Ice fishing in western Montana – pike was the big catch
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| Five pound pike |
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| Successful day on the ice |
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| Ten pound pike! |
Pictures say it all. Thanks for forwarding these photos to us Mike!
Geoff on the Big Hole River in mid-August
Geoff Fitzgerald fished the Big Hole in mid-August for a few days. He had a great trip and one reason was this year there was a lot of water. He ended up fishing mainly in the faster water. Geoff takes lots of pictures when out fishing. He photos are of anything unusual and occasionally of trout.
He shared two photos from his August Big Hole River trip that illustrate both the unusual and trout
Here are his descriptions of the photos:
“The brown in the pic was right below Jerry Creek Bridge and it was hooked on the first cast using a yellow marabou muddler.
The speckled egg on the algae mat was incredible, yet a little tragic; absolutely untouched and unbroken – must’ve rolled out of a nest near the bank (meadowlark nest perhaps) or on gravel bar (in that case possibly spotted sandpiper or killdeer).”
Anyone have any firm ideas of the species of bird egg?
Geoff, thanks for sharing. We love getting other “points of view.”
Triple play pike day
Marshall and Jack both think pike fishing is a ton of fun. Jack took Marshall to some of his favorite holes today and the success was amazing. Three pike. I think that is a record for Jack’s boat on the Bitterroot. Yes, they kept them, yes they will eat them.
As you can see, it was a beautiful fall day on the Bitterroot.
Important September dates for trout
- 9/10 Bitterroot River Cleanup
10 am to 4 pm followed by BBQ for volunteers at Anglers Roost (south of Hamilton). Call Don at 406-363-3146 - 9/14/17 National TU’s Annual Meeting in Bend, Oregon
Visit www.tu.org for details and registration. - 9/23 32 Annual Bitterroot TU Banquet
5 pm at Bitterroot River Inn in Hamilton, Montana. Contact Marshall Bloom at 406-363-3485 of drtrout@mtbloom.net. - 9/24 Montana TU’s State Council Meeting
9:30 am at the Double Tree in Missoula. Contact Kate Grant at 406-543-0054 or kate@montanatu.org.
Great September fishing on the Clark Fork River west of Missoula
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| Trout from the Clark Fork River – beautiful! |
This has been a crazy summer for many people for many reasons. Mike fishes with Jack quite a bit each summer. He and his wife have a home in Hamilton. This summer, they had to be out of Montana more than usual. Today, Wapiti Waters floated Mike and some friends on the Clark Fork and you never know how it might fish. They hit it just right. Mike said it was one of the best days he has had on a Montana River. His friend, Jim, thanked Jack for sharing that day on the river with him. They deserved a great day and got it. Thanks to the fishing gods and the recovery of the Clark Fork after removing Milltown Dam.
Shields on the Big Hole and the Blackfoot Rivers in August
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| Brown trout caught by Jim |
Jim and Naomi fished with Jack a few weeks in July. Now these photos are from August when they came back to fish the Big Hole and the Blackfoot rivers. What is great about the Shields is that they have fun no matter what the weather or the fishing have to offer. But, as you can see here, they always catch really nice trout. I have to say either Naomi catches more trout, or Jim takes more photos…not sure which. Jack sure had a good time fishing with them.
See more photos in the slideshow below.
Dr. Fauci fishes the Blackfoot River with Wapiti Waters
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| Dr. Fauci with a trout from the Blackfoot River |
Dr. Anthony S. Fauci MD, director of
NIAID for the NIH since the early 80’s, spoke August 11, 2011 at the Performing
Arts Center in Hamilton, Montana just 50 miles south of Missoula. The Division
of Intramural Research (DIR) is a branch of the National Institute of Allergy
and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and more than 20% of DIR’s research is
conducted in western Montana at the Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML) in
Hamilton.
NIAID for the NIH since the early 80’s, spoke August 11, 2011 at the Performing
Arts Center in Hamilton, Montana just 50 miles south of Missoula. The Division
of Intramural Research (DIR) is a branch of the National Institute of Allergy
and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and more than 20% of DIR’s research is
conducted in western Montana at the Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML) in
Hamilton.
