If I've learned one thing from Brown Trout....

It's always eat the head first.

Apparently, it has something to do with the spiny dorsal fin of the potential meal. If the brown trout eats a fish with a spiny dorsal tail first, it would most likely get stuck in the brown trout's gullet. That may be the logical explanation, I like to think it's because they are mean, ruthless predators. Whatever.

40 MPH and RISING - New YGF Video

Not all days are great. Conditions aren't always perfect. Sometimes it's windy. This was one of those days in South Park on the Dream Stream. I was joined by Andrew Burgos (aka pinchetruta on instagram), his dog Ethel, and YGF's official canine mascot Bosley dog. While it was a little windy, we still managed to have a good day on the Dream. Watch it on Vimeo in HD.

40 MPH AND RISING from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

22 Inches Short

Confession time: It has been a while since I put out a video. Why? Because I can't put together my very belated holiday/year-end video to my liking. So, with a YGF video drought on the horizon, I threw together this awkward 1980's VHS inspired short of day on the water with Russ of SchnitzerPHOTO fame. As detailed last week, we suffered some defeats at the mouths of some of the "Dream Streams" nicer fish. Here is my ode to that day and the more traditional YGF video that could have resulted from some skilled angling. We were 22 INCHES SHORT.

Watch it in HD on vimeo.

22 Inches Short from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

What Can Browns Do For You?

For those of you that aren't fans of YGF on facebook, the following may be news to you: (1) I caught a nice brown trout on the Big Hole and (2) I have left Montana and moved down to Colorado. The week before I left for Colorado I visited my favorite river in Montana for a farewell tour. The Big Hole treated me well. The streamer fishing was "lights out"(as some cool people say) and the big browns had their feed bags on (as other cool people say). I was lucky enough to catch a beautiful specimen of a brown trout which measured 24" in length and looked to be untouched.

Check out the video in HD. Enjoy.

Yukon Goes Headhunting

Two days of fly fishing on the Missouri River with Headhunters Fly Shop's John "Scumliner" Arnold and Jared "Gandolf" Edens. Mother's Day Caddis, March Browns, Blue Winged Olives, and Midges were hatching...sporadically. While we had high sun on both days, we were still able to find some rising fish. On the Missouri, a few rising fish is actually a good deal of rising fish. I had my fair share of shots at some nice risers and dropped some ugly casts on them. But, we were still able to catch some nice fish on dries. Short leash nymphing was the primary producer and the "standard" Missouri River 16 to 19" rainbows showed up in force with a couple 20s and a 21 or two finding their way into Scumliner's skinny black net.

Yukon Goes Headhunting from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

It should be noted that the Missouri River fish fight....hard. A twelve inch football of a rainbow took me to my backing in a couple seconds.

You may note that I did my first bit of acting in a YGF short in this one. Acting like I was waking up to an alarm clock was hard. The guys at Headhunters set me up in the Craig House for the weekend. The Craig House would easily fit six people. It was spacious, comfortable, three bedroom, two bathroom house next to the Rainbow and Brown cabins. As you can see from the video, it is a quick minute walk from Headhunters, which is a minute from the river. It was complete with a full kitchen and flat screen TVs with satellite. More than enough for this angler and some of his friends and it is a steal for groups of 4 to 6 people. The beds were extremely comfortable and I was out before my head hit the pillow.

Side Note: I think it should be obvious to everyone, Jared Edens is Gandolf, based solely on his stick skills and also his mean beard.

All this happened and so did some carp fishing.

Music: Santogold "Starstruck"

The After Work Special

With spring....springing and the sun setting around 8 pm, the after work special is again a viable option. Getting into to work by 6 am and setting off alarms, so you can get out on the water by 3 pm. You know, "The After Work Special." This edit features four separate after work specials on the Bitterroot. Some trout were caught. Some were lost. Enjoy the video in HD.




The After Work Special from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.
Music:
Jay Dee/J Dilla - "Track 12," "Track 21," "Track 05," "Track 10," and "Track 17"

Also, a big congrats to Mike of Of Dry Flies & Fat Tires fame for taking the 2nd annual YGF Bracket Challenge. Internet pride goes to the Michigan man.

If you haven't entered the Fly Vines giveaway, do so here.

The Leprechaun and the Yeti

Some fishing partners are tall. Some are short. Anthony of False Casts and Flat Tires is the Leprechaun. I, apparently, am the Yeti. A couple of days of fly fishing on the Bitterroot. We got into some solid rainbows and browns, but nothing too extraordinary. Things are heating up, but we could have said that about the entire winter. Although, it is good to have some dry fly fishing on the horizon.

Some guest appearances from Alec of Fly Fishing Life and Cody of Oakfish in the beginning and end of the video.

Music:
Wu-Tang Clan vs. The Beatles "City High (Instrumental)"

The Leprechaun and the Yeti from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

I went a little crazy on the effects this time. Messed with the saturation and the shadows/highlights. Let me know what you think of the effects.

