It was a simple plan. Meet my friend in Bozeman, share a rental car and follow his lead. I was really looking forward to a break from my typical DIY style fly fishing trips. No maps, no inside research and limited guess work. He would know (and hopefully have) all the flies we would need, where to fish and we’d be staying and fishing with his friends who live and guide in Montana. I’d just be tagging along and happy to be doing it. Three days before we were scheduled to leave I checked my email and saw an email from my friend. The subject of the email read, “Montana”. I thought to myself, “Sweet, Tom must be sending me some more pictures of the nice fish he has caught in the rivers and spots we are going to be fishing.” I eagerly clicked on the email. It read, “I can’t go.” He had very “good” reasoning for canceling; and it was clear to me that I was on my own. I chugged a huge cup of coffee and got down to business. The first order of business was finding someone to travel with. I called Greg B, “Yo, you wanna go to Montana?” He replied, “I’d love to but blah, blah …” It was tough to find someone in such short notice. “Wait a minute. I think Austin is on spring break?” I call him, “Yo, you want to go to Montana?” He replied, “Are you serious? Of course! I’m in! .. Oh, but I have no money.” I replied, “You never have money, so what makes this any different?” I had some frequent flyer miles and free ticket vouchers, so we got his ticket. So, I had someone to travel with now I had to figure out exactly where Bozeman, Montana is. So, I did the logical thing (in my mind) and thought, “It can’t be far from Wyoming!” I figured, why waste time in Montana fishing the famous rivers that get pounded. So, I knew Jason from fliesandfinswest.com was already fishing The North Platte with Walter and some of his other buddies. I tried calling him, but his cell phone never gets service in that region. But, I knew Jason and his crew would be there; all I had to do what get there too. Then I saw Kray online. Kray lives and guides in Wyoming, and was a huge help with information when I made a trip to a different region of Wyoming last year. So, I called him and we lined up a day to fish together. I looked at the map and realized that I would be passing by Hardin, Montana. So, I called my friend John who lives in Hardin and guides on the Bighorn River. He shifted stuff around and he was able to fish with us on our way back to Bozeman. So, in short order, everything was shaping up. Then, I got an email from Greg Thomas who lives and writes in Ennis, Montana and he offered to show us around. To make a long story short; it was an amazing trip. I am blessed to have such quality friends and fly fisherman that help me out. And, I am fortunate that my network of quality friends and fly fisherman continues to evolve. Thank you so much, to everyone we fished with and everyone who helped us! We appreciate the help and hospitality greatly. Once again, I was in Awe with the west. Wyoming, as always, did not disappoint and Montana was more spectacular than I could have imagined. We fished some amazing stretches of rivers in both states, caught beautiful wild trout every day and experienced some epic dry fly fishing on Montana’s Bighorn River. Both Montana and Wyoming are amazing places. I especially enjoyed shooting video out there because of the seemingly endless amounts of beautiful trout, inspirational scenery, space and wildlife. It’s clear to me why Montana is referred to as “Big Sky Country.” The song that I put together to accompany the video is called, “Big Sky”. Ultimately, what I love most is being able to combine my fly fishing, film and music hobbies into one little short film. I guess I like it because there is no “right” or “wrong”; fly fishing, film and music are all just personal interpretation and preferences. So, this tune and video represents my interpretation of “Big Sky” country. Thanks again, everyone!
Book
- Alaska
- Guide & Fisherman
- Guiding: Choosing Your Guide And Choosing Your Customer
- Guiding: Do It Yourself With A Guide
- Guiding: Evolution Of A Guide
- Guiding: Freshwater, More Than Meets The Eye
- Guiding: Friends For Life
- Guiding: Know Where You Are
- Guiding: More Than Just A Fisherman
- Guiding: Mystery Of The Fisherman
- Guiding: Payment
- Guiding: Saltwater, A Different World
- Rough Fish
- Fly Fishing For Rough Fish: Why Do It?
- Introduced Rough Fish: The Carps & Other Invasive Species
- Methodology: Gear & Tactics For Pursuing Roughfish On A Fly
- More Roughfish: Bullheads, Whitefish, Goldeye, Burbot & Drum
- Rough Fish Environments: Where To Look For Rough Fish?
- Rough Fish Species: The Suckers
- Rough fish: A Lifetime Of Learning
- Rough Fish: Fishing For Dinosaurs (Gars & Bowfin)
- Rough Fish: What Are They?
- The Hook: Some Common Rough Fish Fly Patterns
- Spey
- Spey: Applications, Where Can You Do It?