When Dr, Fauci came to visit, he also
got to fish. Marshall Bloom, associate director of RML, set up an afternoon of
fishing with Jack Mauer, fly fishing outfitter for Wapiti Waters in the
Bitterroot. This is the second time in the last few years that Fauci explored
western Montana rivers with Bloom. Fauci knows that the beautiful Bitterroot
and surrounding areas are parts of the draw for RML’s talented scientists. He
wanted to see some of it for himself. In fact he said to the Journal of Clinical
Investigation (JCI) that “over the
last 20–25 years, the potential liabilities of the physical separation between
RML and Bethesda have morphed into assets, where the beauty of western Montana and
the collegial working environment couple with state-of-the-art facilities to
make RML highly attractive to world-class researchers and an integral part of
the DIR.”
got to fish. Marshall Bloom, associate director of RML, set up an afternoon of
fishing with Jack Mauer, fly fishing outfitter for Wapiti Waters in the
Bitterroot. This is the second time in the last few years that Fauci explored
western Montana rivers with Bloom. Fauci knows that the beautiful Bitterroot
and surrounding areas are parts of the draw for RML’s talented scientists. He
wanted to see some of it for himself. In fact he said to the Journal of Clinical
Investigation (JCI) that “over the
last 20–25 years, the potential liabilities of the physical separation between
RML and Bethesda have morphed into assets, where the beauty of western Montana and
the collegial working environment couple with state-of-the-art facilities to
make RML highly attractive to world-class researchers and an integral part of
the DIR.”
Read more about RML and the campus
at “Rocky Mountain Labs: NIAID’s Montana campus”
by Karen Honey published February 2, 2009 in the Journal of Clinical
Investigation (JCI).
at “Rocky Mountain Labs: NIAID’s Montana campus”
by Karen Honey published February 2, 2009 in the Journal of Clinical
Investigation (JCI).
Read more about Tony Fauci at the Director’s Page on the NIAID website. He has
dedicated his career in public health to becoming a top 10 expert in the world
about AIDS policy and research His research in includes learning more about the
understanding of how HIV destroys the body’s defenses leading to the
progression to AIDS. You can read more by visiting Anthony Fauci’s biography on Wikipedia.com.
Upper Bitterroot River in July with the Shields
Jim and Naomi are fishing three rivers again this year, the Bitterroot (pictured here), the Big Hole and the Blackfoot. We will try to post the other two rivers soon, in August. Stay tuned because they always catch spectacular fish.
Here are more photos of trout – of course caught by the Shields!
This is a slideshow of Jack getting the raft over debris/hazard while Jim and Naomi were out of the boat. Thanks Naomi for taking the photos! Jack is pulling and pushing the raft over a downed cottonwood. Thank goodness it wasn’t too big. Good job Jack. You didn’t even lose your hat or sunglasses.
Westslope cutthroat trout in Montana
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| Westslope cutthroat trout from S. Fork Flathead River |
These photos were taken in the world-class Westslope cutthroat trout fishery
in the South Fork of the Flathead River, Montana, USA. The Westslope
cutthroat trout is one of two subspecies of native cutthroat found in
the state. According to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, the population
of Westslope cutthroat trout in the South Fork is the strongest and
most vibrant in Montana, and perhaps in the entire West.
Put in was Big Priairie, take out wast Woodfir Creek just north of White River.
Father and daughter fishing the Bitterroot
Daniel and Leslie fished with Wapiti Waters on August 1. Woody Hayward was their guide. They were nice enough to send us these photos. The are from Wisconsin and were in Montana on a father/daughter trip. Leslie enjoyed fishing so much, she now wants her own gear. Dan is delighted. He is looking forward to more fishing and quality time with his daughter.
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| Woody working on the boat with Leslie looking on. |
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| Leslie at lunch, Woody walking up from the river. |
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| Sweet little trout! |
Thanks Leslie and Daniel for fishing with Wapiti Waters. Hope we see you both again soon.
