Our beautiful overcast, gloomy, and wet weather has subsided and now is trending to sunshine and a little breezy.  It was a good run, nearly six weeks, of favorable fall fishing weather.  Fear not however, a tactical adjustment on the anglers end can quickly change the balance.  Today is Friday, and this would be a great weekend to get out and fish one of the local lakes.  Earlier this week, we fished a couple rivers which were both fair fishing with spawning being a real factor.  We also got out on a few lakes, which were providing great action on the big fly.  Lake fish are well shouldered, angry, and typically go berserk after a whole summer getting big and strong.  Many anglers hit the rivers above the lakes, so typically the lakes themselves are empty.   Dry fly enthusiast' should keep an eye on the tailwaters, such as the Beaverhead or the Missouri.  Fish are rising to blue winged olives in a variety of sizes on a daily basis on these rivers.  Sometimes a bunch of fish rising, sometimes not.  Long leaders, and take your time on these fish.  Overall, November is a fun month and as soon December rolls in, November is truly missed.

Above you see four streamer rods, rigged with a floating line, intermediate (Airflo 40+ 7 wt minus 1' for better turnover on a Winston bllx 790 - A+++ setup), and two streamer max shorts (160 grain on 6 wt Echo Ion, 200 grain on 8 wt Sage DS2).  And little a four weight for the risers.  This time of the year can mean both fishing very shallow and down deep.  This might even occur on the exact same stretch of river.  With the sun up, get out there early and stay out late.  That will see the most fish up on the shallow edges.  Enter the Airflo 40+ Intermediate.  Having the "barely sink" allows you to make anchored casts/loads better and keep the stripping tight instead of jumping rope.  The slack from jumping rope can crush your dreams when Walter eats.  

 At left: Big fish in lakes pull down. Over thirty feet from that rod tip to the fly, and that is after already stripping in 30+'. HAWT.

At right: The EXACT Smoke N' Mirrors #4 dressed like Tim McGraw that caught the beast, which is retired on the fly post. Brown boots, white tee, and blue jeans.  AKA Tim McCraw.  That fly had a career season in 2016. Click to find in the store. 

During the day, the streamer bite is often amazing this time of the year but you need to be thinking about larger rivers and lakes where you can fish water in the 4-10' range.  The Airflo Streamer max short is the go to line here, and is also the line of choice when the wind blows.  Be sure to line down with this line and disregard the line weight rating.  It is a mini shooting head that is an absolute weapon, and the 200 grain that is rated for a 6wt line confidently loads up every eight weight I have ever tried in on.  The 160 and 200 grain versions are the ultimate in streamer lines for six and seven weight rods.  They are deadly for single hand spey techniques, and blow through the wind with a big fly in tow like nothing else on the market.  Not the quietest entrance for glassy water situations, however a longer leader goes a long way.  Remember to keep the blue head part of the line either in the rod or right off the tip prior to launch.  Take it back low, and aim high on the delivery.  If you are new to this line, or shooting heads, make sure to cast without the fly for a few minutes until you get a feel for giving yourself plenty of clearance. This is not your favorite dry fly line for elk hair caddis on the Gallatin.  

Very rarely, in small water conditions, will the floating line come into play with the streamer.  Too much slack.  Nothing loses big ones like slack.   Period.  Maybe setting the hook with the rod.  Tough to say.   In the photo above, a six pound, lake dwelling, Tim McCraw eating brute of trout had just completed sixty foot depth charge after annihilating the brown/white/blue crawdad suggesting version of the Smoke N' Mirrors.  Scott absolutely crushed it in the line control department as the rod taco-d over again and again.  The hawg ate the fly on the third strip, cartwheeled once in a big commotion and dove for the safety of the depths.  Magic.

The above fish was also caught in stillwater on the Tim McCraw #4.  Also fought very hard.  Before this year is over, try a new place that has alway been tempting but that you never actually followed through with.  Let us know how it goes.

New spots take belief and persistence.  

Good luck,

-Dirty Water Dan