Any anglers out there?

[Tennessee Dave]

Part 1, Montana Fly Fishing Notes from my Journal
I love the sport of fly fishing and of course the worthy opponent is the trout. My first experience of it was back in the 70's during my assignment to Idaho to learn how Nuclear Reactors worked for the US Navy. I had a few days on the stream and caught a few fish but I was not very good at it. A commercial nuclear power career later I moved back to the Southeast and took up fly fishing again in the Great Smoky Mountains. I developed some skill and confidence and a deep yearning set in to fish the fabled waters in the Trout Capital of the World...Montana. I put it very high on my bucket list. That item got crossed off In September 2010.

Via my friends and Tennessee fishing fishing guides Ian and Charity Rutter of Townsend, Tennessee, I booked a trip for 7 nights and 6 days of guided fishing at the Gallatin River Lodge in Bozeman, Montana. This location would allow me to fish the Yellowstone, Missouri, Gallatin and Madison Rivers.

I left Dayton and drove to Atlanta for the flight to Bozeman via Denver, Colorado. When I arrived on a Friday morning in Bozeman I was met by Keith Colessimo of the Gallatin River Lodge. I knew that I was in for a trip of a lifetime upon my arrival at the lodge.

Lunch was prepared for me and I met the owner, Steve Gamble. He was also my guide for the two days I spent on the Yellowstone and Madison River. After lunch I had the entire afternoon to wander around the lodge and the lodge grounds as my first day of fishing was not until Saturday. I use the term lodge rather loosely as it is actually a secluded luxury hotel with outstanding dining. My room was a suite with a fireplace, Jacuzzi and first class furnishings. It is a small "lodge" of only about 10 suites. It is truly world class.

I had a nice, hot soak in the Jacuzzi and sipped on a flask of Balvenie Doublewood to rid myself of the jet lag that the 3 hour time difference brought. That entire first day and evening I was the only guest in the lodge though at dinner time the locals showed up in mass for the fabulous dining. I now know what it must be like to be the King of England as I was afforded the best service and attention to detailed that I had ever experienced. This continued throughout my stay at the "lodge".

I went to bed Friday night full of excitement and anticipation for the next morning. I was so excited to fish that I don't think I even needed to set that alarm for the 6 a.m. wake up. I had set some personal goals for this trip. I hoped to catch a Rainbow and a Brown trout of at least 20 inches. My backup goal was to catch a bunch of 16 inchers. Seemed reasonable to me. On Saturday I was going to fulfill a lifelong dream. I was going to fly fish the fabled streams of the Trout Capital of the World...Montana.

Here is a link to the lodge's website so that you can get some idea of what greeted my smiling face as I arrived. http://grlodge.com/bozeman-hotel-lodge

 

[Tennessee Dave]

Part 2, Montana Fly Fishing Notes from my Journal
Let me start this post off by telling you that this trip was expensive to me. I saved for a long time for this trip. Future trips to Idaho did not cost nearly as much and have been every bit as rewarding.

Saturday Day One

I awoke on Saturday about as excited as a 60 year old man can be and still survive. The rest of my fishing party was not to arrive until Sunday. I ordered breakfast and met my guide for the day, Tracy. Over breakfast he asked me if I wanted to catch a lot of fish or if I would rather take a shot at a trophy. Since it was my first day with 5 other days left I did what any good ole' boy would do and opted to go after the big one. After breakfast we took the almost 1 hour drive to the Missouri River. We went by the famed 3 Forks where Lewis and Clark camped on their Western Expedition. Tracy knew all the history of the area and that added tremendously to the experience.

Tracy is a young man in his late 20's. We discussed how we were going to approach the day. Weather was near perfect. High 40's, overcast and no wind. We started out fishing a bead head nymph with a crawfish dropper. I was surprised that we fished in the same kind of water as I was used to in Tennessee. Fishing that dropper rig involved very easy casting straight back and out. The mending was like it was back home in Tennessee so I got comfortable pretty quickly. Tracy showed me several techniques to either slow my drift or speed it up as necessary to get the maximum drift from each cast. We were not on the water for more than 10 minutes and I hooked my first Montana rainbow. I knew immediately this was not the 10 to 14 inch fish I was accustomed to fishing for in the Smokey Mountains. I was totally unprepared for the speed and power of that fish. It jumped over and over, stripped my line so fast that it burned my fingers. It was a really big rainbow! Tracy did a great job coaching me but it ran toward me, I got careless and allowed too much slack at the wrong time and the fish was gone. Wow! I had just been schooled. It was a valuable lesson. I had never had so much fun in a losing effort as with that fish. Lesson learned. I didn't lose another hookup the entire trip. Hooking and playing that fish will remain embedded in my memory for as long as I live. Tracy said that it was a big rainbow but not to worry as there were many more just like it still swimming in the river. He was right and we found them, hooked them and netted them. Dropper rigs, dries and streamers all were in play. Several fish in excess of 20 inches came to the drift boat that day. First day out and half my goal for the trip was in the history book. I had my rainbow. He ate a size 20 Parachute Adams. Here is Tracy with that fish.

