Myself and 4 buddies made our annual pilgrimage to Rock Creek from 6-22 to 6-29. Because of the heavy snowfall and almost nonexistent spring in the area this year, we were a bit worried about conditions. Ten days before we left, it was 34 degrees and snowing in Missoula!
We rent a house right on Rock Creek that is just outta this world!!! Fishing out the back door! We had 4 float days lined up with the Outfitter we book with. We all figured we'd do a bit more wading this year. Unfortunately the Bitterroot and Clark Fork Rivers were unfishable due to very high flows. We did fish the Blackfoot and Rock Creek.
Rock Creek is 50 miles long, so there are many different settings for this river. Fishing turned out to be fantastic. Both floating and wading side channels(the first couple of days), and then the main river later in the week. Our first day, the two boats we floated in landed over 80 fish between two anglers in each boat. Half the fish were under 11" and the other half were generally between 12"-17". Rock Creek fished very well every day. The Blackfoot started out with 3 1/2 hours of nothing and then turned on big time after lunch. The day we arrived, Rock Creek was at 3000 CFS due to runoff. The day we left, it was 1550 CFS. The fishing just got better every day. Rock Creek is loaded with Browns and Westslope Cothtroats. The Rainbow population is just recovering from Whirling disease, and there are a few Bull trout in the river as well.
We caught the Salmonfly hatch, as well as PMD's, Golden Stones and a couple of blanket caddis hatches. We were very lucky to say the least. Weather was 85 degrees and clear every day that we were there. We've gotten to know the guides and outfitter pretty well over the last 5 years. Our house is a welcome evening stop for these guys for a cold bruno at the end of the day. One of the pictures below is of the outfitter at our house having some fun . . . time is 2:30 AM, and yes he was rowing on the river at 8:00 AM the next morning. Notice the chocolate cake he's spilled all over his shirt after some cervezas.
A couple of pictures from the trip are below. Unfortunately my digital was destroyed in my bag on the flight in, so I had to rely on pictures from friends. The brownie is a 22" monster I was lucky to land at a place called Warm Springs. The landscape picture is a portion of the lower half of Rock Creek. All in all, it was a week of tremendous scenery, beauty, fishing and friendship. We got to see moose, bighorn sheep and a couple of bald eagles up close . . it was great. Can't wait for next year!
Wow, That must have been an amazing trip. I've been toying around with the idea of driving to Maybe Utah, Idaho, or montana next summer for a few weeks. Great post oneweight you rock !
congrates bob. that is one pretty brown. outstanding. glad you guys got into some fish to say the least.
that brown really makes be want to get back to new york to do some fly fishing. especially the big huge browns in central new york, my neck of the woods, and i can tell you this, the salmon run and steelhead run they get from the great lakes is unbelievable.
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Fishing isnt about catching fish, its not about who caught the most, or who caught the biggest, its about the experience that you have on the water, and the life long bonds you make with others on the journey to becoming a better person inside.
One of the highlights of this trip is how inexpensive it is. $600 for a plane flight, $350 for a week of lodging, $200 for food, $125 per head for rental SUV and whatever you feel like burning on float/ drift guides. I mean it's pretty easy to do the week for $1800.
Two of the guys drove back and fished the Henry's Fork and other rivers on the way. If I had the time, I'd do that . . . but I don't, so I have to go for plan B. The country there is absolutely beautiful . . . I mean stunning. At this time of year, it's no problem to be fishing in light until 9:45 PM.
Nice trip one weight A very good friend of mine owns two lodges on the clark fork it is finally coming into shape so he is going to fish it this weekend. It should be unbeliavable. Looks like you hit rock creek perfectly I didnt think runoff was ever going to end over there this year.
I was pretty amazed, the first day we hit Rock Creek, it was raging. I still have a 3 color bruise on my arm, two weeks later, after I almost got tossed out of the raft when we hit major rapids. I hit the frame full tilt and thought I was going out, luckily I was tossed back into the raft. Time for a cold beer after that one.
The fishing in those conditions was actually excellent. Couldn't believe it. As I said, from there, it only got better each day. As far as the price for the week, if you drove out, you could shave $400 off per person versus flying. Rock Creek regualtions require that outfitters have USFS permits. They only allow 100 commercial floats, and they have to be done by July 1 every year. No commercial floating is allowed after July1. The USFS puts these things out to bid every year!!!!! The red tape that the outfitter has to go through is unbelievable. The USFS litterally does a daily census of who is on the river floating each day by personal ranger inspection. Because of this, it costs $600 + tip to do a 2 person float on Rock Creek. It is definitely worth it once or twice per trip though.
