PLAN “C” RUN OFF
“How do you catch fish during run-off?”
It's a gloomy Wednesday, the rain and hail are causing damage and I just lost both of my windshield wipers in a storm at lunch (long story). Jay and I fell into the “gloom” and speaking like fishing was going to be shot for a while. The conversation took a twist, and we started speaking with energy and with an uplifting tone.
In my experience, fishing creeks or rivers during run off is gratifying and worth the effort but I HAVE been skunked trying. The first crucial step is to check the flows of the area you are planning to fish. The United States Geological Survey website, commonly referred to as USGS, has water flow data that is current for most rivers and updated every 15 to 60 minutes. There are water flows that get too high and that are not even worth it, this time of year. If it’s impossible for the fish to stay in one place, this is an indicator it's unsafe for us to wade, and we wouldn’t recommend fishing those spots in run off.
Jay and I have found that exploring is the best option. We started with flows, and then we created a plan: Plan A; River. Plan B; Creek. Plan C; Lake/Reservoir. “The Plan” also factored in the effects of water temperatures, muddy tributaries, and crowded angling spots.
Thursday seemed to be the first actual day of Spring
The sun was as bright as ever, birds chirping, the smell of fresh cut grass and everyone I walked past seemed to be in a chipper mood. We started with Plan A; The river we started at was triple the average flow for the time of year, but Jay and I were feeling froggy. When we were fishing, we were focusing on areas of “peace” in the water. The “peace” spots we were targeting are eddies and seams in the current where fish have to make little movement and exert small amounts of energy to stay in place and feed. So, we did what we did best, we started to swing streamers! Swinging during run off is killer but it’s important to focus on placing that fly in the calm breaks in the water. A black sculpin pattern was the meal ticket. The color black is the most effective color during run off. Black creates a silhouette in the muddy water, while lighter colors are a little tougher to see. After a few bends in the river only provided a few small brown trout that unhooked themselves, we moved spots.
Plan B turned out to be very productive. Often, during run off, there are creeks that have the perfect amount of water and clarity but a different creek a few miles away can be unfishable and blown out. In our case, we found “Plan B Creek” levels were lower than we anticipated. We sight fished for 22”-24” rainbows that were in two feet of water. Initially we were spooking every fish that was within casting distance. So, we went stealth mode and started sneaking around these fish. The success here was with an unweighted Woolley Bugger that was casted past the travel direction of the fish and waiting for the perfect moment to strip the fly in front of the fish's path. Jay sealed the deal on a tank rainbow in some oxygenated water and I caught a hen from my knees.
When Friday came, the clouds were dark again, and gloomy moods had set back in, and the yawning between Jay and I turned into a rhythm. It was the perfect day for Plan C. There are reservoirs all over the state of Montana and fishing them during the spring requires the same mindset to fish any of them. To fish these reservoirs, patience, diversity and resilience can sometimes be the answer to catching fish.
When life gives you lemons, you go for the more challenging reservoir.
The most significant reason we chose the more challenging reservoir is because it’s known to give up much larger fish and seeing more than two fisherman is rare. Jay and I spent the first two hours casting, and not catching. We had opportunities but no landed fish. Indicator or no indicator? Leach or bugs? Fast or slow retrieve? There was a ton of excitement, the males were “dancing”, prepping reds for the hens, and we had a front row seat. At least three hours had passed, hopes were fading fast, and the little light left in the day was fading. A thirty-foot cast to my left, strip, strip, strip-set. A rainbow that left a smile on both of our faces, and instantly we were both back in the game. We slapped hands and had a beer to celebrate. Jay caught an “ugly” male rainbow (Jay’s words, it wasn’t “as pretty” as the fish I had caught) about an hour or so after mine. After the stoke had been regained, we caught several nice fish big enough to take out our cameras.
That Friday morning, we had no idea if we were going to be able to catch any fish, but we were confident because of our plan. Jay and I wanted to catch fish so bad we almost forgot about rule #30 - Fishing isn’t luck.