August 2017

August 31st Fishing Report

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Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 69. East wind around 9 mph. The incredible weather continues through the rest of the week and into the holiday weekend.  It's late August and we have not seen 80 degrees but once or twice in a month!!   Creeks are flowing well (we received a brief, heavy rain last night) and are mostly clear to mildly stained.  Water temperatures are in the 50s area wide.   Tricos are doing their spinner fall in the mornings, although the action is sparse due to colder morning temperatures.  Mid day fishing have been best on smaller terrestrials (ants and beetles) on the surface.  Hoppers are just starting to show up in numbers creekside and the fist are starting to look for them too.   Subsurface fishing has been best on tiny bead heads fished in the riffles as well as scuds fished deep. This summer weather and stream conditions are the best we have had in over a decade.  Take advantage of it if you can!

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August 30th Fishing Report

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Mostly sunny, with a high near 79. Calm wind becoming northwest 5 to 7 mph in the morning. Summer rears its head today (much cooler through Saturday).  Fish early and late and find shade to catch fish. The tricos should show up a bit earlier in the day today as air temperatures and water temperatures will rise a bit more quickly. Otherwise, fishing small terrestrials on the surface with a bead head dropper will catch fish.  There are rising fish in the evening that are feeding on a bug soup as many different summer flies have been coming out right around dusk.   Mousing is prime right now, with quite a few fish eating mice at dark.  Don't forget your headlamp!

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August 29th Fishing Report

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Widespread fog, mainly before 10am. Otherwise, partly sunny, with a high near 73. North wind 3 to 5 mph.   Things are still looking good in the Driftless.  The foggy morning will suppress the trico spinner fall first thing, and the humid morning means terrestrials will not be as active early.  In other words, subsurface early, then hopper dropper mid day, followed by fishing the hatches in the evening.  While there are not a ton of rising fish, we have seen sparse hatches of craneflies, olives, midges, and we have some egg laying caddis around too.   Creeks are in great shape with good flows and cool water temperatures for August. 

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August 28th Fishing Report

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Scattered showers, mainly between 2pm and 5pm. Cloudy, with a high near 71. North wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.   Cool and cloudy again today!  This weather has been fantastic for trout fishing.  Fish are eating heavy tungsten flies subsurface in the ankle to knee deep water, and the afternoons have given us hatches of olives, tricos, and other dark colored mayflies (and even some caddis!).  Creeks are flowing well and water temperatures are excellent for this time of year.  Take advantage of it if you can!

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August 26th Fishing Report

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A 30 percent chance of showers, mainly after 3pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 70. Southeast wind 8 to 13 mph. Some light rain fell last night.  It wasn't enough to do anything to the creeks, but the cloud cover forecasted throughout the morning and through the day should make fishing solid all day long.   Hatches are sparse with a few fish rising to midges and mayflies.  With the weather, there is a slim chance of seeing some olives hatching this weekend.   Subsurface fishing has been more reliable on midge larvae, frenchies, brush hogs, and with the cloud cover we should see scuds and squirrels more effective.   Creeks are running well with temperatures in the 50s to low 60s area wide.

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August 25th Fishing Report

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Isolated showers between 10am and 3pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 67. Southeast wind 5 to 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.   Cool, cloudy and drizzly.  This is spring weather, not mid summer!  The weekend forecast is the same and it is looking excellent for fishing.  Creeks are flowing well and are clear to slightly stained area wide.  Temperatures range from the low 50s to 60.     Surface fishing has been best on smaller terrestrials and midges.  There are a few rising fish that are eating trico spinners in the mornings, then terrestrials and craneflies through the day and into the evening.  There is a slim chance of seeing olives hatch this weekend as the air and water temperatures are chilly enough that conditions are right.   Subsurface fishing has been really solid and should only get better with the cloud cover the next couple of days.  Scuds, frenchies, and brush hogs have all been effective.  Just think heavily weighted and thin bodied.   Trout are in the riffles and runs feeding thanks to the favorable water temperatures! Night fishing has been a ton of fun with fish eating mice on the surface, and streamers and larger leeches sub surface.