That day will live forever in my mind. It can never be duplicated. That night at dinner I came to realize that if I did not catch another fish my trip of a lifetime had been made. With 5 days still left to fish I was relaxed and really enjoyed my dinner and bed that Saturday night. I would meet the rest of my group for breakfast on Sunday morning. I slept like a baby.

As Casey Stengel once said:
"There comes a time in every man's life, and I've had plenty of them." That Saturday was one of those days for me.

 

[Tennessee Dave]

Part 3, Montana Fly Fishing Notes from my Journal
Day 2

Up at my usual 5:45 and down to the dining room for coffee. All of the rest of group had arrived late Saturday so breakfast was a time of catching up and sharing my adventures from the previous day. There were a total of five of us and we had all fished together before at hazel Creek in North Carolina. We met our guides and mine for the day was the owner of the lodge. I became aware that the sniffles I must have caught on the plane had turned into a full blown cold by the time we left the lodge but I was too excited with anticipation to be bothered by a cold.

That Sunday morning was chilly, overcast and windy. After talking with guide Steve Gamble we decided to go over the mountain to fish the Yellowstone River. Winds were around 20 mph in the morning with forecast of winds up to 30 mph by mid afternoon. We got on the river about 9 am. I must say that the Yellowstone River is impressive indeed. It is big.

It was quite obvious that Day 2 was not going to be like Day 1. Because of the wind there were almost no bugs and the fish were just not active. We went through beautiful run after beautiful run with nymphs and streamers to no avail. All of the fish we saw rising were very small and because of the persistent wind I had real issues with putting my dry fly where it needed to be. I realized pretty quickly that Western wind at a consistent 20 to 25 mph and my fly casting skills were not a good match. I made a note in my journal to practice casting on the windiest days that I could before I made another trip out West. By early afternoon the wind was approaching 30 to 35 mph when we hit the canyon stretch. This was just not going to happen today and that cold that I swore would not bother me was bothering me enough that when Steve said the take out was only a few hundred yards downstream I was actually pleased. I was so stuffed up my sense of taste was all gone. After I ate my appetizer I realized I was not going to be able to enjoy any dinner. I ordered one of my favorite Scotches, Lagavulin, and was shocked to find out that even that heavily peated nectar had no taste. A hot bath and early bed was the only sensible option.

Day 3

I awoke feeling better but still very stuffed up. Fortunately, though windy, not nearly so as on Sunday. Steve and I decided that the Madison would be the river today. Fish were a bit more active. I was able to pick up my first Montana brown. It was very colorful and about 14 inches. Hooked and landed several small rainbows in the 12 to 13 inch range and finally a very nice rainbow of about 19 inches. The Madison is a beautiful river and though we did not the find the big Brown that this river is noted for and we worked hard for the fish we found I rated the day as successful. Still could not enjoy my dinner so I went to bed early. It really began to sink in how special my Day 1 had been. But I slept the sleep of anticipation for the next 3 days of fishing.

Madison River Brown



Madison River Rainbow

 

[Tennessee Dave]

Part 4, Montana Fly Fishing Notes from my Journal
Day 4

I awoke to find my cold much better and I could actually taste my breakfast of pancakes and sausage. The wind had finally died down though the sky was still overcast and the morning was chilly. After breakfast I met my guide for the day and we discussed where we were to fish. When asked what I would like to do I said without hesitation, "Missouri River."

Ryan is a young man in his early 30's, very educated and very confident. Some might say that his confidence level borders on arrogance.He is a good friend to my guide of the first day out (Tracy) and Tracy highly recommended him to me. Ryan had good things to say about Tracy and said he was the second best guide at the lodge next to himself. I had to smile remembering the day that Tracy and I had enjoyed on my first day out. We did decide to go back to the Missouri but to fish some 4 miles above where we had put in on day 1.

I had fished alone with my guides the first 3 days but Day 4 was made special because my Tennessee friend and fishing guide was able to share the drift boat with me. Ian is a young man from Townsend, Tennessee. With his wife, Charity they own and operate R&R Fly Fishing. Ian has written several books on fishing in the Great Smoky Mountains. He and Charity have guided me on several trips to fish both the National Park and the famed Hazel Creek over in North Carolina. He is an outstanding fly fisher and all of his casts are as effortless as picking up a fork at dinner is to me. Besides all of that he is a history buff and just an all round great guy to spend some time with.

