Found out the owner was pro-am tournament fisherman and wanted to know all about our areas Float and Fly fishing method, well one hour later as the talk about F&F fishing was discussed and the information was shown on the Punisher Lures web site the camper was fixed and we were on our way.
July 20: Spent the next night a Corps of Engineers camping site below Norfork Dam across the road from Norfork National fish Hatchery. It was nice to have a level pad, no wind or rain, but most of al no rotten Elms.

July 21: Got to Greers Ferry Lake near Heber Springs Arkansas around 3:30 PM. Camping in John F. Kennedy Park. We fished for the evening and spent time with an older couple who camps like Phyliss “Holiday Inn”. They came down to the water where it was cooler and sat to watch the fishing. He was a Korean Vet and retired Tile and Trim person who’s last name was Micky
July 22 Just met a man from Olive Branch Mississippi, he gave us 2 home grown tomatoes. They will be great for lunch. Later on in the afternoon as we fished off a Corps fish per, a small boy said to be two and a half years old with his trusty Wally World “Green” $10 dollar Zebco reel, catches a 3.5 to 4 pound rainbow trout. He and his uncle live in Greenbrier, AR

August 23:
Fished again but not much luck as the water was heavy and fast. We received a call from Jeff Smith, owner and developer of a trout bait called Trout Magnet about 6:15 wanting to inquire whether we wanted to go fishing that evening. ( Last year Bill had gotten some of these lures given to him to test and then passed them on to me to try on the Obey River. I gave some to Layne to try and He reported they weren’t bad.) we answered with a resounding “YES” because of the poor luck we had had. We met Jeff about 7:15 PM some 12 miles down the Red River where he took us in one of his river boats. The boat was maybe 20 feet long and 4 foot wide and a 20 horse motor with a Jet drive. In the hour and 20 minuets we fished, before it became too dark, we caught around 40 or so Rainbow. Most 14 to 16 inches in length. Then to show off Jeff placed a very small flashlight in the stopper hole of the float. Impressive.

July 24:
Traveled on to Kileene, TX to visit Bills’ Son Nathan and family. Nathan was in from Iraq on a 2 week pass. Nathan a Sergeant Major is with the MP group training the Iraq police force. To say the least he truly has a grasp of the situation. This is his third term in Iraq. We spent about an hour and half at Fort Hoods’ military museum, which Nathan’s youngest loves. It has helicopters and “big tanks”. Spent some time in Saladoa, Texas that historically was on the Chisholm Trail and had a pony express stop. The town has now become a tourist stop with Antique shops, art galleries old home to visit some built before the Civil War. We concluded our visit by having a great meal with his family at one of the watering holes near the base.

July 27:
 Start toward Colarado: Western Texas has to say the least a varied landscape. First the scrub open plain, then onto cotton land that has gone forever, and then corn and fed lots. I guess it’s easier to bring cattle in than to ship mass loads of corn and wheat. say a few milking herds and a sheep fed lot. Sent the night in a KOA in Clayton, New Mexico. This is the second time we have used a KOA RV site and we are pleased. These RV sites have a wireless DSL connections so the e-mails and information for this web site can be updated.

July 28 Continuing onward to Colarado: We crossed over Raton Pass at over 7,000 feet and took a shark drop to 5,000. Wee what a drop in 3 miles. Ferrals Auto repair can make themselves proud the brakes held. Arriving in Loveland CO around 4:30 PM. after going through Denver with its’ streets and interstate roads are under server repair. It appears the reported 170 million dollars colarado received for road inter structure has been spent all in one place. It’s worse than Nashville. we said our howdys to Loren and started surveying the Poudre River. Found a few fish before dark. Took a we needed shower and hit our beds.

July 29:
 Started early toward Lyons CO, where Jodi was at a blue grass festival that was being held on our way up to Estis Park. We fished the Saint Vrain River on way back down out of Estis. Caught a few trout. It is strange to fish one body of water that requires no barbs on your hook and you return the fish to the water, while others it don’t mater. Fishing with a hook so small that one needs a magnifying glass just to get a line through the eye is really strange.

