Jackson Hole Fly Fishing Archives - Page 2 of 2

Good Spring Fly Fishing!

April 17, 2023/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

April’s always a favorite time of mine to fish the Snake River here in Jackson Hole. Water levels are low and the fish are hungry after a long winter. While this April is definitely the coldest and snowiest I can remember, the fishing has been fun. I’ve done a few guided trips over the past week, getting reacquainted with the oars and the nuances of our local fish. Right now, midges are the name of the game. Good hatches are coming off daily. Also seeing some small black stoneflies hatches. When conditions are right, trout will feed aggressively in riffles and backwater eddies. Looking at the weather forecast, I suspect we’ll get another good couple weeks of fishing in before the runoff begins.

Here’s a few photos from the past couples days….

It’s a family affair! Rusty and Linsey braved the weather and floated with me on Friday. Both picked up the fly casting fairly quickly and were able to hook and land numerous fish, both on nymphs and dry flies. Fun Folks!

*My friend Rich works a pool with rising cutthroat trout on the* Snake River below Jackson Lake Dam. Rich, Duncan and I celebrated a rare sunny spring day with a wade fishing trip to Grand Teton National Park. The weather was great and we found some fish willing to cooperate. After a day on the water, we decided it best to soak at Astoria Hotsprings.

*Dunc and Rich sharing the boat with me Sunday. So great to fish with good friends!*

*Dunc with a* nice cutthroat caught on a tiny black stonefly emerger

*Rich with a nice cutthroat fooled by a surf*ace midge

*The band back together! Rich, Duncan and myself on the Snake River.*

Half vs. Full Day Fly Fishing Trips

April 8, 2023/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

Recently I’ve had a number of email inquiries about half day fishing trips. I thought I’d take a minute to discuss half vs. full day fly fishing trips to help potential guests understand the differences. In a quick nutshell, I recommend full day trips when possible and do not do half day float trips. More thoughts below to help you decide…

*Angler hooked up in the bow of my boat. Full day float trips allow us to stop and fish, targeting much more water along the way*

Here in Jackson Hole over the years, half day fishing trips have become quite popular; a great way for folks to get a taste of fly fishing while on vacation. While I understand why these are appealing, I prefer to take guests out for full day fly fishing trips. Sure it’s easier for guides to fly down the river, hit a spot or two and be back in time for lunch, allowing guests to check fly fishing off their activities list and tell folks they went fly fishing. Full day fly fishing trips allow me to work with guests though, helping them learn, improve their fly fishing skills and hook more fish. I’ve realized over the years that in most cases, this is hard to do in a half day. Possible, yes. Enjoyable, maybe? When I’m committing my day to a fishing trip, I’d like to go fishing with clients and not be encumbered by the clock, rushing through the motions without giving respect to the quality of the experience. Plus, quite a few of the places I and my guests like to fish require some windshield time, making a half day unrealistic. The few half day trips I do are wade fishing trips and are best during the following: May/ early June- folks looking to get out this time of year and learn about fly fishing while potentially hooking a fish or two enjoy wade fishing smaller water. Because our bigger rivers are muddy with snow melt, a half day on smaller water is a good option. Late October/ November- with days getting shorter and temperatures dropping, sometimes it makes sense to fish a shorter amount of time to target prime hours of fish activity. Winter- temperatures are cold and the best fishing occurs only during the warmest part of the day, making 3-4 hours perfect for targeting fish.

I totally understand the demand and rational for half day fishing trips. But I think that if you’re interested in fly fishing around here you’re going to get much more out of a full day fishing trip.

*Half day wade fishing trips are certainly productive and perfect for certain times of the year. Here Randy got into some rising cutthroat trout on a cool* late *October afternoon*.

*Full day float fishing trips allow anglers time to share stories during a streamside lunch*. *These guys also got out of the boat and wade fished the productive water we were anchored beside*

*Full day trips also allow for exploration and off the beaten path waters.*

Spring’s off to a fishy start

April 1, 2023/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

*Releasing a dry fly eater… great way to end March on the Snake River*

Despite winter never ending, spring fishing has begun here in Jackson Hole. Temperatures are cracking freezing during the day and midges are hatching. It’s great to see fish of all sizes gorging on these small bugs. Additionally, small black stoneflies are making an appearance and as April gets going and the weather improves, we should start seeing larger Skwala stoneflies emerging. All this means it’s a great time to get out on the water! Looking forward to dusting off the drift boat in next week and getting in some stellar float fishing.

Ben and his father in law, Todd joined me for an afternoon on the Snake. We had a great time fishing dry flies and nymphs to hungry fish!

