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Archive for Fly Fishing Yellowstone 2011

Everything Must Come to an End

by Josh Garris · Comments (1)
22 Aug

Today is somewhat bittersweet. It is the final day of fishing for most of us.

A few folks are going to stick around for a couple extra days, but most everyone will be heading home tomorrow.

We have had a great trip and have gotten to know several new people, and some even to well.

The weather has been great all week, but they were calling for a slight chance of storms.

Well, they hit the nail on the head.

The day started of beautiful with next to no wind and the sun was beating down,…

…but by 3:00 everything had changed and thunder and lightning were clapping and flashing all around.

Luckily we all had enough time to get a little fishing and catching in before the rain came down. Today was a fish where you want day.

Our guests were going to pick either a new place they want to try or an old favorite.

Jeff, Susan, Richard J, Ralph, Herb, Bob,Dick S, and Chris all spent their day on the Lamar, or Soda Butte.

Dick and Beth went to my favorite brookie spot.

Aaron and myself decided to fish the Gardner. Fishing was kinda streaky for the Soda Butte/Lamar guys. Some nice fish were caught but only after putting in work for them.

There was no wind, which is very unusual for the area. Once they saw the storm brewing, they decided to head in before getting wet. Dick and Beth got a little sightseeing in before they started picking on the brookies. Beth landed 8 with the help from her all knowing guide/husband. He paid me to say that. Seriously, they had a great day playing with my favorite trout (I know it’s a Char). The fish are gearing up for their spawn, so they are getting all colored up.

The Gardner was very kind to Aaron and myself, giving up a lot of rainbows and brookies.

Even a whitefish felt the sting of the Boss Hog.

About half way through the day we ran across some fairly recent Grizzly tracks, so we were on high alert.

We even ran across a giant stonefly that obviously had missed the big dance.

He was huge and posed for several photos.

As the storms rolled in everyone made their way back to our house.

As the night went on we ate pizza, watched a slide show, and more or less gave each other a hard time(wasn’t just tonight).

All in all this was a great trip.

Not just because of the fishing but because of where we were and who we were with. I have learned a lot this week and very little has been about fishing.

The men and women that spent the week with us here are a great inspiration to me( you should see these folks hike), and a wonderful group of folks to be around.

Jeff and I will be spending 1 more day in Yellowstone possibly fishin, but more than likely running errands.

It has been a great trip in a wonderful place.

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A Great Day to be on the Water

by Josh Garris · Comments (0)
21 Aug

So we are at it again.  Many of the guys have that special gleam in their eyes. The one that is there when determination takes over all other rational thought.  Big fish was the goal for several of the folks.

Some were going to be floating around Livingston and others were headed up to Slough Creek, both the first and second meadows.

Others were doing separate float trips on various parts of the river.

The boys who ventured up to second meadow had a great day…

…with several large fish brought in.

Jim, Ralph, Richard, and Jeff really put it on the fish.

Beetles and hoppers were a big hit with the resident cutthroat.

Spencer, Dick H, Dick S, and myself fished the first meadow…

…and had a good bit of action with beetles, gray midges, spruce moths, and even a smallish streamer.

Fishing was a little tougher but we managed to wrangle some pretty nice fish.

After returning home we got some mixed results from the float trips. John and Dale had a great day on the water, as did Aaron and Herb.  Bob and Chris had a little tougher time down river. Fish just did cooperate.

While the guys were off fishing Beth and Susan went for a hike down Hellroaring Trail.

They witnessed beautiful scenery and nature. In the evening Richard Parks and his guides Wally, Ben, and Wilson came over for a cookout and go figure…fishing stories were abound. Only in Gardiner, MT can a cookout turn into a bug identification class which carries over to the kitchen table.

Tomorrow everyone will be venturing on their own and giving it what they got. Its the last day for most of the group to fish and its do or die time. Who knows what we are in store for?

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Another Day of Catching

by Josh Garris · Comments (0)
20 Aug

So today was the first day of guided trips with Park’s Fly Shop http://www.parksflyshop.com/ .

