Tag: fly shop

Shoulder Season

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

Hard to believe it’s already November 15th and we are a week and half away from Thanksgiving.  Wow, time is truly flying by.  November 15th is the official start to our “shoulder season” and discounted rates.  So if you see a weather window, come pay us a visit.  We have cottages available and guides ready to work!

Now for a quick little fishing report.  After a couple weeks of weather, we have dried up and are having some very mild temperatures here in Central Wyoming.  It’s been a great month to be on the water thus far and the extended forecast looks like more of the same.  With dry fly opportunities waning, our guide crew has been focusing on their nymph and streamer game.  Pine squirrel leeches, PALs, foam-wing RS2s, mayhems and scuds on 4-7ft with 1-3B shot.  We have definitely been varying the length/weight depending on the run and type of water.  As far as streamers are concerned, we’ve mainly been throwing intermediate lines, covering the entire run.  The fish are holding in all types of water but as water temperatures continue to drop expect them to concentrate towards the bottom of the run.  Slow and deep, that is the winter streamer program.

Trico Time!

Posted on by AdminTRFS

As we hit the middle of August Tricos are in full swing here on the Reef and the fishing is still great! We are seeing a very healthy Trico hatch from early in the morning until about 9-10am. If you’re nymphing black RS2s and Mayhem Midges have been the ticket. We haven’t been seeing too much surface action for the Trico hatch, but if you hit it on the right day you can have some shots at sipping trout. Throwing smaller mayfly patterns or trico specific flies might get these sippers to eat. As the day goes on PMD’s, Yellow Sallies, Caddis, and Stoneflies have all been in the mix and productive. As was the case in early August, some sort of flashy bead head with an emerger off the back can’t really be beaten when nymphing. We have yet to see hopper action pick up, but that may mean just a later and greater season on that front. Of course we have to cover the topic of grass and weeds in the river as well because this time of year is when they really pop up. Surprisingly this year it isn’t that bad yet, but it seems like the grass is growing by the minute. The key to fishing when the weeds really come in is finding where channels open up and drifting your nymph rigs through there. Looking for faster current and deeper shelves where there grass doesn’t grow as high should be your target. Your first instinct may be to shorten up and lighten up in order to drift over the weeds, but you’d be surprised to see how many trout are actually living in the grass, making drifting a little bit deeper through the channels much more effective.

That’s all for this report, hopefully next report we will be able to give you all some good news about the hopper bite!

Post Storm Fly Fishing Report and Grey Reef Flush Update!

Posted on by AdminTRFS

While most of Wyoming and Colorado was hit by a major winter storm Alcova and Grey Reef hardly got an inch of snow! The roads are all opening up and the weather this weekend looks prime! Our cottages are full this weekend, but we still have guide availability. Please Call the shop for updated Miracle mile road reports.

The flush of Grey Reef is NOT happening this year due to a few different circumstances. Do not worry, the fishing has been and will remain good. We saw increased flows in October last year and that cleared out a ton of sediment and debris from the spawning areas. Honestly the fishing every year is usually the same pre flush as it is post flush. It’s just kind of a different and fun way to kick off to the season. We just beefed up our snowpack with the last storm and should hopefully be able to fill some of our reservoirs.

Flies: Fishing has been really good on all three tailwaters, conveniently the flies are similar for all of them. Leeches in brown, olive, natural #10, Reef Worms in red and purple #12-18, Scuds in olive, pink and orange #14-16, Pheasant Tails #16-18, Mayhem Midges black and purple #18-20, All day May in olive #18, PAL #16-20, and Rhinestone in #18-20 have all been great patterns the past few weeks!

Flows: Flows are low and will stay that way for the next few weeks. The only change we are supposed to see is Grey Reef go back up to 500 CFS from 400CFS

Grey Reef-400 CFS

Miracle Mile-500 CFS

Fremont canyon- 72 CFS

If you have any questions feel free to stop by the shop or give us a call!

Spring is on it’s way!

Posted on by AdminTRFS

Well, here we are.  Hard to believe it’s already March and thus far it has been a lamb.  Temperatures the past week have been in the 50s and 60s with relatively mild winds.  That being said, Grey Reef is at 500cfs and open from the Dam to Casper.  Keep in mind, warmer temps are causing the lower elevation snow to runoff, so water conditions have been variable below Government Bridge.  The upper is currently in great shape and the fishing, as you would expect, is good.  A few fish starting to make redds but we are still on the front side of the spawn.  It has pretty much been a nymphing/streamer game as of late.  Pine squirrel leech, reef worm, PAL, rhinestone, mayhem midge, pheasant tail-have been our top producing nymph patterns.  Length/weight has been 4-7ft with 1-3(BB) split shot.  On the streamer front…rusty trombone, goldie, kreelex have been our top picks.  We prefer fishing them on the Airflo 40+ fast intermediate line…it just seems to hit the sweet spot in the water column.

