For all the swarm chasers in the house, pteronarcys sightings from the West Coast to the Rockies are making the rounds. Due to water drawdowns on Oregon’s Deschutes the annual May-June event started about two weeks earlier than planned is coming to a close, while reports from Montana and Colorado say the hatch of America’s largest stonefly is ramping up fast.
“It’s the most Salmonflies we have seen in about 10 years on the Big Hole,” says Sunrise Fly Shop in Melrose, MT. “Currently the hatch is on the entire River. Some of our best dry-fly fishing has been from Jerry Creek down to Melrose.”
And on the East and West Fork Bitterroot, “There aren’t a lot of bugs, but there are enough that the fish are on them and fishing has been pretty good. The flows of the upper river have been pretty steady, and fishermen in boats are reporting safe fishing conditions even if the river flows are over 2,000 cfs at the Darby measuring station. Water conditions are still cloudy, with visibility at about 3 feet, and if the rain holds off we could see the river pretty clear by Saturday.” Read More
In Colorado, on the Colorado River, Trouts Fly Fishing says it’s on: “There are Salmonflies! The hatch is in full force right now, especially from Pumhouse down to Rancho Del Rio.” On the Gunnison, recent river releases are at 1,200 cfs. “The Salmonflies are still in the trees mating from Pleasure to Ute Park. Nothing yet up-river of Ute Park. The Yellow Sallies and PMDs have been popping, so both are good as droppers. Fish aren’t keyed on the Salmonfly adults just yet.” But soon, damn soon.
Tom Bie is the founder, editor, and publisher of The Drake. He started the magazine in 1998 as an annual newsprint publication based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He then moved it to Steamboat, Colorado (1999), Boulder, Colorado (2001), and San Clemente, California (2004), as he took jobs as managing editor at Paddler, Senior Editor at Skiing, and Editor-in-Chief at Powder, respectively. Tom and The Drake are now both based in Denver, Colorado, where The Drake is finally all grows up(Swingers, 1996) to a quarterly magazine.