This heavy rainbow fell to a Pale Morning Dun emerger. PMDs are common hatches on all three rivers. Photo by Chuck Robbins. Photo by Chuck Robbins.

Now is a great time to ramp up your knowledge of how to fish the North Platte, South Fork Boise and Beaverhead rivers to fish them like a guide this season.

NORTH PLATTE
The river above Saratoga flows through the Medicine Bow National Forest and gets high marks for scenic, wildlife viewing. It can be about as good as it gets -- bears, deer, elk, bighorn sheep and moose. And the trout fishing is pretty darn good, too.

If catching that trout of a lifetime is your goal, the better bet might be the two tailwater sections downstream: the famed Miracle Mile and the somewhat less well-known, though equally productive, stretch known as Gray Reef.

Miracle Mile
The Miracle Mile begins at Kortes Dam below Seminoe Reservoir and ends at the headwaters of Pathfinder Reservoir. The actual length varies from about five to eight miles normally. It can be double that in dry years. Regardless, the Mile is truly fertile habitat capable of producing monster trout. Biologists regularly sample trout in the 10-pound range, and rare individuals sometimes top 20 pounds!

The mix of browns and rainbows generally run 10-24 inches and probably average about 14 inches. But each season, anglers report catching trout in the 24- to 30-inch range. The biggest trout are spawners up from the reservoir: rainbows in spring, browns in fall. Many remain in the river long after spawning to provide what amounts to a season-long trophy-trout fishery.

While monsters certainly don't show up every time out, it isn't much of a stretch to say you can expect a significant fish anytime. And that, to my way of thinking, makes the Mile very special, indeed.

Alas, all is not perfect: Erratic summer flows, potentially foul and unseasonable weather anytime, heavy algae blooms and summertime crowds all can be frustrating.

Summer flows often yo-yo on a daily basis. Depending on irrigation demands, they can fluctuate between 300 and 3,000 cubic feet per second. Stable flows translate into more consistent fishing.

This is Wyoming, after all, so anglers should expect squirrelly weather anytime. As my friend, puts it, "Out-of-season weather."

If you spend any time on the water, you'll see that high winds and blizzards are common hazards that put a real crimp on even the best-laid fishing plans. Fickle doesn't even come close to describing High Plains weather. In my experience, any forecast beyond 24 hours isn't worth much. But there's not much we can do about weather, so pray for the best and expect the worst.

Algae blooms, or if you prefer, lettuce, in fertile tailwaters are, inevitable. Like the summer crowds, it's the price of doing business. Something of a pain in the butt? You bet. But the trout still have to eat. Put another way: Just deal with it.

With full public access, good water and more than ample trout numbers, finding a spot is not a problem even on the busiest days. Brown trout outnumber rainbows, but anglers report catching about three rainbows for every brown.

Nymphs and other wet offerings outfish dries by a wide margin, day in and day out. It's not uncommon to see a blizzard hatch with nearly every surface inch of river covered in bugs. During stable and low flows, dry-fly fishing can be excellent. The premier hatches are pale morning dun and baetis mayfly. Various caddis are also seen, as well as the little yellow stonefly and a variety midges.