Mike Cline
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Mike,
Out of curiosity, how long does it take you to make it down there from your place in Bozeman?
Thanks,
TimThe trip to West Thumb on the Lake is an easy 2.5-3 hour drive. To the Firehole we usual allow for about 2 hours. We usually stop in West for a quick Micky D. breakfast. We always try to leave Bozeman between 5-5:30 AM to miss traffic and construction in Gallatin Canyon. The later in the day you travel, construction in the canyon and just plain tourist traffic in the Park can add an hour to the trip.
room for camping gear to do some back country camping
Using compression sacks and a dry bag, I can stash my tent, sleeping bag, all my cooking gear and a change of clothes in the bow of my Tegris under the splash cover.
What is the long term outlook for the rivers with the rain and snowpack so far this year?
Everyone out here in Montana is predicting a pretty good summer.
Great piece Zach. There’s a lot of sense in what you are advocating. The biggest difficulty lies in getting one of the top-end rod-makers to change course. Also, I don’t think you could get anyone to eliminate the short-term limited warranties against defective materials and workmanship. That said, buying aftermarket insurance is nothing new in the consumer products space. Every time you buy some piece of electronic equipment or appliance, the retailer offers some sort of extended warranty for a fee. The key here is that the FEE is a known amount, and the consumer can assess the risk/reward for that specific consumer good and the details of the specific warranty. Sometimes the value is there, sometimes it’s not. It makes for a smart buying decision.
Unfortunately with rod warranties, the cost of that warranty is hidden (truly) in the price of the product. The consumer can only judge one-half of the equation—the details of the warranty, not the price. The consumer can only assume the VALUE is there. I suspect that there is ample industry history with these lifetime warranties such that manufacturers know exactly how much they cost, as well as how much they are worth relative to the VALUE being provided. Given that knowledge, there are probably additional warranty alternatives for rod-makers that might not only be profitable, but drive more customers to their products. First, they need to separate the warranty price from the rod price regardless. The consumer needs to know what the warranty costs up front. The market will tell the consumer whether the price is worth the value of the warranty. Second, warranties should be an aftermarket buying decision. I am buying Rod A for $XXX. I also want the unconditional 25 year replacement warranty for $ZZ or I only want the 3 year conditional replacement warranty for $Z. Since many high-end rods are serial numbered, it’s an easy task to tie a specific warranty to a specific serial number. If I know the price of the warranty, and the Value the specific warranty brings, I make a better informed buying decision.
For the rod-maker, they would have a lot better understanding of their long-term and short-term warranty commitments, because each warranty was a specific consumer purchase at a price that ensured the rod-maker makes a profit and the consumer is getting value paid for.
Mike Cline…do you see what you’ve done? You’re turning us in Native owners after your Tegris purchase! HA…
I don’t think Zach will mind as long as we don’t lobby for a name change: The Ultimate Angler 🙂
You should bring a jaw spreader and some long Hemo’s to get the fly out!
LCAgree-Lots of 4-10# Pike from a float tube. Enjoy the ride. Just remember to put a tether on the jaw spreaders–Pike wiggle alot-bring along some band-aids as well.
Tood,
Take a look at http://www.troutnut.com/
Mike Cline…I’m ready to see more Montana threads from you this summer. Some kayak trips too I hope!
Baring extraordinarily bad weather my plans have me and the two Ultimates on Yellowstone Lake two days after the June 15th opener chucking clousers for Lake Trout. 🙂
Great report. Are the high water conditions due to run off snow melt or did they get a lot of rain? Really like the pictures too.
Snowmelt runoff
Mike,
Nice report. I have always wanted to go there. Did you just get lucky and have the water to yourself? I would think a section of river that famous would be more crowded this time of year?
Neal,
I suspect we were very lucky to have the sections of the river to ourselves that we did.Cameron,
Great looking ride. I am sure you are going to enjoy it. Here’s the next challenge — we want to see you standing and fishing from that Ultimate.
Clark Canyon Reservoir, Beaverhead River, MontanaMissoula is a great area that is WAY cheaper than Bozeman and has tons of fun stuff to keep both you and your wife busy with plenty to do.
JoelIsn’t Missoula on the wrong side of the mountains. Go Cats
John,
Everyone’s got great ideas. Montana is an awesome place that simply cannot be covered in a single trip–especially if you include the Park. If you are coming in July-August, the Bozeman-Gardiner-Mammoth approach is a good one because the west side park streams are too hot. If you are coming in Sept-Oct, Bozeman-West Yellowstone-Twin Bridges provide the better fishing and scenery. Be aware as I mentioned in a previous post that East-West travel in the Park is going to be severely disrupted this summer because the Norris to Madison Junction Road will be closed and undergoing major construction. http://parksflyshop.com/roadwork.htm Factor that into your plans.
The Ultimate is not a true kayak. It is sort of a cross between a canoe and a kayak. Most people fish out of SOT kayaks which have scuppers (drain holes). The Ultimate does not, so any water that comes in stays in.
From Dictionary.com: Kayak: Noun: 1. an Eskimo canoe with a skin cover on a light framework, made watertight by flexible closure around the waist of the occupant and propelled with a double-bladed paddle.
2. a small boat resembling this, made commercially of a variety of materials and used in sports.I don’t know exactly when, but probably 10 years ago, SOT kayaks didn’t really exist, they evolved from SITIN kayaks and were eventually adapted to angling.
but… If you’re not planning on doing a lot of long distance paddling I don’t really see the value in spending big money on a paddle. I bought an aluminum paddle, and while I don’t do a ton of paddling around, I’ve done many 10-15 mile days without any trouble. My paddle was ~$40, and it held up to a hard year in the salt with no problems and no visible wear.
Maybe buy a cheaper paddle, and keep an eye out on Steepandcheap.com for a really nice one if you decide you want to upgrade?
IMHO, a paddle is to the yak as the flyrod is to the fly fisherman.
well i haven’t been called “tood” since a mis-spell on my peewee hockey jacket, i will look up those books for sure….
i assume amazon has them…..thanks mike!
Sorry for the senior moment :-[
If you want to own copies and are not hung up on NEW copies then search for them on abebooks.com.
