Cliff Swallows Worst Nightmare

On a recent Big Hole River guide trip below Melrose we spotted this bull snake raiding a cliff swallow colony.

From the swallows perspective I can't think of a worse house guest than entertaining 5 or 6 feet of hungry snake.

Here fellow guide Terry attempts to pull the snake from the nest. Wondering aloud, "Chuck, you think I'm hurting this snake pulling on him like this?" But before I could answer the snake somehow turned about inside the nest and suddenly Terry found himself eyeball to eyeball. "OK now that's a little too close for comfort, Mr. Snake you win ."

While we watched the snake moved easily up and down the vertical face, checking out and no doubt dining on chicks, eggs, whatever. Oblivious to the angry parents bombing the intruder each time he stuck his head out. 

Bull snakes are of course non-poisonous but are capable of inflicting a nasty bite should you get too close. They are also fierce predators as many a venomous rattler has found out.

In all our many outdoor adventures throughout Montana I have only seen a couple bulls in the western part the state but out east, on the high plains bulls are common.

The biggest snake I have ever encountered anywhere was a huge bull slithering across the highway between Jordan and Circle. It stretched beyond one lane and appeared python fat...my idea was fat enough to swallow a small pig. Yikes!

For Once Plan B Saves the Day

Sad but true often the best laid plans go awry. Sadder still when Plan A fails Plan B might sound good but, at least in our experience, seldom works out much better. But today was different.

A day off from guiding, I decided to take the girls fishing. We hadn't fished a certain pet brook trout crick as much as we like this spring, mostly due to the abnormally long and high runoff. But now that the cricks were dropping to more normal levels it seemed high time to make up for lost time.

Alas, no sooner off the blacktop we encountered cows and lots of them. Based on past grazing seasons (most national forest grazing is rest rotation so cows aren't always an obstacle) we were fairly certain the meadows upstream would be over run and they were...now what?

Since we didn't really have a Plan B winging it seemed the only alternative...so we headed for a stretch of crick we'd been meaning to fish for several seasons but somehow hadn't...no good reason to think cows wouldn't be there too but as the man once said, "ya don't know if ya don't try."

As luck would have it we found plenty of cow sign but surprise, surprise, no cows at present.

The crick here drops significantly creating a series of deep, though plenty fast moving, plunge pools. Inviting as hell but I thought it could be too high gradient, the bottom scoured by ice and run off and worse, troutless.

As turned out I needn't have worried for first cast--actually more a shaking out line to make a first cast--as soon as the #16 Royal PMX hit the water a trout grabbed it. Startled and way too slow on the uptake I failed to make the hookup...but not to worry.  Two or three casts later I hooked a beautiful dark cutthroat of decent size, kicking off one of the best couple hours fishing we've ever experienced. Gale then took a colorful, exceedingly dark brookie from the same pool. Then I nailed a stunning rainbow and then...then we just kept handing the rod back and forth as we hooked trout after trout--mostly brookies, with a few cutts, cutt-bows and rainbows for good measure. Lady luck continued to smile until finally Gale declared "enough fun" I'm hungry."

"Me too."

Back at the truck we broke out the lunch cooler. Gorging, much as the trout did earlier, on left over bar-b-que chicken legs and thighs, peanut butter and cheese crackers and fruit...In between bites Gale observed, "What a way to wile away a summer morning."

"Amen."

Guide Wars Heat Up

Dick Moore, one of many repeat clients I've been privileged to befriend over the years, caught this beautiful rainbow on the upper Beaverhead a few days ago. It ate a size 18 split back nymph and was just one of many fine trout he managed to hook over three days while fishing the Beaverhead and Big Hole Rivers. 

A fellow geezer, Dick and me share much the same fishing philosophy as well as a strong interest in photography. As such the talk usually revolves more about the latter and the critters and constantly evolving bankside scenery than the actual fishing. Still Dick manages to take a fair share and every once in awhile a real trophy shows up amongst the many memorable photos on the digital memory card.

As you can see it's been awhile since my last post and since then a lot has changed, especially on the Big Hole. The flow is currently dropping like an anvil in a swamp, to the extent yesterday I had difficulty getting down from Fish Trap to East Bank. Below Deep Creek wasn't  too bad but up above I had to drag the boat a couple times. So that's it for me until next season.

On another track during the interim between posts I've fished the Beaverhead below High Bridge several times. Mostly it's been more a boat ride than a fishing trip between High and Hildreth...but from Hildreth to Pipe Organ the fishing and the bugs have been pretty good. Surprising to me are the number of quality fish down there as compared to other seasons. Hopefully before too long High to Hildreth will once again fill in but until then...

The Big Hole had been on fire of late but the last two afternoons in the canyon the fishing has died, at least for me. Two days ago seemed most were in the same boat but one boat, two gals, seemed to be hooked up every time we passed. Do you suppose it weren't the river what died but...