Fall is prime time for fly fishing trips on Idaho’s blue-ribbon trout streams

9/22/2009
BOISE, Idaho (Sept. 22, 2009) – In mid-September, Idaho’s trout get restless as the fall spawning season kicks in during the warm days of late summer, making it a great time to go fly fishing in places like Silver Creek, Hemingway’s favorite haunt near Sun Valley, the Middle Fork of the Salmon River near Stanley and the Coeur d’Alene River in North Idaho. And the beauty of Idaho’s wilderness on a fall day is just another added bonus.

“Fall is a great time to fly fish Silver Creek because the insect hatches are pretty consistent, and the brown trout are getting active and hungry as they’re trying to beef up for the winter and the spawn,” said Dave Faltings, guide manager for Silver Creek Outfitters in Sun Valley. Large brown trout and rainbows are common on Silver Creek, but they can be challenging to catch. That’s where Silver Creek Outfitters’ guides earn their keep. Prices begin at $325 for a six-hour trip for two. 

Several outfitters on Idaho’s famed Middle Fork of the Salmon River switch from whitewater trips to specialty fly fishing trips with smaller groups in September because dry-fly fishing for native cutthroat is typically very consistent. A few Middle Fork outfitters that offer fall fishing trips including Orvis-endorsed Solitude River Trips, Hughes River Expeditions, Mackay Wilderness River Trips, Rocky Mountain River Tours and Idaho River Journeys. The bonus of Middle Fork fishing trips is that guests enjoy a full-fledged wilderness experience complete with deluxe Dutch oven meals for five or six days. Reports of anglers catching more than 50 fish a day are not uncommon. Prices start at $1,750 per person.

Fishing guides at Castaway Fly Fishing Shop in Coeur d’Alene say the trout fishing is outstanding in the fall months because of consistent weather, dry fly hatches and perfect water conditions. The river current moves slower in the fall, creating more time for anglers to present a fly.

Jeff Wilson, guide service and shop manager at Castaway, said catch-and-release regulations on the Coeur d’Alene River have dramatically improved the fishery. “In the lastcouple years, the quality of fishing has really accelerated,” Wilson said. “The number of fish and the size of fish have increased.”

Native cutthroat in the Coeur d’Alene average 12-15 inches in size, with some as big as 20inches, he said. Anglers look forward to theOctober caddis hatch, large, inch-long bugs that the fish love. “The hatches can be phenomenal,” he says. Prices for fishing with Castaway range from $250 to $300 for a half-day trip to $350 to $400 for a full-day trip.

For more information, on fall fly fishing in Idaho, contact the outfitters mentioned here or contact the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Association www.ioga.org.

Idaho—Adventures in Living: Idaho is home to thousands of miles of biking trails, mountains to climb, lakes to fish, 17 ski resorts and more whitewater than any other state in the lower 48.  So take a break from it all and come out to play. Idaho—adventures in living. Visit www.visitidaho.org for more information and vacation ideas.          

Contact: Kellie Kluksdal, Public Relations
Idaho Division of Tourism
208-334-2470 x 2152
kellie.kluksdal@tourism.idaho.gov               

News tag(s): Travel