Fishin' & Rocks 7-22 Dark-thirty

Thanks for the great pictures. I just want to walk all over that gravel. I love that last agate picture with the banding.

Awesome ..What a way to spend the day..Real nice haul.....John

Nice fish, Bill! And good eye for the agate and p wood. That's quite a nice haul. Thanks for taking the time to share your morning with us. Jean

That is a great trip, thanks for sharing!

Sent from my phone.

At least you can eat the fish you pull from your rivers! I won't eat anything from the waters around here, due to pollution. Catch and release is fun, but with the cost of fishing licenses and bait, it's a bit pricey for me. We only fish once a year, at a private lake that does not require a license. Largemouth bass, catch and release only. Jean

Rob, There is a lot of gravel. If one gets down low and looks east just as the sun rises often the agates will glow, revealing themselves.

Mark, Yes I too have been a fisherman longer than a rabid rock hound. I have been fishing these rivers and streams since I was 5, so close to half a century of watching the river changing while remaining the same. I hear ya about the sweaty waders. I just wear jeans and wading shoes during the hot part of summer. On a day that will reach the high 80's, the nights on the river often cool to the 40s' or 50's. The rivers are snow-melt and the water is really cold. Sometimes it is tough to wade off into it in the dark, but after the initial shock it feels good.

Mel, we have been on the 5 trout limit for quite a few years here. Once was 10, but with the pressures a lot of the waters here get it was a good move. I go where not so many others go, to get to the places I fish involves some distance, wading and brush busting. Anymore, I turn back any trout I catch that is over 18". I like the smaller ones best for eating and the big'uns are good breeders. Gonna fish a little extra so I can run a load in the smoker, I have a killer brine recipe.

Jean, this area is still pristine water-wise but there are areas in the state(mid-north)that were polluted by gold mining back in the days when all manner of nasty stuff was used and leached into waters. Though clean up is on going, still best not to eat the fish in a couple rivers and lakes in that part.

John and Mike, Yes it is hard to imagine a better morning, especially as I took my first cast just before 6 am, and was back to my car by 8!

That's how I figured out how to hunt for diamonds at Diamond Crater in Arkansas.Kneel down and the sun making them shine.

snuffy

It don't get better than this!! Man, you're livin' the dream up there Bill

Mark, it is the Gallatin river. Hard to tell in the valley, but there are mountains nearby. This area is about half way between Yellowstone park and the Missouri headwaters.

The Gallatin is a blue ribbon stream, It is most heavily fished on the upper stretch near the park which is 50 miles south (upstream). This is farmland, and the river moves around as high water opens or closes off channels. In high water, most all the channels are running high, then later leaving a lot of gravel to explore. Often the fishing holes change as well, so it is fun to hunt new trout runs and holds each year.
This is the section I was on.