Snow's Building Up -- Slowly

Our snow is building up in dribs and drabs.
It's a bit wetter than normal for this time of year.
We're still 40% below normal for this date.

We All Knew It

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Blonds Have More Fun

WEIRD NEIGHBOR SCORES

Walmart Duster Rules

such a simple thing

Crazy kid used the wrong color !!

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.. The catching on the Madison River between the lakes is picking up. There are packed trails in the snow rather than parallel rows of post-holes.
.. The fish are after the midges on occasion. And, on occasion, they will be taken on the top. But, truth be told, blonds have more fun.
.. Hereabouts there's a small, ambitious, energetic, and slightly off-center group of local residents that refuse to believe that fishing with a fly is only a 4-month proposition. These kids are not habitues of the dusty aisles in the local fly shops. They are hard working sons and daughters of folks that have lived here for a few decades, (or more.) They wear shorts and sometimes go barefooted through December.
.. They fish with worms and flies and spinners, and anything that catches fish at the moment. They cherish their time on the water, (or ice,) and don't fool around with the arcane minutia of proper fly fishing. Just can't be bothered!

.. On rare occasion they will travel to the glorious catastrophe that is Bozeman. Of course they head straight for Walmart. Prices are good, selection is extensive, and the produce in the grocery section makes the local fare look like . . . well, unmentionable poop.
.. On a recent trip Tommy, (his real name,) found himself near a trash bin and spied a genuine, ole-time feather duster.
.. He grabbed it and found a "sales associate" and asked if the duster was really being thrown out.
.. Long-story-short: through several levels of the store hierarchy he continued to ask the question untill it was determined that the bit of fluff on the stick was indeed used-up and being thrown out. He smiled and poked it in his rear pants pocket.
.. Being deeply inculcated in local lore, Tommy knew that he had secured a treasure beyond belief. This was the stuff of legends. A real feather feather duster. He had several years' supply of fly tying material.

.. Upon returning home, Tommy was assailed by his mates. You foolish dolt! The color is all wrong.
.. Our neighbor Wally, (his real name,) used the dark gray or black feathers when he invented the FEATHER DUSTER FLY.
.. Well, Tommy, being of the working class, was not going to let a bit of color stand in the way of his feather dusters. He tied up a few dozen and passed them out to his friends at the local pub.
.. Of course you know the outcome. The off-color flies worked just fine. In fact they are the current neighborhood rage. It will die down in a month or two - OR - a year or two, who knows?
.. But for now: BLONDS HAVE MORE FUN, sticking fish in their mandibular parts.
.. We bring this bit of information to you as a public service. There are too damn many hungry trout between the lakes. They are begging for blond beauties. Natural, of course!

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It's getting deep in town.

Not The Typical Pair

THE LITERATI CRINGE

The Simple Approach

ice auger's getting workout

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.. There's only a week left before February smashes into West Yellowstone. We're using it to rest up before the onslaught begins.

..We have boxes and boxes of winter flies. We love them all, we cherish them, we even use most of them on occasion: but, time and again we return to just two for most of our winter fishing.
.. The Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear Wet Fly & the Sierra Bright Dot often suffice for every situation above or below the surface. Both can be fished either wet or dry. Both are easy to tie and both stab fish jaws with satisfying regularity.
-- These flies have the additional distinction of being rare today. Neither is sold at the local feather merchants, neither is the latest and greatest, neither is full of fancy hard-to-get synthetic materials, and neither will leave you fishless.

--The "neighbors-of-the-auger," usually have one of these tied to their rig along with maggots or meal worms or bulldog flashing blades. They are a secondary attractor beneath the ice but they are common and will take fish.
.. The NORTH AMERICAN ICE FISHING CIRCUIT is holding it's $21,000 Regional Qualifier on Hebgen Lake February 3-5. The neighbors are on the lake en-mass and dragging in the fish. Practice is essential in this sort of thing.
.. The current midge hatch Between The Lakes is drawing the faithful to the open water. Often times a twin rig with a Prince Nymph and GRHE-W is the weapon of choice.
.. The true and faithful dry fly fishers use a small Sierra Bright Dot. Correctly tied the fly presents the perfect attack: the fore & aft hackle combined with the dark tips of the pheasant seem to entice the starving fish into a frenzy of idiocy. There are three targets with three specular patterns and they are close together. The fish seem mesmerized by the little fly. The red is easy to see, (so too is orange or yellow.)

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The First Aftermath

WIND + SNOW = AVALANCHE

We're In For It Now

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.. The neighbors are praising MOTHER for her blessed bit of snow. Some folks, (more frisky than most fly fishers,) are taking to the hills. Thrills come in all forms.

Gallatin Avalanche Warning.

AT LAST !!

SNOW !!! WARNING !!!

About Time

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...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM MST FRIDAY FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 7000 FEET... ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM MST FRIDAY...

A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 7000 FEET REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM MST FRIDAY. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM MST FRIDAY.

* TIMING AND MAIN IMPACT: LIGHT SNOW IS EXPECTED TO SPREAD OVER THE AREA THIS MORNING AND INCREASE IN INTENSITY THIS AFTERNOON PARTICULARLY OVER ...THE MOUNTAINS. SNOW WILL BE HEAVY AT TIMES IN THE MOUNTAINS THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. SNOW COULD BE BRIEFLY HEAVY IN THE VALLEYS.

* SNOW ACCUMULATIONS: TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 4 TO 7 INCHES AT LOWER ELEVATIONS BUT 7 TO 15 INCHES IN THE MOUNTAINS ARE LIKELY.

* WINDS AND VISIBILITY: EXPECT SOUTHWEST WINDS 15 TO 25 MPH AT TIMES. VISIBILITIES WILL BE BELOW ONE-HALF MILE AT TIMES DUE TO SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW MAINLY IN THE MOUNTAINS.

* OTHER IMPACTS: EXPECT ROADS TO BECOME SNOW COVERED AND ICY... CREATING HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS.

* LOCATIONS AFFECTED INCLUDE: BATTLE RIDGE PASS...BOZEMAN... BOZEMAN PASS...TARGHEE PASS...WEST YELLOWSTONE... BIG HOLE PASS...CHIEF JOSEPH PASS...DILLON...MONIDA PASS... ENNIS... NORRIS HILL...RAYNOLDS PASS...TWIN BRIDGES

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW MEANS THAT PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CAUSE PRIMARILY TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR SNOW COVERED ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES...AND USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING.

FOR SPECIFIC ROAD AND TRAVEL CONDITIONS IN MONTANA...DIAL 5 1 1.

Wikipedia Down

USE YOUR IMAGINATION

We Warned You 3 Months Ago

see the video HERE

TAKE ACTION

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