Christmas means staying in touch with new and old friends

The 2010 fishing season for Wapiti Waters was a wonderful one. Current friends and clients fished with us and we made wonderful new friends. We recently received an email from new friends in Alaska. They fished with Jack in late October and caught trout. Jack also caught a darn big pike. They sent photos in the email and here they are. See the featured photo above and then view the rest in the slideshow below.

Thanks to everyone who fished with us in 2010. We wish you all a very merry Christmas and  happy new year!

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North Fork River in Idaho, fly fishing for Steelhead in late fall

Jack and I went steelhead fishing in Idaho last week on Thursday and Saturday. It seems to be true that you cast 1000 times before you get a fish.

We caught steelhead and trout, but only a few. Those few got us "hooked" as the fight they give you is definitely thrilling. Our steelhead were in the 24 to 30 inch range and they were all beautiful.

 The scenery is spectacular. And, the Village at North Fork is a one stop, get it all place. They have gas, rooms, cafe, licenses, gear, supplies, and all important shuttles! Give them a call at 888.432.0240 or visit their website at www.thevillageatnorthfork.com.


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Fly fishing for pike on the lower Bitterroot

I forgot to post this. Jack caught a big pike on the Bitterroot earlier this month. He is still on his mission of removing pike from our local coldwater fisheries.

Now that Milltown Dam is removed and the reservoir gone, maybe we can get the pike numbers down. The reservoir was a major rearing area for pike because it was good habitat for young pike. It had warmer, slow water and lots of smaller trout that young pike could eat.

Pike eat a lot of juvenile trout so we don't mind harvesting these voracious fish. 

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Fly Fishing the Bitterroot with Bob and Peggy and Bob's bamboo rod

Bob and the trout he caught on his bamboo rod

Bob and Peggy live in the Bitterroot south of Hamilton. They love to fish, love the outdoors and are avid Bitterroot Trout Unlimited supporters and members. We are proud of their service to one of our favorite organizations.

They fished with Jack on a nice fall day in late October. Bob used his bamboo rod and both of them caught some nice trout.

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Fly fishing for steelhead less than two hours from the Bitterroot

Dennis with his steelhead on the Salmon River

Jack, Scott and Dennis got an early start, drove about an hour and half and fished the Salmon River in Idaho for steelhead. See photos from their trip below.

You can bet they will be doing more steelhead fishing soon.

To read more about steelhead fishing on the Salmon River (license information included) see Fly fishing for steelhead on the Salmon River in Idaho by Merle Ann Loman.

Follow-up note: I just found out you can buy your license at Bob Wards in Hamilton. Nice!

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Betty's Montana pronghorn hunting success

Betty and the pronghorn doe shot this year on opening day

Our friends, Joe and Betty, love to fish and hunt. Betty is very successful. She shared a photo of her pronghorn (antelope) doe she shot on opening day this year. I found a photo of a buck she shot a few years ago. They are great photos and she said I could blog them. Here they are.

Betty is like me, she does it all. She doesn't stop after shooting, she retrieves her game and takes care of the meat. 

Betty and the buck she shot a few years ago

Fly Fishing the Bitterroot - surprised with trico/bass fishing

Large mouth bass from the middle Bitterroot River

Jack and Doug fished the trico hatch and a big surprise was this large bass! They did catch some trout, no pike, and of course this significant bass.

Update!!! Above is only part of the story. When I asked Jack more about how he caught this bass, the whole story came together.  They WERE fishing the trico hatch until it was done. When the day got warmer and sunnier, they switched to the 9 wt rod and pike flies. They were fishing for pike in a slow section near a backwater and they caught this bass there. So that is the rest of the story. My apologies for not getting all the info in the first place. (Merle)

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Fly Fishing - trico-pico day on the Bitterroot with Marshall

Marshall with his pike from the Bitterroot.
Photo courtesy of Marshall Bloom.

All photos are courtesy of Marshall Bloom. They used his camera. This is a day on the lower Bitterroot. They were looking to fish tricos and to catch pike. Looks like a pretty successful and beautiful day. Thanks, Marshall, for the photos! By the way, grilled elk steak was the main course for lunch. Yum.

See all of Marshall's photos of pike and the Bitterroot River below.

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Wapiti Waters recommends (and really uses) these items:

Fly Fishing the Clark Fork River with Paul and Tom

Photo courtesy of Paul

Paul's mom and sister live in the Bitterroot That gives him good reason to come visit and, of course, fish. They live in Washington state and Paul works for the state park system. This year he brought his life-long friend, Tom. Jack opted to take them on the Clark Fork this year to show them something they hadn't seen. It was a pretty day and a pretty good day of fishing. Paul sent these photos. Thank you Paul!

See all of Paul's photos below.

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Fly fishing the Blackfoot River with Judy and Irv

Judy with her trout from the Blackfoot River, Montana. This was her last fish of the day!

Irv is at Stanford University School of Medicine as a professor, researcher, and Director of Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. He is also from Great Falls, Montana and maintains his Montana roots. He has a home on the Bitterroot River and generously invites students, colleagues and friends to visit. On this fishing day, Irv and Stanford and scientific colleague, Judy, fished with Jack. Irv needed to get to the airport in the late afternoon so they chose the Blackfoot River on a stretch close to Missoula. It was a good choice both for timing and fishing.

Judy has fished with Jack for many years but I think this is the first fishing photo we have gotten. It is a nice one! I also think Judy will be asking Jack to fish the Blackfoot River again. She was on fire. The fishing and the catching went very well.

Fly Fishing the Bitterroot River with Jim and Phil

Phil and his Bitterroot rainbow trout

Jim and Phil from Washington, DC came to Montana and fished with Jack on Sept 17 and 18. The Bitterroot was their river of choice and it paid off. There wasn't a lot of time for fishing photos, but here are a few taken from the boat. I am including a few more that I (Merle) took on the morning of first day as they were getting ready to start the day.
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See all the photos online with this link Pinegrass at Break Espresso on First Night Missoula

Fall fly fishing on the Bitterroot River with Dar

Dar with a beautiful rainbow trout.

Fall is almost here officially, but it feels like fall now. Cooler temperatures and changing colors are the clues for us and the fish. Dar Soder and his wife, LaRonda, are visiting from Missouri. Dar loves to fish and he and Jack were on the mid to lower Bitterroot one day this week. The fishing was a bit technical for some of the time with tricos coming off, but Dar did used a variety of Jack's flies and definitely caught some beautiful trout. They had a lot of fun fishing and visiting while floating the gorgeous Bitterroot River.
Here are more photos.

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We recommend Smith Optics Sunglasses for fly fishing in Montana.