King of the Herd

New and completely fake terms are being coined. That monster group of whitefish you see huddled around a big trout. That's a herd. And that big trout flanked by those pesky whitefish is the King of the Herd. A day of fishing with the False Casts Flat Tires (FCFT) crew on the Bitterroot. It was generally slow with the exception of the 22" cutbow that Zach hooked and Anthony miraculously netted. We found some pike in some shallow backwater. All of us stung one, none of us caught one. That goal will have to wait. Watch it in HD on vimeo.

Music: Soul Position "Run (Instrumental)"

King of the Herd from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

On the 'Root with FCFT

This past weekend, I met up with two of the members (Zach and Stan) of the False Casts and Flat Tires gang to do some winter fishing on the Bitterroot. The Bitterroot and I have always had a somewhat rocky relationship. While I had solid, productive days on the Bitterroot, I have never had "one of those days."

That is not the case for the boys over at FCFT. They seem to have the Bitterroot dialed in. So, I felt pretty confident about getting into some fish when we hit the water on Saturday morning. Alas, the weather schemed against us. After consistent air temperatures in the low to mid 40s for most of the previous week, the air temperature dipped into the low 30s. As a result, the fishing was a little slower than desired.

"They are like guide land mines" FCFT - Photo courtesy of FCFT

As it is with winter fishing, you have to find where the fish are stacked up and feeding. We never really found them. We found some whitefish, but the trout were few and far between.

While our efforts were not quite rewarded, it was a great day to be on the water.

An idiot with a broken fly rod. Photo courtesy of FCFT

Zach is always producing great content over at FCFT. His skills with a DSLR make me want to get acquire some talent and grab a DSLR and start snapping photos. All of the photos in this post were taken by the FCFT crew.

Red wire worm = iridescent blue spot - Photo courtesy of FCFT

We are planning on getting back out on the water this weekend. We have a hot tip about some good winter fishing on the 'Root. Hopefully, it makes for some good footage as it has been too long since YGF put out a video. Damn you Holidays (Shakes Angry Fist) !!!!

Sleep, Dreams, and the Birthday Donut

It's December in Montana and winter hitting us hard.....LIES. It was over 40 F this past weekend, so Bucko, Blakely, and Matt Breuer (of Ponoi River Co.) traveled over to the Mo to harass some of it's trouts. We stopped by Headhunters Fly Shop in the morning and caught up with SOL and Sara. It was a relaxing day on the water, for sure. Several good trout came to hand. Breuer and Blakely dropped spey bombs all over the river, while Bucko and I caught fish with our single handers. It was a little tougher to fish with three people. Our next trip with this motley crew will involve boats. It was Blakely's birthday, so we stopped and got a fabled Birthday Donut from the Donut Hole in Helena.

I got a chance to test out Glacier Glove's Pro Angler Glove. While conditions weren't ideal for testing gloves with the temperatures ranging into the 40s, I gave them a thorough inspection. Look for a review of the gloves in the next couple days. Also stayed tuned because Glacier Glove was generous enough to provide a pair of Pro Angler Gloves for YGF's first gear giveaway.

If you haven't had a chance, check out my interview on the Fish Schtick.

Enjoy the video in HD on vimeo. Music from The Roots "Sleep."

Silver and Gold

What does Yukon Cornelius love? Silver and Gold. Silver and Gold. What does YGF like? Silver and Gold. Well, more like Rainbows and Browns. Close enough. A video filled with bumbles, abominable snowmen, miners, reindeer, brown trout, and rainbow trout. Consider this the pinnacle of the concept of YGF. It can only go downhill from here.

Music: The Glitch Mob "We Can Make the World Stop"





As always, watch the video in HD on vimeo.

I am releasing this video on YGF and also over on Fly Fishilicious. I wrote up a guest post to go along with the video and she graciously posted it, no matter how poorly written it is. With the holidays around the corner, Jen is generously giving away a Flip Mino HD camera. All you have to do is leave a comment over there. Very cool.

mad

....as in, Madison. As in, mad brown trout. As in, thass some mad brown troutz fishin. Some fall fly fishing for the Madison River's brown trout. The browns were on the feed as evidenced by the 18 inch brown that had an 8" rainbow sticking out of it's mouth. We never found the monsters that the Madison is known for, but some solid fish between 16 to 19" were caught. Things also of note: I took a fall into the mighty mighty Madison and broke my 6-weight. There was some really good habitat immediately upstream of my position and I decided it was worth the risk of wading into some heavier current. I was wrong. I lost my balance, went to my knees (chest deep) and then to my face. Luckily I was appropriately dressed and had a change of clothes in the car. To add insult to injury, my trusty streamer rod was broken as I dipped my face into the river. Watch in HD on vimeo.

music: Beirut "Gulag Orkestar"


mad from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

toxic

A foggy morning on the Bitterroot turned into a tough day of fishing. No epic streamer fishing was to be had. Two streamer takes all day. A 17-18" brown was angry and/or hungry enough to take an original and a 20" rainbow wanted to become internet famous until it threw the streamer's hook. When 2:30 rolled around the BWOs started hatching and some fish were caught up top. Check it out in HD.

music: yael naim "toxic"

Also, this is the 100th post on YGF. Fitting that it is a video.

