Winter Newsletter

December 2009 - March 2010

01/23/2010

Wool Socks

Outer Waterproof Shell

Emergency Cloths

Fleece

Fun!

We fish year round in Wyoming and it can get pretty cold. Here is what I do to stay warm while fishing at temps of 20 to 30 degrees.

Layering with breathable material is the key. Breathable materials move warmth sapping moisture away from your body. Even though it is cold you will still sweat if you are moving so it is imperative to get that moisture away from your body. This is why neoprene is not as good as Gore-Tex even though it is a much thicker material. There are many systems of synthetics and wool that will work. I use a combination of things. Here's how I do it.

1:My first layer is usually just a tee shirt, underwear and a pair of thick wool socks.

2:My second layer is a Simms breathable body suit. There are several good ones to choose from. About an hour before I am going to fish I break open a pair of chemical foot warmers and let them get started. Once they are warmed up I put them in a second pair of wool socks and put on the socks with the warmers positioned comfortably under my toes.

3: The third layer is merino wool pants and sweater. Nothing beats wool for warmth, even when it gets wet. Sometimes I use a fleece over this if it is really cold. Then my waders and boots. It is critical that your feet aren't to tight once you have your boots on. If they are to tight it will cut off circulation and you will get cold.

4: Over this I have a Simms Gore-Tex jacket. It is water proof and wind proof and has a good hood.

Head, Hands, and Feet

These are the most important areas and the ones that will get cold first while you are fishing. We already have the feet covered with 2 pairs of wool socks and foot warmers. On the head I use the old LL Bean "Elmer Fudd" type hat. It has ears and chin covered and a brim which shades your eyes and helps you see. I always carry an extra hat in the back of my jacket just in case it gets wet. Gloves are a pain when fishing but some days you have to use them. I have a couple pairs of the fingerless wind stopper glove mitts. That way I can use my fingers when I have to and cover them the rest of the time. I always keep the extra pair in the back of my jacket in a zip lock bag in case I go down or they get wet. I go through at least 2 pairs of gloves every time I fish in the winter so a third pair will come in handy.

Last but not least: I always take some dry cloths in case I go down. A shirt, pants, socks, and a Walls jump suit is what you need to get dry quickly and get warmed back up. We usually fish close to the car in winter but it can be a long cold ride back to the house if you don't bring extra cloths.

I can't honestly say that I am warm as toast every time we fish in the winter but I can easily tolerate the temperature and the pay off can really be worth it. The biggest fish of the year (at least for me) are almost always caught in nasty weather. Fishing in the winter is beautiful and fun if you dress properly. Don't get cabin fever this winter. Get the gear and get out and fish!

Merino Wool Pants and Sweater

Breathable Jump Suit

Wind Stopper Gloves

Elmer Fudd Hat

15"Snake River Cutt!

Average Fish!

Nice big Cutbow!

Pig of a Cutbow!

Fat Rainbow!

A real Beauty!

We can learn many lessons about how water flows affect our local tail water. When we were in a long term drought and the winter flows coming from Buffalo Bill were reduced from 300cfs to 100cfs from 2002 thru 2007, we all thought the fish would take a huge hit. The first year the flows were dropped, they went from 1200cfs to 100cfs in a matter of hours, leaving huge areas of biomass high and dry. We all assumed that this would destroy about 70% of the biomass. The fish were then all pushed into the larger pools. With more fish in a smaller area with 70% less food, we assumed that a lot of fish would die. There may have been some fish mortality but it was no where near as bad as we had anticipated. In my opinion that was some of the best winter fishing we have ever seen. The BOR changed it's policy the next year and gradually dropped the flow in winter over a period of weeks giving the biomass a chance to adjust to the lower flows. I believe we may have had a decrease in numbers of fish per mile over this period but I also think the remaining fish got a couple inches bigger than they had in the past. Not really a bad scenario considering the effect the drought had on other resources.

The spring of 2008 brought an end to the drought and actually gave us a surplus of water. The water managers were still in the drought mindset and left the reservoir about 80% full pre run off. When the snows melted a lot of water came down quickly and filled the reservoir. The water kept coming and they had to run about 7000cfs through the lower Shoshone for about 3 months to keep the reservoir from overflowing. That fall when the flows came down the fish were almost non existent from the dam down to Willwood dam. The ones that remained were in very poor shape.

