Fishing Report

After a very difficult week for our creeks.  Extreme heat followed by flooding has given way to normal summer conditions.  It is still a bit warm early this week, but cools down nicely later on.  Water temperatures are at 60 or just above in the mornings on most creeks, while some of the warmest are even in the low 60s to begin the day.

It is definitely time to use that thermometer.  Anything over 65 degrees is slow fishing, and much warmer than that can be harmful to trout!  We will have fishing all summer long, but plan for your fishing day to be front loaded from dawn until about 10 or 11 in the morning.

We are seeing some midges hatching in the mornings, and a few rusty spinners.  Once the sun hits the water the surface activity pretty much disappears.  That is time to switch to a beetle with a dropper like a zebra midge or PTerdigon.

Due to the warm weather and flooding, we will be closed July 3 and 4.  Regular hours resume Sunday July 5th.

Widespread high and muddy water combined with the brutally hot temperatures last week have things pretty miserable in the area.  The creeks will rebound by the end of the weekend thankfully (with a nice flush!) but during the holiday weekend it looks grim.

UPDATE 10:20 a.m.  We are getting word of mudslides, streams out of their banks and over the roads and extremely difficult travel in our area.  It is probably a wise idea to stay home for another day or two as we are forecasted to get even more rain the next couple of days.

Showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 10am. Some of the storms could be severe. High near 88. Heat index values as high as 95. Southwest wind 3 to 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

It’s still horribly hot here today.  Add to that almost 4.25 inches or more in our area (almost 6 in the Timber Coulee Valley) and we are still in rough shape.  The streams will be unfishable this morning after 3 plus inches hit the area.  There was a bit less rain to the south, but those streams continue to be warm due to the excessive heat.  In other words, it is probably not a bad idea to stay home for another day or two…

Don’t go fishing, especially for trout!

With a heat index hitting 100-110 today and tomorrow, and overnight lows in the mid to high 70s, we HIGHLY suggest giving trout a break until about Thursday or Friday.  It is not only dangerous to your health to be out in this weather, the trout streams will heat up very quickly to levels that can be lethal for the fish.  Let them sit in the springs and relax.

It is forecasted to cool down around the weekend, and if we are lucky enough to get some rain, that will help quite a bit too.

Sunny, with a high near 80. Light east wind increasing to 5 to 10 mph in the morning.

Pleasant weekend.  The sun will make fishing difficult, so make sure to fish very early and very late and find any shade available.  Even overhanging grass provides relief from a bright sun!

It’s terrestrial time in the Driftless.  Although we have not seen hoppers yet, the beetle and ant bite is on!  A few caddis here and there (oddly enough black caddis are around), some craneflies, and some lighter colored mayflies in the evenings (do not be afraid to fish a larger, size 12 parachute in a light color).

Subsurface fishing has been good on Spanish bullets and zebra midges.  Smaller, thinner bodied bugs in the bright sunny weather.

Partly sunny, with a high near 76. Northwest wind 7 to 9 mph.

Last few days of mild weather this week and into the weekend.  Things get HOT next week.

Fish early and late, shade is your friend right now.  Mid day fishing in the bright sun has been very slow as of late.

Overall creeks are a bit low, but temperatures are solid for fishing.  Beetle with a dropper, ants below overhanging vegetation, and some mayflies hatching the last couple hours of the day.

Showers and thunderstorms before 4pm, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 4pm and 5pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 5pm. High near 79. West wind 7 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

It actually happened last night!  A long, soaking rain hit the area with an inch to almost two inches in our area (closer to the Wisconsin River there was less rain). Creeks are in pretty good shape overall, clear to slightly stained with only a couple blown out where the clouds got stuck in a valley.  These are the conditions we look forward to!  Cooler morning, post rain, and some clouds all day long.

Fish scuds, larger patterns (pink squirrel time!) and even some worm patterns in the murkier water.  If the clouds stay overhead we should see some rising fish earlier in the evening tonight too.

Increasing clouds, with a high near 78. Calm wind.

Hot day, clear water, and sun the first 3/4 of the day…  Not the easiest trout conditions out there.  Luckily water temperatures are still good (mid 50s to 60 first thing in the morning), but we are getting some warmer waters on larger creeks as we normally do this time of season.  Keep using your thermometer, anything over 65 is going to be poor fishing.

We’re getting some midges and rusty spinners in the early, early morning that have trout rising.  Once the sun touches the water, it shuts down quickly.  Change to a terrestrial or attractor fly with a heavy bead head below (or tight line nymph) to prospect mid day.  In the latest part of the evening, we are seeing some cahills and sulphurs and getting some fish to rise.

Late at night, mice have started to work quite well!

A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 4pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 73. Northwest wind around 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.

A bit more rain fell south of Viroqua than north or east.  There are a few muddy streams out there, but overall we continue on with clear to stained water and spotty clouds for the day.  An excellent day to be fishing a scud below a training wheel!

Hatches have been unpredictable, but having a few lighter colored mayflies for the evening (cahills, sulphurs) and some emergers for the mornings will help you catch the pods of rising fish.