Yellowstone Country Fly Fishing

Nez Perce Creek

2011-06-29T13:44:00.000-06:00

It's been said that the average Yellowstone National Park visitor could attach one end of a 100-foot tether to his or her waist and the other to the bumper of his or her car and never stretch the line tight.

What a dirty shame.

It's been a while, what with our winter that stretched into spring (and the spring that has stretched into summer) in these parts, but I finally got out into the park's awe-inspiring backcountry this week, and I managed to exercise a fish or two in the process. That I got to take my son with me was all the more rewarding.

Nez Perce Creek is a major tributary to the Firehole River, and it's fishing pretty well these days despite running high and a little murky thanks to this year's record runoff. Situated south of Madison Junction, the average park fly fisher would do well to access the creek right where it crosses under the Grand Loop Road, but the more adventurous angler might want to hike into the stream's upper reaches via the Mary Mountain Trail, which heads just a bit farther south.

The creek is home mostly to brown trout, some of them pretty big. Earlier this week, we managed to turn some 10-12-inch fish on dry flies (caddis and attractors worked to bring the fish to the top), but the biggest brown we nailed hit a black leach pattern, and hit it hard.

We also ventured up and over the Continental Divide south of Old Faithful, but snow is still lingering, and the small water up that way likely won't be in fishable shape for at least a couple of weeks. If you find yourself in the park anytime soon, stick with the valley-bottom streams–I hear the Gibbon is fishing well, and, if the numbers of anglers standing waist-deep in the Firehole is any indication, I suspect it's fishing well, too.

But don't hesitate to get off the beaten path and try some of the smaller water in the Gibbon and Firehole drainages. Water's high ... but the fish don't seem to mind.

One Percent for the Backcountry

2011-04-28T14:21:00.000-06:00

Great news if you're a backcountry fly fishing enthusiast, especially if you've taken up (or are thinking about taking up) Tenkara fly fishing. Tenkara USA is donating its "1% for the Planet" receipts to Trout Unlimited's Sportsmen's Conservation Project.

The SCP focuses on protecting large swaths of intact fish and game habitat all across the West from any number of threats, including irresponsible off-road vehicle use, unnecessary oil and gas drilling and other industrial incursions that would tarnish backcountry waters so important to the fly fishing community.

On behalf of all backcountry anglers, thank you, Tenkara USA. Your contribution will help ensure the future of backcountry angling, and you're setting a good example for others in your industry who make a living selling gear to anglers who visit the backcountry to fish. Great work!

Visit Tenkara USA for more information on the ancient Japanese fly fishing craft.

New Column in the Idaho State Journal

2011-03-18T09:02:00.002-06:00

I've started writing again for the Idaho State Journal. This first column appears in today's edition. Enjoy.

What Yellowstone fly fishing devotees do during the winter

2011-02-26T17:34:00.000-07:00

Yeah... we're tying a lot of flies this time of year. We're basically existing off of memories of casting to Yellowstone's wild trout under summer skies, and wandering through bear country with a fly rod as our only line of defense.

Photo UFO Digest

But we also read every bit of news that comes across our computer screens with the word "Yellowstone" in it. Lately, a lot of that news, save for the tired old story of bison wandering into Montana, has to do with that giant volcano stirring under the park. In just the last few months, we've been warned of an eruption, calmed down by news that things probably won't erupt in the near future and left on edge by the best explanations the scientific community can come up with.

So, today, I read perhaps the best description I've seen on the topic in a very long time. Three cheers to Greg Laden (who, coincidentally, is the brother of Elizabeth Laden, the editor of the Island Park News on the Idaho boundary with the park). I appreciate the thoughtful approach, and the research you put into this blog. Nice work.

Improved Infrastructure Around Cave Falls?

2011-02-21T11:00:00.000-07:00

Fly fishing below Cave Falls.

The National Park Service is considering some infrastructural improvements around the Bechler Ranger Station near Cave Falls, a popular access point to backcountry destinations like the upper Fall River and, of course, the storied Bechler Meadows area in Yellowstone's southwest corner.

