Dave McKee Fishing Blog

Perhaps the only thing more difficult than predicting spring weather is forecasting insect activity on the river - obviously the two are related and recently they've both been all over the map. Just a week ago it was nearly 80 degrees and sunny - rivers were on the rise and we were scrambling for options. For the last three days or more the temperature has hardly broken 50 and we've had rain, snow and plenty of wind. From a fishing standpoint, this recent cool down is just what the doctor ordered. Sure, we have spent some time on front of [...]

It's been a great week on the river, classic spring weather with everything from wind, rain and snow and temps ranging from the high 30s to 70. And from the upper and lower Madison to the Missouri it's been a mixed bag of midges and blue winged olives with a few San Juan worms and pink scuds thrown in along the way. The Big Hole, Yellowstone and Gallatin are currently muddy from warm weather and melting snow but wintry weather has set back in and more than likely they will drop and become fishable in the next day or two. [...]

There is no question that spring weather in Montana is a roller coaster ride - conditions change by the day, sometimes by the hour. In the past week we've had snow, rain, cold, clouds, sun, wind, even more wind and now, as we head into the weekend, predictions that temps will be in the 70s. When I pulled the boat out at Carter's Bridge on the Yellowstone just a few days ago, the thermometer in the truck read 34. Crazy. Needless to say, the beauty of spring fishing lies in the simple fact that almost regardless of the weather there [...]

The Baetis (aka Blue Winged Olive) hatch is in full swing on the Yellowstone and is likely getting started on the other rivers and streams as well. The snow, rain, clouds and cooler temps as of late are just what the doctor ordered. It's been fantastic out there. Parachute Adams, H&L Variant, Baetis Sparkle Dun, Royal Wulff Cripple, Purple Haze and many others are good choices in size #16. If the visibility is tough simply rig a #16 soft hackle Pheasant Tail about 16" under a large dry such as a chubby which will serve as an edible strike indicator.

The Yellowstone put on a late March show today - perfect conditions with cloud cover and light winds led to a strong midge emergence followed by the first blue winged olive hatch I've seen this year. Fish responded well to imitations of both well. The H&L Variant #16 was hard to beat as it's a great crossover pattern though any number of other dries such as a parachute Adams or Purple Haze would likely have worked just as well. Though we didn't see any skwalas, rumors of their presence were enough for us to fish an olive/brown Chubby this afternoon [...]

Though my favorite fishing during the months of March and April consists of the dry fly activity that frequently occurs with midges and spring Baetis on overcast, calm days, the reality is that not all days are cloudy or calm. Sun and wind is common and as a result we are often forced to work the river with nymph rigs if we hope to get results. There is no secret that during this early spring timeframe, pink flies are a hot ticket. Most likely, due to the rainbow trout spawn, these pink bugs are seen by the fish as protein-rich [...]