Big Ugly Trout Need Love Too

Dede and Barb have been fly fishing in the Jackson Hole area since the 70’s. I met them as a young buck working in the Jack Dennis Fly Shop in Jackson, Wyoming in 1987. They came in the shop, asked me some questions and quizzed me hard. I was the new kid in town. Fortunately I knew enough that they accepted me and we’ve been friends ever since. For years we never fished together. It’s typical if you work in a fly shop. Your customers become friends but you rarely ever fish with them. It’s because you never have time to fish with all your customer/friends. There’s so many of them and you only have a couple days off a week. But sometimes it works out. Luckily ten years ago it worked out that Granny and I fished with Dede and Barb on one of their secret waters. We had so much fun that we fish together at least once a year ever since.

Kubswin Lake isn’t really one of Dede and Barbs secrets. Anyone who chases big trout about knows Kubswin has some of the largest browns in the entire west, but because it’s a lake they rarely go there. When they go, it’s usually a one time thing because they get skunked. These trout are very hard to catch and as a rule anglers walk away shaking their heads wondering if the lake has any fish in it at all. Granny and I and Dede and Barb have certainly had these days. Nonetheless, that’s where we spent Tuesday and Wednesday

Monday night Granny and I drove to stay and have dinner at Dede and Barbs. These gals take great care of us when we stay over. We brought down some steaks and wine and they cooked it all up with some fresh veggies. Morning came fast and after  some quick coffees we drove to the lake. The weather continues to be as good as you could ask for. Despite Kubswin sitting at over 7,000 ft there was little to no wind and temps reached 80º each day. When we arrived at Kubswin it was almost calm. This sounds good to a rookie lake angler but the truth of the matter is that trout are so spooky under a placid lake that when your cast hits the water all nearby trout retreat to the deep. They think and eagle or an osprey is diving for them. I ran into this repeatedly when I was walking the shoreline and casting to cruisers. All but one took off just from seeing my fly line in the air. The one that stayed around followed and refused my fly.

We all spend more time fly fishing on lakes than the average trout fly fisher and we each have rigs and vests we only take to lakes. My rod of choice is my 6-weight Ross Essence FC. To match that rod I use the Ross Airius Reel and I have five spools to go with. Each spool has a different Rio fly line. There’s a floater, Midge Tip, Intermediate sink, Slow Sink (Type 3), and a Fast Sink (Deep 7). With those I can cover top to bottom of most lakes simply by changing spools. The line I use the most often is the Intermediate which in Rio lines is called the Aqualux.

We each carry a wide range of flies. Most of your once a year lake fly fishers simply pound away with various streamer patterns. Streamers definitely provide some success but I find that most of my catches  are made by patiently sight casting to risers with dry flies or slowly twitching nymph and midge patterns just below the surface. The speed and way you move your flies makes all the difference in the world. Lake fly fishing is extremely challenging and if you haven’t fished them much there’s lots to learn. I enjoy the challenges lakes present me with and especially the chance at catching huge trout. I also find them rarely crowded like many of our best rivers.

It wasn’t until about 1 pm on Tuesday that one of us hooked up. I was daydreaming while retrieving each cast and chatting away with Dede. Then she hooked up. It was obviously a big fish because her reel sang as the beast headed for the middle of the lake. Barb and I reeled in while Granny, who opted  to observe this weekend, came running with the camera. The fight lasted a good five minutes before she netted an obese 23” brown. Fat probably wasn’t the best word to describe this enormous trout. This amazing brown trout was an absolute monster and a perfect example as to why we like the challenge of lake fishing. And rather than eating a huge streamer, this brown ate one of Dede’s small nymphs while she was doing a very slow strip down near the bottom.

Our fishing remained slow both days but was very rewarding. We only landed a total of five fish, but the smallest was 17 inches. Dede caught four of these and three of them were over 20 inches. All the ones over 20 inches were impressive to say the least. One was impressive not only because of his size, but he was one of the ugliest big browns I’ve ever seen! His bottom jaw protruded so far out past his upper it was ridiculous. It’s a wonder he could even eat with this obscurely shaped mouth.

