Things I Have Learned at Railroad Ranch

If you've ever heard Rene Harrop or Mike Lawson describe the Henry's Fork river in eastern Idaho, you immediately sense the great reverence and respect these men have for the place.  It is a river like no other I have ever observed.  Having lived in Idaho for almost four years now, I am fortunate to have become a student of the Henry's Fork.

Upper Mesa Falls on the Henry's Fork

The Railroad Ranch section within Harriman State Park completely humbles me every time I fish it; not just because it is one of the most challenging dry fly streams in the country (it kicks my ass on a regular basis), but because its serenity, abundance of life and sheer beauty are almost indescribable.  An afternoon at the ranch is like having a front row seat in nature's amphitheater; where trout, insects, swallows, foxes and the occasional moose steal the show.  

A Henry's Fork Rainbow

While there are other sections of the river where you can consistently land back-to-back large trout, fishing the ranch is not a numbers game; it requires a different strategy altogether.  You may spend 20 minutes sitting on the bank observing rise forms, then another five to ten minutes slowly working your way through gin clear water to get within casting range.  Long leaders and light tippet are a must. 

There are a lot of things that may go wrong, but when things go right, it's pretty amazing.  I am beginning to understand why people come here from all over the world to fly fish. The rainbow trout in the Henry's Fork are some of the wiliest, feistiest fish around.  

A lot of people obsess about matching the hatch here, but I think a good drag-free presentation is much more important than a perfect match.  In fact, even when the mayfly and caddis hatches are in full swing, ant or beetle patterns have worked for me when other patterns didn't.

This Railroad Ranch Rainbow Rose to a Rusty Spinner

The overall health of the river is apparently on the upswing.  In addition to an abundance of water in recent years, the ranch has benefited from a relatively strict management philosophy ("catch and release only / barbless hooks / no bait") and Idaho Fish and Game has done a good job with enforcement locally.  Couple that with some fantastic grassroots conservation and community outreach programs via the Henry's Fork Foundation and you have a recipe for success.

A Long-Billed Curlew

The ranch is open to fishing from June 15th to November 30th each year.  During this time frame, hatches include caddis, PMDs, green drakes, brown drakes, flavs, yellow sallies, tricos, baetis and mahogany duns.

It's hard to explain the effect this place has on your head and your psyche. It's got its own unique rhythm and it's a great place to hone your skills.  This is as challenging as trout fishing gets.

I haven't yet landed a true hog at Railroad Ranch, but there are plenty of them in there...and I'll be back.

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Creatures from the Brown Lagoon - The Video

 It's alive...

The "Golden Bones" Misnomer

I love stalking the flats for both bonefish and carp and, while there are some similarities between the two species, it is time to stop treating carp like an ugly freshwater stepchild.  Carp are great quarry, period.   

Here's why we should put an end to the 'golden bones' and 'poor man's bonefish' analogy:

Tails from the Dark Side

All Fish Within a Species Are Not the Same:  A bonefish in Los Roques behaves very differently from a bonefish in Ascension Bay. One will slam a gummy minnow while the other will delicately slurp a Gotcha.

The same can be said for carp.  I've heard Lake Michigan carp will chase down, inhale and annihilate a large goby streamer pattern, while carp in other parts of the country barely move an inch to pursue their prey.  I had the pleasure of fishing with John Montana and Mr. P last week and they told me carp on the Columbia River eat a lot of clams.  Perhaps their local carp are not used to chasing their prey, as they rarely move towards flies.  Apparently the takes are incredibly subtle as well.

Here in east Idaho, the carp feed on a smorgasbord of forage and take flies extremely aggressively.  Yesterday I had two different carp jump out of the water and cartwheel when they felt the hook set. I've never seen a bonefish do that.

Our local carp are a lot more like redfish than any other species.

A Local Carp Reacts to the Hook Set

They inhabit very similar weedy, shallow water; they will usually chase down a fly and reward a decent presentation; if you miss a take the first time, they will frequently strike again; when you hook one carp, one or two others will frequently follow the hooked fish and your fly.  

Hell, our local mirrors even look like redfish when they are swimming.

The Runs:  Some of our smaller local carp will make your reel sing, peeling off 90-100 feet of fly line and 50 yards of backing in the first run.  In that respect, they are quite similar to bonefish, although the overall velocity is not the same.  Larger local carp, however, tend to simply power forward with a deliberate brute force, like a boss redfish.

Rocky Mountain Redfish

Our local carp generally travel in small groups to mud up a flat, frequently with their bronze tails waving in the air.  Some days it looks as much like the Louisiana bayou here as it does a reservoir in Idaho.

Fly fishing for carp will make you a better bonefish angler - you get used to stealthy shallow flat wading, casting to cruising/tailing fish and, most importantly, avoiding the dreaded 'trout set' on fish that like to 'hoover' their food. 

