E-11 Friday Morning Flow Report

Greetings Fellow Extravaganzers:

 

As Patty will show on her updated flow chart that will be posted when she arrives in the office this Friday morning, “da flow she is on the rise ag’in” with the current discharge rate along and in Rock Creek being 3,900 cfs.    Watch for this number to dramatically increase over this weekend and early into next week [perhaps to new record highs] as temperatures in the Missoula area (which have been down right cold this past week) are likewise now set to soar into the 80 degree range.

 

All of this is good news for us as there is still a bunch of that white stuff left in the upper climes to thaw out and melt down.  To that end, current precipitation levels in the Bitterroot Mountain range (with the Bitterroot River being our targeted river this year—my bet is that over 75% of our 100+ boats will float that wonderful fish-filled epic river) showing at 116% of twenty year averages and yet up to 50% of the snowpack yet to run off.  While our overall precipitation is not that far above norm, what is interesting about this year’s runoff is that the “water content” of the snowpack is over 200% of normal.  For you skiers out there, you know the difference between powder (low water content snow) and “corn snow” (high water content snow)—well, we have a whole lot of corn in those upper fields as, for you math majors out there, 50% of 200% = 100%, and we have yet a full year’s normal flow of water yet ahead of us.

 

In talking with our Double Up Outfitter John “The Great But Propaneless” Gould yesterday, by all accounts, we are teed up for a big water, lights out year on the Bitterroot this year.  Unlike the Blackfoot and Clark Fork rivers which are not dam-regulated, the Bitterroot River (like our back up fishing river, the Missouri River) is dam regulated (and that is damn good!) to that the vagaries of Mother Nature have a water flow governor on them.  Propaneless fishes the Bitterroot 90% of his fishing days and when he tells me yesterday that “big water on the Bitterroot = big fish”, both he and I know from first hand fishing experience that such is very much the case.

 

This is my last Friday in the Bay Area for a month, gang—we are getting that close!  When I arrive in Missoula next Thursday, June 9^th, the first thing I am going to do is have lunch with John to finalize our guide assignments and, with him, develop a fishing plan for E-11.  Look for a (very) meaningful and relevant update by this time next week!!

 

Best to all in eager anticipation of it all!!

 

Rock Creek Ron

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