We had three boats and one wade trip going out today. Spencer and Jim floated with Wally, Dick and Beth floated with Mike Leech, and Ralph and Richard J floated with Rob.

Dick S and Aaron were on the wade trip with Ben. The boats were going to float in different sections from Gardiner to Livingston.

The wade trip headed into a secret location on the Yellowstone.

Everyone had a blast and many, many fish were brought to the net.

Some in the 17-18″ range.

Some even said it was their best day fishing ever. The guys at Park’s Fly shop are really on their game.

The wade trip had a wonderful time with approximately 70 fish being landed. The biggest was about 16″.

The hike was brutal but the rewards were well worth it.

Jeff and Susan went on a hike, and Herb, Dale , and John went sight seeing but Herb still managed to wet a line.

Chris, Bob and myself made the trip up into second meadow.

The day was beautiful with a slight breeze building in the afternoon.

Once we reached second meadow we got rigged up and hit the water.

The catching didn’t take long to start up.

We were into nice fish almost immediately.

15-18″ was the average fish.

Beetles, ants , and……grass hoppers were the ticket today.

Everyone had a great day and we are looking forward to what tomorrow holds.

The other half of the group will do their float trips tomorrow. And the rest of the group is headed up into Slough again.

We will split up between first and second meadow.

Check back in and see who brought in the big one.

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They Had No Idea…

by Josh Garris · Comments (1)
19 Aug

They Had No Idea What They Were In Store For

So I predicted that there would be several sore lips handed out, oh was I right.  We started of the day with biscuits and gravy, sausage, and eggs. It was more than enough to get our engines going and get us on the road to battle with some of our favorite opposition – Brook Trout.

We split up in groups, with most of the groups staying on the Gardiner but in different areas.

Some went to the Gardner meadows,…

…some went to the lower Gardner,…

and some more went to the Gardner hole.

One totally separate group decided to make the trek into the second meadow of Slough Creek.

For Beth and Dick Heald, and Jeff the Gardiner hole is jump off point.

For John, Ralph, Richard, and myself we were going to take a short hike to the Gardner below Sheapeater Cliff.

Bob, Chris, and Dick S decided to start above Boiling River.  Everybody was into fish almost immediately upon arrival.

Some people caught more than they did the day before in five minutes.

Dry flies were mostly in order. Not to say we didn’t drag in several on nymphs, but they were all over the dries.

The fish targeted to day in the upper section were exclusively brookies.

The middle gave up a few Rainbows but brookies were there in numbers.

In the lower section all four of Yellowstone’s river trout are a possibility.

After a morning full of catching we by chance ran into everyone at the picnic area, including the squirrel,…

…and find out everyone had had a great morning.

We exchanged our stories, only slightly exaggerated of course, then we were off to fish different sections.

It turns out every one’s morning, was matched with their afternoon because the catching continued.

There is no telling how many fish were landed to day.

Needless to say not only where sore lips handed out there might have been a few sore arms received.

When the Slough group arrived back we found out they had some mixed luck.

But several nice fish were brought to the net.

Hoppers and ants where the ticket.

We sat around and laughed and talked about tomorrow’s guide trips. Several of the guys will be floating the Yellowstone tomorrow, and one other group will be headed into the woods. There will be one other group heading into the 2nd meadow of Slough to give it a go! Check in tomorrow on to see how everyone fairs.

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Another One in the Books

by Josh Garris · Comments (3)
18 Aug

So another day has come and gone and everyone has had a Yellowstone experience.

We woke up this morning and had a spectacular breakfast of oatmeal pancakes bacon and fruit, packed our lunches and out the door we went. We were heading towards the Northeast corner of the park to Pebble Creek and Soda Butte. We planned of fishing the area were the two came together but Yellowstone’s wildlife had other plans.