July 30 Clean up day, Rest! Changed oil in the truck at Loren’s old house in Eaton. Washed cloths and Rest, Rest.  Went to evening church service with Loren. weren’t many there, but was early Saturday evening service. For some this was the first time to meet him. Supper after words.

July 31:
 Early fishing on the Poudre. Started from the top of Cameron Pass at near 11,000 feet and fished parts of the 30 or so miles back down toward fort Collins. We fished along the road where we could pull off . We tried in Joe Wright Reservoir a large 150 acre lake and caught a few Brown Trout. This lake is a flood control area directly from the snow melt. The rain and lighting ran us out, so we ate lunch and started down the mountain. The last place we fished after craning our necks at the river for ten miles was “just right”. Loren hooked 12 on a Teleco Nypth, Snuffy 5 (same bait), Me with a Trout Magnet and yellowish brown tail landed 20 or so. We discussed the flavor of the chili we had started in the crook pot before we left. Did we get enough chili powder in it, was the elk too dry, would we need to add some liquid when we returned ? Snuffy asked did we plug it up? As we were finishing the days work. Snuffy discovered that his pricey felt bottomed wading shoes had begun to lose there sloes. He became enraged and there was not enough free space in the car during the return trip to suit anyone of us. It was plugged up and the chili settled all our nerves

August 1:
The day was spent recovering in all ways from the day before. We have discovered that these old flat land country boys do not fare well in high heavens and thin air. We spent part of the day in Fort Collins repairing reels, looking for Teleco Nypths and trying to find Snuffy some “shoe glue”. Snuffy did find something the sales person at JAXs’ Out Door world said was the thing .... I picked up a new fly reel to replace the 40 year old goody I have posses for yea those many years. HOWEVER THE SALES PERSON, THE SAME ONE WHO HAD SERVED SNUFFY DIDN’T SEEM TO GET IT RIGHT THIS TIME EITHER. The extra spool I purchased didn’t fit the reel. Now by this time, Jodi my daughter in law had returned from the blue grass concert, called the Rocky Grass festival , she had be to for three days. (She is on the board of Colorado’s’ blue grass music society). So well all went back to Jax.
NOW Back to Snuffy and the great Sole Repair: The boy sat at the picnic table for almost 30 minuets reading the directions, found some aluminum foil, got the paper towels out and commenced to mixing the two tubes of wonder sole cement. He had the prescribed clamps. He squirted the precise amount from both tubes and commenced to mix the gulp on the aluminum foil. The directions instructed to stir well. Wa la, The mix set up in front of his very eyes. The boy went off again again. There was no distance this time far enough..... OK back to JAX for a new pair of felt bottomed wading shoes. Finely bed and sleep.

August 3:
Fishing the Big Thompson with our old friend Rick Scoot. Rick is a second generation stone mason from Ault, Colorado. We started near the top of Estis Park and worked down the river with out much luck but Rick kept up his enthusiasm and kept saying that this river is called “gold metal water”. The night before the trip Bill working with Jodi started looking at the trout fly’s he had brought with him, especially the Teleco Nypth so I had to look too. Well, the kit had some makings of spinners and so Pawbo built a small silver colored spinner bait. I hurts sometimes to be the only person to catch fish when the guide can’t seam to have any luck. the “Spinner” now to be know as a “Natchez” was the order of the day. ONE fish for the entire expedition.
 
August 4:
Spent the entire day cleaning and making plans to attend a Bluegrass jam at Greeley with the kids and their friends. We got home around 12 PM and talked about the group and the music they played. Jodi met a new person who’s family is moving back to the area from Arizona. They exchanges business cards and promised to met on Saturday and make future plans. Wednesday was Jodi’s birthday so we joined one of her friends and went out to eat. Earlier that day as we were returning from a trip to Jax in Fort Collins we happened upon a small discount fishing shop. We decide to investigate. Well, one has to know Jodi to understand her fascination with small shinning things. The bug has bitten. So I got her a small fly tying kit and she is off to a new world. I think Bill and I shall have no problem finding unique and wonderful trout flies in the future. Bill has gotten a call from Mike, his youngest son who is in Kalispell Mt. and our plans are to met him some where between Missoula and Kalispell to get started fishing the Montana waters.