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August 24th Fishing Report

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Mostly sunny, with a high near 70. East wind 3 to 5 mph.   Wow!  The forecast for the next few days has gotten even better.  Not only will we barely top 70 for a daytime high, clouds and drizzle are forecasted throughout the area through the weekend!  This is a very fishy forecast as water temperatures are low, creeks are in good shape, and the limiting factor of the sun will be taken out of play.  If ever there was an August to fish the Driftless, this is it!!   We're still seeing spotty tricos in the morning, but the creeks that have them are getting the spinner fall later in the morning and the fall is lasting a bit longer (roughly 8-11).  Otherwise surface fishing has been good on ants and beetles even during the mid day sun.  Hoppers have been mediocre as the hopper crops in early summer were drowned out by rains.  Trout will still come up and eat a larger indicator pattern, but 'match the hatch' hoppers aren't hot right now.   Subsurface fishing is best with anything small, thin bodied, and heavy.  Rolling a micro mayfly or midge larvae on the bottom will catch fish right now.  As the clouds roll in again, break out the scuds!   Night fishing has been an absolute blast.  Mousing and larger streamer fishing have been very successful lately.

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August 23rd Fishing Report

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Mostly sunny, with a high near 70. Northwest wind 6 to 9 mph. The incredible cool weather continues this week!   Tricos are doing their spinner fall in the morning, giving us rising fish on quite a few creeks.  The cooler weather means fish are looking up a bit longer than usual!  After the spinner fall, we are fishing ants and beetles on the surface, especially in shaded areas and close to undercut banks.   Subsurface fishing has been great on midge larvae and other small bead head nymphs. Creeks are a bit low and clear to slightly stained.  Water temperatures have been incredible this summer as the unseasonably cool conditions this month have kept them very comfortable for trout. Night fishing with mice and large streamers have been a ton of fun this summer!   Your limiting factor is still the sun, so fish early and late and find shade to find more fish.   Hot flies: Magic Beetle Zebra Midge Mini Hankey

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August 22nd Fishing Report

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Mostly sunny, with a high near 71. Northwest wind 8 to 14 mph.  Absolutely gorgeous string of weather ahead of us this week as high temperatures do no top 71!  This unseasonably cool and wet summer has kept our creeks fishing very well.  Despite a limited trico spinner fall and few hoppers (thanks to all the rain), fishing has been solid all August long.  Fish are eating smaller terrestrials (ants, beetles, and hippie stompers) as well as generic mayfly patterns (para wulff adams, klinkhammer style flies) on the surface and feeding very well on micro mayfly nymphs, midge larvae, and brush hogs subsurface.   The night time fishing has been a blast, tossing a mouse or streamer pattern is getting a lot of action and quite a few larger fish too!   The renovations in the shop are almost complete.  The sale hallway and bathrooms are done, and the back room is near completion.  Look for an announcement and open house party soon. In the mean time, come in an see the new layout and take advantage of this fishy August!

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August 19th Fishing Report

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Patchy fog before 10am. Otherwise, sunny, with a high near 78. Calm wind becoming west around 6 mph in the morning.  A slight uptick in temperature this weekend, but things cool down again early next week after summer rains.   Fishing is still best early and late when the sun is off the water.  Look for a few trico spinners early in the morning, then switch to a indicator/attractor foam pattern with a small bead head dropper for the rest of the day.   Tiny micro nymphs and other small bead head flies fished deep are also very effective right now. Mousing has been a blast lately with some aggressive fish and even some larger fish being caught at night.

