troutbum2live
Eventually the wrong fly will become the right one
Well, finally stopped being lazy and decided to write out a little something and share a few pics from my Montana trip.
First of all, I'd like to thank skipper3245, dcabarle and Future Fanatic for their help with info on my destination!
So the down low.
Me and my dad drove from upstate NY to Clinton, MT. Took 38ish hours, saw the country which was cool but a few side notes...Illinois, WTF is up with the open road tolling...I owe you $1.10, Wisconsin needs other attractions besides cheese and South Dakota...you win the award for fitting the most cheesy billboards in a state.
We arrived in Clinton late on Sunday afternoon, stopping in at The Rock Creek Mercantile for our licenses and info, they were an awesome bunch of people who made you feel at home in their shop. After, we drove down Rock Creek Rd. to find a place to camp, which was very easy. Rock Creek was awesome with every area we fished yielding great action and some really decent fish, as if the AWESOME scenery wasn't enough! We fished rock for a few days, then drove into Missoula to the Kingfisher fly shop, re-upped some materials and got some info on the Bitterroot. Headed down near the forks of the Bitterroot and did alright, landing many many cutts and a few bows and browns. Fished the rock one last day and moved on. All in all this portion of the trip was great, awesome scenery, not a lot of pressure and plenty of fish!
Next we moved on to Divide, MT for the Big Hole. Stayed at Divide Bridge Campground and checked in at the Great Divide fly shop. Again, what an awesome little shop with great help. Fished the Big Hole around Divide, The fishing was great with plenty of action on top but the pressure was very heavy! Apparently word had gotten out about The Big Hole fishing well, and you could tell. Although everybody we saw in a boat or on foot was very friendly (for the most part) it was still pretty brutal. Took a day and drove out near wisdom to check out the upper river, the scenery alone is worth the drive. Made it all the way to Jackson, and found smaller fish but much less people! One thing I observed while driving between Wise River and Wisdom was a man I can only describe as a "mega-douche" putting wire fencing across The Big Hole river...Stream Access Law battles continue I see.
Our next stop was Ennis, MT where we stopped into Madison River Fishing Company. These guys are really cool and really helpful, and the shop is well stocked. The Madison was beautiful, but the fishing was inconsistent. This wasn't that bad though, we saw way less people!
All in all, this trip was great and a big learning experience for me. Only being 20, I was pretty clueless on what to expect out in Big Sky country and now I know. Next time it'll be even better I'm sure.
Oh! And maybe I'll rent a car, folks from MT aren't real big on New Yorkers I see! I did try to explain The Adirondacks and such but...got alot of :finger:
Enjoy the pics!
First of all, I'd like to thank skipper3245, dcabarle and Future Fanatic for their help with info on my destination!
So the down low.
Me and my dad drove from upstate NY to Clinton, MT. Took 38ish hours, saw the country which was cool but a few side notes...Illinois, WTF is up with the open road tolling...I owe you $1.10, Wisconsin needs other attractions besides cheese and South Dakota...you win the award for fitting the most cheesy billboards in a state.
We arrived in Clinton late on Sunday afternoon, stopping in at The Rock Creek Mercantile for our licenses and info, they were an awesome bunch of people who made you feel at home in their shop. After, we drove down Rock Creek Rd. to find a place to camp, which was very easy. Rock Creek was awesome with every area we fished yielding great action and some really decent fish, as if the AWESOME scenery wasn't enough! We fished rock for a few days, then drove into Missoula to the Kingfisher fly shop, re-upped some materials and got some info on the Bitterroot. Headed down near the forks of the Bitterroot and did alright, landing many many cutts and a few bows and browns. Fished the rock one last day and moved on. All in all this portion of the trip was great, awesome scenery, not a lot of pressure and plenty of fish!
Next we moved on to Divide, MT for the Big Hole. Stayed at Divide Bridge Campground and checked in at the Great Divide fly shop. Again, what an awesome little shop with great help. Fished the Big Hole around Divide, The fishing was great with plenty of action on top but the pressure was very heavy! Apparently word had gotten out about The Big Hole fishing well, and you could tell. Although everybody we saw in a boat or on foot was very friendly (for the most part) it was still pretty brutal. Took a day and drove out near wisdom to check out the upper river, the scenery alone is worth the drive. Made it all the way to Jackson, and found smaller fish but much less people! One thing I observed while driving between Wise River and Wisdom was a man I can only describe as a "mega-douche" putting wire fencing across The Big Hole river...Stream Access Law battles continue I see.
Our next stop was Ennis, MT where we stopped into Madison River Fishing Company. These guys are really cool and really helpful, and the shop is well stocked. The Madison was beautiful, but the fishing was inconsistent. This wasn't that bad though, we saw way less people!
All in all, this trip was great and a big learning experience for me. Only being 20, I was pretty clueless on what to expect out in Big Sky country and now I know. Next time it'll be even better I'm sure.
Oh! And maybe I'll rent a car, folks from MT aren't real big on New Yorkers I see! I did try to explain The Adirondacks and such but...got alot of :finger:
Enjoy the pics!