August 5:
Planned trip to Wyoming waters but Rick, the stone mason was tied up making plans for next weeks work and lining up labor. So back to the Poudre. We went up to where we had fished before and caught so many fish, but two elderly fishermen and taken up residence. the next best alternative was to go down river and try the holes we saw as we came up. Loren caught two or three Rainbows, I caught about the same number while Jodi, new at fly fishing, tried with all her might with no luck while Snuffy, with a sore back, coached Jodi from the bank. The greatest surprise was when we returned home and started loading the truck for the trip to Montana, Jodi, working with a fly tying kit I had gotten for her birthday, tied few trout flies. The best was what she calls “Red Dude”. We will see.

August 6:
Heading for Montana 967 miles away.
The trip north west was interrupted only when we hit something along the road at the “Indian agency” ,Crow Indian Reservation that is. I, nor Bill saw at thing, we only know that the ABS brakes went, the speed-do went and no cruse control,,,, Driving with out a speedometer could be a problem except Montana, however the GPS laying on the dash did help some. We reached Billings, MT about 4:30 PM and found the KOA and settled down for the night.

August 7:
Traveled to Livingston Montana:
Bills, Mike called and said he and Elaine would meet us in Livingston, MT the next day to start a week or so of fishing in “Big Sky Country”. Not wanting to be out and without, we bought our fishing license along the road as we started the next day toward Livingston 120 miles down the road. $52.00 for a ten day fishing license..... We arrived at the campsite around 1 PM . Another KOA located on the Yellowstone River about 48 miles north of the northern entrance of Yellowstone Park and 11 miles south of Livingston, MT on Pine creek. We learned this KOA was the very first KOA in the US.
Elaine and Mike arrived about 4 PM with their camping trailer and we had the greatest reunion. I hadn’t seen Mike in 7 or 8 years. The last time was in Montrose, CO, when Mike and Elaine visited Loran and Jodi. Mike is my Godson and with His humor and smile a true joy to be around . We learned he had made preparations for a fishing guide for the next day’s fishing trip.

August 8:
Fishing the Yellowstone River:
We met Greg Briker, of The Bozeman Guide Service where he is head guide, our fishing guide, at Albersons grocery store at 7:30 AM. We made a short trip to a fly shop to purchase the needed trout flies ( I think Greg may have owned the fly shop ) and down the road we went to the put-in point. Fly fishing is not my forte to say the least and when I found that old fly rod I brought with me wasn’t working Greg, the fishing guide, allowed me to use his “4 piece 5 weight”. Bill, I think caught the first trout. A fly rod set up with a dropper is, for me, a hard thing to cast. The water just swirls and you have got to keep the fly line ahead of the fly so the little bugger doesn’t get swept under the surface. Trout, I learned, don’t hit summered top-water flies. Greg, fishing guide, kept telling me this too many times, so I went back to the the little lure I had made with Jodi in CO. NO problem, my fishing improved and was the first and only Brown trout caught.... Look at the photos of the first day Yellowstone trip. Elaine, a certified fishing guide, tells me that an individual can not sell there fishing guide service unless they are a part of an licensed Montana outfitter.  

August 9:
Second day Yellowstone.
Elaine and Mike had bought there float boat, so they took turns fishing and rowing. We fished a different part of the river. Actually up river from the day before. We had a great time trying not to catch a “Whitie” which is a bottom feeding trout. Not very good to eat but does put up a reasonable fight for a shot time. the water temperature had warmed and in still deep water this fish is easily found. I think I caught 6 this day. We got caught in a late evening wind and rain storm and barely got of the river. The weather really turned cold. The photos of the rain and river turned out reasonably well. The photo of the milk cow coming over the rise to get a drink reminds me of the photo of Stan Webers’ son, Andrews’ , project cow. Mike calls them slow elk???

