CategoriesFishing Report

August 18th Fishing Report

Sunny, with a high near 76. Calm wind becoming north around 6 mph in the morning.
Creeks are a bit low and running clear with temperatures in the low 60s. Only the West Fork and Bad Axe creeks are running over 65 degrees. Use your thermometer and don’t bother with anything over 65 degrees. Not only will the fishing stink, but you risk stressing fish.
There are some olives hatching in the evenings getting fish to rise the last few hours of the day, and the trico spinner fall is still very sparse in the mornings. It is summertime so terrestrials are the hot ticket! Running a smaller hippie stomper or chubby chernobyl with a dropper below will get you fish all day long. Make sure you are casting to overhanging vegetation and shady areas!

CategoriesFishing Report

August 15th Fishing Report

Mostly cloudy through mid morning, then gradual clearing, with a high near 77. Northwest wind 6 to 11 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Rains were localized last night. Most of our area creeks are in great shape with clear to slightly stained water. One or two valleys received heavy rain. If your favorite creek is murky, drive to the next valley and you will find better water!
Tricos in the mornings are around, but still not in large numbers. In the evenings we are seeing some trico hatches as well as a few micro olives and midges. If you don’t feel like fishing size 20 dries, a hopper with a bead head below will catch fish!

CategoriesFishing Report

August 14th Fishing Report

Sunny, with a high near 84. Light southeast wind becoming south 5 to 9 mph in the morning.
It’s summer. Things are warm and fish are sluggish when the sun is on the creeks. We could use a little rain to put a slight stain on the water and cool things down. The good news is that things start cooling down tomorrow with temperatures in the mid to high 70s instead of 80s the next few days.
Tricos are around, but not in huge numbers. Look for the spinner fall at dawn until about 9 a.m. Otherwise, fish a terrestrial with a dropper below. Smaller training wheels with a zebra midge or food down below have been hot!

CategoriesFishing Report

August 12th Fishing Report

Sunny, with a high near 82. Light southeast wind becoming south 5 to 9 mph in the morning.
THings are pretty good out there in the Driftless. Only a couple creeks are warm enough to avoid (West Fork, Bad Axe watershed). Bring your thermometer and don’t bother fishing anything over 65 degrees. We’re in the dog days of summer right now so the sun will be your limiting factor. Fish early, fish late, and find some shade.
Tricos are showing up a bit more. We’re still not over the moon excited about them, but they are becoming more noticable in the mornings. Terrestrials and foam attractor patterns with a dropper are still the way to fish.

CategoriesFishing Report

August 10th Fishing Report

A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 79. Northwest wind 6 to 9 mph. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Creeks are in good shape still with decent temperatures (only a few at 65 degrees or warmer) and good clarity overall. We’re still seeing a few tricos first thing in the morning but not enough to get really excited about. Hopper and dropper is still the way to go! A few rising fish in the evening will eat generic mayfly patterns or caddis skittered on the surface.
The key to good fishing is to fish early and fish late avoiding the mid day sun!

CategoriesFishing Report

August 5th Fishing Report

Mostly sunny, with a high near 75. Southwest wind 3 to 8 mph.
Creeks are clear to slightly stained with temperatures in the mid 50s to mid 60s. Only the largest creeks are 65 degrees and should not be fished. Use your thermometer!
We’re full into terrestrial season. While a few fish will feed on caddis and craneflies in the evening, rising fish are more apt to eat an ant than an aquatic insect it seems.
Through the day we are fishing hoppers, beetles, and foam attractors with a bead head below them. Plopping them close to overhanging grass and undercut banks (shaded areas) is most effective.
On the cooler creeks tight line/competition nymphing is getting fish that otherwise have lockjaw to feed! A heavy thread frenchie with a zebra behind it is deadly right now.
As the week warms it will become more important to fish early and late and avoid the mid day sun and heat. With the increasing temperatures we may see the return of the trico spinner fall. It hasn’t ever really shown up in our area yet but we are still crossing our fingers and waiting….

CategoriesFishing Report

August 4th Fishing Report

Mostly sunny, with a high near 71. North wind 3 to 8 mph.
Great day to be outside again today! Early mornings and evenings are chilly enough to consider a sweatshirt!
Creeks are clear and flowing well with temperatures in the mid 50s to low 60s. There are a still a few warmer creeks out there and we recommend using your thermometer. Anything at 65 or over will stink for fishing.
While hatches are slim, fish are still rising to midge patterns, egg laying caddis and craneflies. Otherwise, we are doing very well with terrestrials and droppers below (any slim bodied bug will work just fine especially if it has just a little bit of color and flash).
Great weather through Thursday, and still looking solid for the weekend too! We love these cooler summer temperatures!

CategoriesFishing Report

August 3rd Fishing Report

Mostly sunny, with a high near 70. North wind 7 to 11 mph.
Incredible summer cool down the next few days, get out there and take advantage of the cooler weather.
Creeks are clear to stained with temperatures in the mid 50s to low 60s. There are still a few larger creeks that are running over 65. Avoid those as fishing will be poor and can be stressful to trout.
While hatches are slim, and the terrestrial bite streaky, fish are still coming up to smash hoppers, ants and beetles. Your best fishing is using larger foam terrestrials with a bead head a couple of feet below. Most of your fish will eat the bead head nymph, but a few will munch the foam fly.
Mousing has been good in the evenings, as has pulling larger streamers and leeches.
Fishing is still best when the sun is off the water, so fish early and late and find the shaded areas to find happier trout!

CategoriesFishing Report

July 31st Fishing Report

Mostly sunny, with a high near 79. Calm wind.
Stable summer weather! Fishing is still better early and late in the day when the sun is off the water. If you find shade, you will find fish even mid day!
It’s terrestrial time in the Driftless. Fish are responding well to hoppers, crickets, hippie stompers, ants etc on the surface and sunken just below the surface. Cast your terrestrials close to the banks and overhanging grass and hang on!
Subsurface fishing has been very good (we’re fishing a hopper/dropper or foam/dropper all day) on thinner bodied nymphs and midge larvae.
Creeks are flowing a touch low, which is normal for the summer time, with temperatures in the high 50s to low 60s. Only a few creeks are hitting the mid 60s (West Fork, Bad axe watershed). Use your thermometer. Anything over 65 will be slow fishing and much higher than that can be detrimental to trout.
It’s good to be outside right now and it looks like this weather will continue for a few more days!!!

CategoriesFishing Report

July 29th Fishing Report

Mostly sunny, with a high near 81. Calm wind.
We’re in the thick of one of the very pleasant and stable summer weather patterns. This stability can lead to some good fishing!
The sun is your limiting factor right now. Fish early and late and find shade for your best opportunities.
The larger creeks are running a touch warm. The fish are not boiling, but when water temperatures hit 65 the fishing slows down quite a bit. Remember to use your thermometer and have a couple small creek backup plans just in case.
Creeks are clear to slightly stained with water temps ranging in the high 50s to low 60s. Very normal for this time of year. Hatches are sparse with a few trico spinners showing up in the mornings and a few midges hatching through the day. When you see rising fish, try an ant! If that doesn’t work, then go with a small parachute mayfly.
The best approach right now is foam (hopper, hippie, user friendly etc) with a thin bodied dopper below. Fish are keying in on terrestrials right now and the dropper will catch fish fairly consistently.
At night, mice and streamers are getting some pretty good sized fish to eat right now too!

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