I always label my articles with the month and year. It was a little shocking to title this one “August 2025”. It is, after all, several weeks away. I then reflected that August doesn’t feel so far away. It has felt like August since our long cool Spring started giving way to Summer weather. My fishing journal says about June 11th things started heating up and I don’t recall seeing much of a break since then. I don’t remember having heat like we have this year. I would also talk about August as a “multiple meaning word” to my students. With synonyms such as respected, majestic, and admired, August stands out. I have, and will undoubtedly always think of August as being one word, hot.

Summer weather provides a big shift in the way I fish, both for fun and as a fishing guide. Of course I view the year as a calendar like anyone else but more often than not it is the fishing seasons that dictate what I do. I have said on these pages before that I like to have variety in my angling pursuits. Big shifts in strategy and species happen for me as a result. Starting the year in solitary waters I fight numb toes and fingers hoping for that one or two hungry mid-winter trout on fly equipment. As water warms, and warmwater fish move shallow I begin using some of the same trout equipment on crappies and bluegills on drop-offs. After selectively harvesting some panfish for fresh or frozen meals it becomes more about trying new tactics and flies. Right about when the cottonwood trees finish their maddening hatch of cottonwood seeds, I am ready to move on.

As a fly fishing angler first, the transition to other equipment is at first a tough decision to make. With a fly rod the goal is rarely to catch a giant, or catch as many as I can. It is about the process. At a certain point though, it is much more effective to use spinning equipment to pursue species of fish that have not been targeted yet in the year. When I need to cleanse my soul, I forgo the “easy stuff” and get back to fly gear.

Around the end of June and beginning of July I start to book more fishing trips. This increase in trips also tends to coincide with air temperatures in the 80’s and 90’s, and as a result water surface temperatures in the 80’s. Trout fishing should have already ended, as warm water (think mid 70’s in rivers) will kill these fish, especially if they are stressed by being caught. Warmwater fish (think bluegills, crappies, perch, bass) have moved back to drop-offs, weed cover, and more importantly cooler water. I believe fishing is better in May and early June however as a guide you have to be able to fish anytime, and help people catch fish. Around here, the water temperature break, or thermocline, occurs around 10-12 feet deep. This is the “Goldilocks zone” for most fish species. Slip bobbers can effectively target these depths, as well as some other strategies. I tend to go beyond the thermocline and jig with a tight line. This targets my seasonal favorite, perch. In reality this strategy can catch almost any fish in the lake, which makes it exciting because you never know what is reeled up next. I use some perch rigs that I devised a couple of years ago, and while they are not a secret, I don’t advertise them. I get great joy from seeing them work, and in the hands of people I just taught to use them. This strategy will be employed for several more months before things change again.

At first I feel that August, and the heat that surrounds this month, reduces the chance to do what I enjoy most. I don’t see August as admired, majestic, or respected. At least not at first. What I do appreciate about the heat is that it gives me a pause. A chance for variety in pursuit, which is something I actively seek. My first time using spinning equipment this year provided an excellent day of perch fishing. For a 30 minute timeframe I couldn’t not catch a fish. All on a day where I was just out to test a new trolling motor and fixing my trailer. I am not sure why I fight the change in seasons.What I do know is that I will enjoy this for a little bit and share that enjoyment with others while the season lasts.