Happy Independence Day! No better way too spend the holiday weekend than on the river. Sure it's been hot here, and yes, rivers are lower than we'd like to see them, and yes there are some rivers with hoot owl restrictions on them (meaning fishing is closed from 2pm to midnight but open otherwise) but [...]
Seems impossible to believe that it's already June - times moves fast as does everything in this period of great transition that we call spring. May was a fantastic month on several levels. For one, the the fishing was fantastic and while I have spent most of my time on the Missouri there were plenty [...]
Perhaps the only thing more difficult than predicting spring weather is forecasting insect activity on the river - obviously the two are related and recently they've both been all over the map. Just a week ago it was nearly 80 degrees and sunny - rivers were on the rise and we were scrambling for options. [...]
It's been a great week on the river, classic spring weather with everything from wind, rain and snow and temps ranging from the high 30s to 70. And from the upper and lower Madison to the Missouri it's been a mixed bag of midges and blue winged olives with a few San Juan worms and [...]
There is no question that spring weather in Montana is a roller coaster ride - conditions change by the day, sometimes by the hour. In the past week we've had snow, rain, cold, clouds, sun, wind, even more wind and now, as we head into the weekend, predictions that temps will be in the 70s. [...]
The Baetis (aka Blue Winged Olive) hatch is in full swing on the Yellowstone and is likely getting started on the other rivers and streams as well. The snow, rain, clouds and cooler temps as of late are just what the doctor ordered. It's been fantastic out there. Parachute Adams, H&L Variant, Baetis Sparkle Dun, [...]
The Yellowstone put on a late March show today - perfect conditions with cloud cover and light winds led to a strong midge emergence followed by the first blue winged olive hatch I've seen this year. Fish responded well to imitations of both well. The H&L Variant #16 was hard to beat as it's a [...]
Though my favorite fishing during the months of March and April consists of the dry fly activity that frequently occurs with midges and spring Baetis on overcast, calm days, the reality is that not all days are cloudy or calm. Sun and wind is common and as a result we are often forced to work [...]
In an era when fly fishing for trout is synonymous with the practice of catch and release, one almost forgets the fact that trout can be great to eat. For all the right reasons, there are many modern trout anglers who have never kept, or even thought of keeping, any of their fish. Why? Because [...]
Plan A was simple - pick up my anglers, head to the Madison, rig the rods, launch the boat, find some rising fish, catch them like crazy then head home. But a changing forecast and predicted windspeeds that had gone from a little to a lot, threatened to destroy this ingenious plan of attack. After [...]