I only landed one but he too was a monster. This brown trout ate an olive bead head leech late in the day  and schooled me out into the lake. I rarely need backing when trout fishing but this fish required about thirty feet of it! It was another great weekend. Next for me will be back to the Harriman Ranch on the Henry’s Fork for the last of the Mahogany Dun hatch.

Our fishing remained slow both days but was very rewarding. We only landed a total of five fish, but the smallest was 17 inches. Dede caught four of these and three of them were over 20 inches. All the ones over 20 inches were impressive to say the least. One was impressive not only because of his size, but he was one of the ugliest big browns I’ve ever seen! His bottom jaw protruded so far out past his upper it was ridiculous. It’s a wonder he could even eat  with this obscurely shaped mouth.

I only landed one but he too was a monster. This brown ate an olive bead head leech late in the day and schooled me out into the lake. I rarely need backing when trout fishing but this fish required about thirty feet of it! It was another great weekend. Next for me will be back to the Ranch on the Henrys Fork for the last of the Mahogany Dun hatch.

as ridiculous. It’s a wonder he could even eat with this obscurely shaped mouth.

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing web site

Nothing but Yellow Belly

September 26, 2010

What a September! Today was in the 80ºs. The sky was cloudless and there wasn’t an ounce of wind all day. The willows, aspens and cottonwood trees are glowing with gold and the hillsides are vibrant red from the wild roses, mountain maples and hawthorns. Hardly a single turned leaf has fallen yet. September is truly the best time of year in the Yellowstone area and this year we are having the best of the best.

Today I floated the Moose to Wilson section of the Snake River in Jackson Hole Wyoming with Gary Eckman and Cooper. Cooper you should remember from previous blogs is Gary Eckman’s fourteen year old son that has become quite a proficient fly fisher. We got an early start today of about 8 am. Right now, 8 am is about sunrise here. It should have been freezing cold but instead it was a balmy 50 degrees. We all wet waded from start to finish.

Fishing started surprisingly slow despite the seemingly perfect conditions. I rowed the first hour while Cooper practiced his streamer fishing and Gary plopped an ant pattern along the banks. Other than a follow on the streamer and a small swirl behind the ant the cutthroats were asleep. Wildlife always seems to make up for lack of fish. We saw a gigantic bull moose tearing up some willows, a mule deer and her nearly full grown fawn, numerous elk, eagles and a long tail weasel along the banks as we drifted. Just to spice things up even more we floated into the famous “Bourbon Channel”. I’m not a big fan of the channel as it is one if you are the oarsman you row and that’s it. You can’t relax and enjoy your surroundings for even a split second or you’ll sink the boat. The Bourbon Channel is small and winding. The water moves fast and there are boat flipping snags and debris every inch of the way. It’s probably one of the most treacherous sections of all the Snake River. Take your eyes off what’s ahead of you for a second and your life is in danger.

We successfully navigated through even the most hair-raising mazes of the channel. There was no doubt that my workout for the day was complete. Once we got back to the main river the fishing turned on. It could have been the time of day but I think it was the slower water. This time of year the Snake River cuttys like a steady flow along a rocky ledges and the drop-offs just below riffles. There were plenty of bugs hatching. This late summer weather continues to deliver PMD’s. It’s late for PMD’s but we saw some. Then there were numerous Mahogany Duns and the occasional Snake Drakes, a large mayfly about a size 12. Fish began to rise and we all fished dry flies for the remainder of the day.

Today’s highlight, was watching Cooper catch his biggest fish ever on a dry fly on the Snake. The catch occurred during a time when he was getting a little distracted. The Snake River has one of the best sucker populations you can imagine. If you look into the water from the front of the boat while drifting you notice huge fish moving along the bottom all day long. While many anglers freak out thinking they are all huge trout, most of us know that most of these fish are actually suckers. Naturally, the fact that they are so much bigger than most trout in the river, Cooper wants to catch one bad. And while he should be carefully mending and watching his drifting dry fly, he’s often in a trance staring into the water ahead of the boat. I always watch his drifting fly and find myself constantly telling him to mend, dry your fly, recast and when we are lucky, set the hook. I must sound like a broken record.

