Early birds get the cutts and graylings

*UPDATE 2/23: Nevermind. 

If you think my co-worker Larry is crazy for beginning his mountain-lake exercise regimen in January this year, you might miss this boat this summer.

As predicted by some weather outlets, El Nino has given the Northern Rockies a warm, dry winter. While we are enjoying the mild weather, it has negative implications for our fishing summer.

Here in southwestern Montana, expect an early and brief runoff. Our low snowpack (see below) coupled with expected continued warmth and dryness indicates that relatively little water is in the mountains to melt into streamflow when the mountains thaw in April and May. In good water years, runoff in valley-bottom mainstems can last well into July, but in a year like this, it's not uncommon for it to be over in early June.

Also expect many rivers to go under Hoot-owl Restrictions by late July/early August. Hoot-owl Restrictions are rules put into place by Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks that legally limit when anglers can fish in a given river or drainage. Once announced, the affected rivers are closed from 2pm to midnight. This affects vacation schedules for tourists, income for guides, outfitters and fly shops, and plans for resident anglers. If you plan to fish Montana's famous rivers this summer, consider coming in late June or early July.

But of the most interest to types like me, expect mountain lakes to ice off early and maybe be too warm or dewatered in August and September. Exact timing is always a crapshoot and depends on several factors beyond snowpack and ice thickness, like elevation, sun exposure and amount of tributary inflow. But, I will guess that we will be about two to four weeks ahead of the ice-out schedule from my book. And it could be even earlier. Larry told me that in the El Nino year of 1988 (the year Yellowstone burned badly), mountain wildflowers were said to be in bloom in April, about two months early.

In 2019, don't wait for the date that the lake was great last year. Go early, maybe absurdly so.

Southwest Montana mountain lake notes for June 7, 2017

• Current ice-out level: I don't think it's crazy to think that you could get to about 8,500 feet in the mountains around Southwest Montana right now. Of course it depends on many factors and is always a crapshoot, but Liz and I easily got to 7,800 feet a week and a half ago. This is not actually too far ahead of what I guessed to be a "normal" schedule in the book, when I surmised that 8,500-foot lakes should start to be fishable around June 15. Let me know if you go!

• Grizzly bear trapping to begin in the Madison and Gravelly Ranges soon. Signs will be posted at all access points - be sure to check out the trailhead kiosk before you embark as they bait the traps which will attract bears. Unless you're a cooler cucumber than I am, you might want to find a different hike or lake if they're trapping bears.

• Snowpack levels have PLUMMETED.  About a week ago, all of southwest Montana was over 100 percent and things felt promising. I'm starting to expect hoot-owl restrictions on the Big Hole, Jefferson, Madison, Gallatin, Smith, Bitterroot, Clark Fork and upper Missouri rivers again this year.

My book should be in-house and ready to ship on Monday, June 12. There is still plenty of brown water to fill the rivers and lots of prime time at alpine lakes. 

So this is happening...

(I'm writing a book.)

Montana's high country is the final frontier of the last best place, which is why Wilderness Adventures Press is bringing out this all-new guide to flyfishing the mountain lakes of southwest Montana.

     These pristine fisheries have incredible fishing, from different strains of wild 5-pound cutthroat to golden trout to the elusive arctic grayling. Mix in the occasional trophy brookie and all the 12-inch cutts and rainbows you care to catch and... just trust me, you want to know.

     Author Joshua Bergan has spent innumerable summer days exploring and writing about these highland gems. From fish and bugs to water conditions, hiking difficulty and effective flies, this book fills you in.

     A selection of drive-to lakes, short(ish) hikes, and several-mile overnight treks are laid out in full detail with GPS coordinates. Detailed driving directions get you to the trailhead and Wilderness Adventures Press' detailed best-in-class maps take it from there.

    This comprehensive first edition covers well over 100 lakes from the Absarokas to the Idaho border, including the Absaroka Mountains, Gallatin Range, Madison Range, Gravelly Range, Tobacco Roots, Pioneer Mountains, Beaverhead Mountains, and other smaller ranges in between.

