• PARTNER: PROTECT YOUR WATERS
  • Go To: THE FLIES OF YELLOWSTONE
  • Go To: YELLOWSTONE FISHING WEATHER
  • Go To: YELLOWSTONE FLY FISHING MAPS
  • Visit: Moldy Chum
  • Visit: The Horse's Mouth
  • Visit: Chi Wulff
  • Visit: Parks' Fly Shop
  • Showing posts with label Yellowstone Traditions. Show all posts
    Showing posts with label Yellowstone Traditions. Show all posts

    Friday, June 11, 2021

    Side Road

     NO FISH HERE

    Fish Going In

    fish going out

    JUST A BIT OF FORGOTTEN MONTANA

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    .. Just a brief note: it's nuts in the park. Post pandemic visitation has brought out the crazy folks. Just a reminder: Yellowstone National Park is not a petting zoo and you do not need to stop and admire every ground squirrel, (live or dead.)

    .. Bring your "A" game and cover lots of water, The fish are there and surprisingly active. Some are even looking up early in the day.

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    WALLPAPER:  PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES


    Sunday, December 22, 2019

    Sacrilegious ??

    BENT TRADITION
    Small Meal
    intimate dinner
    WALLPAPER: UNUSUAL 2-BONE SELECT GRADE STANDING RIB ROAST
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    .. This year we're having an intimate Christmas with a special request. The normal, full mad-house, with fat laden roast, may be a thing of the past. The special request was for a lean roast.
    .. Our butcher has been very accommodating. He cut us a very unusual 'select grade 2-bone' rib roast, (bone tied on.)
    .. This chunk is in the process of dry aging. It will be ready in a couple of days and, still moist enough for an excellent roast. The dinner should be magical - if - we can figure out how to properly cook a lean piece of  select grade rib roast.
    .. Experiment in progress.
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    .. Around here most sport is being done with shotguns this time of year. A few folks are dredging the last open water in the estuaries on Hebgan Reservoir. Leaches and, Woolly Buggers and, San Juan Worms are the choices for those with access to a snowmachine.
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    WALLPAPER: TRADITIONAL PRIME GRADE 4-BONE RIB ROAST

    Saturday, December 14, 2019

    Ready, Set, Go . . .

    SUNDAY DASH
    West Entrance Open
    over some snow travel
    BIG TIRE BUSES READY TO TRAVEL
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    .. Ready or not, (low snow and all,) the West Entrance to Yellowstone National Park opens tomorrow, (Sunday, December 15, 2019 - at 8:00 AM.)
    .. According to informed sources in the tourist industry around town a light booking is in the offing. The Christmas and New Year rush is yet to start. Be here tomorrow for a high quality experience.
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    WALLPAPER:  SHRIMP AND GRITS

    Monday, October 28, 2019

    Back Again

    ZONE OF DEATH
    True And False
    a legal loophole
    OPENING SEQUENCE
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    .. Periodically, since it's debut at the Newport Film Festival in 2016, this film arises as a topic of conversation in our village.
    .. The film, (Population Zero,) explores the possibility of committing murder in Yellowstone National Park - AND, not being prosecuted. The legal loophole that could allow this  does exist. It has not been closed. Is this a 'hole' in the Constitution of the United States?
    .. If you have not heard of this film or of the constitutional problems, you now have a chance: the movie is on "tubi" for free {LINK.}

    OTHER RESOURCES:
    > WIKIPEDIA,
    > Film Festival Synopsis,
    > FORBES,
    > Film Review - Globe & Mail,
    > Some YouTube notes:
       1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E4OqN9tJnw
       2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cc5u_Anu88U
       3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkFWBIC6a0s
    .. Infrequently a low budget film catches fire. This one does. Just a note for the Yellowstone National Park aficionado.
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    .. November 4, 2019 is the last open road into Yellowstone National Park from the West Entrance. The West Entrance closes at 8:00 A.M. on that date.
    USE A BIG ONE
    .. This bizarre closing schedule allows an additional day for park employees to count toward employment and vacation time.
    .. November 3, 2019 is the last effective day to enter and fish in the park, by road, from the west entrance. Best to do it now.
    .. The runners are stacked up on the Madison River. There are runners in the spawning canyon of the Firehole River. There are even quite a few runners in Duck Creek.
    .. Be alert for ice on the roads and dress for snow. This keeps the fair weather fishers and the counter help at home by the fire. Fish now or. forever hold your rod!
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    WALLPAPER:  RIB STEAK AND ROOTS

