E-17 Springing Update

Greetings Fellow Extravaganzers!

Well, yesterday we did the segue from being in the icy climes of Montana to flying back to the now rainy weather of the Bay Area and, even though the calendar announces that it is the first day of Spring, that is news to the residents of both of our constituent communities!

As we sneak up towards the month of May, all fishing-sensitive eyes are going to be myopically focused on the upper snow pack of the mountains of western Montana as that snow is the holding tank for the water that we will be fishing come this June. And right now we are in GREAT shape, as, since my last report to you, it has been wetter than normal in Montana such that the year-to-date precipitation in the Bitterroot River Basin and the Clark Fork River Basin is collectively tracking at 125% of twenty year norms and, equally important, the water content of that upper elevation snow is measuring right at 108% of twenty year medians…bueno, bueno, bueno!!

What we now need to observe is just what happens during the month of April, as in each of the last two years we have gone into that month with about the same numbers of snowfall and water content as we have this year but each of the last two Aprils witnessed a virtual heat wave such that half of the then snow pack was melted off prematurely and, come the true “runoff month” of May, we went into that month with just fifty percent of norms as a baseline.

Attached is one of our flow charts that we keep on an annual basis where, come May 1st, using our own Rock Creek as a baseline, we chart the water flow in hopes that, just as we did with the black line of 2009, we have a healthy and vibrant water flow that (a) removes the cold of the snow from the upper mountains and, at the same time, (b) flushes out our rivers with the increased water volume, relocating not only fish but also the flotsam and jetsam from the river bottoms that has accumulated over the winter months—a literal “spring cleaning”. In an ideal year, come June, the water flow has reduced itself, the water temperature begins to climb and, voila, the bug life that has been resident in the river bottom comes to life in their adult form creating flying objects that become the new bounty of our targeted fish. To that end, there are literally thousands of varieties and sizes of bugs teeming Montana’s healthy rivers such that each day (and each time of each day) provides a different opportunity on each of Montana’s differing rivers. What is then happening on the Bitterroot River, say, will be totally different from the goings on of the Blackfoot River and the Clark Fork of the Columbia River (our three fishable rivers during the Extravaganza) such that our boat reports each evening on the outside deck just before dinner will reveal wildly differing experiences depending on the time of day, river and weather conditions. (More on Montana’s weather in a later writing.)

So go forth all, with a Spring in your step, and know that from a planning point of view Mother Nature has us well cradled in her arms and that we will be keeping a sharp eye out on her weather-wise developments over the months and weeks ahead.

Best to all in the early excitement of it all,

Rock Creek Ron
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A Marvelous First Day On The River!

As shown in the above pics, the first day on the river this year was, indeed, a marvelous one…eagles (gaggles of them!), heron, hawks, mink, muskrat and, yes, even fish were part of the menu this Wednesday when our Montana Matters Troubadour (shown above with his rainbow catch), our Double Up outfitter John “The Great But Propaneless” [so named for his propensity over the years to forget the propane tanks needed for our hot riverside lunches!] Gould and yours truly took to the Bitterroot River (year after year one of our targeted Extravaganza rivers) for a “tween” day of fishing that yielded, in addition to our traditional rounds of laughter and hilarity, the first Twenty Inch fish of the year (my beauty of a brown shown above with Propaneless) and, the surprise of the day, a (huge) 5 ½ pound sucker—a rarity to land such a large specimen on the types of flies that we were using (the skwala version of which is also shown above).

For you rookies out there (and as your wily veterans well know), as you arrive to fish with us in Montana in just three short months now, you will get the chance to experience first-hand that which I do every day on the water and did again on Wednesday—a well preserved, animal, avian and fish rich environment that, within just moments, sinks into your soul and refreshes all that is within you. Simply stated, there is little that I have found that can or does replace a quiet day on the river, where, in the case of the Bitterroot River, you are seeing the very same vistas that Lewis and Clark saw 200+ years ago as, both on their way to the Coast and again on their return trek, they wintered aside the Bitterroot just outside of the town of Lolo (which you too will all see first-hand).

And if our success on Wednesday is any indication, we sure in for a(nother) heck of a fishing year!!!

Best to all amidst it all,

Rock Creek Ron
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E-17 'Tween Photos

Greetings, all, from Headquarters where, indeed, we are in the in between season—half way from winter to summer! In spite of the forecast inclimate weather now forecast for tomorrow (morning rain—tomorrow’s forecast has literally changed every day for the last week…everything from abundant sunshine to driving snow), I am now set to fish with our Double Up outfitter John “The Great But Propaneless” Gould and our Montana Matters Troubadour Shane Clouse amidst what we hope to be the first hatch of the season, a stonefly rare only to these parts known as “the skwala”—cool name for a rock band, huh?!?

Stay tuned for the first fishing report of the season on Thursday and, in the interim, enjoy the attached ‘tween shots!!

Best to all from the scene of it all,

Rock Creek Ron
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Springtime in Montana!!

RCR---<'///:><