I love that I could still fish “on top” of the water with dry flies at this time of year. If you look at all the insect charts for a river, you will notice that the hatches don’t really stop all year – even in the coldest months you can still see a midge hatch. Amazing little creatures these insects.
And so, we threw a bunch of blue wing olives and some mahogany cripples as we floated by the Seeley Swan Mountain Range that showed signs of a successful ski season. My timing was actually acceptable this time – as opposed to a month or so ago when my cast went to sh*t in a handbag, to quote George Carlin. (Interesting images of that expression.) I ended up with quite a few of the beautiful West Slope Cutthroats. And to think two months ago I had never even seen a cutthroat before.
We rowed past one of the more famous sections of the river called “munchmore” because some waders were casting into the hole and we didn’t want to get in their way. This is another thing I love about fly-fishing. Etiquette is expected and taught in classes. And, people actually do abide by the rules on the river – for the most part.
I couldn’t help but think of “A River Runs Through It” as I floated this river. Although the book and film were about this river, the film was actually shot on the Gallatin, closer to Bozeman. Did you ever notice the rising fish in that movie? Do I have a story to tell about that!
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