First Report From Montana

[Al Agnew]

As many of you know by now, we have a place on the Yellowstone River near Livingston, Montana, and our goal is to spend close to half the year there. This year, due to several circumstances, our first chance to get out to MT came last week, and we're planning on staying until near the end of April. Since I've never been out here this early before, I was really looking forward to seeing what kind of fishing there will be during this time before ANY of the tourist fishing crowd arrives.

We drove up to the house last Thursday evening, shortly before sunset. We'd had a guy come and blade off our driveway, because our friends out here had warned us there were deep snow drifts in a couple places. Temperature was in the 40s when we got here, and there was far more bare ground showing than snow, but those drifts had been there all winter, and the guy was unable to break through the icy snow at the bottom of a couple, so the driveway wasn't completely clear, but certainly drivable.

Next morning we awoke to three inches of fresh snow, but although the temps never got out of the 30s on Friday the snow mostly disappeared. The next few days were colder, temps in the 20s with lows in single digits. Today (Wednesday) was the first warmer day, temps back up in the mid-40s.

The river was lower than I'd yet seen it. Not only had snow melt not started, but the high country streams that feed the Yellowstone are still locked in ice, so little run-off is reaching the river at this point. Up in Paradise Valley, above the two big spring creeks that enter the river, there were places where the river was still frozen over solidly, and shelf ice was everywhere. But our place is about ten miles below the spring creeks, and while backwater areas were frozen the river channel is almost completely ice free.

So today Mary and I went to Dan Bailey's Fly Shop and picked up our licenses, and then I went shopping for replacement nymphs because my supply was very low. I wanted to check out all the fly shops in Livingstone (as far as I know, there are five of them) to see what their prices and selection were on flies. As it turns out, Bailey's, the biggest of the bunch, is also the cheapest, with most of their nymphs running $1.85 apiece. I spent a bunch of money there, and then went home to put all the new flies in my boxes, and then to check out the fishing in front of the house.

The weather was partly cloudy and in the 40s...but the wind was honking. 20-30 mph blowing straight downstream. Let me tell you, that much wind coming off water than cold really produces a wind chill factor!

There is a terrific riffle at the head of the island in front of the house. It's actually a split riffle, and when the water level is at summer normal the channel closest to the house is barely wadeable, but it doesn't matter because the best fishing spot is on my side. In those higher water levels, the near half of my channel is about 6 inches deep and the far half is a deeper, faster chute. On the near side, the bottom drops abruptly at the bottom of the riffle to two to three feet deep, and then gradually a little deeper, while the far side, as I found out today, drops abruptly as well but it's so fast that it's probably not worth fishing. That drop-off, and the slower water below on the inside of the curving current, is a fantastic place to fish in the summer, but today the river was so low that there was just a trickle of water on that near side, and slack water below with a very sharp eddy line where it edges the very fast water on the outside. I started out fishing that line, but caught nothing.

Below, the current stays strong on the far side and slower on the near side, but it gradually picks up on the near side in a run that averages about 4 feet deep and goes for a hundred yards. I gradually worked my way down it, fishing a big Copper John, size 12, and a size 14 Prince on the dropper. The water was a little murky from local run-off, so I figured a big fly would work.

The first trout I "caught" wasn't exactly kosher. My fly actually snagged another fishing line where a huge split shot was attached, and in that manner I brought in a very sorry-looking 14 inch rainbow that had swallowed whatever kind of bait that nimrod was using. Looked like it had been that way since last fall! I saw that the line disappeared down the fish's gullet, so I cut the line and released the poor thing. I bet it was glad to not be dragging along a half ounce split shot and 20 feet of 12 pound test line anymore.

I was getting cold. Really cold. Casting was a real chore. My waders had a tiny little leak at the inseam, up close to my crotch. My hands were freezing from handling that fish. I glanced up at the house a little wistfully. But then I caught another rainbow. This one was legitimate, and bigger, about 16 inches. It took the big Copper John. Okay, fish a little longer. Twenty minutes later I'd caught nothing else, and I'd about had it. One more cast. Bingo. Another rainbow, this one a good 19 inches, on the Prince Nymph. Hey, I think I'll quit while I'm ahead!

It took 20 minutes under a hot shower to get warm again.

