Does anyone know where I can find fishing reports for the Grays River in WY? I have a trip planned up there and I heard a rumor that fishing there "sucks" due to some recent dams....????? I've tried searching for info but coming up blank.
Our family heads up there every year end of July / first part of August. Been doing this for 21 years, so unless snowmelt has really screwed things up this year, it is pretty consistent most years. It usually only clears up about the end of the 3rd week in July and then fishes pretty well while we are there. I wouldn’t even bother fishing the river until 2-3 in the afternoon. The trout there are heavily dependent on terrestrials at the latter 1/3 of summer. If you really want to beat the water, you can pick up a few fish here and there stripping streamers, but it won’t be many for the effort. You might catch a few fish sipping bugs off the top too, but it’s not super consistent.
My favorite fly up there is a parachute Adams size 12 hands down. Fish don’t seem to mind larger flies and the parachute is easy to see. Other favorites are Mayfly patterns, humpies, BWO, PMDs and tent wing type caddis. Again, the parachute varieties are my favorite for visibility, but they will all work.
If you are getting skunked on trout, use a nymph rig and target whitefish in the deeper pools and pockets. Sizes from 10 - 16, my favorite being 12 and 14. Pheasant tails, sow bugs (flashback varieties are favs), hare’s ear and prince. I like the bead head varieties better than standard. Just FYI, if u nymph for trout, you will catch 10 whites for ever trout you hook. The statewide limit is 6, but on the Greys, it’s 25. That should tell you something. The whites are almost always willing in the deeper holes, and you can expect whites from 12”-20”.
Last tidbit, I generally I use a 7.5’ 5x tapered leader. You don’t have to go smaller. Even stripping streamers, I never broke a fish off, but most of my fishing has been with a 3 weight which is perfect for that river. If you use a 5 or 6 weight, up your tippet to 4X and you’d be fine.
Hope this helps. All learned over fishing that river this time of year, every year for the last 21. Oh yeah, bait is legal from the Snake up to Murphy Creek (as well as in all the feeder creeks to the Greys), then it’s artificials only from Murphy Creek to Corral Creek. Above Corral, bait is allowed again in the main river. 99% of my fishing is artificials up there. Cranks will work if spin fishing, but not nearly as effective as flies. There are some browns below Murphy. The vast majority of fish above Murphy are Cuts.
(07-22-2023, 10:21 PM)MWScott72 Wrote: [ -> ]Our family heads up there every year end of July / first part of August. Been doing this for 21 years, so unless snowmelt has really screwed things up this year, it is pretty consistent most years. It usually only clears up about the end of the 3rd week in July and then fishes pretty well while we are there. I wouldn’t even bother fishing the river until 2-3 in the afternoon. The trout there are heavily dependent on terrestrials at the latter 1/3 of summer. If you really want to beat the water, you can pick up a few fish here and there stripping streamers, but it won’t be many for the effort. You might catch a few fish sipping bugs off the top too, but it’s not super consistent.
My favorite fly up there is a parachute Adams size 12 hands down. Fish don’t seem to mind larger flies and the parachute is easy to see. Other favorites are Mayfly patterns, humpies, BWO, PMDs and tent wing type caddis. Again, the parachute varieties are my favorite for visibility, but they will all work.
If you are getting skunked on trout, use a nymph rig and target whitefish in the deeper pools and pockets. Sizes from 10 - 16, my favorite being 12 and 14. Pheasant tails, sow bugs (flashback varieties are favs), hare’s ear and prince. I like the bead head varieties better than standard. Just FYI, if u nymph for trout, you will catch 10 whites for ever trout you hook. The statewide limit is 6, but on the Greys, it’s 25. That should tell you something. The whites are almost always willing in the deeper holes, and you can expect whites from 12”-20”.
Last tidbit, I generally I use a 7.5’ 5x tapered leader. You don’t have to go smaller. Even stripping streamers, I never broke a fish off, but most of my fishing has been with a 3 weight which is perfect for that river. If you use a 5 or 6 weight, up your tippet to 4X and you’d be fine.
Hope this helps. All learned over fishing that river this time of year, every year for the last 21. Oh yeah, bait is legal from the Snake up to Murphy Creek (as well as in all the feeder creeks to the Greys), then it’s artificials only from Murphy Creek to Corral Creek. Above Corral, bait is allowed again in the main river. 99% of my fishing is artificials up there. Cranks will work if spin fishing, but not nearly as effective as flies. There are some browns below Murphy. The vast majority of fish above Murphy are Cuts.
Now that is a great response. Thanks. I picked up a few ideas myself from it.