Right after we hit the water one of the most humorous moments of the entire trip came when Ryan began to give us the basic instructions for how we were going to fish including how to cast, how to mend, and how to properly tie on the dropper flies. Now I can always benefit with coaching; Ian on the other hand makes his living as a professional fly fisher and guide. It was all I could do to not laugh out loud as Ryan tried to point out these things to Ian. Ian, being the consummate professional and gentleman listened patiently and gave me a wink. It turns out Ryan was very in tuned with that stretch of the river. I don't think I will ever again be afforded an opportunity to share a boat with two fly fishers of that statue again. What I learned and observed that day was worth the cost of the trip and it continues to pay huge dividends even now.

The fishing was very good. Interestingly enough most of the trout in this stretch were Browns. Ian did land two great fish on dries, a rainbow of about 24 inches and a Brown of 22. I caught some rainbows in the 17 to 19 inch range and I landed my biggest Brown of the trip at just a hair under 20 inches. It was close enough to my goal of a 20 inch Brown that I counted it as my Goal Brown.



So as day 4 came to an end and all of my trip goals satisfied I was a happy man. Dinner was outstanding and I could taste and enjoy the Scotch that was poured that night. Another special day and I slept the sleep of a blessed man.

Tags: Missouri, River

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[Tennessee Dave]

Part 5, Montana Fly Fishing Notes from my Journal
Day 5

I had really enjoyed my day on the Missouri with Ryan and Ian so much that I asked for Ryan to be my guide for the remaining two days. This didn't bother the others in my group as his brashness put off most of them. I rather enjoyed my interaction and banter with him and in fact we developed quite a rapport over the 3 days that I fished with him.

I met Ryan for breakfast and we discussed either going back to the Missouri or fishing the Lower Gallatin. Just for reference the Gallatin River Gorge is where the movie A River Runs Through It was filmed. Ryan sort of encouraged me to decide in favor of the Gallatin to expand my experience a bit. The morning was overcast and a light rain was falling. I had all my rain gear with me and there was fishing to be done. The section of the river that we were going to fish drains into the Missouri River at Three Forks. The Gallatin, Madison and Jefferson Rivers all drain into the Missouri at this point. This is the famous Three Forks mentioned in the Merriweather Lewis Journal of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Misty rain and a chill greeted us when we got on the water. This section of the Gallatin (Lower) was completely different than the other rivers I had fished thus far. It was narrow and there were many dead falls in the water. In fact, Ryan told me this section of the river is only fishable in September and October. It certainly was a beautiful friver. The scenery was incredible. I caught fish early and often in this narrow river. Solid rainbows and browns of 16 to 18 inches with the largest of the day being a 19 inch rainbow. The photo of that fish is my background photo on my computer screen both at home and at the office.

One note of interest was that every fish we caught that day were from the right bank as we went down the river. We tried the left side repeatedly but the fish were on the right side bank.

I don't know if it was the realization that my trip's end was near (only 1 day left to fish) or if it was just the idyllic setting of the rain, small river and no other anglers present but in some ways that day on the Gallatin with Ryan was perhaps the day I will remember most of all from this trip.

I know that I went to bed that Wednesday night knowing that the next day was my last in Montana. Where to fish the last day was equally certain in my mind. My last day was going to be spent after the big rainbows on the Mighty Mo.

 

[Tennessee Dave]

Part 6, Montana Fly Fishing Notes from my Journal
Day 6

Last day and Ryan and I took the drive to fish the same stretch of the Missouri that I had fish on Day 1 and enjoyed much success. You can probably imagine my anticipation and expectation level as I remembered all the 20 inch plus fish we had caught just days before. Oh what a difference a few days make on a trout stream! It became very evident that this would be an altogether different experience. Weather was clear as a bell and windy. No bugs. We saw a few risers and the best fish of the day proved that I still had a lot of work to do with my casting. The wind and cross currents made it impossible for me to put that small dry fly over it without some sort of drag. In frustration I gave the rod to Ryan and told him to have a go at it. Ryan promptly hooked the BIG rainbow but the fish broke him off.

Day 6 was one of frustration for me though I did manage to catch and release a 19 inch rainbow that back at home would have thrilled me beyond belief. I set myself up with expectation that I would duplicate Day 1. Lesson learned.

On the final stretch before the take out as we rounded the final bend that would end my trip on the rivers of Montana bull elk were bugling as the sun went down and that sound is now embedded in my mind for the rest of my days.

So ended my fishing in Montana. The trip and the experiences that it brought far exceeded any realistic expectations I could have dreamed. It was so good that at the time I was convinced that if I were to go back every year I could not match it and in fact would be disappointed. Later trips to Idaho dispelled that notion thankfully. I was also very reluctant to commit to another trip out West because I didn't want a "bad" trip to spoil the memory of the great one I had in Montana.