Fortunately for us, not the cutthroat, Cooper was watching his fly when a big yellow belly slowly elevated from bottom to the surface and ate his Mahogany Wulff. You could see that this was a big trout and somehow Cooper kept his cool and set the hook on him like a pro. But once the fish was on, Cooper got very nervous. Now he truly knew how big this trout was and like any kid he wanted this fish in the net. He wisely asked for advice on the best way to get him there. Gary and I were thrilled and did our best of coaching Cooper through the event. He handled it beautifully and a few minutes after hook up I netted Cooper’s gorgeous cutthroat trout.

It was another great day on the Snake River in Jackson Hole Wyoming. Cooper relished in his success for an hour or so before going on a full time sucker hunt. Gary and I  enjoyed the weather and scenery and took turns fishing and rowing. We caught plenty of fish but today was by no means as good as it has been in previous weeks. As much as I’m not ready for it, what we really need to trigger our fall fishing is fall weather. Next on the agenda Granny and I will be chasing some big browns and brookies on some secret lakes. Stay tuned . . .

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing web site

Slow Fishing Couldn't Be More Fun

September 18-19, 2010

Five days in a row without fishing breaks that four day record I set a few weeks ago. But I had work to get done because from here on out I need to be ready to enjoy the fall and some of the best fishing of the year. The last two days I fished with friends Ben Brennan, Doug McKnight and Micah Kruger (Meeks). All three guys worked for me in the Jack Dennis fly shop years ago and unlike most of my former employees they are still in the fly fishing business. Ben lives in Jackson, WY and is a fishing guide for Snake River Anglers. Doug lives in Livingston, Montana and just quit working at the Yellowstone Angler Fly Shop to pursue his art and fly tying. Doug is a contracted fly tyer for Umpqua Feather Merchants and is the man behind patterns such as the Home Invader, Sweetgrass Hopper and the Pigpen Leech. These are great flies and if you don’t have them in your box you need to get some. Meeks lives in Bend, Oregon and is a representative for fly fishing service products including Fishhound, a fly fishing information site and FLyBOOK, a fishing guide and outfitter reservation system. When you get a chance, definitely check out the Fishhound website.

We don’t see enough of each other these days so we wanted to make sure we did something exceptional. Our choice, an overnighter in the canyon of the South Fork of the Snake River. Even though I’ve been on the South Fork weekly all summer long, I loved the idea of doing it again. As you know by now from my previous reports the South Fork has fished its best in over ten years.

We launched our two boats at Husky (two miles below the Palisades Dam) Saturday morning and pulled out at Byington, some thirty-four miles downstream on Sunday night. When we pushed off, the boats were heavy and low in the water due to our camping supplies and an excessive amount of food and drink. One thing we all love to do is eat like kings on a camping and fishing trip. We had bratwurst, steak, chicken, a heap of veggies, cookies and chocolate bars along with a few tasty brews to wash the delicious food all down. Regardless of the weight, we started fishing immediately. I rowed Doug in my boat and Ben rowed Meeks. Doug busted out of the gates with a healthy brown on his Home Invader streamer pattern. Things were looking good but that brown actually turned out to be the only fish for the first few hours. At about 2 pm I took a small side channel and Doug twitched a big ant pattern on the  surface and caught a big cutthroat/rainbow hybrid. Shortly after we met up with Ben and Meeks for lunch and unfortunately they had not landed a fish yet.

It was obvious the South Fork was not fishing like it had all summer. It finally slowed down. I often wonder how a river can simply shut down like this. Perhaps it’s from the fishing pressure or simply a slow down in hatches. The South Fork typically shuts down in August then picks up again in September. But not this year. It’s been good since the season started. It was no wonder it finally got tough.

Tough fishing was not going to put a damper on this trip. The weather was a toasty 75º degrees. There was very little wind and the bratwursts made for a scrumptious lunch. We had a ways to go before night fall so we turned the next few hours in to a joy ride out of the civilization found on the Upper South Fork stretch and floated into the wilderness of the Canyon. Entering the canyon at sunset is a sight to behold. Making few casts at the same time and you may as well have died and gone to heaven. Doug racked up a couple nice cutthroats before we rowed into camp near the mouth of Pine Creek.

