Partly sunny and cold, with a high near -1. Wind chill values as low as -26. West wind 6 to 13 mph.
Through the week the high temperatures do not hit much higher than 11 degrees. Sunday will be 20 (still too cold) and next Monday we might get back to tolerable temperatures.
A good week to stay home, stay warm, and tie some flies.
This Afternoon
Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Widespread blowing snow. High near 29. Blustery, with a north wind around 17 mph, with gusts as high as 34 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 3 to 7 inches possible.
Tonight
Snow. Patchy blowing snow. Low around 14. Blustery, with a northwest wind 20 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 36 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible.
Winter storm warning until Saturday, then highs near zero for a few days. This is not fishing weather! We recommend you stay home and tie flies until we see what the weather will give us next week.
The snow is more than welcome to help alleviate our drought.
A 20 percent chance of snow before 9am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 32. East wind around 6 mph becoming west in the afternoon.
Happy catch and release opener. Shop is open on Saturdays from 10-2
Creeks have not recovered from the drought last season and remain extremely low and clear. With the mild winter we are having, water temperatures are in low 40s. There is some bug activity out there, mostly midges, and fish have been rising on sunnier days mid day when water temps are climbing a bit.
The weekly forecast is showing highs right around 30 each day, and some cloud cover most days. Dreary weather, but with the warmer temperatures things should still fish well.
The down side to this warmer winter is we are still in a pretty significant drought and the creeks are lower than normal, even for this time of year. Fish are extremely spooky! If you head out, focus on the riffles and broken water that hides your silhouette a bit more than the slower water.
Catch and release trout season opens Saturday January 6th (we will be open from 10-2!)
With the extremely mild winter we are having, things are in good shape so far. While the creeks are still low from drought and winter, fish are happily feeding all day long with warmer water temperatures than normal.
The forecast for the 6th is for temperatures near 30. That is quite pleasant for January in Wisconsin! Make sure you check out the new midges we have in stock for the early season, and swing into the shop to grab a fresh spool of tippet, some fingerless gloves, and take advantage of last year’s gear on sale.
Open Saturday December 23rd from 10-2
We hope everyone is enjoying the off season. As we head into winter we are always keeping an eye on water levels and stream conditions.
Spawning this fall was solid. While we do not have scientific data, walks along creeks showed many beds and active fish on pretty much every creek. Thankfully we have had a ‘bit’ of precipitation which helped the flows a little before spawning which helped things along quite a bit.
Speaking of precipitation, we are still in a drought! We need some rain and snow to get things back to normal flows or we will see continued water levels dropping this winter.
While it is not disastrous, we are still hoping for a bit more to fall from the sky before season opens again. Not only for fishing, but to keep the eggs the fish have laid healthy and happy. While it could be worse, it most definitely could be better too.
For something different, we do have some openings for our March Patagonia trip! You will be fishing the South American fall and historically we enjoy some great match the hatch dry fly fishing and potential excellent streamer fishing as the minnows come out of the lakes on their spawning run.
Shoot us an email for details!
It’s the crazy time of the year right now! We mail almost everything via the Postal Service, and if you are worried about getting things before December 25th, it is a good idea to get your order in by the 16th!
However, if you are down to the wire and last minute shopping… Starting tomorrow, when you order a gift card we will send a digital certificate that you can give while you wait for the physical gift card to arrive. You do not need to do anything at checkout, just order the gift card as normal and we will send the digital certificate to the email address you provide during checkout.
(The digital certificate can not be used in place of the actual gift card)
REMEMBER: The shop is open Saturdays during the winter from 10-2. You can always email us at info@driftlessangler.com with questions too.
Patagonia is everything you have read about and more. Trout fishing that is what the streams in the US were in the late 70s and early 80s. Uncrowded, unspoiled, and happy big fish!
We’re changing things up a bit for 2025. We will be starting at the flagship Spring Creek Lodge for a week of floating and fishing as well as a day on the lakes taking advantage of the dragonfly hatch. Jan 4-11 2025.
After that you can extend your week, or join us at Casa de Campo. This is majority walk and wade and hunting trout on spring creeks and smaller glacial fed freestone streams. Jan 11-18.
More details will be posted on our travel page in the coming days, but these trips fill very fast, so if you are interested please email us!
Available now online and in the store.
Comfortable cotton t-shirts for the chillier weather ahead.
