Henry's Fork Report - June 6, 2024
Henry’s Fork Streamflows
Island Park Dam: 649 cfs
Ashton Dam: 1660 cfs
St. Anthony: 2900 cfs
Fall River: 2320 cfs
The forecast for Henry’s Fork country this week is that spring is giving way to summer, we’re looking forward to the wildflowers, warm temperatures, and hatches that this transition brings! Flows in the upper river remain stable and will reflect inflows, so look for fluctuations during periods of heavy precipitation, but generally stable flows will dominate with stable weather. The lower river will remain subject to some runoff, as the Fall River watershed still has some snowpack. Don’t forget your sunblock, hat, and rain jackets!
Box Canyon
The Box continues to flow at a comfortable rate, both for fishing and for navigating with a watercraft. There’s enough water in there to keep water over most of the troublesome rocks and it’s low enough to be easily read for angling purposes. Keep an eye out for Salmonflies and for the appearance of Golden Stones this week for dry fly potential. Nymphing rigs will still be the choice for most anglers that are spending an entire day’s fishing in there, you’ll want to change your weight depending on the depth of water you’re fishing, I generally like to have a BB shot handy in the upper end and some B shot for areas where the current slows a bit. Nymphs of choice this week: Rubberlegs stonefly nymphs #4-8, 101 Stones, Two Bit Golden Stone, Hungarian Partridge caddis pupa #14-16, Hare/Copper, BH PT nymphs #14-16, and Red Zebra Midges #14-18. Our favorite perdigon nymphs down there at the moment are: Spanish Bullets, Bullet Quills, Olive Hot Spots, Frenchies, Duracells, and CDC France flies, all in #14-18.
Railroad Ranch
Closed until June 15th. If you’re visiting the waters on the upstream or downstream boundary of the Ranch, there have been a few fish to be found snacking on March Browns and Caddis. I expect the March Browns to give way to PMDs this week and the caddis to continue. Be prepared with: Baltz’s Iron X-Caddis, Partridge Caddis, Henry’s Fork CDC Caddis and Bubbleback caddis in #14-18 in both tan and green bodies. PMD patterns should include Comparaduns, CDC Transitional duns, CDC Biot Duns, and a good selection of Rusty Spinners. Not a bad idea to make sure you have a golden stonefly or two accessible as well.
Canyon Country
Salmonflies have just about finished up down there, but Golden Stones will trickle on their heels and continue to provide surface opportunity in these more remote sections of the Henry’s Fork. Dry/dropper rigs are a good place to start and if you find there’s enough interest on the surface, cut the dropper off and liberate your leader with just a dry fly. Stoneflies will be the dry flies of choice, with a stonefly nymph underneath. If the bite dries up, try a fast-sinking perdigon or tungsten bead head that resembles a mayfly or caddis underneath.
Warm River to Ashton
There are just enough Golden Stones around to warrant a dry/dropper rig in here, but if that’s not working, don’t be shy about plying the deeper waters with indicator nymph rigs. Fly selection should mirror the recommendations for the Box Canyon. Plenty of fishing and good fun to be had down here.
Below Ashton Reservoir
The lower river is at a fine flow for its residents to be looking up, but we still need the transition of hatches to take place for this to be a daily routine. This is the week that should see an increase in PMDs, caddis, golden stones and some of the smaller stoneflies. Increased PMD hatches will increase our spinner falls and begin to draw trout out of the deeper lies into the flats. Dry/dropper and indicator rigs will still be useful down here this week, but it’ll pay dividends to have a dedicated dry fly rod set up and ready for use when you find rising fish. The Fall River is still fluctuating with snowmelt, but has generally been running high and fishable. There are still golden stones in the lower reaches of the river and we expect to see them trickle out for the next couple of weeks. Caddis have been dominating the hatch scene, but this will eventually give way to PMDs. The next couple of weeks are the weeks that will have the entire lower river in play, so for those anglers who wish to do some exploring in the lower reaches, now is the time. Be sure to familiarize yourselves with the accesses down there as well as the diversion dams, there are plenty of obstacles in these reaches of the Henry’s Fork.
Summer is here, get out there and enjoy it while it lasts!
