A slight chance of snow before 11am, then a chance of snow after noon. Cloudy, with a high near 35. Breezy, with a west wind 13 to 22 mph.
If it weren't for the wind, today would be fantastic for fishing. These little warm spots in the week can bring about some of the best fishing in the winter time (when the sun isn't shining).
Creeks are flowing clear with temperatures in the high 30s into the low 40s. Leeches have been he food of choice, and we're also having success on heavily weighted nymphs fished right on the bottom. As always, when in doubt, tie on a pink squirrel.
Read more »
Snow, mainly between 11am and 2pm. High near 32. Breezy, with a south wind 7 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph.
Despite the wind, fishing has remained good this winter. Keep in mind that these are not springtime good fishing days, but the peak time of day (11-3) has been a lot of fun lately!
A pretty normal few days of winter ahead with a dip in temperature Thursday and Friday (Saturday recovers into the mid 20s).
Fishing has been best on squirrels, leeches, scuds, and pheasant tails. The dry fly activity has slowed down as water temperatures have stabilized in the mid to high 30s. We need some sunny days to warm the water up a bit before we see consistent midge hatches again.
Read more »
Cloudy, with a high near 29. Northwest wind 11 to 15 mph.
We had quite a bit of wet, heavy snow fall over the past day. There is now about 6 inches of new snow on the ground.
The snow has not negatively impacted the fishing! Fish are still happily feeding subsurface on leeches, midges, and scuds as well as starting to pick up on smaller, flashy nymphs fished deep.
Although the days are getting cooler than last week (looking at mid 20s to 30s through the weekend), fishing will still be good mid day. Plus, the runoff has slowed to a crawl meaning creeks are all running clear.
Read more »
It snowed a couple inches last night. Snow day today! Shop will be closed today, but we are still answering the phones.
Snow. High near 33. Northeast wind around 14 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible.
Fishing will be on hold until the snow gets through the area. Although it was nice to enjoy the warm weather and good winter fishing last week, this is some much needed moisture for the system.
Things start to cool down the rest of the week and get back to normal winter fishing. Remember, the rule of thumb is 25 degrees and sunny means fishing weather mid day. Any colder than that, or cloud cover, can make things difficult to miserable out there.
Read more »
Patchy fog before noon. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 36. Light southeast wind becoming east 5 to 9 mph in the morning.
Another great day to be fishing early season in the Driftless!
Creeks are clear and fishing well, we have been lucky enough to avoid any major runoff so far. Only a couple of creeks are murky in our area.
Fish have been responding well to leeches, scuds, and midge larvae. We have even been fishing dries (yes the first few fish have already been caught on indicator dries even!) during the midge hatch mid day.
We are looking at some heavy snow tonight and into tomorrow, so if you are heading down here, or in the area, you may just have to call in sick and fish an extra day or two!
Read more »
Patchy drizzle before noon. Areas of fog. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 37. Northwest wind around 6 mph.
Many of our creeks remain clear with water temperatures in the mid 30s to low 40s. It has been a surprisingly good winter so far as runoff has been slight. Only a couple of our creeks are murky.
Fishing is best when water temperatures are climbing. Once they start to drop, things shut down. We are seeing a few midges and a few rising fish each afternoon.
The best fishing has been on leeches, scuds, and pink squirrels.
Read more »
Cloudy, with a high near 42. Southeast wind 6 to 8 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon.
We're still dodging the run off bullet! Creeks remain mostly clear with only a couple showing a stain. We are experiencing some snow melt, but it has not been enough yet to turn the creeks into a muddy mess.
Fishing has been solid mid day on midge larvae, san juan worms, wooly buggers and scuds. We're also seeing midge hatches daily and a few pods of rising fish right around lunchtime.
Read more »
Areas of drizzle. Patchy fog. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 38. East wind 6 to 8 mph.
We didn't get a ton of rain yesterday. It fell as a light drizzle, and while it did start melting some snow, the creeks did not turn into a mess at all. The slow melt will continue today, and we're not too worried about muddying up of the creeks. However, make sure you keep checking your thermometer. Once the water temperature drops the fishing will shut off.
Fishing has been solid the past couple of days. Creeks are flowing clear to slightly stained and trout are picking up on scuds, midges, and leeches subsurface. We have seen midges hatching and had some rising fish yesterday and should see more mid day today!
Read more »
Widespread dense fog, mainly before 8am. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 39. South wind around 6 mph.
