Fly Shop

North Tongue is open.

roger — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:03:48 +0000

Access to the North Fork of the Tongue is open mostly. The pass is not open, but they opened the road by Bear Lodge last weekend. The fishing is good with nymphs. The water is cold last seen in the mid 30′s in the morning. Mid 40′s by late afternoon on a hot sunny day. It is hard to tell, but some of the cutthroats appear to have spawned already, but the water temperature are too cold to get that done. Other than it being so warm outside, cold water and fish biology suggest that they shouldn’t be done. If you want to get an early line wet and catch some cutthroats, head on up right away. Have a great time.

By the way, Tongue Canyon and Shell have been fishing good for some time. Other creeks are open if you do some exploring. Some lakes are also open. Sibley has been open now for about 3 weeks.

Roger.

Guide day number one 2012

roger — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 14:50:39 +0000

Gram and Ann are a couple of fun people to fish with as a first Guide day of the year. Gram loves to fish for Golden Dorado in South America, but once or twice a year, Gram likes to fish with me on Piney Creek for some little trout. This day happens to be the first Guide trip of the year and we had a hot April day to fish. The water started at 52 degrees and ended at 62 degrees. The low water we were fishing with the 80 + degree day heated the water up fast. The fish were not extremely excited about the hotter water, but we were catching some on dry flies. Gram was working a streamer very well. We only got about 25 fish to play, but we did have a good time. We did not get a photo of four of Gram’s fish due to their wiggling, but we did get a photo of this 21 inch Rainbow. Ann was able to get a couple photos of her fish. Piney Creek is a working ranch and the yearly heifers were very interested in watching what Gram was doing. Unfortunately, the were obstructing the back cast a bit. Thanks for stopping by for an update.

Have fun, Roger

Simms Ice Out Guide Event

roger — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 20:03:41 +0000

The Simms Company is a great company. I was fortunate enough to get to go to the Ice Out Event for Guides this past weekend in Bozeman Montana. Simms put on a three day extravaganza for guides. We had great information exchanges along with feedback sessions for their products. The tour of the manufacturing plant was awesome. Believe when they say they listen to comments, they do. Just realize they are still relatively small as a businesses so cut them some slack when they can’t do everything you want. Their products are great. Manufacturing and designing products is very very expensive and Simms does a great job keeping the costs to a minimum. Remember they are employing a lot of smart Americans in Montana and their products employ a lot of Americans all across the USA in Shops lime mine. You want great products made in the USA Simms is great to support and the extra cost is worth every penny.

I learned so much about the Simms Company, their people and their products this past weekend. It makes me proud to be associated with Simms as a sales location. I do my best to afford their products for my patrons and we all appreciate your support of both our businesses. Stop in any time and get your Simms gear here at the Fly Shop of the Bighorns. Please realize I can’t afford to keep every item Simms offers in my store, but I can order it for you. I carry as many items as I can but if you plan ahead, I will gladly help you get more out of your fishing gear. Thank you very much for your support and planing.

The Ice Out Guide Event was very cool for me above and beyond the scheduled education and fun time events. This event helped me more than I have time to explain. My favorite parts were when I was able to see, meet and talk to some great people like Author John Gierach, Simms founder John Simms, Dave Whitlock, Jeff Currier, Derek DeYoung all of which I had to get their autographs. Although these great people don’t consider themselves to be great stars of fly fishing, they really are important to the history and growth of fly fishing. I love meeting these types of people. If you ever get a chance to meet anyone like these men no matter where you are around the country, take time to shake their hand and thank them for their great contributions to our great way of life. Don’t be afraid to purchase some of their fantastic artwork, awesome books and wares. When these great people take time to visit your area, do yourself a favor by taking some relaxation time to enrich your life and check out these people’s life work. I purchased as much as I could afford. Their stuff looks great in my home and fellow fisherman love these types of great gifts.

Thanks Simms you taught me invaluable information, you revitalized my energy for our out door recreation and you throw one heck of a great event. You are the best.

Roger Miller, Owner Fly Shop of the Bighorns.

P.S. This was not solicited or paid for by Simms or any of the great people I mentioned. I wrote this as a fan for all.

Piney Creek is ready for fun.

roger — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 22:24:27 +0000

If you are ready to get out and try your hand at some big creek fish. We are ready to help you try. Here are some photos from Sunday the 15th of April. My new guide Todd Helms will be great fun to fish with. He caught some great fish and he was willing to hold some for me too. We had a great day in all kinds of weather. These photos are four of the larger fish that chose to cooperate with us. Enjoy.

