There are elk bugling around West Yellowstone, a few brown trout are starting to show their Falls colors and even the aspen trees have begun to yellow just a bit. I have yet to enter the woods in search of bull elk as the high today is 90 degrees…….It just doesn’t feel like archery season yet. The ten day forecast has our area posted for highs in the 60′s and low’s in the 30′s…….that sounds more like elk hunting weather. The “New Year” for bird hunters arrived this past Saturday as the season for partridge and grouse opened up. Huck and I got out for a few hours on the opener with local fishing guides Drew Menzter, Jonathon Heames and their two pointers Oscar and Ista. Drew shot one bird with his new side-by-side over his 7 month old GWP Oscar. The training has begun as we are headed to Oregon and Eastern Montana in October to hunt birds.

The angling opportunities around our area are endless. The Madison and Firehole are starting to fish and Lamar Valley has been in prime shape over the past few days. Rain can blow out those streams in Lamar Valley, so a quick call to the Lamar Ranger Station before heading over can save you a big headache.

The Madison below Quake is fishing pretty darn well most days with nymphs in the morning and dries in the afternoon. The trout seem to be wise to the hopper although there are days when they’ll eat it. I have had the best luck fishing small dries like the Royal Trude, Royal Wulff, Parachute Ants, Parachute Adams, Humpies and Olive Caddis patterns. Nymphing with caddis and mayfly imitations has proven to bring some nice fish to the net. Shop Vac’s, Olive Serendipities, PT’s, $3 dips, Micro Mayflies and Hare’s Ears all work well this time of the year.