21st Day Fly Fishing – June 1st, 2023 – Henry’s Fork, Ashton, Idaho 2800cfs – Salmon Flies all around
For years, I thought – gosh it would really be awesome get in on a salmon fly hatch! Perhaps the Madison or the South Fork, or even the Henry’s Fork. Well this year in 2023, John and I pretty much nailed it on June 1st, right on schedule on the lower Henry’s Fork near Ashton, Idaho. Never seen so many salmon flies before. A few were hatching, many were skittering across the water and a whole bunch were in the bushes and the trees.
Of course all the fishermen were out tossing salon fly dries. What was odd was how few eats there were, including us. Today, I was on the sticks. Water was still high at about 2800cfs.
What was encouraging was that right out of the shoot, 100yards into the float, John got a massive eat on a salmon fly dry. He was right where he should be. John made a perfect cast up under a bush. I caught the eat late, but I knew the sound of the “toilet flush”, and my eyes went immediately there, seeing the big head out of the water and the set just missed its mark.
John did manage a nice rainbow, but he did it with a bounce rig. We were shocked to watch hatching salmon flies, flittering across the water, totally unscathed.
Oh well, there is always next year!