    Friday, September 27, 2019

    The Turning Worm

    SEASON OF SWEETNESS
    A Double Delight
    submarines sighted
    SWEET STUFF FOR THE NEW YEAR
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    .. We have, in our village, only one Jewish family. There is a fly fisher among them. This is a signal moment in time for these neighbors. Rosh Hashanah, sometimes called the Jewish New Year, coincides with the dawning of "Runner Fever."
    .. Pods of large fish have been sighted in the estuary where the Madison River debauches into Hebgen Reservoir. This is the pre-spawn ritual for sex charged trout.
    WORKS IN ALL WATERS
    .. This is a season of sweetness for both the Jewish family and, fly fisher folk.
    .. Sweet food is the theme of Rosh Hashanah meals. Sweet fishing is theme for fly fishers. Indeed; the worm has turned.
    .. Flies that are hawked by the feather merchants are often called "sweet." There are many "best flies" in the various vocabularies of counter help in our fly shops. For some inexplicable reason the best flies and, those not best all work to take fish.
    BAKER'S HOLE BUGGER
    .. In the dark corners of our pubs, secrets are shared. Secret flies, secret waters, secret techniques, are shared in muted tones.
    .. The truth of the matter is that the underpinnings of all these secrets is that; "JUST HIT 'EM IN THE NOSE."
    .. A combination of fly, leader, line and, depth in the water column will succeed if the fish is bonked in the nose. The key, despite the hyperbole of the counter help, is finding the fish and presenting the fly.
    PHEASANT AND BLUE
    .. Fly selection is always a combination of personal choice and marketing hype. We've enumerate the most popular flies used in the neighborhood HERE.
    .. One perennial favorite of the counter help and, our visitors, is the Baker's Hole Bugger. It is a representative of the class of big gaudy streamers used around here. These flies and patterns are ubiquitous and highly variable. Use any of them. They are all the best.
    BRINDLE AND HEN
    .. We would suggest that the coming snow and heavy overcast weather will bring forth elbows aplenty along the hides and dark water of the Madison River.
    .. Cover all the water! Get down! Move, move, move! Arrive early and stay late! The fish are moving based on shadows, water depth, fishing pressure and, pure caprice.
    .. There are really no secrets. There are, however, less fished places that regularly hold fish. These places are just not mentioned frequently.
    .. If you should choose to indulge in 'runner fever' and, choose ask for advice from the local counter help -- be sure to ask them when they last fished where they are sending you. It may be a bit dicey, BUT, ask how they know what they know.
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    COMING ATTRACTION
    .. The neighbors are busy with patching waders, wringing out wet woollies, building gourmet bologna sandwiches and, deciding where the fewest elbows are likely to be. It's tough work but someone has to do it.
    .. A few young'uns are headed to the spawning canyon of the Firehole River. For those in the know, it's the steep little canyon just beyond the bridge above Old Faithful. It's an easy 300 yard walk in and, it feels like five miles coming out. Big fish aplenty and little to no fishing pressure.
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    WALLPAPER:  SOME LIKE IT RED

    Saturday, August 24, 2019

    Believe It Or Don't

    GO FASTER
    Reusable
    best tech now
    ..
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    .. We hope to live to see this. Here to there in a blink of an eye.
    ANNOUNCEMENT
    .. FREE entrance to Yellowstone National Park tomorrow - August 25, 2019. The National Park Service is celebrating its 103rd birthday. Come join the celebration.
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    WALLPAPER:  Provençal Braised Pork Chops

    Wednesday, August 21, 2019

    Free Yellowstone Camping

    BOONDOCKER ?
    Hate Crowds ?
    scenic locations ?
    ..
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    .. Yes Hortense, there are free NPS campgrounds. This is a surprise to most folks.
    .. For an introduction to eleven of these wonderful gems just click on over to Drivin' and Vibin' and check out each one. [[LINK]]  Nothing fancy but true gems of the out of doors.
    .. Need a fishing license depending on the state you are in. Some are exceptional fishing access sites. Who knew?
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    WALLPAPER:  BONE IN RIB EYE