- Spey: Atlantic Salmon, A Significant Fish
- Spey: Defined And Demystified
- Spey: Gear, The Nuts And Bolts
- Spey: Lines, They Are That Important
- Spey: Steelhead, New Traditions & A Modern Movement
- Spey: The Energy
- Spey: The Flies
- Spey: The Swing
- Spey: Two Critical Casts
- Striped Bass
- Striped Bass: Fishing Rocky Shorelines
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Beaches
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Flats
- Striped Bass: Fishing The Reefs
- Striped Bass: Fishing Tidal Rivers
- Striped Bass: Flatwing Swing
- Striped Bass: Fly Line Options & Choices
- Striped Bass: Gear, The Nuts & Bolts
- Striped Bass: Migration Patterns
- Striped Bass: What They Eat
- The Art Of Escape
- Fly Fishing: A Natural Drug
- Fly Fishing: A Validation Of Freedom
- Fly Fishing: Don’t Fight The Current
- Fly Fishing: It Is What It Is
- Fly Fishing: Socialization For Asocial Individuals
- Fly Fishing: The Allure Of The Fish
- Fly Fishing: The Art Of Escape
- Fly Fishing: The Simplicity Of It All
- Fly Fishing: Time Flies
- Fly Fishing: Times You Remember & Try To Forget
It’s funny how things turn out sometimes. Either a friend can’t meet up with you at the last minute for fishing or you have to cancel you’re self. But…equally amazing is what usually happens next. You find someone who can go, or you go by you’re self and meet someone new! And you end up learning some new things along the way. And the best part about it is, you got out and did it anyway(not that you wouldn’t have gone to Wyoming or Montana by you’re self) i’m just saying it’s great that you stuck to the plan! Also…I have been playing guitar for a long time now and i’ve never really sat down to put a song on paper or record it(my own insecurities). I am impressed that you have done so on a number of occasions…and the song was great! A great piece of work! thanks
bfly
That is a premo video, great fish, scenery and an excellent choice in fishing partners. I don’t know how to critique a video that is over the top!! The quality of video and fishing expertise is to much for me to try and use some crude measure, beyond the usual vernacular……. speechless.
thanks greg .. you coulda come .. maybe next time you want have to do “blah, blah, blah ….” …
thanks man, much appreciated!
Looks like you guys had an incredible trip just an amazing video you really captured the essence of fly fishing all in one. Beautiful fish, beautiful scenery and great film work. I loved every minute. Alex
I love the the tune man, It set in after the third time and its killer.
excelente video Jeremy!!! muy linda pesca y hermosos paisajes ……espera a conocer Argentina , despues me contas .
saludos
Miguel
Gracias Miguel … la argentina video es casi listos! será excelente. Acabo de estar ocupado viajando y la pesca también! .. ahora, tengo algo de tiempo para poner juntos.
Jeremy – another flies and fins classic – awesome video & music – this is the stuff that keeps me going especially when my own season has been slow so far – nice work!
Un-freakin-believable. I swear to god, you live the life of Reilly. I’m sure you work hard at your job, but man you fish a lot. You must have the most understanding wife alive.
Let’s hook up this summer and fish. Heading to the WB all next week with Todd who you drifted with up there last year.
Tim D
how goes it tim .. of course i remember you and todd and drifting with todd and the drift boat on the wb … he dialed me into the deadly nymph setup for the wb .. long leader, monster black stone fly with a beadhead the size of a cannon ball, followed by a tiny dropper … love it!
me, living the life of reilly? .. funny, i always thought the same thing about you and todd! … week on the green river in utah, drift boat on the west branch of the penob and a nice saltwater boat for the tuna! … i saw some of those nice bluefin you got into last year … man those things are awesome! .. i had some great shots on fly, but no takers …. i hope they show up in maine as good as they did last year … any tips on flies to throw??? i hear they are “easier” to catch when they are on the halfbeaks (juvenile needlefish) .. hope so, cuz when they were on the tinker mackerel it was like chasing a lightning bolt!! they were moving and eating sooooo fast in comparison to tuna feeding on other slower baits …… pm me your phone ….. maybe we can work as a team this year dialing into the bluefin …. i love the tuna game (albies, bonito, bluefin, yellowfin .. whatever .. i just love fly fishing for tuna .. whether in rhode island, maine, mexico .. whatever .. they are just a great species of fish) …… i have a really solid network of “tuna friends” in RI for the albies etc.. …. by my maine network is mostly striper guys who chase the giants … so, the i don’t got many friends who chase the schoolies like i love to .. funny how some guys just blow right through the 50-100 pounders and could care less about them … me, on the other hand, i am foaming at the mouth! … just was in “the tackle shop” yesterday .. bought a bunch of dayna’s striper flies .. he ties some killer patterns …. i was asking him about what to throw for the tuna .. and he is tying me up 5 custom patterns that i think will work nicely …. dayna is a sick fly tier ….. anyway, sorry to ramble … good to hear from you guys … let’s defiantely hook up on some salmon and tuna this year. just pulled my boat out of storage, tightening things up .. so she’s ready to rip when the tuna show. hey what flies do you throw when they are on the tinker makcerel??? i was throwing a mackerel pattern .. but didn’t get a look or swirl … mush mouths??
ps .. dude, i get no credit! … come on .. can’t you see that i am forging a path for every dude out there who loves to fly fish! Working angles with my wife constantly, shifting stuff around, always planning and scheming some way to get time on the water, getting it done for all of us! and, for every dude who’s got a wife that says, “are you really going fishing AGAIN!” ….. carry the torch brotha! .. live the dream! .. lifes to short for picking out sofas, cocktail weenies and all that stuff that “wives” love …. … all i want is more FISHIN’ TIME! . and maybe some coffee and smokes….
