Fishing the Yellowstone River :  The Yellowstone River is one of the best rivers I have ever fished! I can hear the rush of the riffles, and I can see the runs as clearly as if I were standing on the bank. My first encounter with this big water came in 1993. While staying with friends who lived not half of a mile from the Great Yellowstone, I was invited to go out with the “boys”. Being a woman in Montana isn’t the same as most other places. The men don’t mind you coming along, in fact the teasing never subsides if you don’t go at least once. If you are not into hunting and fishing, you might not make it as a Montana woman.

 The “boys” you go out with usually dictates what the day will be like. It was a diverse group to be sure that July day as we headed out. Art was a bull rider, Bill a welder, Wayne (Rudnitski) an awesome outfitter, David and I were managers for a social service agency. It would make for an interesting day. Wayne had everything ready for us. He loved to take his friends on day trips. I had been on several where he would have the chuck-wagon and the whole bit. Today was about fishing. Today he was just Wayne. I write about Wayne, because he taught me so much about fishing big water.

Pools in big rivers are broad, deep and difficult to fish. The runs are deeper and more definable…the fish spread out more. The reward for the endeavor however is big fish. Unlike stream fishing with medium to small trout, big trout spend most of their time holding, waiting for something worth chasing. The larger the trout, the larger the amount of food it takes to entice them to move. Wayne told me (a stream fisherman) that I needed patience. He said I wouldn’t catch as many fish, but I had the potential for catching the biggest fish of my life! Trout are occupied most of the time with the need to find food, fisherman are occupied most of the time with the need to find trout. I was assured that I would be “hooked’ big time when I caught the big one.

When trout rest on a feeding lie, they are feeding on something specific and the presented fly must look a bit like it…presented in the right level in the water, and using the right motion to mimic the insect’s behavior. If trout are feeding in prime lies, they usually feed on what the current brings along. They may snap at a fly if it doesn’t require them to move very far from their station. I had no idea what to do. My experience had only been limited to the smaller rivers in Western Montana. My flies tend to reflect the parameters of the water I fish. The season, water temp, sexual maturity (the fish), how clear the water is and light. I like things that look like natural bugs. Hoppers have been a great help. Trout are occupied most of the time with finding food, keeping away from predators (that would be me), and I am occupied most of the time trying to find trout.  I had brought my Elk Hair Caddis, my Wooly Bugger and a few assorted others, and yes, hoppers, but Wayne assured me they would go for the Caddis almost every time. I had to learn.

My first casts were made to cast as far as possible. Wayne suggested I keep my casts shorter and more under control. He said it would give me more control over the drift, and help in setting the hook. After about the tenth cast, Bill came down from upriver with a beauty! It would be his only catch of the day. He would take it back for cooking. Art caught a few smaller trout, and after showing them, he gently released them back into the river. I was frustrated! I couldn’t catch a cold out there! Patience I was told. Wayne looked so perfect in his casting…I was just a novice. Boy, I wanted to fish like THAT! Poor David just couldn’t get the hang of it, and wound up sleeping in the rig.

With time running out before heading in, I cast one last time into a run I had been fishing nearly all day. I had the #14 Elk Hair Caddis ( I had been using it early, but switched around with others). Then…it happened! BAM! There it was. I was struggling with the weight of it, and asked Bill to help out. He began to laugh at me. Wayne was laughing so hard he was having trouble breathing. It took me a very long time to bring in that fish! The fight in her was fierce! I thought sure it would be a world’s record. When I saw it I almost fainted. It was a 19 inch Rainbow. I let Wayne release her, I was exhausted! It was the thrill of a lifetime, and my biggest fish to this day. Patience paid off, as did my faithful Elk Hair Caddis.

Creekwalker