Heading to bow tomorrow

[Wanderingwest]

Was out last Friday afternoon fishing a sjw followed by a small copper John and indicator. Had about a foot between the sjw and the dropper, and indicator at about 11'. Only caught one rmw. Heading back there tomorrow after work to try my luck again. Was going to try a black wb or bow river bugger this time and also bring out my spin rod as i have a few new lures I'd like to try.

Was down near Bonny brook, but wondering if glenmore or fish creek would be better places to try? My buddy used to love it near Bonnybrook, but says its not the same as it was before the flood.

Any suggestions on fly choice and location? Would prefer to stay on shore, but will bring the waders if i have to.

And on a third note, any pointers on casting with a dropper and indicator setup to minimize the rats nest?

[diamonddave]

And on a third note, any pointers on casting with a dropper and indicator setup to minimize the rats nest?

False casts are your enemy, get it in and get back out 1 cast.

[Wanderingwest]

Originally Posted by diamonddave

And on a third note, any pointers on casting with a dropper and indicator setup to minimize the rats nest?

False casts are your enemy, get it in and get back out 1 cast.

This i learned very quickly lol. My buddies patented "helicopter cast" seemed to do well, but getting any distance out of it was less then amusing.

[MTB_FlyFisher]

Tight loops are not a good thing when you've got that much stuff attached to your line. Open up your casting stroke a bit to help keep tangles down.

Possibly add a touch of split shot above the first fly tied on to help get it down into the zone a bit quicker. I'm not sure what depth they're currently at, but whenever I've fished the bow and had to dodge ice floating down the river I've usually got an indicator set so that I'm nicking bottom every third or fourth cast and typically don't get strikes until the flies have had a chance to get down.

I'd leave the SJW on as those seem to consistantly produce for me during the winter months.

Can't help on locations as I usually only fish the bow when the smaller stuff is shut down. Haven't fished in the south since the flood and really have no idea what's happened to the river around there.

Also, get used to setting the hook on even the slightest movement to your indicator. I can't tell you the number of times I've thought I'd nicked bottom, did a hookset anyway, and was rewarded for it. Especially in the winter when the takes are much more subtle. The first time I conciously spent the day setting a hook on any movement at all, even times I knew I was scraping bottom, was the day that I pretty much doubled my productivity on the bow in the winter.

[BeeGuy]

If you are not clipping bottom, you are not deep enough imo.

Every time your drift stalls for any reason, raise your rod tip a bit.

Once you are running close to the bottom you will start picking up rmwf regularly.

[Wanderingwest]

Originally Posted by BeeGuy

If you are not clipping bottom, you are not deep enough imo.

Every time your drift stalls for any reason, raise your rod tip a bit.

Once you are running close to the bottom you will start picking up rmwf regularly.

Yes, practically each retrieve i had to clean the bottom gunk off my nymph. Funny that my first cast into the bow in Calgary and i caught a fish.

Is it any better down by fish creek?

[BeeGuy]

Lots of fish there and elsewhere.

Have had my best luck for good size rainbows thereabouts.

[scel]

The whole river will produce for you. The fish are really moving to deeper runs and tailouts. These structures are slightly more obvious near Fish Creek.

I have a slightly different approach to nymphing.
(not exactly to scale)

X----------------ox---------SJW---------dropper
Indicator->splitshot->tippet(35-40cm)->SJW->tippet (30-35cm)->dropper

I set the distance from the indicator to split shot to being 1-1.2 times the depth of the water that you are fishing. The SJW and the dropper should still be bouncing off the bottom, without dredging the bottom. If the split shot is bouncing off the bottom, your indicator jerks and bobs. As it cools, the fish go to deeper water, but the water also tends to be slower. The whole rig, from dropper to indicator will vary from 6' to 9'

By the advice of Jim McLennan, I tie the SJW and the dropper hook eye to hook eye. Some people tie the dropper to the shank of the SJW. That personally increases tangles. I like to use the Chenille SJW over the wire. So, the split is heavier than the sjw, and the sjw is heavier than the dropper. This tapered weighting system produces less chaotic pendulum effects.

I like to make the distance from the split to the SJW longer than the distance from the SJW to the dropper so the dropper does not snag the splitshot and start the tangling process. Tying on the tippet does 2 things. First, it extends the life of the leader (which extends to all styles of fly fishing). The second purpose is to prevent the split shot from sliding down.

[Wanderingwest]

Originally Posted by scel

The whole river will produce for you. The fish are really moving to deeper runs and tailouts. These structures are slightly more obvious near Fish Creek.

I have a slightly different approach to nymphing.
(not exactly to scale)

X----------------ox---------SJW---------dropper
Indicator->splitshot->tippet(35-40cm)->SJW->tippet (30-35cm)->dropper

I set the distance from the indicator to split shot to being 1-1.2 times the depth of the water that you are fishing. The SJW and the dropper should still be bouncing off the bottom, without dredging the bottom. If the split shot is bouncing off the bottom, your indicator jerks and bobs. As it cools, the fish go to deeper water, but the water also tends to be slower. The whole rig, from dropper to indicator will vary from 6' to 9'

By the advice of Jim McLennan, I tie the SJW and the dropper hook eye to hook eye. Some people tie the dropper to the shank of the SJW. That personally increases tangles. I like to use the Chenille SJW over the wire. So, the split is heavier than the sjw, and the sjw is heavier than the dropper. This tapered weighting system produces less chaotic pendulum effects.

