June and July will see the emergence of numerous species of insects. In fact, these months generate the most prolific and diverse hatches of the season. On the river you will notice everything from Salmonflies, Golden Stones, Yellow Sallies, Pale Morning Duns, Flavs, Green Drakes, Brown Drakes, Callibaetis (mostly on lakes) and numerous species of caddis, plus damselfly and dragonfly adults on stillwaters.

 

June is the month for the enormous Salmonflies to hatch on area rivers. They’ve already hatched and are done on some area rivers, but look for them in good numbers this year on the Gallatin, upper Madison and Yellowstone rivers. With slightly lower than normal flows this June and better clarity expect dry fly fishing on these rivers to be good from mid June to early July. See my article “Salmonfly Time” for more information on this hatch.

 

Towards the end of the Salmonfly hatch and for a few weeks afterwards good numbers of Golden Stones will emerge, which provide trout with a favorite food source. When you find both Salmonflies and Golden Stones present at the same time try fishing a smaller Golden Stone pattern as fish seem to prefer these over the large Salmonflies, aren’t spooked as easily by the smaller patterns, take them more readily and your hook up ratio is usually far better. You’ll find these beautiful stoneflies on most of our rivers from early June through mid July. Try nymphs and adult patterns in sizes 6-12.

Yellow Sallies are the smaller cousins of the Salmonflies and Golden Stones. They are common from June through early August on all of our rivers and are a favorite food source for the fish. They are a about sizes 14-16 with light colored wings and a yellow body frequently colored orange on the rear portion of the body. Fish these alone or trailed behind a larger attractor or large stonefly dry. You’ll be please with the results fish these flies on the Gallatin, Madison and Yellowstone rivers, as well as most other streams.

 

Pale Morning Duns are the meat and potatoes of the trout’s diet for the bulk of the summer from June through early September. These pale winged, light yellow to pink colored delicate mayflies are found on virtually every river, stream and brook in the Rockies. Don’t be caught without several variations of this important insect including nymphs, emergers, cripples, duns and spinners. On especially tough waters such as the Henry’s Fork, Milesnick’s, Livingston spring creeks, Firehole and Missouri have a large selection and try several of Rene Harrop’s excellent CDC and biot bodied patterns. Matching the hatch during one these hatches is a dry fly purists dream.

 

Flavs are found on the Madison, Henry’s Fork and other rivers in our area, so be sure to carry a few of these adults in sizes 14-16. Trout love these and key in on them especially on cloudy evenings.

 

Green Drakes can be found on many of our rivers, but especially the Gallatin, Henry’s Fork, Lamar, Slough Creek and Yellowstone. Adults and cripples in sizes 10-12 are a must if you come across this hatch. They hatch best on overcast days from mid morning to early afternoon.

Brown Drakes are less prolific, but these large (sizes 8-10) mayflies bring the largest of trout up to feed where they occur on the Gibbon, Henry’s Fork, Yellowstone Lake and other area lakes or silty areas of streams. They emerge just before dark and on into the darkness where trout feed comfortably on them in peace. Take a flash light or headlamp, watch your step and listen for a big gulp!

On lakes and smaller stillwaters from June into August Callibaetismayflies provide consistent dry fly fishing from early morning to early afternoon. Carry nymphs, emerges, cripples, duns and spinners in sizes 14-16. Spinners are especially important on calm mornings and evenings.

Also on lakes, be sure to carry damselfly nymphs and dry fly patterns in sizes 8-12. These nymphs and mostly blue colored adults are also a favorite food source for trout on lakes especially in June and July. And don’t forget to have some dragonfly nymphs and adults as well in sizes 6-10 if you plan on fishing area lakes this summer.