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NEW! Spring 2007 Newsletter
For early February it’s warm, a balmy 46 degrees today, but warm temperatures in the winter
generally mean wind, and lots of it. While I have a weather station that shows me wind speed, I
usually just look out the window at the river; if there are white caps going downstream then it’s
over 20 mph and I’ll stay inside. Whitecaps going upstream mean that an Arctic cold front is
moving in and I really don’t want to go outside. Today the river has a few extra downstream
wind riffles but nothing too serious, the wind’s less than 10mph I’d say. But Elaine is walking
Rio, our border collie, and I have no compelling reason to venture out. All in all, it’s been
another mild winter that may mean low water this summer, but it’s too early to accurately predict
what streamflows might be like. Regardless, we’ll be on the water, catching fish, and enjoying
Montana’s outdoors.
In November I need some time to decompress from a long guiding season. But by this time of
the year, late winter, I’m always raring to go again and can’t wait for springtime in Land of the
Giants where big rainbows will be eating the eggs of other spawning fish. It’s a time to catch a
lot of big fish and the article, “Double Digit Doubles” tells of a day I had with two anglers from
Colorado.
It’s difficult to imagine a better fishing experience than catching these big fish on dry flies. Of
course, some days are better than others and I tell of one such day in the article, “The Davies
Dynasty.” Rich, didn’t catch a lot of fish that day, but he landed some super fish, all on dry flies,
and made darn few casts in the process.
I remain enthusiastic about the LOG, but how could I not be. I spend well over 100 days a year
there, and never tire of seeing a big rainbow rip all the line off the reel as well as handfuls of
backing and then jump three feet in the air. LOG is changing, as I knew it would. In years past,
we could pretty much count on having the river to ourselves most of the time–not so anymore--
with a few more guided and non-guided anglers showing up. But the quality of the fishing is
still off the charts. I strongly encourage you to sample this fishing before the experience is
dampened by too many people.
Elaine and I wish all of you the best in 2007 and hope to see you in our beautiful state this year.
Montana Memories
By Marsha Thompson Benovengo |
I would never have imagined in September of 2001 that I, a New York City girl, would find such
much needed solace in Montana and flyfishing. But for whatever reason I am at peace when I am
flyfishing and relaxing in Montana. Flyfishing brings me exciting and thoughtfilled moments.
As the daughter of an avid fisherman I spent many years watching the wildlife programs and
reading “Field &Stream” with Dad. So, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that Dad’s love and
respect for the outdoors and fishing have been transferred to me.
This year I had the privilege to be guided by Gary Fritz of Osprey Expeditions. It was an
amazing and unexpected time. What seemed like a gray cold day turned out to be one of the
most memorable days of my life. As I sat awestruck by the scenery it happened, “the fish” hit.
Gary’s day long instruction and coaching enabled me to catch, land and release the fish. He
believed in my ability to “get it done” even when I not so silently questioned myself. Despite my
inability to breath Gary continued to coach and encourage me. And when we finally had the fish
in the net he was pleased and that pleased me. Yes, the fish was really big, the biggest I could
ever have imagined that I would catch but more importantly it was magnificent! Its beauty is
hard to properly express. It was in these moments that I felt proud of my accomplishment and
really small. The beauty of this special place and the magnitude of my surroundings was
humbling. I had to take a moment to collect myself and take it all in.
Marsha with big brown and bigger Gary
I felt closer to my Dad at that time than I had since
his passing. I knew in those moments that he was
again proud of me and that he was smiling. I felt a
rock solid kind of joy.
Fishing with Gary Fritz should not be missed nor
should it be a onetime experience. His experience,
knowledge and quiet assurance are invaluable. I am
truly grateful for the time spent with Gary and I
shall return.
Note: Marsha was one of the Joan Wulff Fly Fishing Club members that fished in our area in
September. We had some wet, cold weather during that week and I was exceedingly impressed
that Marsha and her friends never whined once, especially since I was cold most of the time even
with my high tech layered clothes. On their last day I guided Samantha (the trip organizer, a fly
fishing guide, and a great angler) and her friend Demetre. What a cold, windy, wet day. We
hardly caught a fish in the morning and I was ready to throw in the frozen towel. But we had
some of Elaine’s great hot soup for lunch and went back to fishing. I tied on some streamers and
they caught a bunch of great fish. I still regret that I didn’t take a picture of Demetre’s biggest
fish, it was in the same league as Marsh’s brown.
HOW DO YOU KNOW A GUIDE?
