Big Horn in April
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Okay, I’ve been a bit shy about posting here (rather, a bit intimidated by the talent…) I’m sure I’ll get over it, anyway, with some public encouragement by Mark Landerman, I guess I really do need to share my trip with you guys. It was one of those that will be recalled from memory for years and years to come.
In January I was invited on a trip to the Big Horn – my first – with LaMoyne Hyde, of Hyde Driftboats, along with two other good friends. LaMoyne was to deliver some new boats to Cottonwood Camp and I was told it could happen any time. Now, I’ve been fishing with LaMoyne before (last spring we floated the lower Henry’s Fork from Vernon Bridge to Chester along with Jim and Kelly Watt of Bennett-Watt Enterprises as the Watt’s filmed us fishing for the new promo of Hyde’s new Rocky Mountain Skiff driftboat), and I also knew that nothing was set in stone, so ‘anytime’ really meant any time. On Saturday of the East Idaho Fly Tying Expo, as I was about to enter the Fly Tying Theatre for my presentation, LaMoyne was there and asked if I was ready to go. Anyway, we ended up meeting at Hyde’s office that next Tuesday morning and heading for Montana. It was really finally taking place.
After what seemed like days, but was really just a half a day, we arrived at Cottonwood Camp, unloaded the new boats and loaded up the old boats to return and refurbish them at Hyde’s plant in Idaho Falls, ID.
Just a short hop down the same dirt track that took us to Cottonwood Camp and we arrived at Bighorn River Country Lodge, owned and operated by Karl and Trudy Burns, and dog Missy.
We got situated, slipped into our waders and headed for the river just a mile or so from where we were staying. We waded into the river at the three-mile takeout/launch to numerous fish rising and a gaggle of anglers just about everywhere. I headed upriver with our host, Karl, to see if we could find any rising fish. After about a half-mile hike we finally spotted some rising fish in a spot where there were no other anglers. I set up with a Parasol Emerger in a BWO emerger pattern trailed by a small Griffith’s Gnat. Karl positioned me below the pod of risers and I promptly put all rising fish down with my first ‘splatter’ cast. Boy were my dry fly skills rusty. I waited patiently for more fish to begin rising, and they finally did. I moved into position, this time casting up and across rather than straight up-river. After numerous casts to rising fish I finally got a solid take and set the hook on my first Bog Horn Brown trout. It was a beautiful fish, albeit a smallish one, compared to the ones I’d seen in pics from the Big Horn. But I was not disappointed and snapped a few quick pictures. By the time all of the picture taking and cleaning off of flies and re-dressing them with floatant was finished, the wind had picked up and the rising fish faded into the creeping sunset. We headed back to the car and called it a night.
Following a first-class meal by our host Trudy, we spent an hour talking fishing and making plans for the next morning – our first full day on the river. Then it was bedtime and restless sleep anticipating the morning to come. The rooms at the lodge are incredible and spacious and well stocked with a year’s supply of flyfishing magazines for when you are too excited to sleep…
7 bells and we were up and showering and dressing for the day’s events. Ooooh, ooooh, ooooh, I can hardly wait. We had a wonderful hot breakfast, loaded up the gear and boats and headed for Ft. Smith to arrainge for shuttles, pick up a few snacks, and then on to the Yellowtail Dam boat launch where we promptly dropped the two boats in the water, parked the vehicles, rigged up, tied on flies and began the float. Our destination was the 13-mile takeout, and we would spend the entire day on the water just fishing our guts out.
I was able to fish in the boat with LaMoyne and host, Karl. I started out with a two-fly nymph-rig under a small indicator. On my rivers in Idaho there is usually a resident stonefly population, with several species being respresented. For those rivers I usually use a weighted Rubberlegs pattern as my weight to get the rig down, followed by two nymphs of the type and size of bugs found in that water. Come to find out, there are only a few Yellow Sally stoneflies in the Big Horn, so the Rubberlegs nymph was not an option. I tied on an amber scud trailed by a small soft-hackle sow-bug pattern, using a couple of split-shot to get it in the zone. After about the first mile and no takes I started switching out to find the right combo. In the meantime, LaMoyne caught the first fish of the float – a smallish Brown – on a dry fly. I finally hooked and landed a Brown of about the same size on an Improved Shop-vac. We stopped at several riffles that proved fishless, then drifted a bit more. We floated over some Rainbow redds where we just watched the action of numerous gargantuan Bows in the throes of spawning. I finally caught a substantial Bow a bit later as I drifted a Zebra Midge through some likely looking riffle water.
We then found ourselves about four miles downriver at a place called the ‘snag’ hole, where we anchored up and enjoyed a great lunch provided by Trudy. While finishing lunch we noticed the most incredible sight I’ve ever seen while fishing. Now, I’ve seen midges and midge clusters before, but I had never seen anything like we witnessed here. There was literally a ‘mat’ of midges congregated under the bow of both boats, in the shade. Sometimes it was several feet long and wide and often comprised of midges one on top of the other as thick as an inch or so. I was just dumbfounded to find such a thing on a river while fishing. As we finally recognized the massive midge hatch for what it was, we began watching the water and soon were rewarded by numerous rising trout.
