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January 13, 2011 
 News from Blue Ribbon Flies
 Fish With The Best
In This Issue
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Greetings!

Welcome to another Blue Ribbon Flies weekly newsletter. Thanks for tuning in. Settle in and we'll tell you what's happening around West Yellowstone and our other favorite spots, show you the fly and the material of the week, and tempt you to plan your next trip with us.

Hope you're enjoying the new year, doing some fishing, tying up some flies, and starting to think about your 2011 trip to Yellowstone country. Take a break from work or play, grab a cup of coffee, and pretend you're leaning on the counter here at Blue Ribbon Flies. We wish you were here, but until you are we'll keep you in the loop. Thanks for stopping by.

 What's New
 What's Happening in Yellowstone Country

madison cold Here we go again! Yes the cold temperatures have stuck with us again this week, this morning the mercury dropped to -40 degrees. One reading taken at the lumber yard read -48 degrees, that's just down right brutal. It's hard to see through all of the fog but the above photo is of the Madison River just 3 miles out of West Yellowstone. Now you can't quite make them out but there are a pair of Bison deep within the fog trying to stay warm.

Craig & Jackie have headed into Yellowstone Park this week on a snow coach and are going to stay a few nights at Old Faithful to do a little skiing, snowshoeing and just take in all that Yellowstone has to offer in the winter. We'll be looking forward to a full report when they get back.

We are very doubtful of Punxsutawney Phil's prediction last week but however are still very hopeful, as we know most of you are, that spring is just around the corner.

As usual in the rest of this newsletter, you'll find fishing news from Yellowstone Country in the weekly Fishing Report. You can see what's hot off the vise in the Fly of the Week, get a sneak peek at some of the best materials on our tying bench in the Fly Tying Material of the Week, and stay up to date with the guide staff and their trips in the Guide Trip of the Week.

You'll be seeing a new email newsletter most every week throughout the winter to keep you tuned in to all things fly fishing and fly tying in the greater Yellowstone area and beyond. Throughout the seasons, we'll keep sending you news of hatches and fishing holes around West Yellowstone. So without further delay, go ahead and jump right into the newsletter. And as always, don't hesitate to give us a call or shoot us an email if you have any questions, or if you just want a little fish talk.

 


 Fishing Report
 Weekly Conditions and Tips

As the seasons change, we will continue to do our best to provide a journal entry from some of our latest tying and fishing. We invite you to call and ask us what we've been up to if you get to wondering. We always have plenty of stories to tell.

Now we might be Nuts be we are not Crazy! Not a lot of fishing has taken place this week. With the cold temps we have tended to stay a little closer to the fire than the river. Sometimes your loyalty can only go so far. It's just not happening this week.

We are waiting on a few days that get closer to 20 above rather than 20 below. When this happens we expect to see fish up again on midges on the Madison and Gallatin. Once we get a change fishing should be good especially with nymphs on both rivers. Muskrat midges, Zebra's, Shop Vac's and #18-16 golden stones should do the trick.

Just a little reminder your Montana fishing license will expire on February 28th. At this time we will also see the Madison between Quake Lake and Macatee Bridge close to give the rainbows a little time to spawn until the third Saturday in May. You can be assured that we will be out again several times between now and the 28th.

A few new items have come up lately concerning stream access laws. Here's just a little on whats happening.

"Montana's House of Representatives recently passed legislation that will make outlaws out of everyday Montanans who fish, boat and swim. Sponsored by Rep. Jeff Wellborn (Dillon-R) after being requested by Sen. Chas Vincent (R-Libby), House Bill 309 will classify as "ditches" many natural stream channels in the state - places where Montana families have been recreating for generations. Montana's stream access law allows us to fish or swim in any natural stream or river capable of supporting recreation - as long as we stay within the normal high-water mark and off adjoining private land. However, the access law also, reasonably, prohibits public use of bona fide private ditches, such as those constructed off-stream by Montana irrigators. This law resulted from careful negotiation in the mid-1980s between river users and landowner groups."

We will keep you updated on this matter. It could mean a few changes for the future.

For more on House Bill 309 Click here! 


 Fly of the Week
 Hot off the Vise

The Fluttering white Miller

The White Miller Caddis adult has been most difficult to imitate. While our pupae and cripple patterns have been deadly we have been frustrated by trout chasing fluttering adults along the entire length of the Firehole and Madison Rivers in Yellowstone, with not so much as a rise to our flies. This valuable addition to our fly boxes fills that niche, it works during these frequent times when trout key on the fluttering adults.

This fly has not only been productive but also a lot of fun to fish. Our favorite technique is fishing it a a 45 down stream and skittering back up and across. The hits tend to be very violent, no need to set the hook when these fish attack!

The Fluttering White Miller 


 Fly Tying Material of the Week
 Unique Materials for Effective Patterns

U.V. Chewee Skin

"U.V Chewee skin is a highly reflective, soft, pliable, stretchy material that can be wrapped, twisted, pulled over the top or anywhere else you wantt to add U.V. reflection."

Bucky has been playing around with this new material. He has primarily been focused on caddis pupae and Scuds. Although the Madison is not noted for scuds it does have a small population and of course is a major caddis river. By clicking the Chewee skin photo you can watch Bucky tie one of his caddis pupae. You will notice that this material is very easy to work with. The fly is not yet available for sale as it is still in the developmental stage. You can be assured that the guides will be playing around with this one on the Mayfly tours coming this April.

For all of you Saltwater tiers this material works great using it to tie a TDF shrimp.

Chewee Skin 


 Guide Trip of the Week
 Nobody Does It Better

brown May Fly Tours 2011

Even though the temps don't indicate this spring is just around the corner and that means our guides will be out in full force. Starting March 31st many of our guides will start taking our ever famous spring trips. These guides are already chomping at the bit to get back to the river and do some serious trout fishing.

We do have openings for these four day fishing excursions left but thought we had better let everyone know that the week of April 14th to the 19th is now full and several other weeks are now getting close. We will run these, well valued trips up through the first week of June. If you are wanting to experience a wide variety of waters let our guides sort through the dozens of fishing options to find the best of the best for your road trip.

The best guides in the business! 


 For Your Tying Desk
 Not Just Another Doo Dad

anvil scissors Anvil Scissors

John and Bucky have been a little upset with us for some time for not carrying these scissors. They have been favorites of theirs for years. So we felt compelled to bring them back. These scissors have nice wide loops in the handles which John loves so he never has to put his scissors down, he simply lets them slide down his fingers. If we aren't mistaken John has used the same pair of scissors for over fifteen years now. Yes he has had to sharpen these a few times over the years but claims they are easy to sharpen and hold an edge for a long, long time.

Anvil scissors are made right here in the good old USA! 


Hope you enjoy the latest issue. We'll keep 'em coming, keeping you up to date on the best fishing water, tips, and gear we can get our hands on. Let us know how you're fishing, and what you're up to. Keep those pictures and fish stories coming!

Thanks for spending time with us. We'll see you soon!

west
Until next Week!
The Gang at Blue Ribbon Flies

phone: 406.646.7642
fax: 406.646.9045