By Elaine G. Olsen
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I have learned a lot since Gary and I moved to our new home on the Missouri River. I have
learned to commute through the Wolf Creek Canyon in the dark, in the winter, in a storm, and
avoid contact with a bridge abutment or reflector post. I have learned to tie on a #16 fly–sort of;
row a drift boat–kind of; and cook and serve a hot dinner to six fisherman due to arrive home
anytime from 6:30pm to 9:30pm.
In addition to these rather mundane lessons, I have learned a few unique things about guides.
My knowledge now includes sure-fire ways you can tell when somebody is a fly fishing guide,
including:
1. Their dog is named Rio or Sage.
2. They haven’t had a July 4th off in 10 years.
3. They admit that their best asset is a spouse with a real job.
4. They bristle when someone says that a guide fishes all day–they claim they don’t fish, they
row.
5. They wistfully talk about the possibility of actually going fishing.
6. The windshield of their truck is smeared with caddis.
And you know when you are talking to a guide when their conversation with another guide is
indecipherable to a normal person, using such language as 4X, sippers, double haul, crab stroke,
reach cast, and mending line.
Much is made in fly fishing magazines and books by anglers trying to defend the “best” flies for
trout, some authors even waxing sublime in their attempt to answer the question, “If you could
use only one fly which one would it be.” With several seasons behind me in which I used,
almost exclusively, one dry fly I am poised to leap into that fray. The “best fly” question is one
that has no provable right answer so I feel safe from excessive critique.
I’ve never seen the Chicken in a fly shop or fly catalog, nor heard it discussed by any other
name, anywhere else. So it’s a local fly, but I don’t know who the original tier is. I’ve not
seen another fly that could be confused for the Chicken since it’s a simple and distinctive fly.
I’ve not made any modifications to the Chicken, although I seldom tie a fly that I don’t tinker
with in some way. Other guides however have changed the color of the body or wing and have
been successful with it.
I use the Chicken primarily in size 16, although size 18 can work better at times. The Chicken
is tied with a rust colored body; I use Hareline Krystal Dub. The wing is white CDC tied about
two-thirds of the way forward on the hook shank so that I can wrap some more rust-colored
dubbing in front of the wing. The wing is tied on top of the body and slants back over the body
like you might tie the wing on a Trude. Some would say that it shouldn’t be that simple, but it
is.
The Chicken
I’m not sure what the fly imitates, but like the
Wooly Bugger, just because it doesn’t seem to
imitate anything in particular doesn’t mean that it
isn’t effective. I think that originally it was tied
to imitate the rust colored PMD spinner. But I
use this fly during the caddis hatch with great
results. Even in the early and late BWO hatch it
catches fish, even though I’d rather use Bill
Ninke’s thread body parachute baetis during that
hatch.. Those of you that tie flies should tie up
some and use them wherever you fish--I have a
hunch that they would be successful most
anywhere.
Midsummer’s Montana Day
By Lucretia Sias |
A day of fly fishing is always something to look forward to, and a day of fly fishing in Montana
is particularly special. No matter what the season, the open space, fresh air, expansive sky,
wildlife, weather and, of course, the fish, provide a memorable day. You never know what to
expect, but you do know that the day will be totally absorbing, transporting you away from your
daily concerns, and a day you will enjoy tremendously.
This July, my husband, Tim and I, experienced two such days with Gary. Having fished with
Gary numerous times over the last few years, we knew we were going to have a great day. It
was definitely summer, very hot, dry, and almost no wind. The river provided some coolness
and the adventure. We were hoping for dry fly activity and were not disappointed. While there
weren’t really any hatches, there was some insect activity and the fish were feeding selectively.
Sight casting to those feeding fish became the challenge for the day and it was exciting. With
the boat anchored upstream and out of the current, we attempted to float the fly over the feeding
zones. This took some finesse. By the time the number 16 fly approached the feeding zone most
of the line was out and it was tough to see in the bright Montana sun. It was even more
challenging to hook the fish with so much line out. A hooked fish would immediately head for
the deeper, faster water, maybe taking a few jumps along the way. Keeping the fish on the line
when you were out to the backing was as much a matter of luck, as skill. We landed some and
some were environmentally released. After a morning under the hot sun, focusing on fishing,
we were ready for one of Gary’s great lunches and a few moments to relax and enjoy the cliffs,
wildflowers, and two fledgling eagles learning to fly.
