If you're not going to get a guide, finding a forum like this one and doing the research seems to be the next best thing. I've learned my fair share here, but if I can't achieve my objective (catching a big gar, carp and snakehead), I'll save some change and hire a guide (Rob - I'm giving myself another 4 weeks - after that I'm going to book a trip).
On Tuesday, July 9, 2013 6:34:36 PM UTC-4, thephili...@gmail.com wrote:
-- On Tuesday, July 9, 2013 6:34:36 PM UTC-4, thephili...@gmail.com wrote:
I was out in Wyoming last week for a wedding in Jackson Hole, and we decided to make a trip of it by spending 3 nights in Yellowstone and 3 nights in Teton Village. Fresh off the Orvis 101 and 201 classes and well equipped with our beginner outfits, my buddy and I were pumped to fish the "mecca" of fly fishing. Before I left, I did a little research on the current fishing reports and mapped out a few places that seemed to be HOT. Little did I know, the mild weather turned into the hottest week Yellowstone and Jackson have had in years...For the first 3 days in Yellowstone, the initial plan was to fish Yellowstone Lake and the Firehole River. It turned out the Firehole was literally too hot, and after talking to a ranger who counted over 200 dead trout in the river we didn't even try to fish that river. We also didn't even try to fish the Lake, since we didn't have a boat and didn't think we'd have much success from the shoreline. With no internet and little advice on current fishing conditions, we ventured in our car to scout out areas we thought would be ok to fish.Day 1 of fishing - We started on the Yellowstone River... oops. Turns out the area we were fishing doesn't open until July 15. The ranger told us to fish Wolf Lake, but that's a 10 mile hike round-trip and our girlfriends were with us, no dice. The compromise was to fish cascade lake which was near wolf lake but only a 5 mile hike round-trip. No one was at the lake, and we fished it for a few hours. I caught 3 small trout, but many more bug bites. My buddy didn't catch a thing, except for his calf. Fortunately, the only fly fishing video I watched before I left for the trip was how to remove a hook. This helped! The girls were bored, and annoyed with the bug bites they were getting. We called it a day. Note: find something that can occupy girlfriends while fishing, otherwise you can't enjoy fishing.Day 2 of fishing - Before starting out on Day 2, the girls made us find out what rivers were HOT with fish. I called the Jackson Orvis shop and the JD High Country Outfitters to find out what recommendations they had for Yellowstone fishing. We received conflicting reports from both shops. No bueno. The guide at JD High Country Outfitters seemed to be more detailed and helpful than the Orvis guide, so I went with what he said. We headed out early that morning to fish the Madison River. As we were driving along the river, we counted 3 fly fishermen. This was a good sign for us. We drove up river a few miles more and got out to fish. Better conditions here, less bugs, and the girlfriends could tan on the shoreline. All around victory, I was improving my back cast and roll cast techniques, except, we didn't catch any fish. In fact, I only saw one fish the whole time we were there. Heads down, we packed up and left for the hotel.Day 3 of fishing - After arriving in Jackson, we drove to the Orvis store to ask for advice on where to fish. Once again, no help. They said everything was too hot, and they were less than friendly. This really surprised me considering the generosity I've experienced at the Arlington Orvis shop. My buddy and I wanted a second opinion. So, we drove down to the JD Country Outfitters. They were once again very friendly and helpful, so we thought. "Fish the snake river here. Walk up the tow path 1 mile and you should have a great fishing spot. Or you can fish the hoback around here, the flat creek is ok, and you could even fish lily lake." We got up early in the morning, set on fishing the snake river. That was the area which the guide gave us the most detailed fishing directions. We knew exactly where to go, how far to walk, and what to do. Unknown to us, you can only walk up the river about a half mile, then it turns into private property. That was our first setback, the 2nd was the fresh bear droppings on the tow path, and the third was the speed of the river. It had rained the night before, the river was muddy and the water was raging. We packed up and set on our own quest for a good fishing spot. Fish creek, all private. Lilly lake, private property with a T-pee in the back yard. Don't want to mess with someone who has a T-pee in the back yard. Teton National Park, accidentally threw away our Park Pass the day before. Once again, huge fail.Overall, the fly fishing trip was a huge let down, and we were really disappointed with the help we received from the fishing shops and the guides. It seems as if the shops were more concerned about selling their guided fishing trips (which cost in excess of $300) than helping new fly fishers have a good time. As a result of my buddy not catching any fish in the "mecca" of all fly fishing spots, he may even sell his outfit and quit fishing all together. I don't blame him, but I'll try to keep him in the sport.Has anyone else had similar experiences? If not, how do you make sure you're going to be in a good fishing spot when you travel?
http://www.tpfr.org
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