We hike an easy trail to String Lake and Leigh Lake. The parking lot is quite full with families bringing rafts, kayaks and paddleboards to play in the water. Leigh Lake is serene with clear teal waters. We stop for ice cream then Ray tries his luck at the tailwaters of the Snake below the dam. I chose to sit in the shade with my audiobook. The afternoon sun is blistering hot. I cook our dinner of hamburgers on the campstove, with a view high above Jackson Lake. We head back to Jackson Dam where I land 3 small cutthroats on nymphs and surprisingly land one on a dry fly! The Teton range is gorgeous. We enjoy our fishing adventures as we prepare to head out tomorrow. It has been a very productive time fishing, my totals are 19 landed, 17 hooked!
I’m sad to leave this magical place. We go out for our final morning fishing. There are guides with their clients in each of our favorite places so we walk further down the trail. I chat with a woman and her son from Minn. They tell me the cabins across the river are for rent through vrbo or Montana Anglers. It ends up being a spectacular morning as I land 1, which I am proud to say was all done myself, from set up, hook, to bring it in. It jumps away right by the net, was a large and beautiful fish. I hook 2 more before we leave. We spend some time talking to Kelly who says Jan/Feb can be good. May is deserted but the runoff is good nymphing. Mid June to mid July is dry fly season and most years busy here. Fall is hoppers.
Our next stop after lunch from Firehouse bbq is Grand Teton NP. We drive through Yellowstone which is peacefully deserted because of the floods last month. Road closures caused lots of cancellations. Funny thing is I have never seen it so void of wildlife. We are staying in the campground at the north end of the Tetons at Flagg Ranch. After setting up camp and having dinner, we head for the nearby Snake River where Ray catches a few suckers
Yellowstone NP is our destination today and we are going to fish the ”fire hole”. hopefully there will be rising fish. It should be cooler at the higher elevation. Alas, no fish rising so we move further upstream. I set my small backpack down on the grass and try nymphing a side channel. Whrn we decide to leave, my bag is no where to be found . Ray is franctic; I think we shoild find cell service so I can use find my friends to locate it. We drive a bit up the toad, asking people along the way. Ray recognizes one large family and the girl looks so relieved to have found its owner. My fault for leaving it there but did she really need to pick it up?Anyway it ended well.
Afternoon and we are back, preparing for our last evening fishing. To my disappointment, there is someone in our spot and they are pulling in fish one after another. I don’t have much luck and go in search of Ray who puts me in a good spot..I land 3, hook 2. One of the fish landed is an 8” brown trout. They are coming for parigons, 2 nymphs.
I’ve finally reached a point of independence in flyfishing and I believe it comes with experience in catching fish. in other words, you can practice, go to class and watch videos but you can’t improve unless you catch fish, which is hard to do in CA. Ray’s allergies kept him in today, away from the forecasted gusty winds so I ventured out by myself. Amazing isn’t it, that I would feel ok going off alone, but it is potentially our last morning here and mornings are heavenly, so I really don’t want to sit in the trailer. It is cloudy and cool. I land a small one by the bridge then head down the trail. I hook a good sized one then my line sinks and I work what seems like a fish but maybe is just caught. After 15 min with the line not moving, I pull and break the line, still unsure if it was s big fish or what. A few casts later, the same thing happens in the same spot…not a big fish after all! (landed 1, hooked 1)
We drive 30 min to Ennis, the nearest town. It reminds me of Truckee. We buy groceries at the only grocery store in town, not a huge selection of produce and meats, and makes me feel grateful for the options we have in the bay area. Their produce section is 1/4 of an aisle but the chips section is a full aisle, go figure. Ennis has wind gusts of 40-50mph; I can’t even open the car door.
It is hot this afternoon, gusty and the skies look smoky. I check and there is a fire near Helena, west of here. unfortunately it is too windy and smoky to fish. Here is a photo of Montana at its not so finest.