Lucretia and the Beauty
Unfortunately, taking a moment to enjoy the
beautiful scenery while fishing, guarantees a
strike and a miss. Only total concentration
produces success. At one moment, having kept
my attention focused on one of Gary’s custom
tied Montana chickens, as it floated downstream,
getting very close to the end of the drift and very
close to the area where I had seen a fish sipping,
I was rewarded with a quick tug. This was a big
fish. I was sure, even though Tim claims I
always say that. The fish charged upstream at the
boat like a torpedo, and kept going upstream into
the backing. Then it headed downstream with
just as much determination and vigor, taking the line into the backing again. Turning around it
charged again, past the boat and way upstream. During one of these runs, it became clear to Tim
and Gary that this was a serious fish, which we confirmed when we landed her. She was a
“Beauty”- a 26 ½ inch long, full bodied, brightly colored rainbow - and the biggest rainbow
I’ve ever caught. This would be tough to beat.
Lucretia and the Beast and Gary
Late in the day we sighted carp feeding along the side of the river. Bantering back and forth, Gary convinced Tim that it might be fun to try to catch one. So we anchored, and Gary and Tim began to rig up a rod with heavier leader and a wooly bugger. While they were doing this, I decided to entertain myself by casting a grasshopper on 4x to see if I could get any action. It didn’t take long until I noticed the grasshopper disappear and my line start moving. As I pulled back there was a lot of resistance. Then the line started moving out fast, all the way to the backing. Pulling it in was not easy, so I suggested to Tim and Gary that I might have a big one. They laughed and watched. When I finally brought the fish in close to the boat, there was no doubt it was big. And out it went again. This went on for 15 minutes, until we finally landed the “Beast” - a pudgy 20 pound carp that only a mother could love - the biggest fish, of any type, I’ve ever caught.
Sometimes the fishing day is special by the sheer number of fish hooked, a fairly common
occurrence during the spring at Land of the Giants. Bill Ninke hooked up so many big fish on
April 27th that he wanted to try something else so we traveled to the Sun River the next day and
he caught fewer fish but enough to have a good day AND he caught them on dry flies.
A test of just how many fish are being caught can be reflected by the number of doubles; that is,
how many times both anglers hook up and then land fish at the same time. Normally this is a
fairly rare occurrence, especially at the LOG because when one angler hooks a fish the other
one has to reel in fast if we are to have any chance to land the fish. But on the first day of May
Dave Olson and Doug Canady hooked up so many fish that they played them simultaneously.
Dave and Doug with one of 12 doubles
I’m an anti-fishcounter. Numbers of fish shouldn’t be the sole measure of a fishing day. BUT, I did keep track of how many times Dave and Doug both had fish on at the same time AND landed them–a dozen. If you know the LOG you know that they hooked up many times more fish that they didn’t land, hooked up many more doubles and didn’t land both fish, and hooked up and landed many more single fish. Remember that virtually none of these fish were under 20 inches and probably averaged about 23 inches.
Byron Davies and his extended family have been coming to fish here for many years, with
Byron and Joey at the beginning and more of the family joining them as the years went by.
Rich is their son and Trey is Rich’s best friend. They are wonderful young people as well as
great anglers.
Rich with one of several nice bows
I guided Rich and Trey at LOG one day when Trey had partied a little too hearty the night before. His angling skills that day were clearly clouded by pain and suffering, but he refused to let me take them back to the lodge, more a determination not to ruin his friend’s fishing than macho attitude. They were taking turns fishing; switching after each fish landed. Rich was in the zone that day to an extent that I have seldom witnessed. We fished only dry flies and each time we pulled up to a rising fish and Rich was fishing, he made one or two perfect casts (with a Chicken of course) and the fish ate the fly. His touch landing them was just as flawless.
On another day I was showing Richie and Trey a somewhat different area than we normally fish
and spotted a rising fish. Richie made the cast and the fish sipped the fly–a Chicken. I see a
ton of big fish hooked up every year–Land of the Giants is that amazing–and as a part of that I
see a lot of fish escape because they are like hooking a submarine, a Volkswagen, a Cape
Buffalo, a torpedo; you get the picture. The point is that I know big trout and I know how they
behave. But this was different. The instant Richie hooked up this fish it shot away like a bullet
(OK guides are given to hyperbole) and broke off even though Richie was not putting pressure
on the fish. Stunned, we sat in the boat and marveled at the speed and power of this fish.