After traveling through several herds of bison and having a couple close calls with them, We finally were approaching the Pebble Creek campground were we were going to get geared up and head out into the meadow, when we saw a dark shape moving through the high grass.

Was it a bison, maybe a moose. Could it be wolves? Nope Grizzly Bear.

Moving through the field at his own pace. Eating berries, and wondering around. We were one of the first to see him so we didn’t get caught up in the typical traffic jam that is normally found in these kinds of situations.

We decided half the group was going to fish Pebble Creek above the campground, and the other half was going to try to pick on some fish well down river of the bear on Soda Butte.

Pebble Creek is normally a guaranteed fish but we couldn’t buy a bite.

The water was cold and the fish just weren’t moving yet.

Bob, Chris, and Dick S did fairly well on the lower Soda  Butte before lunch with several nice fish landed.

The water that Spencer, Jim, and Aaron  were fishing was not quite as friendly.

Everyone decided to switch things up in the early afternoon.

Most of the group ended up at the upper Soda Butte meadow…

…and the wooded area before it.

Fish were much more active and willing to rise for dries.

Several fish were educated this afternoon.

While walking out we flushed a decent size male Mule deer, and shortly after his two ladies followed.

There were numerous bugs in the air…

…and the fish were definitely looking for them.

Chasing them down river sometimes.

Aaron, Spencer and Jim went over to a favorite creek of ours know to be able to wash the skunk off almost anyone and boy did they put a hurting on there.

Brookies galore.

Yep Spiros, you know where.

It was a beautiful afternoon in such a wonderful place.

We headed back to the house for some Chicken Parmesan and Linguine. Everyone sat around and exchanged stories from the day and past trips.  The group is a great one with all different kinds of experiences. There is never a dull moment in the house. As everyone was settling in for the evening Herb returned from his personal expedition over to Idaho to fish the Henry’s Fork with stories of big fish rising to hopper’s.  He even had a story of the one that got a way. I Bet he will see that one in his dreams. Tomorrow we will be splitting up somewhat, with some going into second meadow of Slough, and others spending some time on the Gardiner in various places. I am sure there are going to be some sore lips handed out tomorrow.

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Our Guests Arrive

by Josh Garris · Comments (2)
17 Aug

August 16th 2011 is a date that we at Curtis Wright Outfitters have been watching for honestly right at a year. This is the day that our guest’s arrive in Gardiner MT. For several this is their first time to Yellowstone, and for many more this is one of just a handful of visits. For a couple it will be a reminder of the past, since they worked for Yellowstone for several years. No matter which category they fit in, they are all out here to see and experience a little bit of heaven. Today begin as usually with a somewhat early rise but today’s agenda was different.

Aaron was heading into the park to fish the Gardiner River, and Jeff and Susan Curtis, and myself headed into Livingston MT to do a little grocery shopping. Little might not be the best word though.

We have a total of 13 guest spending 6 days with us, and a couple other visitors joining us different nights.

Needless to say we had quite a list.  With three sets of hands and two buggies, we made quick work of it though and next thing we had to figure out was how we were going to get it into the vehicle. With some engineering like skill we got everything in with minimal room to spare. We grabbed a quick bite and ran into the first two guests, Spencer Elrod and Jim Bailey.

We all hurried back to town. Them getting their fishing license, and heading back to unload. Herb Freeman and Richard Schaad showed up shortly there after, and all four headed into the park to sneak in a little fishing. Bob Daubert and Chris Ellis dropped their stuff of and headed into the park to do a little sight seeing. Dick and Beth Heald, along with John Blezinrud pulled in after the other three groups had made their way into the park. Everyone reconvened around 6:30, and reports of success on the water with mostly rainbows coming to hand.

Our final arrivals for the day Ralph Fuller and Richard Jennings showed up just in time to help us make quick work of a dinner of salad, steak, and baked potatoes. Richard Parks stopped by for dinner as well and gave us a wonderful slide show about the waters, and some of the history of the Park.

Tomorrow is the first full day of fishing and everyone is very excited. More fish pictures to come tomorrow. Wonder who will catch the big one tomorrow?