    Friday, July 26, 2019

    Just Having Fun

    GONE IS THE FUN ?
    ..
    ..
    ..
    ..
    USE THIS
    .. We are blessed to live in a place where we can write, produce, direct and, live our own movie.  May it never change!
    .. Perhaps we'll fish some, visit a pub, tell some lies, and walk home in a most gentle rural little town. Turons be damned.
    .. Safe in the dark of night - believe it or don't.
    Just Enough Light And, A Few Dark Corners
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    WALLPAPER: BONE IN RIB STEAK & POTATO

    Sunday, April 21, 2019

    Easter In The Park

    WET AND WILD
    Wind, Rain, Snow
    a wet wonderland
    WELCOMING COMMITTEE
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    .. Such a magnificent three days in Yellowstone National Park. All the splendid vistas and all the quixotic presentations of weather have been on display. It's presenting us with a soft drizzle at the moment.
    .. Of course the casual visitor wants it to be bright sunshine and no breeze with billowing clouds in blue skies. That happens.
    MYSTERIOUSLY SOFT AND GRAY
    .. The majesty of the place is however, in fact, it's diversity from minute to minute and, place to place and, day to day and, season to season. To be able to experience rain and snow and sun in the same day is a wonder in itself.
    .. The neighbors appreciate this. They revel in it. They giggle at the idealizations of the casual visitor. They wonder at the foreign thought and superficial attitudes that decry an overcast sky or a bit of precipitation. My my.
    THE WAY IT SHOULD BE ?
    .. There is still snow on the ground. FOR SHAME! How could they!
    .. There is bison shit smeared all over the wet roads. You think that 'they' would do something about that.
    .. The damp and wet conditions have stifled visitation at the North Entrance. There is even some mud on the roads and Parade Ground Trails, [see it here.]
    .. Heaven forbid that shoes should get dirty on the way to the wet picnic benches. OOPS - forgot the poncho and drop cloth.
    LIGHT GREEN NOW
    .. It's not too surprising that the ungulates find the wet meadows where green is ready to eat. Some find them sooner than others.
    .. Wet feet do not seem to be a hindrance. Ah, diverse meadows.
    .. Not all the roads are open right now [LINK-R] but they will be - more or less.
    .. The park's roads meander through a wide range of elevations. They are built on a wide range of substrates. They follow a wide range of game trails and early stagecoach routes.
    FOOD FOR SOME
    .. The freeze/thaw cycles throughout the year cause upheavals and down-warping. Potholes, rips, tears, lumps, bumps, humps and breaks propagate throughout the year.
    .. Road construction is a given. Just another thing to whine about for the perfect world folks.
    .. Where there is no grass there is still food for some critters. It's fact of life that death occurs in Yellowstone National Park.
    .. People die. Animals die. Plants die. The death feeds the life. The sun and, the snow and, the rain all feed the life. Such a wonderful place - rain or shine.
    OLD FAITHFUL CABIN
    .. The park concessionaires and NPS personnel are busy getting rid of the many  'inconveniences' in preparation for the onslaught of visitors that will come to "do the park." Ought to be able to see it all in a day or two.
    .. Golly gee wiz. The damn roads and, construction and, crowds and, critters and, trees in the road cause slow travel; sometimes even delays.
    .. Of course there was never a plan to get out of the car, (SUV, MOBILE CONDO, CAMPER VAN, etc.) A leisure pace seems foreign to the mentality of the casual visitor to the park.
    .. One thing is certain - this park, (despite concepts to the contrary,) is not your typical city park. A day in the park can turn into a lifetime - and never experience it all or, even1/2 or, less.
    QUIET FOR NOW ON OPENING DAY
    .. The rivers and streams between the West Entrance and both Mammoth and Old Faithful are clear cold and at bank level.
    .. Color is just beginning to creep in, [ MADISON, FIREHOLE.]
    .. The Madison River at Cameron is setting new records every day [CAMERON.]
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    WALLPAPER:   SOME PINK GOOP ON THE DONUTS

