Montana, I will be back.

Last week a group of my friends met in Bozeman, Montana for a fly fishing trip. We had two guys from New Jersey, one from California, and me... from Minnesota. The planning for this trip started many months ago, and honestly, I didn't think it would actually happen. If you know me, I talk alot about trips and things I want to do. Trips that most people think would be fun, but don't want to join. If you ask my wife, she will affirm that I get multiple eye rolls from her while I cook up a new idea. However, this one is a prime example of proper planning, pulling in the right people, and making it happen.

We decided to set everything up through Montana Angler, based out of Bozeman. They made this entire process an absolute breeze. We hired two guides and even rented a house through their services.

Upon arrival in Bozeman, I did have a special surprise at the airport. While waiting for my bag, I noticed a group high-fiving one another, and it was obvious they had fishing/hunting gear with them. I noticed that one of the guys had a First Light bag with him. So while I waited for my bag to come down the line, I walked over to take a closer glance at the man with the bag. He was wearing a Stihl Chainsaw hat, and just like that, I went into full-on thirteen-year-old-girl fan mode. “Excuse me”, I said, “Is your name Ryan?”, and his response was “Why, yes it is.” This man was Ryan Callahan of the Meat Eater Crew. Now to the average person this is not a big deal. He’s just a guy with a tv show and podcast. To me, this is like a teenage girl meeting Taylor Swift or Justin Bieber. I listen to his podcast every week and have watched all of his conservation videos on Youtube. Ryan Cal Callahan handled my introduction well, and I did my best to stay calm. He introduced me to his girlfriend, and I thanked him for what he is doing for conservation and education across the country. The reason I did not readily recognize him was due to the fact that he was wearing a mask. Beneath that mask is one really bushy mustache, but I told him that the thing that identified him for me was his Stihl baseball cap and First Light bag, as those are just two of the many sponsorships he has.

Moving forward, I got my bag and ran out to meet the guys in the rental car to head to our cabin. The drive to Mcallister, Montana was incredible. I have never seen such beauty as we witnessed as we headed southwest from the airport. There is no real way to describe how vast and wide the plains are in Montana. The mountains are all around you, but no matter how far you drive, they don't seem to get closer. During the drive, we saw antelope, mule deer, and even one moose. I found myself constantly saying out loud “Oh, my God”, simply in awe of the pure beauty.

After about fifty minutes or so, our GPS had us turn right. We drove down a dirt road for about twenty minutes before we reached our cabin. The cabin was perfect. It was a true log cabin with an outhouse, fire pit, and even a stream rolling directly beside the deck. It had been built to look old, but had wifi, TV, hot tub, and all the things that modern homes expect and desire. We quickly called “dibs” on rooms, cranked up the grill, and turned up the music. The only thing that put a damper on the trip had to do with an axe. If you have read this far and want to know what happened, text me.

The next morning, we rolled out of bed and headed to the only grocery store in town. We met our guides, Bill and Scott, in the parking lot, and were soon on our way. My buddy, Ryan, and I tagged along with Bill. Patrick and Kevin went with Scott.

Bill was the perfect guide, and I recommend that everyone ask for him. He was down to earth, positive, patient, and knew how to crack some jokes. All ‘round decent guy. We put in at the McAtee Bridge on the upper Madison River in pursuit of some monster brown trout. Ryan had never fly-fished before, but he picked it up in a flash.

Growing up in the East, I was accustomed to using dry flies on the surface of water. The perk of using a dry fly, is that you can see the fish come up to the surface and take it. This makes setting the hook a bit easier, in my opinion. In Montana, however, we were using sinking flies. We arrived a week or two before bugs hatch and that led us to use larger flies that replicated small fish/minnows. We would cast to the banks of the river and let the fly “hunt” ,as Bill would say. The water was quick, and the idea was that the fish would be in the slower water by the edges of the river where they don't have to work as hard to stay in place.

It was fun to hear Bill talk about what we were doing. You know that being a guide, he says the same things to most of his customers. He would say things like, “This looks fishy”, and “let it hunt”. We listened to his expertise, and the next thing I knew we were pulling in 20+ inch brown trout. The fishing was “slow” from what Bill explained to us, but we didn't mind. We both caught multiple fish and could not have had a better time. We both would get so focused on our fishing that we would forget to step back and look at the surroundings. While banked up against the edge, I decided to romp and stomp to look for sheds. I did not find sheds, but found signs of moose, deer, and horses all along the river's edge. The last image I will have at the end of this day was of just one of the bald eagles we saw on the trip.

When the fishing was done, we returned to the cabin and cracked open a few beers. The nights were cold... in the 30’s and the days were warm, at 70 degrees. The trip was quick, but the perfect medicine each of us needed to have a break from our jobs. There was no cell service on the river, and to be completely honest, my phone was on airplane mode. It is important to get away once in a while and spend time with friends doing something new. This was a wonderful trip that I would highly recommend to anyone. Montana is bare and rustic, and if you have not been yet, please go.

Quotes from the trip:

“Pass my another one, I spilled it down my throat”

“What happened to that fancy rod you had?” “Dude it got stolen, it was a $2,000 fly rod I got for my barmitsfa”

“Why have I not seen a deer with antlers?” “You live in San Francisco”