When do you fly fish?

[birdbeast]

Thanks for the input on my hook sourcing question.
With self isolating I have been watching a lot of You Tube videos and have found a bunch about winter fishing in Colorado, Utah and Idaho. The videos show them fishing in January, February and later.
My question is : Do the members of AO fish during the winter? If you do, what is the trigger to go out ? Do you watch weather forecasts and go when it is more mild? How do you dress? Breathable or neoprene?

[Jayhad]

Originally Posted by birdbeast

Thanks for the input on my hook sourcing question.
With self isolating I have been watching a lot of You Tube videos and have found a bunch about winter fishing in Colorado, Utah and Idaho. The videos show them fishing in January, February and later.
My question is : Do the members of AO fish during the winter? If you do, what is the trigger to go out ? Do you watch weather forecasts and go when it is more mild? How do you dress? Breathable or neoprene?

I don't often fish in winter anymore, I feel we need to give the troots a break, but that is my issue. No that it is spring if we get some decent weather this week I'll be scouting central brown trout streams.

I would get out anytime the forecast is going to be over 2C. typically anything less will result in frozen flies and still some ice flows. I just plan with the forecast. I wear breathables with long johns on anything under 5ish.

[Scott N]

I've fly fished in March quite a few times, but never in January or February. It's really dependent on the conditions at the time (ice shelves along river bank, etc.) along with temperature of course. If it's too close to freezing, the guides on your rod will start to freeze up, which can be frustrating, if not make fishing darn close to impossible. I switch to ice fishing during the winter to keep me off my shrink's couch because you can go out without having to worry about the conditions too much. I won't deny that I'm daydreaming about fly fishing these days though.

If it's warm enough and conditions safe, fishing can be surprisingly good. I caught my second largest rainbow in the Bow right around the middle of March. I have both neoprene and breathable waders, I'm more comfortable with the neoprenes when it's really chilly out.

Be really cautious if you go out - watch for floating ice, etc. as they can sneak up behind you without you realizing it.

[Smoky buck]

When I lived farther south I would fly fish whenever the idea to go and the weather was warm enough to not freeze up me guides

Careful on ice shelf’s and watch for hypothermia if you get wet

[Bigwoodsman]

Last year I fly fished from March 15, until October 28. Spent many hours chucking fluff. Can't wait to get the long rod out again. One more weekend of ice fishing than that stuff gets put away till November.

BW

[skain11]

when living in Cgy I would fish the bow all year round, one year I completed my goal of fishing the bow at least once each month in that calendar year. Finished in a chinook on my bday on Dec 31. Back then ( preflood) I had a honey hole between calf robe and glenmore bridges. The warm water from the treatment plant can help keep it open if it doesn;t stay real cold real long. Good mix of trout and whitefish. My temp low limit was -5 and even then there was a lot of clearing of ice from the guides. I wore breathables with fleece under layer and usually took a warm up break every 15 mins. And yes constantly keep an eye upstream for large floating ice chunks and being a large guy I never trusted ice shelves and always got in the river when possible. Have fun, it's never crowded those days.

[stob]

When I cannot dig worms anymore ... then I got to bead headed, weighted flys which are are jigs, so therefore when the worm are gone I go to jigs

[Don Andersen]

Does the season close?
I’ve fished as late as Boxing Day and as early January 1.

Don

[TheHotChili]

I was out yesterday...and will go out again tomorrow with the weather being so nice