The Adventures of Flybum - Part 7

The last time I wrote, I promised we would head upstream on the Teton in my next blog. Well, I'm keeping my promise although it has been a number of days since my last entry. The delay in getting you up river was due to the fact that I wanted to do so through the avenue of video. So, I make my return in this western adventure series with another Flybum Media short.

This section of river will be forever burned in my memory for a couple of reasons. The first being that it was the first time I had ever come across a mountain lion den (yeah, I was standing right in front of it before I realized it...pretty daunting really), second because that is where I lost the biggest fish of the day, and last but not least, it was the place where I caught my first Rattlesnake....Oh Yeah....It was a rush! You'll see more of this in the video.

Until then, here are a few more photos of fish that we caught on our day on the Teton.

SAO GUIDE BEN BARGER WITH A HEALTHY

YELLOWSTONE CUTTHROAT

SAO GUIDE PATRICK ROBINSON HOLDING

A NICE CUTTHROAT OF HIS OWN

Toward the end of our day, we headed back downstream to a confluence and decided to fish it up. It was a great piece of water! I only wish we had more sunlight so we could have explored it further up.

AN AWESOME FIGHTING FISH IN FAST

WATER ON A 5WT!

As we fished upstream in the last few minutes of light in the canyon, yet another first presented itself, and I wasn't gonna pass this one up. Some call it a bit crazy....some completely insane. I call it cool and living on the edge : )

Below is a photo of the Rattlesnake I noticed trying to climb the vertical rock face in the background of the photo above. I noticed him swimming along the wall and then he disappeared into the only crevice for quite some distance. I hollered out to Ben, "Rattlesnake" and pointed across the river. He said, "How do you know?" I said, "Just trust me, I know my snakes" and headed off for the other side of the river to see if I could get a look at him. The following photo is all I could take considering I had left all cameras but my iPhone downstream. It was the end of the day, the sunlight was disappearing and so we decided to wrap up the filming for the day....ughhh. Always happens when you need the camera(s).

FIRST RATTLESNAKE I HAVE EVER SEEN IN

THE WILD IN ALL HIS GLORY! TRULY AN AMAZINGLY

BEAUTIFUL REPTILE. I GUESS YOU HAVE TO APPRECIATE

SNAKES TO AGREE WITH ME ON THIS.

Wow, that was really cool to see! However, I always wanted to catch a poisonous snake and here was my opportunity and a good one at that. Please keep in mind that I don't advise this. I spent a large part of my childhood catching snakes, learning about snakes, visiting serpatoriums, and educating myself on what makes snakes tick. That being said, this was the best opportunity one could have. Snakes are cold blooded reptiles which means they rely on the warmth of the sun to increase their metabolism. That means if they are cold, they move slow, if they are hot, they are lighting fast. This snake had just come out of 55-60 degree water, had been in the shade, was climbing straight vertical, and could not achieve a coiled position if he tried which is the position they need to be in for an optimum defense/strike posture. So, his ability to defend himself was extremely limited and his metabolism was very slow due to being in the water (and this was proven in the fact that he could barely shake his rattle). So, again, please understand that I know what I am doing, read all the available signs, and proceeded knowing the inherent risks.

So, with a little encouragement from my friend Ben, it was on! Just a minute later, I was proudly in control of one mean looking set of teeth! But to be quite honest, and I hate to say it, because it takes the "macho" out of the story.....this could very possibly have been one of the easiest snakes I have ever caught.

PATRICK SMILES WITH HIS FIRST

RATTLESNAKE IN HAND

THE BUSINESS END AND A BEAUTIFUL

RATTLE ADORNED THIS AWESOME SNAKE!

So, without further delay, here is the latest film I worked on. I wish I had more to offer, but when you are torn between filming and fishing, sometimes you come up short on the footage you really would have liked. Regardless of what I didn't get, it turned out decent in the end and will always be on my shelf as a part of "The Adventures of Flybum - Volume 2." Also please note that in the flick, some censoring has been done to protect names of those who shared information and also to protect the names of specific locations. I think we all understand that YouTube videos and blogs on the world wide web can be a place that puts a lot of unneeded pressure on some of our favorite haunts. Therefore, for conservation reasons as well as the need to respect the wishes of others who so selflessly helped me build a successful trip, I have added the censors early in the flick. I hope you enjoy watching as much as I did fishing it, filming it, and editing it down.

Next time, we will take a trip across the Teton divide and check out a brief stint on a tributary to the Snake River in the area of Jackson, Wyoming....home of Snake River Fine Spots!

Until then,

Patrick "Flybum" Robinson

Head Guide

Steelhead Alley Outfitters

The Adventures of Flybum - Part 6

The last time I left you, we had fished the Madison and Firehole Rivers of Yellowstone National Park and were headed back south to one of the most anticipated rivers of our trip westward....the mighty Teton River.

