A few Secrets for July Missouri River Fly Fishing
Anglers come into the store and ask a ton of questions. We love to answer all that we can. And we do!
We’ll let you in on a few of the secrets for success. Secrets, not really, but some of the things that we recommend include the following.
- Fish early and fish late. Not new news from us. Get out there and get to the fish first. Get out there and fish the evening. Good times had by all. The middle of the day can be tough. Not as many bugs. The show is in the a.m. folks. Fish it.
- First cast is the best cast. Not new from us either. Make practice casts beside the fish before you make the presentation cast. Lots of anglers blow it early in the game. Most anglers blow it early and then cannot figure out why th elfish will not eat the fly. Showing the trout your hand first cat is not a good idea. Sneak attack is the only way. Think about it. You are stalking a wild animal. Act accordingly.
- Caddis flies catch fish. Even when the trout are eating Trico spinners.
- The rower, if fishing from a boat, plays a huge role in the success of the anglers. Participate with your crew.
- When the morning is cool, the bugs will start later.
- Fish this time of year eat lots of dead bugs on the surface, in the surface film, and just under the film. Fish patterns that represent dead bugs. Spinners, Griffith’s Gnat, Translucent Pupa/Emerger, Buzzballs and the like. How about a soft hackle dangling below something floaty.
- Clean your fly line often. It is the vehicle that delivers your fly to the target. I often run a RIO Fly Line Cleaning Cloth down my line several times during the day. IT truly helps. Slippery, slick, fly lines are a good thing.
It get really quiet in the latter part of the month. August is quiet too. The weeds may come but they are not an issue yet. Look us up for lodging and guide trips if you need any help in the future.
Headhunters open daily @ 6am. Open late til 9pm. See us for education and information about all things Missouri River.
2 Comments.
Great advise and info as is the case every morning mark. Just a quick footnote to the first cast tip. Sat on the bank near pelican this morning- fair trichinosis action- and watched the other guys fish for a while. One guy with a great casting stroke floated past and I saw him completely miss 3 risers in 5 casts- I’d go for that ratio any day. He obviously couldn’t see his fly due in large part because his leader looked like a curly fry. Don’t forget to straighten the leader! It’s hard to follow your fly if you can’t see where it lands.
And p. s. : besides hating word correct in my phone (trichinosis ?!?!) I’d welcome your input on leader straightening in a boat. I stretch em when I wade but 12′ of leader in a 12′ boat gets tricky for an old geezer