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Artistic view of a Male Pteronarcys californica (Pteronarcyidae) (Giant Salmonfly) Stonefly Adult from the Gallatin River in Montana
Salmonflies
Pteronarcys californica

The giant Salmonflies of the Western mountains are legendary for their proclivity to elicit consistent dry-fly action and ferocious strikes.

Lateral view of a Female Sweltsa borealis (Chloroperlidae) (Boreal Sallfly) Stonefly Adult from Harris Creek in Washington
I was not fishing, but happened to be at an unrelated social event on a hill above this tiny creek (which I never even saw) when this stonefly flew by me. I assume it came from there. Some key characteristics are tricky to follow, but process of elimination ultimately led me to Sweltsa borealis. It is reassuringly similar to this specimen posted by Bob Newell years ago. It is also so strikingly similar to this nymph from the same river system that I'm comfortable identifying that nymph from this adult. I was especially pleased with the closeup photo of four mites parasitizing this one.
27" brown trout, my largest ever. It was the sub-dominant fish in its pool. After this, I hooked the bigger one, but I couldn't land it.
Troutnut is a project started in 2003 by salmonid ecologist Jason "Troutnut" Neuswanger to help anglers and fly tyers unabashedly embrace the entomological side of the sport. Learn more about Troutnut or support the project for an enhanced experience here.

Report at a Glance

General RegionNorther Driftless Area
Dates Fished7/27-7/28

Details and Discussion

West
West's profile picture
Eau Claire, Wisconsin

Posts: 46
West on Jul 29, 2012July 29th, 2012, 10:25 pm EDT
My buddy Nate and I had a couple days off work and ventured into spring creek country to do some car camping. Fishing was excellent for mid-summer and we found some genuinely gorgeous water and brown trout. Armed with only our iPhones, we caught a bit of the excursion on tape, and put together our first little video edit. While realizing that we're new at this kind of thing and are using semi-shitty equipment, we still had a ton of fun putting it together over a few beers, cheap red wine, and pipe tobacco.

Hope you enjoy:

https://vimeo.com/46599462
West

http://pleasantly-obsessed.blogspot.com/
PaulRoberts
PaulRoberts's profile picture
Colorado

Posts: 1776
PaulRoberts on Jul 30, 2012July 30th, 2012, 7:11 am EDT
Fun video. Pretty fish. Wonderful water. Love the mist rolling up in that valley stream. Get's my heart going a little faster.
Martinlf
Martinlf's profile picture
Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047
Martinlf on Jul 31, 2012July 31st, 2012, 4:36 am EDT
I liked it! Neat song too.
"He spread them a yard and a half. 'And every one that got away is this big.'"

--Fred Chappell
Ericd
Mpls, MN

Posts: 113
Ericd on Nov 8, 2012November 8th, 2012, 3:28 pm EST
Thanks for sharing. I love that I can fish the driftless all the time and rarely recognize the streams from folks videos. It keeps me happy.
Jesse
Jesse's profile picture
Posts: 378
Jesse on Nov 12, 2012November 12th, 2012, 2:44 pm EST
Cool stuff guys i enjoyed watching it!
Most of us fish our whole lives..not knowing its not the fish that we are after.
http://www.filingoflyfishing.com

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