I just returned from fishing my way to eastern Montana, Wyoming and South Dakota.

I enjoy spending time in the turkey woods and on the prairie this time of year. Pasque flowers dot the pine hills and pincushions and phlox litter the prairie floor. The sounds of male sharptail and sage grouse whopping it up on their dancing leks trying to attract females to mate with echo off nearby buttes. It’s a great way to spend some spring time in the woods and on rivers not far from our Yellowstone country home. I do this not because I find fishing or turkey hunting so terribly important, but because I suspect to many of the other concerns of men are equally unimportant, and not nearly as much fun!

The turkeys cooperated by coming to our soft-quiet calling from slate, box and mouth calls. Patience was key too, we had to wait it out on a couple big birds who took as much as an hour to travel a short distance to our location.

If you love Montana’s native and wild trout make sure you are a current member of Montana Trout Unlimited.

This organization is keeping our politicians and appointed officials honest at this critical time in native and wild trout management. There’s been attempts to do away with current stream restoration and native /wild trout enhancements projects within our state. Science is taking a backseat to political agenda. Montana Trout Unlimited is our watchdog. Support them now like you’ve never done before. We cannot afford to compromise what we’ve long fought for. Stay informed, write letters and comment on these proposals. Let’s continue to fight the good fight to protect-restore and enhance all the great work that has been done in the past and into the future to keep Montana’s native and wild trout programs the world’s leader in fisheries management. Support Montana Trout Unlimited today! Thank you.

Since 1996 Jackie and I have been involved as Board of Directors and Emeritus Board members of Yellowstone Forever, formerly known as Yellowstone Park Foundation. For several years it’s been an honor to serve on these boards.

And, even after retiring from them we continue to work hard with Yellowstone Forever helping fund, and raise public awareness for their ongoing “Save the Yellowstone Cutthroat” and native fish conservation projects in Yellowstone National Park.

One continuing program has been the ongoing gill netting of invasive lake trout on Yellowstone Lake. Several years we as a YPF Board committed to supporting this program with a $1 million dollar yearly gift to the help fund the project. Working with Wyoming Trout Unlimited Special Project Manager Dave Sweet has been filled with successes, and rewards beyond words. For 12 years Dave’s tireless efforts have finally brought victory within sight. For the first several years some doubted success could be achieved, but with Dave’s hard work and that of Yellowstone Forever’s JD Davis and Yellowstone National Park’s staff, Yellowstone Lake’s irreplaceable and invaluable cutthroat trout are seeing the benefits of the project. Check out this article and contribute if you can. LINK HERE.

Glacier Lilies are ripe in Yellowstone country as are other spring wildflowers like Bluebells, Buttercups, Phlox and Shooting Stars. Within 50 yards from where I write this remain snowdrifts over 16 feet deep. As they recede in warmer springtime temperatures wildflowers show.

This morning 3 cow elk, their bellies sagging with the weight of the calves they carry, walked through our aspens below the house. We’ll see their calves within the next 2 weeks as they begin to drop them. Some cow elk have learned to have their young close to homes to avoid lion, wolf and grizzly predation.

Spring Baetis (BWO’s) are still emerging on the Madison River along with midges. This past winter and early spring season has offered up some of the best midge fishing we’ve seen in several years. I’ve been on the river over 60 days since February fishing dry flies to rising trout. The tiny BWO’s emerged 3 days in a row earlier this week. Yesterday though, even in idea conditions, the tiny olive duns took a day off to recharge after 3 strong afternoons of hatching. Ideal conditions for strong emergences are overcast, cool afternoons with rain or snow bringing on the best hatches.

Last-evening I decided to check out the river above the West Fork in hopes of finding a few fish rising. Arriving at 7p.m. winds were calm, light rain fell and fish rose to midges. Interestingly the fish were all large, and all brown trout. Don’t you just hate fishing to big-fat, rising brown trout? I scored a couple browns that ran and jumped several times. The fish were very healthy and colored up like fall run brown trout. The fish came up for a #18 Scotty’s Midge. I’ll be there again this evening and I hope to see you soon on one of Yellowstone country’s rivers!

Until next time, please stay safe and keep well, and thank you for reading my blog!

"It's a game of inches..."

I just returned from fishing my way to eastern Montana, Wyoming and South Dakota.

Taking big trout required patience too, and figuring out what the fish were rising to.

If you love Montana’s native and wild trout make sure you are a current member of Montana Trout Unlimited.

GREAT NEWS!!! Lake trout numbers decline on Yellowstone Lake!

Since 1996 Jackie and I have been involved as Board of Directors and Emeritus Board members of Yellowstone Forever, formerly known as Yellowstone Park Foundation. For several years it’s been an honor to serve on these boards.