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August 15th Fishing Report

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Partly sunny, with a high near 76. East wind 3 to 5 mph.   Gorgeous weather today, and gets stormy tomorrow.   Temperatures are still excellent as high temps will not reach 80 all week long.  Fishing has been good when the sun is off the water.  Hatches are sparse, but fish are still looking up for terrestrials and some smaller mayflies and midges.  Subsurfea fishing is best on tiny bead head nymphs and midge larvae.   If the water clouds up with the rain tonight and tomorrow, fishing scuds, leeches, and san juan worms will be great! Creeks are clear and a touch low with water temperatures in the high 50s to mid 60s.

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August 14th Fishing Report

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Scattered showers before 11am, then a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Cloudy, with a high near 72. South wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.   Cool. cloudy, and a chance of some rain.  An excellent day to be in the Driftless.  Look for some midges in the mornings as well as trico spinners if there isn't too much moisture in the air.     If the clouds stay in, the scud fishing should be fantastic and trout will also chase leeches and small streamers. Creeks are in good shape, and the forecasted rain shouldn't do much to change the clarity.  If anything weird happens, we will let you know.

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Augus 12th Fishing Report

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Sunny, with a high near 75. North wind 3 to 6 mph.   Happy Saturday! Temperatures continue to be low for the next few days.  Creeks are in good shape; clear to stained area wide.  Fishing is best early and late when the sun is off the water.  We're still seeing sparse trico spinner falls, and fishing a hopper or larger foam pattern with a dropper during the day.  Ants and beetles are also very effective on the surface.   Subsurface fishing is best on midge larvae and micro nymphs (tiny, thin bodied bead heads)

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August 11th Fishing Report

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Cloudy through mid morning, then gradual clearing, with a high near 74. North wind 9 to 11 mph. A very pleasant weekend ahead!   Rains last night were only half to 3/4 of an inch tops which means creeks are in great shape throughout the weekend.  The limiting factor will still be the sun.  Fish early and look for the trico spinner fall.  While it isn't widespread, if you do find tricos the morning bite can be fantastic.  If you do not find them, fishing an ant, beetle, or other smaller terrestrial will get rising fish to eat.   During the day, and when there are no trout feeding on the surface, fishing a hopper or other terrestrial pattern with a small bead head dropper is the way to go.  Fish will mostly focus on the subsurface pattern, but we are starting to get trout causing across the creek or from underneath the banks to crush a larger meal on the surface.   In the evenings, there can be a few rising fish again.  A small parachute or ant/beetle should get them to eat.  If not, twitch a leech through the pod.  Finally, mousing has been quite fun this summer.  Slowly fishing a mouse pattern across the surface at night can get some very aggressive eats and some larger fish!

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August 10th Fishing Report

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Partly sunny, with a high near 75. South wind 7 to 9 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.   The cooler weather hits the area today which might produce some rain.  It isn't predicted to be anything terrible and a bit of rain and cloud cover will do wonders for the fishery.   Hatches are still fairly sparse, with the trico spinner fall spotty on a handful of creeks in the morning.  Most of the surface activity is on terrestrials and attractor patterns and you can fish they throughout the day (although fishing is more productive early and late).   Subsurface fishing has been best on tiny bead heads fished slowly along the bottom.  Using these flies as a dropper tied below your terrestrial can be very effective this time of year.   

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August 9th Fishing Report

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Mostly sunny, with a high near 78. Light south wind increasing to 5 to 9 mph in the morning.   Sunny and a bit warm today.  Avoid the mid day sun when you can as things will slow down when the sun is on the water.  Creeks are all still in great shape with clear to slightly stained conditions area wide.  Fish are feeding well on terrestrials with small bead heads fished below them.  When choosing a dropper, go for the smaller and thiner profiled patterns.   In the evenings mousing has been quite fun lately1 We're predicted to get some rain tomorrow and another cool few days of weather with high temps only into the mid 70s!     Flies to try:   Spring Creek Hopper Hippie Stomper Tungsten Zebra