A few things I learned from this trip that might be of benefit to anyone thinking about doing so in the future:

1. Practice your casting on WINDY days. It will pay big dividends if you do and will haunt you if you don't.

2. Don't even think of going out the first time without hiring a guide. Those guides know what they are doing. They make their living that way. They work hard to put you on fish and should be rewarded based on how hard they work rather than the number or size of your catch.

3. Don't buy a package deal that includes all meals. After breakfast and a supplied lunch some days you just don't want a heavy dinner. If you have prepaid you are going to try to eat that Buffalo Rib Eye whether you want it or not. You already paid for it. Do meals a la carte. It will save you a lot of money.

4. I mentioned before that this was a very expensive trip for me. The majority of the expense was taken by accommodations and the aforementioned dinners. This lodge is a very upscale lodge with incredible rooms and service but by the time I got back to the lodge all I needed was a hot shower and a clean bed. I have since take several other trips to Idaho. The guide costs, license fees and airfare were all about the same cost as it was to Montana but the meals and lodging was less than half of what I had paid in Montana. So you have to decide for yourself I suppose. I would rather take 2 trips to fish than 1. The only way I would go back to the lodge I used in Montana, as great as the experience was, would be if my wife accompanied me. Later trips to Idaho I enjoyed just as much as I did the trip to Montana. I would rate the quality of the experiences as equally enjoyable.

5. Set realistic expectations. Some days might try both your patience and your abilities but a 5 or 6 day trip will give you a realistic shot at an epic day on these Western Rivers.

6. Don't forget your rain gear, warm clothes, camera and the joy of just being out there.

It's an experience you won't soon forget. I really feel blessed to have been able to take this "trip of a lifetime."

 

[Tennessee Dave]

COME ON PEOPLE!!! Will somebody please tell me a good fishing story?! I have almost 3' of snow on the ground and on top of that my boat cover ripped in half from all the snow! I could use a good fish story right about now......

A series of threads on a very memorable fishing trip. Sorry for the length/number of posts.

 

[BlueRidge]

Wow that's awesome Dave. I've fooled a lot of trout in WNC with the long rod, mostly stockers though. My Grandpa taught me on an old fiberglass Eagle Claw. My attention has moved more to catching bass (lmb, smallies, shoal, stripers, hybrids w/e) on foam poppers or sneaky petes. Every now and then I see one of these Western trips and think how nice that'd be. Great write up

 

[Erikcooper]

A series of threads on a very memorable fishing trip. Sorry for the length/number of posts.

No need to apologize, those were an enjoyable read. In fact they might have tempted me to keep a journal myself on trips so as not to forget some of the details


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[daverutherford61]

No need to apologize, those were an enjoyable read. In fact they might have tempted me to keep a journal myself on trips so as not to forget some of the details


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I wholeheartedly agree, well done Dave. I'm actually planning on booking a cabin in the Northwoods of Wisconsin for later this year and I am tempted to keep a journal as well now.

 

[E.J.]

Great stuff, Dave....

 

[havana1]

Wow, Dave. I asked for some fish stories to help me thru these wintery days and you did not disappoint. Thanks for that!

 

[Almi]

I spent yesterday at the Brainerd Jaycees Ice fishing contest. 9000 people ice fishing. Top prize was a GMC or Ford pickup. My buddy caught a small perch and the rest of never got a bite. Top 150 fish all weighed over a pound and that has never happened in the 26 years the contest has ran. Good time had by all. The shots were from a Drone.

 

[havana1]

I spent yesterday at the Brainerd Jaycees Ice fishing contest. 9000 people ice fishing. Top prize was a GMC or Ford pickup. My buddy caught a small perch and the rest of never got a bite. Top 150 fish all weighed over a pound and that has never happened in the 26 years the contest has ran. Good time had by all. The shots were from a Drone.

That looked great! Lots of fun, I bet.

 

[Smoqman]

@Tennessee Dave -

Love your journal info, my friend. I can't wait to get out and grab some slime

 

[havana1]

@Tennessee Dave -

Love your journal info, my friend. I can't wait to get out and grab some slime

I feel ya, brother! Temps are going to be down in single digits this weekend so no fishing for me for a while. The boat ramps will be iced over for a week but ice not thick enough to walk on and ice fish....

 

[BrewinHooligan]

Not my fish, but figured I would share some fishing porn. My brother in eastern Montana caught this little northern on a hand line over the weekend. So jealous I could spit.

 

[Erikcooper]

Went for a weekend trip trout fishing here in Arkansas. Had a good group of guys and had a blast. We caught a few fish too

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[The Munt]

When I was a kid and into my teens I used to fish almost daily in the summer and weekly In the winter. Now I'm all adulterated I barely get out but really enjoy it when I do.

 

[Smoqman]

God, I can't wait for another 50° day so I can drop a line!