Tag: fremont canyon fly fishing

Bugs Popping

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

Things are shaping up and its actually starting to feel a little bit like spring! We’ve been fielding a lot of calls/emails regarding the conditions on the North Platte, so folks here’s a current conditions report for ya!

GREY REEF: 450cfs, mostly clear from Grey Reef Dam to just upstream of Government Bridge. After that is slightly off colored but still very fishable, green with 2′ of visibility. As of right now, you could fish your way into Casper. Baetis(BWOs) are popping! The low pressure/overcast days have been pretty magical if you ask us.

MIRACLE MILE: 2,800cfs, clear. With the low lake level, the Mile is fishable to Sage Creek and well beyond. Road conditions are good. The fishing has been so-so. From the sounds of it, you’re gonna work for ’em.

FREMONT CANYON: 75cfs, slightly off colored but very fishable. Fishing in Cardwell and Fremont has been average. Some bugs(baetis/midges) coming off, depending on the conditions.

Overall, things are pretty solid. Looks like we have some more moisture forecasted this week. Just a heads up, we are thinking Mile flows will only continue to go up as we make our way into summer. Grey Reef will probably be holding steady for the coming week, if we had to guess. With the current snowpack levels this could really be a fun year in our neck of the woods.

Feels a Little Like Fall

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

Cool and rainy this morning in Central Wyoming.  Not gonna lie, it feels pretty good!  We are officially at the midpoint of September and we are right where we are supposed to be.  Flows on Grey Reef are at 500cfs, Miracle Mile 530cfs and Fremont is holding steady at 75cfs.  Everything is fishing well, actually really well.  Water temperatures have dropped to a more comfortable level and conditions, especially on Grey Reef, are primo.

Pretty standard when we see the drop in flows, Grey Reef is running very clear and the vegetation is far less of a hinderance.  That being said, it has been buggy and the fish are looking up.  Huge trico numbers in the morning and pseudos in the afternoon.  Our Grey Reef guides have pretty much been rowing around looking for heads.  A little longer leader, tethered to 4X or 5X with a single dry (i.e. para adams, trico spinner), or a double fly rig with something a little bulkier (i.e. X caddis) with a trico spinner dropper. If dry fly fishing isn’t your thing, you can still catch them on trusty nymph rig.  Our go-to nymphs have been PALs, RS2 foam-wings in black and grey, pheasant tails, Pat’s rubber legs and/or a black two-bit hooker.  Our nymph rigs have been between 3-6ft in length and anything from no weight to 1-2BB split shot.  It really just depends on the type of water you are fishing.

Back On Track

Posted on by The Reef Fly Shop

Whether its La Nina or just a wet weather pattern, we’ve been getting some decent moisture the past few weeks.  A few of these storms have made a mess of the lower river (Government Bridge-downstream) but it appears now that we are on the mend.  Currently, Grey Reef is flowing at 450cfs and fishable from the Dam to Glenrock.  It is still a little off colored through Casper but we wouldn’t hesitate putting a boat on.  Fremont Canyon is plugging along at the standard 75cfs and still off-colored due to Reservoir turnover.  Miracle Mile is also at winter flows and holding between 500-500cfs.

Streamers and nymphs are the program right now.  Not to say you can’t put together a decent dry fly day on Grey Reef because baetis and pseudos are still popping on a daily basis to some degree.  Our nymph program is pretty much the same for all three North Platte tailwaters.  Pine squirrel leeches, san juan worms, pheasant tails, Macgruber’s and PALs.  As far as streamers are concerned our guide crew is a little split.  Some of them are throwing small and dark (i.e. wounded sculpin aka Seth special, peacock buggers, twin lakes special) and the rest are in the articulated camp (i.e. rusty trombones, articulated goldies, articulated ebony, mini dungeons).  For streamers we have been mainly throwing floating or intermediate lines.

Our phone at the shop is currently down.  We are hoping to have it fixed asap and apologize for any inconvenience.   

Good Times on Grey Reef

Posted on by AdminTRFS

We love this time of year!!  Hunting seasons start opening, the weather is beautiful, water conditions are primo and the fish are looking up.  Of course Miracle Mile and Fremont Canyon are fishing well and always a good place to be but Grey Reef is firing on all cylinders.  This is the time of year where its not at all uncommon to throw dries, all day.  Nymphs and streamers are most certaintly in play but the dry fly game is just so fun.  For most of our guides, it’s chasing pods of trico eating trout in morning and switching to hoppers around lunchtime.  Sound fun?  Tricos, of course, can be some of the more technical dry fly fishing of the season.  So be prepared to break out the 5X and don’t be afraid to throw a little something different.  Maybe a larger parachute or even a royal wulff…if their staring at thousands of spinners, it never hurts to show them something a little different.

