Category Archives: Backcountry

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: surviving a spring steelhead assault on Alaska’s Taku River

Editor’s note: As many of you know, longtime friend and Tonic patron Kent Sullivan is the most adventurous angler I know. He’s shared some of his experiences here on Tonic and I’ve also detailed some of the craziness that he … Continue reading

Posted in Alaska, Backcountry, Culture, Northwest | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Ned’s Dead

A backpack trip into north Idaho’s cutthroat and bull trout bastion brings humor and grief, via an unexpected surprise in wading boots. Note: I gave a presentation last night to the Fly Fisher’s of the Bitterroot Club in Hamilton, Montana … Continue reading

Posted in Backcountry, Idaho | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Bull Trout on the Skagit

You only need a minute and forty-six seconds to take a lungful of air and refresh your late Monday attitude. This short is from Travis Lowe, our Canadian brother who owns Cinema Digital Production. I’ve fished the Skagit, where these … Continue reading

Posted in Backcountry, British Columbia, CANADA, Northwest, Spey | Leave a comment

Chasing Wolverines in the Madison Range

Dead elk, pissed off vets, and climbing in wolverine dens. Not for the meak. Standing near the top of a 10,000-foot mountain in south- west Montana, I found an elk calf carcass, decapitated with a leg ripped from the hip … Continue reading

Posted in Backcountry, Montana, Northern Rockies | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Trout Saturation, Wyoming’s Wind River Range

Too much trout and a poached Baby Ruth lead to a Mexi-shack miracle. The last time I tried to survive on trout for a week, a major summer storm blew into the mountains and temperatures dropped below freezing. A three-season … Continue reading

Posted in Absinthe Lounge, Backcountry, Wyoming, Wyoming | 1 Comment

Montana’s South Fork Flathead River

Getting Wild on Montana’s South Fork Flathead My forest of fly-fishing friends is thinning. It’s as if some cut-and-run logging company waltzed into Montana and whacked them down at the knees. These days when I propose a fishing trip they … Continue reading

Posted in Backcountry, Montana, Northern Rockies | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Ned’s Dead

A North Idaho Near Disaster Backpack trips into remote trout streams are usually about having too much stuff—too much food, too many pairs of underwear,

Posted in Backcountry, Idaho, Northern Rockies | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

October Caddis on Idaho’s Kelly Creek

I am not afraid to admit my interest in tailwater streams and large rainbow and brown trout, but cutthroat trout, especially the west-slope cutthroat, are a rare breed and I give them full respect, especially when chasing that beautiful fish … Continue reading

Posted in Backcountry, Flies, Idaho | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment