I have lived in Bozeman since 1978. My spring fishing has been almost exclusively floating and wading the Yellowstone River until run off and then waiting out the muddy water until it gets clear enough to fly fish again. By the time the Yellowstone clears, you can fish almost every river and high mountain lake in the state and Yellowstone Park so finding a place to fish for the rest of the year is not a big deal.
But since the beginning I had heard about the Missouri River and its reservoirs starting at Townsend and going past the Gates to the Mountains. Others would tell me about the large trout that spawn during the spring and that clear water could be found in the reservoirs and below the dams. For numerous reasons, I never took the time or made the effort to explore this area until this year.
Fishing these waters in the spring is not a secret in Montana. Many anglers hit these waters. I just never took the time to get the lay of the land (water, in this case).
This changed on April 3 when Diane and I asked Trevor Johnson of Kit Tackle to take us on Canyon Ferry and show us the ropes. We learned about Trevor from the threads that “Big Sky” has posted singing the praises of Kit Tackles jigs. Especially this thread:
http://onyourownadventures.com/hunttalk/showthread.php?267622-Epic-Fishing-Trip!
We had steady action for a full day and had a much better understanding of the large trout that were just starting to spawn. We also learned about how to fish Trevor’s jigs.
By coincidence, John McMillan of RO Boats sent me an email and asked if I wanted to join him on his jet boat to explore the Missouri for large spring fish. He was going over on the 22nd.
I met John a few years ago when I bought a used Yellowstone Drifter boat from RO Boats. In addition to building some of the most respected drift boats available anywhere, they usually have an inventory of used boats they take in on trade.
RO Boats is located near Four Corners and I was driving by and pulled in to see what they had for inventory. Before I left I had a new-to-me drift boat and started the beginning of a friendship.
We have kept in touch over the past few years and I had mentioned recently that I was interested in fishing the Missouri and its reservoirs. When he offered a spot on his boat, I was able to free up the day. When I arrived at the dock I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the third person in the boat would be Charles Holbrook, also associated with RO Boats. I had not met Charles but quickly we found that we were both committed anglers and we cheered each other’s success.
John and Charles are almost exclusively fly fishermen. I didn’t want to rock the boat, so I used a fly rod too. In a few hours we boated over a dozen fish. It was a very productive day of fishing. I am grateful to John and Charles for sharing one of their fishing spots with me.
Here are pictures from these two fishing trips I had this month on the Missouri and its reservoirs.
Mrs What Map with a nice Big Mo rainbow
another nice one
What Maps with bow
Trevor Johnson of Kit Tackle
John McMillan and Charles Holbrook of RO Boats
Two for the grill
But since the beginning I had heard about the Missouri River and its reservoirs starting at Townsend and going past the Gates to the Mountains. Others would tell me about the large trout that spawn during the spring and that clear water could be found in the reservoirs and below the dams. For numerous reasons, I never took the time or made the effort to explore this area until this year.
Fishing these waters in the spring is not a secret in Montana. Many anglers hit these waters. I just never took the time to get the lay of the land (water, in this case).
This changed on April 3 when Diane and I asked Trevor Johnson of Kit Tackle to take us on Canyon Ferry and show us the ropes. We learned about Trevor from the threads that “Big Sky” has posted singing the praises of Kit Tackles jigs. Especially this thread:
http://onyourownadventures.com/hunttalk/showthread.php?267622-Epic-Fishing-Trip!
We had steady action for a full day and had a much better understanding of the large trout that were just starting to spawn. We also learned about how to fish Trevor’s jigs.
By coincidence, John McMillan of RO Boats sent me an email and asked if I wanted to join him on his jet boat to explore the Missouri for large spring fish. He was going over on the 22nd.
I met John a few years ago when I bought a used Yellowstone Drifter boat from RO Boats. In addition to building some of the most respected drift boats available anywhere, they usually have an inventory of used boats they take in on trade.
RO Boats is located near Four Corners and I was driving by and pulled in to see what they had for inventory. Before I left I had a new-to-me drift boat and started the beginning of a friendship.
We have kept in touch over the past few years and I had mentioned recently that I was interested in fishing the Missouri and its reservoirs. When he offered a spot on his boat, I was able to free up the day. When I arrived at the dock I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the third person in the boat would be Charles Holbrook, also associated with RO Boats. I had not met Charles but quickly we found that we were both committed anglers and we cheered each other’s success.
John and Charles are almost exclusively fly fishermen. I didn’t want to rock the boat, so I used a fly rod too. In a few hours we boated over a dozen fish. It was a very productive day of fishing. I am grateful to John and Charles for sharing one of their fishing spots with me.
Here are pictures from these two fishing trips I had this month on the Missouri and its reservoirs.
Mrs What Map with a nice Big Mo rainbow
another nice one
What Maps with bow
Trevor Johnson of Kit Tackle
John McMillan and Charles Holbrook of RO Boats
Two for the grill