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A Trip Over the Hill

by Josh Garris · Comments (0)
16 Aug

We woke up earlier today than we have previous mornings.

We had to pack up our bags and check out of our hotel today since we would be checking into our new home away from home, a large house in downtown Gardiner.  This will be our base for our Hosted Yellowstone Trip http://www.curtiswrightoutfitters.com/Yellowstone-Fly-Fishing.html .

We will be staying literally seconds from the north entrance into Yellowstone.

Check in was not until later in the afternoon so we really on had one thing on our mind. Get things packed so we could go fish.

We had decided to fish the first meadow of Slough Creek since neither Jeff or Aaron had fished it before.

As we made our way towards the northeastern part of the park, we soon noticed we had some dark rain clouds.  We headed on with only one thing on our minds. We arrived and almost jumped out of the car getting ready to make our way onto the somewhat rigorous trail into the meadows.

The rain never left us for a great deal of time. It kept popping in and out, but unfortunately the sun didn’t play the same game. Fishing was not hot and heavy but we were given our chances.

Fish were a little more selective, feeding on midges and an occasional spruce moth,…

…but a good drift was the most important thing.

In the afternoon, the wind started gusting and the fish were put down.

The hoppers never got a chance to get going, so our best flies today were caddis imitations and foam crickets.

The best thing about the whole day was I got a chance to fish my new bamboo rod made by Aaron Weiner.

It fished like a dream and can’t wait for another chance to use it.

Tomorrow, the rest of our group shows up, and the Yellowstone fish better beware.

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Yellowstone Fish Beware!

by Josh Garris · Comments (2)
15 Aug

Today we went down a totally different alley.

We had signed up for a full day float trip with Walter Weise of Park’s Fly Shop http://www.parksflyshop.com/ .

Walter decided we were going to float the upper section of the river as soon as it comes out of the park.

The day started off with an interesting boat launch to say the least, but with an expert guide like Walter it seemed as easy as scratching your head.

I started off fishing a hopper dropper rig, and Jeff was fishing a double dry fly rig.

We had some minor action in the first 15-20 minutes but after some fine tuning, it was on. We fina

lly decided on fishing double dries and the fish were more than happy to come up and eat.

So happy in fact we did not catch one single fish on a nymph.

Fish were splitting there effort between our hoppers and  small yellow stimi’s.

The species of fish varied but most were either Cutthroat or Rainbows.

Two nice browns were brought to the net which is a little unusual for the section we fished.

The water had several boats on the river…

…but I do not feel it slowed our action whatsoever.

Jeff even took a turn on the oars and let Walter catch fish as well.

Thanks to Walter for a great day on the water. We can’t wait to do it again!

Once we reached the take out, we were greeted by Aaron Weiner, the first of our group to make it out to Yellowstone country.

For tomorrow, Slough Creek first meadow is on the agenda, and it’s my first chance to catch a fish on my new bamboo rod built by none other than Aaron. Check back in tomorrow to find out the results.  Don’t forget to ‘Like’ our Facebook page for daily trip reports or sign up for our CWO Newsletter and we will keep you posted on 2012 trip information.

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Quality Over Quantity

by Josh Garris · Comments (0)
14 Aug

So today we decided to hit several stretches of the Soda Butte River since we had heard how much it had been rearranged during spring run off, and boy were they not kidding.

We started off higher up on the river wanting to fish a stretch we had never cast to.

When we arrived the water looked gorgeous and very fishy. We got geared up and headed out to see what kind of damage we could do.

This stretch of the Soda Butte is very similar to the rest of the river with the exception of having a few more trees lining the river bank. The biggest difference was one that we couldn’t see.

As soon as we stepped in the water we noticed it was tremendously colder than stream x. Any sustained wet wading and you your legs will start to go numb.

We fished hard for about an hour and had minimal success.

We decided to head down river to see if the temp would increase along with the activity.

