Better Late Than Not

MOM COMES THROUGH

Maybe 7-10 Inches

only a little rain & sleet & thunderstorms

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.. The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning lasting through Thursday - HUZZA!
.. It's mostly snow and it's in the higher elevations. It's just what we need.
.. This is an urgent warning and includes a hazardous weather alert. Here's the links so you can keep up:
-->> WARNING
-->> HAZARDOUS OUTLOOK
.. You can view the real-time radar images at:
-->> YELLOWSTONE FISHING WEATHER
-->> BULLWINKLE'S WEATHER
.. You can see it in real-time on the neighborhood webcams:
-->> WEST YELLOWSTONE WEB CAMS
.. This is a classic winter storm pattern. The high pressure over the Great Basin has vanished. This leaves the big low pressure system in the Gulf of Alaska in charge. It winds up and sends blessed pulses of weather our way. This could last for some time. Some think spring, we think snow pack.

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Snot Alert

NEW ZEALAND
HAS YOU COVERED

One More Weapon

two threats with one bullet

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.. A couple of year's ago we mentioned that the Kiwi's were doing battle with Didymosphenia geminata - "Didymo" or "Rock Snot," for short. We've been watching the developments and now Uncle Jack's Didymo Killer is a proven winner for killing the snot.
.. It's also effective for whirling disease. Pretty good stuff. It may even save those who prefer felt soles on waders from having to mortgage the farm to get "clean" rubber soles.
.. Starting in 2006, (NIWA Letter,) and in 2007, (USFWS note,) and lately, (Moldy Chum,) the news is getting out.
.. It's worth the time to read about Uncle Jack's Didymo Killer and decide if you'd like to spread the word.
.. You can carry a spray bottle with you. You can donate a tub of it to your neighborhood feather merchant. You can provide 'stream-side squirt service.' The possibilities are endless.
.. The news is about 4 years old, the alert is as current as today's weather.

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LOWER MADISON HOT

IT'S WORTH THE DRIVE

Down To The Lowlands

floating and wading

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.. It's not Yellowstone National Park but it's very good fishing right now.
.. Our provincial mindset only infrequently pokes it's mentality into fishing opportunities too far from home. This last weekend was one of those occasions.
.. The news of great catching opportunities zings through the aether like angry hornets.
.. Whispers are louder than jet engines: ". . . crayfish are taking 'em in the shallows . . ." ". . . Try Beartrap - keep it quiet . . ." ". . . yeah, right at the take-out . . ."
.. Just our kind of stuff! Park next to a river, walk to the shore, fling a fly the size of a cygnet, catch a big fish or three, don't break a sweat, smile all over; it's a situation we find hard to resist. So, the 200-mile drive is worth it.
.. Although we are limited in our sauntering and striding, you need not be. Both wading and floating are very productive right now.
.. The 30 river-miles, or so, on the Lower Madison River below Ennis Dam have lately been densely populated with lowland fishers - for good reason!
.. It looks a lot like Spring down there and 55+ degrees sounds plumb tropical to us. Midges in the stillness of a balmy mid-day sojourn are a certain draw as well.
.. It seems that when the trout are keying on the midges, they are also willing to take other small stuff as well. Floating a double rig of a midge cluster and a small soft hackle is a sure way to exercise your reel's drag.
.. Your favorite crayfish in sizes from 4 to 8 will work, (we used left over General Practitioners from the road trip to the Chetco and Coquille rivers.)
.. Ours were a wee bit too orange for the local palette but worked; greens and brownish-yellow are the local favorite.
.. Stonefly nymphs of the yellowish and golden variety are also working. Even your chewed-up Woolly Buggers and Clouser Minnows are fair game.
.. We visited with some folks from Belgrade, Montana, that were using a double fly rig. They had an Olive Woolly Bugger followed by a damned small, (16-18,) bead-head Pheasant Tail - had great cell phone pictures.
.. The kind folks at Montana Troutfitters and The River's Edge pointed us to the places we were headed anyway. It's certainly a bump for the ol' ego when the local experts confirm our predispositions. Thanks guys.
.. If next weekend is as soft as last weekend, we'll travel down-canyon to the big water again. We may even walk a bit because of the reports - who knows?

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Administrative Travel - 2010

VERY LITTLE SNOW

Some Left Up High

Some Left In The Shade

spring rituals in force(enormous image - 3072 x 2304)
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.. Yellowstone National Park is closed to all but bicycles & such until April 16, 2010.
.. However construction crews are already hard at work on the Gibbon River Bridge, and administrative travel in vehicles is permitted.
.. Here's a sneak peek at the way it is:

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.. The rivers in the neighborhood are both low, and still a bit slow for this time of year. Occasional snow flurries visit us in town but nothing builds up and the streets are bone dry. We can only hope that there is a bit more of the white stuff sticking above the tree line.
.. Right now our river drainage's snow-packs are running at 50 - 70% of the average water equivalent for this time of year. The rains should start in a fortnight or so and we hope they are gentle, cold, and sleet filled.
.. Warm deluges would spell disaster for the snow-pack, and the exuberant river discharges would rearrange gravels, spew forth fry, and leave us with low water and the possibility of early warming. We'll see.

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.(1254x1035)

OHMYGAWD !!

SINCERE APOLOGIES

We've Goofed Again

correction below

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.. Yesterday's post, (right below this one,) has an inadvertent error. Pete, over at Fishing Jones let us know that the tat pictured; ". . . belongs to his buddy Cody, not Corey K. the photographer. They are both from Utah, though."
.. The rest of the post seems to be copacetic. The fish is very fine and the photos are still wonderful. SORRY GUYS !!

OUCH

FOR LOVE OF THE FISH

The Color Should By Grand

we await the final unveiling

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.. Via Fishing Jones: trout art from Utah, (a place where water is 'owned' by the private interests, to the tune of about 7,000 river miles, can this really be true?)
.. This 'tat' looks to be one fine fish.
.. The arm belongs to Corey Kruitbosch: fly fisher and photographer extraordinaire. His work has been featured in many national publications; most recently profiled in “The Drake”, “American Angler”, and in the Trout Unlimited Publication “Trout”.
.. Check his blog at Western Fly Fishing. His photo stream at Flickr is also well worth a click.

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.(for original see: Fly Fishing Montana)

Another Few Bite The Dust

OLD BLOGS FADE AWAY

Electrons Forever ?

my, my, my

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.. We note that HDW MOBILE hasn't posted since last August. Shame! And; announced yesterday, THE RETREAD RANGER STATION is on indefinite hiatus.
.. The YELLOWSTONE NEWSPAPER is on hold while the real world gets addressed. Thus is the way it seems to go.
.. Of course all must end sometime. Bet you're betting on this 'un.

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