August 10:
On to Kalispell MT
We had a real convoy. Elaine with her float boat, Mike with the camp trailer and Bill and I with the “Little road House” headed down the road to arrive some 134 miles later in Lakeside , MT where Elaine and Mike have a lovely home located only a short distance from Flathead Lake. The flathead is 24 miles long and at some point 15 miles wide a maximum depth 360 feet deep at the deepest and averages 160. Which covers 191 square miles and a total shore line of of 187 miles. It has some islands. It is the largest natural fresh water lake west of the Mississippi. One day I’d like to fish this body of water.

August 11:
A Putter Day.
Sent truck to auto repair. Washed cloths. Got to know the town of Kalispell. Kalispell is located some 50 miles south of Glacier National Park, Bob Marshall Wilderness and 124 miles north west of Missoula. Mike and Elaine have a 6 acre piece of property above Lakeside that has a view of the Mission Mt. Range, Swan Range and a great view of flathead Lake. Bill needed a rest, so he rested. Mike and Elaine live in a small hamlet south of Kalispell called Lakeside. I Found the where about of birthday gifts for grand Daughter.

August 12:
Fishing the Flathead River
I didn’t take my camera on this day because of a weather change. Rain and weather front moved in and the wind and rain was strong. It really blew us around and down the river. The float took only two hours instead of the 5 hours we had anticipated. We caught some fish, and continue to learn more of this great couple. Retrieved the truck from the repair shop. It appears that we must have hit a rock or something that cut a small wire going to the rear wheels that was a part of the cruse and ABS braking system. A bit pricey repair cost but did get the transmission checked. We were seeing a some amount of oil under the truck when we checked the undercarriage.

August 13:
Benefit for the Rescue squad, LSQRU
Lakeside QRU, Lakeside Quick Response Unit, A great idea for any town. The merchants, along with the volunteers take a day off and have a party. Donated food is cooked by the volunteers and sold to the public. A silent auction for donated articles, Elaine bought a pair of ear bobs that I thought were looked pretty nice, You know Jodi style. Mike thought she looked like a Gypsy.

August 14:
The Kootenai River
Located 17 miles north of Libby, MT is a Corps of Engineers project dam called Libby Dam that makes the Koocanusa Lake. Koo for the Kootenai River, can for Canada, and usa for USA, Cleaver idea? The lake is 93 miles long and goes north into Canada. Some of largest Rainbows have been caught in this lake. The river had a 20,000 ft per second flow, it is wide and a bit hairy in spots. It is said to have 2400 rainbows per mile. However we caught only small fish, but a good amount. We later found the best spot to fish was close under the dam. Brown trout have been taken up under the dam in late evening and night. Because the fishing was slow, Elaine a purest fly fisher-woman, thought it was time to try the Natchez. I caught a lot of very small Rainbows with it. Mike and I had some humor over this effort.

August 15:
Fishing the Flathead Lake
Mike had arranged a charter trip to fish the Flathead to fish for lake Trout. A great down rigging trip. The lake is 360 feet deep in areas, however we fished in about 130 to 100 feet of water. the charter captain name was Bob Orsua, a UPS semi driver 4 days a week and charter captain from Fridays to Monday. The water was clear and smooth for the time of day. The temperature was in the mid to high 70’s. A great day. Bill caught his first large Lake Trout, alas it was 31.5 inches and fell into the slot length and had to be returned. Mike caught his first Bull Trout. Because Bull Trout are on an endangered list the fish was not removed from the water and so the photo I have is rather poor. Bull Trout in Canada are called Dolly Varden and a considered a trash fish. While talking to Mike he thinks there seems to be a discripincy to the real species of this fish. Bob, took us over to see some Indian wall paintings that are on a high rock wall protruding out of the lake.

