Mike Cline
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I just looked through a bunch of pics of grouse and I think that one might be a Spruce Grouse. The males and females both have that bright patch over the eye, which Ruffs don’t, and even hen Ruffs also look like they have a crest on their head. Either way it is a great shot; how did you get it? Was the bird cooperative?
Zach
Its most likely a Blue because the Spruce grouse isn’t found in the park.
I was cutting x-country off the Cache Creek trail on game trails trying to reach the upper Lamar about an hour after sunrise. I was nervous because I’d seen a Grizzly eariler out in the big meadows where the Lamar goes up into the canyon. Something scurried in front of me and it was one of two chicks I saw first on the trail. The mom and other chick were about 5 feet away and weren’t spooked at all. Mom just carefully gathered the two chicks and moved them slowly down the hill. I was carrying my Nikon with the 70-300 zoom, so close-ups were easy.
1st chick on game trail
Momma trying to get both chicks together
The 2nd chickYou sure that is a ruffed grouse? I’ve a hundred + ruffed grouse in the east, never saw one like that. Local flavor? Or is it a Blue Grouse? I know you have at least three grouse varieties out there.
Certainly could be a Blue.
Water conditions actually look really good too! I was hearing a lot of doom and gloom about the high water levels blowing out the whole season. Zach
The Gibbon hit flood early and then cleared. It (along with the Firehole/Madison) don’t drain extremely high country. They all fished well the last two weeks of June. The Firehole and lower Gibbon are done until September because of high temps, but the Madison should fish well all summer, especially in the mornings.
The NE corner rivers aren’t fairing as well. Slough, Lamar, Soda Butte and Hellroaring are still blown and probably won’t fish well until mid August. The Yellowstone at Fishing Bridge hit record flood in June that covered the pedestrian walkways on the bridge. Although its now dropping. The Yellowstone in Paradise Valley is still blown, but dropping. Most of the local guides aren’t taking many booking on the Y until mid August.
I have fished the Gardner twice in the last week as it has cleared, but is still pretty high. However, lots of stoneflies and hoppers have brought decent fish into the lower Gardner chasing them.
Been in the park a dozen times so far this year and already have encountered three black bears near the trail in back country.
Monday was spent on the Firehole River with an old friend. Over 40 years ago I acquired my first real fly rod, a Fenwick FF70-7’ 5wgt. In the spring of 1972, I caught my first Firehole trout with that rod on an Leadwing Coachman.
Well this winter, I got the rod out and re-equipped with a 1494 Medalist and tied up some Leadwing Coachmans. Monday we (the Fenwick and I) went to Yellowstone to re-live, as much as possible, that first Firehole trout.
In 1972, one could drive the Fountain Flats Freight road from end to end. We would park at the Goose Lake picnic area and walk down into the meadows to fish. Today, you have to access the meadows from Midway. I can’t say for sure when or where I caught that first trout, but it was most likely somewhere in Goose Lake Meadows and it was probably in late June. Well yesterday, 39 years after that first trout, the Fenwick and a Leadwing Coachman connected again.
Goose Lake Meadows, AM on Memorial Day
Memorial Day turned out to be cold and snowy in the park but a week’s worth of cold weather has the Firehole running clear, albeit a bit high. From 7AM to 11AM, not another angler was seen in the meadows and I had the place all to myself (except for the occasional bison, osprey, bald eagle, and two mountain bluebirds who shadowed me all the way down the river.
West Yellowstone Entrance at 7AMThe Fenwick fished well all day in the Meadows and Biscuit Basin while the snow never seemed to let up.
So, on Memorial Day, I went to the Park and caught trout on an old Fly Rod with old flies.
Thanks for the shoutout to our site, Mike.
Thanks Walter, hope to see you on Saturday at Kris’s shop.
Mike
Tim,
Two suggestions.