     Mountain lake fishing isn't for everyone, which is why it should be for you. Familiarize yourself.

• Softcover, 6x9 inches

• 250+ pages, 50 maps

• B&W, 80+ photos

• ISBN: 978-1-940239-12-5

• UPC: 8-09206-39125-3

• Retail Price: $29.95

• Case Quantity: 16

• Available May 2017

Now accepting intangibles: Why I'm okay losing money to get published

The first 90 years or so, they go by pretty fast. Then one day, you wake up and you realize that you're not 81 anymore. And then you begin to count the minutes, rather than the days and you realize that pretty soon you'll be gone and that all you have, see, is the experiences. That's all there is Johnny. The experiences. 

                                                                                           -Grandpa Gustafson, Grumpier Old Men

Writing for magazines can seem more a of money pit than a gold mine. You want me to spend hundreds of dollars in gas, more in lodging, many days of vacation, and hours researching, writing and processing photos, all in exchange for a few hundred dollars? .... Actually, yes, please. The monetary compensation is only part of the package.

These assignments provide the perfect excuse to become acquainted with the rivers on my "someday" list, today. Some "help" is usually offered, along with the chance to make some new friends. 

The "help" comes via opportunities to spend time on the water with guides and outfitters I'd not otherwise book. For example, I got to fish with former NFL linebacker and current Missoula-based outfitter Joe Cummings on the Bitterroot a few years ago. We spent a day catching cutts and browns, Joe telling stories of football and fishing. Joe's a great guy running a fantastic operation - book your next Bitterroot trip with him, seriously. And this April, I had the chance to meet and fish with the Kootenai River's Tim Linehan. He's a nice man who will have you into fish before you realize you're fishing, amidst warm conversation and encouragement. In three days of fishing, Tim provided two all-time fishing days for me. It's hard to put a price tag on that. (Incidentally, treat yourself to a day of fishing on the Kootenai River. If you're feeling especially indulgent, book a day with Linehan Outfitting Company.) 

And especially if I have the opportunity to advocate for my causes like public land and stream access, there's inherent payment in that.

To be fair, I do have the advantage of having a regular 40-hour job. But that's what it takes - I work hard to be able to accept small paychecks.

Not everyone is on board with this way of thinking, regarding freelancing. Some colleagues argue that we should demand top dollar so as to keep the market value for articles and photos at a livable monetary wage (which they really are not, in many cases). They contend that we should not accept such small paychecks for that amount of work and expense. I understand, but mine is not to drive market price. Mine is only to live my life as I see fit. I cannot be responsible for yours.

Because no matter the circumstances, I want to be writing, I want to be getting published, I want to be fishing, I want to be traveling and I want to be making these kinds of friends. That's all there is, Johnny. 

Barely literate: writing advice from a non-reader

Sometimes I feel old and haggard, without much left to learn. Then the universe rolls its eyes and checks me, and I'm reminded that none of us know much.

In my long, drawn-out dream to write well, I've recently taken some advice to heart: read.

The problem with that is that I don't read... Here's me reading: Reading, reading, reading, about three paragraphs in, I pull the book down to pontificate, gazing into the distance, embarking on an endless thought train. Then, at about the fourth paragraph, my eyes will continue working over the words on the page, but my mind will cease focusing.

Problematic for a guy who both writes and works at a book-publishing company.

Until I was about 30, I'd literally only ever read one book: Space Station Seventh Grade by Jerry Spinelli. Then at about 30 I completed my second book: The Alaska Chronicles by Miles Nolte. Other good books I've picked up are Haunted by Waters (which is a great introduction to fly fishing's best writers), and A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold.

So, in my quest to be better, I've picked up a book again. I am continuing with Haunted by Waters - a great idea for this early, harsh winter. 

Other writing advice I've encountered recently:

• Write something everyday. 

• Join or start a writer's group (maybe not even the type that shares stuff to improve writing, maybe even just a group to share a pint, and recent successes, frustrations, travails, etc., to support and offer advice)

• Read above your level, but write below it (h/t Grant and Martha).

