Salmonflies by the Bushel

A Memorial Day day dream of dry fly fishing.

The bush-shaking, sun-reddening, neck-crawling plague that is a Salmonfly hatch is a scene which must be experienced by any angler. The biggest of the hatches we see in western Montana, they always get us a little more than rilled up. This year is shaping up to be a big season for these giant bugs with plenty of water and a cool spring on tap. We will be out searching the river for them come June and spreading the word once they pop: It is a hard phenomenon to keep quiet anyway, might as well get to word to streets.

Of our local rivers, the West Fork of the Bitterroot, upper Rock Creek, and most of the Big Hole river have the heaviest hatches of these bugs. Ideal flows for Salmonflies are 800-1300 cfs on the upper Root', though anything below 2000 cfs will do. We check USGS daily to keep tabs on where/when the bugs are going to first show up and then go check out stretches dry fly rods loaded. Waiting to see where the bug bonanza will strike next.. . . .