1) If you are staying at Old Faithful, the Firehole and Madison are excellent choices in June. If you want or need the assistance of a guide, I would suggest Craig Matthews shop: http://www.blue-ribbon-flies.com/ or Bob Jacklin’s shop: http://www.jacklinsflyshop.com/. Both those guys are the gurus of Yellowstone in West. If you could get a day on the Firehole with Bob, it would be a day you and your son would never forget. He is a master.
2) The NE side of the park–Yellowstone River and Lamar drainage is ify in June, but I would suggest reading through Richard Park’s website http://parksflyshop.com/howto/planning/seasons.html. If there is anyone that can get you on fish in the NE part of the park, its Richard Parks and Walter Weise.
Look these sites over. I sure others will weigh in, but you will not go wrong with the advice these shops can give you. Don’t hesitate to get on the phone with these guys as they will steer you right. Keep us informed of your plans. Good Luck.
I am just afraid I am not angler enough to fish out there.
Our fish (an we have lots of them) are always hungry. All one needs to do is put tasty morsels of fur and feather in front of them. One must also learn how to wear rubber pants with style. In all seriousness, there’s nothing special about catching fish here in MT/WY other that the fact that you have to show up and try.
were the elk out in numbers around the madison?
The Madison herd of elk have dwindled drastically in the last 5 years because of the wolves.
Good questions.
1) Think of flipping (swinging a very heavy jig (1/2 to 1 oz)) into heavy brush or logs. The rod needs to handle heavy line and a heavy lure. Not much different than Czech nymphing (swinging heavy nymphs into deep runs). There are flyrods that are optimized for that type of fishing.
2) Indeed both spinning reels and casting reels can technically be used on either type of rod, but they are not designed to work effectively that way. The key difference is the guides and their placement along with the action of the rod. Additionally the rod handles are optimized for each type of reel.
Zach,
An interesting and complicated question. Are you planning on giving the dark side a try? Although it’s used a lot, conventional tackle is really the wrong terminology as it implied Fly tackle is unconventional, which it isn’t. That said and in an attempt to keep this really simple, there is Fly tackle, Spinning Tackle and Bait Casting tackle if one considers only the slinging of artificial lures (flies, spinners, hardbaits, softbaits, etc.). Species concerns are irrelevant. All three tackle types have a lot of variables, but are designed to present the lures in different ways. We all know about fly tackle so I won’t go into that, but Spinning and Bait Casting tackle are designed to cast lures using the weight of the lure as the impetus for the cast. A generality that has many exception is that Spinning tackle is generally used for lighter lures and lines and bait casting tackle is designed for heavy lures and lines. As with Fly Tackle, line weight (in pounds breaking strength) and rod action (very fast to very slow) influence how a rod performs with any given lure weight and style. Unlike Fly tackle, the mechanical reels (spinning and bait casting) have a retrieve ratio that influences how they fish (X:1) X being the number of bail (spinning) or spool (casting) revolutions per handle turn. The faster the ratio ((6:1) on some Shimano spinning reels), the faster a lure can be retrieved. With slower ratios, slower, more subtle retrieves are possible. Spinning tackle is easier to learn to cast error free, but casting gear allows for stouter rods and lines although casting heavy lures backlash free takes some practice.
In reality, there’s not much fishing difference between the three types of tackle. It’s all about putting the right lure in front the fish. One can cast a heavy conehead streamer with an ultralight spinning rod just as easily and accurately as one can with a 7wgt. Equally, a #1 Mepps spinner can be cast well with a 7wgt.
You might find it very useful to review either the annual Cabela’s or Bass Pro fishing catalog which will give you a very good survey of all the available rods, reels, lures, etc. that can be combined to put lures in front of hungry fish.
No matter what the endeavor, mentoring young people in the things you are passionate about is one of the most rewarding things we humans can do.
Lost
- Top half of a 6′ 3wgt on Deep Creek in the Smokies
- Waders left at the boat ramp on the Tallapoosa
- Orvis Mid-Arbor II left in the Black Canyon of the Yellowstone (later found in the wrong bag after I purchased a new one with new line)
Found
More sweatshirts, fleece and flipflops (good tying foam) in the damnest places along many rivers.