• Specifically on the daily struggles of full-time freelance writing (courtesy Semi-rad/Brendan Leonard). 

There's so much room for improvement; this is my little effort.

In the middle of the great park snakes a river like no other...

These words in the post title commence chapters 1 and 50 - the first and last - of Nate Schweber's recently released book, Fly Fishing Yellowstone National Park: An Insider's Guide to the 50 Best Places.  They reference the renowned Firehole River - one of the park's most iconic fisheries.

Schweber's book is a non-partisan (both Jimmy Carter and Dick Cheney share stories) look at special places and experiences fly fishing in Yellowstone National Park. It brings Yellowstone's fly fishing community together as if they were swapping stories over cocktails at Yellowstone Lodge on the first Monday in November. And as such, you'll probably catch wind of valuable information.

The author put in his leg-work. Fifty chapters resulting from finding the right people and interviewing them, and hiking about 300 miles to try to fish all of the included locations.

Tips on how to catch lakers, the reason westslope cutthroats are native to part of the east side of the continental divide, the real story of "Yellowstoner", and more stories and tips are sprinkled throughout, with a special emphasis on Yellowstone cutthroat conservation.

If you want a thorough where-to guide to fly fishing in Yellowstone, buy Ken Retallic's Flyfisher's Guide to Yellowstone. If you are interested in unique perspectives and intriguing stories on several fisheries along with good information, buy a second copy of Retallic's book and I'll lend you my copy of Schweber's (I work for a competing publisher) :). 

Excellent trouting

Gazing upon turn-of-the-20th-Century photos of Belgrade, Montana tonight, it struck me how quickly towns evolve while landscapes stay the same. It made me wonder what the rivers around here were like before browns and rainbows. Chock full of massive cutthroat and grayling? Sprinkled with a few small whitefish?

It reminded me of an old book I came across that gave basically the first popularized accounts of fishing in America, entitled: The angler's guide book and tourist's gazeteer of the fishing waters of the United States and Canada, published in 1886.

Here are some samples regading Montana:

Butte - Big Hole r. 30m. Deer Lodge r. 18m. (known today as the Clark Fork of the Columbia); first best; trout and grayling are the principal varieties; worms, minnows, and art. flies used. June to October best; there are no hotels at fishing waters; excursions are made from Butte; boats and bait can be had at fishing grounds. 200 lbs of trout reported as a days catch for five rods. Other waters easily reached give superior fishing for trout....

...Dillon - Beaverhead r. 1/2m.; grayling and whitefish are principal varieties; grub bait in winter and grasshoppers in warm weather; all months good except May and June; hotels $2 p.d.; There are some small creeks 10 to 15 miles where trout are caught from May to November (coincidentally, our current small stream open season); guides and boats not needed...

...Gallatin - Gallatin r., Madison r., and Jefferson r.,; first best: trout, grayling and whitefish; all numerous; grasshopper usual bait; July, August, September and October best; hotels $10 p. w; excellent trouting...

...Livingston - Yellowstone r. 1/4 m.; trout and grayling; trout most numerous; art. flies used mostly; July, August and September best; hotels at reasonable prices; boats at $2 p.d. The fishing in the Yellowstone is simply magnificent. A bug, locally known as the "trout fly", which resembles the common "thousand legs", is the most killing lure. These bugs lie under the stones along shore and can be gathered by the hand-full. Query: Is it the helgramite or dobson of the East?

And that's just the beginning. Some of the waters were said to hold brook trout already. They used "bird meat", beef, bacon and "fat pork" as bait. Indians and half-breeds as guides at reasonable prices...excellent fishing for large trout...will satisfy the most greedy angler... The Big Blackfoot was already famous, being referenced as "celebrated waters" and a "noted fishery".  And at most places, flies were already being used. 

In 1886, fly fishing was well on it's way to what it's become.

This book was the prototype for the Flyfisher's Guides that now support me. Makes you wonder if it was really as good as they made it sound, or if they were peddling trout as we do today. My guess is that it was better than they made it sound, and we'll likely never see such fluvial wealth again.