Preparing camp was simple. There was no need for tents. There wasn’t a cloud in sight. We just threw down our insulate pads and sleeping bags and set up our camp chairs. Then we watched Meeks make a kitchen and prepare about twenty shish kabobs. My mouth was watering at the shear sight of them. It was all I could do to hold back. Luckily the talk and drink kept us all in check. By the time our feast was over the sky was full of stars. We brewed up a nice fire for warmth and kicked back. Just as all was perfect,  Ben’s dog went crazy barking up a tree. I whipped my light into the tree expecting to see a raccoon and was surprised to see a baby pine marten. He was cute as can be gazing down at us from the cottonwood tree. I’ve seen quite a few over the years but it was a first for the boys. We watched him a few minutes then the dog lost interest and it was back to the fire.

It’s amazing how fast these weekends go by. We had a relaxing morning warming up in camp with coffee then fished hard all day. Today Meeks hopped in my boat and Ben and Doug fished together. The fishing was slow again. We caught a few nice fish but it was nothing like the fishing I’ve been spoiled with all summer. However there were no complaints. Today was an unusual 80º degrees and anytime you get a bonus day of summer in September you smile. We pulled the boats and empty coolers out at the Byington Boat Ramp at 7 pm and made a dash for burgers at the Knotty Pine in Victor Idaho. A great trip with friends came to an end.

Ben has to work tomorrow but Dougy, Meeks and I might wet a line somewhere special for a few hours tomorrow. We’re pretty beat from our two day adventure so we aren’t committing to anything. We’ll just wake up in the morning and decide on fishing over coffee on the back porch.

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing web site

Repeat Today!

September 9, 2010

The 2010 Jackson Hole One Fly Contest is underway! The actual competition fishing part didn’t start yet (the fishing is Saturday and Sunday), but the stream of events started tonight. We had the kick off cocktail party and all contestants learned where they will be fishing, who their guide is and who they will be competing against in the boat. On Saturday I will be fishing on the Snake River from the Wilson Bridge to South Park Bridge. My guide is Charles Kempe and my boat partner is Joe Debryan. Although I’m not too excited about that stretch of river, both the guide and boat mate are friends so it should be lots of fun. On Sunday I’m fishing the Lower South Fork Canyon. I lucked out on my guide draw getting Mike Bean whom ironically Gary and I fished with today. My boat mates first name is Scott but I don’t know him and couldn’t not find him tonight. I’m sure he will be fun and we will have a great time.

Before the party, Gary Eckman and I fished together to get in one final practice day and to celebrate Gary’s birthday. You would never know it but Gary turned 70. Just like last week, Gary booked Mike Bean to guide us on the South Fork and I had the good fortune to go along. Since about the beginning of August Gary Eckman and I have fished at least one day a week on either the Snake or the South Fork rivers to sharpen our skills and get tuned in to what flies and tactics are working best this season. Some days we floated and fished on our own but the last three times Gary hired us a guide which I can tell you is quite a treat for me.

Today’s weather signals that fall is right around the corner. We awoke to a cold drizzle. Gary picked me up at my house at 7 and when we went over Pine Creek Pass it was actually spitting snow on top. All I could  think about was the fact that I didn’t bring my waders! Mike met us in Swan Valley Idaho and we were floating and fishing before 9. This was kind of a reconnaissance mission for him too. Guides also want to do well in the One Fly because they are awarded for having top scores from their boats.

I am torn on what fly to use in this contest. Remember, you are only allowed one fly each day. If you choose a lousy one you’re stuck with it. On that note, today I switched each hour to test a variety of bugs. I have come to the conclusion that as far as the South Fork goes I can fish a streamer, a size 18 PMD or even some type of Chernobyl ant and do well. The way the contest works is you really need to just catch six fish that you measure and get good points for. If they average over 15”s then you will get enough bonus points to  do well. I felt that today I could do that with any of these flies. Gary and I absolutely destroyed the fish. Honestly, I’ll bet we caught twenty fish over 16”s EACH! And several were over 18”s. Our scores would have been through the roof!

