Group Three, Day Three

Neither climbing temperatures not bluebird clear skies interfered with the final day of Extravaganza 2016’s fishing, as the eight boats were evenly spaced between the Bitterroot and Blackfoot Rivers, both of which provided ample product of their quarried fish, witness a 21” brown landed by Cynthia “Houston” Day-Stratton (shown above signing in onto the Twenty Inch board for the first time of her now-fifth visit to Extravaganzaland) and the 31” bulltrout that son Tyler “Lefty” Clausen (shown above ablaze in yellow—two Yellow Hats and the Group Three Yellow Shirt!) landed on his E-12 Sweetgrass bamboo rod [see separate posting and proud father above].

The SS Rosen/Robertson sported a 30+ fish day on the Blackfoot who were adjoined on that majestic river by the husband-wife couple of Jim “Fishbecker” and “Ms. Cry Dye” Leah Becker who exceeded their prior days’ fish count, and by h/w couple Mark “Z-Man” and Julia “Z-Woman” Zion who smiled all the way to Hooters après with their 20+ fish day.

Fishing on the sister Bitterroot, Scott “Not So Flash” Gordon was partnered with “Little Richard” Deveau who fished aside of the SS Mamadore Becker/Yellow Hat Cynthia /Deveau, the latter prophetically doubling the fish count of their all-male counterpart. Joining the latter on “The Root”, was our eighth boat of the day captained by our wonderful Double Up Outfitter guide John “The Great But Propaneless” Gould which saw no-longer rookie Gary “Hooters” Jones and sidekick Dick “DH” Seale gleefully swing and miss at a gaggle of 20+” root browns and bows. The only postings to the Twenty Inch board, as shown above, were by Cynthia and Tyler

All in all, the Threes, like the Ones and Twos before them, hit home run after fishing home run, making Extravaganza 2016 the most fish-prolific Extravaganza ever!!

Bravo, bravo, bravo from the now closing scene of it all,

Rock Creek Ron
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FW: 31" Blackfoot E-16 Bulltrout Landed on Bamboo!!

A nice note from our great friend Dave Delisi, nee of Sweetgrass Rods, who processed our 2012 epic bamboo order—the largest order of its kind in fly fishing history!!
RCR

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Congratulations are in order for…

a) you for placing that giant order with Sweetgrass and seeing it yield such an amazing fish,
b) Tyler, for properly handling both rod and fish,

and

c) Scott A. for being a credit to his kind.

Wow.

Well done and congratulations to all!!

Dave

Montana's Bob Wire Plays for Dem Threes!!!

Our great friend, the inimitable honky tonker, Bob Wire blessed the Threes with his presence on their last night here.  Featuring  songs like “You’re on my Shit List” (dedicated to Houston’s Martin “Madman” O’Malley for permanently misplacing one of my boat cameras), “The Ode to Rock Creek Ron’ (complete with kazoos rom the E-16 horn section), and “White Trash Paradise”, the Wireman was in his prime and can next be seen in Napa, California for the 8^th annual Montana Matters National Wildlife Federation fundraising concert (at which the ENTIRE NWF board will be present!).

MWF's Dave Chadwick Presents

Just as he did for the Wonderful Ones, Montana Wildlife Federation Executive Director Dave Chadwick trekked over the Continental Divide from Helena to be in Extravaganzaland and tell Dem Threes of the wonderful work his organization yet continues, after 80 years in existence, to do to preserve access for all to Montana’s fishing streams and hunting fields. Congrats on all that you do, Dave, to keep this wonderful place just that—you have a full shout out and salute from Extravaganza 2016!!

Rock Creek Ron

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31" Blackfoot E-16 Bulltrout Landed on Bamboo!!

For our tenth Extravaganza anniversary, in 2012, I ordered and handed out 80 (count 'em!) custom-made bamboo rods from world renowned Montana rod maker Sweetgrass Rods and, since then, these rods have fished the world but never have seen the likes of what was witnessed on E-16'sDay Three of Group Three. On that fateful day, son Tyler "Lefty" Clausen repeated what we had done so well just the day before--a day on the famed Blackfoot ("A River Runs Through It")--fishing, all day, only Sweetgrass bamboo rods.

Mid-day into Lefty's second day of so doing, as he had so many, many times in the previous 24 hours, he hooked into a 14" cuttbow (which, until then, we thought plenty of fish for his five weight 8 foot rod) only to have a "large shadow" loom up from the rocks, and, just as guide Scott Anderson was about to net the bow, ingest the quarry whole, returning to the depths with both attached to Tyler's fishing line. Shortly thereafter, the dry fly that had enticed the cuttbow was severed and then, by the luck of all things lucky, its size 16 trailing nymph hooked the feasting bull in the bottom lip, and the ensuing real fight, which lasted over 45 minutes was on-- a fight that saw Lefty perpetually keeping tension on the racing bulltrout while guide Scott (along with Tyler) leapt out of their boat and chased the bull several hundred yards downstream and in the course of the battle, the bull would take refuge behind several of the large underwater rocks that are found in the river (rocks "from the beginning of time" as described by Norman McLean in his epic novel for which this river is now known) whereupon guide Scott, pictured above with Lefty, the bamboo rod and the landed bulltrout, literally went into the river "up to his neck" taking his net to spook the bull out from behind the rocks to continue the battle/war.