If you're not familiar with this area of the park, it's certainly worth a visit, particularly if you're a fly fisher. The area, often referred to as Cascade Corner, is famous for its dozens of waterfalls, and there might not be a better backcountry fly fishing destination than the upper Bechler River. The Fall River at the access point at Cave Falls is a respectable fly fishing destination for pan-sized rainbows and a few brook trout, and a trail provides good access to the lower Bechler and Bechler Falls, both solid locations from which to cast to backcountry trout.

The plans, according to the Park Service, wouldn't impact or improve access to the backcountry, but they would improve parking and some employee housing in the region. This is probably worth a look, and members of the public have until March 4 to comment on the plan.

Of note, the famous cave from which Cave Falls got its name actually caved in a couple years back, but that area is still worth a visit, purely from a scenic perspective. That's likely why the Park Service is considering some plans to improve parking and housing–visitation is up in that area, and it's often tough to find a place to park to get to the trailheads for both the lower and upper Bechler River reaches.

If you're of the mind, taking a look at the plan and commenting on it are likely worthwhile.

Yellowstone's Geologic Happenings Making News ... in Iran

2011-02-12T20:34:00.000-07:00

I have Google news alerts that send me e-mails every time something makes the news from the Yellowstone region. While I get an occasional bit of new information from around the area, I usually get a lot of useless information about fender benders on Yellowstone Avenue in Pocatello, Idaho, or the school district in Yellowstone County celebrating a snow day.

Of late, I've been getting a lot of news about the slaughter of Yellowstone's bison as they leave the park and come into potential conflict with livestock–Yellowstone's bison have tested positive for brucellosis, a virus that doesn't kill them, but, if spread to cattle, can cause the domestic stock to abort their calves while in the fetal stage. It's controversial, no doubt.

But, perhaps the most interesting bit of recent news, at least to me, was hardly news at all. It was the source of the news that piqued my interest.

"It would appear, by the grace of Allah, that
Yellowstone will not explode anytime soon."

My Google news alert this morning once again reminded that, despite the rising caldera within the boundaries of Yellowstone, scientists don't believe a big blast is immediately imminent. So what, right? We've been talking about this for weeks. Right.

But the story appeared in the Tehran Times, an English-language newspaper based in Iran's capital. You know, Iran, where they're likely developing nuclear weapons and very possibly supporting terrorism abroad. It's the country with the theocratic government that just crushed an uprising from an opposition that's seeking some democratic reforms.

Why the hell would they care what happens in Yellowstone?

Now, for clarity, I have no idea what the editorial mission of the Tehran Times is, or if the newspaper is at all sympathetic to the oppressive regime ruling the nation. I just found it interesting that the newspaper bothered to share the old news that Yellowstone's not going to blow, at least not now.

One more oddity. The newspaper credits the original source of the story: The Christian Science Monitor.

Montana Stream Access Under Attack Again

2011-02-11T21:00:00.014-07:00

Just one legislative session after landmark legislation etched in stone the rights of anglers to access free-flowing rivers and streams throughout Montana, the Treasure State's Republican-dominated House of Representatives passed a bill undoing much of the progress made on behalf of the sporting public.

Republican rancher Rep. Jeff Welborn of Dillon drafted a bill that struck down the new legislation that gave anglers the right to access rivers and streams via navigable irrigation ditches (particularly "ditches" like Mitchell Slough, which are actually side channels contiguous to their mother waterways). You'll remember the battle anglers endured with 1980s musician Huey Lewis for the right to access Mitchell Slough, where Lewis owns property.

Montana's new law essentially made the state's already-progressive access laws crystal clear, removing the ambiguity that led to court cases over legal access to navigable waterways throughout the state. The law, sponsored by Billings Democrat Kendall Van Dyk, then a state representative, was hailed as the best possible solution to prevent further bickering over access in a state that is loved for its fishing, and the ability to reach the rivers and streams that harbor such amazing opportunity.

