Rainbow trout - an entirely synthetic fish. Learn more Feb 7 in Missoula, MT

Written by Merle Loman for Bitterroot Trout Unlimited.

Join Missoula and the author for a reading and signing of Anders Halverson's An Entirely Synthetic Fish. The event will be at Fact & Fiction, 220 N. Higgins Ave, Missoula, Montana on February 10^th from 7 pm to 8:20 pm. For more information call the book store at (406) 721-2881. Click here for directions to Fact and Fiction downtown.
About the Book

An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How Rainbow Trout Beguiled America and Overran the World (Hardcover)

By Anders Halverson
$26.00 - ISBN-13: 9780300140873
Availability: Special Order - Subject to Availability
Published: Yale University Press, 3/2010
Anders Halverson provides an in-depth account of the rainbow trout and why it has become the most commonly stocked and controversial freshwater fish in the United States. Rainbow trout have been proudly dubbed “an entirely synthetic fish” by fisheries managers. According to Halverson, his book examines the paradoxes and reveals a range of characters, from nineteenth-century boosters who believed rainbows could be the saviors of democracy to twenty-first-century biologists who now seek to eradicate them from waters around the globe. He discusses how the story of the rainbow trout is the story of our relationship with the natural world—how it has changed and how it startlingly has not.

Anders Halverson is an award winning journalist with a Ph.D. in aquatic ecology from Yale University. With support from the National Science Foundation, he wrote this book as a research associate at the University of Colorado’s Center of the American West.
A lifelong fisherman, he currently lives in Boulder, CO.

• Anders Halverson’s An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How Rainbow Trout Beguiled America and Overran the World just won the National Outdoor Book Award. You can get a copy for yourself if you donate $25 to Trout Unlimited.
  
• Click here for excerpts of reviews.

Other Montana events for this book are:
Book Signing at Country Bookshelf Bookstore, Bozeman, MT on Monday, February 7, 2011 at 4:00pm. Click here for more information about the Country Bookshelf Bookstore.
Book Discussion at Montana State Univ., Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman, MT Monday, February 7, 2011 at 6:00pm. Click here for the website for Museum of the Rockies
Plenary Address at the Montana Chapter of the American Fisheries Society Annual Meeting, Great Falls, MT, Wednesday, February 9, 2011 at 9:00am. Click here for AFS information http://www.fisheries.org/units/AFSmontana/

For fun, he posted this quiz on GoFishn.com. The winner received his book.
The Rainbow Trout Quiz: Question #1 - GoFISHn on GoFISHn
In 1996, IdahoDepartment of Fish and Game hatchery managers routinely taught their fish one thing before releasing them into the wild. What was it?

The answer: worms. Candy Craig got it right, and she's the winner of a copy of the book. The reason the fisheries officials put the fish on a worm diet was to prepare them for the wild. They feared the fish would swim around looking for pellets  when they were released, which is their normal fare in the hatchery.

Fly Fishing the Bitterroot with Florence Dentist, Carl Shepp

Jack's dentist is Carl Shepp from Florence. Carl is also a friend, a husband and wonderful father of two. We love getting together with the Shepp family for fun and for fishing. This day was all about Carl getting to fish. Jack took on a stretch in the middle Bitterroot. You can see by the photos, they had a great day.

The Bitterroot has many good dentists, but Carl is our recommendation. You know he knows how to have fun. Along with being a hard working, skilled dentist, he loves to spend time with his family, fly fish and snow ski.



You can find Carl's office at:
5460 U.S. 93, Florence, MT 59833-6852
(406) 273-2015

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See the slideshow below for a few more photos.

Click here to view all photos in a new window

Friends floated the Smith River the first week of June - it was BIG

This post is going back in time a bit, but worth it. Derek Goldman and Joe Goertzen floated the Smith River May 29 through June 2 and, in spite of rain, had a great time. The two main wrinkles were: trying to stay dry and fishing was not so good.

