Cowboy trout angler and shop staff Jim with a beautiful buck.

If you got out at all this weekend this report shouldn’t be news to you, but fishing on the MO has kicked into full on springtime fishing. With another great week of weather forecasted means things should just keep getting better across the board; streamers, nymphs or dries, pick your poison and put some steel to lip. Midges galore from Helena to Cascade with fish actively looking up for some smaller snacks. Find a little bit of shade in the slower runs once things warm up and keep an eye out for those little concentric rings of happiness. Nymphs still the most productive below both dams through the canyon. Still hooking up in the slower runs with a double setup, generally a bigger pinker upfront with a smaller flashy dropper. Streamers  you ask? You’re in luck if you’re into the bigger junk! Mid to Prewett (one of my personal favorite floats) has been giving up the goods over the past few days. Lots of browns responding to the flashy bait fishy type stuff and have been actively chasing them from the bank. Get a good swing in front of debris piles and deeper runs along the soft seams. Let it soak for a while then swing and jerk slowly. Humble suggestions for you fly aficionados out there below.

Brown from bank to net.

Big Junk: Kreelex, Skiddish Smolt, Kiwi Muddler, Sparkle Minnows, Urchin Buggers, Sculpzilla

Subsurface: Pink Amex, Rainbow Czech, Zebras, Green Machines, Bruised Wing BWOs, Lightning Bugs

Tiny Dries: Griffiths Gnat, Miracle Midge, Hanging Midge & Buzzballs.

Shameless Hank Patterson Promo: 10 Days people! Still have a handful of tickets for Hank Patterson’s Reel Montana Adventure at the Helena shop for $12 CASH or CHECK! If you’re not familiar with this expert fly fisherman and world-class guide’s work check out his Op/Ed on the Pebble Mine in Alaska from his online series What Would Hank Do. Keep his wisdom in mind with a similar battle being fought in our own backyard. Pre-Party at Cross Currents with beer, BBQ and some BS I mean insight from Hank himself. A $10 donation to Trout Unlimited at the door gets you in for a great time before the Helena premiere. Party starts at 4:30 and goes until 7:00 when the doors open at Grandstreet Theater.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wYGSPPl_mc&w=560&h=315]

Wolf Creek weather forecast

~Cheers, Chewy