According to Fly Fish Food, as of August 6, 2026, the Bighorn is in pretty darn good shape right now, running clear at 1,500 CFS below Yellowtail Afterbay Dam. They describe it as “slightly lower than last week and in excellent shape with clear water,” which is great news, except that clear water also gives Bighorn trout plenty of time to examine your fly, leader and possibly your life choices. Midges are the early-morning ticket, especially small Zebra Midges and Blowtorches in the flats and tailouts. From about 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., BWOs should take over, with Fly Fish Food calling it the “Prime BWO window.” PMDs are still kicking around too, and caddis and terrestrials should become more interesting toward evening.
With the river this clear and the fish seeing plenty of anglers, subtle seems to be the name of the game. Fly Fish Food also recommends dropping down to 5X or 6X and running at least a nine-foot leader for those tiny midge and baetis patterns. As the day heats up, look toward deeper slots, shaded banks and current seams, then start working ants and caddis closer to the banks later in the day. Their evening advice is to “skitter a CDC caddis through the riffles and drift ants tight to the grass before dark.” With daytime temperatures pushing into the 80s, the better fishing should bookend the day. Get there early, keep things small and sneaky, and save a little energy for that evening window when the caddis start doing caddis things…
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