Doing Summer Time

[fishskibum]

Traveling during a global pandemic was different
I had promised my wife i would drastically alter our usual mo of bfast at Irmas happy hours and economy stimulus of dive bars
and looking back at the numbers and infection rates of wyo and mt we could not of picked a better time.
At that time the only place that required masks or face coverings as i like the buff and bandana was walmart and every fly shop i stopped at.
i did stop here and git ice smokes and a bloody mary at the Edelweiss

and bust out the stick and attempt to swing another up
Had a hand shake grab but came unstucks
more signages of history


without makin a thread about my summer bums road trips all political
i will say im a big fan of personal liberties and freedom and  others rights to freedumbs
and i believe the nez perce took the shaft of manifest destiny's sword about as hard as it comes and cheif joseph was a stud

Imho Custer and the 7th cav lost a battle at little big horn and wounded knee was a massacre of women and children but were all free to call em as we see em
aint never mined i do have a friend who owns one, the thor mine, in cardiff fk into mineral up the bcc
and while spending a good chunk of my life removing and applying roofins product isnt an easy way of earning fun tickets
it pales on every level to mining especially in those days



Crossed into MT drove thru deer lodge which was crowded stopped here to cool down the furkids

ive always thought of myself as part of a tribe the sliding down snow covered slopes tribe
and the whippy stick fly flingers
so odd things like the tribe losing its young braves seem to affect me more these days

a bit young to pour a sip out but yeah i made some casts for him
its what we do
and the murs i do it the murs me thinks the hdt cat has it right

tbc

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beats me why ya cant manage to puts more than 10 pics in a post
but im pretty sure the majority would like less stream of stonerness bum ramblins and more pics
could be wrong
dont really to much care
no one makes ya read pr not read em
the thor mine

[fishskibum]

well yeah
wouldnt cha know it
its that time o year again
better half took our niece whose working from our home for a few weeks to

bit to hot for me and the fur child
wasnt sure where we were going

the paths shake n bake beat
lost a trailer hitch pin
theres the right tool for the job
and stuff ya got

safety chains matter
walked back a 1/2 mile and looked on the way out didnt see it but theres plenty of other trailer road kill
campgrounds are finally open
kinda glad they dont have change nor a functioning credit card machine
as i was gonna camp there
maybe a dozen crafts on the water mostly rubber
kinda nice not dealing with fossil fuel burning wave chop all day
risers o plenty at launch but the wind came up
plenty of catching

and while tight lines is cool and all
the amount of tension on em does 2me
had 1 nice cutty that i lost trying to handline the waterproof camera shot with what turned out to be a full memory card
Used to do pretty good there fore the turn of the centuries and it was the better 1/2 favorite camp ground
as the berry is meh and mismanaged
i guess theyre putting in yurts this season for the glampers
but there not in yet
things move slow at elevation
well cept for snowmelt this year
not much lingering We'll be back perfect slimer sup lake
bailed in hopes of a more substantial bending of the whippy sticks
there were plenty of campers and people plying the water below so we didnt stop or pull off
made a left to continue 40 freedom bachelor weekend
wanted to go to see zed or jones hole, im pretty sure it should be game on for gorge carp in the bays bout now
never fished cottonwood cept a few casts from shore
and im not sure whats still in bulluck
got sick of driving fast and the more i use the sp pass the cheaper it was
freds place works
ended up at juniper
found some beachfront property launched the hog and started stickin smallies