I spotted another fish sipping close to the place where we had seen the first one. Trey made the
cast this time, and I swear on a “ Compleat Angler” that the same thing happened.again. The
fish roared off and Trey and the fish parted company. Those two fish were, beyond any
question, the fastest trout that I’ve ever seen.
I have passed that place hundreds of times since then and have never seen another fish rising.
Why were those two fish feeding on the surface that day and no other? And especially, how is
that they were in a sprint class all by themselves? I’ll be watching for them again this year to
see if we might be lucky enough to hook up again. Problem is, they’ll be even bigger and
faster than before.
Austin is the patriarch of the Davies Dynasty and is ageless, trim, fit, and athletic, and the
grandfather of Rich. He loves fly fishing and is good at it. Austin wants to be a better angler
and when Austin wants to improve he is focused, so he and I get along very well. As part of his
furthering education he wanted to fish dry flies–so we did on this day at LOG.
Austin with the quiet brown
He had a good day and learned a lot so we
headed to the boat ramp. There is a spot on
the way that Josh pioneered and it has some
very good fish that often eat on top. I always
watch carefully when we traverse this stretch
because I know that the fish can be very subtle
in their eating habits. As Josh says, “We can
hear them gulp but often we can’t see them.”
That was exactly the case that afternoon, and
usually the more secretive the sip the bigger
the fish. I got the boat in the right position,
upstream, so that Austin could feed the fly
downstream to the fish. He made one cast that
was a little short, picked up the line and
lengthened the cast slightly. He fed the fly(a Chicken) about 3 inches with a perfect drag free
presentation and the fish ate it. The brown took off as I frantically pulled up the anchor to
follow it. I knew it was a nice fish as Austin carefully but firmly kept the pressure on with 4X
tippet. I usually encourage anglers to put more pressure on the fish, but Austin was handling
the big boy well–reeling in when he could and letting the brown run when necessary. When I
could finally see the fish I panicked–it was bigger than I expected, but Austin continued the
pressure and brought the brown to the net for a quick picture. It’s one of my great pleasures to
see a client/friend so thrilled with a beautiful fish.
The Busman’s Holiday
By Robert Huddleston |
I have enjoyed an outstanding guide-client relationship with Gary for nearly 10 years. When an
opportunity came up for a trip to Turneffe Atoll last October, Gary did not hesitate in agreeing
to accompany me. October is not the prime season at Turneffe Atoll, but a chance to fish with
long time Belize guiding legend Winston “Pops” Cabral, and fish with Gary when he is not
wearing his guide’s hat, is always a much-anticipated adventure. Something about a “level
playing field” I guess! We were the only fly fisher people for the week at Craig and Karen
Hayes’ Turneffe Flats Lodge.
Bob and Pops with tarpon
Turneffe Atoll is a very special place,
without a doubt the jewel of Caribbean
destinations, where a fly fishing grand
slam (permit, bonefish & tarpon) is a real
possibility. Craig Hayes is also a unique
individual, a now-“retired” physician who
over the last twenty-five years has
developed a world-class destination for
fly fishing and diving. Craig deeply
shares the concerns of all of us as to the
sustainability of the atoll for the
competing interests nibbling away at all
tropical paradises. He founded the
conservation group Friends of Turneffe
Atoll, as well as being a charter member of 1% for THE PLANET, through which Turneffe
Flats Lodge commits 1% of its revenues to organizations promoting conservation and
sustainability of habitats such as Turneffe.
Bob with one of two permit caught in an hour
The weather was not what I’ve come to expect at Turneffe Atoll. In my previous four trips there in January-February, the sun was always a welcome break to Minnesota clouds and cold. We didn’t see much sun for the week, and had our fair share of rain. Nor had I experienced the tenacity of the Belizean mosquitoes and no-see-ums. But the opportunity to enjoy the rather challenging but rewarding fishing and the company of Pops and Gary, to observe at a leisurely pace the native fishermen who share the atoll with people who catch-and-release, and to relish the honest and sincere company of the Belizean staff of Turneffe Flats and its owners, made this an outstanding trip. And I should probably mention that both Gary and I did achieve a grand slam, although neither of us did it in the prescribed one day!
Each year I use my newsletter to post my rates, as required by Montana’s outfitter rules. For
2007 I will charge $425 per day for all float trips except to LOG. For LOG the charge is $475
per day.
NOTE: On the mailing address side of the fold put the following:
Osprey Expeditions
Gary Fritz
PO Box 593
Helena, MT 59624
800-315-8502
www.osprey-expeditions.com
ospreyexp@aol.com
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