Spring Creeks Fishing Report
Current Conditions:
The spring creeks are a great spring option. The water that percolates from the springs are always at Montana’s mean annual temperature of 48 degrees which is much warmer than surrounding freestone rivers. This produces a higher metabolism in spring creek fish than trout in other waters and gives anglers a better chance to hook up. The more active nature of spring creek trout in the winter combined with high trout concentrations makes them a top choice in the early spring. You can almost always find a few rising fish in the late morning over the midge hatch and the baetis are just starting to become active. The slower slots with will concentrate trout but they won’t move far to take flies so expect takes to be subtle. As a rule we always use yarn indicators on spring creeks – generally custom cut to be just big enough to not sink. These indicators allow you to detect very subtle disturbances resulting in more hookups. Fly selection doesn’t have to be very sophisticated this time of year and a scud trailed by your favorite size 22 midge larva should be good enough. Where you fish and your presentation is much more important than changing out lots of flies.
The Month Ahead:
The baetis hatch will become stronger by the day and offer some nice dry fly opportunities on overcast days. Sunny days often just bring a few fish to the surface but great nymphing during the hatch. Rainbows are spawning so avoid the gravel redds.
Long Term Fishing Forecast:
The Livingston creeks will be a great option during the PMD hatch in June and early July if you already have rods booked. Fishing will always be centered around the hatches. Start with nymphs in the morning, then emergers and finally duns if they are on them. Fishing drops off dramatically when the hatch ends in the late afternoon.