Today’s weather had a lot to do with it. It stayed nasty, cold and rainy all day. Really it was the kind of day most guide trips get cancelled. That’s a big mistake around here. Rainy weather always means good fishing in the Yellowstone area. The hatches today were the best I can recall and the fish were border line suicidal to eat any fly. The weather for the contest is predicted to be warm and sunny. Fishing conditions will be much different. However, I think that the Good Times Team is ready to rock and perhaps we can repeat today when it counts this weekend!

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing web site

Fishin’ with Cooper

Today was fishing with Cooper day. I don’t’ get to fish with Cooper too often because he’s 14. It seems half the summer is over before we get our first day out together and then before you know it school starts again. Cooper is the son of my friend Gary Eckman whom I wrote about on August 6th. Cooper would have joined Gary and me last Friday but he got into a dirt bike accident that required a heap of stitches in his knee and was not allowed off the couch until things started to heal.

Cooper is in charge of where we fish when he goes. He recently returned from an exciting trip to Alaska in which he caught a lot of BIG fish such as halibut, lingcod and golden eye. With that in mind, today he was in search of more big fish. He’s had most of his good luck over the years on the South Fork of the Snake so we did a repeat of what Gary and I did last week – the Upper South Fork from the Irwin Slide to Conant.

The boys picked me up at 9 am. I was glad for the late start as I’ve been fishing so much that I’m behind in everything from art to paying bills. Mornings are productive times for me. Once we got going Cooper was quick to flash his injured stitched up knee to me. It must have been an ugly mess when the accident happened because even though the wreck was two weeks ago his knee still looks kind of gross.

Once at the river we launched and Gary rowed us directly to the riffle where we spanked fish last week. We were early. We pulled into our hot spot and beached the  boat on a gravel bar. We sat and watched over cokes hoping to see some big cutthroats begin to rise. I was starting to think they moved out to the main river when the first fish barely broke the surface. This big cutty took a PMD by making less than a two inch ring on the surface. It was the true definition of the word sip. I told Cooper to be ready and he excitedly grabbed his rod and made an approach.

The fish may not have been quite ready to eat yet. Cooper made some casts with one of my Vladi CDC PMD’s but to no avail. I knew it was the right fly but Cooper was having trouble keeping it afloat. With CDC flies you really need to aggressively false cast between drifts to keep them floating and looking good. Gary switched him to a beetle but even the beetle didn’t work. Eventually Cooper took a break and Gary went in there and quickly nailed one on a tiny light Cahill. Cuttys on the South Fork are not known for putting up dazzling fights but this one had us fooled into thinking he was a rainbow or a brown trout. He pealed off line and tried to wrap Gary in the log piles before Cooper finally got him netted. It was a nice fish, in fact, one of the bigger cutthroats I’ve seen on the South Fork.

Cooper took another crack at the riffle where several fish started rising more frequently, but again they would not cooperate. Just downstream of us in some slower water another trout began to feed. This trout became very consistent and even though Cooper had fish in front of him, the cutty downstream was too much for him to tolerate so he went after him. I considered talking him out of his move because often times these trout in the slower water are near impossible to catch. In such slow water they can scrutinize your fly and your light tippet can look like a rope. They also cruise around all over and you don’t know if you really got your fly in front of them or not. I didn’t want Cooper to go down stream, not get the fish and get discouraged. But then I thought better of saying anything. Cooper is a good angler and if anything, it would be a learning experience. Five minutes later Cooper called for the net.

Cooper was hooked up to the sneaky cutthroat trying feed without us knowing. Like Gary’s cutthroat, this scrapper also put on a surprisingly good fight. Cooper and his 5-weight handled the battle like a pro and then he gave me a few pointers on when to net his fish. I listened and I scooped up the heavily spotted cutthroat on the first try.

We didn’t exactly spank the fish today like Gary and I did last week, but it was pretty darn good. Between the three of us we probably landed a dozen nice cutthroats, a brown, a rainbow and a quality whitefish. My highlight of the day wasn’t Cooper catching his cutthroat from the slow water at our first stop, but rather when Cooper perfectly executed a difficult cast to a rising fish far back in a cave at the base of a rock cliff. He had to do a side arm flip cast to get his fly to the trout. That’s not to mention all the willows he had to avoid with his back cast. Once he made the cast it was all you could do to see the tiny light Cahill he was using because of the darkness in the cave. But Cooper patiently worked to this fish for at least ten minutes until he hooked another dandy of a cutthroat.

