challis steelhead 3/29 and 30

[nijimasu]

I made it over Banner summit from Boise before it was closed due to the storm (but ended up having to come home through Arco/Carey/Fairfield @#$%^) and braved the nasty weather. originally I'd planned on fishing in Stanley to avoid crowds, but low and behold, there were crowds anyway, so I went on to Challis. Having never been there before, I stopped at the sports store (The Bent Rod?) and asked if there was any secluded water around. i was pointed at a public access place just north of town, where I never saw another angler, but was able to to get this pretty wild fish with my fly rod in the driving rain before dark.


This morning, I bumped into a few other anglers in town, and they told me to head for Ellis, if I didn't mind crowds. I was in a catching mood, rather than a solitary mood, so I figured why not. I found a flat rock to sit on and figured out how to throw my drift rig between the casts of the other anglers. On my third cast I thought I'd snagged bottom until the bottom started shaking its head. I got a 27 inch hen. I had one more strike but that was it. I saw one other angler hook 3 and land 1, and never saw anybody else in the crowd touch one. I guess the sleet and snow must have turned off the fish, or maybe I wasn't watching very carefully. It was a great time, but man, the drive home sucked. Can't wait to do it again.



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[MMDon]

Great report! You certainly can find some folks to fish with at Ellis!
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