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, but nothing big.

You say, “No, just doesn’t resonate.” And you ask about the “big pond” and whether it’s windy.

“Yes, it’s windy,” he replies. “Real windy.”

So you google Montana stream flows and check out some small streams in the area. They’re dropping like a rock. Still plenty of flow but dropping and for sure running clear. You suggest one and your friend says, “Sounds intriguing. Let’s do it.” An hour later you have the rig Continue reading

Posted in Backcountry, Montana, Northern Rockies | Tagged | 1 Comment

Fly Rod & Reel Summer Issue

Thought I’d give all of you a heads-up to keep your eyes open for the summer issue of Fly Rod & Reel, which is hitting the stands right now. There’s an article, in particular, that you should read. It’s called Fishy Jobs, written by Oregon-based author Chris Santella, and it details careers in the fly-fishing industry. This is a great read if you want to make fly fishing a career choice. In addition, I penned a piece on where to catch 30-inch trout in Washington and there’s a super cool article by Zach Matthews on how to make welded loops. I also included a piece on Russia’s Kola River and what it’s like to be on the water during a 250-fish Atlantic salmon week. Ran a profile on Staton Klein’s “Swimflies” and Ted Leeson penned a great article on gear you need for time off the water, camping and hanging out around a fire. Let me know what you think of the issue.

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Alaska Photography: Anchorage classic

Had to let all of you see this one. This, in my opinion is a classic. Shot it while staying at the Hilton Downtown in Anchorage a couple nights ago. The girls and I had dinner at the Glacier Brewhouse, fresh sockeye salmon for me and pizza for the girls. Great place to eat and enjoy local brews. Later, when we got back to the hotel we were invited to a private club where we got to finish off deserts and step out on the balcony to watch people fish Ship Creek, right next to downtown Anchorage, for king salmon. Great night all the way around. Here is the great shot and a couple others from Continue reading

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Alaska Image: Resurrection Bay

One of the coolest things we saw in Alaska was during a cruise with Kenai Fjords Tours. The girls and I were on the boat for nine hours and saw a ton of wildlife. I’ll do a full post on the tour later, but I wanted to share this image with you now. These are humpback whales and they are bubble-feeding, which is a hunting tactic that hasn’t been observed in the bay for many years. Biologists theorize that female humpback is teaching younger humpbacks to use this tactic, which surrounds herring and other food in a bubble net and drives them to the surface where the whales plow out Continue reading

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Geocache Alaska: Redington Pants and Tonic T-Shirt

Alright my Alaska brothers. Any of you heading down to the Russian for reds or up from Homer, Kenai or Soldotna for a day on the Gulkana?

If so, take a quick turn into the Tern Lake recreational site, right where you choose to head to Seward or Kenai/Soldotna/Homer and punch in some numbers to your GPS. In return you should find a zip lock bag with some Redington lightweight pants in it, along with a Tonic T-Shirt and some Tonic stickers.

But you better get there quick. I did not hide this well and the place gets visited. If you don’t get there soon mugglers are sure to score. I did a quick pitch because the mosquitoes were chowing down on Myka and Tate. Get there fast or it will be gone. Great view, one of my favorite Alaska locations.

Hint: Second or third picnic table on the left of the trail, near water.

North 060 31 796′    West 149 33 336′

Good luck and let me know if  you found it before mugglers arrived. Hope you enjoy.

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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, likely.

I was parked next to Kenai Lake yesterday, on the Kenai Peninsula, pointing out the glorious mountains to the girls. And Tate asked yet again, “Why do you like the mountains so much? I mean,” she added, “what’s the big deal about them?”

I feel like mountains are part of my soul and the mountains in Alaska are bigger than any others I’ve seen. They are amazing, ice capped and rising from the tidewater. On scale, they put the mountains in Continue reading

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Kasiloff River King Salmon, Alaska

Don’t have time to say much. Tate, Myka and I are headed out in an hour to cruise Reserrection Bay and the Kenai Fjords. But I wanted to share this image with all of you, which represents one of the best moments of the trip so far. Got this guy with the spey rod on the Kasiloff a couple days ago. What a blast. Took about 20 minutes. Landed him a hundred yards down the bank and around the corner from where I hooked it. Never had a cheering section while I fought a fish before. Later in the day Tate caught a steelhead on the spey. Myka got to fight dad on the rod as I acted like a salmon. Continue reading

Posted in Alaska, Spey | Tagged | 5 Comments

Crunchberries and Paratroopers: Remember Beiing A Kid

Got a little deja vu today when I went to shell out some Captain Crunch with Crunchberries and Tate and Myka had landed their paratroopers next to the container. How many times did I do the same thing when I was their age? Many, judging by the cavities in my teeth. The girls don’t get the sugary stuff very often, but when they do I let them go big. Paratroopers? I love hucking those things toward the heavens and letting the girls try to catch Continue reading

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The Five Best Fly Fishing Books of All Time

We could end up with a variety of answers here because everyone has their own opinions and interests, but I’m sure everybody will agree that Fly Fisher’s Guide to Montana, my first book, heads the class. Don’t bother buying the replacement version by Chuck Robbins as that one doesn’t match up to the book I penned. Alright, you can stop laughing, although I still maintain my version to be a good read and the most personally researched book on fishing in Montana that’s ever been written. I spent 200 days a year for a long, damn time fishing Montana waters and taking notes to share with all of you.

Here are my top five “other” books. Please contribute Continue reading

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Classic Sonics/Classic Rainier Beer Commercial

You probably won’t get this video unless you grew up in Seattle in the 1970s and 1980s when Bill The Beerman was revving up crowds, leading cheers, selling beer, and becoming a local icon. That was when the Seahawks were in the AFC kicking Denver’s ass all the time and the Sonics were vying for titles every year. Sikma, DJ, Gus Williams, Lonnie Shelton, Downtown, JJ …

I pulled this ad out of the closet because it says something about how good Seattle sports used to be and what it has become—the Seahawks are stuck in mediocrity. The M’s are almost a lost cause because the can’t score. The Huskies have no defense. And the Sonics—they’re gone. So on the eve of the OKC Thunder’s ride into the NBA finals I thought this might soften the blow. We all know which team is going to the finals—the Sonics—but we just can’t cheer for them. Go Celtics…if they make it past Labron. Knock that lanky-ass Kevin Durant right off the court. Clip that hard landing Westbrook. Rub Derick Fisher’s bald head against the basket support. And if anyone has a chance to kick Clay Bennett in the testicles, do so please. Ditto for David Stern.

Got to love the “Rave.”

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