The Bighorn You Don’t Know
Caddis start coming off as early as April but are not a major surface target until June, when a regular evening hatch turns the fish on for a late-night snack. A smattering of various caddis species are on the river through the summer and can be imitated with Henryville Specials, Stimulators, Elk-hair Caddis, and Hemingway Caddis #12-16. A Humpy is also a good pattern for the caddis hatch, especially if you have trouble seeing your fly in low-light conditions.
When there are no trout visibly feeding, nymphing is the most productive way to catch fish on the Bighorn. Tim Wade’s Northfork Special is one of my favorites, but Pheasant Tails, Prince Nymphs, and a variety of other nymphs with and without bead heads will catch fish. In the spring, use small nymphs (#18-20) to imitate active Baetis nymphs and midges. Later in the summer when PMDs and Green Drakes may be around, use bigger (#12-16) nymphs. San Juan Worms and olive or orange scuds are also good searching patterns.
Egg patterns are most effective in late April and May when the rainbows are spawning. Drift these patterns downstream of gravel riffles and tail-outs and you’ll catch some good brown trout and smaller rainbows. If you are on the river during this time of year, please avoid wading through these spawning areas and do not harass spawning fish.
Streamers and swimming-nymph patterns are also effective during nonhatch periods. Damselfly nymphs can catch fish on a slow retrieve on some of the stillwater sections of river.
In the heat of the summer I like to dead-drift a black bead-head Woolly Bugger with a San Juan Worm dropper. Every once in a while I give it a twitch and get explosive strikes.
Stripping a #6-8 Woolly Bugger, Orange Blossom Special, or a Tequeely is a good idea any time of the year. The best tactic is to cast toward the banks and work the shoreline, especially where there are Russian olive trees or other structure hanging into the river. The only exceptions are when the water temperature is below 45 or above 65 degrees F. and the trout are biding their time in the deep pools. Then I use a fast-sinking or sinking-tip line to get the fly down. When the water is warm, use a heavy tippet and play the fish quickly. Release the trout into well-oxygenated water below a riffle, not into a warm backwater area. If afternoon water temperatures rise above 70 degrees, it may be time for an afternoon siesta.
The river also has sculpins, minnows, crayfish, aquatic worms, and leeches. With the abundant food supply this fishery has to offer, it is no mystery why these trout grow to be pigs!
Terrestrials are a major food item in the summer and especially in the fall months when the water temperature begins to cool. Grasshoppers, beetles, and ants all take fish. Beetle and ant patterns can be hard to see out on the water, so it’s not a bad idea to fish a tandem rig with the smaller fly trailing behind a grasshopper. Sometimes the trout will swim up to inspect the hopper and end up inhaling the smaller fly floating nearby.
In the fall the Baetis return. The trout prepare themselves for winter by feeding and gorge themselves when these mayflies make their encore appearance. The brown trout turn golden yellow and become aggressive. This is the best time of year to catch a 26-inch or better brown trout. The cooler water also invigorates the rainbows and cutthroats to the point that they will at times compete for your fly.
Copyright © 2012 Intermedia Outdoors
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