However, I think the similarities between the species end beyond that.

At the end of the day, it's carp fishing - period.

Carp vs. Work

Every spring, Blackfoot Reservoir lies dormant like a sleeping giant.  It offers up a morsel or two here or there, but it never really shows its true potential until we get a good streak of warm weather to bring the flats to life.  We finally got a good solid warm spell this week and now we are 'all systems go' for the summer.

I can't even begin to tell you what a remarkable fishery this is.  There are flats that will produce dozens of back-to-back cookie cutter 6 to 7-pound carp if you just want to keep a tight line all day and have a blast.  There are other areas, like where I fished today, where you can sight cast to very large carp in barely enough water to cover their backs.

Have a great weekend.

Drive-By Carpers

Q:  What do you when you are traveling for work and you drive past a reservoir with happy, tailing carp?

A:   You pull the hell over.

 

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Pressure Drop

I came home late last night from a five day journey in Las Vegas for an annual work convention.  After interacting with grown-ups in business suits all week and walking among the slot machine zombies, I was reminded we are completely and unequivocally doomed as a civilization.  Seriously. 

I was excited to get the hell out of Babylon and back to the flats for some therapy.  Unfortunately, Idaho was experiencing another major cold front and it was a case of deja vu from last weekend, with freezing rain and temps in the '40's.

There's an old farmer's joke in eastern Idaho:  "Around here we have two seasons - winter and July."

When Mother Nature is less than cooperative and the weather makes our friends at Blackfoot Reservoir too lethargic to feed, I have another "go to" spot in a different body of water with warmer water temperatures, benefiting from a natural spring.  While it's great to have some relatively warm water to fish, the carp in this early season clear water are wicked spooky.

Fortunately, I was able to find a willing player in very shallow water before it started sleeting.

Here is the protocol:

1) Schedule work around fishing;

2) Schedule fishing around the weather;

3) Make it happen.

Sure, my family is at the top of the priority list, but they are in Ohio for another four days and it's Memorial Day weekend.

If it warms up tomorrow, it'll be carp at the reservoir. If not, I'll chase some trout.  Probably a little of both over the weekend.

The salmonflies are hatching on the Henry's Fork River.  While the Henry's Fork is one of the most majestic places on earth, I just can't get enough carp.

It is really good to be home.

Prince Alla - bringin' it home:

8th Annual Blackfoot Reservoir Carp Classic - Recap

 

Once again, Blackfoot Reservoir was the site of the annual Carp Classic fly fishing tournament and, once again, Mother Nature came ready to party.  She brought a whole lot of hootin' and hollerin' first thing Friday morning and temperatures never ventured above 45 degrees.  It made for a day of cold, miserable fishing in the freezing rain.  Truth be told, it was probably the worst day of fishing I have ever had.  Only four teams (out of 29) put any fish on the board.

Day 1 Looked Like This

Fortunately, cold fronts tend to move through east Idaho pretty quickly this time of year and Day 2 was a different story altogether. In fact, it was warmer by 9:30 a.m. on Saturday than it was all day Friday.  As the sun warmed up the flats, the bite came on at 10:00 a.m.  It was like somebody flipped a light switch.  No action all morning...and then it was "go time."

Day 2 Looked Like This

This year there were 29 teams and, like previous years, each team had three anglers. I was teamed up with two guys from Missoula - John and Steve.  Although John and Steve have been fly fishermen for over 40 years each, this was their first time fly fishing for carp. They got many takes but most fish were lost to the "trout set" reflex.


However, Steve was able to land his first carp on the fly on Saturday and both anglers announced they now have "carp fever."

Steve's First Carp on the Fly

It was really great to see guys who have been fly fishing for many decades take on a new challenge and become completely stoked.  They were totally awesome guys to fish with and we've made plans to get together again to fish up in Missoula.  Of course, they plan on coming back again for next year's tournament as well.

At the Weigh In

Although I was fortunate to land good numbers of fish, none of them were hogs...and the Carp Classic tournament is all about the hogs.  In other words, the largest fish per angler and the total weight for the team's three largest fish is what counts.  In these types of tournaments, catching one fish - the right fish - is enough to win the tournament.

Such is the case with Terrie from team Mikey's Ho's.  She landed a phenomenal 27 pound slab and took the win in the women's division and the largest fish for Day 2.  Damn that was a great fish.

The vibe was totally great and everyone who participated had a great attitude.  I have never seen so many happy dogs in one place having a blast together.

Mack

Gus Loves Beer

Mad props and thanks are in order to Brooks Montgomery, Kenly Bitton, Travis Morris and everyone else involved for a great time.  I had a blast.