The Teton River hit my radar after talking to friend Jim Lampros. Jim had spent some time working with World Cast Anglers during his adventures out west, and this put him in the backyard of the Teton. After hearing his stories and seeing the awesome photos of him traversing this river plastered all over Orvis catalogs, I just had to see it with my own eyes. The fact that it held stellar populations of Yellowstone Cutthroats, one of those species I had never caught, was just icing on the cake.

After meeting with Jim and making careful notes we were within a short drive of the river. Leaving Ashton, Idaho, we were soon on a dirt two track headed for the place that I had been told about. At first, I wasn't sure if I had the right road (I was a bit gun shy after some of our previous adventures), but we did and in short order we were overlooking an awesome body of water. It may take us a while to find our water, but we always find the fishing hole!

THE MIGHTY TETON RIVER WINDS

THROUGH THE IDAHO COUNTRYSIDE

The view looking up was just as stellar as the one we had looking way down into the canyon. In fact, when we first got there, I didn't know which way to look. I said wow so many times, that I think the guys thought I had found a new favorite word.....DUDE.....WOW!!!!

THE MIGHTY TETON RANGE STANDS OVERLOOKING THE

PRODUCTIVE TROUT WATERS THAT SURROUND IT.

After making our destination, we jumped out to snap some photos. I remember the moment I got to the trail heading into the canyon and looking over the edge! Insert one of those "WOW's!" Wow is all you could say! It was a huge drop into this canyon stretch of the Teton and when I say huge, I mean roughly 1000 vertical feet at about a 45 degree angle and sometimes steeper! This insertion point wasn't for sissy's! And if you weren't going to take a boat down with you and float out, then you had better make sure your heart was in good condition, because coming out is not for the faint of heart...This I guarantee!!!

SHOOTING SOME PHOTOS OF THE TETONS

SAO GUIDE BEN BARGER PREPARES GEAR

FOR THE DAY ON THE RIVER

We took our time getting down to the river for two reasons...safety and for filming. We couldn't just blaze down the trail without capturing it on video, so roll film we did! Hopefully I can put together a sequence from our day on this river. Of all our days on the water, this one definitely got the majority of my time. From big fish caught to heartbreaks to rattlesnakes, we got it all on this day! So, keep your fingers crossed and maybe I will show you some more film.

Once we got down to the river, the guys started packing gear for the trek along the river. I just couldn't wait to fish and catch that next species, so right then and there, I got the rod out and started fishing. It wasn't any time at all and the first Yellowstone Cutt was in hand. Just a moment later, a monster fish exploded on my fly and here is where the first heartbreak occurred! You see, I broke one of my own rules. The long story made short is that I forgot to loosen my drag...yeah, oops! The cast was made, the float was drag free, the rise came, the explosion ripped the water apart and it was fish on!!! The problem was that with fast water, a big fish, and a tight drag, disaster was looming. I rushed to get to the drag as the fished turned down stream. With a less than graceful staggering few steps down stream and every attempt to keep my rod up, the fish was gaining ground. I got the drag...I got it....The rod tip was dropping, dropping, in the danger zone, still dropping......OH CRAP, No, I can do this......rod pointing as fish....I could feel the tippet stretching...then all at once.....BANG!!! It was over! My second fish of the day and one pushing twenty inches was now only a story! Oh well was all I could say! After all, it was early in the morning and no worries! I mean, no phone was going to be ringing telling me I needed to be anywhere....ahhh, what a feeling!

It wasn't long after this failed attempt at a trophy, that we were up river and into fish after fish.

SAO GUIDE PATRICK ROBINSON HOLDS A

HEALTHY TETON YELLOWSTONE CUTTHROAT

DON FISHES AT A CONFLUENCE POINT IN THE TETON

During our time at the confluence that you see above, Don and I were doubled up. Although the waters were slightly stained, the fish were more than willing to look up and since we don't get to fish the dries all that often back home, we opted to throw the big dries!

SAO GUIDE PATRICK ROBINSON AND FRIEND DON

LAND A DOUBLE ON YELLOWSTONE CUTTIES

AND THE SMILES......OH SO SWEET!

We continued to fish the morning away in this general area. We fished up the Teton and up a smaller tributary and more fish came to hand than we could count. It was getting to be mid day and we wanted to fish a lot more water as long as it was accessible in the rough terrain. So, to insure we would have enough fuel in the furnace to make the continued push, we paused to grab a streamside lunch.......

SAO GUIDE BEN BARGER GETS THE FIRE GOING

FOR SOME STREAM SIDE HOT DOGS

After cramming our faces with fine pork products, we decided to head up stream a bit further. There's always a big one just around the corner right?

Well, up stream did treat us very, very well and we captured a lot of film and photos of fish on this stretch. However, I had to get the fish in front of that rock first.

SAO GUIDES PATRICK AND BEN WADE THE EDGE OF

THE FAST WATER CATCHING FISH IN ALL THE

SLACK WATER HOLDS ALONG THE WAY.

In the next adventure, we will head up stream to see what the waters offered us. This was one of my most memorable afternoons I have ever had and I look forward to sharing it with you!

Until next time,

Patrick "Flybum" Robinson

Head Guide

Steelhead Alley Outfitters