The fish were not able to find a place to get out of the current with that much flow. On top of that their food base was washed away in many places. Consequently, the fish starved to death. It would be similar to us running all day with very little food. The fish continued to loose weight until they just died. The bigger fish went first because it takes more food to sustain the larger body mass. Ironically, to much water was much more harmful to the fish than to little.

Now for the good news! Many years of gravel choking sediment is now down in Lovell where it belongs (just kidding). The bottom of the river is nice and clean and the biomass is able to rejuvenate itself very quickly. The GAF quickly restocked the river with a bunch of little Snake river cutthroats. The remaining browns found plenty over clean gravel to spawn in. Since they spawn in the fall, their eggs don't get washed away by high water and there are a bunch of new recruits. The fished that made it through the storm are finding plenty to eat and are coming back strong. It's as if we have a fresh start!

One further observation. The late summer run off last July dumped tons of nutrients from the big fire of 2008 into the reservoir. Even after run off the water coming out of the dam was off color with poor visibility but very green and fertile looking. There is still only about 4feet of visibility. I believe this was like a big nutrient shake for the lower river causing the phenomenal resurgence of life.  Just a guess.

In my opinion, the river is coming back very quickly. I think in 2 more years the fish population will be as good if not better than it was pre flood. This is baring any further catastrophic flows. It is one pretty prolific and amazing system. The river has been given a new lease on life so lets try to take good care of it. These are some pictures from a day of fishing on the 14th of November. All fish from 12" to 19". They appear in excellent health. A few could afford to loose a little weight. Not a bad recovery in a little less than 2 years.

Fishing Dog!

Cookie Cutter!

18" Cutbow!

Obese Rainbow!

Big Fish of the Day! 19" Cutbow!

Bugger Chunking!

December 20th 2009 was the second annual ugly stocker day. For those not in the know, the GAF has stocked all their old brood stock below Boysen dam. The object is to catch the ugliest most disgusting mutant fish. Fish are scored on a point system with factors being considered such as putrid yellow coloration, bulbous callous chin, exceptionally short fins, missing fins, sebaceous lesions, short tails, short gill plates, and any other noticeably disgusting deformity. The new point system has been implemented to remove any personal preferences and take the politics out of judging the fish.

It was a sparse crowd this year. It seemed everyone had parties, illness, or family obligations that were more important than USD. Priorities people! It was cold! The temps were supposed to hit 39 above but I would be surprised if it got above 30 all day. Guides icing every couple casts. Anthony, Alex, and I jumped in and started the competition. There were several other parties from Riverton competing up stream. The stockers were there and hungry!

I broke the ice (literally) with a fairly disgusting specimen. Not long after Alex scored on a couple real ugly fish. Then Anthony pretty much just pulled away from us with some exceptionally big and Ugly fish. Anthony is the current champ and now two time winner of the contest.

. These fish, of indelicate appetite, sluggish disposition, negligible intelligence, paltry stamina, and possessing a head, mouth, and stomach of ludicrous bulk in comparison with it's stultified body are easily one of America's most underrated fish. It's most exceptional quality is it's suicidal voraciousness. These demented creatures have been known to attack any bait, spinner or fly that crosses their path. Our favorite fly of choice is the pencil eraser, which is very durable and can be used to catch fish after fish.

The bite was on from about noon till 1:30. We found most of the fish in the slowest deepest water, just trying to stay out of the current and willing to eat anything that swam by. Mostly a soft hackle sow bug on the swing. There was a trick to it. We used a heavily weighted bugger to get the soft hackle down on the bottom and as soon as drag was applied and the flies began to swing to the surface, fish on!

We managed several doubles and the guys from Riverton even managed a triple! Not a single wild fish was caught by anyone. I think after the stockers were planted the park area became an undesirable neighborhood and all the wild fish moved back down into the canyon for the winter. All in all it was a great day. Many fish caught and all released unharmed to be caught another day!

Join us next year for one of the most fun days of fishing for the year! We are even thinking of making a floating trophy that can be past from year to year and a hat with a big ugly rubber stocker on it for next years winner. Enjoy the pictures!

Tight Lines!