*Ben with a beautiful Snake river finespotted cutthroat trout*

*Todd was the whitefish king!- nymphs, dries, it didn’t matter. He was into them!*

Wrap on the Teton Fly Fishing 2022 season

December 9, 2022/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

Another great fly fishing season here at Teton Fly Fishing has come to a close.

What a year it was. Waters I fish treated us well and provided excitement to visiting anglers. The boat has been put away for a few months and I’m beginning to tie flies for next season. Despite the winter, I expect to do quite a few walk in winter wade fishing trips with folks looking to experience winter fly fishing in the valley. If you’re coming out and want to sneak some fishing in, give me a shout and if the weather isn’t too cold, I’m happy to take you out. Also happy to host guests in the winter at the fishing cabin in Dubois. Winter can be a fun time to fish the Wind River.

Since I was a slacker this season and didn’t post much (when the fish are biting, my attention to this blog wanes) I though I’d share a few pictures from the season…

*Not much finer than a wild Yellowstone Cutthroat trout caught in its’ home water. I love fishing folks in Yellowstone Park, particularly when the Green Drakes and Salmonflies are hatching!*

*Upper Snake Birthday fun. Good friends Rich and Duncan joined me on my birthday for a rare day off. Couldn’t have asked for a better day*

*Derek, a longtime regular, caught this beast of a rainbow while fishing the Green with me.*

*Hooked up on the Salt River! I love fishing this intimate little river an hour south of Jackson. While the fish aren’t big, the hatches and slow currents make for a fun, challenging day.*

*Who says lake fly fishing isn’t fun? We had some great days twitching hoppers for aggressive browns and rainbows!*

*Catherine with a nice Cutthroat trout on the Snake. Always fun fishing her and her dad, Bill each September.*

*Me and some of my favorites! Craig, Bob and Mark have been fishing with me for years. What a crew!*

*Western Fly fishing at its finest; Randy experience a great late fall day on Flat Creek with me.*

April fishing on the Snake River

April 25, 2022/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

I love April here in Jackson Hole. The fly fishing can be some of the best of the year for those willing to put up with weather conditions that range from sunny and warm to blizzards. I’ve been out on the Snake over the past week doing a few guided trips and fun days and man has the fishing been good! Fish are eating midges, small black stoneflies and the large Skwala stones, etc. Yesterday we fished size 8 chubby chernobyl’s all day long. Big, chunky Snake River Cutthroat trout came to the net from start to finish.

*Had the pleasure of fishing newly weds Dana and Connor on the Snake last week. They didn’t mind the cold temps, especially when they had fish on their lines*

*Connor shows off his first ever cutthroat trout.*

Friend Rich casts to risers at Astoria. Rich and I waded down from the bridge for a few hours hooking numerous trout of midges and stoneflies. Then we met Jamie across the river for a soak in the hot springs. *Now that’s how you spend a Saturday!!*

*When the wife wants to fish, you fish. So great to float the Snake with Jamie and our good friend Rich. Here’s Jamie showing off one of many…*

Looking forward to guiding the next two weeks to try and capitalize on the great pre runoff fishing. This time of year is tough to predict how long the window will be but I think things will be good well into next week at least. Looks like the Dam gods are about to up the flows out of Jackson Lake Dam. Hopefully this means that water levels will be consistent throughout the summer. See you on the water!

*One of the many “doubles” these two put together.*

*And I even managed to throw a few casts.*

End of season and the beginning of winter

December 1, 2021/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

Since it’s the first of December, I thought it necessary to do an end of season wrap up and talk about the fly fishing opportunities for the winter season. This past fishing season was a busy one. It was great to fish with new folks as well as returning clients. Water levels in the valley proved challenging at times. Most of our tributaries were low all season while the Snake flowed above average all season to satisfy irrigation demands in Idaho. Despite all this, the fishing remained pretty good and we had a great time.

I recently put the drift boat away for the season and am now doing afternoon wade fishing trips. With temperatures dropping and daylight fading, it’s best to focus on the warmest part of the day for fishing success. Dennis and Son, Ace joined me recently for some wade fishing and we found some willing fish to help celebrate Thanksgiving.

With the season slowing, Jamie and I made an escape to Florida where we spent a week with good friends. While it wasn’t a proper fishing trip, I was able to spend some time targeting Snook along the beaches. These fish proved difficult but there were some hook-ups and I finally managed to get one to hand! Next week I’m off to Belize for 5 days of fishing. I’ll be sure to post a report when I return.

Matt is all smiles with this birthday cutthroat. One of my good friends here, it was fun fishing with him and his son Frank who has come into his own as a fly fisherman.