[Gavin]

Beats work! Thanks for report..Hatchmasters in Livingston usually had some innovative bug...its been a several years, but the Grossenbacher Guide crew usually stopped for some. Stay warm, have fun! Always wanted to ski the Bridger Bowl...

[mic]

Thanks for the reports...keep them coming. I will be up there for the first time in Aug for fishing and touring.

[ozarkgunner]

Thanks for the reports...keep them coming. I will be up there for the first time in Aug for fishing and touring.

Back when I lived in Colorado we would always fish the "ice off" on the Colorado river. It seemed like huge streamers always produced large trout. You might give them a try.

[mic]

Back when I lived in Colorado we would always fish the "ice off" on the Colorado river. It seemed like huge streamers always produced large trout. You might give them a try.

Our place is off the Shields river. My guide told me (and I've read elsewhere) that the lower section is "not the best trout water" in the area; it is mainly brown trout water; and I should bounce worms and live grasshoppers off the bottom early in the morning and late in the evening. My wife and I will spend a day with the guide on the Yellowstone and a day on a mountain stream. The guide told me it will be hopper time in August. I will probably try the upper portion of the Shields for cut's on my own. We will spend at least one day in the park taking photos and being tourists. Man I can't wait.

[Al Agnew]

The Shields isn't the best trout water in the area, but it also isn't all that heavily fished. Access to the lower part is somewhat limited. But if you can get on it, the Shields is worth fishing.

August is definitely hopper time on the Yellowstone, but a whole lot of anglers are pounding it then. Your guide should know best, but when I float the Yellowstone in August, I make sure to fish hoppers with small nymphs as droppers, and probably catch more fish on the dropper. The fish seem to get a little wary of imitation hoppers after a while.

Drove up into Yellowstone Park today. There is a LOT of snow up there, that will be melting and coming down the Yellowstone this year. It's probably going to be a big flood year, and once it starts, the river may not be fishable until mid-July.

[ozark trout fisher]

I envy all of you that get to spend time in Montana. I was up there a few years back for most of the summer, and its just a place you just never forget. It gets in your blood, and no other part of the world that I've been to can come close.

I am going to have to move there at some point in my life, preferably sooner than later. I am just in the process of figuring out when and how I can make it work.

[gdh]

good to see a report from mt and the yellowstone . i have a place in mt that i get to a few times a year its on the madison near the palasades area about 35 miles from west yellowstone. beautiful country but those snow drifts can be a problem . if you get to that area stop by and see the nice folks at the beartooth fly shop near the palasades area about 5miles past cameron if your headed toward west yellowstone . if you ever need info about the madison look up leon thaxton at the madison fly shop in ennis a real interesting guy that has lived and guided on the mt rivers for many many years. good fishing...... the wind is your friend.

[mic]

The Shields isn't the best trout water in the area, but it also isn't all that heavily fished. Access to the lower part is somewhat limited. But if you can get on it, the Shields is worth fishing.

August is definitely hopper time on the Yellowstone, but a whole lot of anglers are pounding it then. Your guide should know best, but when I float the Yellowstone in August, I make sure to fish hoppers with small nymphs as droppers, and probably catch more fish on the dropper. The fish seem to get a little wary of imitation hoppers after a while.

Drove up into Yellowstone Park today. There is a LOT of snow up there, that will be melting and coming down the Yellowstone this year. It's probably going to be a big flood year, and once it starts, the river may not be fishable until mid-July.

Thanks for the advice. I should have said our place is on the Shields, so we will have direct access (a 300 yd walk). How small of a dropper nymph? Are we talking #20 midges or #14 Pheasant Tails? Here are pics of our location and the view out our cabin.

[Al Agnew]

Mic, I know exactly where that is. You are on the LOWER Shields...that's not far from the Yellowstone. That's Livingston Peak in your photo, and about as good a view of the peak as we have from our house, just a slightly different angle.

We use pretty small nymphs, size 16-20. Also often use a small dry fly as the dropper fly with the hopper. The fish ARE looking up, and may take the small dry when they are shy of the hopper. By August hopper time, the river is getting pretty clear, and small flies seem to work well.

Gdh, I haven't fished that section of the Madison...have fished it quite a bit both above there (in the park and just below) and downstream around Ennis, as well as the lower Madison below Bear Trap Canyon.