gots the eyes 2 eat my flies

i guess yur sposed to keep em
but on the chance it makes it to 13 then onto 20 sumpthins i let it go
seems to me if theres a little fish problem well
please put the tigger muskies in they seem to do a good job at that
think i had a better eye on
sumthins got a new baby gonga peircing and at least i got a good couple dozen out of him
some day im gonna tie with proficiancy but under a dollar a fish and supporting the local fly shop and sirilankian economy is okay
i like the loop knot imho theres no way you git the same actions outta a frictionless knot
but a few hundred casts of friction
i need to slow down and retie more
tend to git in the zone
trolled back from knights
got a decent bow and a
couple smash n grabs unknown perps
plenty of dusk snoots
pretty wild fire enhanced sunset
pretty minimal boat traffic fri and not many out late
threw the tent up
thankfully everybody got settled in and shut off their gennies by 11
got up early 4ish
starvation always seems windy in the am
slept an hour
heard the motors got up
cant fish the walleye chop all day if ya dont start in the am a few boats out early

stuck another bass on my first cast and sent the skunk outta the boat right off the bat

headed back to the deep water point ive found the eyes at before
but no love other than a few more all but one slightly stunted bass
heckofa nice morn to ply a craft of pleasure

 trolled back packed the tent headed back out
stuck a stickbending line tensioner that got giggy with it as big bows tend to do

rowed over to the bay across the way to look for the poopfish in the shallows to complete the weekend grand slam or hopin for a brownie
but didnt see a single carp and nor caught a brownie in years there
starvations funny that way
picked up another slimer on the way back
stopped and helped my dad git his window ac units outta storage and in
im trying to git him back to the green and his happy place for dads day this week 
he needs it
aint no cure
ac and fishin sure dont hurt

[fishskibum]

Hasnt been the best summer for me
My pops has had a bunch of health issues
and dealing with them and his declining health and mental state has taxed me hard
we dont want to take his independence but his and others health and safety trumps his freedom at this point
I was kinda hopin the mrs. decision to not procreate would save me from dealing with tough love
Not that it didnt work for me
didnt git to spend my customary 2 weeks on the road and missed the annual rendezvous of my fishy e-friends irl
good or bad news dependin on how you look at it is i dont have another couple hundred pictures and can possibly finish this one and count a few blessing
man it goes fast
seems like the solstice was yesterday 
did manage to fish it though

anyhow back to the last doin summer road trip
left cody
took the road lest traveled


more tributes to men of great courage and gumption

theres courage and theres the undaunted courage that mr. Ambrose documented damn well if ya need a good read

what would seaman do

watched few workin men float by and d as their dudes bobbers er indicators went down and the whippy sticks bent
i thought about riggin and tossin but if ya dont wanna git skunked dont throw and lifes to short to fomo
let the newf do newf and stretched the legs took on some substance loaded up rocked out a couple hours to roll into camp
on the one they call the mighty
Mo


and settled into camp our friend had scored

[fishskibum]

The mo's cool
Craigs a cool town much like Ft smith, last chance and dutch johns,
drinkin towns with fishin problems

kinda place were at times a 30 sumthins kid with out a boat, few decades of piscatorial pursuits, limited skills, 1 stick and and a single box of flies could slay em
yet years gears and more flies than i need later repeatedly humbles me in multiple ways
woke to another day of rising suns and troots

ran shuttles and got the float on

welcome to herbivore fishing

put jose on the sticks

i guess we didnt git skunked

Our friends managed to put a couple nice fish in the net

the furkid made a new friend and picked up on his partners swimmin prowess


the hours and river miles pass as we enjoy or fly flinging crafts

i think thats my 10

[Cowboypirate]

I think furkid was havn more fun than the whole lot of ya.

[fishskibum]

well yeah its what they do

Captain Meriweather Lewis shelled out $20 ,1803, bucks for something he thought was gonna benefit the corps of discovery travels.
and Seaman a newfoundland dog turned out to be a very adapt and valued member of the team, completing the trip and helped to protect the team on multiple occasions.