Dude,
You had me laughing on that one! I’d say we both have it pretty good. I don’t even throw flies at the tuna when they are feeding on macs, going to fast to get a good throw. I have some really good patterns for when they are feeding slower on the halfbeaks. Shoot me your email and I’ll send you some picss. My cell is 207-650-5965. Give me a shout anytime you want to fish. Being in sales, I have a pretty flexible calendar. Talk to you soon.
One more thought on this topic .. then, back to NOTHIN’ but FLY fishin .. flies and fins, for me, is entertainment and an ESCAPE from reality, when i come here i am “jeremy, the fly fishing addict” period. Livin the dream and the “life of reilly”. It’s all fly fishing 24/365 and my outlet and i think other peoples outlet to “live the dream” and escape for a few minutes/hours:) …. here on fliesandfins.com there is no and has never been such things as high gas prices, politics, war, layoffs, foreclosures, disease, earthquakes, floods, tornadoes, religion, promotions, salary cuts, high credit card rates, high food prices and all of those things that are VERY REAL in the REAL WORLD. for me, this is NOT and i don’t want it to be the real world .. its entertainment and an escape from all of those very real things that constitute most of my and others “real world” conciousness.
I really enjoy this aspect about the site .. and when I see other peoples “fish tales” i know they “get it” .. and they are livin’ the dream too .. and i “live the dream” through them and their adventures … so, bottom line is this, i purposfully use this as an entertainment source and an escape to “live the life of reilly” .. and instead of going to professional sporting events, playing video games, playing golf or whatever .. this is my escape …. here, i am “jeremy, the fly fishing addict” … nothing more, nothing less .. i think that, through time, others use fliesandfins.com in the same manner .. as a break from reality … i hope so….
ok .. cool .. back to fly fishin’ 24/7 365 .. cya.!
Sweet .. ya I’m in sales too .. i say we join forces, do a little collaborative strategic marketing and SELL SOMETHING to the tuna this year!!! I really want to “close that deal” and “land that account”!!!!!!!! ..
That was the best video/song that you have done. I really dig it. Keep on rockin’
j-
thanks j-mac! .. are the water levels comin’ down in colorado or what? .. i hear things are raging out there?
Nope- Even the tailwaters are high. I went to the Yampa the other day and almost went over my waders where it is normally only waist deep. Hopefully it peaks in the next week or so and we can start fishing as it clears and drops. I am due.
helluva video jeremy. i can imagine you had a plethora of footage to choose from. i’m just beginning to shoot video, piece it together and edit on my computer, and it’s a lot of fun. i find myself thinking about shots when i’m fishing, and sometimes wishing i were filming. when i’m at work or in my car listening to my ipod, some songs will immediately grab me as tunes that could go to fishing vids. there’s a dozen songs that i’ve pieced video together in my head. like you said, there’s no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’, just different takes. it’s crazy to think that two people could take the same footage and make a completely different three-minute video. it’s kind of hard to “finish” a video, because you can always change something.
i’m taking my first fishing trip out west in september – can’t wait… on second thought, there’s probably some fishing to be had here, between now and then ha
Just terrific work…every aspect is right up there with the best fly fishing video adventures online. I really like your original song, “Big Sky”. Did you have a Buffalo Burger?
I bet you’ll be jonesing soon to get back there. I’ve only been out there 4 or 5 times. It’s so huge you can’t possibly fish every place. Please keep me on your short list for that trip. I love those Western waters. Congrats to you and Austin on some spectacular Trout!
thanks marshall, much appreciated …. let’s fish soon .. actually i am heading up north today, i will give you a shout in a few ……
thanks man regarding “another flies and fins classic” … i really appreciate that … season on east coast has been a strange one so far for me .. slow and “off” compared to last year .. i think everything is late??? … either way, been slow for me too at home .. except for a few select day and spots….
thanks … and ya you are right and it is very cool .. 100 people could be given the same 30 minutes of raw video “clips” .. and the “end result” would be totally different for each … … you will dig it out there, ,… where are you going???? ..
What an awsome video! and a completly amazing trip. I had never seen so much untamed land in my life, and I loved every minute of it. The vast desert plains, giant snow capped mountains, and huge wild trout sipping on bwo’s all blew my mind. I will never forget this fly fishing trip. Thanks to all the people who helped make this trip so special; kray, greg thomas, and john, thanks for showing us all of your honey holes and best drifts. And of course, a huge thank you to jeremy! this trip was really special and I really appreciate the fact that you took me! thanks so much everyone!
Beautiful video guys and you can’t beat the music. I can’t wait to get some time to put together some videos. Heck I have to make time to do some fishing first. Seemed like an awesome trip and one you’ll remember for a long time.