Autumn Finale : Bitterroot Gold Rush

A rainy day in the Bitterroot and a chance to finish up a long-overdue post. Plenty of fish have been hitting the net these last few weeks and they all seem to look a little bit bigger in the autumn light. Maybe its the rich gold ambient color from the turning cottonwoods or the latent knowledge that the season is winding to a close that makes each strike better than the last. Hell, the next one might actually BE the last one for a long cold winter. Funny how a season worth of memories can compress into a single flash when a big fish swims off back into the deep. All the good people and times out on rivers throughout the state. Taking time gotta soak it up while we can is important to me every day but this time of year it seems to hit with a little more weight. I don't know, sentimental or some similar feeling. . ..

It has been a good month for catching up on this blog and sharing pictures accumulating from the busy wind-down to the guiding season. Only another week until it's off to British Columbia searching for the steelhead of a lifetime. The cleaning and cooking for weeks in camp is done with only a few tasks still remaining (such as packing all said food into the always-too-small coolers). Steelhead season is the definite turning of the calendar moment when the trout rods go away, the boxes of sneaky dry flies along with them and an entire different suit of weather-proof armor comes our of the closet for action. Nothing but bears, snow, and steelhead where we are heading. We have been dreaming of this for awhile now, its finally time to make the pilgrimage to the northlands. Wilder mountains await. Until Thanksgiving, see ya's.

Idaho Calling : Hells Canyon Snake River

This time of year gives us pro trout bums the freedom to get some days away from home waters and push the edge of the known horizon. Learn a new drainage, crack a few cold ones, entertain the girlfriends, catch a delicious bass, etc. And in this case tackle some more serious whitewater, more then I get to row even in the highest spring runoff around western Montana. Add the requisite sleeping under the stars, eating dutchoven style ever night , and drunkenly stumbling through camp waking up your fellow campers and you have the essentials of an excellent trip.

We got some insight into our upcoming adventure from a brewery regular the night before departure. The only part that stood out through the music and pub chatter was "rig to flip" and "how many throwbags do you have?" With these questions becoming a regular part of the mantra I began to wonder what kind of death defying adventure we had signed up for. So you fancy a little whitewater, Eh?? After a leisurely drive down Hwy 12 through Lochsa country we rendezvous with our crew after dark at the quaint bar in Whitbird, ID. Our crew assembled from across Montana, Idaho, Utah and even far off Colorado, nine strong and ready for a long chill weekend on the Snake. Some of our lot had run the canyon as many as four times. For most of us this was first row through it. This group had immediate chemistry

Day one saw us row only a few miles after meandering our way to the put-in and assemble all the boats. From guiding I expect to show up and the ramp and launch almost immediately. Not too often do I get to build up my raft from deflated to whitewater-ready. All I can say is that I used every strap I had and my boat was definitely the "experimental" boat compared to the fully rigged gear boats. Day two was when the real fun happened. Barely a quarter mile from camp waited the first major rapid of the trip. The roar of Wild Sheep shook whatever lingering sleepiness right out of me in a heartbeat. I don't like sheep, never trust em with those eyes and the un-earthly bleeting. A rapid named after one can't be that much fun either. I like rowing whitewater when it hits the upper Bitterroot and Alberton Gorge in high-water season, but set-your-watch-by-it class four rapid makes even the most confident stand at attention.

Following quickly after Wild Sheep was Granite Rapid, a monster compression wave that threatens to capsize a light boat or any boat that misses the opening tongue. After a good scouting from above we filed out towards the roar and unsettling fake horizon of foam, the kayakers goading each other until they all finally settled on taking the more intense right line through a pile of giant boulder eddies. Jackets on, knives out as the saying goes (is that a saying??).  I haven't done any whitewater like this since I was a teenager in Colorado so a little bit of rust has definitely settled in. Everyone's lines were good this time around and all made it through unscathed. The waves might have come over the bow a little bit but couldn't get a good grip for the flip. Whew!

With the major whitewater behind us we breathed a collective sigh of relief and got into full floating-party-wagon mode: If you want the wine, you gotta slap the bag. Good rule if you ask me. With confidence riding high the remaining class threes were tackled after a few beers were put under the belt and camp was drawing near. Marinara pasta, hummus, bag wine and strong whiskey cocktails ruled camp til the milky way came out in full and we howled at shooting stars. A bottled made the rounds and finally the patented bacon bomb was set off well after dark. Gotta keep your sunglasses close even at night around our crew. I might have crawled into the wrong sleeping bag at some point. Who knows for sure! Not all the evidence can be trusted and my recollection is foggy at best. Theres no pictures to speak of just like theres no pictures of all the smallmouth I caught. All and all a great trip down Hells and sure to not be the last one for me. Somewhere out over Hwy 12 the Snake River is calling my name.