The three of us enjoyed a great day on the water and we’re all lined up for another visit to the South Fork next Friday. I really get a kick out of watching kids get into the fishing and Cooper is over the top like I was at the same age. For me I believe this was my seventh day of fishing in eight days. I don’t mean to brag but I haven’t fished through a summer like this since I was Cooper’s age - before I got my first summer job over thirty years ago!

Cooper took another crack at the riffle where several fish started rising more frequently, but again they would not cooperate. Just downstream of us in some slower water another trout began to feed. This trout became very consistent and even though Cooper had fish in front of him, the cutty downstream was too much for him to tolerate so he went after him. I considered talking him out of his move because often times these trout in the slower water are near impossible to catch. In such slow water they can scrutinize your fly and your light tippet can look like a rope. They also cruise around all over and you don’t know if you really got your fly in front of them or not. I didn’t want Cooper to go down stream, not get the fish and get discouraged. But then I thought better of saying anything. Cooper is a good angler and if anything, it would be a learning experience. Five minutes later Cooper called for the net.

Cooper was hooked up to the sneaky cutthroat trying feed without us knowing. Like Gary’s cutthroat, this scrapper also put on a surprisingly good fight. Cooper and his 5-weight handled the battle like a pro and then he gave me a few pointers on when to net his fish. I listened and I scooped up the heavily spotted cutthroat on the first try.

We didn’t exactly spank the fish today like Gary and I did last week, but it was pretty darn good. Between the three of us we probably landed a dozen nice cutthroats, a brown, a rainbow and a quality whitefish. My highlight of the day wasn’t Cooper catching his cutthroat from the slow water at our first stop, but rather when Cooper perfectly executed a difficult cast to a rising fish far back in a cave at the base of a rock cliff. He had to do a side arm flip cast to get his fly to the trout. That’s not to mention all the willows he had to avoid with his back cast. Once he made the cast it was all you could do to see the tiny light Cahill he was using because of the darkness in the cave. But Cooper patiently worked to this fish for at least ten minutes until he hooked another dandy of a cutthroat.

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing web site

Cliff Fly Box Art Madness

Jack Dennis is a last minute kind of guy. On Monday he sent me a box of twelve Cliff Fly Boxes to put my fish art on. He planned to get these boxes to me on May 1st but just kept putting it off. Finally, last week he got around to ordering them and of course he wanted them drawn up ASAP! Well, I’m a man that comes through in the clutch – I got them all done in less then 36 hours.

Cliff Outdoors is a family owned business located in Casper, Wyoming that designs and manufactures unique practical outdoor gear. Their current product line is geared to needs of practical fly anglers.

If you want to order a decorated Cliff Fly Box or send me your own box so I can spice it up, then feel free to contact me. I charge $25 for one side or $50 for both. And I’ll do any fish species you want from the hook jawed brown trout to the fattest carp you ever saw!

You name it! You’ll find a “Contact Me” button on the right hand side of this blog.

Check out even more information on my web site.

Jack Dennis is a last minute kind of guy. On Monday he sent me a box of twelve Cliff Fly Boxes to put my fish art on. He planned to get these boxes to me on May 1st but just kept putting it off. Finally, last week he got around to ordering them and of course he wanted them drawn up ASAP! Well, I’m a man that comes through in the clutch – I got them all done in less then 36 hours.

