Trico Spinner Falls in July: The 7 AM Window Every Tailwater Angler Should Plan Around
The Trico spinner fall on July tailwaters runs on the kind of clock you can almost set a watch by. When the air hits 68F over slick water on the Bighorn, Missouri, or South Holston, you get a 90-minute window of size 22 dry fly fishing, then a second act with drowned spinners that almost nobody fishes.
Mousing at Night for Big Brown Trout in Summer
Mousing at night for big brown trout in summer is the ethical trophy option when daytime water is too warm to fish. Here's when to go, where the big ones hunt, how to work a waking mouse, and how to wade safely in the dark.
Hopper Season Setup: The Three-Fly Rig That Replaces Your Dry-Dropper in July
PMDs are done by mid-July on most freestones, and the dry-dropper that crushed in June starts getting refusals. The fix is a three-fly hopper rig: foam hopper as indicator, weighted jig 3-4 feet down, soft-hackle emerger 18 inches under that. Here's the exact hopper season setup, when to switch, and how to fish banks versus midstream.
How to Fly Cast in the Wind: 5 Adjustments That Actually Work (Without a Single Haul Lesson)
Most advice on how to fly cast in the wind starts with "learn the double haul." That is useless when you are already in the river. Here are 5 adjustments intermediate anglers can make today, no haul required.
How to Fish the PMD Spinner Fall: The Evening Window Most Anglers Miss
The PMD spinner fall happens after most anglers have already broken down their rods. Here's how to read the last 30 minutes of light, find where spent spinners collect, and catch the biggest trout of the day on a rusty spinner pattern.
How to Fly Fish From a Drift Boat: A First-Timer's Guide to Your First Guided Float
Your first guided float on the Madison, Yellowstone, or Green is mostly about not getting in your guide's way. Here's how to fly fish from a drift boat like you've done it before: where to cast, how to set the hook, which seat to grab, and how much to tip.
Tributary Mouth Trout Fishing in Summer Heat: Finding Thermal Refuge When Rivers Hit 70°F
Once the mainstem creeps past 68 degrees, your trout don't disappear. They pile up at tributary mouths. Here's how to find thermal refuge plumes, fish the mixing zone without cooking the fish, and which feeders to scout in late June before the river goes dire.
Stillwater Trout in June: Callibaetis and Damselfly Hatches on Western Reservoirs
June flips western reservoirs on. Here is how to read callibaetis vs damselfly hatches on Strawberry, Henrys, Hebgen, and Delaney Buttes, with a depth-and-retrieve table for chironomid, damsel nymph, and adult presentations.
Hex Hatch 2026: Night Fishing the Hexagenia Limbata in Michigan, Wisconsin, and the Upper Midwest
A region-by-region guide to the 2026 hex hatch across the Upper Midwest. When the Au Sable, Manistee, Brule, Namekagon, and Wolf fire each night, the dusk window in clock terms, leader and fly setups for fishing in the dark, and how to read a Hexagenia limbata spinnerfall by ear.
When to Stop Fishing for Trout: A Water-Temperature Decision Tree for Summer
A simple decision tree for when to stop fishing for trout in summer based on water temperature, plus where to fish instead when your home freestone hits 70F. Mortality data, hoot-owl rules, and a tailwater backup list.