Conditions are right to be out fishing! Yesterday fishing was solid mid day, but did drop off a bit in the evening as we are receiving a slow melt which drops the water temperature a bit. Look for fishing to be prime between 10 and 2:30.
Fish are eating small bead heads fished deep and slow as well as leeches dead drifted near the bottom with a twitch. As things warm up some fish are moving out of the holes and into the runs to feed mid day.
Creeks are running clear and do not have a ton of snow bankside. While it is still trudging through the snow, it is shin deep or less on average. Be careful in parking and make sure your vehicle is pulled off the side of the road completely.
Read more »
Patchy fog before 10am. Otherwise, cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 39. Southwest wind 8 to 10 mph.
Downright balmy today and into the weekend! Conditions look really solid for mid day fishing.
You want to make sure you have your thermometer with you as water temperature is key right now. Fish rising temperatures, and once any snowmelt hits the creeks and drops the water temp, the fishing shuts off.
Fish have been eating tiny dark flies fished near the bottom as well as squirrels. They are also responding (and will do so even more as water temperatures climb) to leeches fished dead drift with a twitch.
Creeks are clear and flowing well for winter with water temperatures in the high 30s to low 40s.
Read more »
A chance of freezing rain before 10am, then a chance of rain between 10am and 4pm. Areas of fog before 10am. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 36. Northwest wind around 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
A word salad of a weather forecast! We're looking at icy conditions for the last day this week, be careful driving and walking stream side. The good news is this has all fallen and frozen, which means the creeks are still running clear!
Snow isn't super deep with most areas calf deep at the worst. There is a thin crust on top of the snow, so take your time walking.
The next few days of weather look fantastic, especially for January. Look for fish to continue to feed deep in pools and near the springs bringing warmer water into the system. Water temps are in the high 30s to 40.
Read more »
Sleet likely, possibly mixed with snow before 1pm, then rain, possibly mixed with freezing rain between 1pm and 4pm, then freezing rain, possibly mixed with sleet after 4pm. High near 33. Southeast wind 6 to 8 mph becoming east in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime ice accumulation of less than a 0.1 of an inch possible. Total daytime snow and sleet accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
It's icy out there! If you are out fishing be extremely careful driving and on any larger bankside rocks. It is very slippery.
The icy stuff goes away mid week and conditions become fantastic for January fishing! Sunny with highs in the high 30s to low 40!
Fishing has been solid lately on small frenchies and midge larvae as well as leeches dead drifted with a twitch every now and then in the deeper pools.
Water temps have been in the mid to high 30s and even pushing 40 on sunnier days. Creeks are crystal clear and running a bit low.
Read more »
Sunny, with a high near 23. West wind 3 to 7 mph.
Good enough to be out and fishing today. Possibility of dries in the afternoon, even more so tomorrow.
Fish small and dark and in the deep pools and near springs.
Read more »
A chance of flurries between 4pm and 5pm, then a slight chance of snow after 5pm. Cloudy, with a high near 10. Wind chill values as low as -16. North wind 5 to 7 mph becoming light and variable.
Today is cold again. With the chilly wind, it is not really worth it to be out fishing. However, Saturday and Sunday look like good winter days to be on the water! Sunny skies with temperatures in the mid 20s means we should have the window of opportunity to see active fish in the middle part of the day. On Sunday, there is even a chance to get some dry fly activity on midges if the weather doesn't change. Fishing will be best mid day on smaller, darker, subsurface patterns and leeches fished slowly through the holes.
Read more »
Still cold and pretty miserable out there. The good news is that it will be nice this weekend and will continue into next week!
Fishing has been slow as it has been too cold to get out there recently!
Read more »
We're on our way back from the fly fishing show in Denver. Weather was terrible and we are stuck (but safe) in northern Iowa. We won't be able to open the shop until Thursday 1-12. Sorry for the inconvenience.
Read more »
Rain, snow, and sleet, becoming all snow after 1pm. Patchy blowing snow after 2pm. Temperature rising to near 35 by 11am, then falling to around 24 during the remainder of the day. Breezy, with a south wind 8 to 13 mph becoming west 18 to 23 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 38 mph.
Ugly driving conditions out there today. Be safe! The trout will be around another day.
Wednesday looks decent with temperatures bearable and we should be shoveled out by then after the storm today. Temperatures take a bit of a nose dive later this week, then rebound for the weekend!
Creeks are clear and flowing a bit low which is normal for winter time. The fish that have been caught have been caught mid day when the water temperatures is the highest. Small, dark bodied nymphs rolled along the bottom are the ticket right now, with leeches getting some grabs too.
Read more »
