Late September Guide Trips

While my mind was flying somewhere over the Bighorn and then while I was physically there, Livingston's area rivers fished really well for what I heard from my contacts and what I saw on social medias. I think this average-to-cooler summer contributed a lot all through the season. At the turn of the fall, I had a series of trips around here.

YES!! Yellowstone River is still fishing well with dry-flies. Of course, nymphing is effective earlier in the day or all through the float. Baetis and some terrestrials that still roam river banks offer good dry-fly fishing.

 Ants worked for me but not hopper as I heard. But I'm sure it just happened to me and my people. I spotted this one at around my lunch spot.

I believe she was carrying the egg sack😍. She didn't hop, barely walking on the sand😊

Lower Madison has its own mood as always. One method may work better than the other and then some nice fish show themselves from nonchalant structures😶

 DePuy's Spring Creek has been fishing well all summer as insect hatches continue. Indeed this has been an incredible season on the creek👏. We guide team welcomed the annual big group to the creek. This morning I was able to show a couple of spots with rising trout for my clients.

But catching them was not easy😏

 Then in the afternoon, PMD still hatch😲 and baetis follow😆❗❗

 

Then we floated Yellowstone River. We shared our methods and catches as we go on. My people and I figured out what worked for us and so did others. All 5 boats had great times on the Yellowstone🙌

Of course I was shining among the rest of outstanding guides❗❓See what I can get my clients hooked up with😅 I seldom hold fish for clients just to take good looking pictures (I want clients to hold and be in pictures, not me!) but for this I sacrificed my hands 😖 and we had good Sushi lunch🍣😂

We caught many good looking trout and this was particularly memorable😆Of course this good looking trout itself, but also as we were going through the cascading riffle, I couldn't let my hands off of my oars. So this client performed tugging in this strong Cutt and then a one-man YOGA netting all by himself👏😉

 Well-done😬🙌

Let's see what the fall offers us in Yellowstone Country😉
See you on the stream👏

August Photo Essay 3

The following angler signed up for a multi-day-multi-destination trip. Indeed we drove and fished all over and experienced all aspects of fly-fishing.

Pictures will do most of descriptions. However I have to narrate some complicated situations at Livingston's spring creeks😏

We hit northeast corner of Yellowstone Park for the native Yellowstone Cutthroat.

 My signature lunch😋

Afternoon was the classic Hopper Time😆

Reviewing their morning foods😏

 He hit the spot just right😎

This was the huge surprise for the first day of

And that wasn't the last one😁

Gray Drake spinner on my truck window.

Next we headed to DePuy's Spring Creek.
On this day - and the next day -, weather changed dramatically😨. Air temp dropped plus bone-chilling breezes from northeast😱. It was indeed a weather condition we typically experience in late October or November. Fishing conditions on the creek were greatly affected. I was nearly running out of tactics and options. Situation looked grim.........😧. However I persisted and then as the breezes slightly calmed down (still bone-chilling cold), miraculously I spotted groups of rising trout for my client😲Some hatches were definitely going on😲

As we started to work on risers, as always on DePuy's, it wasn't easy............ I waded downstream of risers and seined. I found Size 16 PMD and, believe or not, Gray Baetis in large numbers - this cold weather must have conjured them up😲.
Initially he struggled with techniques and presentations but with my guiding, he started to get them right. Yet he wasn't getting any bites.............. I waded downstream again and seined. Now Sulphurs were hatching😲❗❗ I again and again changed the fly for him. And our perseverance and effort finally paid off👏🙌

 It was a nice Cutt😆

Looking closely, Mahogany was hatching too.

 And that wasn't the end..........

What a Brown😲👏🙌

Next day, we decided to pry Nelson's Spring Creek.
Weather was slightly improved, meaning still on the cold side............😰 Then Nelson's is always challenging too.

A super small fly & large colorful trout - this picture really highlights the spring creek fishing😏

My lunch menu knows no limit😋

 In the afternoon, we fished all through the creek.

On this day, we were more experienced. We anticipated the late afternoon hatches as in the previous day. And indeed it did happen😁
Another complicated multi-hatches.............. PMD in size 16, Sulphurs, and Baetis on this creek were in light olive/cream color..........😲
On top of that we were fishing a typical of Nelson's slow moving water under which weedbeds create a series of complicated multi currents.............

 All we could do was to keep changing flies and adjusting or trying to perfect presentations. We worked on one seemingly large trout that was feeding right at the edge of weed patch on the surface. Our effort finally paid off❗❗

 Another small fly + large colorful trout shot😆

 Congratulations🎊🎌

On the final day, we decided to float Madison River.
This was apparently the first time for him to fish from the boat and this fast-paced river but he quickly adjusted and got used to - I knew he will.

 Pulled pork 🐖warmed up for lunch😋

 Casting out from the moving boat, into the continuous riffles, raise trout on dry-flies, and bring them in - he was getting a hang of the Madison😏

He caught another nice rainbow but somehow I couldn't take a good picture for it......

Then the climax of the day and the entire trip, he raised and hooked another fine trout. We knew this would be larger and heavier than the previous ones😲. He held on through heavy currents - along with a couple of boats passing us by😜- and I was able to pull into a soft shallow spot behind the corner😲

 The battle wouldn't end easy. I was sure it would definitely be 18-inch long. After some more tug-of-wars, he finally steered the beast into the shallow and I was able to net for him💪👏

 Now we realized why this trout was so heavy and hard to bring in. It had such a huge-fat-plump girth😲😆 It looked as if those trout we catch in lakes or ponds, really😎

See a short video that was accidentally taken by my I-Phone X (I'm still getting used to it😅)

It's recommended to expand into the full-screen.

 And the release and see you later for another day👋

It's recommended to expand into the full-screen.

Boy, we fished really hard and enjoyed what each day offered us😎😄

With the aforementioned cold weather days have come into the forecast here and there, we have to feel the end of summer is coming.

Now I'm headed to the Bighorn River😏