Fishing has been great lately! We had boats out yesterday and they did well both nymphing and on streamers! Flows have stayed the same, 500 CFS at the Mile and Grey Reef and 75 CFS at Cardwell. Weather looks cold this week, be mindful of keeping fish in the water after you land them so you do not freeze their gills.
Nymphing: Right now (and the whole year) nymphing remains the most consistent way to catch fish. During the colder parts of the day you’ll find you need to fish deeper and heavier and focus on the slower, deeper sections of the runs. We’ve been fishing 5-6 feet indicator to weight with 1-2 BB’s as our weight. Our best bugs have been Pine Squirrel leeches, Hot head leeches, Reef Worms, Deep Purples, Scuds, and midge larva patterns like the PAL. As the day warms up you might see some midges hatching, try moving up in the water column or fishing closer to the top of the run. Emergers like the All Day May, RS2, Mayhem Midge, and crystal midge have been getting some love during the hatch.
Streamers: The name of the game is speed, how fast to retrieve your fly. Typically the past few weeks the retrieve needs to be as slow as possible. Big long strips or just swinging your fly has been good. Our go-tos are the Rusty Trombone, Goldie, Foxy Clouser, Peanut Envys, and the kreelex.
Dries: Some dry fly action durning the midge hatches, it has been few and far between though. A small parachute Adams, griffiths gnat, or Cdc Midge should work for the fish you find sipping.
Our shoulder season packages go to March 15th, that’s 2 nights in a cottage and 1 day guided fishing for $600. This is a great opportunity to come experience the North Platte with few crowds and great fishing! As always if you have any questions stop in the shop or give us a call!