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August 8th Fishing Report

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The great August weather continues!  Today is supposed to be sunny and warmer with a high of 78.  Tomorrow will be similar.  Later in the week we have a chance at some showers and temperatures cool back down to the mid 70s!!!   Hatches are sparse and fish are feeding much better on ants, beetles, and attractor dry flies on the surface.  They are eating brush hogs, pink squirrels, and midge larvae sub surface. Creeks are clear to stained with water temperatures in the mid 50s to mid 60s.  The conditions are the best they have been in August for a long time!   Hot Flies:  Training Wheel Brush Hog Magic Beetle

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August 7th Fishing Report

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Mostly sunny, with a high near 75. Calm wind becoming north 5 to 7 mph in the morning. It has been an absolutely incredible early August so far with mild temperatures and good water conditions. Fishing is still best early and late when the sun is off the water, however a hopper with a bead head tied below will catch fish in shady areas and near undercut banks throughout the day.   Creeks are clear to slightly stained with temperatures in the mid 50s to mid 60s. Hatches are sparse, but you can still find some trico spinners in the mornings on a few creeks.  You are much better off using an attractor dry fly right now.   Subsurface fishing is best on midge larvae and other tiny mayfly imitations.  Think small and thin profile!

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August 4th Fishing Report

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Partly sunny, with a high near 71. Breezy, with a northwest wind 15 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.  Gorgeous weekend ahead! Although we are in the dog days of summer, the creeks are in great shape.  Flows are good and water temperatures are unseasonably cool.  The rain yesterday was brief and did not muddy anything up significantly.  We are still seeing clear to mildly stained water area wide.   Fishing is still best when the sun is off the water, however with the wind today (it calms down for tomorrow) throwing terrestrials mid day will be a good idea as lots of food will be blown into the creeks.   There are still a few tricos in the mornings, although the spinner fall has been spotty as of late it is still a good idea to have a couple patterns in your fly box just in case.  The best fishing has been on indicator dries with bead head nymphs dropped below.  The dry dropper rig has been hot with fish coming up to the bigger dry throughout the day.   In the evenings, mousing has been quite fun!  We're getting some aggressive fish and a few nice ones on mice from dusk until we can't keep our eyes open any more.   The weekend forecast is a continuation of the cool weather with a slight chance of showers.  Cool, cloudy and drizzly. 

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August 3rd Fishing Report

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Update 3:00 Rain fell, but did little to muddy up the waters.  Creeks remain clear to mildly stained.    Update 11:40.  Brief heavy rain hitting the area.  Quick and heavy storm.  We will keep you posted on what happens to the creeks..    UPDATE 11:00 a.m.  Looks like the bigger storm is missing us.  That is great news as we have only had drizzle so far in Viroqua!  Looking good for the weekend. Photo is 11:00 radar photo, the split in the middle is Vernon county.   Showers and thunderstorms, mainly after noon. High near 71. East wind 6 to 9 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.   Not a terrible rain forecast, as usual we will keep you updated if anything weird happens rain wise.  Overall the forecast for the next few days is crazy good for August.  Highs will not top the low 70s and clouds/drizzle most of the days into the weekend.   Look for fish to feed heavily subsurface under the cloud cover on scuds and leeches. Hatches are sparse and consist of a mediocre trico spinner fall as well as midges and the occasional larger mayfly. Creeks are clear to slightly stained and temperatures are great for mid summer with only a couple creeks hitting the mid 60 mark mid day.

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August 2nd Fishing Report

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A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 3pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 79. Northeast wind 3 to 5 mph.   The gorgeous summer weather this week continues.  Fishing is still best early and late while avoiding the mid day sun. The trico spinner fall has been sparse, however activity all day long on smaller terrestrials has been great!  Fishing dry dropper all morning and evening has been productive. Creeks are clear to mildly stained with water temperatures in the high 50s to mid 60s.  While we are still cooler than normal, please use your thermometer as anything over 65 degrees will mean poor fishing and a chance to be lethal to trout.   Hot fly this week has been the mini training wheel (size 14 and 16) 

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