August 16:
Back to the Flat Head River
The Flathead river today was about 2 feet lower than the last visit. We started the trip with a visit to Mosses Saloon for a pizza and coke around 3:30 PM  before Mike and Elaine made their deals for a new 5th wheel trawler and flatbed trawler for the his big truck. Spent the morning washing the rigs for the trip back south and washing Mikes trawler for the swap. Now back to the fishing trip. Can you tell I’m fudging a bit. we didn’t catch much. Bill had two, Paul got skunked and heard it from the guide....

August 17:
Second trip on Flathead River
We started the second day about 6 miles lower down the river from that of the day before. Elaine had caught some rather large trout on this leg of the river in past with an old friend and She thought we must try it. The weather was hotter than usual and fishing was rather slow but, the scenery was different. I had intended to take my camera but, it was left in her SUV by mistake. So no pictures of fish or scenery.

August 18:
Trip to Glacier National
Bill, who was having trouble with a bad tooth so we decided to take the trip to Glacier National Park and not fish, also Elaine our fishing guide was out doing her nursing duties at Whitefish so no better day to do the trip. Glacier National Park only 30 or so miles from Kalispell. The weather had changed and was rainy and cold. So my pictures reflect it. We started at the West Gate. The photo is of “Bob” ???. I don’t know who Bob was he was just standing there. The road winds along lake Mc Donald, which is at 3153 feet above sea level, and continues past Mc Donald Falls until it is no more a river but a trickling dribble of water as we climb up to Logan Pass at 6646 feet above sea level. My photos of the mountains can’t express the size or magnitude of the real thing. The road up to Logan Pass is narrow and was being worked on by road crews and I think probably is a on going project as the the road is under ice and snow most of the year and is called Going-to-the-Sun-road. The road crew had to stop work momentarily and jump into their trucks as a bear changed the work habits. The road beyond Logan is less constrictive and narrow, one lain narrow, and not as steep as we passed Saint Lake Mary on our way to Saint Mary Entrance Gate the eastern entrance to the park. We did not take the Northern road up to the center of the park because of rain and another 8 hours on the road. the Northern road goes up to Canada and to where the real big glaciers can be seen. So we left the park out the Saint Mary eastern entrance and through the Flathead Indian reservation back to high way 2 and back Kalispell by way of the Goat Lick. A natural salt lick. Its’ interesting that the railroad and highway department has fenced away from traffic so the Mt Goats will not be struck by cars and trains as they pass the area.
 
August 19:
Clean up day and rest.
I took this day to fetch a birthday gift for Kayla the “Granddaughter”. I had a great time doing this task. I was able to get to the store early, a combined feed and western store, just as they were opening. The manager who has a two year old daughter was the greatest help a grandfather could have had. Time will tell how well the selection goes when I get home with the response from the rest of the women in my life, Her mother and Phyliss.
 
