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Be sure to attend our next scheduled meeting on April 4th at the Fish, Wildlife and Parks building on Giant Springs Road. Our guest speaker will be FWP Biologist David Smitherling speaking on the Milltown Dam and it's effects on the Clark Fork and Blackfoot River.
Belize April 2013
April 29, 2013
The fish of San Pedro, Belize were in fear as the gang from Missouri River Flyfishers took residence for a week at The Tides. There were some nice fish landed on the first day, with Bryan Dunn hooking up on a baby tarpon. Christy and Sam Wike landed some nice size bones, but Sam was a little under the weather after a night with the local beer, Belikin.
Special thanks go to our outfitter, Doug Brady of Fly Treks. He met us daily to insure that our days were smooth and fun.
As the week continued, we had some great meals on the beach in San Pedro, but the wind became a challenge for fly fishing. Our guides were excellent at finding places to have minimal wind and good fishing. We had many sightings on Permit, but only Bryan Dunn landed one. Dan Falcon and Boyd Wolverton had one great day of landing large Jacks. Most of the gang, including myself, talked about how the big ones got away and a few of us became permit losers.
Special thanks go to our outfitter, Doug Brady of Fly Treks. He met us daily to insure that our days were smooth and fun.
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Bruce Richards May Guest Speaker
April 23, 2013
Missouri River Fly Fishers will be hosting their last meeting of the season on May 2nd, 7:30 pm at the Giant Springs Fish, Wildlife and Parks office with special guest speaker Bruce Richards.
Bruce is an internationally recognized fly line expert and fly casting instructor. He has been a long-time employee of Scientific Anglers 3M Company since 1976. He has been in such positions as international sales, production supervisor, plant manager and product development engineer. As part of his job, he designed all new fly tapers introduced by Scientific Anglers including the Sharkskin series of fly lines.
Bruce has also been active in the Federation of Fly Fishers organization, especially working with the Casting Instructors Certification program. He was a founding member of the program and recently retired as its chairman. He has also served on the American Fly Fishing Trade Association Board.
Bruce is an active fly casting instructor teaching mostly individuals who want to become professional instructors. He wrote the book, “Modern Fly Lines” and was chosen as Fly, Rod & Reel Magazine Angler of the Year for 2006.
Bruce will be giving a short casting class before the meeting at 7:30 pm and then at approximately 8:00 pm Bruce will have a discussion/presentation on fly lines such as how and why they float or sink, basic taper information, how to maintain them for best performance and long life.
Bruce is considered perhaps the world’s expert on fly lines.
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MRF/Calgary Hook and Hackle fishing exchange
March 22, 2013
September 2012 was the MRF/Calgary Hook and Hackle Club fishing exchange. This year our friends from Canada came down to Craig, MT to fish for two days while MRF club members rowed for them. Next year, 2013, MRF will be invited to fish the Bo River with the Calgary club hosting. Special thanks to Dan Falcon, Bob Warneke, Dave Campell, and Denny Hanson for rowing their boats and hosting the Canadians.
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Streek's Parachute Caddis Variant
March 18, 2013
Thank you to Neale Streeks for being our guest speaker and tyer at our March Missouri River Flyfishers meeting. Neale put together a tried and tested variation of a parachute caddis.
Materials:
• Hook: Size 14 Dry Fly
• Thread: 12/0 Olive
• Body: Yellow Dubbing
• Egg Sack: Chartreuse Dubbing
• Wings: Tan Hackle
• Over Wing: Brown Rooster
• Parachute: Shell Pink
Be sure to attend our next scheduled meeting on April 4th at the Fish, Wildlife and Parks building on Giant Springs Road. Our guest speaker will be FWP Biologist David Smitherling speaking on the Milltown Dam and it's effects on the Clark Fork and Blackfoot River.
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March Meeting and Guest Speaker
March 5, 2013
It is time for March madness again in college basketball, and all I can think about is going fishing. This spring will be busy as normal, but not nearly as busy as February was. We had
avery successful banquet, followed by a well participated film tour at the Hilton Garden. Special thanks to Erik, Scotty, and Brian for all their hard work making the banquet a success. Also, a big thank you a to Bob for all his work making the film tour an enjoyable night. When you see your board members, make sure you give them a big thanks. Our board works extremely hard to promote fly fishing and catch and release in our community.
