Fishing report: Free fishing over Mother’s Day weekend | Outdoors

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Hauser Reservoir — Rainbow action continues to be good at York Bridge. Fly fishing with leech or egg patterns has been working well. Anglers using night crawlers and egg sacks are also picking up a few. Canyon Ferry Dam tailrace is producing some trout while drifting and bouncing night crawlers on the bottom. Lake Helena anglers are finding rainbows with cowbells tipped with spinners and crawlers. Most walleyes are being caught while running perch crankbaits. — FWP, Helena.

Holter Reservoir — Rainbow trout action has been great at the Gates of the Mountains as well as most of the public boat ramps on the lower end of the reservoir. Successful shore anglers are doing well with egg patterns, Woolly Buggers and small beads. Boat anglers are catching some big rainbows while trolling Thomas lures and Kastmasters around the Oxbow Bend. Not many walleyes or perch are being picked up yet. — FWP, Helena.

Kootenai River — The discharge from Libby Dam was 11,000 cfs on Tuesday. In-flows to Lake Koocanusa were 14,000 cfs. The water temperature at Libby Dam was 40 degrees. Runoff has started and daytime temperatures are consistently warmer. Nights have been freezing and snow is still locked up in the Cabinet Mountains. However, recent rains and more showers throughout the week have us wondering if tributaries might bump in flows and add some color to the river. As of Tuesday, conditions were still great. A mix of spring weather is expected throughout the week. Hatches: midge, blue-winged olives, March browns, early caddis and little stoneflies. Patterns: Zebra Midge, Parachute Adams, Purple Haze, Bugmeister, olive Sparkle Dun, purple Chubby, BH Prince, soft SJ Worm, BH Pheasant Tail, BH Rubber Legged Stonefly, big streamers in white, pink and olive, Circus Peanut, black Conehead Buggers — Linehan Outfitting, Troy.

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