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

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.

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

BWO (Baetis) Mayflies.

Midges and Midge shucks.

By doing what the river told us and with careful observation, proper presentation, and the right fly patterns, those with trailing shucks, fish rose to imitations of tiny midge and BWO (Baetis) mayflies. Best dry fly patterns were Zelon and Scotty’s Midges and BWO Sparkle Duns, #20-22. Like my good Colorado friend, talented guide and angler Pat Dorsey says, “It’s a game of inches where everything has to come together. Fooling your opponent is the icing on the cake…”

Nice brown taken on a Zelon Midge #22

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.

Big brown taken during BWO emergence with #20 BWO Sparkle Dun.

ACTION IS THE CURE

No doubt, these are challenging times. But, while many who love wild places, wild and native fish and wildlife, and public land sit on their couches, mope and complain and let their conservation compass spin out of control, I find action is the cure.

Some question whether advocacy is dead, others complain they are losing their wealth during the pandemic and can no longer help fund the conservation programs they used to. Others point to figures like John Muir and Aldo Leopold and say these men were “dinosaurs”, and, “their conservation ethic is no longer found in society today”.

I ask these folks, “who created the grassroots advocacy and activism we’ve seen in the past”. The advocacy that created our nation’s wilderness areas and protects wild places, wildlife and public lands. That advocacy that keeps these places and their wildlife in the public trust in face of mounting pressure to open public lands to harmful development and activity.

So, who was it, you ask? It’s NOT Leopold or Muir. It is the tiny grassroot advocacy and activist organizations that organize bake sales, and raise money and awareness, and fight for the public trust, wildlife, wild and native trout and wild places. Organizations like Montana Trout Unlimited, Madison River Foundation, Mountain Journal, Western River Conservancy, Montana Sportsman’s Alliance, and Trust for Public Land. These well-run, effective and efficient groups are not the bloated national organizations that owe favors to dark money funding groups. They get the conservation job done for all of us who love wild and native trout, wildlife and wilderness. Please consider supporting these organizations, today in these troubling times they need our help more than ever.

This week Jackie and I met with Cottonwood Environmental Law Center to discuss their continued work keeping the Gallatin River’s water free from the potential negative impacts of Big Sky’s wastewater pollution. We also discussed bighorn sheep restoration in the Gravelly Mountain Range, a program we’ve worked hard to support and raise awareness of. Stay tuned.

Jackie has come out of retirement to join Mountain Journal’s Board of Directors. If you love Yellowstone country and its wilderness, wildlife and wild-native trout go to their website and sign up to receive their award winning and free email newsletters. Stay informed. Remember, MoJo believes science should lead the discussions and decision of the conservation and environmental issues facing Yellowstone country today and into the future. Support MoJo with an important donation too! It will keep awesome Yellowstone wildlife stories, science and informed decision making coming to your door

In mid-September I look forward to being a part of a 30-minute video podcast aired on Earth X Television called “Round the Fire”. Myself and Trevor Neilson, Co-Founder and CEO of 1X Investments will discuss climate change and other important conservation and environmental issues from a fishing and hunting perspective. I’ll keep you posted once the exact date and time is announced.

This week we explored a few small streams in Yellowstone country. You’ll see photos of our fishing junkets here. I enjoy these small streams and some large trout that can inhabit them.

In my little guidebook, The Yellowstone Fly-Fishing Guide, I discuss dozens of smaller waters in Yellowstone detailing what kinds of trout inhabit them, hatches and best flies and times to fish them and much more. The book discusses all Yellowstone waters. I am proud to donate proceeds from the sale of this book to the “Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout Program in the Park”. For more information on this program go to “Yellowstone Forever” and click on the link. The book is available by going to Blue Ribbon Flies website as well as on Amazon. Order from Blue Ribbon Flies and I’ll autograph it!

Thanks from Yellowstone’s native Yellowstone Cutthroat trout for your support.

Thank you for reading my report and blog, stay tuned here for more to follow soon.

And, have a great time enjoying and exploring Yellowstone country rivers, lakes and streams. They offer incredible wilderness fly fishing experiences that last a lifetime.

STANDING UP FOR YELLOWSTONE AND MONTANA’S WILD AND NATIVE TROUT

This week Jackie and I had the pleasure of meeting with Montana Trout Unlimited finest. Executive Director David Brooks, Development Director Kelley Willet and Watershed Project Manager Chris Edgington came to visit and fill us in on the latest programs and projects Mt TU is working on.

Meeting with Brooks, Willet, and Edgington near the Madison River.

This organization never, ever accepts a dime of “dark money”, instead relying on donations from folks like all of us to get their mission accomplished. Please, if you are not a member, join them today. In these challenging times we face today, donations to grassroots organizations that protect and preserve our wild and native trout and fly-fishing heritage are drying up. The worst thing we can do is to do nothing, the best thing we can do is act and support organizations that enhance and protect what we all know and love. Step up today and give what you can, please, and thank you! It turns out Montana TU is involved in restoration programs in the Jefferson River Valley along with their continued work on Rattlesnake Creek near Missoula and an important instream flow project here in the Madison Valley. Check their website for more, and stay tuned here for current information as it unfolds.

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This week I made good on my promise to donate a rare 1938 first edition copy of Howard Back’s iconic “The of Yellowstone Waters with Rod and Fly” to the West Yellowstone Public Library. Jackie and I drove into West Yellowstone and presented it to Head Librarian Steve Takata last Wednesday. This rare book will sit in the “Fly-Fishing/Angling Section” of the library along with the dozens of books we were able to work with the library to acquire from the Herbert Wellington collection of angling books. Herb was an old friend and we know he’s smiling knowing his books are a large part of this incredible collection of books.