Well, the bickering didn't end, at least not in the Montana House. Van Dyk, now a state senator after ousting the once-thought-to-be-untouchable Roy Brown, expressed disappointment, and rightly so, in the actions of his former colleagues.

"The monkey's have gotten hold of the zookeeper's keys over there," he said of the Montana House.

It's no coincidence that a bill to overturn Montana's newly defined access law comes from a rancher, and a member of the Legislature who's campaign was funded largely by the agriculture lobby. Money talks, even in rural Montana's political landscape.

What Welborn and his cronies don't appear to realize is the economic gold mine Montana's access law provides to the state. By being able to hop into a quality river in pursuit of trophy trout from a highway bridge or along a public overpass, anglers have myriad fishing choices throughout the state. These are the same anglers who stop and stay at the motels in Dillon, the bars in Missoula and the restaurants in Livingston.

As Van Dyk says, hopefully there's some sanity in the Montana Senate, where Welborn's bought-and-paid-for bill must now go and gain approval before officially kicking Montana anglers in the stones. If you live in Montana–or if you fish in Montana–get in touch with your state senator and let them know your access to free-flowing water is important to you, and to places you visit and spend money. That may be the only thing that makes sense to these folks.

Expert says volcano eruption not an imminent threat

2011-02-01T11:07:00.001-07:00

Those of us who live within the predicted blast zone of Yellowstone's supervolcano have long ago come to grips with the fact that the slumbering giant several miles below the earth's crust stirs frequently, and that, one day, it will, indeed erupt and wreak havoc over much of North America.

But recent media attention on the caldera and dire predictions of a coming eruption really just serve to fascinate a willing audience. According to one expert, there's no sign of "imminent volcanic activity." The dramatic uplift in the caldera between 2004 and 2009 has slowed significantly since then, and, while activity continues, it's nothing unusual, says geophysicist Peter Cervelli.

Does that mean we're off the hook? No. The supervolcano beneath Yellowstone has erupted twice in 2 million years, roughly every 600,000 years or so. The last eruption? Oh, about 640,000 years. And, yes, it will erupt again, no doubt. But, according to the experts, there's no immediate threat. We can blame media speculation for blowing this whole thing out of proportion, no pun intended.

Meanwhile, no need to put off your planned fly fishing vacation to the Yellowstone region–the trout will be there waiting.

Deadline Approaches to Save the Cutthroats

2011-01-28T09:26:00.000-07:00

Every fly fisher out there who's wandered the wild waters of Yellowstone National Park–in reality, or in their dreams–needs to get busy this weekend and submit comments on National Park Service's plan to protect Yellowstone cutthroat trout in Yellowstone Lake, and to reintroduce and rebuild native trout populations in the world's first national park.

You'll remember that I first mentioned this vital topic last week, and time is running short for anglers to take action on this important item. The deadline is Monday, Jan. 31. Please voice your support for either Alternative 1 or Alternative 2–both involve commercial-quality lake trout netting operations on the lake (Alternative 2 would just allow for the harvest and sale of lake trout). Also, voice your support for restoring native trout and grayling in their historic habitats–dont' worry, this won't impact the storied fisheries on the Madison or Firehole Rivers.

Click here to read and comment on the plan, which is way overdue, but is happening in just the nick of time to save the heritage population of Yellowstone cutthroat trout, the West's signature native fish. Thanks to those of you have taken action. For others, please find five minutes this weekend and make a difference. Thanks.

If it blows ... it blows

2011-01-24T12:09:00.001-07:00

Yellowstone's caldera is due for an eruption anytime now.

Leave it to a UK media outlet to instill a little fear in the hearts of folks worldwide. By reading the headline in The Daily Mail's story about the Yellowstone supervolcano, you'd think those of us living within 1,000 miles of the caldera should be packing up and moving.

Truth be told, the caldera is rising rather quickly, but that's nothing too unusual. And, with scientists noting that the volcano's magma chamber remaining about 10 kilometers underground, not to the two or three kilometers that would instill real worry, there doesn't appear to be any real danger. At least not yet.