After moving we definitely found the temperature increase but the fish were still somewhat lethargic.

Several fish were caught and all were of nice size.

This was not a day of numerous opportunities from fish.

You had to make the most of what they gave you.

We made one more jump as the afternoon turned into evening and we were rewarded with the most consistent fishing of the day, especially for Jeff.

He caught several really nice fish at our last stop.

The last run we fished gave up 3 nice Yellowstone Cutthroat in the 16-18″ range.

After the day was done, we filled our bellies and started thinking about tomorrow’s float trip on the Yellowstone with Walter Weise of Park’s Fly Shop.  Check back tomorrow to see how we fared.  Oh and by the way, Jeff and I did not plan on coordinating our outfits.  It happens at least once a trip, and several people in Gardiner found it rather amusing.

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Going Fishin’!

by Josh Garris · Comments (1)
13 Aug

Oh what a day, what a day.

We decided to fish an off the beaten path stream that we will call stream x.

The days adventure called for a 3.5 mile hike into stream x’s valley.

It was a fairly moderate hike with several minor encounters with wildlife along the way, and one major run in with a herd of Bison.

As we were making our final descent down to the river we heard some loud grunts, and after some research we noticed about 50 Bison headed right for us on the trail we were hiking on.  After both parties realized the situation the Bison kindly decided to take the side trail and avoided us by about 20 ft.

It got the blood moving, but the fish in stream x are what got the heart pounding.

After quickly rigging up, our feet were wet and fish were eating.

Many, many fish were brought to the net and several more left us scratching our heads.

The fish were 90% Yellowstone Cutthroat,…

…but an occasional cutbow would make an appearance.

Most fish were in the 10-14″ range but a few in the 15-17″ area came out to dance.

We saw absolutely no other fishermen, (thus the name stream x) and were kept busy all day.

The water was gorgeous and the company was great. All in all it was a pretty perfect day.

To make a perfect day better, on the way out we saw 3 black wolves on the ridge above the Northeast Entrance Rd.

Tomorrow’s day of fishing will consist of some exploring of the Soda Butte and the Lamar.  Want to know more about stream x sign up to come out with us next year. Heck, I will take you there!

Don’t forget to ‘Like’ us on Facebook or sign up for our CWO Newsletter, we’ll be posting our daily trip reports.

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Traveling To Montana!

by Josh Garris · Comments (1)
12 Aug

So the much anticipated day has finally arrived. We met up at the airport for our journey out west.

We checked our bags made our way through security, and after a pretty much uneventful ride, next thing we knew we were standing in Bozeman Montana.

The air was cool, there was a nice breeze, and the scenery just seemed to welcome us. We jumped in our rental and headed towards Yellowstone with a brief stop over at the Garage.

A local restaurant with excellent sandwiches served outside so we could enjoy the lovely weather.

After refueling on pulled pork sandwiches we wasted no more time, and headed to our destination. After only a short time in the car we were greeted by an old friend, the mighty Yellowstone River.

This year she is a little bit more mighty than in years past due to the 200-300% snow pack from this past winter. We were accompanied by the beautiful scenery of Paradise Valley until we reached our good friends at Park’s Fly Shop http://www.parksflyshop.com/ .

We talked shop with Richard the owner for a few, checked into our hotel, grabbed a little dinner and started talking about the plans for tomorrow.

Cache Creek is on the agenda, and we have a pocket full of sore lips to hand out.

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Getting Ready To Go!

by Josh Garris · Comments (1)
12 Aug

So the much anticipated time of the year has come again. It’s time to head west and dip our feet in some of the most fabled trout water in the world.

Time has gracefully flown by and all of a sudden, Yellowstone time is here. Over the past few days we have been busy twisting feathers and fur getting those last flies ready to offer them to some of Yellowstone’s resident experts, the cutthroats.

Gear has been checked and double checked.  New toys have been acquired and are begging for a good tug.

 Packages have been shipped and bags are packed. Yellowstone here we come!!!

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