And look at the result above, gang--a first-ever mega bulltrout landed by an Extravaganzer on flexible and (now not-so--perceived) tender bamboo. Congrats, son--you are a masterful fisherman and accomplished a masterful feat with a masterful bamboo rod--yes, this was also worthy of both a Yellow Hat and the Group Three Yellow Hat.

Montana Wildlife Federation Presents!

As shown above, Montana Wildlife Federation's Executive Director, Dave Chadwick, trekked to/fro Helena to present to Dem Threes, updating all on the burgeoning activities of the 80 year young Montana affiliate to the National Wildlife Federation—thanks, Dave!!!

Fishing Report from Days One and Two of Dem Threes

Well, no sooner had the record-setting Ones and Twos left but the now-traditional heat arrived to welcome Dem Threes as they arrived on the scene of Extravaganza 2016!  Where the first two groups saw early morning temps in the thirties, the Threes were greeted with mid-day temperatures in the 90's, demonstrating ever so efficiently how variable western Montana's weather is and, resultantly, fishing day productivity. 

 

Day One for the Threes found the bounty of the lower Clark Fork that had benefited the Ones and Twos so well evaporate with boats evenly split among our three fishing rivers:  the Clark Fork of the Columbia River, the Bitterroot River and the Big ("A River Runs Through It") Blackfoot River.  Day One's biggest fish was landed by veteran Cynthia "Brownie" Deveau--she is seen above wearing her very first Yellow Hat for her 19" ("tape measured") brown, her hubby "Little Richard" specializing in white fish that day but short sheeted on Day Two as they ventured into the Blackfoot's Canyon with more modest results. 

 

On Day Two the big kahuna of the day was the SS DH/Jones which found both fishermen receiving Yellow Hats, DH for his beauty of a 20" Bitterroot brown, Gary for his 19" counterpart (at the honorable insistence of sidekick DH Seale) only to be matched by a third Yellow Hat awarded to son Tyler "Lefty" Clausen (all three being shown above in yellow) for his 19" classic cuttbow landed on bamboo on the Blackfoot.  Hats off to Gary who, on Day One, landed his very first fish ever on a fly rod—a 14" lower Clark Fork rainbow.  Right on their heels were the quirkish two of Brian "Capt'n Four" Robertson and Dirk "Mare" Rosen who made up in volume that which length eschewed them, landing over 60 fish between them in their first two days of E-16 fishing.

 

Long distance travel for long distance releases was the fortune for Houston couple Martin "Madman" O'Malley and 39th anniversary (congrats!!!) bride "Houston Cynthia"whose two day bounty was a fraction of that of the SS Robertson/Rosen but paired with equal long distance travelers Mark "Z-Man" Zion and his bride of 36 years "Z-Woman" Julia who boated over 40 fish in their first two days of fishing on their return to Montana, the largest being Z-Man's AND A-Woman's separate 17" Blackfoot rainbows.

 

And then there was/is the Sailors Four, a foursome combination of returning veterans who successfully kept the Threes in stitches when they were not fishing and, when they were fishing, in addition to the Yellow Hat for Brownie above, saw "Mamadore" Hubbard and Scott "Not So Flash" Gordon (barely!) eking out a fishing living  while traversing first the lower Clark Fork and then the Blackfoot canyon while enjoying the continual visages of osprey, eagles and mergansers galore.

 

And then, very least and very last, there is the most curious couple of "Richmond Jim" and Leah "Cry Die" Becker, who saw the latter, as a rookie, taking over the first night's boat reports (thereby earning her not only a Yellow Hat for her first day of fishing, but. as shown above, also a coveted Tattoo Cry Die shirt for her ruckus of riotous reconnoitering) and telling all of HER first fish on a fly—a 15" something-or-other... for, it seems, that on Day One they did the grand slam by landing five different species of trout but were a bit unsure just what kind the biggest one was but, on Day Two, they doubled down in the experience by each landing 15" fish of one denomination or another!

 

As I report this Dem Threes are on the water wrapping up their third day (and the final fishing day) of E-16, again to be greeted by 90 degree weather but a temperature a far cry better than the 105 degrees that they suffered through one year ago!

 

Best to all from the scene of it all,

 

Rock Creek Ron 

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