Today we had a guided drift boat trip on the Beaverhead River near Dillon, Montana.
We had about a 12 mile float from 9AM to around 4PM. The Beaverhead is known for its very very large trout in small water. 25'' fish aren't uncommon and trout up to 30'' are caught every year. We were using 3X tippet when we were nymphing! It was all nymphing today. We didn't keep track, but we must have landed about 15 fish. The biggest fish were 17, 15, 14 and another 14. I lost a very nice fish close to the boat that was "at least 20" according to Ron, who was at the front of the boat trying to net it before it broke off. Thats fishing though!
The water probably averaged 25 to 30 feet wide and was actually very deep. Its perfect for big trout - lots of water, lots of undercut banks, and lots of food.
We are out of here tomorrow heading to Ennis to fish the Madison and Gallatin. From what we are hearing around local fly shops, they are both fishing very good. We will see!
Tight lines.
Artie
Posted July 21st, 2010 by Artie Loomis |
Greetings from Montana!
This is the first time I have truly been able to update anything because of a bad internet connection that we had at the first place we were staying at.
This trip has been unbelievable so far. We hit the Missouri just right - the night we arrived, it turned on. BIG TIME! We fished the Missouri for about 5 days and we caught 57 fish. The biggest was a 21 inch Rainbow, and our average fish was 17 inches. I would say 80% of our fish came on dry flies and the rest were on nymphs. On the right are some of the better pictures from the trip so far.
Today (Wednesday), we are getting ready to float the Beaverhead River near Dillon, MT. Apparently there are some huge Browns and Bows in there so I can’t wait to see what it has to offer.
I will be updating more consistently now so look back!
Tight lines.
Artie
Posted July 21st, 2010 by Artie Loomis |
rainbow Artie Caught
Artie palming a Montana brown Trout
Artie doing the vaulkin mind stare on a huge brown trout
Artie with another Rainbow Trout
mayflies in Montana. yummy!
Poor Artie is having trouble finding a place to stop and download some blog content. Instead he sent these photos.
We hope to hear from him soon.
JP
Posted July 17th, 2010 by Jordan Ross |
Montana.
Thats right - I'm heading West. Not to Rochester or Buffalo though, but to Southwestern Montana!
The furthest West I have ever been is Chicago, and it was only in an Airport when I was in second grade where we were making our connecting flight to Disney World. To say I am excited is an understatement. I almost don't believe it! I will be in fly fishing heaven.
Here is the plan as of right now....(I am sure things will change a little bit along the way)....
- Fish the Missouri River for the first 5 days and stay in Craig, MT.
- The next 5 days will be split between the Madison River, Galltin River, and Beaverhead.
The Missouri River has been running high for a while from what I am told and from everything we're hearing. This is where we'll have to do some research and find some trout in different water!
I am heading out there with my good friend and one of the best anglers I know, Ron Beck. I've known Ron for about 3 years and I have learned a lot from him. He has been out West before so I am sure that the learning won't stop.
I will be DOING MY BEST to keep you informed on the status of my trip. I am taking my computer and 3 cameras. My flight leaves this Wednesday (7/14) around 6AM and I come back Sunday the 25th. This blog will be one of my portals, as well as Facebook and Twitter.
A lot of people tell me that once I go out West I wont come back!
Tight lines.
Artie
Posted July 12th, 2010 by Artie Loomis |
Steve Smith with a very nice Pike.
Here is a great photo of Steve Smith with a very healthy looking Northern Pike from Colorado. Steve caught this Pike on a Black Bunny Strip Pattern that was about 5 inches long. He was also using one of our sticks - a JP Ross 8wt Fly Rod! Nice job, Steve.
It is always great to hear people getting into some huge fish on one of our fly rods - keep the reports coming!
Tight lines.
Artie
Posted July 9th, 2010 by Artie Loomis |
Want to read more? Browse the
archive of past entries
