Missouri River Archives - Page 57 of 62

Thursday Fishing Report 2/5/15

February fishing on the Missouri River

Spring-like weather continues here in Wolf Creek and with it some very good days on the water. We haven’t heard any reports this week of off-the-charts numbers but there is plenty of action to be had, certainly by early February standards.
Reports we’ve heard from the dam to Wolf Creek have not been great and many are opting for the Wolf Creek to Craig stretch and below. I spent a couple of hours wading the Bull Pasture to dam section on Monday and picked up a few fish in the dead slow frog water but it was on the slow side. The usual spots between Wolf Creek and Craig are holding plenty of fish and from what we’ve experienced things seem to improve in the late afternoon/early evening.
The water temp ticked up a couple of degrees over the last two days and is holding close to 36 with flows holding right around 4900. The warmer water coupled with partly cloudy skies and a chance of rain today has us thinking Streamers but the nymphing should be strong as well.
Go to’s have been the pink lightning bugs and firebead soft hackle sows with the lightning bugs seeming to work better earlier in the day. Pair either with a Casne’s Pinkalicious, fish 5 or 6 feet from your indicator to your split and work those spots you know the fish are holding in. Grid your water out starting in close and working your way out until you’ve covered what you can reach – adjust your rig accordingly and do it again. Wondering where those usual spots are? A drive from Wolf Creek Bridge to Craig will usually give you a pretty good indication based on traffic but if there is no traffic and you haven’t spent much time on the Missouri we highly recommend hiring us to guide you. It’s a terrific investment if you plan on making fishing the Missouri a habit, especially at our $395/full day winter rate. If you are new to the area, just getting into fly fishing or just haven’t spent much time on the Missouri a day on the water with one of our expert guides is a great way to get dialed in. It could take weeks, months or even years of fishing on your own to gain the experience and knowledge you’ll get from a day on the water with one of our guides. Interested? Call 800-800-4350 and book your trip today.

50’s through the weekend, 40’s next week with a chance of rain most days. Tomorrow looks great with highs in the mid 50’s and plenty of sunshine. The winds will blow most days but at this point it looks tolerable with teens and low 20’s and some stronger gusts. Lodging is filling quickly for the next two weeks but we do have a few vacancies remaining.

Hot February Nymphs
Top to bottom; Pinkalicious, Firebead Soft Hackle Sow Bug Grey, Firebead Tungsten Sow Pink, Pink Lightning Bug. All available at Wolf Creek Angler. photo by Wolf Creek Angler

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:01-06:00February 5th, 2015|Categories: Fishing Report|Tags: Casne's Pinkalicious, fly fishing, Holter Dam, indicator, Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, nymphs, running line, Streamer Fishing, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|1 Comment

February on the Missouri

February Midge Madness on the MO – photo by Wolf Creek Angler

February can be an excellent time to make a trip to the MO and while the weather can sometimes be a challenge if you hit it right you could experience some absolute spring-like conditions and some great fishing. While nymphing is by far the most productive and widely utilized technique during the winter months don’t overlook the streamer action (swung or slowly stripped) or the dry-fly action as the fish target the tiny midges that are present more often than not when the sun is shining on the Missouri.

It looks like we’re in for a pretty decent stretch of weather starting on Thursday with temperatures climbing into the 50’s and near 60 on Friday. As it stands now the long-range has us holding in this weather pattern through the middle of the month so it’s the perfect time to plan a trip to Wolf Creek Montana. We would love to take you fishing.

As if the spring weather weren’t enough to bring you here, we’re offering an awesome deal this month only where if you book a full day guide trip at our ridiculously reasonable winter rate of $395, we’ll throw in a night’s lodging in one of our bungalows for $59! A guided day on the river includes expert instruction from one of our world-class guides, all the flies you need, a hot lunch and hot and cold beverages and transportation to and from the river. Take advantage of this offer while it lasts and don’t worry about being locked in. If the weather is unfavorable or if you just decide you don’t want to do it you are free to bail with no penalty.

Not looking for a guided trip? Come stay with us at Wolf Creek Angler and do it yourself. Our warm and cozy bungalows are priced right for the winter at $99/night. Start your day with a hearty breakfast at The Frenchman and then stop in the shop for a shuttle and whatever you need for your day on the river. We’re loaded up with winter bugs, cold weather gear, terminal tackle, licenses, RO drift boat rentals and some great deals on merchandise we need to move to make way for spring shipments.