The volcano beneath Yellowstone National Park erupts roughly every 600,000 years, meaning we're due for a blow anytime now. Here's the kicker: If it blows, much of the United States would become unlivable, and not just the 1,000-mile radius surrounding Yellowstone National Park. For those of us living within the "blast range," we likely wouldn't even know it happened, it would be over so quickly.

I'm not going to spend anytime worrying about it, even if the Daily Mail seems intent on inciting a bit of panic. If it blows ... it blows. I'm just glad I got to fish the park before it did.

Get your Save Yellowstone T-Shirt Here!

2011-01-21T13:37:00.001-07:00

By now, most of us have heard the news that lake trout in Yellowstone Lake have trimmed the historic Yellowstone cutthroat population to 5 percent of its historic number. The National Park Service has presented a new and agressive strategy to start commercial-grade netting in the lake as soon as it takes all the comments on its new native fish recovery plan.

Get your T-shirt and help protect Yellowstone's signature fishery!

This is good news, of course–culling the lake trout population in Yellowstone Lake is key to not only helping the native cutthroat population rebound, but to improving the overall fish and wildlife habitat around the lake, because so many of Yellowstone's predators depend on Yellowstone cutthroat trout for survival.

Show your support for the effort to remove as many lake trout as possible from Yellowstone Lake by sporting this sweet little T-shirt–any profits I'm able to generate from the sale the shirt will go to getting the word out about lake trout in the park, and the detrimental impact they're having on native fish.

Thanks in advance for your interest in protecting Yellowstone's signature fishery. It needs all the help it can get.

Restoring Yellowstone's Native Fishery: Progress from the Park Service

2011-01-21T08:45:00.001-07:00

I finally got a chance to actually read the National Park Service's proposed plan to rebuild the native fishery within the boundaries of Yellowstone National Park, rather than just peruse the section that has to deal with perhaps the park's single-greatest threat: the loss of Yellowstone cutthroat trout from the Yellowstone Lake drainage.

And there's good news, at least for the conservation-minded angler–the NPS wants to do right by all of the park's native salmonids. And, believe it or not, there only four fish in the trout and salmon family native to the park–Yellowstone cutthroat trout, west slope cutthroat trout, Arctic grayling and mountain whitefish.

The browns in the Madison and the Firehole are Eureopean imports, and the rainbows scattered throughout the park's waters are West Coast transplants. Brook trout scattered throughout Yellowstone's small water are natives to Appalachia, not the West, and there are plans to eradicate a few solid brook trout streams in hopes of bringing native cutthroats back to some of the park's smaller waters. The good news, at least for the recreational angler and the angling economy that's very important to Yellowstone's gateway communities, is that the renowned trophy water for non-native fisheries–namely the Madison and the Firehole–won't be messed with.

Arctic grayling, native to the upper Missouri River drainage
(which includes the Gibbon River in Yellowstone National Park)
are slated for reintroduction in the park, according to its proposed
native fish recovery plan.

But the NPS' plan to restore native trout and grayling to the waters of the park would indeed have a significant impact, at least in the short term, on the park's fishery. For example, the plan calls for removing brook trout and brown trout from the upper Gibbon River, likely above Gibbon Falls, which is a natural barrier that prevents upstream migration from the Madison and the Firehole (the Gibbon and the Firehole come together at Madison Junction, which is where the Madison River technically begins–see the map).

The plan for the Gibbon, at least to the untrained eye, seems pretty convoluted. There are number of waterfalls on the Gibbon above Gibbon Falls–Virginia Cascade comes immediately to mind as perhaps the largest complex. This does give the Park Service some wiggle room, though, to put native fish above waterfalls in some of the smaller tributaries. It'll be interesting to see if there'll be any push-back from anglers (and fly shop owners, outfitters and guides) if the browns in Gibbon Meadows are actually targeted for removal in favor of west slope cutthroats and grayling. This is one stretch of the Gibbon where catching a trophy fish is truly possible.