Without a doubt, our banquet is our money maker for the year, but next is our memberships. If
you have not done so, please renew your membership this month. We will be mailing out new cards in April along with some decals. Each year these funds go back into our local waters to maintain or improve trout habitat. We will continue to work closely with FWP and Montana TU to keep our streams fishable and accessible.
avery successful banquet, followed by a well participated film tour at the Hilton Garden. Special thanks to Erik, Scotty, and Brian for all their hard work making the banquet a success. Also, a big thank you a to Bob for all his work making the film tour an enjoyable night. When you see your board members, make sure you give them a big thanks. Our board works extremely hard to promote fly fishing and catch and release in our community.Without a doubt, our banquet is our money maker for the year, but next is our memberships. If
you have not done so, please renew your membership this month. We will be mailing out new cards in April along with some decals. Each year these funds go back into our local waters to maintain or improve trout habitat. We will continue to work closely with FWP and Montana TU to keep our streams fishable and accessible.We have also noticed a large amount of members coming out for our meeting and this is appreciated. Remember our meeting is the first Thursday night of the month at the FWP office. Come out and enjoy listening to our speakers. We will have some very interesting topics in April and May. Our last meeting of the season is May and we will be doing elections for the board at that time.
This weeks meeting will be held at 7:30 at the Fish, Wildlife and Parks building on Giant Springs Road. Our guest speaker and fly tier will be Neale Streeks. Neal is a long time fishing guide on the Missouri River. He is also author of “Small Fly Adventures of the West: Angling for Large Trout” and “Drift Boat Fly Fishing: A River Guides Sage Advice and Drift Boat Strategies”.
Hope to see you there.
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Craig Mathew's Sparkle Dun
February 19, 2013
Very special "Thank you" to Craig Mathews for being our guest speaker during our February monthly meeting. Craig share his wealth of fly fishing and fly tying knowledge with MRF members. We had the pleasure of watching Mr. Mathews tie some of his signature flies including his Sparkle Dun, plus we treated to a great discusion regarding 1% for the Planet, and viewed some beatiful photography of Craig's home waters around Yellowstone.
You can see Craig is committed to working hard to preserve and protect wild tout, wild trout habitat, and wild places for all future genreations!
You can see Craig is committed to working hard to preserve and protect wild tout, wild trout habitat, and wild places for all future genreations!
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Craig Mathews February Guest Speaker
February 6, 2013
Missouri River FlyFishers welcomes guest speaker and fly tyer Craig Mathews of Blue Ribbon Flies to our February 7 monthly meeting. Craig will be discussing 1% for the Planet, Tenkara fly fishing, and over looked places to fish around the Yellowstone.
Mathews came to West Yellowstone, Montana in 1979 and became the town's police chief, his wife Jackie a police dispatcher. In 1980 they founded Blue Ribbon Flies employing handicapped fly tiers and tying flies wholesale for major retail outlets. In 1982 Craig retired from police work and Blue Ribbon Flies opened up their first full-line retail store.
Mathews came to West Yellowstone, Montana in 1979 and became the town's police chief, his wife Jackie a police dispatcher. In 1980 they founded Blue Ribbon Flies employing handicapped fly tiers and tying flies wholesale for major retail outlets. In 1982 Craig retired from police work and Blue Ribbon Flies opened up their first full-line retail store.
Since opening their shop, Craig has authored dozens of articles for major fly fishing publications on Yellowstone fly fishing, fishing bonefish and permit, fly patterns, and more. He has authored and co-author six important books on fly-fishing: Fly Patterns of Yellowstone (1986), Fishing Yellowstone Hatches (1992), The Yellowstone Fly-Fishing Guide, (1997), Western Fly-Fishing Strategies, (1998), Fly Fishing the Madison River in 2001 and Volume 2 of Fly Patterns of Yellowstone in 2008.
Craig has also produced Telly Award winning DVD's like Fishing Yellowstone Hatches, Tying Yellowstone Fly Patterns, Bonefishing the Flats, and Fly Fishing the Madison.
He has developed several famous fly patterns like the Sparkle Dun, X-Caddis and Iris Caddis, Nature Stone Nymphs, Pops Bonefish Bitters, TDF Shrimp, Turneffe Crab, and many others.
