Spent the past week with some friends chasing Snake River cutts. Cold mornings but it warmed to 70 in the afternoon. A 9' Payne 206 5 weight bamboo rod was a delight swinging soft hackles through 200 yard long riffles or throwing Adams dry flies into the wind against ripraps.
The big shouldered cutts came freely to size 12-14 orange partridge, olive partridge and hares ear soft hackles or a size 12-14 Adams dry fly. I'd swing down a run with soft hackles and then go back up with an Adams, catching fish both trips.
Rodmaker Doug Moore had a chance to fish his Gros Ventre rod on the Gros Ventre. It's a brisk 7'6" 5 weight.
The highlight of the trip for me was fishing a 6'9" 4 weight Wallop Brook bamboo rod formerly owned by Tim Cottage on this Snake river tributary...
Was having a fishless morning until I came upon a beaver pond on the tributary with a huge school of cutts cruising above the dam. You can see them in this picture.
I added 2 feet of 6X tippet and a size 14 Black Spider wet fly to my 9' leader and took 10 fish 10-12" in 30 minutes before I had to leave. Saw every strike.
Fun to catch fish with Tim Cottage's rod and a wet fly he was fond of. Here's to you Tim...
The black spider soft hackle is a simple fly invented by WS Stewart in Scotland in the 1800's.
Hook size: 12-16
Body: Brown Pearsalls silk thread.
Hackle: Starling. Use one of the feathers which has iridescent tips. I sometimes tie in a stand of flashabou before winding the starling.
Saw no bears this trip but plenty of elk, a moose and a fox. I'll be back next fall
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