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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.