Snake River Fly Fishing Report Jackson Hole, Wyoming 8.19.16

The Jackson Hole Valley has seen some cooler weather over the last couple days with the occasional rain shower.  This is great for fly fishing, it resets the Snake River!  This weather gives the fish a chance to rest, but it also creates great moist habitat for bugs!  At Moose, Wyoming the Snake River is 64 degrees fahrenheit while flowing at 3810 CFS, in the canyon stretch above Alpine, Wyoming the Snake is flowing at 3640 CFS. With this new weather coming in, our Fall hatches have begun. Hecuba Drakes, Mahogany and Blue Duns, and even a few Blue Winged Olives. Add Tricos and terrestrials and you’ve got quite the menu to choose from! The Snake River Cutthroats are still eating Claassenia Stoneflies, especially in the mornings and later in the afternoons. I like to fish a smaller male Claassenia stonefly attractor such as Circus Peanut (size10-12) in the mornings and twitch them along the surface. Remember that these male bugs don’t have fully formed wings and tend to skitter along the surface(before they get eaten!). In the afternoons, I prefer a Purple Bruce or September Stone (size 8) that lands with a splat! The splat imitates a female returning to the water to lay her eggs and will attract more trout. The Snake is a great place to nymph, and our best trout are being caught sub-surface.  Blonde Rubber legs, Drake nymphs, Caddis nymphs, Pheasant Tails (size16-18), Copper Johns (size16-18, red or copper) all have been working this week!  When nymphing try to achieve the longest drift possible, this entails mending maybe as many as a dozen times in one drift! Keeping your nymphs at holding depth will raise your odds of catching more Cutthroat trout. Four to six feet is typically deep enough for the Snake River, and can even be shallower depending on water type. Our guides have been fishing the Snake River all season, and are excited about the new hatches coming into play. Fall fishing is going to be fantastic this year! Feel free to call us at 307-690-1139 or check out our Snake River page online.  

The old cooler measuring trick with a nice Snake River Cutthroat!