NBC's Tom Brokaw says, "Craig Mathews is a master fly-fisher, and his knowledge of Yellowstone is matchless." Craig and Jackie serve on boards of directors of The Montana Nature Conservancy, The Montana Trout Foundation, The Madison-Gallatin Wild Trout Foundation, 1% for the Planet, The Yellowstone Park Foundation, and Trout Unlimited's Stewardship Directors Council.
Craig and Jackie and their Blue Ribbon Flies have been awarded many conservation and environmental awards. These awards include The Nature Conservancy's coveted Business Conservation Award for their work in protecting and preserving wild trout habitat. In 1997 they were presented the most prestigious award given by national parks: The Protector of Yellowstone National Park Award. This seldom given honor was presented by Yellowstone National Park in recognition of their work to "preserve and protect Yellowstone for all future generations".
In 2000 The Greater Yellowstone Coalition presented them with their highest honor as "the business giving the most to preserve and protect the greater Yellowstone ecosystem for the future". In 2002 The State of Montana presented Craig and Jackie with a special award for their efforts "to preserve and protect, and keep open to the public over a mile of the Madison River…". And, in 2003 The Federation of Fly-Fishers presented Craig and Jackie and Blue Ribbon Flies with The Lee Wulff Award for their conservation and environmental work Trout Unlimited presented its conservation of the year award to the Mathews in 2007. And, in 2008 The Madison River Foundation presented them with its stewardship award for their on-going work to protect and preserve Montana's famous Madison River.
In 2001 Craig and Yvon Chouinard of Patagonia founded 1% for the Planet that now has 1000 members, $30M to date. Member companies donate at least 1% of their gross sales to
environmental and conservation causes; like an earth tax for doing business.
environmental and conservation causes; like an earth tax for doing business.You can see, Craig and Jackie are committed to working hard to preserve and protect wild trout, wild trout habitat, and wild places for all future generations!
To learn more about Craig Mathews' products, flies and guide services visit his website, www.BlueRibbonFlies.com.
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Upcoming Events
April 4, 2012
Check out the Upcoming Events this month with the Missouri River Fly Fishers starting tomorrow HERE
Don't forget... Tomorrow April 5th Sweetgrass Rod Designer Dave Delisi will be here for our general public meeting at FWP building starting at 7pm. Make sure to click the link above to learn more.
Don't forget... Tomorrow April 5th Sweetgrass Rod Designer Dave Delisi will be here for our general public meeting at FWP building starting at 7pm. Make sure to click the link above to learn more.
From Molly Semenik
406-220-5234
May 3rd Molly will give a presentation on Fly Fishing at Christmas Island for the Missouri River Fly Fishers at FW&P Visitors Center, across from Giant Springs at 7:30 p.m. The presentation will include photos and video. In addition to Christmas Island, a few photos from her upcoming April trip to Belize will be included.
Co-ed Fly Casting Lessons - May 4, 2012
These classes are co-ed and cost $40 for a two hour lesson. If paying by check, please make check out to Tie The Knot. You may pay at class. Classes start at 10am and 1:30pm.
Women's Class Sign-up May 5, 2012
Location: Fish, Wildlife and Parks Giant Springs Regional Park Bldg. (4600 Giant Springs road).
Cost: $150 (includes hand-outs, lunch and water)
Class starts at 8:30 a.m. and concludes at 4:30
A deposit of $50 will hold your spot
Maximum of 10 attendees
Sign-ups for both classes are available at the Big R Fly Shop in Great Falls, MT. Sign up quickly to insure a spot at one of these great classes.
Big R will also host a co-ed gear night for anyone who is interested in asking Molly about gear, especially for those who are beginning casters and fishers. Gear night will be at 5pm on Friday May 4th at Big R.
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Sun River Watershed Progress!
March 15, 2012
Last year the MRF donated $5000 to the Sun River Watershed. Here is a report of their progress thus far.
The Sun River Watershed covers over 1.4 million acres in Cascade, Lewis & Clark and Teton Counties. From the east slopes of the Rocky Mountain Front to where the Sun River enters the Missouri River at Great Falls – people are working together to find solutions to difficult issues. The Sun River Watershed Group (SRWG) is a collaborative, locally directed group of interested individuals, organizations, and agencies dedicated to monitoring, improving and maintaining the quality of the natural resources within the Sun River Basin. To make sure the SRWG maintains a forward momentum an Executive Committeecontinues to provide leadership with the group's limited resources.