We currently DO NOT have any updates in regards to the SPRING FLUSH.  As soon as we know anything we will let you know.

Welcome to 2021! North Platte Fly Fishing Report!

Posted on by AdminTRFS

Happy New Year! We hope everyone had a fun and safe holidays. We are back to being open everyday of the week from 8:00 to 2:00 and still have some awesome deals in the shop before our 2021 gear arrives. We had guides out over the past week and had some good weather and great fishing! We fished The Mile, Afterbay, and Grey Reef, as usual The Reef outshined them all.

We have our shoulder season rates going on until March 15th: Half Day Guided trip- $350, Full day Guided trip- $450 1 night in a cottage and 1 full day guided fishing-$575, and 2 nights in a cottage and 1 full day guided trip- $625. This is a great time to fish the North Platte with no crowds and good fishing!

Flows are up in Fremont and the Miracle Mile as they are filling up Alcova reservoir. Miracle Mile is flowing at 1,200 CFS and Fremont is around 2,2,00 CFS. They are still very fishable just focus on the slower tailouts and edges of runs.

Flies are similar on all three tailwaters right now: Pine Squirrel leeches, Reef Worms, Scuds, Mayhem Midges, tubing midges, the LAZY, the brassie, and RS2’s have all been working. Some days it definitely pays off to be shorter, lighter, and higher up in the water column. Other days it seems you have to be deep and heavy, so I always start off short and light and work my way down from there. Streamer fishing has also been working: Goldies, Rusty Trombone, kreelex, peacock buggers, and all peanut envys are the go-tos.

If you have any questions or want to book your next trip give us a call or stop by the shop!

Dropping Flows and Cold Weather

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

At midnight, the flows on Grey Reef started decreasing.  After weeks of living at 1,500cfs, Grey Reef is now settling in at its winter flow(500cfs).  We are also soaking in our last day of 90 degree temperatures, as a substantial cold front bears down on the West.  Projected highs Tuesday are expected to top out in the high 30s, with lows in the teens.  Talk about a temperature shift!  Welcome to Wyoming.  Good thing is, it will be short lived.  We will be seeing highs in the 70s by weeks end.  As for the fishing, it continues to only get better and with another drop in flows, the dry fly fishing should be excellent for the coming weeks.  Our guides are continuing to locate sizable pods of fish in the morning feeding on tricos and transitioning to nymph rigs or hopper/dropper rigs in the afternoon.  Water clarity is excellent, so be prepared to throw some lighter tippet.  Streamer fishing will also start becoming a larger part of the daily program.  Woohoo!  That’s what makes this time of year so great, you can do it all in a days fishing on the North Platte.

Hoppertunities Abound! 7/20/2020

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

The fishing lately has been really fun, a good mix of nymphing, hoppers, and even a handful of streamers! Flows just dropped on The Mile and are still holding steady on Grey Reef and Fremont, but we do expect a drop in soon. The Weather has been in the low 90’s with some breeze in the afternoon which is a perfect storm for hopper fishing! If you haven’t experienced the hopper hatch on the Reef now is the time. We should have great dry fly fishing all the way into October!

The Rig: We’ve been fishing a really similar rig on all three tailwaters lately, an attractor up front like a Pat’s Rubber legs, Pine Squirrel Leech, or a san juan worm. We follow that up with a bead head fly like a Prince nymph, Pheasant Tail, Hare’s Ear, Poxypack PMD, Demon Sally or a tung teaser. For the bottom, some form of emerger as been good, midges and tricos in the AM switching to sallies, caddis and PMD’s in the PM. We’ve been fishing 3-4.5 Ft indicator to weight with 1-3 “BB’s” as our weight. 3x leaders going to 4x tippet on the smaller flies.

Miracle Mile 2,000 CFS- Clarity is off on the mile due to the reservoirs turning over, but that hasn’t affected the fishing. While the Golden Stonefly hatch is all but done the PMD’s, and Caddis are in full swing. You can try to throw some hoppers along the banks but nymphing has definitely been producing more fish.The is some floating vegetation but it’s really not too bad, it gets more prevalent the closer you get to Pathfinder. Right now the last bit of current before you reach the reservoir is around Chalk Bluffs. Use caution when driving around down there the lake is dropping and leaving the banks really soft. It is very easy to get stuck in that black stinky mud!

Fremont/Cardwell 1,600 CFS- Clarity is also pretty green right now, again it hasn’t affected the fishing. Fish are in all the cool “fishy” spots: shelves, drop offs, riffles and seams. We don’t recommend venturing into the Canyon section right now with the water being so swift.

Grey Reef-Casper 3,600 CFS- The clarity is great on the Reef and gets slightly green as you get closer to Casper. There is some floating vegetation out there if you stick to fishing the faster water and banks it’s not too much of an issue. The best thing you can do is make a proper backcast and most of that stuff comes right off. The hopper fishing has been insane some days and okay on others. South Fork Chernobyl, More-or-less hoppers in purple, pink goldenrod and tan, and the donkey kong hopper have all been winners! We’ve also been throwing some sallies behind our hoppers like the Headlight Sally, #16 rubberleg Stimi, or a clownshoe Sally.