No need to rush – you are just minutes from Holter Dam and the Wolf Creek Bridge. Spend your day on the water and return to your home-away from home where you can either utilize the full kitchen in your bungalow and make your own meal or head to The Frenchman for a night out in Wolf Creek. Don’t miss Uncle Joe’s Oasis for a night-cap and stop by the Canyon Store for provisions including an excellent selection of Montana Microbrews.

Wolf Creek is the place to be for winter fishing in Montana and Wolf Creek Angler is proud to be your full service Missouri River fly shop. Book your trip today!

Wolf Creek Angler is your full service Missouri River Fly Shop – photo by Wolf Creek Angler

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:01-06:00February 3rd, 2015|Categories: Montana Fly Fishing, Uncategorized|Tags: dry fly fishing, fly fishing, Holter Dam, midge, Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, Montana, RO Drift Boats, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|0 Comments

Groundhog Day 2015: Punxsutawney Phil sees shadow, predicts six more weeks of winter

Six more weeks of winter means six more weeks of winter fishing on the MO

Happy Groundhog Day!

While some aren’t happy with Punxsutawney Phil’s prediction we accept it and embrace it, especially if it means six more weeks like the last couple we’ve had here on the Missouri River. Snowpack is still looking good at 112% for the Missouri Headwaters Mainstem and it looks like it’s going to be another good fishing week here with temperatures in the 30’s through the middle of the week and back into the 50’s by the end of the week.

The winter fishing has been pretty darn good more days than not. It’s a great time of year to fish when the weather cooperates with very light traffic and plenty of fish. Most days you have your choice of where to fish.

During the month of February we are offering a great deal on guided fishing and lodging. When you book your guide trip at our winter rate of $395/full day we are offering one night’s lodging in our bungalow style rooms for $59 plus tax, that’s $40 off our already low winter lodging rate of $99/night. Book your trip today.

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00February 2nd, 2015|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: Groundhog Day, Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, running line, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|0 Comments

F3T Tonight in Helena

The Fly Fishing Film Tour returns to Helena tonight at 6 pm at the Grandstreet Theater with an Independent showing compliments of Pat Barnes Missouri River Trout Unlimited. Come on out and join the Helena fly fishing community for this event. It’s a great opportunity to support our TU chapter while watching some great films and it’s also a chance for you to walk away with F3T and local fly shop swag including highly coveted Wolf Creek Angler truckers, T’s and stickers. We’ll see you there!

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00January 31st, 2015|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: F3T, Fly Fishing Film Tour (F3T), Grandstreet Theater, Helena, Missouri River, Pat Barnes Missouri River Trout Unlimited Chapter #55, running line, Wolf Creek Angler|0 Comments

Friday Fishing Report

January Brown – photo by Wolf Creek Angler

Late January streamer fishing on the MO – photo by Wolf Creek Angler

Fishing heated up yesterday, especially in the afternoon. It sounds like Holter to Wolf Creek is still on the slow side but nymphing and streamer fishing from Wolf Creek to Craig was as good for us as it’s been in a while.
Firebead soft hackle sow bugs were the nymphing ticket throughout the day, accounting for all but a couple of fish. Casne’s Pinkalicious and the Pink Firebead Sow also saw some action.
The real surprise of the day was the streamer bite. The Polar Leech continues to produce on the slow retrieve. We committed one shift to the streamer which produced three nice browns and a couple of other misses. I haven’t changed that streamer out in two weeks!
Sunny skies and breezy yesterday, just a few other boats around and a handful of wading anglers. Expect more of the same today, maybe with a little less breeziness. It looks like it could potentially be a perfect day to fish the Missouri – especially by January standards. There is snow in the forecast for the next several days with temps in the 30’s and low 40’s. Water temps are still holding at a cold 34 with flows at 4900. It’s shaping up to be a great year for winter fishing on the Missouri.
Lodging available for the weekend and don’t forget our winter special $395 full day guide trips. During the month of February book a guide trip and get a night’s lodging for $59. Our guides are amped up and ready to start putting you on some fish. Winter days on the MO can be awesome. Let us do all the work for you. Full day includes a hot lunch and hot and cold beverages. Worried about the weather? Don’t be. If you book your trip and the day arrives and it’s too cold or too snowy or too windy for your preference you are free to bag it with no cancellation penalty. It’s the nature of winter fishing – we get it!
Don’t forget to check out the Fly Fishing Film Tour in Helena tomorrow night at the Grandstreet Theater at 6pm.

