Hello from Missoula! With June in our rearview we just wanted to check in with a quick update on how the season is progressing so far. We enjoyed wonderful weather this past month, with very mild temperatures throughout, and mother nature was kind enough to shower us with close to two inches of rain the last few days of June. The rainfall made a massive positive impact in our drainage, and the Bitterroot bumped back up to near flood level early last week. With the total reset of the Bitteroot, and big bump on the Clark Fork, we are heading into July with full rivers and an optimistic outlook for the warmer months.
Salmonflies showed up in full force early in June, and the green drakes and caddis were some of the best hatches we’ve seen in recent years. We currently have golden stones, caddis, and pmd’s in the system with our most consistent dry fly opportunities coming from pods rising in rhythm to pmd’s. The Clark Fork right in front of the lodge, which we affectionately call “Lodge water” has produced some of our best dry fly days so far this season, and check out this brown that calls that stretch home! The middle and lower Bitterroot is now dropping into shape for more true dry fly fishing with long set ups and delicate presentations, after being large and “pushy” for most of June.
We’re excited to be rolling into July with full rivers and enjoying the mayflies until we shift gears to a more terrestrial focused program here in about two to three weeks.
We still have availability this season and would love to share the water with you! Our daytime temperatures are sure to rise as we move deeper into the heart of summer, but we’re in a favorable position with our current water levels and forecast, if you happened to be waiting to see how the water would lay this year before committing, and this may be the perfect year to do so, with our discounted summer rates!