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!

Baetis!

Posted on by AdminTRFS

Well, as we write this report Central Wyoming is covered in a blanket of white.  Per usual, the weather in April has been a mix of everything.  We seem to be in a pattern of snow right now, about every other day.  By no means are we complaining because moisture is always a good thing!

So as of this morning water conditions are excellent everywhere.  Very, very clear from the Miracle Mile to Casper.  Current flows are as follows; Miracle Mile-2,000cfs, Fremont Canyon-72cfs and Grey Reef-450cfs.  So as for the fishing…we are in the middle of the baetis aka BWO spring hatch.  They are popping on a daily basis and the fish are keyed in!  Our guides have almost excusively moved over to strictly baetis patterns and our trademark mini-rig, especially during the peak of the hatch.  A 3-5ft rig, with minimal split shot tethered to a couple of bugs.  RS2 foam-wing, PAL, McGruber, pheasant-tail, jujubaetis, mayhem with a soft hackle trailer. It’s a fun time of year to be fishing, for sure.  Our fish love to hammer on the emerging bugs!

Aside from the baetis hatch, streamer fishing has produced some pretty solid days over the past few weeks.  Per usual, the rusty series of articulated streamers has been the top producers.  With the lower water conditions on Grey Reef and intermediate line has been about perfect.  Anything of depth is holding fish and don’t hesitate to vary your retrieve depending on the type of water your in.

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 Weather is Here! North Platte Fly Fishing Report!

Posted on by AdminTRFS

Spring is finally here and we couldn’t be more excited! The fishing has been great and have guide trips out quite a bit! The weather looks great for the next ten days and the fish are on the feed! We still have our shoulder season rates going through March 15th and some availability left! Call the shop and lets get your 2021 fishing season started off right!

There has been no official announcement of the 2021 Flush. We will update our social pages and this report once we have confirmed dates. The flush is historically set for the second week of March.

Grey Reef- 500 CFS Fishing has been great on The Reef as you would expect from the North PLatte’s most consistent fishery. Leeches have been the top producer. Chocolate, natural and olive are all working well. Reef worms in red and purple, the Reef’s PAL, mayhem midges, tubing midges, and the Rhinestone are all getting fish too! The river is open from the Dam to Government bridge!

Fremont Canyon/Cardwell- 75 CFS It has been pretty busy up there so you might want to sixe down your tippet and get a little “techy”. Mini rigs for midges and good presentations!  The PAL, Tubing midges, Reef worms, Rhinestones, Mayhem Midges, and pheasant tails.

Miracle Mile – 530 CFS Fishing has been good lately but also have to deal with some crowds. Leeches are still the go to followed by Reef worms and san juan worms, the PAL, rhinestone and mayhem midges. Theres been sgreat midge hatches out there everyday!

Give us a call or stop be the shop if you have any questions!

 

Mild Winter

Posted on by AdminTRFS

It has been a strangely mild winter in Central Wyoming, no doubt. Moderate temperatures and lackluster snowfall, it’s a marked contrast from this time last year. Grey Reef, Miracle Mile and Fremont are all in great shape and fishing well. Flows have stabilized, with roughly 500cfs (current flows as of 1/27/2021: Miracle Mile-490cfs, Fremont-72cfs, and Grey Reef-501cfs) moving down the system, top to bottom. We have mostly been spending our time on Grey Reef as of late. And just a heads up, with some colder days/nights mixed in, floating to Lusby can be questionable. That being said make sure you check in with us or someone local before committing to floating.
Nymphs, streamers with the occasional dry-fly pod seems to be the name of the game. Standard nymph fare-leeches, reef worms, scuds, PALs, mayhems are a great place to start. Fish are definitely concentrated at the middle to lower half of the run, so think a little longer-5-8ft, 1-3 BB split shot, 3X and 4X tippet. Streamers are definitely worth your time as well. An intermediate line or a small sink-tip is working well on a slow strip. Single hooked or small articulated patterns in white, tan and/or olive have being working best. And on the calm days keep your eyes peeled for fish on top. It’s been nothing crazy but we are getting a few on various midge dries.

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!