Presenting the book to West Yellowstone Public Library.

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Mid-July is “Caddis Time” in Yellowstone country, and there’s no better place to find big trout rising to caddis than $3 Bridge on the Madison River. Most evenings as the sun sets behind the Gravely Mountain Range in the Madison Valley we see awesome sunsets and fish strong emergences of caddisflies.

Sunset at $3 Bridge.

I’ve been very busy at my fly-tying vise cranking out Amber Iris and X Caddis for the shop. Guess how many caddis are in this pile of Iris Caddisflies I recently delivered!

Last week Yvon Chouinard and I fished caddis activity in the evenings and mornings. Here’s a shot of Yvon trying to land a large brown trout without a landing net. The fish came to a #16 Tan X Caddis fished on Yvon’s favorite cane rod, a Leon Hansen 8’ 4 weight bamboo. Yvon did land the hefty brown along with several more.

Yvon with a nice brown trout.

Speaking of $3 Bridge, check out the new sign placed there by Western Rivers Conservancy, the organization that puts money directly into purchasing rivers and streams, keeping them open for public access, forever.

I was pleased to work with Western Rivers Conservancy, previously known as River Network, on the $3 Bridge Project several years ago. We were able to fund the purchase of 3 miles of river front property and turn it over to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to manage. At that time there were folks competing with us to buy the land and develop it that would have closed it off to the public forever. We used this purchase and resulting land deal as the spring board to put together another project directly upstream, the Olliffe Ranch Conservation Easement Program, to bring another mile of the Madison River into public hands with an easement that allows permanent public access to the next upstream one mile of river front, all the way to Raynolds Pass Bridge. I worked with my old friend Alex Diekmann, and Trust for Public Land, to put this project together using Land Water Conservation Fund monies. These 2 programs have served as a model on how to put together private and public partnerships and funding to accomplish projects that provide public access and protect wildlife migration corridors, wild-native trout habitat and open spaces for all future generations to enjoy, forever!

Summer is the time to enjoy public lands and wild trout on rivers like the Madison. And, it allows fly tiers like me to develop new fly patterns to present to selective trout on rivers like the Madison. This week I came up with a Spent Longhorn Caddis fly, size #16, to fool big fish selectively feeding on spent Oecetis sp. (Longhorn) Caddis. The adult females, after laying their eggs, lay spent on the surface of the water and large brown and rainbow trout relish them. You can see a photo below. The natural has a lovely bright green body. The Longhorn Caddis have long been a part of caddis fishing on the river but over the past 3 years this species of caddis have become one of the most important to imitate and fish for reasons unknown to us.

Spent Longhorn Caddis

Thanks for reading my blog and please, if you can, support grassroot organizations like Montana Trout Unlimited and Western Rivers Conservancy. These 2 fine organizations are barebones effective and efficient, and give fly fishers so much to be grateful for. I thank you in advance and stay tuned for the next report and blog post!

Help Support The Montana Water Rights Protection Act

This is very important. If you love native and wild trout like I do please join me in supporting Montana Trout Unlimited’s “Montana Water Rights Protection Act”.

Make sure you go to their website and learn about this important piece of legislation that will protect stream flows, ensure healthy fish, improve fisheries and help us protect our coldwater resources while strengthening local economies.

This is urgent so act today! Thanks in advance for your support!

My fishing buddy Terry and I have been fishing the Firehole and Madison Rivers in Yellowstone National Park. They’ve offered up some of the best early season dry-fly fishing we’ve seen in years but, that will change as the weather and waters warm and flows diminish. We might have a week or 2 left of stellar dry fly fishing left so get there ASAP if these streams are in your fishing plans!

Yesterday we explored a piece of small water before hitting the Madison below Elk Meadow. Pale Morning Duns were beginning to emerge and a few fish rose to the duns. Check out the photo of Terry who'd delivered an accurate cast to a brown trout that rose to his fly. The next photo shows him landing that trout.

Brown trout rising to dry fly.

Mid-day emergences of PMDs have provided anglers with great dry-fly fishing during their time on the water. Evening caddis activity has been strong as well. White Miller Caddis will continue to emerge on warm evenings and the number of fish that rise to them can be spectacular. Check the photo of the batch of Fluttering White Miller Caddis I tied this spring. What is left of those 20 dozen flies are in Blue Ribbon Flies bins so get their quick before they run out if evening caddis fishing is in your plans.

If you fish the Madison River in the park expect to take brown trout like the one pictured finning above my wading shoe along a favorite piece of water in the Madison River. Many of these larger brown trout are Hebgen Lake residents that ran up the river to spawn last fall and remained in the river in winter and spring. They’ll stay until the water temperatures warm, then return to the lake to take advantage of cooler water for summer before running back up the river to spawn this September. These lovely brown trout will come up on cloudy afternoons for emerging PMD and BWO mayflies, and in the evening for emerging caddis.

I had to take today off to catchup, tie a few flies to replenish those I’ve used, and get ready for Yvon to arrive this evening. We’ll fish and explore off-the-beaten-path waters the next several days. And I’m looking forward to showing Yvon sections of a local stream that have recently been restored along with a couple future conservation projects we hope to work on. Please stay tuned here, reports to follow!

Thank you for reading, and please support Montana Trout Unlimited’s “Montana Water Rights Protection Act” today!