Mild weather has assisted anglers by providing temperatures well above freezing during the daytime hours the past several weeks.
Additional moisture in the form of snow, particularly in the higher elevations, is greatly needed. However, no one is complaining about the ability to fish waters that are usually rimmed by ice or entirely frozen over by the end the first week in December. The forecast for this week is also predicted to be mild with above-average temperatures, so enjoy the opportunity to fish in relative comfort while you can.
Even though the weather has been mild in the Cody area, there are plenty of ponds, reservoirs and lakes that have frozen hard enough to indulge those heartier angler-types who like to drill holes in the ice, sit on a bucket and commune with nature and other hardy, like-minded individuals. Close to home, the Sunshine Reservoirs were reporting 4-6 inches of ice at the end of last week. The bite from the trout has been good, too, so angler numbers are climbing as the word gets out around the Big Horn Basin.
Ice this thick is safe enough to walk upon and drag a sled, but not thick enough for heavier vehicles just yet. We need a good cool down with extreme night and daytime temps below freezing before driving onto ice is safe enough for vehicles like snowmobiles, ATV’s, pickup trucks and the like. Ice safety is extremely important when fishing on frozen water impoundments. Thought, planning and preparation should be given to the equipment one not only needs to fish successfully, but also to survive should the unexpected occur, which would be falling through the ice.
It is advisable to carry a spud bar with which to test the ice as one moves away from shore. Carrying a rope and fishing with a buddy helps should one fall in. The idea is to allow space between you and others traversing the ice. That distance should be 5-10 yards when ice is still less than 4 inches thick. Should one fall in, the other probably has not, which means a rope can be pitched to the unlucky angler, who can then be extracted from the water with relative ease.
I know falling in will never happen to any of my readers, but a pound of prevention is better than an ounce of cure, especially when hypothermia and worse, drowning, can lead to a fatality. Water safety is also important to anglers who are wading fishing this time of year. An unintentional dunking when wearing waders is as serious as falling through thin ice. While ambient temperatures might be above freezing, water temps in rivers right now are ranging 54 degrees in the lower Shoshone River to the mid- to high 30s in most free flowing rivers like the South and North Forks of the Shoshone and Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone near Clark.
Again, hypothermia is nothing to mess with. A change of clothing should be in your vehicle. If you are far from a vehicle without access to a change of clothes in your car, the cold clothing, wind chill and exposure even in 40 and 50 degree temps can result in death. I am sure all of us have read about anglers and hunters who were unprepared for the unexpected with no matches, no lighter, no way to build a fire and no dry clothing to exchange for the wet ones. Once your body begins to shut down to protect vital organs, cognizant capabilities also diminish. If you read the rest of the hypothermia story, often times the hapless angler or hunter expired within a short distance from a car. Don’t let this happen to you.
Before we leave this column and move on to the following week’s publication, moving water enthusiasts are enjoying the midge activity on the lower Shoshone through town, the Big Horn River and Wind River in and near Thermopolis. Small dry flies such as Griffith’s Gnats, Smokejumpers, bow-tie midge emerger and parachute Adams, gulper specials and Klinkhammers are working well. Fishing sub-surface has been good using a variety of midge pupae or midge cripple imitations that are non-weighted.
Going deep with Perdigon-style bead-head jig hook nymphs has also proven effective in sizes 14-20. My favorite Perdigon the past several weeks has been what is called the Spanish bullet in a size 16 or 20 hook. This nymph, or wet fly, has a black body with a bright red tag near the hook bend, with a silver tungsten bead up front to get the jig down fast to where non-rising trout might be feeding near the stream or river bottom.
The Frenchie, another European style nymph on a jig hook, has also performed well when the trout aren’t rising, or are playing tough to catch on the surface. A pheasant tail Frenchie with a red, pink or hot fluorescent orange head in size 12-20 is a good alternative to the Spanish bullet. Anglers can also use the standard or reliable bead-head pheasant tail, bead-head gold ribbed hare’s ear, bead-head prince, copper John and North Fork Specials with good success, too.
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