August 20:
River trip on North Fork of Flathead
This will be the last river trip to Montana’s river for this trip and it was the best. We traveled through the back woods to find a river access on the North fork of the Flathead. Mike was the guide, Bill and I the fishermen. Elaine was to meet us on the river access at the linking of the Middle Fork and the North Fork. Well here is where the story gets good. I had no camera so lets see if I can give you a minds image of the area. This river access was of large gravel on a wide opening of a small valley covered in Tamarack, Ponderosa Pine and Fir down to the rivers edge near a long narrow one lane bridge that goes along the valley floor. There were pontoon boaters coming out of the river at this point and it should have been a hint as to what was to come. We traveled down the river that was as we learned was a piece that wasn’t fished very often because of access and water conditions. 18,000 feet per second water volume didn’t look that great as the access point was so wide, but as we found the river valley getting narrower the Clarkacraft drift boat began to “Drift” at a bit faster pace. Earlier in the trip we came upon a fisherman on a rather ripely piece of water fishing in his “Pinkish” fishing shirt with two other pontoon boats following. As we learned later, these pontoon boats held a filming crew from, the OLN Network with anticipation of a fishing show in January. We passed the fly fisherman with our apologias and settled down on a quite piece of shallow water only a few hundred yards below him. I guess he wasn’t doing so well, because as we began to catch some small cut throat trout and I do mean small trout, To illustrate, the little trout would hit our fly and as we would jerk the line and the little grittier would come out of the water and hit one of us either on the head, shoulder or just go over our backs. It got to be so funny we just started laughing and relating our displeasure in some flowery language, until we realized this film crew, who had moved down closer, was filming our efforts to make up footage. So we moved on down the river. The river canyon began getting narrower with Bald Eagles and Ospreys complaining at our presents and the fishing improved. I caught a 14.5 inch Pike minnow, a fish found only in these waters, Bill caught some really great Cutbows. Cutbow trout is a natural cross between a cutthroat and rainbow trout. Really a pretty fish. And we continued down the river with the anticipation of finding Elaine at every turn of the river.... at a river access point. It didn’t happen unless one decides to row a float boat up a hundred yards up swift river water with a steep rock canyon walls four hundred high. So we missed the access point on the Middle Fork of the Flathead. Down the river again , at 8:30 PM we finely got back to a spot on the river where we had put in the three days before. Elaine had food and water. You see this trip was to supposed have lasted about three to four hours and not nine and twenty seven miles. But it was glorious and the best fishing of the entire Montana trip.. thanks Elaine and Mike.

August 21: Sunday
Trip Home from Kalispell to the Theodore Roosevelt National Grasslands
Elaine’s job took Her out at 6 AM and so good buys were short as Mike was to work on his wrecked 3/4 ton Chevrolet truck bed and get it ready for work down south. Bill and I went out on Montana’s Highway 2, which starts in Everrt Washington and continues out east to the southern shore of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, along Glacier’s eastern range the road we had traveled on our way back from Glacier National. We headed to Tennessee passing Havre Montana some five hours away ( Elaine works out there on scheduled weeks)and to see Cut Bank Montana the coldest town at times in the USA. This area is the beginning of Montana’s wheat, barley and oat farming. It isn’t hard to see why this country could feed the world once you see these fields of grain production. As far as the eye can behold is grain to be harvested. It is totally unbelievable. With harvesters that have to be escorted down the road. Traveling onward we dropped down southerly from HWY 2 on HWY 13 to meet interstate 94. We spent the night at Theodore Roosevelt National Park on the National Grass Land after passing at almost twilight the Painted Canyon.

August 22: Monday
Second day home; Little Missouri National Grasslands to Austin, Minnesota
Bill had a deadline to return, his better half was doing a wedding for a close friend and neighbor and needed his help in finishing up flowers. Bill was told he would be the “Official” photographer and needed to become acquainted with the provided camera.. So up very early and away we trod, taking little time to take pictures. In Minnesota we were surprised to see such fields of sunflowers and at times we were covered with Minnesota’s grasshoppers we are not sure how long it was going to take to get on so we didn’t tarry anywhere. We arrived at the Austin’s’ KOA late only to eat a bowl of Chile from a Hormel can and to bed.

August 23: Tuesday
Austin to Home; very late.
We dropped south again to intersect with interstate 90 and travel through Wisconsin. I had called an old neighbor from Cedar Hill to see if we could stop by and visit as we passed through La Cross. I wasn’t sure where he lived south of town thus I tried calling multiple times and we just couldn’t meet. I’m sorry about because he was a close neighbor. We stopped for fuel and lunch in northern Illinois. We asked about the weather because we had been either right before or in the middle of a weather change that we had fowled out of the north west. The wind was still Montana cold as we traveled. Had supper in lower Illinois and a for me a needed rest. Left that town and headed south arriving in Nashville around 1 AM. His better half was expecting us as Bill kept her informed as we traveled south. His dog Sugar was beside her self. The next morning we cleaned out Bills belongings from the camper and again down the road I went. Arriving home before lunch where Moma and Grand paws girl had lunch, after which Layla had to try on the Paw Bo new fishing waders and look at the funny bugs he had bought to ketch fish with.

Epilog