Fly Shop of The Big Horns

Information may not be reliable

To get back to fall reservoir fishing, it can be the best October and November fishing available. When you have a cold water temperatures in the creeks, reservoirs are more consistent with larger fish to catch. You will typically catch fewer fish, but you should be catching nice 1-4 pounders in a lot of reservoirs. Some reservoirs have 4-8 pounders that are even more fun. Keep in mind, typically the bigger the fish, the slower the action. When ever I go to a big fish reservoir, I set the bar low. If I catch 1-3 fish per day, I am satisfied. If I double that I am very happy. If I land 6-9 fish, I had a stellar day.
On Sunday 17th of Oct., I went to my favorite public reservoir down by Buffalo. My friend John and I were the first two people there and rightfully so John caught the first fish of the day. It was not one of the pounders, but it was a nice fish. As so often happens, this put us in a good mood, we were off to a good start early in the day. John got several more hits, but no good hookups. After the first couple of hours I started to get mildly concerned about not getting even any hits during that same time. As I am always calm and know that fishing is fishing, I kept slinging and stripping to get my shots. A couple of hours into the day, I got my first very soft strike. I missed, but that got me started.
I started getting some fish following my flies. I missed a couple more light strikes. So I changed flies and stripping techniques again. I started throwing a small white chenille and marabou jig around some boulders, and started getting more bumps. I finally figured out how the fish were gently taking the fly moving towards me, which made feel almost impossible. I started casting, letting the jig sink to a good depth and then slowly jigging twice with a hook set on the third stroke. I then let the fly sink back to depth after each presentation and continued to retrieve the fly. I got several hits and two good fish that I hooked and landed. The larger of the two was about 3 pounds and 20 inches long. This one fish made my whole day and I had what I would call a good day.

At the end of that day I saw a total of ten fisherman on the water. Five were spinner fisherman and five were fly fisherman. John and I were the only two that caught and landed fish on Sunday on Muddy Guard #1. These numbers are why people tend to not like reservoir fishing. Like I said, the number go down when fishing for larger fish a lot of the time. If you want to become a better fly fisherman, you have to spend time on still waters learning the skills you need to catch and land bigger fish.
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Reservoir and lake fishing is some of the best fishing of the fall season. There are several reasons why fall still water fishing can be great. Consistency of water temperature is one of the largest reasons why I fish still waters in the fall. Still waters will stay warmer over night and warm up quicker near the surface during the day. In my experience fish tend to be more active longer through the day in still waters. Particularly on warm days through the afternoon. Streams, especially mountain streams, tend to cool off significantly over night and take longer through the day to warm back up. When you have cloudy days moving water may not warm up at all. This is not to say fishing will be bad in cold water, just that it will usually be better longer through out the day on still waters in general. Ya ya , there are always exceptions.
I have found that a minimum of 2-4 degrees warm-up will start fish feeding activity in moving water. The warm-up theory holds true in still waters as well, but only a 1 – 2 degree warm up will change fish feeding activity. On the other side of this theory, a 1-2 degree drop in water temperature seems to be consistent in both still water and moving water will slow to stop fish feeding behavior. If you have not tested water temperatures while you are fishing, I recommend you take some time and study the differences in water temperature and fish feeding activity throughout the day. You will find that still waters are much more stable with water temperatures.
I typically check the water at least 5 times per fishing day. I typically test the water when I first get to it for a morning test baseline water temperature. I check again after I catch my first fish. I check between 11:00 am and Noon, 1:00pm and 2:00pm and after I catch my last fish of the day. I also check when I think I notice a difference in water temperature from spot to spot I am fishing. By this I mean from hole to hole or from riffle to hole or riffle to riffle.
Deeper riffles and holes can be 1-2 degrees colder or warmer a lot of the time. When the water is cold, you will typically see warmer water in the riffles. When the water is hotter, you will typically see colder water in the riffles. I am sure you have noticed fishing is better from one hole to the next hole than many riffle areas a lot during the hot summer days. This is a common mistake many fisherman make due to lack of knowledge or skill. The water is colder typically in a hole, but at the right time, the warmer riffle can be more productive. However on a very hot day the opposite affect happens, the riffles can be slightly cooler than a hole and with more oxygen causing the fish to hang in the riffles. Colder water on hot days is a good thing . Warmer water on a cold day is a good thing. Holes will typically fish better on hot days than riffles but there are exceptions. This is partly due to hatches that wash down from the riffles into the holes, but it is also due to water temperatures.
Now, on warm days or very hot days, you need to check out the shallow riffles more. By shallow, I mean 6″ to 18″ deep water with cut banks, boulders and bank cover like shrubs, trees, debris piles or moss clumps. You will be surprised what kind of fish come out of the shallow riffle water during the average summer day. Why is this? Cooler water and more oxygen in the shallow riffles. At different times during a day the shallow water is warmer than the holes and at other times, the shallow water will be cooler than holes. So if you pay attention, you will catch more fish in places you don’t expect. Test if for your self. I check the water temperature for many reasons, but I think if you check it for your self, you will start realizing the subtle and significant differences in water temperature in direct relation to catching fish. I apologize for straying from fall reservoir fishing to water temperature testing, but I hope this information will help you catch more larger fish more often.