Derek said, "the Smith was blown out (1,800 cfs!) and not fishing well; same for the tributaries. Oh well. It rained three of the days, but not all day so we were able to dry things out. Still a great trip and Joe caught some fish."

Derek took the photos of Joe on the Smith. Joe Goertzen, pronounced GURT-zen, is a Missoula artist, businessman and owner of Goertzen Adventure Equipment - "handmade in Missoula."

Goertzen Adventure Equipment combines vintage appeal with modern creativity. Like your favorite pair of jeans, Adventure Equipment gains character with use and is rugged enough to pass on to your grandchildren. His company takes great pride in the design and construction of their products and strive to produce one-of-a-kind and ultimately useful equipment.

An added advantage in buying from them is the excellent service and product support. If you have any problems or need alterations, they will repair all of the products in a timely manner.

Joe welcomes custom orders and  ideas you may have for innovative products.
To contact Joe:
Email: contact@joegoertzen.com
Phone: (406) 546-0061
Location: 1029 Edith St., Missoula, MT 59801

Derek Goldman is field representative for Montana Audubon; he is working out of Missoula. He has been concerned about Montana snow pack, water levels and climate change. To read more about Derek's work and how you can speak up about climate change concerns, visit our blog post titled, "Montana Audubon and guides and outfitters speak up about climate change concerns."

Bitterroot River and Chief Joseph Ranch - a great combination

This blog entry has many topics. Enter Frontier Packaging, Inc located in Seattle, Washington. Providing excellent products with hard work and dedication merits a Montana fishing get-away. Add, a small corporate meeting at a comfortable lodge. Last ingredient, the Bitterroot River and trout fishing. The result is a successful corporate retreat that was also casual and fun.

Wapiti Waters has fished with company personnel from Frontier Packaging before, but this June a larger group came to the Bitterroot and stayed at the Chief Joseph Guest Ranch in Darby, Montana. The ranch is historic, beautiful, well-managed and, to top it all off, located south of Darby near the banks of the upper Bitterroot River.

Learn more about the ranch at ChiefJosephRanch.com.

Frontier Packaging was established in 1985 and is a Seattle-based manufacturer and distributor of quality packaging materials throughout Alaska, the Pacific Northwest and beyond. They specialize in providing innovative and efficient packaging solutions to the Northwest region's internationally-renowned seafood, food, beverage, and agriculture industries. Visit their website to learn more about them - www.FrontierPackaging.com.

Now, when you are staying at Chief Joseph Ranch near the Bitterroot, you have to fish. Not only was the retreat successful, so was the fishing. See the slideshow below for photos. 

Click here to view all photos in a new window

Fishing the James River in Missouri with Kyle Kosovich. A great day!

Introducing Kyle Kosovich - Longboat Outfitters in Springfield Missouri.

Jack visited his mother and sister last week and had the opportunity to fish with Kyle on the James River. Visit Kyle's website to see more about him, his rivers and his fishing outfitting business. If you don't know about longboats, give Kyle a call. Jack really enjoyed his day. Check out www.longboatoutfitters.com and you will see why; professional, knowledgeable, experienced, organized and the list goes on. Jack, as an outfitter himself, sets high standards and he thinks very highly of Kyle. Thanks! and we hope to see you up here one of these days!

A new target for Jack. He saw and briefly fished for Long-nosed Gar. To see what gar are, click this link for Long-nosed Gar on Wikipedia. They are prevalent in Missouri and some other states.

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Missouri River - Headhunters Fly Shop in Craig, Montana

From the banks of the Missouri River in Craig, Montana - The Headhunters Fly Shop.

Jack fished the Missouri recently and spent a little time in the Headhunters Fly Shop. He enjoyed the owners, Mark Raisler and John Arnold, the staff and all the shop had to offer.

If you get to Craig, be sure to check them out!

Headhunters LLC

145 Bridge Street
Craig, MT 59648
(406) 235-3447

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