Evolution Fly Fishing

What To Bring

Okay, you have finally made it to Craig, Montana, home of the Mighty Missouri River. You are sitting in your room with everything that you think that you might need to fool a trout, right in front of you. Then you realize that you are going to be spending the next few days sitting in a drift boat. What should you bring? Well, you could bring everything. With in reason. The guides at Evolution Fly Fishing all use the best drift boats on the market. They feature plenty of dry storage so that you can store items with the confidence that the weather will not get to them. In Montana it can be 80 and sunny in March and 40 and rainy in July. So we would rather you bring to much than to little. But here's a list of the basics that you should bring with you to ensure that you will be properly prepared.



➣ Quality Gore-tex rain jacket with hood
➣ Long sleeved Jacket in case you get chilly
➣Depending on season either waders or rain pants
➣ Gloves, waterproof and warm, multiple pairs
➣Sunblock
➣Bug spray
➣ Rods. 5 and 6 weights will cover 99% of situations
➣ Camera and spare batteries (film?)
➣ Waterproof bag. Handy for storing camera, wallet, etc.
➣ A hat and headsock

If you show up with those things listed, you should be prepared for just about everything.

Lets talk about tackle now. A 9 to 10 foot 5 or 6 weight will cover all general fishing conditions. Please don't show up with a 7 foot 2 weight that you use to catch the 6 inch brookies in you local stream as your main rod, you will probably be in for a frustrating day. The Missouri is a BIG river! Typical summer flows are anywhere from 3500 to 4500 cubic feet per second (cfs). During the peak of runoff, flows can get upwards of 15,000 cfs. And just like anywhere else in the west, the wind can be an issue. On top of that, the fish are just plain big and strong on the Missouri. So a stout rod will really make your life easier. There is a case for both lighter and heavier rods though. During prime streamer time, mainly spring and fall, a 7 weight can make throwing big streamers and sink tips a little more enjoyable. And if you want to put the stalk on a big, wily brown in a side channel and toss a tiny dry fly, there is nothing wrong with a 4 or even a 3 weight. Realize that the fish will have the advantage in those situations though.
If you are new to the sport or just choose not to bring a rod, no worries. The guides at Evolution Fly Fishing or one of the local fly shops can provide you with top of the line rods and reels at no charge.
This year Mike Kuhnert will be carrying a selection of switch rods in the boat. These switch rods are great in the hands of new anglers. Plus you have the option to 2-hand (spey) cast these rods. If you have never had any chance to 2-hand cast and would like to learn, Mike would love to help you out with some instruction.
Don't worry about flies, leaders, tippet,.... We will take care of all that.
We got the secret stuff.

Then when you want to take a break and remanence about the morning fishing, Evolution Fly Fishing will provide you with a top notch lunch with all the fixings. All of our lunches are made fresh daily. While you won't be eating caviar and freshly prepared fillet mignon. You will have a hearty sandwich (not bologna and white bread), a couple of sides, and some dessert. Special dietary needs can be met with prior notice. Along with lunch we provide water and a variety of soda. Sorry, we don't provide alcohol, but you may happily bring it along.

How We Do It

There are plenty of books out there that go on and on about how to fool these silly little trout that swim around in the Missouri River. This section is not that. What follows is a quick synopsis on the 3 main techniques that we use out there on a daily basis.

Nymphing

If you want to go out there and just flat out catch fish and have a pile of fun, this is the way to do it. For reasons that I don't understand a lot of people think that indicator, nymph, split shot, beadhead, are dirty words in trout fishing. That nymphing is somehow a lower form of fly fishing. Bullshit. To be an effective nymph angler requires a set of skills that are the absolute foundation to becoming a better angler. A detailed understanding of the dynamics of current flow, bottom structure, why the fish are there, and what they are eating is needed to be able to go out on the river and absolutely punish the trout. When nymphing there is no need to cast to the other side of the river. Just get the fly away from the boat and properly present the fly. This means a slack line presentation with big, aggressive up stream mends that allow the fly to drift naturally down the river. Never have a straight line between rod tip and bobber. You always need some slack line on the river. And if that bobber so much as twitches, set the hook and hold on.

Hunting Heads

So you want to catch a fish on a dry fly? The Missouri River is called the worlds biggest spring creek, even though it is a tailwater, and these fish can act like spring creek fish. Most of the time they are spooky and unforgiving to sloppy presentation. This is not a numbers game. We are looking for the right fish, that is in a catchable situation. The rise form can tell you a lot about the fish. There is an inverse correlation between the size of fish and the size of the rise form. Big fish have learned to be very efficient in their feeding. Those middle of the river splashy rises are not what we want. We are looking for singles or pods of fish that are steadily rising. Next, understand that these fish usually are not daintily eating single duns. They mostly eat bits and pieces of dead and decaying insects. So don't get sucked up in the match the hatch insanity. If you want to throw a size 23 trico with the left wing folded and 1 tail missing, go ahead. The guides are going to toss something that we can see and that will hold the fish when it eats it. The presentation of the dry fly is much more important than the choice of the dry fly. Two words, REACH CAST. This is the single most important weapon in your arsenal. A slack line presentation that drops the fly precisely in the fishes feeding lane is the key to success.

Streamers

This is my favorite way to catch trout on the Mighty Mo. If you are so inclined, you could throw streamers every day and catch fish. But, the prime season is during spring and fall. This is usually how you are going to catch the true monsters of the river. Every year fish bigger than 24 inches get caught on streamers. The patterns and methods are extremely varied. Everyone has their own way they like to toss streamers, so I won't get to caught up in technique. My only advice is to just keep that fly wet, and to keep it moving.