The Royal Trude is a great attractor dry fly to have in your
box. It fools trout across the country and is one of my go-to fly
patterns for fishing backcountry trout streams and pocket waters.
Here in Wyoming, I carry several sizes of Trudes including #10-
16. The Royal Trude works great on bigger freestone rivers like
the Snake too, and can be fished wet in addition to dry. Here’s a
short video on how to tie a Royal Trude. Let me know if you have
any questions.
For those that wonder what our local cutthroat trout do in
the winter, Sage will show you….
As you can see, the trout yesterday were very active. Not
every day in February is like this on the Snake, but most
days, provided the wind isn’t blowing too hard, fish can be
found sipping midges along various stretches of river. Activity
can last anywhere from a brief 20 minute fury, to several
hours like yesterday. On the Snake and Wind rivers, as well
as other waters around here, surface action is usually found in
slower water. Depth doesn’t matter as much. I found fish
yesterday in both deep, back-eddys, and also in a foot or less
of slow, gin-clear water. Now through April is primetime for
midge fishing around here. Grab your 6x tippet, tiny flies and
patience, and see about fooling a few early season trout!
I strive to give fishing clients the best experience possible,
whether it be a float trip or wade-fishing adventure. Two years
ago, Jamie and I were able to purchase a cool A-frame cabin
over in Dubois, Wyoming. Dubois has been a favorite spot of
ours for quite some time and now I am able to offer it to my
guests as a great fishing option for those who wish to do some
serious fly-fishing away from the hustle and bustle of Jackson
Hole.
Dubois is an authentic Wyoming cowboy town that has
remained much the same as it was 100 years ago. In addition
to the beautiful landscape, Dubois offers miles and miles of
trout water. The upper Wind River is the primary drainage
flowing through town and has plenty of browns and rainbows
in it, some of which are quite large. Additionally, many of the
smaller tributaries offer adventurous angling too for browns,
rainbows, cutthroat, brook trout and mountain whitefish.
Anglers can expect to fish both dry flies and nymphs.
My overnight trips typically begin with me picking guests
up at their hotel in Jackson around 8 am. We then drive over
Togwotee Pass, a beautiful drive that crosses the continental
divide and puts us at my cabin, where we drop off supplies, in
a little over an hour. Then we fish; driving to whatever water
is fishing best at the time. After fishing all day, we head back
to the cabin to relax for the evening with cocktails, dinner and
tunes on the record player. Guest can do a little evening fishing
on their own, as the Wind river is just a stones throw away.
The following day starts with breakfast and is followed by
another great day of fly fishing. Guest will arrive back in
Jackson in time for dinner. Three day trips are also possible
too. Contact me if you’re interested in this trip option or have
further questions. Check out the pictures below…
Mike casting to rising trout on the Wind River…
This cuttbow rose eagerly to a hopper on a remote
tributary…
The upper Wind close to the cabin…
A beautiful native cutthroat trout…
River in the cottonwoods; spectacular scenery where
forests meet high desert badlands…
View from my the deck; a great place to tell a fish story…
Yesterday, when I began casting in the sunshine, I thought
I was in for a nice day in Wyoming. I figured I had payed my
dues the previous days; fishing in temperatures that never got
out of the 20s. Temperatures that kept my waders and fly line
frozen pretty much nonstop. Yes, it was going to be glorious!
However, shortly after hooking the first of several brown
trout, the sun disappeared behind a constant flow of clouds
coming over the mountains to the west.
Oh well, that’s fishing in Wyoming in February.
Fortunately my layers of Gor-tex, wool and fleece kept me
warm and dry.Overall the past few days on the water were
just what was needed despite the weather. At some point I
found some fish rising to midges in the shallows, fooled a few
acrobatic fish with nymphs and got to spend time with Sage,
my old lab who likes to fish nearly as much as me. Not bad
for the third week of February, not bad at all.
Some watchers on the hill….
He loved the nymph….
Wyoming water in February…
Given that it’s February and temperatures have been hovering in the thirties lately, it seemed as good a time as any to go fishing. Typically, winter fishing begins to pick up this time of year and continues to be good well into the spring. Today was no exception. We located fish holding in some nice, deep-green water. After giving Jeremy a crash course in short-line nymphing, he was able to land 8-10 fish during our outing. In addition to picking up fish subsurface, there was also quite a few heads breaking the surface, sipping midges. This was great to see and has got me fired up for the 2013 fishing season!
working the water….
Success! Jeremy meet Mr. Whitefish, Mr. Whitefish meet Jeremy
An occassional tangle is part of the game….
