Iced Guides and Clear Skies

Most people would never want to hang out with their boss outside of work.  I am one of the lucky few that would jump at the opportunity.  So when Marc Evans (Senior Fishing Guide for Glacier Anglers) invited me to fish with him on the Lower Flathead River I had no problem getting up the morning and driving 3 hours to do so.

Once I arrived in West Glacier it was clear that the day was going to be beautiful.  The skies were blue and the wind seemed to not be a factor.  I drove to the Glacier Outdoor Center to check out the new and improved fly shop, which looks great and met up with Marc.  We loaded up the drift boat and set out to find another fisherman.  We stole DJ Stoneman(another guide for Glacier Raft Co.)from a day of work and headed to the river. 

We had been told that the fish in the main stem of the Flathead hold differently than most other fish do in the winter, we found that to be false.  Every fish hooked was right where you would have expected it to be. With the cold weather and slight upstream wind our guides would ice up every now and then but all in all it was a great day to be on the water. 

Fish were mostly taking nymphs throughout the day.  We saw a few rising fish and were able to coax one to the surface.  We spent more time that we wanted to on the upper stretch of the float; which caused us to have to push through the last stretch to the vehicle. 

 Photos by DJ Stoneman

The spring fishing in the Flathead River basin is good and seems to only be getting better with the warmer temperatures coming through.  I plan on heading back up there soon to fish before the season starts and see some more lower river fish in action.

First Float of the Year

Driving down the highway to the put-in we were skeptical as to how the weather would hold up.  The sun was shining and it was relatively warm considering the time of year but a storm front was supposed to roll in at some point during the day so there was some doubt as to whether it would be a suffer fest.

Once we were on the water it turned out that the fishing was going to be very slow.  With heavy winds it was hard to keep the drift boat from being pushed all over the river like a pinball.  Lines were tangled and flies were lost but all in all it was good to just be out on the water with no one else in sight.  A few fish were caught and lost and more than a few jokes were thrown in for good measure.

About a mile from the take out Matt hooked what we thought was another log.  Turned out it was actually a nice sized cutthroat.  after a minute or so of fighting we got him in the boat for a great photo.

We were off the river and ready for a drink so we headed over to the Blacksmith Brewery to quench our thirst and call it a day.  As for being back in Montana after spending the winter down South I am happy to be here.

Fish on!

A Great Client Review!!!

I was scanning over the Glacier Anglers website to see all of the new photos and changes.  The first few things I noticed were that some of my photos are featured on the website and there are also a few photos of me as well.  The coolest thing I found though was that at the bottom of the page there is a Client Testimonial from some folks I had in my boat this summer from South Carolina.  The best part of guiding to me is knowing that you are helping to facilitate an amazing experience everyday on the river no matter what.  When I get feedback like this it not only lets me know I am doing my job but it also motivates me to keep going out there and give it my best!  Thanks everyone for your continued support!

Glacier Anglers Client Testimonial
"Full day of float fishing can be either a hit or miss venture. This was a grand slam - we had an outstanding guide (Chad) who made the experience top notch. Both my wife and I are experienced anglers, but not in fly fishing. Chad offered outstanding instruction, patience and knowledge. A great day on the water including catching fish!" - Joseph T. Little River, South Carolina

A History

My Grandfather.

My Stepfather.

North Fork of the Flathead River 3 day trip.

Here are a few photos from one of my overnight trips that I guided last summer.

Dick, Mason and Tigger enjoying an amazing sunset on the North Fork.

Morning looking into Glacier National Park

Foggy morning

Catching fish on dry flies= fun

teaching kids to fish leads them toward a better future

BigHorn River March 2011

In March of 2011 I spent a week on the BigHorn river chasing rainbow and brown trout with eight other aspiring guides.  We were all there participating in Sweetwater Travels Fly Fishing Guide School.  Nine students and three instructors all packed into a multi-bedroom "condo" next to the river is just what any dedicated fisherman would call Disneyland.  Fishing all day and drinking and tying flies all night was only part of the fun that was had on that seven day trip.

When I arrived to the campground late Saturday night I had no clue as to where I was supposed to stay.  Being too exhausted to ask anyone I decided to crawl into the back of my truck to sleep for the night.  The next morning I awoke to find that I had slept in front of the "condo" that was rented for us for the week.  I walked in to find the other eight students had arrived the night before and were getting ready to wade fish that morning before our CPR/First Aid class began.  

After the first day of mostly indoor instruction we hit the water on Monday for our first day on the river floating in drift boats.  Words can not express how good the fishing was that week.  We were fishing mostly nymphs and streamers. In those 5 days of floating I caught more fish on a fly than on all of my previous fishing trips combined.  There were 

three drift boats and one jet boat on the river throughout the day.  Each day we would rotate as to be able to fish with everyone in the group.

It is easy to say that those days spent on the river fishing with my new friends were some one of the best days of my life.  As with any group of guys hanging out for more than a few days without any women in the mix the jokes and comments on the water throughout the day were dirty to say the least.  I made some great friends who I still keep in contact with pretty frequently and I would recommend this coarse for anyone that is thinking of becoming a fly fishing guide or just wants to learn to fish better.

Fishing with Fire!

I decided to hit up some warm water fish before heading back to the cold rivers of the Rockies in Montana.  So two friends and I loaded up the truck and headed to my cabin in Sylvania, Georgia for 24 hours of fishing for bass on the fly.  As we drove onto the property it became clear that that there was some prescribed burning going on around the 400 acre piece of land. 

At first I thought we were going to have to tuck our tails and run but as we arrived at the cabin the smoke seemed to be in the trees and fields surrounding us.  We quickly rigged our rods and started chucking flies in the water.  Across the pond the burn was raging which made for an amazing background while flyfishing for largemouth bass.

We caught fish throughout the afternoon and into the dark night.  Once it was dark we decided to fish from the canoe.  Random bits of smoke would roll in completely eliminating all visibility.  Casting into the smoke cloud and pulling out fish is one of the coolest memories I have fly fishing and it is something I will never forget.