Big Hole River Fly Fishing Report...

The river is dropping like a rock...litterally. Ten days ago, with the upper river running above normal at about 400 cfs, we rowed the hard boat from Troutfitters to Dewey and touched nary a rock. Yesterday the river now running just barely above 200 cfs, we more or less drug the raft from just above Troutfitters to Jerry Creek. Spent almost more time dodging rocks than casting flies. In one of the many rock gardens below Wise River one of the clients lost his balance, nearly went overboard, and came within an eyelash of flipping the raft. Combine that near disaster with the equally harrowing near miss of a couple days ago when we crashed a rock and sent the guy in the front the hard boat airborn...spectacular, though also scary as hell. How he missed landing on a boulder instead of deep water is more than I know or care to contemplate, really lucky is an understatement.  Anyway that's about it for me as far as guiding the Big Hole until the river rises which usually happens in early September once irrigation ends in the upper valley. As for the raft we are pretty much done period. In other words it's for sale and at a bargain price...so if you are interested in a small Aire raft (unsuitable for guiding too small) with or without the NRS three seater fishing frame give me a holler....

Too bad the river is so low up there because its fishing really well...Tricos, mayflies, spruce moths, various attractors and even hoppers...All day, all topwater, if it weren't for the pain in the butt conditions...hell, can't hardly beat it.

Hunting Season Officially Arrives Tomorrow and...

...as usual I can hardly get my head around the idea of big game hunting in mid-August. But yes, it's true with a 900 antelope archery tag in hand come dawn Sunday morning you are good to go. Most years the season opener dawns way more summer-like than fall-like but if yesterday is any indication this year could be different...like 180 different as the temperature struggled to climb even into the 60s and as mentioned previously snow in the high country was the prediction...don't know if that really materialized but mid-60s in mid-August...well as I said felt pretty much like mid-October is supposed to feel.

Alas this time around I won't be participating, having somehow totally forgot to apply for any big game tags...that's right none, nada...thank goodness Montana law allows me to buy a deer/elk tag over the counter or for the first time since I turned 12 many, many moons ago, no big game hunting for this lad. Scary as hell, you got it but hopefully not terminal.

Taking advantage of the chilly day we took the sisters to the woods hoping they might get into a blue grouse or two...did not happen but they did uncover a roost site in a bunch of pines...several days (weeks) old but still...we declared the mission a success of sorts and after all we did get a little workout and the heady smells in the damp pines did get our juices flowing for what surely will turn out a fine fall bird season...don't they all?who needs a moldy ol' elk or deer anyways...right? Right.

Montana Wildlife Continue to Grab Headlines

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  Eight bighorn rams, ages 3 1/2 to 8 1/2, dead after being struck by lightning on Wild Horse Island in Flathead Lake.
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  Grizzlies spotted grazing a wheat field near Brady, a small farming community 50 miles north of Great Falls. Hardly your typical griz hangout but one not so uncommon  as the Rocky Mountain Front grizzlies have been spotted in recent years even farther out on the high plains. Which, by the way, back in Lewis and Clark days was the horrible bears' preferred habitat.
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  In Red Lodge a black bear is currently on the most wanted list, having eluded capture despite some 20 break-ins in recent weeks. The last incident the bear was caught (not literally) inside a house munching pizza after breaking into a freezer. Comical, eh?
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  FWP is investigating reports a wildlife photographer may have been baiting grizzlies near the forest service campground outside Cooke City where the recent maulings took place. If true, proving yet again there's a bunch of nuts out there and they ain't all locked up...right? Right.
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  In something of a radical move to get around the recent return of the Idaho, Montana, Wyoming gray wolf to endangered status state wildlife officials are considering a "research hunt"...Hooray, and take that you whacky bastards...
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  Pathetic but saddly true, YNP announced July's vistor numbers set an all-time record at 957,000...Sorry folks, but to my twisted way of thinkin' that's just way too many of us to even think about enjoying anything close to a quality experience. Do you suppose just maybe the time has come to cap the daily onslaught at something a bit more reasonable?