Im as bad at math as spellins and grammer so doing inflation mathmetics aint happening
but id never tell ya the couple grand i spend on the 4 legged life enhancing travel companions
isnt some of the best monies i have and will continue to spend


you pass under another bridge the topography starts to change




 and you leave the canyon the river widens and slows

The locals stung a few more
jose and i got buzzed again


the takeout comes and shuttles git run another days becoming done
If you aint humbled by gittin to spend it on a iconic american waterway of great lore
ya just may be a bits jaded or worried to much about keepin score

[fishskibum]

sum things age well and better than others


been a hot one 21 worth of trip digits days has the garden way behind but fruits n vegs of labor are harvested

made plans for the next day to float from the dam back to camp
called the mrs. that night, she doesnt cry nor hang up on me a lot, but when she does theres usually gonna be a change of plans involved
and as a precursor of this summer i was gonna come back early and deal with my dads problems and she misses her god and i better be takin good care of him
the neighbors both had the covids, utah was peakinglike predicted and
 i better be adhering to the common sense limited interactions to necessities and covering my face things i told here i was gonna do while traveling during a mass global pandemic.
Looking back at mt and wyo numbers for that time i was probably safer on the road
as the numbers were still quite low there and very little of the local populations were takin much precautions
except every fly shop was no mask no enter.
and i still could fish my way homeward bound but better be back for the weekend
the spinners showed up to cheer me up

its a cycle of life thing
try n focus
10/10 would and will be makin plansand hopes to be back to that camp

Woke and broke camp said goodbye to new friends
hit the road to check another classic western waters of the list

checked out the river and ramp conditions


and decided to try and find a downstream camp resupply at the sunrise fly shop 
awesome store btw
and ended up you are here


hugeness is a state of mind
by the time we scored a camp and headed back
weather conditions had changed


we were probably gonna git wet and it was gonna be a hard day on the sticks with 4 of us in the boat

[Cowboypirate]

You have likely seen photos of the Wookie - my friend when i go solo. Those trips are that much better when he is along.. Unfortunately, German Shepards are prone to hip disease, and his days are slowly coming to a close. I buried my beagle last year and 7 dogs before that rest on a knoll up on the ranch overlooking our deer camp. I swear each time that I cant do it again, but life just is not quite right without a hound trying to help me unhook a brookie.

Photos of our last two and our first two

[fishskibum]

there special creatures

im blessed to spend my time in the company of newfoundlands

thread needs sum Harrison as a any road trip to Jims hood outta contain 

The stars have been getting to large lately,
big white loose splotches in a liquid sky.
Can i handle this jigsaw puzzle
of the universe? I'll need a thousand 
dog teams and very long ropes.
There'll be no seating for the audience
they must stand in the nations back yards.
Earth will be at peace again through dog power.
The International Dog Church will be founded.
The moon will be called Holy Dog Moon,
the sun called Sun Dog
The gods are now called dogs and much happier.
Marching is permanently banished in favor of trotting.
- Jim Harrison ~  Moon Suite from Dead Man's Float

well yeah it poured

stoic god is stoic

i cant believe it took me 2 and 1/2 decades to float this iconic one

i think we got a few fish, but had my hands full as the fly shop guys said probably the last hard boat week, wind and tough vis, and im sure we banged a few
more Harrison

Time Again (2)

Time stopped at 11 a.m. Monday morning.
The fire in the mountains froze to the eye.
The Beethoven quartet on the radio continues.
Where did its sound go to become lost?
My skin tingled then stopped as it must.
Fair Catherine in the distance walks in the wheat
field, the tassles almost to her chest
She stops and so do the sand hill cranes well ahead.
Both were adrift in this huge world,
They drifted as clouds, graceful animals,
something telling us where were going
like migrating birds, flying into the future. -
Jim Harrison ~ Dead Mans Float