Thanks for stopping by: Roger

April is looking great!

roger — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 22:14:09 +0000

It is time to schedule your vacation fishing trips this spring and summer. There are about 4 to 6 weeks of spring time fishing still available. Our guides are waiting to help you catch some great fish to log into your rocking chair memories. Run off is coming a bit early this season. The weather is very nice right now, but it still could get colder and wet over the next two months. I have seen grass hoppers in the fields and canyons last month in March. This will likely mean a great grasshopper year baring a cold and very wet next couple of months. This is great news for fisherman, if we see a large amount of hoppers, we should see great summer and fall hopper fishing.

The weather people are saying it is going to be hot and miserable this summer across most of the country. The beauty of our area is we typically have great weather in the mountains when other areas are so HOT!!! Do yourself a favor and get out of your heat ridden city and enjoy Wyoming and Montana’s great summer weather. While you are here in the land of lower gas prices, you should enjoy the great fishing that will be available this summer through September.

Call us at 307-672-5866 and schedule a day to 6 days of fun filled fishing. We will enjoy seeing you and you will enjoy the fun of Wyoming summers. We have full time and part time guides trying to plan their summer work so take some time to schedule your fishing days before you get to Sheridan. We will do our best to help you enjoy your summer if you will help us by calling now to schedule your trips.

Thanks for your patronage.

Roger and the guides.

A fantastic March

roger — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 20:25:27 +0000

A fantastic March 2012 is leading to an unsure runoff season this year. We currently have a good snow pack for right now, but it could come off faster than normal this season. We usually get some wet snows in the mountains in April, May and early June, but it is all a big unknown right now. Current snow pack is as follows:

TONGUE RIVER DRAINAGE

BIG GOOSE 7990 – 13.5 – 8.3 – 163%, BONE SPRINGS DIV 9350 – 15.3 – 14.4 – 106%, BURGESS JUNCTION 7880 – 13.9 – 11.9 – 117%, DOME LAKE 8880 – 14.3 – 12.8 – 112%, SUCKER CREEK 8880 – 14.7 – 13.2 – 111%, TIE CREEK 6870 – 13.4 – 9.6 – 140% —– —– Basin wide percent of average – 121% as of today.

Drainage – Elevation – Current snow in inches – Average snow inches – Current snow pack percentage. This is just some of the Bighorn Mountains Drainage.

I will keep an eye on the run off to determine what the summer will look like, but for now – GET OUT AND GET FISHING! The window between now and run off will show you some fish you may never see at other times of the year. I have about 15 days out on the water this year and some of my people have been out 30 days and more since January 2012.

If you are looking for some fun, Call and book a guide trip. I have a good number of guides for this summer and we have not filled many dates yet. Don’t wait until June to call, I usually fill fast starting at the end of April. I have seen GRASSHOPPERS OUT ALREADY and that is a great sign for summer fun. If we keep up with this nice spring, We will have a great hopper season in July August and September. Last year’s high water and wet spring killed most of the hoppers in this area, so the fish will be looking for that summer time snack this season.

My friend Scott Dunham and I fished Tongue Canyon yesterday the 28th and we each caught a nice fish in 39 degree water. The outside temperature was around 65 degrees. The water was slightly off color by noon. We did not catch many fish but we had great fun with the ones we did catch. Tight lines and have a great fishing season.

Roger

March fishing is here!

roger — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 20:19:05 +0000

Now is the time we all start getting the itch to get out and start fishing more. The 2012 fishing season is officially started. For those dedicated fisherman that work on their skills as often as possible. March fishing can be very rewarding. Some of the creeks are opening, so be careful wading on the ice. Never walk across any ice that you could get stuck under or in. We are not out of the winter season yet so safety should be observed at all times. If you see open water, try the core nymphs that I always suggest. Work on your presentation and depth, trust the flies will get the job done, You’re presentation is more likely than not the reason for poor results.

The tail-waters are all fishing great so take some time to visit them every month. Midges, sow bugs, scuds, leaches and buggers should work through out this month. Rainbows will start staging soon and will start spawning in April and May. Don’t miss out on the fun. On good weather days local fisherman should be out fishing. Travelers should be monitoring the weather for a few good days and shoot for the middle of the good weather days.

Planing is your best path to a successful fishing season. Make sure you are getting the most enjoyment out of your 2012 fishing season. If you don’t plan on a few days a month you will fall into the category of fisherman that I see every September. These poor busy souls come into the store and sadly tell me “I didn’t get out once this season” I feel bad for these busy people so I have decided I will get the word out for them to plan ahead. I can’t understand why they just don’t take the time to schedule fishing fun time in their lives. Fishing helps people be happy. Grab your piece of happiness.

Have fun, be safe and get outdoors before the best part of your life passes you by.

Roger

Guiding season is approaching.

roger — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 18:39:56 +0000

We here at the Fly Shop of the Bighorns encourage people to call in advance for guided fishing days every summer. July, August and September are the best Dry fly Fishing days and those days fill fast, so call right away to get your days scheduled for the 2012 summer. This is our easiest fishing time frame. The weather is good and the fishing catch rate is high for the beginner to the expert fisherman.