Even more importantly, it will be interesting to see how the Park Service plans to address non-native rainbows in Grebe and Wolf lakes, which essentially lie at the head of the Gibbon drainage. Rainbows can and do mingle with cutthroats on spawning beds. There are also grayling–presumably native–in both Wolf and Greve lakes, so it's doubtful the Park Service will zap them with chemicals, like they will most certainly have to do in the Gibbon and its smaller tributaries to get rid of the brookies and browns.

The other remarkable project–and perhaps the most ambitous–would be the reintroduction of grayling in the Grayling Creek watershed just north of West Yellowstone. This stream is in the Madison drainage and effectively feeds into Hebgen Lake, so it's native fish would be grayling and west slope cutthroat trout (also slated for reintroduction). Presently, Grayling Creek, which is immediately accessible off of U.S. Highway 191, is home to cutthroat hybrids (west slope/Yellowstone crossbreeds), rainbows, browns and brook trout.

The project would involve construction of a significant fish barrier at the lower end of the creek. Fish above the barrier would be zapped with chemicals and removed, and native grayling and west slopes would be put back in. What makes this project so remarkable is the scope–we're talking about 45 stream miles of treated trout habitat. That's simply huge, and, if successful, a project that will do more for some of the West's iconic native fish than previously conceived.

Nevertheless, the biggest problem in Yellowstone is the lake trout invasion of Yellowstone Lake. Truthfully–and I'm sure the Park Service knows this–we'll always have lake trout in Yellowstone Lake. The trick, though, will be to manage those fish for reduced recruitment, which should allow the native Yellowtone cutthroats to rebound to respectable numbers. It would be virtually impossible to remove every single lake trout from a body of water that big, which means the effort to net and remove lakers will be a permanent effort, not just a decade-long endeavor that has a sunset date.

I want to congratulate the Park Service on an ambitious–if overdue–plan to restore and protect the integrity of Yellowstone's native fishery. The West is rich in opportunity for non-native trout, so efforts to bring back the natives in the park won't hinder opportunity for folks to catch rainbows, browns and brookies, even within the boundaries of the park.

If you're interested, please comment on the park plan yourself–if you have the patience and can wade through the Latin, read the plan yourself and see if you agree with me. I think this is a step in the right direction, and I urge the park to move forward with this effort. Good work.

Yellowstone's Iconic Critter Might be Running out of Food

2011-01-19T16:17:00.001-07:00

Those of us in the fly fishing community have heard about the crash in Yellowstone Lake's native cutthroat trout population, and we have the opportunity to act on that bit of terrible news by commenting on a National Park Service Plan to eradicate lake trout from Yellowstone Lake.

Yellowstone's grizzlies are losing their cutthroat trout and their
white bark pine trees. Can they hang on?

And, most of us know that Yellowstone cutthroat trout are incredibly important, not only to us wandering anglers, but may of park's predators. Grizzly bears come immediately to mind.

But not many of us know that grizzlies are feeling the pinch from a couple of different directions. Not only are they losing a dependable food source in Yellowstone cutthroat trout, but pine beetles are busy killing white bark pine trees throughout the Yellowstone ecosystem. These trees produce protein-rich nuts that grizzlies feast upon--whenever they come upon a midden of these nuts hidden away by a chipmunk or a squirrel, they can get a full meal.

But, thanks to a changing climate and dying white bark pines, another food source is disappearing. You have to wonder what will become of the 600 or so grizzlies rumored to live in the park.

Doug Peacock, a renowned grizzly advocate, discusses the situation in a great Q&A in Yale 360. Take a look. You might learn something.

So Much More than a National Park

2011-01-19T12:16:00.002-07:00

When I was a kid growing up in suburban Denver, I always dreamed of fishing in Yellowstone National Park. Even though I had the Rockies right out my doorstep, and, thanks to grandfathers who loved to fish, access to some pretty impressive trout fishing, Yellowstone was my Mecca, my fishing Valhalla.

