Posts by Anthony VonRuden

The Anatomy of a Missoula Fishing Season

Fishing Reports for 2015

A complete Guide to a Season of Fly Fishing in Missoula Writing Missoula Fishing Reports in 2014 was an enjoyable but challenging endeavor. Just when we’d have a new report ready to post on, say, how fishing was about to get tough due to exceedingly warm days, a three-day rain would arrive to recharge the […]

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Making the most of January: Missoula Fishing Report

January Fishing Report

January Fishing Report January is the month of thaws. It will snow all week, then the temps will crawl up into the high-30s and the die-hards will shelve their snowboard for a couple of days and look for sippers on Bitterroot back channels. You certainly have the trout to yourself this time of year. Fish […]

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Missoula Fishing Report: The Slow Dial

Float boat fishing trips

The switch hasn’t flipped “off” on the fishing season just yet–in fact, we’ve been on a slow dial down for the past few weeks with angling options remaining solid to strong throughout the Missoula river system. Hatches of blue wings and midges have been prolific on the nasty days in short intense windows. We have […]

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Missoula Fishing Report: Finishing Strong

Blackfoot Fishing Report

If you thought fishing had started to die off as October’s nights grew colder, think again. Our fall fishing in Missoula has been nothing short of outstanding, a brilliant cap on a fantastic year. And frankly we’re just getting to the good stuff… Missoula Fishing Report Sparse hatches of blue wings, mahoganies, and October caddis […]

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Missoula Fishing Report: Fall Roundup

Float Boat Fly Tours

Hoppers, Hecubas, and Rounding It Out In late August, I was talking to one of our veteran guides–this year is his 17th behind the oars–and he said he thought that 2014 has been the best fishing season in the past fifteen. When gauging the opening of this month with the past four, it’s hard to […]

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Fishing Report: Variety is the Spice of Life

Fishing Report

Roughly 52 floats within an hour’s drive of Missoula. Something like 350 miles of floatable water, not counting Rock Creek. Anyway Mother Nature deals the cards in this town, we come out with a pretty good hand to play. Variation and angling possibilities are two chief reasons why Missoula is one of the West’s undeniable […]

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Fishing Report: To Twitch or Not to Twitch?

Fishing Report

As we enter into August’s fishing full swing, we often ask ourselves the pressing question: “Should I twitch this fly, or not?” Spruce moths, nocturnal stones, hoppers, crane flies, terrestrials, upcoming Hecubas, mice, rainbow trout fry, etc. All of these food items are prevalent this time of year and move quite a bit on and […]

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Fishing Report: Summertime and the Living is Easy

Blackfoot River Guides

Some years, this last week of July is the week when great fishing starts to taper in the Missoula area… Not this year! Spruce moths have arrived early on the Blackfoot, and the big golden stonefly game continues in spades on the Clark Fork. And, on the right grassy bank on a windy afternoon, hoppers […]

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Fishing Report: Cut the Dropper – Catch a Whopper

Fly Fish Missoula

Regarding dropper fishing, one of our old mentors is fond of saying, “It detracts, Fred!” And during certain times of the year, we’d have to agree. Your fly gets a much longer, cleaner drift–into fishier places–when it doesn’t have a 3ft dropper hanging from the bend of its hook. Not that we won’t sneak some […]

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