Late July Dry Fly Report for the Bighorn River

Summer is getting better and better on the Bighorn.  Flows will be down to 5500 CFS as of Wednesday afternoon and should hold steady there for a bit.  This is great news for everyone and especially the dry fly crowd!

Black Caddis are out in huge numbers right now providing for some excellent surface fishing.  Expect some activity early in the AM with some bugs left over from the night before and then again from early afternoon to dark.  We’re not seeing big groups of fish up, but rather 2’s and 3’s but in plenty of spots.  The good news is the fish are looking fantastic!  These are by far the best fighting and thickest fish we have seen on average for the last 10 years.  Definitely a quality of quantity fishery!  A few PMD’s, Tan Caddis and Psuedos are mixed in as well.  Rumors of Tricos in the early AM also…

The hopper fishing has been pretty solid if you stick with it as we have piles this summer from all the late season precipitation and huge grass growth.  It’s a fun game to play especially if you’re waiting for the later caddis activity!

With the drop in flows, expect the fishing to be a bit up and down for a couple of days including the nymphing, which has still been fairly consistent, although not lights out like it can be.  Sowbugs, Worms, Caddis pupa and PMD nymphs are still good options.  There is some grass as you get below 3 Mile, so a little more maintenance is required.