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00January 30th, 2015|Categories: Fishing Report|Tags: brown trout, Craig MT, Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, running line, Streamer Fishing, winter, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|1 Comment

Mid Week Missouri River Fishing Report 1/28/15

Wolf Creek Angler guide Luke Koerten with a bright and feisy 5 O'Clock bow. - photo Wolf Creek Angler, LLC

It was another awesome spring-like day in Wolf Creek yesterday so I decided to tag along with WCA guide Luke Koerten, his girlfriend Betsy and their dogs. We floated Holter Dam to Craig with high expectations, excited about some January streamer action after having heard about some great streamer action over the weekend.
We figured we would start out chasing the bobber and get a few fish to hand before settling in to the streamer quest. Good plan but didn’t really pan out as we had anticipated. We ended up spending a lot of time changing bugs trying to find the HOT fly and never really did find anything that was working consistently. We had a tough run from the dam to Wolf Creek Bridge but started to piece a decent day together from there to Craig. The bite seemed a little off, maybe a result of the surge from LIttle Prickly Pear the last couple of days but the water was in great shape and I expect things will normalize over the next day or two.
We did ok with Firebead Soft Hackle Sows, Pink Lightning Bugs, Rainbow Warriors, Wire Worms, Soft Hackle Rays and the almost-famous WCA Casne’s Pinkalicious, which started to turn on at the end of the day.
Everything came from the slow deep winter runs but we rarely picked up more than two fish out of a run. Our lack of success delayed the streamer quest though we did spend an hour or two stripping SLOW and managed to connect a couple of times with the Polar Leech which has been our go-to at WCA since October. Weise’s Swimming Minnow got a few looks and Luke had some custom ties which moved a few fish but as was the case with the nymphing, there didn’t seem to be any one thing in particular they were looking for.
The late afternoon/early evening proved to be the best time slot, which reportedly has been the case for the last couple of days. All in all a decent day, in fact a damn good day by January standards. This weather pattern looks like it is going to hold through the weekend so get out there and enjoy it before winter returns, which it inevitably will. We currently have lodging available for the weekend and expect it will fill so book your room today and while you’re at it why not take advantage of our ridiculously reasonable winter trip rates of $395 for a full day on the MO.
See you in the shop and on the water.

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00January 28th, 2015|Categories: Fishing Report|Tags: brown trout, Craig MT, Fish, Holter Dam, Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, nymphs, running line, Streamer Fishing, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|0 Comments

First Light

Montana Skies are always amazing but these late January mornings have been especially eye catching – photo by Wolf Creek Angler

Maybe some day I wont be as amazed by these Montana sunrises and sunsets, I hope that day never comes! As the days get longer I am arriving in Wolf Creek just in time to catch the morning light show. 7:40 to around 8:00 am is the magic time right now and again after 5 pm as the second show starts.

It’s another spring-like morning here, a day that is begging to be fished. Full report tomorrow.

See you on the water!

January Painted Sky over the Missouri River -photo by Wolf Creek Angler

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00January 27th, 2015|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, Missouri Sunrise, Montana, running line, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|0 Comments

Fishing Update 1/26/15

Little Prickly Pear is churned up and dumping mud into the MO. – photo by Wolf Creek Angler LLC

Mixed reports from yesterday but it sounds like things were a little tougher overall. It was the busiest day of 2015 on the Missouri by far. Lots of boats and scads of wade anglers between the dam and Craig and some traffic below as well. Temps hovered around 60 most of the day making it not only the busiest, but also the warmest day of 2015.

We were busy at Wolf Creek Angler selling bugs, running shuttles and cleaning rooms for Sunday arrivals. It’s feeling like April with all of this activity and it looks like the weather is going to remain nice so we’re expecting another busy week here in Wolf Creek, at least by late January standards.