In the parking lot, guys in the car next to us tell me I crushed it last night, did a great job landing fish, and that they had fun watching me. I think they were wanting our fishing spot! I’ve gone to the dark side and switched from dry flies to nymphs, not my preference but they catch fish. The morning air is fresh and cool. We stay in our favorite spot upstream where we had our banner night. No bites for me. We fish until 1 and break for lunch; it is cloudy and cool all morning, a lovely day. We visit the fly shop after lunch and hang out in the trailer. After dinner we are back on the river, hoping for a repeat. It is peaceful as the weekend crowds have gone and there are only a few people out. I start a little upstream, cast in from the bank and get angry at myself as it appears I am hooked on a rock. I let go of the rod and get ready to pull the line when to my astonishment, it is actually a fish! I quickly pick up the rod, working it but the fish goes into more rocks and breaks the line. Next I go to our spot where Ray is pulling them out one at a time. The caddis are flying around, a good sign. A few casts and I land one, hook 2. The caddis disappear and the fish stop biting. The evening sky is gorgeous and a bright rainbow appears. We reluctantly call it a night but walking past the bridge, Ray casts out one last time and lands one! I cast and hook 2! ( 1 landed, 5 hooked)
Saturday, we again got out early and fished left of 3 Dollar Bridge close to the second stairs. Standing on the bank, i cast in my salmonfly and nymph and a fish grabbed it immediately but I didn’t hook it. I cast again and I see the fish up against 2 rocks come up for it but didn’t grab. I then drifted it over and over and as the salmonfly sank slightly, I see the fish make a grab for it. What a thrill! Afternoon is super hot and we stay in then go for a drive, sit out the wind and sprinkles then head to Raynald’s bridge. I start where we were the first night, no luck. Then caddis are flying everywhere and Ray finds a spot far down the trail where the waves calm to a slow area. What a thrilling night. I catch one, landing it – my reel falls off. We finally get it in the net with photo. I catch another that Ray nets. Then I catch one that jumps in the air twice and breaks off. Next I land one and net it myself. One more gets away. Then Ray helps me net one that I land; it has a bum jaw. 6 in one night, a great evening (4 landed, 4 hooked)
This afternoon is forecasted to be very hot. We get out early and fish 3Dollar Bridge until noon. Ray discovers a deep trough near a wadable area and shows me how to drift it. I use a salmonfly dropper with a nymph and drift it over and over. I catch 2 fish, one which gets away from Ray’s net, the next one netted but as Ray finds his phone, I try to keep it in the water and it jumps out..alas no photo! After lunch we head back out downstream of 3 Dollar Bridge, a very bushy and rocky area on the opposite shore. A fish takes my salmonfly and breaks off the line, another fish hooked but not landed. We fish until late afternoon. I photograph the lightning storm and am delighted to find I captured a lightning bolt. Evening is very gusty and no caddis are hatching so we watch the sunset from the top of the hill. (2 landed, 1 hooked)
We arrive at Kelly Galloup’s Slide Inn on Wed. after a 2 days drive through the desert of Nevada where the scenery doesn’t change, just mile after mile of scrub brush and solar farms. Surprisingly, towns seem to be booming with small casinos and lots of new construction. They certainly look economically better off than many small towns in other states like California for example. We overnight at New Frontiers RV Park in Winnemucca, huge and new. The town has big events all summer, bringing tourists in for entertainment and gambling. Crossing the border of Idaho, the arid land turns into green fields of hay and potatoes, irrigated by huge moving sprinklers. Simplot factories, producers of McDonalds french fries are huge, surrounded by potato fields. We overnight at the Pocatello KOA Journey RV Park, quiet in a residential area.
Camping in Calialto at Kelly Galloup’s Slide Inn has been my dream; we’ve stayed in the cabins before but this is the first time we’ve brought the trailer for an extended stay. We have site 4 and as we set up, our neighbor tells us he and his girlfriend have covid, as did the guy in the site prior to us, and many other campers who had gathered for a July 4th party, great… We keep our distance and vow to keep to ourselves. After dinner, we head to the Madison River with great anticipation, a short drive away and fish left of Raynald’s Bridge until dark. I hook a rainbow on a dry fly in the dark by feel, a nice start to the trip. (1 fish hooked)
On Thursday, I am still getting my bearings and trying to be coordinated, learning and using the skills I have been perfecting- tying knots, casting, looking at the waters. I get some grabs that didn’t set, hooked a big one under the bridge which was a thrill, land 3 baby fish. We fish morning until lunchtime, then stay in during the afternoon heat of high 80’s, wait out the early evening gusts and thunderstorms, then go out until dark. Sunsets are gorgeous, sometimes with rainbows. Ray spends a lot of time trying to keep the trailer cool. We learn that once it gets above 90, it is a lost cause. All that glass means all that heat. (Landed 3, Hooked 2)