Water Management PROJECTS
OTHER WATERSHED PROJECTS
Sun River Watershed
2011 Happenings
The Sun River Watershed covers over 1.4 million acres in Cascade, Lewis & Clark and Teton Counties. From the east slopes of the Rocky Mountain Front to where the Sun River enters the Missouri River at Great Falls – people are working together to find solutions to difficult issues. The Sun River Watershed Group (SRWG) is a collaborative, locally directed group of interested individuals, organizations, and agencies dedicated to monitoring, improving and maintaining the quality of the natural resources within the Sun River Basin. To make sure the SRWG maintains a forward momentum an Executive Committeecontinues to provide leadership with the group's limited resources. The updates listed below are compilation of the hard work by many groups and individuals over the past year. This projects list is not intended to mean they were all accomplished by the SRWG but is just a means of tracking good projects that benefit the basin.
NOXIOUS WEEDS
1. The Rocky Mountain Front Weed Roundtable has been very busy supporting weed efforts along the Front. A detailed report of 2011 projects that includes the Sun Watershed is available upon request.
2. Ford Creek spray day was held on June 16. Private landowners, USFS personnel, and others participated in the 7th annual Ford Creek spray day to help control noxious weeds in this drainage.
3. Sun Canyon spray day was held on June 24. This 3rd annual event sponsored by the Forest Service had hard working teams from the Forest Service, Teton County, Lewis & Clark County, The Nature Conservancy, Greenfields Irrigation District and Sun River Watershed Group spray noxious weeds along the beautiful Sun Canyon.
4. Sun River Weed Whacker Rodeo weed pull on the upper Sun River was accomplished on July 9. Forty volunteers and agency/organization representatives pulled 421 pounds of knapweed during this 14th annual event.
5. Upper Sun weed management area covers approximately 140,000 acres in upper Sun River watershed including Elk Creek drainage. Landowners in this area take advantage of a 50% cost-share program to control noxious weeds from the state Noxious Weed Trust Fund.
Water Quality PROJECTS
1. Teacher and students from Fairfield continued to monitor water quality at five sites on the Sun River.
2. Muddy Creek projects consisted of GID installing pipe, pumps and enlarging reregulating reservoir to reduce excess tailwater from entering Muddy Creek that increases erosion.
3. Elk Creek had three diversion structures modified to enhance fish passage and control erosion. One major streambank project was accomplished but high water damaged the work.
Water Management PROJECTS1. A water management study initiated in 2008 continued in 2011 to compile water management alternatives from past studies and to identify new alternatives with the goal of turning the most promising ones into action plans for improving Sun River flows while maintaining agricultural production. Finding win-win solutions with a limited water supply is difficult but essential for the long-term benefit of everyone who uses water.
2. Streamflow monitoring program continues with help from BoR, DNRC and USGS including:
a. Three USGS stations at Muddy Creek at Vaughn, Sun River at Simms, Sun River near Vaughn
b. Five DNRC gauge stations at upper Elk Creek, lower Big Coulee, upper Mill Coulee, and lower Mill Coulee
c. Sun River at Highway 287 Bridge
3. Fort Shaw Irrigation District continues to work on several water conservation projects with financial assistance from a DNRC grant. Projects this year included replacing open ditches with 1,000 feet of pipe. FSID was also awarded two grants to eliminate 7,000 feet of open ditch system with pipe.
4. Greenfields Irrigation District continued work on several water conservation projects. In 2011 they installed a pipeline to reduce waste water into Muddy Creek. And a canal lining project has been funded and will be part of 2012 projects. It is intended to reduce a major seep that puts lots of salts and sediment into Big Coulee.
OTHER WATERSHED PROJECTS1. Education programs are also a major component of the Sun River Watershed effort. Fairfield science teacher Rai Hahn continues to work with youth on science projects that benefits the watershed and youth interested in natural resource issues.
So with all this work going on where do you fit in? Your ideas and needs are important to the watershed effort if we are going to continue to effectively address water quality, water quantity and weed issues. Call Alan Rollo at 727-4437 or email at arollo7@msn.com if you have anything you would like to discuss. Your hard work on these issues is appreciated and we look forward to working with you in the future. You, the people in the Sun River Watershed, are the key to a successful watershed group.
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