Fishing the February Thaw

In the summer we look for cool-downs, but in winter it’s all about the thaw.  In February, fish concentrate their feeding not only to the warmer parts of each day, but to the warmer parts of each week and month.

The big boys don’t go on the feed every day, but when they do, they’re quite catchable with a few simple techniques.  The two most important things to keep in mind when fishing this time of year are:

Charting the Weather:

If we have a week in the 30s, and the temps are predicted to climb into the low 40s, it’s time to put the skis up for a day and break out the waders.  But it doesn’t have to be warm out for good fishing: Two days of low pressure leading into a high—the day the cooling trend returns can be bang-up as well.

Reading the Water:

Far more important than any weather or even fly-selection, though, is fishing the right water. Concentrating on the slowest moving water, deep runs, and tail-outs are the keys to success.

Winter Guide Trip Options

The Missouri River is a solid bet from now until the skwalas fly in March.  If you’ve got the itch to go give us a call.  Nymphing up a few beastly rainbows or fooling a big brown with a slowly stripped streamer can go along way against cabin fever!