For those that are more adventurous, April, May, June and October have great fishing, but require more fly fishing skills, more fly fishing knowledge and an ability to endure colder weather to be more successful. These months are my personal favorite months because I learn more and use more skills to catch fewer total number of fish. This time frame is better for fishers that want to learn and grow to be better fly fishers. This type of fly fisher is not worried about catching lots of fish. Rather, this type of fly fisher works on refining the skills and overall knowledge that leads to higher fish counts and bigger fish size. Spring and fall fishing catch rate numbers are consistent with the fishing most every other place to fish. But it is our dry fly fishing in July, August and September in the Bighorn Mountains that far exceed the average trout water. So choose which type of fly fisherman you are and schedule your trip today.

We can schedule around some of the bad weather days if you plan on staying in the area 4 or 5 days. We can usually get 2 to 3 days that will be good fishing days out of the 4 to 5 day trip. That said, we do get great weather weeks in that time frame so it is a weather risk/fishing reward when the good days line up.

We do 80% of our guided fishing in July, August and September so call soon if you want to schedule a day on our best waters at our best times. By the way if you love to throw streamers and catch big heavy fish the last week of May through June into the first two weeks of July during the high water run off time frame, we have great streamer fishing in our creeks. We have several options to choose from so we can usually find good water with heavy fish that will pull hard in fast high water. You have to be extra careful when wading, but listen to the guide and you will not kill yourself in these hazardous water conditions.

Thanks for fishing with us. We look forward to helping you become a better fly fisherman than you currently are.

Roger

February Fishing Cold and Enjoyable?

roger — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 20:00:21 +0000

I went to Tongue Canyon on Wednesday February 15th. The air temperature was 21 degrees at 8:30 A.M. and the water temperature was 33 degrees. I geared up for the cold and approached the water carefully. I noticed several smaller fish hanging at the back of a small run. I took one step too close and spooked them up to the deeper part of the run. I fished the run for about 40 minutes and caught one brown, one rainbow and 6 white fish. I moved up stream a couple hundred yards and caught another brown and a couple white fish. The weather warmed up a few degrees by around 10:30 A.M. and was around 30 degrees when I left the canyon waters. The water temperature was the same.
I drove down stream to where the creek is close to the road near Dayton and I stopped to fish for about 40 minutes longer. The air temperature was was up to about 34 degrees and my guides and line stopped freezing up. I caught another couple of small browns and landed 8 more white fish. All in all, I had a great time for the middle of February. The flies of the day were a hare’s ear, prince nymph and a yellow sally stone fly pattern. Canyon fishing is one of those fishing opportunities that just appeals to the soul of a wintertime fisherman. The fishing is not fast paced, virtually no dry fly fishing is available on most none tail-waters and you can occasionally catch a nice fish on a streamer or bugger pattern. If you can enjoy being outside mostly by your self, you will greatly enjoy winter fishing.

The bottom line is expect catching fewer fish, expect to spend a lot of time honing your nymphing skills, expect slower lethargic fighting, expect fish to have short feeding time frames, expect to freeze and most of all expect to have fun when few others are around. We are lucky in this area because we have year round fishing. One has only to go try their skills on open water to determine if they too can be a winter time fisherman. If you layer up to stay warm, you can really enjoy our fishing year round.

Have fun and learn to be a much better fisherman than you currently are by cold water winter fishing as often as you can.

Tight lines and better understanding of all aspects of fly fishing.

Roger

Fishing in February?

roger — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:53:41 +0000

Fishing in February this season has been fantastic. The past week has been fairly warm. We have had more 40 to 50 degree days than we’ve had 20-30 degree days so far. We are expecting the weather to turn colder at some point, but the weather has been beautiful. Tongue River by Dayton and Ranchester has hardly been frozen this winter. The lower waters through town have been frozen for the most part since early January, but there have been open spots for a few days at a time. I was lucky enough to fish yesterday on the Tongue and had a great cold water day. The water temperature was 33 degrees at the warmest. My thermometer is accurate to about a degree or two, so it could have been up to about 35 degrees, but it did not feel warmer than 33.

My friend Tony and I fished for about 3 1/2 hours and the best fishing was about 4:30 to 5:00 PM I landed 5 fish in that half hour. Two of which were right at 18 inches one rainbow and one brown trout. When the water is that cold, you lucky to catch just a few fish. I was able to catch 10 fish total. I was very pleased with the fishing, I could not ask for more out of cold water fishing day.

The flies of the day were Prince nymphs, Hare’s ear and the Vanilla bugger.

Winter fishing is tough, but if you approach it the right way, you can have great fun and not freeze you boots off.

Get out there and fish.

Roger