Cliff Outdoors is a family owned ine is geared to needs of practical fly

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing web site

Very High on the Big Hole

June 27-28, 2010

The summer is only a week old and seems to be absolutely screaming past. My Henry’s Fork Marathon is history and this past weekend, a trip I’ve awaited nine months, came and went so fast I can’t believe it. The trip was to the Big Hole River in Montana with friend Scott Sanchez (Chez). Chez and I were the hosts for a group of four anglers. This was a trip thought up and sponsored by Jeff Walker of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Jeff generously donated this trip for four to the Jackson Hole One Fly Foundation to be used as a live auction item for their fundraising dinner 2009. The One Fly Foundation is famous for carefully using its funding for various stream restoration projects throughout the Rocky Mountains. Jeff’s donation included three nights lodging at the spectacular Big Hole Ranch (BHR) and two days guided fishing through the Sunrise Fly Shop of Melrose, MT. To spice it up, Jeff asked Chez and I if we would donate our time and be the hosts of this great trip. Being that neither of us is as dumb as we look, we answered without much thought, “Absolutely!”

The lucky purchasers of this fun trip were Peter and Ellen Saphire of Washington DC. As you may have guessed the Saphires' are long time customer/friends of mine and Scott’s. We were excited when we found out they got the trip because although we’ve been talking fishing with them for almost twenty years, we’ve never actually wet a line together. They brought along their twenty-six year old son Jesse, whom I’ve known since he was ten and Peters brother Andy whom we met for the first time.

We all arrived for dinner on Saturday night. For Chez and I it was a four hour drive from the Jackson area. I’ve been to the BHR before but it’s been at least eight or nine years. It was just as beautiful as I remembered it. Jeff Walker himself awaited us and our great weekend started off with  some wine tasting followed by a fantastic dinner. After dinner, Andy broke out some mean cigars so we sat on the porch till 11 pm and talked.

Morning came fast with sunrise at 5:45. We had a delicious breakfast and off to the Sunrise Fly Shop we went. We had three guides waiting for us. I was excited to see that two of were old friends of mine, Chuck Page and Rick Rossi. The way the day sorted out, Ellen and I fished together with Chuck. Chez and Peter went with Rick and Jesse and Andy went with a guide named Chris. In MT, outfitters are not   allowed three boats on the same stretch of the Big Hole River so Chris, Andy and Jesse went on a different stretch than the rest of us.

The weather doesn’t get much better. As if the Big Hole River isn’t beautiful enough, skies were a rich blue without a cloud in sight. The temperature was a comfortable 70 degrees with highs expected near 80. Even the mosquitoes weren’t as bad as they can be. The only hardship we faced was high water. With a huge thunderstorm that  dropped heaps of rain on Friday and the first high temperatures of the year melting high country snow at an alarming rate, the Big Hole was swollen well above its banks. However, trips like this are planned far in advance so even though we knew fishing would be challenging to say the least off we went to give it our best shot.

The guides of the Sunrise Fly Shop have a longtime reputation as some of the best in the business. Chuck and Rick have been guiding the Big Hole for as  long as I can remember. I knew that even under the difficult conditions everyone would get into some fish. Chuck rigged Ellen with a stonefly dry and dropped a nymph below it. Chuck would rather I did the same but I’m not much of a nympher and with the high water conditions; I was all about casting streamers. Chuck recommended his favorite bugs and I rigged them on my Ross 6-weight and my favorite streamer line, the RIO Aqualux.

Man did fishing start slow. I rolled a fish  in the first minute and then we went two hours before seeing another. Chuck was in awe at the increased water levels. All the places his clients caught fish on previous days were deep underwater and our day was quickly becoming a “You should have been here yesterday event”. Finally, Ellen actually missed a take on her dry fly only to recast and catch a gorgeous brook trout on her nymph. The skunk was out of the boat!

Getting the skunk out is usually all it takes to improve the day. Sure enough, Ellen caught three more fish on her  nymph. It seems what we really needed was some hot sun to get the insect life and the fish moving. I finally broke down and started nymphing from the back of the boat. I don’t use an indicator and was a little rusty at first. Then, just before the lunch spot I nailed a hefty 18” brown.

In the afternoon Ellen put on a show. While I managed to catch five fish total for the day, Ellen managed to catch at least ten. Under unbelievably tough fishing conditions she kept her fly in the water and took advantage of the very few opportunities. Just to give you an idea how tough the fishing was, our other two boats together landed a total of four fish!

