago. Then I put some of my own notes on it. I saved it in Word as I don't have an app on my computer to create a PDF file. I hope you can open it. It's slightly out of date. For example, I don't think there are "red" and "blue" zones anymore. As I noted I think, "Lost Creek" was destroyed by the flood. Otherwise, it still should be pretty helpful. At this time "Hickory", so called because Hickory Campground is on its bank, Evening Hole, and any part of Spillway Creek are probably your best bets. At the Evening Hole Bridge, the Evening Hole is directly upstream while Hickory is directly downstream.

For simplest, most productive fly fishing, fish weighted nymphs under an indicator. They'll set you up at the Fly Shop. Hare's Ears, Pheasant Tails, Prince Nymphs, Caddis Larvae, Zebra Midges, Pat's Rubber Legs, Frenchies are all good, basic nymphs. Also, be sure to puchase a few Wooly Buggers which are streamers. You fish these by "swinging". Cast them across and slightly downstream, let them "swing" till they're directly downstream. This is often as productive as any kind of trout fishing there is. Hits are not subtle. Enjoy!

[jonbo]

Oh, to add: You asked about tippet/leader. Here's what some of us do now. We Buy a 7 ft 3x tapered leader. We buy tippet rings. Then we tie a tippet ring to the end of the leader. We buy spools of 5x and 6x tippet. We tie on the 5x (most commonly) tippet, about say, 4' for me usually, to the tippet ring. Then whenever you've knotted, retied, broken that tippet a few times and it's pretty trashed, you cut it off at the tippet ring and add a fresh section. This way the tapered leader you purchased stays fresh all season. Now, using adjustable indicators, you slide that thing, adjust it, up and down depending on the depth of the water your fishing. Occasionally in deeper water you may have it above the tippet ring, but more often below it. You want the nymph to hit bottom every now and then. It it never hits bottom you're probably not fishing deep enough.

[czoscar]

Thanks Darrelln09 and Jonbo.

This will help a great deal and yes, I always use the local fly shop and buy locally for flies and leaders and misc accessories. Also good info on wading stick, waders, and wading boots thanks.

I read somewhere that the trout fishing was not great in the summer and much better in the cooler Fall months. Read elsewhere that fly fishing for Smallmouth Bass and Walleye rather than trout is better in the warm water summer months. Is this accurate?

Thanks again.

Oscar

[czoscar]

Darrelln09 - I was able to open and download the hatch file. Thank you, Very helpful 👍

[gui]

Welcome to the forum! The river is a tailwater and water temperatures remain cool enough to sustain the trout population year round, but still, I believe that it does go past optimal feeding temperatures for trout during the dog days of the summer and trout fishing slows down. Early mornings, evenings, spillway creek (closer to the dam) may be your best bet during the hot days.

You mentioned Smallmouth bass. In the past couple of years, the few times that I visited the park in the summer, I’ve enjoyed fishing cray fish patterns such as rubber legs brown/olive wooly buggers in zones II and III and caught a few nice Smallmouth this way. They tend to hold in the same spots than trout, so part of the fun in these waters is finding out what kind of fish just smashed your fly.
I’ve never caught a walleye but I’ve heard of them indeed. Would love to catch one on the fly!

[czoscar]

Good day GUI - thanks for the additional information.

[golferjeff]

Gui - walleye fishing is on fire in Zone 3 right now. Stripers, hybrids, whities, and saugeye too.

[gui]

May 13, 2020 22:11:41 GMT -6 golferjeff said:

Gui - walleye fishing is on fire in Zone 3 right now. Stripers, hybrids, whities, and saugeye too.

That’s really cool! Arg, I don’t think I can squeeze in another trip soon... But definitely looking forward to some more Z3 in the future!

[czoscar]

It’s starting to look like an exploratory trip in June or July might be possible. Any recommendation on camp site in the park for large tent?

disregard found camp site information/link.

[golferjeff]

Campgrounds still closed for now. Hopefully open by July.

I like hickory or elm. Hickory closest to fishing. Elm great for groups.

[czoscar]

Good morning Golferjeff - tent sites will open this Wednesday the 20th (May).