Jack had a travel day home and decided to wade fish the Big Hole on his way. Here are a couple of the fish he caught on his Scott rod. You can visit the Scott website at http://www.scottflyrod.com/.
Here is more contact information:
Email: info@scottflyrod.com
The Scott Fly Rod Company
2355 Air Park Way
Montrose, CO 81401
phone:
toll free (800) 728-7208
fax:
(970) 249-4172
Joe and Jack spent a few days on the Big Hole River. Jack loves guiding this river in August. It is a nice time to be in that high, lovely valley.
All the photos were from Joe’s camera.
Doug Nation and Jack Saunders fished the Big Hole River with Jack on Monday. They didn’t get photos of the biggest fish Doug caught or of Jack Saunders’ fish, darn it. But they all had a great day of fishing and catching.
All three, Doug Nation, Jack Saunders and Jack Mauer are past-Presidents and active members of the Bitterroot Chapter of Trout Unlimited. Doug is currently Chairman of Montana Council of Trout Unlimited.
Click this Montana Trout Unlimited Newsletter link for the newest newsletter online.
To read about Montana Trout Unlimited see the website http://www.montanatu.org./
To read more about Bitterroot Trout Unlimited see the website http://www.brtu.org/
Jack has been enjoying the Big Hole this month. He had an especially fun day with Joe W and his friend, Gregg. They came over from Washington to fish a few rivers in Montana. Today was the Big Hole River.
Wapiti Waters is all about fly fishing and all about great lunches on the water. We shop at many stores in the Bitterroot Valley and the Good Food Store in Missoula. Our newest favorite is Farm to Market in Hamilton, MT. If we can’t pick from our garden, Farm to Market is the next best thing.
Terry and Roxane Hunt have operated Farmers Produce in Hamilton for the last eight years, and in that time they have noticed that customers were interested in products that are local, from Montana or at least regional. The Hunts decided to give the people what they want: a place to buy local and Montana-made products that saves the consumer money by minimizing transportation costs and bolsters local agriculture.
They opened their new store, Farm to Market, in the old Loonies and Toonies building in Hamilton and feature local and regional produce, a Montana meat market, a fresh fish market, a bakery featuring Missoula-baked goods, a deli and a gift shop.
With their styling of each department, the store is fun, economical, full of choices and is all-the-buzz with shoppers these days, even the young professionals. My young dinner guest last night was asked to bring corn. He arrived with Farm to Market corn spouting his appreciation of the market and its great produce as his favorite Hamilton food store.
All the beef in the meat and fish market section comes directly from actual ranches in the Bitterroot Valley. And they carry pork, chicken and eggs, all of which will come from within the state, much of it from nearby Hutterite colonies.
The store’s fish market features only fish shipped fresh from the Oregon and Washington coasts and the produce shop carries what fruits and vegetables are seasonally available locally like spinach, garlic and apples. Other produce comes from Washington’s Yakima Valley. In the dairy section, they carry local milk from Lifeline Farm Creamery in Victor.
The store’s deli offers sandwiches and a large salad bar. The gift shop carries only products made in the USA, including southwestern tribal jewelry, and features Made in Montana products.
We do our best to provide great fishing and great food. Farm to Market is a key ingredient for the great food!
You can find them at: Montana Farm To Market 302 N 1st St, Hamilton, MT 59840 (406) 363-3854 1-click directions See more photos of Farm to Market and some of our lunches in the slideshow below.
Last week we had temperatures in the upper 90 degree range. For us, that is very hot. The water levels were dropping dramatically and the water temperatures were rising on all rivers but the Big Hole and the Blackfoot water temperatures were in the upper 60 and lower 70 degree range. Low water flows and high temperatures stress trout, making them especially vulnerable to disease and predators.
In conditions like these, Wapiti Waters’ goal is to get out early and get off before the water temperatures peak in the late afternoon. We also choose reaches that have cooler/higher water. It is better fishing, easier on the trout and more pleasant for the anglers. Our guides are knowledgeable and skilled at using the tips listed below.
Last night we had a good rain. The short range forecast is for a bit cooler temperatures and we are already seeing water temperatures drop. But, we are heading into August and it will probably heat up again. It is worthwhile to understand how to fish responsibly during hot weather.
Drought Tips by Montana, Fish, Wildlife and Parks
Fish will feel the stress caused by low flows, higher water temperatures and competition for space and food. Low water conditions in spring and fall can cause spawning failures and increased predation on young fish. Also, fish will “group up” to take advantage of pools where the water is deeper and cooler — making them more vulnerable to anglers and predators. If conditions worsen, fish are lost to stress from the higher water temperature, lower oxygen levels, and reduced resistance to disease. These threats can impact adult trout numbers in future years.
To help preserve a threatened fishery anglers can:
Anglers who practice catch-and-release fishing can minimize the stress they place on fish:
On streams experiencing extreme drought conditions and high water temperatures anglers may want to avoid catch and release fishing as it is difficult for trout to recover under these conditions.
Bull Trout, Arctic Grayling, West Slope Cutthroat Trout are species of concern in Montana.
More information on…
Bull Trout and management during hot/dry conditions:
Bull Trout ID site on MT FWP
Under FWP’s drought plan, angling restrictions are called for on streams that provide habitat for bull trout when stream flows reach 1-in- 20-year lows and maximum daily water temperatures equal or exceed 60 degrees for three consecutive days. For all other trout, the water temperature to trigger angling closures is 73 degrees for three consecutive days.
Arctic Grayling on the Big Hole and management during hot/dry conditions:
The Big Hole River Watershed Committee identifies when low river flows should trigger angling closures.
These trigger points were met in early August of 2006, placing the river’s grayling at risk. The upper and middle reaches of the Big Hole totaling 47 miles were closed due to low water flows and high water temperatures.
The upper reach of the river was not opened until it exceeded 40 cfs for at least seven consecutive days with water temperatures that did not exceed 70 degrees for more than eight hours a day for three consecutive days.
The middle reach reopened when the river exceeded 80 cfs for at least seven consecutive days with the same water temperature guidelines.
To read more, click this link for Big Hole River Drought Management Plan
Note: 21 °C = 70 °F, 16 °C = 61 °F
Click here for Wapiti Waters Stream Flow Links
