Author: sunriseflyshop

The fishing report on the Big Hole River has been good the last few days. The entire river has been dropping in flows and the clarity is fantastic. We have hatches of caddis, BWO’s and some march browns on the upper river. The water temperatures are staying chilly but this weekend we should see warmer weather to bring clouds of caddis back on the river. Streamer anglers have had good fishing lately with yellow, white and brown streamers. Nymph fishing has been excellent with stonefly nymphs on the lower river and worms in the mornings river wide. Conditions are prime for the holiday weekend. We expect good dry fly fishing on caddis on the upper river this weekend and strong streamer fishing on the lower river.

The fish in the Big Hole have been very healthy this spring. You can see in this post a 24 inch brown that was caught a few days ago. We are expecting a great Salmonfly Hatch in June, which should be fishable and bring enormous trout to the surface.

Recommended Flies:

• Pat’s Stone #8 (Black)
• San Juan Worm #8 (Pink/Red)
• Zonker (Yellow) #6
• X Caddis #14 (Tan/Olive)
• Sparkle Minnow #6
• Flamethrower #12 (Tan/Olive)

It appears that the high elevation Runoff has started to melt out on the Big Hole River. All of the hydro graphs are rising in the Big Hole drainage. We should see days of stability later this week but currently you better know your spots well to catch fish out there. We have been going to the upper stretches of the Big Hole and finding nice fish eating. Clarity is around 3 feet on the upper Big Hole and only around 2 feet in the Melrose sections. You will find caddis hatching but the rising river will have the fish more interested in streamers and worms. We usually see some great trout caught the next few weeks during the high-water events. Large fish get pushed to the banks and feed on prey.

Feel free to give us a call for up to date reports. The high elevation runoff time period can have conditions changing quickly and you need to be aware of the windows of opportunity to fish successfully. We don’t expect runoff to get too crazy this year. Unless we get a massive rain/snow event the river shouldn’t exceed too much above 3,000cfs.

Recommended Flies:

• San Juan Worm (Pink/Red)
• Yellow Yummy #4
• Sparkle Minnow Sunburst #6
• Sparkle Minnow J.J. #6
• Dungeon Yellow
• Wonky Worm #12

The Big Hole River Fishing Report this week has been good. We are having Caddis and March Brown’s hatching on the river and at certain times of the day the fish have been looking up to eat. Dropper fishing in the morning has been fantastic. Trout have been looking for San Juan worms, prince nymphs, pheasant tails and stone fly nymphs. The streamer anglers are doing well throughout the afternoon hours. Our best streamer colors have been yellow, white and olive.

The river flows have been slightly coming up due to some snowmelt. The rise in the water has not caused the river to get dirty. You will find about 4 feet of visibility in the river but that can change quickly if we get a larger bump in flows. It is a wonderful time to get out on the Big Hole River. Feel free to stop in the shop for advice, bugs and a dependable shuttle. Our shop hours are 8:00 am – 5:00 pm daily.

Recommended Flies:

• Bloom’s Caddis #12
• Hot Spot Para Wolf #12 Brown
• X Caddis #12
• Flamethrower #14 (Peacock)
• Jig Prince Nymph #12
• Sparkle Minnow Yellow #6
• Goldie #6

The Big Hole River Spring fishing has been fantastic this month. We have had some good dry fly days on skwala’s and solid nymphing and streamer fishing. Currently the weather conditions have brought the river temperatures down and the water is rising due to rain/snow that we have received. You will need to get crafty the next few days since the fish will move to the slower pools and edges of runs. The cold water will not have the fish moving very far to eat. You will need to rotate and sit in the spots they are feeding in to catch fish.

We are seeing some skwalas hatching, blue winged olives and march brown’s on the menu. The river should level out and the clarity is perfect at around 4 feet of visibility. Bundle up and get out for some spring fishing. It looked like the weather improves early next week to get the water temperatures back up to active trout conditions.

We still have some openings for the Spring Special Package. Contact us today to book your trip.

Recommended Flies:

• Bullet Head Skwala #12
• Double Stack Skwala #10
• Pat’s Stone #10 (Brown)
• San Juan Worm #10 (Red, Pink)
• Yellow Yummy #4
• Big Hole Bugger #4

Our Big Hole River Fly Shop opens April 1st for the 2026 fishing season. Sunrise Fly Shop will be starting our 21st season in Melrose, Montana. We are thrilled to serve the local Montana fishing community and fisherman that come from around the country. It is an exciting time to be trout fishing on the Big Hole River and this year will be fantastic.

The opening day of the Big Hole River is April 1st. The entire river will be open and these fish haven’t seen imitation flies since last September. We had a bump in flows last week and the entire river is now ice free. The river flows are dropping and should be stable for the opening week of fishing. You can look for some possible dry fly fishing on the lower Big Hole with Skwalas and blue winged olives. In the middle and upper reaches we would suggest fishing nymphs and slow moving streamers. April is a wonderful time to fish the Big Hole River. We look forward to seeing familiar faces in our shop next week and all the new ones. Spring Special dates are still available the first two weeks of April. Book your trip today.

We will be running shuttles daily on the Big Hole starting April 1st. The fly shop is currently getting fully stocked for the season. We are proud to be the exclusive Yeti, Patagonia, Orvis, Winston, Marshwear Clothing, Ross Reels and Abel dealer on the Big Hole River. Our shop hours the first week will be 9:00am – 4:00pm daily, Sundays 9:00am – 3:00pm.

Recommended Flies:

• Pat’s Stone #10 (Black/Brown) (Olive)
• Jig Prince Nymph #12
• Mr. Beam #12
• Bullet Head Skwala #12
• Rocky Mountain Mint #16
• J.J. Special #10
• Mini Dungeon Black

The Spruce Moth hatch on the Big Hole has been heating up lately. The hatch is between Jerry Creek and Maiden Rock. You can find fish rising to the natural moths in the morning hours and into the afternoon. We have had fish in the 14-20 inch range rising to the Spruce Moth. Tricos are also hatching on the river but the fish seem to be more keyed into the moth lately. Some of the best technical dry fly fishing is had during this time period.

The nymph anglers have been doing well with #14 Spanish bullets, and small stone fly nymphs. Trout have been taking hoppers in the afternoon hours below Melrose. The river is easy to wade right now at these lower flows and the float anglers are still getting down the river in the Jerry Creek and Maiden Rock zones.

Sections 2-4 of the Big Hole River (from the confluence with the North Fork of the Big Hole River to the confluence with the Beaverhead River) are open to fishing from Midnight until 2:00 p.m. for any other up to date FWP fishing restrictions that have been placed on many Montana rivers please check out this link.

Recommended Flies:

• Spanish Bullet Black #14
• Spruce Moth #12
• Widow Maker Moth #12
• Panty Dropper Hopper #10
• Thread Frenchie #16
• Pat’s Stone #10 (Black/Brown)
• Duracell Copper Top #16