All smiles with a hook-up. Got to take a good group of guys fishing in Yellowstone on the last day the park was open for the season. In addition to some nice fish, we had a grizzly hanging out in the meadow with us all day.

Sometimes, after a long season, you just need to find some hot water to sit in.

Snook on the beach in Anna Maria Island Florida. Boy do I love saltwater fly fishing. Now if only I could find a beach house to buy!

Ace with his first fish of the day. Not bad for a 12 year old.

Dennis shows off a nice colorful cutthroat trout from the Snake. Wade fishing proved a successful way to work off the turkey

Some good days on the water!

March 1, 2021/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

Had the pleasure of taking some new folks fly fishing this past week. The winter fishing here in Jackson Hole has been pretty good. As some of you know, the Snake is the go-to place for casting a fly in the winter. Days can vary from tough to great. Because of snow depth, access can be difficult. Fortunately several bridges over the Snake allows wade fishing anglers the ability to find productive water. My client today, Leslie, caught a lot of fish and was blown away by the number of heads poking through the surface gorging on midges. Definitely a fun time and since temperatures are warming and days getting longer, the fishing will just get better!

Leslie had a hell of a day dry fly fishing! Great way to kick of March

Matthew shows off a great cutt. It was a cold one but he was rewarded.

Dan getting it done in the Cold. First Snake River Cutthroat trout! Real pleasure taking Dan and his friends Cory and Josh out for a day.

Fly Tying

January 27, 2021/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

I’ve been tying a lot flies recently. Any day not substitute teaching has been spent at the fly tying desk cranking out various patterns. I like to tie in the mornings with a fresh cup of coffee and podcast on the radio. As many know, I supply my clients with my own hand tied flies during the course of the season. I try to do most of my tying this time of year rather than during the busy fishing season. Naturally though some early mornings or late evenings, pre and post trips, require me to bang out patterns that are working well and I’m running low on. Over the years of guiding I’ve paid attention to patterns I use a lot, focusing on them rather than everything under the sun. Sure, I like to experiment too; creating my own patterns and tweaking existing flies to suit my needs better. I want flies that are durable and are quick to tie. And since most of the water I fish out here around Jackson Hole is fast flowing, freestone streams and rivers, the flies need to float well and be easy for clients to see!

Lots of Pat’s rubber legs, stimulators, yellow sallies and water walkers. Also a lone olive leech with tungsten bead.

Fly fisherman are inundated with tons of new patterns every year. I think most of them are made to “catch” fisherman’s attention more than fish. Sure every few years there are some innovative things to come off the vise, but more often then not “new” patterns are just slightly tweaked old ones. When clients ask me about fly patterns to have on hand, I often recommend many of the classic patterns. While they might not be as sexy as new ones with flash and bubble eyes, they work and there is a reason they’re classics. Examples include: Parachute Adams, Stimulators, Elk Hair Caddis, Royal Wulffs, Double Humpies, Pheasant Tails, Hare’s Ears, Prince Nymphs and Wooly buggers to name a few. I’m fairly confident that these patterns in various sizes will work 90% of the time.

The Trina’s Carnage hopper is a newer pattern that I really like. Primarily made of foam, it floats well and has a great hopper silhouette in the water. I like these in Yellow and Tan.

Of Course there are newer pattens that are fantastic, both because they catch fish and because they bring something new to the table. Kelly Gallop’s articulated streamers come to mind as do any number of Chubby Chernobyl variations and hopper patterns.

At the end of the day flies are part of what makes fly fishing fun. Whether you’re creating at your vise or stocking you boxes, it’s fun to try and think what fly will outsmart a fish.

A view of my fly tying bench after tying dozens of flies for the upcoming fishing season. Not sure how many flies my Regal vise turns out every year, but it’s A LOT!

Back in the Saddle

June 26, 2020/0 Comments/in Latest/by Nathan Bennett

Fishing’s been pretty good around here lately. I’ve had some great guests and it’s been a pleasure spending time on the water with them fooling fish. Over the past few weeks, many days were spent up in Yellowstone Park on the Firehole River. There, we wade fished for wild rainbow and brown trout while Bison watched from afar. Yesterday I floated Brian and his son in law, Matt, on the upper Green River. The river fished pretty well. Lot of bugs fluttering around and we decided to go with the most fun option- giant dry flies to mimic emerging stoneflies. A few nice fish were landed and many more ate our bugs but got away. Really nice to be on the oars watching big bugs float on top of the water. Fly fishing around here in Jackson Hole is going to continue to improve as more and more waters clear and begin fishing well.

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