A couple of our guides have been out fishing in the past few weeks. There has been a midge emergence on the milder days and the fish have been on them. Jeremy Kneeland did well on Friday with several to the net. He said the best bug was a prince dropped off of some pink scud-thing that he ties. The Bitterroot and Missouri might be good places to hit if you need to wet a line. Griffith’s gnat, small thread midges, small princes etc. I’d skip the mornings and focus on the warmest parts of the day. If you’re on the Missouri look at the water near the dam. Zebra midges, rainbow czech, pink amex should do the trick if you don’t mind watching a pink bobber all day. We have had guide trips in the past few years in late January, and our clients have had consistently good fishing. It’s not for wimps, however.
Spring is on it’s way and it’s time to start thinking about skwalas. If you have never been in western Montana for this hatch, I would highly suggest trying to make the trip. This is when we take some of the largest trout of the entire year.
Everyone wish Zach Lazzari well on his adventure to Chile. He scored a guiding gig for the next couple of months. Never fear- he will be returning in mid-March, just on time for the Skwala hatch. We look forward having him back for the 2014 season.