On day two my fishing partner was Jesse. Jesse and I were the odd boat out and while the rest of our group went on the same stretch with Chuck and Rick, Jesse and I went with guide whom I’d never met before, Ryan Barba. Ryan moved to Melrose from Vermont and bought the Sunrise Fly Shop five years ago with his friend and business partner Eric. He’s young and enthusiastic and an excellent hard working guide. We floated from Divide through the Big Hole Canyon to Melrose. Although the water levels stabilized, the river was roaring. You had to be quick with your casting or you would miss the prime spots fast. Ryan rigged up Jesse with a salmon fly dry and no dropper. He encouraged me to use a streamer so I set up my usual double streamer rig like I’ve described in past blogs.

I could see the river was roaring, but when we pushed off it was apparent there was more water in the river than meets the eye. Ryan had to back-row his butt off just to keep us anywhere in the game of pounding our flies to the bank. Miraculously, in the first ten minutes I nailed a scrappy rainbow that not only fought hard but in his last attempt to escape jumped in the boat. Luckily I released him unharmed.

Fishing remained steady for me. I followed up the rainbow with three nice browns including one so beautiful that we stopped for several pictures. Naturally with me, anytime I see a fantastic trout I photograph it for a future painting. Things were going a little slow for Jesse so Ryan took off his dry fly and set up an indicator and two nymphs. Minutes later Jesse started landing some fish. Jesse has been fishing as long as I’ve known him so he can get the fly where it belongs. Once he got the hang of the nymph he started nailing some fish. He caught several nice browns and some trophy whitefish. We were getting it done in the difficult conditions.

The river was cranking so fast that we did the normally full day float in five hours. That was way too short for a day of fishing so Ryan took us back up river for a second float. We decided to give the dry flies a second chance and this time they worked. We weren’t exactly crushing the fish, but both Jesse and I managed to catch several more nice fish.

I waited far too long since my last visit to the Big Hole River. The Big Hole is one the great western rivers and truly one of my all-time favorites. Its scenic beauty and high population of quality trout is what makes it for me. Best of all I got to fish with old friends and new friends which is what this year is becoming all about. For now its rest up and slow this summer down. I have to finish a cutthroat painting then take Granny fishing on Wednesday.

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing web site

More Art, Less Fishing and Moose

December 5, 2009

There isn’t much snow on the ground here in Victor, Idaho, but the winter temperatures have arrived. It’s seriously cold and with the exception of a run or a hike I’ve been inside working on various art projects. It’s the exact weather needed to get me off the rivers and on to my work. Most of the artwork I’ve been doing is filling orders for Christmas. These include watercolors of cutthroats, brown trout, rainbow trout and even a muskellunge to name a few. It’s been great fun working at home for myself.

It would be a lie if I claimed I could go a whole week without fishing. And sure enough, a trip to Jackson Hole for a few hours of errands today turned into a quick jaunt up to the Jackson Lake Dam in Grand Teton National Park. Although most of the Park is closed to driving during the winter, the road to Moran Junction and to Jackson Lake remains open. From the dam runs the Snake River. Because the water running through the dam comes from the bottom of Jackson Lake, it’s warm enough that it doesn’t freeze. The warmth attracts baitfish such as Utah Chubs and whitefish that in turn bring in the predatory Snake River Cutthroats and brown trout. The dam turbines also blow through some lake trout from Jackson Lake itself. If you can stand the brutal temperatures, you often catch numerous fish until you’re so cold you can’t move.

Today such fishing was not the case. I fished with my friend Mark Kuhn, better known as “Milkfish” and between the both of us managed only two fish. I caught a brown and a laker. It was a surprise to do so poorly, but perhaps the fish were a little “doggy” because it was literally only five degrees.

Two nice fish certainly doesn’t call for a bad day, however, due to the slow fishing and severe chilly conditions, we opted to head home early to perhaps see some wildlife. Sure enough, our drive hardly let us down. We saw a coyote, hundreds of buffalo, elk, and best of all, several rutting bull moose. One of the bulls was quite large and I managed a few photos. Unfortunately, all I had was my point and shoot Canon so the photo you see is the best I could get. Hopefully in a few days I’ll round up a shot from Milkfish who had a nice camera and a zoom lens.

Global Fly Fishing web site