Today, I live within an hour's drive of the park's southwest corner (the waterfall corner, home to the Falls and Bechler rivers). I've spent countless hours fishing the park's waters, and I've had some truly remarkable experiences with rod in hand. But, honestly, the park's fishing isn't too much better than some of the trout fishing I was able to do as a kid in Colorado.

But, as we all know, it's not just about the fishing.

Yellowstone is simply magical. Trailhead signs say it all–they warn you about grizzly bears, bison and hidden thermal features. They caution you to stay on the trail. They make you feel pretty damn small. Then, as you stand beneath a waterfall, or at the foot of a backcountry lake after a good hike, a certain awe overcomes you. "I'm in Yellowstone," you think to yourself. "I'm fishing in our first national park."

Truth be told, I've had really good fishing on the park's fringes, and my luck is certainly best when I put some miles on my hiking boots, whether I'm in the park or just outside its massive boundaries. The rules are the same–the farther you get from the road, the better the fishing gets.

My wife, to this day, doesn't always understand this reality. I can't count the times we've driven by the Madison or the Firehole, and she's muttered, "Oh, that looks like a good place to fish."

Chances are, they are great places to fish–they wouldn't be headline destinations in all the guidebooks if they weren't. But the chances of hooking a passing RV along the Firehole with an elk-hair caddis are probably just as good as the chances of hooking into a trophy brown. My response to my wife is always simple: "I'll fish there when I'm old."

And I know full well, when I am old, I'll still probably be happier wandering off the beaten path in Yellowstone in search of backcountry cutthroats or rare Arctic grayling or stunted brook trout on light tackle. It's my thing... and Yellowstone has plenty of my thing to offer.

That's not to discourage you or anybody else from taking to the park's big water. You'll have company, most likely (you've heard the old adage: "If you attached one end of a 100-foot rope to every park visitor, and tied the other end to the bumper of their car, most would never stretch it tight."), but that's not the end of the world if that doesn't bug you.

I like having company in the park, just a different kind. My preference is to stand among a herd of bison and cast a lonely fly into the small waters of Sentinel Creek, or chase brookies while a mother moose and her calf browse nearby on the banks of tiny DeLacey Creek. I like to see bear tracks in the streamside gravel and wonder if I'm being watched. I like the hike into upper Tower Creek, because I know I'll see more than just a nice rainbow or two, and I don't have to share the experience.

Call me selfish if you want. I can take it. If you ever get the chance to visit Yellowstone, I hope you'll be selfish, too. Because there's so much to the park that most folks never see. Exploring it with a fly rod is a great way to prospect for new water and new experiences. Finding a hot spot in a cold stream, and shedding your clothes to hop in is so much more enticing than shouldering your way to the water with every other fully outfitted dude on his annual family vacation.

Yellowstone is awesome, no matter how you choose to see it. But as an angler with that built-in wandering spirit, seeing Yellowstone is more than fishing the Barns Hole or chasing browns in Gibbon Meadows while the tourists take your picture. You get it, right?

I get it. Hopefully, you'll get to visit the park, if you haven't already. And hopefully, we never meet on the water.

Yellowstone's signature fish on the brink...

2011-01-19T11:19:00.000-07:00

Leave your comments on the National Park Service
website to protect Yellowstone Lake's signature fish.

If you're a fan of fly fishing in Yellowstone National Park, you know about the plight of Yellowstone Lake's cutthroat trout. Under stress from whirling disease and illegally introduced lake trout, these unique fish are in desperate need of our help.

The National Park Service has announced a plan to continue netting the invasive lake trout, which prey primarily upon Yellowstone Lake's native Yellowstone cutthroat trout. The damage inflicted on the "prey base" is now what could be described as a complete crash–the lake's cutthroat population is now only 5 percent of its historic numbers.

In order to maintain cutthroats in the lake, efforts must be made to eradicate lake trout. Whirling disease is a separate matter, and there's hope that, in time, the lake's salmonids will gain some resistance to the spore that attacks the skeletal structure of young fish. In short, there's not a hell of a lot we can do about whirling disease.

