Gone Fishing-Montana-Day Nine

[Mike Cline]

October 7th, 2007
It was 22 degrees in West this morning.  By 9AM the temps outside at Madison Junction were at 29 degrees.  West and the park got a fair bit of fine snow overnight.  The park was gorgeous.  One must always expect crowds on the Firehole, but I keep coming back because this is one enchanting river.  At 10AM there wasn’t another angler in sight (really).  I was able to put in a good 3 hours from Ojo Caliente to Nez Perce creek through Fountain Flats with little or no interference from the bobber fisherman.

This is Sentinel Creek where it enters the Firehole on Fountain Flats

Even though there was guide icing until noon, there were lots of rising fish on and off all day to little tan caddis and blue wing olives.

Just downstream from Ojo Caliente, the river temp was 62 degrees. My weapon choice was my usual, a #10 olive woolly bugger with a soft-hackle dropper.  The Firehole is one of those rivers where you know you are fishing with ghosts—Howard Back, Bergman, Brooks, Bailey, etc.  This is a river that doesn’t change much if any from year to year.  They fished these same runs, holes and riffles.  You know their spirits haunt these places.  The fish you catch and release are descendents of the fish they caught and released.  It is an awesome place to fish.

This bow came from the warm waters near Ojo Caliente spring.

After a bit of hot chocolate, I moved into the trees below Biscuit Basin for the afternoon.  By 3PM it was snowing again and a tad windy—the guides were icing as well.  This didn’t stop the fish which willingly came to my flies out of shallow bank-side undercuts.  The rainbows have that typical Firehole bronze hue while the Browns were butter yellow.  I even caught and landed (untangled) a double with a 9 inch brown on the dropper and a 12+ bow on the bugger.

A buttery brown from Fountain Flats.

Had dinner tonight at the Old Town Café on Madison—this one has been around a long time.

The Chicken Fried Steak was good as usual.

A warming trend is predicted for tomorrow, but morning temps will still be in the twenties.  I’ll probably make the long two mile plus run from Midway to Ojo Caliente.  Lots of interesting water and a long way from the road.  Hope my shuttle driver follows her instructions.

[Cameron Mortenson]

Mike…great posts so far on your trip.

[Mike Cline]

Mike…great posts so far on your trip.  It does sound epic to say the least.  And thanks for the plates of food photos.  What is the wife doing while you are away on the river?

Thanks.  The wife walks the river with me if the banks are suitable–E. Gallatin.  Rides in the back of the Float Boat as she calls it and keeps the guide from pestering me too much.  On rivers like the Firehole, she’s my shuttle driver, dropping me off somewhere upriver and picking me up a mile or so down river.  She reads, I fish.  In Yellowstone, just siitting in a car by the river in one spot for several hours brings the opportunity to see lots of wildlife pass by.  She enjoys it.

Mike

[Author]

Posts