Category Archives: Backcountry
Gearing Up For a Week at Nimmo Bay, British Columbia
Just back from a three-day jaunt to Seattle and now it is time to gear up for a week in British Columbia, a mix of remote, but plush lodge chillin’, at Nimmo Bay Resort on the mainland coast, and a … Continue reading
Southern Boys Getting Northern…or How To Fly Fish
Had the southerly crew up for the weekend, my friends from LA and Phoenix who needed a good dose of Montana Time. They flew in Friday a.m. and by early afternoon they were hooking up with bass and
Posted in Backcountry, Culture, Montana
Tagged Bitterroot River, cutthroats, How to fly fish, Peter Frampton, wilderness
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Summer Storms and Fishing in Lightning
In 1996 I had a lightning bolt hit the ground about 10 yards from where I was walking. I thought I took a direct hit because the noise was so violent and I felt a jolt in my left foot. … Continue reading
Posted in Backcountry, Montana, Northern Rockies
Tagged fishing in lightning, Lightning on the water, western storms
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Montana Cutthroat Fly Fishing Commando Mission
Last week. Lots of options. The water rolling high in some places, perfect in others. North Idaho? The Big Hole? West Fork of the Bitterroot? Where to go with so many options? That was the question I had in my … Continue reading
Posted in Backcountry, Montana, Northern Rockies
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Fishing Montana’s High Mountain Lakes
You can’t get into all the West’s mountain lakes right now, but most of them below 8,000 feet are accessible, free of ice, and offering eager cutthroat, rainbow and brook trout. A few lakes also hold golden trout, which are … Continue reading
Posted in Backcountry, Montana, Northern Rockies
Tagged Bitterroot Mountain Lakes, brook trout
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The Mount Jumbo Stumble
Things were going well today. A last couple hours with the girls before they head out with their mom for eight days. They’ve got a three-hour drive ahead of them so I decided to wear them out a little. I … Continue reading
Posted in Backcountry, Culture, Missoula, Montana, Montana
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Small Stream Fishing in Montana
This is how it goes. You get an e-mail from a friend in Butte. He says he’s off work at five and that the upper Clark Fork looks good. He caught a few fish on dries there the night prior, … Continue reading
Angler’s Tonic in Resurrection Bay
Happy fathers day to all you dads out there. You know as well as I do that our jobs as fathers and our opportunity to develop young people is the most rewarding aspect of our lives. And the most difficult, … Continue reading
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
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