Granite Rapid

Wild Sheep

Jump

Missouri River Trout Camp USA 2016

Things That October means for the Marauders:

SF Giants Baseball

Preparing For British Columbia

Canning & Wood Splitting

Trout Camp on the Mighty Missouri


This past weekend saw us take care of the last list item in style, taking over a large portion of Craig campground with fire, Makers, fly fishing and general revelry. This trip is the crescendo for our trout fishing for the season, the last swing at some giant dry fly fish before the sails are set for a different sort of swinging, that of the BC Steelhead kind. This is always listed high in the running of best times for fishing on the Mo' and we often take full advantage.

We were nine strong this year, all the regulars showing up from across Idaho and Montana for the double-birthday whiskey & dry fly showdown. These are the people that I would drive across damnation to fish with, college friends for seemingly forever and fishing partners through and through. The good people. When our raft armada from the rocky west side of the state cues up to take swings at pods in DriftBoatLandia the locals have to wonder if we have a clue or if we are just shooting in the dark. Rafts? On the Mo?? A quick stop at Headhunters is all you need, yo. Sarah, Ben & Co. keep the rods bent with the best bugs and fresh flourocarbon to boot. Sometimes they even hint at where all the really big fish are hanging. Anyway we found a few of them plus a nip at the old bottle of Dew, a pleasant sendoff to another excellent trout season. Until next year Mrs. Missouri. . . 

Rainy Day Throwback Thursday

Time for a timely flashback to the early summer days of Gortex, big water, and big brownies. Something about the scuzzy weather makes those toothy predators move around and hit the kill switch. I love it. When the fly gets engulfed not by a feisty 12" Rainbow but a hulking termanator Brown trout, your heart is liable to skip a beat. You'll feel it even through all the warm layers raingear, trust me. We are still a few weeks away from the final flush of autumn gold hitting the net with regularity, something I look forward to every season. You can always count on a Montana season starting and ending with a heart-pounding moment thanks to these stealthy killers.

Back to the present : Big high heat of mid-summer has us seeking shade these days. Kinda stomping on the trout bite. Add the ever-present smokey haze from area forest fires and you have the definition of Dog Days. We know its coming every year but it still comes as a shock, when the fish become sluggish, line-shy (you mean a Cutthroat can become line-shy??) and spooky to those casts that land in a heap. The promise of summer rain will keep us going though. No doubt about it there is something powerful about a summer cell building out in the Wilderness and hitting after dark, lightning and rain coming in sheets. Cooling down the river and heating up the bite. Keeping these fish happy. Maybe this weekend? Forecast looking more and more that way. Sunday is looking the wettest. And we are over due : By my observation is has been 28 days since we had meaningful precip. Too long, Momma Nature, too long.

The hoot owl restriction for our river have been lifted from Tucker Crossing to Missoula. The Blackfoot is open again as well and should stay open the rest of the year. The upper Bitterroot has been seeing most of our local pressure as it is holding cold and offering at least consistency. Much better for angling options than last season when the closure hit July 3rd and was from the confluence of the forks all the way down. West side of the state is holding strong, dodging bullets from fire and giving up some nice fish to those determined few. As far as the upper river and the WF last season our flows were awesome right up until the gates were closed Oct 1st. We have a touch more water than same time last season so we will see how long the tap stays open.

Blackfoot Weekend

The ol Blackfoot is a favorite of many Missoulians and world famous for the obvious reason. With the story of The Movie being based on the Blackfoot and it's surrounding communities it's a kind of fertile crescent for the flyfishing industry whether we like to admit it or not. I have often scoffed at this famous river for being home to too damm many inner-tubers and, well, not enough consistent, large dry fly fish to warrant the hype. Well, by golly I might be a' changing my mind after floating there last week. With some repeat clients in tow and a new river on the brain we headed north at first light to give the old Blackfoot a try.

Every now and then during a guide season a river shows up and delivers on its reputation, lock stock and barrel with cutties flying everywhere. Scenery, weather, big fish, and solitude all come together into a perfect storm. A little jaunt up north to bull trout country was a welcome break from the usual stretches of familiar water.  Good fishing or not you can only row the same river so many days in a row before the crankiness sets in. The "guide glaze" from a month straight on the river is something we all fight. Tho we didn't tangle with any Bullies chasing our cutthroat to the net we gave them every opportunity, hooking into a bushel of nice trout all on the dry. Just enough of them, in fact, to make me wonder if I should stop on my seasonal drives to the Missouri for more than just a beer break at Trixies.

Summer Fire Season: Fire On The Mountain

Big fire rolling through the national forest outside of Hamilton today. Roaring Lion Fire is the latest reminder of how hot and dry our forests are and how fast one can blow up on you. Starting at 2pm yesterday and growing to over 2,000 acres in five hours is just amazing. I have a front row seat from my house watching helicopters bomb it, dipping low in the foothills to refill buckets and circle back for another pass. The highway is a constant flow of emergency vehicles and fire equipment. Last night the glow reached all the way through the foothills around Ward Mountain. All of Goat Mountain ablaze. I'm praying for my friends whose homes are in danger right now and my friends and family fighting this blaze. Be safe up there Brothers! The darker more dangerous side of living in the rocky mountain west is coming home big time right now.


Check out Inciweb for the latest:

http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4913/

Evening View From Homestead