Happy New Year!
I Hope you have all had a positive start to 2022. While I was hoping to update you all on some winter float fishing, I’ve been quarantined with the family over the last week. Thankfully the kids and Alicia had mild symptoms. I have had no symptoms and tested negative twice and am now in the clear. I have had some reports of friends catching some lake run fish and some trout below some of the dams on our larger rivers. I am hoping to hit the water the water once we get through this next cold snap. I’ll keep you all posted when I do. In the meantime, here is a little re-mix on an older article about winter fishing.
Why Winter?
Often times when we mention fishing in January people wince at the thought of cold hands and fingers and few fish to the boat. While winter fishing can be cold and challenging, these colder months can offer chances at the biggest fish in the river. During warmer months many larger trout shift their feeding to nighttime, when waters cool, and larger prey items are more vulnerable (ie. Mice and other trout). While good hatches and high water can certainly bring about excellent prime time opportunities for large trout you will need to weed through average size fish to find alpha trout. While this isn’t a negative for most anglers it does make landing a large fish more difficult. Freshly stocked fish that arrive on our local rivers in June and July often get to our flies before the more cautious wild and holdover trout. Stocked trout also represent an abundant food source for large trout, providing such easy meals that Alpha trout become full and are less likely to chase smaller food items.
In winter milder days bump water temps and get large fish feeding. The months of January, February and March are also a time when large brown and brook trout are desperate to put on weight after their fall spawn and rainbow trout are packing on weight for their spring spawn. While cold water temps do slow fish metabolisms the largest fish in the river require more food than smaller fish to maintain body weight in winter.
Fewer food items:
While prime time conditions offer trout a veritable buffet of food options this diversity in biomass means that trout have the luxury of becoming picky eaters. A large trout might refuse all bugs except one…or simply decide to focus on eating large mice at night. Conversely when bug activity is limited fish must eat what they can find. Eggs, midges, worms, stoneflies, crayfish, and smaller baitfish provide hard to refuse meals when large trout need to feed in the winter. If you do see a hatch in winter it is usually of one specific bug like a midge, early dark stonefly or winter caddis making matching the hatch much less complicated.
Less angling pressure:
The fact that few anglers are willing to brave the cold weather, means that fish are less pressured and therefore more likely to mistake your flies as food. Winter is a good time of the year to explore water that is too crowded with other anglers, swimmers and/or boaters during prime-time months.
Less variability in conditions:
In winter water flows are usually relatively stable with little rain or snowmelt resulting in high water, and water temps usually fluctuate less than in summer months. This allows fish to get into more consistent rhythms and results in predictable bite windows and holding water.
Winter Challenges:
There are of course many things that work against the angler during the winter months. The obvious ones are cold water for the fish and cold air for the angler. With this comes the issue of iced over water. Even on some fast-moving freestone streams the coldest months can lock the rivers up. This is especially problematic given that fish tend to hold in the slower pools where ice builds up quickly. Tailwaters and sections below dams are usually the least likely waters to freeze and other waters simply require observation to know when they are fishable. When fishing recently thawed or thawing water it is important to keep an eye out for ice chunks when both wade fishing and anchored in a boat. Access to rivers can also become problematic where roads are not plowed, or steep banks create slipping hazards, be sure to swap out your felt soled boots for rubber, and ideally spikes when wade fishing.
Keep the faith and keep throwing:
While some winter days can provide good fishing for hours on end, it is common for winter bite windows to be short and spread out. If you’ve gone hours without a bite resist the urge to call it a day. Often times it isn’t where you are fishing or what you are throwing but rather that the fish are between feedings.
Slow down but keep it twitching:
Fish the slower water and when retrieving flies retrieve them slowly. Fish can be deep or shallow, but they aren’t likely to move quickly to intercept a fly. When dead drifting flies through faster currents a perfect dead drift lets the fly get down to the fish. However, when dead drifting nymphs and streamers in slower runs try giving them subtle twitches to entice trout to move from their winter lies.
Preparation and timing are key:
While there are certainly winter days that are downright brutal for fishing there are also plenty of days that are mild enough to provide a surprisingly comfortable fishing experience. We’ve found that a calm winter day with highs between 30-40 degrees is very comfortable for fishing. Wearing nitril gloves to prevent hands from getting wet is crucial and carrying the following items will ensure the comfort and endurance you need for a successful winter trout hunt:
Clothing:
· Heavy winter socks
· Long underwear or insulated pants
· Waders or high boots like muck boots (as long as you don’t plan to wade fish)
· Rubber or studded rubber boots (felt is deadly on snow and ice)
· Spare gloves and mittens, (mittens are a great accessory to get hands warm if they do get cold)
· Winter hat
· Down jacket (down jackets provide excellent insulations and better range of motion than heavy insulated clothing)
· Sunglasses
· Hand warmers
· Synthetic layers (Changing temps and activity levels make having layers you can shed or add throughout the day essential
· Balaclava or neck warmer
Food:
· Easy to access snacks (bars, nuts, anything that isn’t hard to open or access)
· Something warm (a thermos of soup or just hot tea goes a long way)
· Plenty of water (dehydration can sneak up on you in the winter force yourself to drink water and don’t be afraid to ask your guide if you need a pee break)
Looking Forward:
This cold front with slow things down and lock things up for a few days. When temps moderate focus on fishing lake tributaries or below dams on the larger rivers, where open water will should still provide some access. It will be a while now before we are back on the freestone rivers, most likely sometime in March. Hoping to have some fish pics for the next report.
Tight Lines,
Nate