Kootenai River Flow: 4,000 Cubic Feet per second 12 foot visibility, 35 degrees. Minimum flow
Koocanusa Inflow: 2,400 cfs
Hatches: Little Blue Quills, Midges, Silver stripe caddis are hatching on the warmer afternoons. Some March Browns starting to show
Effective Patterns
Dry: BWO, midge pupa, small parachute adams, all streamers, Red Quills.
Nymph and Streamers: Da Bomb, Beadhead Prince, Pheasant Tail, Stones and Midge Pupa, Soft Hackles. Black/Olive Conehead Wooly Buggers, Sculpins, Pat’s Rubber Legs.
Fishing Report: The river is at minimum flow and is running 35 degrees F. We are seeing some rising activity on the warmer afternoons, most activity is subsurface with some larger fish on streamers. Upper stretch closed for in stream spawning above Hwy 37 bridge to Dam, (4 miles) Fish the slower deeper water with nymphs and streamers, water is cold so fish slowly with occasional bumps and twitches with streamers. Runoff has started with low elevation snow melt. Fisher River and Libby Creek are high with some turbidity entering the Kootenai. Fishing has been decent however.
