ajfishfinder
07-21-2006, 12:11 PM
I got the chance to make a quick side trip from Idaho Falls up to the Madison for some bug flicking on Tuesday. Made the 100 mile drive in an hour and a half and stopped for a lisense. Ouch $25 for a 2 day license and I only have 5 hours of daylight. They are also pretty proud or their gear up there. I found almost everything to be priced about time and a half what it costs here. Headed up to earthquake lake then turned around and started hitting the river. Of course it was over 90 and not much happening except sunburn.
If you are heading this way pay attention special attention to this:-----Bring some insect repellant!!!! The biting flys and mosquitos are terrible and everyplace is sold out!!! The horse/deer flys are vicious and even draw blood. I had one just above my wading boots draw blood right through my socks. I drove 8 miles one direction and 20 the other and everyone is completly sold out. 3 days later and I still have welts and bites which itch like crazy. Once back in Salt Lake (4 hours away) even the cabelas store was running low on bug juice. Now back to the report.
Consider ourselves lucky that we don't have the huge tourist gang fishing here in the NW. Can you say CROWDED!!! I was amazed to see someone wading and fishing about every 200 yards and this is on a tuesday. I guess it is really bad on the weekends. I fanally settled in on a couple of hundred yards that was open. Fished a caddis on top and a cadis pupa below. Picked up a few dinks (8-10") and was starting to get excited about the "famed caddis hatch". I was pretty much disapointed when it happened for all of about 15 minutes. I did manage to get a couple of decent (12-14") fish and one 14-15" whitey before a couple of oldsters moved right in on my next 100 yard stretch of water. I retreated back down river a couple hundred yards and started over on the water I had already frothed up. Hooked one more nice fish that came unhooked just about odark thirty. Piled in for the drive back to the hotel. I did get to see a few white tail and a cow moose with a calf but it was to dark for a decent photo. All in all a pretty good evening with some outstanding scenery and fair fishing. Anyway you slice it it sure beats hanging out in a hotel. If your going, don't bother with waders just boots or tennis shoes is all you will need. I was surprised that the water was pretty tolerable until you get in up to the jewels, only then was it a bit on the cool side.
Thursday morning around 6am I was leaving the hotel in Provo and watched this guy strapping on his waders in the parking lot. Had no idea where he was heading but there was a small creek behind the hotel. I came back from my appointment at about 8:30 and he was just getting out of his waders. Turns out he was fishing the Provo river which I had no idea is a "blue ribbon" trout fishery. I ended up chatting with him and he had done pretty well right there behind the hotel. He was heading for Yellowstone and was happy to hear my mosquito/fly report since he planned to stop at cabelas before heading up north. I'll try and get some pics on here later. Sorry no fish pics, just scenery.
If you are heading this way pay attention special attention to this:-----Bring some insect repellant!!!! The biting flys and mosquitos are terrible and everyplace is sold out!!! The horse/deer flys are vicious and even draw blood. I had one just above my wading boots draw blood right through my socks. I drove 8 miles one direction and 20 the other and everyone is completly sold out. 3 days later and I still have welts and bites which itch like crazy. Once back in Salt Lake (4 hours away) even the cabelas store was running low on bug juice. Now back to the report.
Consider ourselves lucky that we don't have the huge tourist gang fishing here in the NW. Can you say CROWDED!!! I was amazed to see someone wading and fishing about every 200 yards and this is on a tuesday. I guess it is really bad on the weekends. I fanally settled in on a couple of hundred yards that was open. Fished a caddis on top and a cadis pupa below. Picked up a few dinks (8-10") and was starting to get excited about the "famed caddis hatch". I was pretty much disapointed when it happened for all of about 15 minutes. I did manage to get a couple of decent (12-14") fish and one 14-15" whitey before a couple of oldsters moved right in on my next 100 yard stretch of water. I retreated back down river a couple hundred yards and started over on the water I had already frothed up. Hooked one more nice fish that came unhooked just about odark thirty. Piled in for the drive back to the hotel. I did get to see a few white tail and a cow moose with a calf but it was to dark for a decent photo. All in all a pretty good evening with some outstanding scenery and fair fishing. Anyway you slice it it sure beats hanging out in a hotel. If your going, don't bother with waders just boots or tennis shoes is all you will need. I was surprised that the water was pretty tolerable until you get in up to the jewels, only then was it a bit on the cool side.
Thursday morning around 6am I was leaving the hotel in Provo and watched this guy strapping on his waders in the parking lot. Had no idea where he was heading but there was a small creek behind the hotel. I came back from my appointment at about 8:30 and he was just getting out of his waders. Turns out he was fishing the Provo river which I had no idea is a "blue ribbon" trout fishery. I ended up chatting with him and he had done pretty well right there behind the hotel. He was heading for Yellowstone and was happy to hear my mosquito/fly report since he planned to stop at cabelas before heading up north. I'll try and get some pics on here later. Sorry no fish pics, just scenery.