Tuesday, October 4th, 2011
A couple of weeks ago the guys here at the shop decided it was time for me to be introduced to the fine art of fly fishing for carp. I have been fly fishing for over forty years now and if anyone had told me the day would come when I would purposely go out and target carp with a fly I would have told them that they were out of their minds. I know that chasing carp on a fly has become a popular pastime for a number of fly fishermen over the past several years but I have not been able to warm up to the idea. I have said no way, not me. But, when Dan and Jim insisted I give it a try, I said what the hell, maybe this old dog could be taught a new trick. We met at the shop early one morning, loaded up the gear, and headed on over to the upper Missouri River.
The first thing I noticed as we were getting Dan’s boat ready was that Dan had made a few modifications to his skiff. His boat looked more like a saltwater flats boat than a river dory. He had outfitted the boat with casting platforms fore and aft. I would soon learn that the platforms aided in spotting fish at a much greater distance than a standard skiff or drift boat. I would also learn that this is a real plus when chasing carp. These fish, as I would also learn rather quickly, can be as sensitive to an anglers’ approach as any spring creek trout. A funny thing happened on our way to fly fishing for carp. By the time we had stopped for lunch we had only caught a handful of nice 17 to 19 inch rainbow trout. This prompted me to ask: Now there are carp in this river aren’t there? I couldn’t believe what happened next. I thought I had entered the Twilight Zone! The three of us, three guys who have spent their entire adult lives in the fly fishing business for the most part chasing trout, were standing on the banks of the Missouri River cursing the fact that all that we had caught to that point in the day was a handful of lousy trout. Where were all those sporty carp I had been told about?
Well, after lunch, I decided to give Dan a rest from the oars and let him show a couple of rookies how it is done. It didn’t take Dan long to get into a couple of nice carp and to prove to Jim and I that there were indeed carp in the river and that they could be caught. Of course I couldn’t let him take all of the credit so I boldly suggested that his success had a lot to do with my great oarsmanship.
Before the day was over I was able to hook my first carp on a fly even though I lost the beast when I let it run into the middle of the river and out into the heavy current where it came unbuttoned. I have to admit by the end of the day I completely enjoyed the experience, especially the visual aspect of carp fishing. It is very much like bonefish/redfish fishing in salt water and I look forward to next season and the chance to give carp fishing another try.
Monday, September 19th, 2011
Confluence Films, the outfit that has brought you great fly fishing films like “Rise” and “Drift” are at it again with the latest creation “Connect.” Shot on location in Japan, Yellowstone National Park, the Yukon drainage of Alaska, the flats of Cuba, the coast of Maine, and in the wilds of Tanzania, Africa, this feature-length movie will once again transport viewers around the world in search of new waters and exhilarating travel experiences.
The World Premiere of CONNECT will be Saturday, October 8 at The
Ellen Theater in Bozeman, Montana! Show times are at 5:00 P.M. and 8:00 P.M. Tickets are $10.00 and now available here at the River’s Edge. Get your tickets while the gettin’s good!
Sunday, September 11th, 2011
Last week my wife and I drove down to Yellowstone Park to try our hand at catching a few Yellowstone Cutthroats on the Lamar River. We arrived early in the morning and immediately began to fish. I wasn’t too concerned when we didn’t start catching fish right away. The Lamar heads in pretty high country and my experience has taught me to allow the river a few hours of warming up under a bright late summer sun before the action begins. What I was not expecting was one fish between the two of us by noon. I decided we should take a break and head back to the truck for lunch and some reconnoitering.
On our way back we ran into Montana fly fishing icon George Kelly. I asked George how his morning had gone and he reported that his had not been much better than ours. However, his fishing buddy had done quite well fishing a pink flippy floppy. Since I had never heard of a flippy floppy fly I had to ask George what the hell it was. George’s answer was pure George Kelly. The term flippy floppy is one that George uses to describe all of the new age foam patterns that are now in vogue throughout the west. Apparently, in George’s mind, these foam patterns conjure up an image of us fishermen tying on bits and pieces of someone’s old discarded shower clogs. Something that George just can’t make himself do. Generally I have held the same opinion of these new foam patterns so it goes without saying that I had no flippy floppies, especially pink ones, in any of my fly boxes. Since going fishless or close to it was not an option I wanted to entertain after such a long drive when George’s fishing partner finally showed up I very politely inquired as to what pattern he had used with such success. He proudly showed me a handful of foam hopper patterns of which one in particular he said worked the best. When I asked him what he called the thing he somewhat sheepishly replied Trixie the Hooker. In my mind I thought, of course, what else would you call a pink foam fly pattern.
