Sandpoint/Ponderay Fishing Report 11.2.2017
Clark Fork River (ID)
Lately, flows have been cranking up from 6,000 to 28,000 cubic feet per second around 6 a.m. each day, then crashing to 7,000 cfs around noon. The only predictable “low” flows are during the weekend. Even then, I have seen the river randomly spike, so be aware of your surroundings. Fishing has been good. Water clarity is excellent, and the trout are hungry. We are about to hit a cold snap, so that will cut down the numbers of people fishing the river. The only hatch I have seen recently are a few mahogany duns fluttering around midday. A #14-16 V-Wing Mahogany would match those buggers perfectly. Swinging has been the name of the game for the most part so pack your trout spey, or single-hand it with an Airflo Skagit Scout head. I would make sure to have a couple #6 Stinging Smolt, #6 Polar Minnow, #6 Montana Mini Intruder, and #2 Galloup’s Zoo Cougars in white. There are a few chunky cutthroat in this river, so get out there and get yours.
Lake Cocolalla
Water clarity has been frustrating. It is still a thick, greenish color and I’m afraid it might stay that way until the lake ices over. Despite the water color, fishing has been ok. Every morning I go out, I seem to find a couple browns willing to eat the fly. All of those trout were scattered between two and 15 feet deep. I’m sure trollers are having better luck than I am because they can quickly cover a lot of water. When fishing this lake, I always fish a Rio CamoLux line for the shallow trout, and 30 feet of T-8 followed by monofilament running line for the deeper trout. There is very little surface action, so stripping streamers has been the way to go. I have noticed that the trout in this lake really key in on olive, black, and rust-colored flies. With that in mind, a few great flies to fish are #6 rust Slump Buster, #6 copper Articulated Sparkle Minnow, black Mongrel Meat, and #2 olive Galloup’s Dungeon.
Kootenai River (MT/ID)
As I write this report, flows on the Kootenai are shooting straight up. Currently the flows are 6,280 cfs, but that might be a different story by the time this report is posted. Since the flows are spiking, it wouldn’t hurt to let this river sit for a day or two. Everything should be looking great by the weekend. Once flows stabilize, mahogany duns, BWO’s, and a few October caddis will be fluttering around. I have even seen a couple craneflies, but I don’t expect them to last much longer. If the hatch isn’t panning out, try nymphing. This is an excellent river to nymph from a driftboat. Double rig a couple nymphs, like a #8 purple Pat’s Rubberlegs, #8 Large Black Stone, #16 Tung. Jig Yellow Spot, #16 Red Headed Step Child, #16 BH Lightning Bug, #18 Crust Nymph BWO, or #18 red Copper John. There are a handful of fathawgs in this river, so never forget your streamers. If you choose to throw streamers, strip or swing a #2 olive Complex Twist, #2 white Galloup’s Butt Monkey, #2 tan Galloup’s Silk Kitty, a white Mongrel Meat, and/or a #4 Articulated Sparkle Minnow.