firehuntfish
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- Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, USA, South, Central America & New Zealand
2022 was a crazy water year for the mountain West. Flooding in western Montana in June and July transformed into drought and record heat in August. Although stream flows were below normal and some at record lows by early September, we managed to find enough water to enjoy some really good fishing overall.
As per usual, we fish a few guided days and then spend the majority of our time scouting and seeking new, uncrowded water to fish on our own which is becoming more of a challenge each year. We like planning our trips for late summer/early fall because it has been traditionally less crowded. However, the last couple of years since Covid, it seems that more folks than every are on the rivers. It was hard to find a section of river to float that didn't already have 3 or 4 boats on it. Before Covid, we could easily plan several different floats on any given river and never see another boat the entire day. During our wade trips this time, we saw plates from a dozen different states at almost every public access point you could find. Of course everybody has the right to enjoy these resources equally, I just wish they didn't want to enjoy them all at the same time..
These fisheries can only take so much pressure and the heat and low water levels only compound the stress to the fish. I guess time will tell if these fisheries can withstand the increased pressure. We saw Montana FWP on numerous occasions shocking fish and doing counts. It's good to see them managing the fisheries, but I fear more restrictions and limitations will be the end result from the added pressure. Anyway, that's a conversation for another time I guess.. Here are a few highlights of our trip this year:
We started out our trip fishing with our good friend Brooks Jessen guide/owner/outfitter of www.troutzoolamontana.com. On this trip with Brooks, we fished the West Fork and main stem of the Bitterroot along with the lower Clark Fork. No big numbers, but all quality fish as you can see, mostly on dry flies and streamers.
One of my favorite things to do as a bonus to the trout fishing is to take a few shots at the pike which inhabit the sloughs of many of these rivers. The pike fishery in rivers like the Bitterroot and the Clark Fork is surprisingly good. You will nearly always see pike on almost any of the slower water, although they are not always aggressive to eat a fly. I was lucky enough to catch it right one day and they were pretty grabby. I think we caught 5 out of 9 or 10 grabs in one slough with one of the nicer fish coming in at just under 40".
We covered some ground wade fishing this year trying to seek out the combination of enough water without any other people. Finding fishable water was easier than less people unfortunately, but still managed to grind out some good fish and lots of fun on our own.
Upper Rock Creek. Sometimes I have to remind myself to stop fishing and take a look around...!
As an added highlight to the trip, we had the occasion to meet up with @VonJager and his wonderful family to talk a little African hunting over a couple of pints of Cold Smoke. They are great folks and we enjoyed our evening with them very much! The AH.com forum makes a big world much smaller, and it's always nice to get the chance to put faces to the names and meet folks in person.
As per usual, we fish a few guided days and then spend the majority of our time scouting and seeking new, uncrowded water to fish on our own which is becoming more of a challenge each year. We like planning our trips for late summer/early fall because it has been traditionally less crowded. However, the last couple of years since Covid, it seems that more folks than every are on the rivers. It was hard to find a section of river to float that didn't already have 3 or 4 boats on it. Before Covid, we could easily plan several different floats on any given river and never see another boat the entire day. During our wade trips this time, we saw plates from a dozen different states at almost every public access point you could find. Of course everybody has the right to enjoy these resources equally, I just wish they didn't want to enjoy them all at the same time..
These fisheries can only take so much pressure and the heat and low water levels only compound the stress to the fish. I guess time will tell if these fisheries can withstand the increased pressure. We saw Montana FWP on numerous occasions shocking fish and doing counts. It's good to see them managing the fisheries, but I fear more restrictions and limitations will be the end result from the added pressure. Anyway, that's a conversation for another time I guess.. Here are a few highlights of our trip this year:
We started out our trip fishing with our good friend Brooks Jessen guide/owner/outfitter of www.troutzoolamontana.com. On this trip with Brooks, we fished the West Fork and main stem of the Bitterroot along with the lower Clark Fork. No big numbers, but all quality fish as you can see, mostly on dry flies and streamers.
One of my favorite things to do as a bonus to the trout fishing is to take a few shots at the pike which inhabit the sloughs of many of these rivers. The pike fishery in rivers like the Bitterroot and the Clark Fork is surprisingly good. You will nearly always see pike on almost any of the slower water, although they are not always aggressive to eat a fly. I was lucky enough to catch it right one day and they were pretty grabby. I think we caught 5 out of 9 or 10 grabs in one slough with one of the nicer fish coming in at just under 40".
We covered some ground wade fishing this year trying to seek out the combination of enough water without any other people. Finding fishable water was easier than less people unfortunately, but still managed to grind out some good fish and lots of fun on our own.
Upper Rock Creek. Sometimes I have to remind myself to stop fishing and take a look around...!
As an added highlight to the trip, we had the occasion to meet up with @VonJager and his wonderful family to talk a little African hunting over a couple of pints of Cold Smoke. They are great folks and we enjoyed our evening with them very much! The AH.com forum makes a big world much smaller, and it's always nice to get the chance to put faces to the names and meet folks in person.