    Friday, April 19, 2019

    Film At Eleven

    GATES OPEN
    Sun Coming
    we'll let you see
    COME JOIN THE THRONGS
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    .. Yellowstone open today.
    .. It's early. The kids will be here for coffee and hot dogs, (strange tradition.) Then off to see the sights in wonderland.
    RESOURCES
    YNP WEBSITE
    ALERTS
    MAPS
    CALENDAR
    FISHING
    .. Best that we smash some sliced meat between some bread and fill a flask or two. We'll call it lunch and then ice cream at Old Faithful, (another strange tradition.)
    .. Off we go - soon.
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    WALLPAPER:  HOME MADE - HOLES AND ALL

    Sunday, April 07, 2019

    Local Celebration

    WHAT A PLACE
    Friends & More 
    quick - - imbibe
    WALLPAPER:  EARLY START - 18 MORE TO GO
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    .. This is an interesting little village. It has often been described as a drinking town with a fishing problem. That could be true.
    YOUR CHOICE
    .. We have more Chinese restaurants than Pubs. We have more Pubs than Fly Shops. We have more Fly Shops than Churches. And, so it goes.
    .. This is "NATIONAL BEER DAY." Just another commercial hook to bring a product or service or celebration to the fore and add a 'hook.'
    NOT MUCH OF A CHOICE
    .. We're hooked. The beer distributors have curried great favor with the pubs and grocery stores and convenience stores.
    .. Visitors from afar can request their favorites from back home.
    .. Our neighbors enjoy the day. There is no need to pretend a thirst. There is no need to seek out dim corners for sharing fish tales or consummating a tryst.
    .. Today is a day to celebrate suds. From Guinness® on tap to Bud in a can this is a day of no excuses. Chug it down and swim in the soft glow for a day, (or more?)
    CHOOSE A BAR
    .. We even have a couple of real bars. Not the favorite pubs of the Western United States but real - genuine - bars.
    .. They feel like bars. They make no pretense to being a pub. They are a bar. They have quite a few local habitues. But of course, they do serve beer as well.
    .. We even have a pub in a barn that serves food with your beer if you should so choose. It's quite popular with visitors because it is filled with cute western bits of decor and features an outside drinking area.
    CHOOSE A NOISY BARN
    .. It's a place to pretend you are in the old west - if you can ignore the traffic noise from the state highway just 10 feet from the front door and outdoor patio.
    ..  It's comforting to know that there are choices in cuisine, religion, tap rooms and, roadhouses.
    SORT OF IRISH PIZZA
    .. We're too far north for a cantina but, despite the distance, there is an Irish flavored dive. Founded, long ago, by real Irish folks - though long since sold and re-sold.
    .. There are places that cater to our Hispanic population, our fishing population, our working Anglo population, our casual drinking population and, our hard core drinkers and fighters.
    PICK A FISHY PLACE
    .. There are even a couple of pubs that aim their ambiance at the wayward traveler that happen to alite here for a cold one.
    .. On occasion we visit a few of these retreats. We pretend that we're in the place for the usual.
    .. We fool ourself into the belief that it's the neighborly thing to do. It just might be.
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    .. Some Springtime news is beginning to filter out of that mysterious park which forms the eastern boundary of our little village.
    1) Free Springtime bicycling, walking and such is available over 49 miles of park roads. From the West Entrance to Mammoth is currently plowed and open. Going to Old Faithful will soon be plowed completely dry.
    2) The bears are out early and very widespread. Sightings at: Canyon Village, Fishing Bridge, Mammoth Hot Springs, Swan Lake Flats, Norris Junction. Tracks at Old Faithful and Fountain Flat.
    3) Yellowstone Park Fisheries 'PUBLIC MEETINGS' have been scheduled: 
    -- the Bozeman meeting is 7pm April 29,
    -- the West Yellowstone meeting is 7pm April 30.
    -- Location and topics will be announced soon.
    >> Keep up to date with Yellowstone National Park news releases HERE.
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    WALLPAPER: MR. GERMAN'S ORIGINAL CHOCOLATE CAKE