Well, I might be somewhat of a stubborn old traditionalist, but I’m not so stubborn that I can’t be convinced to try something new, especially if it worked as well as this guy claimed it did. Lucky for me I had packed a few PBR’s on ice before I left home so I had something to barter with. The offer of a couple of ice cold beers on a hot September day was all it took to procure a few Trixies for myself and my wife. After lunch we headed back to the river with our new flies and great skepticism. It did not take long for our skepticism to evaporate in the warm afternoon sunshine. We proceeded to take a good number of cutthroats in the 15” to 18” size category and everyone of them on pink Trixie the Hookers. So, the moral of this little story is, never go to the northeast corner of Yellowstone Park without a couple of Hookers.
Sunday, August 28th, 2011
Last week I thought I might write a blog about fishing for brook trout, a fish that is prized by some but despised by many. This is a non-native fish that many blame for the disappearance of Montana’s native cutthroats, especially in headwater streams where brook trout have been extensively planted, both legally and illegally, in years past. I invited my friend Tad Sweet to accompany me on my quest. Tad grew up in New York state where brook trout our native and considered a prize even to this day. I knew Tad would jump at the opportunity to fish for these beautiful and sporty little gems. We loaded up our 7 ½’ 3 weight rods, an ideal choice for 6 to 10 inch brookies, and headed for the upper Boulder River south of Big Timber. We left Bozeman early in the morning so we could stop for breakfast at Pinky’s in Livingston, always a fun stop for a good breakfast or lunch. With our stomachs full we continued on towards our destination via the Swingley Road to Mcleod and then on up past the Natural Falls to the upper Boulder. Once there we hurriedly lined up and headed to the water. I selected a Trude to begin my quest. This is a pattern that has proven to be my go to fly when it comes to brook trout or any other trout for that matter. Tad opted to start with his favorite all around pattern, an Adams Parachute. We hit the water with unbridled enthusiasm. Two hours later, with only one small rainbow to show for our combined efforts, our unbridled enthusiasm had turned to downright despair.
Neither one of us had expected it to be that hard to catch a mess of usually aggressive and mostly unselective brook trout. We were pretty dejected to say the least as we sat and ate our lunch next to this beautiful mountain stream. After lunch I decided to take a walk down to the water’s edge to see if there was anything going on in the way of a hatch. I was hoping that the afternoon sun had warmed the water enough to generate some sort of insect activity. What I saw was absolute delight and totally unexpected. There were a number of mayflies in the air and on the water and the fish were feeding on them aggressively. What I saw was a large olive mayfly which I was able to easily identify as a Green Drake. Which species of Green Drake I’m not quite sure. All I know is that once I tied on a size 12 Green Drake Para-Wulff the catching was on.
Tad and I spent the next couple of hours hooking and landing a good number of beautiful and feisty Boulder River rainbows in the 11 to 14 inch size category, nice fish for a piece of water of this size, and great sport on three weight rods. The long drive home was a joyous one with the exception that we did not accomplish our main objective. Not once during the Green Drake hatch and subsequent feeding frenzy did we catch a single brook trout. Oh well, my expose’ on brook trout will just have to be put on hold for another day.
Saturday, August 13th, 2011
Every year my wife and I like to take a handful of days and fish some of the small lesser known creeks and streams around the area. What we enjoy about the small stream experience is the solitude and the more relaxed less demanding fishing. What small stream fish lack in size they make up for in numbers and beauty.
And, often times, we catch a fish or two in the 14” to 18” size category. A real trophy in a small stream caught on light tackle. Most years at the end of the season we find ourselves talking more about the 16” cutthroat or rainbow that we caught on some small stream than the 20” fish we took on some bigger river. Last week we decided to take one of those small stream days. We packed the gear into the old black pick-up and headed west toward Anaconda and the Mt. Haggin Wildlife Management Area. However, before we got too far out of town we stopped at one of our favorite restaurants, the Garden Café in Manhattan, for breakfast. If you have never had breakfast, or for that matter lunch or dinner, at the Garden Café you are missing out on one of the areas unique dining experiences. The place is pure Montana. The food is great, the portions are big and the price is right.
After a hearty breakfast we were back on the road heading for the 56,151 acre Mt. Haggin Wildlife Management Area and the small streams that traverse the mountains there. After about a two and a half hour drive we arrived at our destination and found exactly what we were hoping for and have come to expect from our small stream fishing experiences. A beautiful small mountain stream, and except for an occasional vehicle passing by between Anaconda and the Big Hole valley, not another fisherman in sight. We rigged up, put on a couple of Royal Coachman Trudes, and headed to the water. The creeks in the Mt. Haggin area are inhabited by brookies, small rainbows, an occasional cutthroat and a rare grayling. It didn’t take long before we were into several small but beautiful brook and rainbow trout. We proceeded to enjoy a very relaxing, no pressure day of fishing. We arrived home later that evening completely refreshed and ready for another week of work.