I like to make the distance from the split to the SJW longer than the distance from the SJW to the dropper so the dropper does not snag the splitshot and start the tangling process. Tying on the tippet does 2 things. First, it extends the life of the leader (which extends to all styles of fly fishing). The second purpose is to prevent the split shot from sliding down.

This makes sense. I had my indicator just above the nail knot on the fly line, 8-9' from there a bead head sjw, then another 12-18" my copper John. I did have two small split shot were on the leader about 12" above the worm. The whole assembly was closer to 10' or 11'.

Ill try your suggestion out, sounds logical to me. Nymphing is the only fly I haven't caught trout on so far and I'd like to change that. Ill be out south of Bonny brook tomorrow afternoon carrying a fly rod and a spin rod. If you're out on the river come say hi.

Thanks for the advice folks, time to tie on a new leader now and respool my dusty spin reel.

[braggadoe]

surprised no one has mentioned putting your split shot on the bottom.

having the shot on the bottom, and your flys above(16-20 inches apart). tied off of droppers from a blood/surgeon knot. or in the eye. overhand knot keeping your shot from coming off. like a mini pickrel rig.

the weight at the end keeps things straighter. less goo on your flies. and you can see the little splashes as the whole rig hits the water. detecting a tangle sooner. lose your shot before losing your flies when your hung up(sometimes).
more sensitive(direct) connection to your indicator(if your using one).

seemed to be the preferred method of bottom bouncing, 15-20 years ago when i was fishing/guiding heavy on the bow.

[Wanderingwest]

Originally Posted by braggadoe

surprised no one has mentioned putting your split shot on the bottom.

having the shot on the bottom, and your flys above(16-20 inches apart). tied off of droppers from a blood/surgeon knot. or in the eye. overhand knot keeping your shot from coming off. like a mini pickrel rig.

the weight at the end keeps things straighter. less goo on your flies. and you can see the little splashes as the whole rig hits the water. detecting a tangle sooner. lose your shot before losing your flies when your hung up(sometimes).
more sensitive(direct) connection to your indicator(if your using one).

seemed to be the preferred method of bottom bouncing, 15-20 years ago when i was fishing/guiding heavy on the bow.

Sound advice thank you. I popped into fish tales just now, picked up a few more flies. But good info, the midge worms i was using have a large bend which apparently induces line twists. They pointed out another style i had in my box to try. Will be heading to fish creek to try that out (at the bow) this afternoon once i wrap up work. Green waders, orange and grey backpack. Come say hi if you wish, company is always welcome.

[Wanderingwest]

Wasnt skunked, caught a little rainbow off a buzz bomb. Had both the spin and fly rod out. Managed to get close to 50% longer casts with the fly, keep forgetting how much this rod needs to be loaded to keep the loop tight. The buzz bomb however I'd have to put the brakes on it so it didnt hit strathmore, damn those things just fly!

While standing at the outlet of fish creek, had a 24+ inch fish litterally 3' in front of me. Weird part is it looked like a koi, very strange white and black markings. Wasnt a burb, i thought at first it was a carp.

Time for new waders though, blisters are killing me, wouldve been out there still if it hadn't been for the darkness.

[Alexey]

Originally Posted by Wanderingwest

While standing at the outlet of fish creek, had a 24+ inch fish litterally 3' in front of me. Weird part is it looked like a koi, very strange white and black markings. Wasnt a burb, i thought at first it was a carp.

Likely sucker

[osprey]

While standing at the outlet of fish creek, had a 24+ inch fish litterally 3' in front of me. Weird part is it looked like a koi, very strange white and black markings. Wasnt a burb, i thought at first it was a carp.

That was probably a brown trout with a fungus infection, "sapro". For information see the following website: srd.alberta.ca/fishwildlife/.../SaprolegniosisFactSheet-MAR-2010.pdf‎

[rycoma]

remember that they are spawning right now or already have. I've caught some monster with big war wounds on them. Healthy strong fish with what appeared to be rubbed off sores on them. Top of there head sides all over. Especially after fall. Just a guess

[Wanderingwest]

Im 99% certain this is what I saw, literally standing at my feet.

[goldscud]

Yup, male brown covered with fungus

[Lornce]

Fall-spawning brown trout remove the protective slime layer from their bodies as they dig their nest in the stream gravels, its a selectable time for them. This makes them open to disease and vulnerable to a fish fungus called Saprolegnia. A warm fall plus nitrogen supersaturation will contribute as will poor fish handling and spawning battles which removes the protective slime from fish.

I have read that older fish produce less slime, so these larger fish are more open to problems. Montana has had some huge outbreaks this year.