[fishskibum]

well yeah ya dont stop time
its a slow turning thing
pour a sip out for mr watts keepin time for the glimmer twins wasnt easy
and aint no way the worlds a more funny place without norm mac.
I try to do a post labor day rendezvous with my hugeflyfishermans fam and assorted crews
5th or 6th it all just kinda blends in its slow turning
made it thru ft bridger round dawn early enough that their mountainpeeps rendezvous didnt cause much delay
better weather than last year

went up sunday holiday weekend clusterboogie in full effect couldnt find a campsite i wanted

res is at 75ish % now river flows 1500-1800 cfsish
stoked the sponsor and better 1/2 finally made one
bummed my dad couldnt make another
 She came up monday and we got a few to eat the hoppers down in mr browns park

the crew o roos showed up and the weekend warriors left

sheldon made a new friend

loaded up and launched at the dam

Passed a gaggle of large bobber wielding guide boats the 1st mile or so and saw very few boats after
good to be back on the home waters or in em in sheldons case in em

stuck a few

left a canyon to a hole and floated on downrivers

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my guide put me into a few more

limit out on s

never sucks to row the sik gnars clean


puts me at 50% for the year
pulled into camp and set up

mallow roasting smores life skills matter

sheldons swum till he bonked

another day dawns

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There really isnt a bad camp on the river
Red creeks definitely one of the more scenic ones

betties and gogurts

sheldon swam and we busted out the big sticks of both hands needed


mr brown continued to eat the hoppers

the mrs. split to git my dad in for another ticker test at taylors
i dont often ditch the fur kid but i did
tried to put the grommet into a fish

floated on

the huge one jumped up front and stuck a  hopper sippin hog with the groms 6 1/2 foot glass echo geko

[Jig-fisher]

Great pictures.   Looks like a great float as well.

[fishskibum]

rolled into camp and busted out the shade and the sup


everyone retired early that night
the rude god, huge one and i got up early and stuck a few from camp



bfast conventional style

and unconventional


loaded up and headed down for the final day

stuck a few

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the kids had a blast on the sup and it floated the whole crew well

the river miles flow by and before you know it your at the takeout


made a few final casts loaded up the big blue roo carriers and said goodbyes with plans to git the float on again in the future

went to go find boblandia as carp diem cat had purchased some land up on taylors flat
1st step in curb appeal
diggin the curbs

spreads got potential

willow came and says tell me more about these boat things you speak off

i headed back to the river camp as i had left the groover and tent set up and didnt feel like diggin out a new spot

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friday dawned I reminded myself i was using pto from work and the 1st step to being a professional poopfisherman
is gittin paid to do it and show up
weather /wind forecast looked good all morn
drove to the res and threw the king kamia mia sup in
didnt take long to find em and it never sucks to git em from the gits go



the high clouds and wind help off most of the morning


managed a few slobs

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wind picked up road it around jug hollow to the next bay
found a few more tailers tearing up the flats in spring creek




hiked back to the truck and drove over to pull out the sup and head back to boblandia
where the hell is boblandia?

up on bobs bluff

lumpy showed up with the skin and fur kid and we were treated to a banner sunset and dug out a fire pit

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bucked my camp at swallow and headed to boblandia 4 breakfast  via griddle and to roust the crew
tried to put in at cowboy but the water hadnt come up yet
inflated the duckie for the grommets and drove it downstream of the white waters
loaded up and got the float on


put the skin kids in the ducky and lumpys furkid in the back despite her wanting to ride up front

lumpy tied a couple on

and stuck some fish

the abodes of the canyons denizens mr powell namesaked a century and 1/2 ago

floated on

stopped for lunch

and the lab to do lab

[fishskibum]

the willow one says i guess these boat things you spoke off aint bad

floated on

lumpy stuck a few mur

kids had fun

winds cranked up and a front was coming through

pulled out n back to boblandia loaded up in the rain n made er home fore dark
id forgotten how soul refreshing time on home waters with friends and fams can be

[Bovineowner]

Awesome Pictures as always amigo! Love your posts! I sure look forward to your adventures. Many Thanks!

Sorry to hear your Pop is fighting age. Its a battle we all face. In the middle of that myself. Aint no fun.

[Panchodog]

Lotta s per miles in your floats!