I switched over to a dry-fly rig while LaMoyne and Karl rowed out to position themselves to begin fishing to the risers. I tied on my Parasol Emerger fly as the bug that would help me spot where my trailing fly was. I then tied on a Griffit’s Gnat with great anticipation of some tremendous fishing. While LaMoyne and Karl were catching fish regularly, I couldn’t buy a hit. My casts were good, I had the distance, the flies were landing quietly, but nothing moved to my flies. Finally Karl asked if I was ready for the ‘right’ fly and I surrendered to the guide’s knowledge of the river. I tied on a CDC pattern called a ‘Smoke Jumper’. This was a representation of the hatching BWO’s, which I had missed in my zeal of thinking the fish were on the midges I had seen. First cast, ‘BAM’ fish on. The rest is history as LaMoyne and I had a legendary day of dry-flies and big fish. What an experience. I hooked and lost numerous fish, landed numerous fish and lost three Smoke Jumper flies before finding something in my own box that was similar, but with a poly wing. This fly proved as effective as the Smoke Jumper and I continued to catch fish.
Now, we were only four miles into our 13-mile float and we spent most of the afternoon in the one hole, fishing this one run. You would think that when you had caught as many fish as we had that the risers would soon diminish, not so, when we finally left there were as many fish rising as there were when they started, but we had to book it in order to make it to the take-out before dark.
We had a leasurely drift with some power-rowing downriver as we headed to the takeout. We floated past the legendary ‘Drive-in’ run of the river – a stretch of river lined by old, rusting cars for about a half-mile. Just past the ‘Drive-in’ we found some more rising fish and, as LaMoyne was unhooking the fish he had just landed, I cast to a rising pod and was into a good Brown. Now I forgot to share one cool tidbit about the Brown trout in this river, they jump just as much or maybe even more than Rainbow trout anywhere else. I’ve never seen such a thing in all my years fishing. Anyway, I hooked a good fish and it proceeded to take me under the boat, and, as LaMoyne was still working on his fish, my fish jumped about three feet from him with my line running under the boat! Coooool.
The remainder of the trip brought a few more fish to hand, but nothing like we had just following lunch. We made it to the takeout just as the sun was setting. What a great first day, and what memories we had forged, and memorable fish we had caught.
Another sumptuous dinner and we dispensed with the talk and hit the sack. Again to arise a 7 a.m. for day two. So far we were off to a good start with numerous Bows and Browns to hand.
Thursday dawned crisp and clear, a few wispy clouds in the sky as well as anticipation of another phenominal day on the water. Since our first day was quite fruitless in the Afterbay stretch – 3 fish hooked and landed in the first three miles – we decided to launch at the three-mile launch/takeout, and float to 13-mile from there. LaMoyne ‘pressed the flesh’ with several Hyde boat owners and guides at the launch site and then we rigged up and headed out. This early it was nymphs, so I started with a Zebra/Sow-bug combination. LaMoyne continued to throw dry flies. We came up dry on our drift fishing as well as several riffles where we parked the boats and got out to wade-fish. We then arrived through the back-door of the same hole where we had done so well the previous day on dry flies. Full of boats and wade-fishermen. It was a full-house to be sure, but fish were rising again. We sat and watched as the floatsam of anglers thrashed the water, but no one seemed to be catching any fish. We floated a bit downstream and found some risers along the bank. Not as many fish, and definitley more particular about what they were eating. We threw many different patterns at them and finally settled on a midge imitation that fooled a few.
Karl then had us pull into the mouth of a side-channel, we grabbed our gear and headed up-river about two-blocks where I rigged up with a nymph rig of a grey Sow-bug on top, followed by a tan and white soft-hackle Sow-bug. Karl told me where the fish would be holding and he wasn’t wrong. I proceded to hook a dozen fish, the smallest being 14-inches and most in the 18 to 20-inch range, and one standout that looked to go well over twenty, but he was an LDR just after he jumped to show us what he was. I only landed around six of the dozen, but what a hoot! We walked back to the boat and ate lunch, all the while watching a rare moment as LaMoyne fished with my nymph rig and caught several good fish as our lunchtime entertainment. Jim, our guide friend from Colorado, also fished through the run and caught several good fish.
We found another good stretch where fish were rising and I was relegated to the rowing seat while LaMoyne and Karl fished to the risers. It was tough fishing, but they each caught a few.
LaMoyne, the master rower, then decided that I needed a rowing lesson, and for the next hour or so I was treated to one-on-one lessons from the guy who wrote the book on driftboats and driftboat rowing. It was fun, disquieting, and nerve-wracking all at the same time, but I learned a lot and can’t wait to get back out there to do it again.
We then floated and fished our way down-river. The fishing wasn’t too good, but the float was fun and relaxing. We arrived at the takeout, again as the sun was setting, and then loaded up and headed back to the lodge.
