Sorry I won’t be able to call on Sunday, Mom, but I’ll be too busy fishing the caddis hatch on the Yellowstone River. It might be my only chance to get into some epic dry fly fishing before the river gets big and muddy. I’m sure you’ll understand.
So far, the vaunted caddis hatch has been weak at best. We’ve seen moderate numbers of the bugs on some of the warmer afternoons, but only in spots. We’ve been waiting through the roller coaster weather for the river to really go off. Well, wait no longer. This warm weekend could very well boost the water temperatures enough to bring waves of caddis (and fish) to the surface. Don’t bother getting to the river at the crack of dawn; you’ll be more likely to see large numbers of hatching bugs later in the day and into the evening, once the water has a chance to warm up. The flow predictions below suggest that the water clarity will likely hold through Monday, but probably muddy up mid-week. As for next weekend, we’ll have to wait and see if flows stabilize sufficiently for the water to clear up again. However, if tons of protein are floating downstream, the fish don’t need crystal clear water to be interested in what’s drifting overhead.
But why risk waiting. Mom would love to float (or wade) the Yellowstone River on her special day! Just saying. And stay tuned for regular updates as all this plays out.
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