There are actions that we can take, however, to cull the lake trout population, and the NPS plan to continue netting the non-native char is a good first start. Other options remain to be explored–perhaps there's a commercial market for lake trout (pretty tasty if eaten fresh or smoked)?

Anyway, your comments are needed to protect Yellowstone cutthroats in Yellowstone Lake. Visit the NPS site and leave your thoughts. We need to start now if we're to keep the native fish populations in Yellowstone intact.

Warm River and Yellowstone 2009

2009-08-20T09:55:00.003-06:00

The Muller-Hunt Clan got together for a few days of fishing and campfire storytelling recently--it's a rare gathering that resulted in great fun and slightly mediocre fly fishing, but seeing the guys all together, and putting a fly rod in the hands of some naturally gifted athletes more than made up for the less-than-stellar angling. Check out the video of the soon-t0-be annual family gathering ... Next year, Durango? Gunnison? We're keeping our options open.

Gotta love the brookies...

2009-07-15T11:12:00.003-06:00

My son and I visited a little tributary to the Henry's Fork recently in pursuit of brook trout, which would eventually end up on the smoker. Mission accomplished.

Brookies are tasty invasives that tend to take over small trout streams from native cutthroat trout, so they're also a guilt-free fish that makes sense to harvest. They're also a ton of fun on light fly tackle, and they're tough to beat when it comes to table fare.

If you have the means, get out there and knock few over the head. Enjoy.

Michigan smallies

2009-06-13T11:12:00.006-06:00

Pound for pound, there might not be a better freshwater game fish (with apologies to the mighty carp) to pursue with a fly rod than the smallmouth bass.

Found throughout the country in waters a bit too cold for their largemouth cousins and a tad too warm for trout, smallies are great predators that'll chase streamers, hit traditional nymhs or even explode under poppers. A few years back, I even caught a smallmouth on a size 16 Parachute Adams while fishing a trout riffle on Connecticut's Housatonic.

Here in southwest Michigan, where I'm attending the Outdoor Writers Association of America convention, smallmouth are all the rage on rivers like the Grand and the Muskegon. On Friday, I visited a little-known smallmouth river--the Flat--and had a day's worth of fun chasing bass in a pastoral setting outside the town of Lowell.

If you haven't tried smallies on the fly, and you have smallmouth fishery nearby (chances are, you do), send a cast or two their way. You'll love the results.

The Old Stomping Grounds

2009-06-08T21:00:00.005-06:00

I had the chance to head "home" to Colorado for a few days last week, and I took my youngest brother Andy up to Leadville to chase some trout. We visited Half Moon, where we've fished since we were kids, and dropped in on Emerald Lake, as well. The fishing wasn't great--the wind was raging. We ended up on the upper Arkansas, where Andy caught his first-ever fly rod fish.

Despite the wind, we managed to hit the caddis hatch just about right. There were lots of rising fish--almost all browns. The wind made casting damn near impossible, but we managed a few fish, nonetheless.

Turns out, you can go home again, and lasting memories remain for a reason. This last trip, while not the most memorable for the fish, will fix itself deep in the gray matter for another reason--it marked the first time I fished with my little brother in a good 15 years. It was worth the wait.

Water? Nah... make it a cold one!

2009-06-03T09:29:00.003-06:00

The latest research proves what dedicated fly fishers have known for generations--don't guzzle water from yet another petroleum-based plastic bottle after a hot day spent chasing trout ... drink a beer. It hydrates better.

Yes. I'm serious. According to Spanish researchers, a sampling of students were given beer and water after exercise. Those who sucked down a couple of brewskis were actually MORE hydrated than the poor saps stuck with good old H2O.

Don't believe me? Check out the details here.

And God bless those Spanish researchers... if you ever meet them, buy them a cold one. They've earned it.

Rough weekend...

2009-05-26T05:57:00.005-06:00

This past weekend, I helped Trout Unlimited's Sportsmen's Conservation Project host a press tour of the Gunnison Gorge in Colorado. The Gorge is likely one of the West's top five trophy trout fisheries, and it was given permanent protection earlier this year when Congress approved the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009.