Another tremendous dinner by Trudy, and a magic show by Karl after dinner. Then it was off to bed again. The trip of a lifetime had drawn to a close, and all that was left was to pack up, sleep and then leave early the next morning.
We were on the road at 6 bells and headed back across the state of Montana along I-90. This time we drove past Bozeman and headed further west where we drove down through Twin Bridges, and through the area where the Big Hole, Ruby and Beaverhead all flow and eventually meet to form the Jefferson River, down to I-15, south through Dillon, MT and then south on I-15 to Idaho Falls, where we finally arrived at around 4:00 p.m. It was a long drive going up, but it seemed much longer going back. Anticipation can really change one’s perspective of the drive…
The river itself reminded me of the South Fork of the Snake, one of my home waters. It’s flows were about the same, the river bottom was similar with the exception of more spring-creek like weed-beds and structure. But the river was lined by cottonwoods and filled with wildlife and the sounds of nature. Two things I noticed in this country was the presence of more pheasants than I have ever seen anywhere – they were crowing at every turn and present in every field. There were also many, many canadian geese everywhere along the river. Most were nesting and most put up quite a fuss as we passed by. I also saw numerous mating pairs of Wood Ducks.
I picked up some new waders while in Ft. Smith, some new Dan Bailey’s with a zipper. Man am I spoiled. I met some new friends and strengthened bonds with old ones. We caught a lot of fish, most on dries, something I haven’t done for years, stayed at a first class lodge, ate gourmet meals and floated and fished along one of the most famous rivers in the west. What a trip. I truly consider it a trip of a lifetime and will fondly remember my few days spent in that beautiful country.
I can’t wait to go back, as well as experience some of the other seasons on the Big Horn. I hear the Caddis hatches are monumental, and the BWO’s last clear thru June. It is truly the stuff that legends are made of…
I would be remiss if I didn’t thank LaMoyne Hyde, of Hyde Boats, for the invite, my buddies Bob and Jim, and especially our hosts Karl and Trudy Burns, owners and operators of the Bighorn River Country Lodge. They truly run a first-class operation. If you are ever contemplating a trip to that special place you must look them up and they will not disappoint you – http://www.bhcountrylodge.com/?page=home
This will be a long post, as I have a lot of pictures, hope you all don’t mind, but I’ve got to share…
Pics, pics and more pics…
How much ‘junk’ does a guy need to go on a three-day fishing trip?
On the road – across Island Park:
Buffalo crossing just outside of West yellowstone, MT.:
Hyde Boats rig – a sweeeet ride:
LaMoyne Hyde on the river – first evening:
Host/Guide Karl Burns spotting risers from the high ground:
My first Big Horn trout, a nice Brown on a dry fly:
Jim crossing the river on our first evening out at the end of the day:
Day two – making ready for the launch at Yellowtail Dam:
The man, the legend – LaMoyne Hyde. Almost seems bigger than life, proud to call him friend:
Orvis Guide, Jim Phillips on the left and good friend, Bob Reece on the right:
Fish on! LaMoyne hooks the first fish of the day:
Small but feisty:
Not to be outdone by LaMoyne, I reciprocate with a good Bow:
The guy who wrote the book on driftboat rowing – literally:
Lunch on the river:
I did mention the midges, didn’t I?:
LaMoyne firing a shot to a far riser:
Once again, not to be outdone by the master caster, I respond with one of many (LaMoyne out fished me two-to-one, but I still caught a boatload of good fish):
Jim with a nice one:
The famous ‘Drive-In’ stretch of the Big Horn:
Thirteen miles to this sign from Yellowtail Dam:
Dawn of day three, what a glorious morning:
Where we stayed – Bighorn River Country Lodge:
LaMoyne talking boats with river guides and boat owners:
Rigging up for our last day’s float on the river:
Just a cool little backwater eddy:
In the net – one of many Browns:
In the net – one of many Bows:
Great net job, LaMoyne, thanks!:
A rare sight, LaMoyne Hyde nymph fishing…:
Fish on!
Jim got it dialed in:
Another look:
Now that’s personalized…and he knows how to use it:
I believe this nice place is owned by the Oakley Sunglass boys…:
Last look at the river before takeout:
It’s all over but the trip home, traveling south to Twin Bridges, MT on our way home:
Well, that was it. I know it was a long post, hope I didn’t bore anyone, but I felt like sharing. Don’t know when or if I’ll ever get back, but it was truly an epic trip and one I’ll always treasure and remember. Thanks for checking it out.
Kelly.
I have always intended to make it up that way, and have never quite made the trip. Awesome trip and report … That is a serious truckload of drift boats. Thanks for sharing! I have always intended to make it up that way, and have never quite made the trip.
Great report!!! I am finally going to make this trip in September. Reading your report got me all pumped up to go. Can’t wait!
Did you really need all that stuff? I have to fly out and I am going to try and take as little as possible. I hope I have as much success as you did. 🙂Looks like a killer trip!!… thanks for sharing. The Big Hole is a really fun river, I hope to make it back there one day.
Looks like you bumped into Wilcox (guide wearing the tie-dye shirt)
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