 

As always if you have any questions or want top book your next trip give us a call at 307-232-9128!

Memorial Day Weekend Report

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

Hope everyone is having a good weekend thus far.  For any of you folks headed our way, we just wanted to give you a quick conditions/fishing report for the North Platte.  Grey Reef is currently flowing at 3,500cfs.  Water clarity is excellent from Grey Reef Dam to Government Bridge, below Government Bridge to Casper clarity is very good.  Nymphing and streamer fishing is the name of the game.  Our guides have been fishing 5-7.5ft, 1-3 AB with either a pine squirrel leech, san juan worm, PAL, mayhem and/or pheasant tail.  On the streamer end of things we have been doing well on rusty trombones, dungeons and/or the kreelex.

Miracle Mile flows are currently 2,500cfs with excellent clarity.  Pathfinder Reservoir is at 95% capacity so the reservoir is backed up to roughly Goose Island area.  Without question our go-to rig has been a Pats rubber legs and a cdc pheasant tail.  Pretty simple but it’s working.

Fremont Canyon aka Cardwell is currently at 1,400cfs.  It is fishing well but you’ll want to stick to the inside of the run.  The slower the water, the better!  Try throwing bigger stuff, leeches, worms, craneflies, etc.

We hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend!  If your in the area, please stop in.

*****Apologies but our website has been experiencing technical issues and we have lost fishing reports from 3/10/2020-5/23/2020.  We are currently working to have this issue resolved.*****

 

The Report

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

The days are definitely getting longer and it looks like warmer days are on the horizon.  Really hard to believe that it is almost March!  As we start to make our way out of the “winter months”, I have to say things are looking pretty good.  Snow pack in the North Platte drainage is currently at 100+% and reservoir levels are in great shape (Seminoe 78% and Pathfinder 83%).  Based on those numbers it’s safe to say we are in pretty good water shape!  Per usual, we are currently on track for a mid-March flush for Grey Reef, tentatively slated for the 15-24 slot.  That being said, it is subject to change and as always we will keep you updated.

Current winter conditions on Grey Reef are as good as you can ask for.  The river is currently “floatable” from Grey Reef Dam to Government Bridge and with mild temperatures there is plenty of wade fishing to be had on the lower sections.  If you’ve been following us on instagram your probably aware of road closures to both Fremont Canyon and Miracle Mile.  Conditions are improving but you still need to exercise extreme caution if you are considering heading that way.  Don’t hesitate to call us at the shop for updated road conditions. 307-232-9128

As for the general fishing report, we have been hitting the water every chance we can get.  We have had multiple guided trips over the past week and fishing has been solid as you would expect.  Pre-flush February and March can make for some tremendous streamer fishing and the nymphing has been a nothing short of spectacular.  Tan and/or olive on the streamer front, with the rusty trombone standing out as our number one producer.  If your in the nymphing mood you really can go wrong with the standards; pine squirrel leeches, reef worms, scuds(amber) and a PAL or rhinestone.  Fish these flies, find the appropriate length/weight and you should be in the fish!

NORTH PLATTE RIVER FLY FISHING REPORT 1/25/2020

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

Fishing has been great this week! Weekend temps look awesome, highs in the low 40’s and upper 30’s. Upper Grey Reef down to Lusby has opened and is floatable, we don’t know about anything lower than that. Shoulder season rates are going until March 14th $450 for a full day guided trip, 2 nights in a cottage and full day guided trip for $650
Fremont/cardwell is still at 500 CFS and will be there through mid February. They are doing warranty work on the power plant and are diverting the water through the meadow/canyon until they’re done. With this larger water focus your efforts on the slowest water you can find. Inside corners and tail outs have all been producing.
Miracle mile is also fishing well! The road out there is definitely passable, just be cautious of side roads. The drifts can be deceivingly bad. Fishing has been good nymphing, but especially with streamers. Keep your retrieve slow!
The BigHorn in Thermopolis fished great this week! Nymphing was solid with leeches, Annelids, and sow bugs. Streamer fishing was also productive, the olive peanut envy was our best fly. Fishing the slower flats with a fast retrieve on a sinking line worked best for us. We are offering a shoulder season special $475 for 1 day and $450/day for a multiple day trip!
Nymphs: BH Brassie, Flashbag Midge, Red Midge Larva, Juju Midge, leeches, Reef Worms, and Scuds.
Streamers: Rusty Trombone, Goldie, Kreelex, peanut Envy, DWFC Flash Minnow.
Dries: Brooks Sprout Midge, small Parachute Adams, Matt’s Midge, and a Griffiths Gnat.
As always if you want to book a trip or have any questions stop by the shop or give us a call at 307-232-9128