UPDATE: It's actually my 87th post. Apparently, I have 13 drafts laying around.

toxic from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

October Rock

Another entry in the Month + Rock series. Another trip up to Rock Creek in search of some it's bigger fish. Threw streamers all day. It was productive. Primarily threw articulated stuff measuring out to 4"+. Impressed by the 8" fish that decided those streamers would make a good meal. I messed with a Gaussian blur and sharpness filter to the get the high contrast effect seen in this video. As a side note, the last brown trout shown is probably the biggest brown I have caught from Rock Creek. If that fish lived in the Big Hole, it would be an average fish. Watch it in HD. Enjoy.

Music: Alex Goose "No one rides for free"

October Rock from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

September Rock

I spent a day up on Rock Creek this weekend. I was in search of another species, but all I got into was Rock Creek browns. While, that species wasn't interested in being internet famous, some typical Rock Creek specimens were. The day started with a solid with a 17-18" brown, which is a veritable brown trout trophy on the Rock. It was cloudy all day and streamers seemed to be the ticket. Later in the day, some fish started to rise and I was able to use some the flies that I won from a recent contest on Fly Water's Edge. Kevin sent me a tin of good looking foam damsel flies, hoppers, beetles, and ants. I strung up a hopper with an ant dropper and the ant did the majority of the work. Check out Fly Water's Edge for Kevin's recent trip to the Driftless Region. Enjoy the video.
September Rock from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.
I have been sitting on this footage for a while. My parents came out to Montana last month and I just got around to putting together the footage. If you are looking for fly fishing video, this isn't for you. But, if you want to see some of the beauty that Glacier National Park has to offer then this one's for you. Enjoy.

The Trifecta

This past weekend, Bucko and I, hit the Trifecta of favorite southwest Montana waters: the Big Hole, the Beaverhead, and the Slough. The conditions for fishing were tough. The sun was ever present and as such, the streamer fishing was too great. With this year's high water many of the hatches have been pushed back. Throughout the weekend, the PMDs were coming off with relative strength. It was a unique experience to fish a PMD and trico hatch in the same morning. There was some outstanding sight nymphing on the Beaverhead on Saturday. Bucko spotted a 25 inch brown trout from a bridge. Our goal was took hook the fish. Based on it's position in the river, landing it seemed nearly impossible. Bucko hooked up to the fat submarine of brown from the bridge and the fight was on. The brown seemed a tad clumsy. It seemed as though the fish just recently gained a great deal of weight and said weight was proving to be quite cumbersome. The brown took three uninspiring, but entertaining jumps and finally came unbuttoned after taking a run downstream. Enjoy the video.

The Trifecta from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

BOOM GOES THE BROWNOMITE

This past Tuesday, I headed down to Dillon to fish the Beaverhead with Joe/Jergens/Joey Dubs from Evolution Anglers. It was a great day on the water and a solid day of fishing. The Beaverhead, a tailwater, is seemingly the only low flowing river in Montana at this time. The water managers were only letting out about 400 cfs of water when we fished it on Tuesday. I have only fished the Beav at double that flow, so I was a little odd to have the low flows, but I quickly got over that fact when I realized how much wade fishing was possible. The largest fish we managed was an 18-19" brown trout, not nearly the size of fish that Joe managed throughout the week. Blame it on the cloudiness in the water downstream of the High Bridge. Blame it on late hooksets and poor nymph placement by myself. Whatever you do, don't blame it on Joe, a great fisherman and guide at the Stonefly Inn. I hope to do it again sometime this summer. It was a good day. Enjoy the video with an ode to the Boom Goes the Dynamite Guy.

YGF X Evolution Anglers: BOOM GOES THE BROWNOMITE from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.

If the Rapture Comes Tomorrrow...

I will be happy knowing that the last fish I saw was a 25" brown and the last fish I caught was a 20" brown. See you tomorrow world???

twenty five inches of "$%@! you, high water" brown trout

The Clark Fork, the Bitterroot, Rock Creek, the Blackfoot, the Big Hole, everything local is running high and muddy. Runoff is upon us. It is no where close to peaking with plenty of snow left in the mountains. The fluvial geomorph nerd in me is hoping for a whopper of a runoff. Whatevs. Back to the task at hand - fishing. Bucko and I went back to some familiar ponds and ran into some nice fish. I caught a 20 inch brown and was feeling pretty good. Bucko caught a 25 inch brown. $%@! you, high water. Watch in HD on vimeo.

Sometimes Whitefish eat Sex Dungeons

The Bitterroot is fishing well. Yes, of course, the March Browns were hatching. But, in news I care about more, streamer fishing is picking up. So well that, a tiny whitefish decided to join the party by hooking itself on an articulated sex dungeon. I have no clue how it fit the hook in it's tiny tiny mouth, but I am guessing it didn't mean to. It promptly gave up when hooked and did none of that signature whitefish head-shaking that helps an angler identify it on the other end of the line. I imagine it didn't like the sizable intruder that was the sex dungeon and nipped at it to make it go away. When the sex dungeon bit back, the poor poor whitefish just gave up. Oh yeah, some nice browns and rainbows were also caught. As always, watch this gem on vimeo in HD.

sometimes whitefish eat sex dungeons from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.