Good Winter Fishing on the South Fork of the Boise

The South Fork of the Boise is an extremely unique river.  In the summer it draws anglers that are looking to run their drift boats or rafts and throw dries to huge rainbows.  When the flows are shut down to a fraction of the summertime levels, the walk/wade anglers flock to the South Fork to hit all the spots that don't exist in the summer.  It fishes like a completely different river in the winter, but one thing doesn't change: huge rainbows are patrolling every slot and riffle, looking for their next meal.

Yesterday, Sagen and I ran over to the South Fork for our first trip of the winter.  We fished big bugs, hoping to entice one of the rainbows at the very top of the food chain.  We didn't catch a ton of fish, but a few cooperated, including a nice Bull Trout.  I'm never expecting a bull on the end of my line on the that river, so catching that first glimpse of the big char was a treat.  The sun shined yesterday, which brought out midges and even a few BWOs.  There weren't enough bugs to keep fish on the surface, but we did see a few nice heads.  The South Fork should fish well all winter.  Look for a warm day, and you might even get some wintertime dry fly action.