Greetings from Headquarters, E-19ers!
One of the neat traditions that has developed over the last
decade and a half in hosting Extravaganzas here in western Montana is our
nightly après fishing gathering on the deck amidst a sampling of finger foods
and (unlimited) beer [this year, gang, for the first time we are going to have
a keg of locally brewed Coldsmoke on hand—how about that, Group Three veteran
Greg “Coldsmoke” Caniff?!?], wine and cocktails to share the adventures of the
day that we each had on the waters. Typically we launch 9 boats/day each
of which will cover up to 10 miles of water often without sight of another
boat, such that, invariably, there are encounters both flora and fauna as well
as pectoral that are “worthy of report” (and, wow, over the years there have
been some doozies!!). So it with great accumulated pride that I now
extend to you the report of our very first boat on the water, son “Lefty” Tyler
and my floating yesterday with our Double Up Outfitter, John “The Great But
Propaneless” Gould.
As is reflected in the above fish pics, Lefty and I had a
very chilly but nonetheless equally productive first 2019 day together,
covering over 18 miles of the Bitterroot River (we really wanted to get a good
feel for the condition of the river, both debris-wise as well as fish-wise).
The surrounding Bitterroot Mountains were snow-filled such that the wind that
accompanied the day-long light rain was a chilly one, with ambient temperatures
never exceeding the mid-40’s, but the fish we encountered really didn’t care,
as their 40 degreed water matched the outside temps and nearly 30 of their
contingency got to sample our net as they were landed, photographed and safely
released.
Check out the selection of rainbows and browns above and you
will see healthy, feisty and hungry native Montana trout in their finest
colors—colors of the full spectrum on the rainbows and, in the second and third
pictures, truly majestically bespeckled browns—the largest of which were in the
18-19” long variety and each of which (unlike trout from almost any other area
of the Continental United States) are “thick as footballs” such that even the
smaller fish in the 16” range fight bigger than their smaller size would
mislead, particularly when the water is as cold as it currently is.
I have found over the years that the first boat day on the
water is usually a pretty good indicator of what is ahead for us come June and
E-19, and, to that end, I can predict that we should have good fortunes as seen
from this pre-runoff vantage point, a prognostication I will further date down
later in the week after I again fish “The Root”, next time with Propaneless and
our Montana Matters Troubadour Shane Clouse.
Best to all from the scene of it all,
Rock Creek Ron
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