Brule River Fishing Report 03/26/2023
The Brule river is now open for steelhead fishing downstream of hwy 2 for the 2023 spring season. There is still about 3-4 feet of snow in spots so make sure to plan accordingly, snowshoes can help a ton when getting to those less crowded areas of the river that don’t have a solid boot pack yet. There are lots of colored up steelhead held over from the fall run as well as a few lake run browns. We found fish in most sections of the river which was great to see! There is a lot of ice near the mouth of the river not making it easy for fresh fish to get in quite yet, although I’m sure there has to be some fresh ones making their way through it. This time of year, steelhead are and will be spawning, so always be gentle with the fish this time of year and remember to keep an eye out for redds and please be mindful when wading the river. if you see a shallow, gravel run there is most likely a redd there so try to fish the deeper runs and not pick on the spawning fish. The Brule river is such a special place because we have natural reproducing fish, unlike a lot of other great lakes tribs, so always respect the resource.
As far as river conditions go, there are lots of ice shelves in certain areas. These will break off over time as it warms up so always use caution when standing on or in front of these. I had a huge one collapse behind me on this past trip and it would have not been good if someone would have been standing below it. Water temps were ranging between 38* F and 42* F throughout the day. Nymphing with bugs and egg patterns was very productive per usual. Even with cold water temps, we did manage to get a few grabs swinging flys on two-handed rods. (TIP: the colder the water temps the more you want to try and slow your swing down, large mends and high sticking can help control the speed of that shooting head). Looking forward to the rest of the spring run and I hope everyone has a great and safe season out there!
I have some availability open for guided trips in late April and early May yet, so please reach out if you’d like to book a guided trip.
