NF Coeur d'Alene River 5/18/18

Current River Flows;

NF Coeur d'Alene  Shoshone Creek - 2,190 CFS, Cataldo 8,260 CFS  Water Temp 48
St Joe 12,900 CFS
Clark Fork St Regis, MT 51,100 CFS  BIG WATER!

Almost everywhere you go in Northern Idaho or Montana you will experience heavy runoff. Except on the NF of the CDA.  We fished it Wed. and found the higher up you went in the the basin of the NF CDA the water became clearer and the flows were very manageable.  You will have have to pick your spots and be patients, but your patience will pay off.  We arrived at about 11:00 AM and until 1:00 PM we experienced a buffet of hatches.  We saw Stones, Skawalla, March Browns, Caddis, and a few Salmon Flies.  What we did not see were any risers.  We had success on large stones fly nymphs, i.e.  Pats, Gallop Warbirds and The Fly Formerly Known as Prince.  But we caught the largest fish on streamers.  Smaller articulating stream such as Mini Sex Dungeons, Heisenbergs, and Masked Avengers worked best.  I started with brighter streams, oranges, yellows and purples because the the water is still a little cloudy and did not have much success.  But when I switched over to grays and greens the action picked up.  The fish we caught all looked very healthy, but with the water temp at 48 degrees the takes were very soft.  If you are dead drifting on the swing keep your line tight or you could miss some hits.  

The Joe won't be fishing for a while.  But the NF of the Joe could be an option.  Moon Pass from Wallace to Avery is now open.  This tributary is fed by lower elevation snow and should be fishable.
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The Clark Fork is blown out at 51,100 CFS and with the every stream and tributary emptying into it from Butte it could be a while.

That said, unless you are willing to travel to The "MO" or SE Idaho for the SF of the Snake or Henry Fork you will be hard pressed to find a fishable stream, EXCEPT the NF of the CDA.  Stop by the shop to get a full run down on Flies or better yet book a guided trip to the NF of the CDA we have openings!  The shop is now open Wed-Sun.