Little Prickly Pear is running high and dumping a fair amount of mud, adding to the challenge but it just might be perfect conditions for the WORM. A firebead steelie worm trailing a black zebra could be a lethal rig for the next couple of days. It sounds like the fish were taking a break from the pink stuff yesterday but they will likely be back on it soon. Tungsten tailwater sows and firebead soft hackle sows were reportedly getting it done as well. Streamers seem like they might be a good option with the colored up water but some anglers we heard from who hit it hard in the canyon yesterday didn’t do particularly well. Keep your options open, bring it all and see what works.

Stop in on your way to the river for shuttles, bugs, boat rentals, lodging and much much more.

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00January 26th, 2015|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: Holter Dam, Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, running line, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler, zebra midges|0 Comments

The Season has Begun

Sunshine, blue skies and well above average temps have us thinking spring fishing – photo by Wolf Creek Angler

It’s been an exciting week at Wolf Creek Angler with the launch of our new web site yesterday and nice weather which has brought out the anglers and kept us busy in the shop. Our available lodging has been full all week and people have been in buying flies and gear and shuttles and renting boats and making it feel like the season has begun.
There were plenty of days in the teens and 20’s over the last month or two that I have to be honest, were more than a little lonely in the shop so it’s just nice to see people around again. It must be that even those who aren’t fishing are thinking about fishing because the phones have been busy with people booking their dates for spring and summer and it’s already shaping up to be a great season.
I even got to get out and fish a couple of times myself earlier in the week. It had been too long and it was great to hook into some fish again but being out there and enjoying the sunshine and the river and hanging out with a couple of WCA guides has got me recharged and ready for the season. Bring on spring! We’re enjoying temps near 50 today with abundant sunshine and it looks like its going to be nice all weekend and on into next week so get out here and fish. We will have lodging available again starting Monday but expect it will fill for most of the week so don’t wait too long to book.
As I mentioned we are very excited about the new web site and we hope you will take a minute and check it out. One of the cool things on it is our Instagram feed which you will see at the bottom of all of the pages. We encourage you to tag us in your fish pics #wolfcreekangler which will allow us to see your pics and to share them on our feed.
Spring shipments are starting to trickle in and while we haven’t been able to bring in everything we want to offer you we are definitely headed in the right direction and we’re excited to have some great new products on the way from Nautilus Reels, Outdoor Research, Smith Optics, Strike Foundry and more. Don’t hesitate to let us know what products you would like to see at Wolf Creek Angler.
We hope to see you in the shop this weekend. Plenty of pink stuff, firebeads in assorted flavors and Rainbow Warriors for everyone.

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00January 23rd, 2015|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: Missouri River, Nautilus Reels, running line, Strike Foundry, winter, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|0 Comments

January Thaw

Launches are snowy and icy, use extreme caution.

Daytime temps have been back in the fishable range for the last few days and it looks like this trend is going to hold at least through the first part of next week. There’s been a little traffic around but even so, if you are going to come out and fish you will likely have things pretty much to yourself.
The launches at the dam, Wolf Creek and Craig are not in the best shape so please use caution if you plan to float.
Not much has changed on the bug front. Pink stuff, firebeads, pt’s, rainbow czechs’s etc. fished deep and slow. You can certainly spend some time experimenting to see what’s working best but part of what we like about winter fishing is leaving the rigs alone. The fish are there in that slow deep water and generally aren’t overly selective. The challenge is to put the bugs right in front of them because with water temps holding in the 34 – 36 range, they aren’t going to spend much energy moving for the food train.
Things have been pretty quiet in the canyon as you might expect but a little sunshine and a few ticks up on the thermometer make a world of difference and we expect a few folks will be out and about on the MO this week keeping that dreaded cabin fever at bay. We’ve still got lodging available for the weekend but I expect that will change by tomorrow so don’t wait too long if you want a room in Wolf Creek. The shop is open Wednesday through Saturday from 8 am – 4 pm (or thereabouts) and we’re always open for lodging and guide trips. If you are planning on coming out to fish the MO at Holter Dam or Wolf Creek Bridge remember there is nobody closer. We’ve got everything you need for your day on the water from shuttles to drift boat rentals to cold weather gear to the largest selection of Missouri River flies ever assembled under one roof in Wolf Creek Montana.

By Jason Orzechowski|2016-10-25T16:16:02-06:00January 14th, 2015|Categories: Fishing Report|Tags: Holter Dam, Missouri River, Missouri River Winter Fishing, Montana, running line, winter, Wolf Creek, Wolf Creek Angler|0 Comments