The fishing is still good in many areas. I am recommending the lakes, ponds and reservoirs along with lower level creeks like Tongue Canyon or Clear Creek by Buffalo. The dry fly season is not quite over, but it is slowing significantly on the mountain. I went to Clear Creek and caught 32 fish 13 inches and smaller in an hour and a half on a Grass hopper. It was a kick to still be throwing a hopper and getting hot action. Days and nights are colder which puts the dry fly hatches off to the mid day to afternoon time frame. It is snowing around the peaks in the mountains, but the North Tongue is still open and fishing good with nymphs and moderate dry fly action. If anyone has forgotten, it is October in the mountains. The last few people that fished the N.T. used Chernobyl Ant patterns in black and tan and said the did good mid day to dark. If you are looking for some great deals on Winston fly rods, give me a call 307-672-5866. I have a stack still.
Hunting season is here, and all the creeks are empty of fisherman. My favorite time of the year.

Fly Shop of the Bighorns has some great items for 25% off. Lets start with Winston Rods. I have two each of the 4pc, 9′ BIIx in 7 wt, 6 wt, 5 wt and 4 wt. The 7 wt at $705.00 – 25% are now 528.75 + tax and shipping. The $695 rods – 25% are now $521.25 + tax and shipping. First come and they are gone. A great deal. I also have one 4 pc, 8 1/2′ BIIx, 4 wt.

I also have Korkers wading boots and soles at 30% discount, Preditor Kling-on – $149.99 size 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15. The Guide – $179.99 – sizes 10, 10, 13, and 89.99 Cross Current sizes 9, 11, 12, 12, 13, 13. Korkers soles – $28.99 – rubber studded soles – sizes 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15. Korkers soles – $26.99 rubber soles – sizes 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14. Costs + tax and shipping. These sizes only in exact quantity shown. First come first serve. Call the shop at 307-672-5866 for your order.
Talk to Roger about your order.

September weather has changed the fishing early. Cold water and small flies are starting early this season. Last night Sept. 5th it was snowing on the North Tongue. Campers were greeted with 15 degrees temperatures over night. The high today on the mountain is about 45 degrees. Never fear though, the fishing is still good. I took my mother and father up for a half day of fun on the North Tongue and small blue duns answered the our favorite question. Mom landed about 7 fish 13 – 15 inches. Dad landed about 15 fish 13-16 inches. I pulled the orange legs of a size 12 beetle and dad landed a couple of fish 15-16 inches. It was great fun fishing with Mom and Dad. I love helping them learn fly fishing and it is fun to see them learning and catching more larger fish. Even with the weather turning cold, the small dry flies were working. Next week is supposed to warm up again, so I expect the gray and green drakes to continue to hatch for a few more weeks. There are some golden stones, fall beatis (BWO, PMD), caddis and midges also hatching. Some larger stimulator patterns and beetle or ant patterns are also working. There are a few areas where hoppers are working according to some customers, but I have not found them yet.
Thanks for checking in with us.

Sorry I have not been able to keep up with my site this summer. I have been busy with guiding. Which is a good thing. I will be posting some new content from some trips we have done this summer. The fly fishing is great right now. The N.F. Tongue is fishing great. Grey drakes, tan caddis and PMD’s are the best so far. Some hopper action is picking up and the ants are working in most spots. If you have been waiting for the N.F. T. don’t wait any longer. By mid September the weather will be changing and the hatches will change. The rest of the mountain is fishing very good as well. Most traditional flies in size 14 to size 10 will get the job done. If you want to fish lakes and reservoirs, I recommend waiting until September to October. The Bighorn river in Montana is fishing good. Same old stuff on that one. If you have not visited the Bighorn Mountains before, make sure you stop by for some advice and some flies. The below photos are from some trips we have taken with Len Cutter this summer.

The fishing is taking off. Most of the upper creeks and lakes are fishing good. The major hatches are starting and the fish are biting. The grass hoppers are out, but the fish are not keying just yet. The next few weeks are going to change everything. I have a great guy named Len that has spent 14 days with us and has landed over 600 fish from 22 inches to 6 inches. Len is great and we have a great fun with him. If you have not scheduled your trip yet, make sure you get it in this summer. The public waters are going to get even better. Thanks for checking in with us.
Sorry I have not had time to get any thing updated lately, but I will get to it as soon as I can. Dave, Scott and I have been guiding our felt soles off. We are getting good results most days. As I get time from guiding and running the shop, I will get more trip photos on the site. As always, have fun and enjoy the outdoors.

Chet came out to fish our big fish reservoirs on the Folded Hills Ranch. Chet was not feeling well, but these few big fish made him feel a little better. Chet is an experianced fly fisherman who has traveled a lot. Dave the guide said it was tough fishing, but Chet was able to catch some good fish. We hope days go better than this, but we thank Chet for fishing with us. Here are some photos of the fish he caught.
Thanks Chet for fishing with us for two days.

We thought it was going to be a very tough day, but it turned out to be not so bad. Paige had only fly fished once before the 4th of June, but she learned quickly. Paige landed three nice fish one 18 and one 19 inch brown with a nice 15 inch rare cuttbow. Ryan and Paige said they had a great time. Dave the guide said he had a lot of fun with these two and looks forward to fishing with them again.
Thanks for fishing with us. Ryan and Paige.

It was great to see our friend Jerry back for his 9 season opener. Jerry loves to visit 4 to 5 times each summer. He is an excellent fly fisherman and all of us at the shop love to guide him. Jerry knows that sometimes the fishing is great. And other times, the time spent with friend on a great water is what keeps us all going back. This trip was tough spring fishing but we did catch a few fish. The following photos are of a couple of fish we caught, but more over, of the memories of a beautiful day in May with a great friend. Thanks for coming out Jerry! We will see you soon in June.
Roger and the guys from the shop.