In addition to being a great fly fishing destination, the Gorge is also a pretty serious rafting trip, as I discovered, unwillingly, about halfway through our float on May 21.

This is becoming unfortunately habitual--a couple of years ago, I fell out of a canoe in some fast water in Virginia's New River. Apparently, there's something about fast-moving water and my innate desire to actually get in it.

In addition to the tumble out of the raft in a stretch of white water, I also managed to impale my wrist with a big dry fly--past the barb--and a couple of days later, up on the Taylor River, I snapped a perfectly good 5-weight rod by trying to pull a leader knot through the tip of the rod... not my best work.

That said, a fishing adventure in the heart of Colorado's trout country is tough to beat. Enjoy the video...

Carping away the spring runoff

2009-05-13T14:55:00.002-06:00

So... with the trout streams all blown out or closed for two more weeks, I've turned to chasing probably the strongest, fly-rod-friendly freshwater fish in the country... the golden bonefish... the Rocky Mountain redfish...

... the carp.

Laugh all you want--these suckers are awesome on a fly rod, and suprisingly difficult to fool with a fly. Check out our latest effort to corral a few carp before the 2nd Annual ITU CarpFest on the Snake River near Gifford Springs on May 15.

Yeah, they're a little ugly. But they pull hard. If you have the chance, I highly recommend getting out there and doing some carping. You may never chase trout again...

Rock Creek, Montana

2009-04-20T08:33:00.003-06:00

I had the chance to fish the famous Rock Creek in western Montana on Sunday, and I wasn't disappointed. After a slow start, the March Brown hatch started in earnest, and shortly after that, every fish in the river was looking up.

In about a two-hour span, I managed to hook about 25 fish, including a couple of west slope cutthroats that might have measured in the 18-inch range.

Couple the great fishing with the great weather, and you know spring might finally have arrived in Yellowstone country. Keep your fingers crossed...

It's official--public lands bill now a federal law

2009-03-30T21:51:00.003-06:00

Today, President Obama signed the Omnibus Public Land Protection Act 0f 2009 into law, protecting millions of acres of public land for future generations of Americans.

For anglers who love the Yellowstone Country, the new law codifies protection of the Wyoming Range, meaning no new oil and gas leases will be sold within the 1.2 million-acre range, and energy companies now have the option of selling existing leases to willing buyers for eventual retirement.

This is a terrific development for sportsmen in that the range, "The Sportsmen's Yellowstone," is home to trophy deer, elk and moose herds, as well as three of Wyoming's four cutthroat trout subspecies.

In addition to the Wyoming Range, prime fishing and hunting country is protected under the new law from coast to coast, ensuring the future of our pastimes and protecting our sporting heritage. Mark today on th calendar--it's the biggest legislative win for hunters and anglers in decades. To see the signing ceremony, click here.

CH

Fans of the Wyoming Range rejoice!

2009-03-25T20:25:00.002-06:00

Today might be the most signficant day for anglers and hunters in the Greater Yellowstone Region since Grand Teton became a national park. Today, the Wyoming Range was protected... for good.

The 100-mile-long range of mountains stretching from Hoback Junction south to Kemmerer was granted Congressional protection under the Wyoming Range Legacy Act, a bill that preserves 1.2 million acres of wildland real estate for its fishing and hunting resources. Those resources, by the way, include three separate subspecies of native cutthroat trout, trophy deer and elk herds and the West's largest and most robust herd of moose. It encompasses the Hoback and Greys rivers, LaBarge Creek, and the Smith's Fork of the Bear River--it's a sportsman's paradise, and thanks to the good folks at Trout Unlimited and around the conservation community, it will stay just like it is for generations to come.

Additionally, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (which contains the Wyoming Range Legacy Act) protects over 2 million acres of land across the country as wilderness, which guarantees hunting and fishing access for conservation-minded anglers and hunters in perpetuity.

Celebrate, Yellowstone Country sportsmen. Your kids and grandkids are the beneficiaries of today's historic action.

CH