Home On The Range

I had the privilege of going on horseback ride yesterday with Matt Buckley, our equestrian guru.

Matt has come up with some amazing rides for us this year and it is an absolute pleasure to ride with him. Due to the time constraints, I was only able to go on a 2 hour ride which was a real bummer as it was a perfect day for a ride. That said, my butt is a little saddle sore so maybe it was for the better. We rode up a drainage to the west of the home ranch and before long we started seeing elk.

Elk calf on the range. Photo by Joel

The elk calf in in the picture got separated from the herd and began to follow us. I guess the horses looked close enough to being its mama so the little guy felt comfortable following us. As soon as we crested the top of the bluff, we encountered the rest of the heard below us and the calf took off running for them. It was pretty cool to have him tag along as long as he did.

Horse Wrangler, cowboy poet and all around great guy, Matt Buckley. Photo by Joel

The vistas from on top of the bluff were simply breath taking. That is Matt in the picture and if you look real hard in the valley below, you can see the herd of elk.

I can't say enough good things about Matt. He is professional, kind, enthusiastic, witty, and just fun to be around. He is als a great cowboy poet and if you take a ride with him, I encourage you all to get him to recite some of it for you! Trust me, you will not be disappointed! Matt has taken our equestrian program to the next level and I encourage everyone to book a ride with us in September.

September is a great month on the ranch. The temperatures are mild and the fall colors are just getting started. Plus the elk are starting to get into the rut so you will likely hear them bulge at all times of the day which is a very cool thing if you have never experienced it before.

We have all level of rides for all level of riders and can do rides from an hour long up to.....well as long as you would like to go for! Come and enjoy the ranch from the back of a horse. You will never regret it!

Feeding Your Addiction,

Joel

Rock Creek Fishing Report

The creek has been fishing pretty good in the evenings lately, but it was a little slow today when I was out with Jill Caruso and Matt Donald. They were in from Seattle and wanted to try their hand at fly fishing so after a little lawn casting lesson, we headed for the creek.Matt Donald and Jill Caruso doing a little lawn casting practice.

The creek has risen about 4 inches overnight which has brought temperature down and probably had fish feeding all night on the behavioral drift of nymphs and larvae and probably lots of terrestrial bugs like ants and beetles being washed in from rising water.

I don't know for certain but I think the rise in water is due to less irrigation water being taken out as hay fields are being cut and very little irrigation is going on at the moment.Jill Caruso with a Rock Creek Brown that took an Elk Hair Caddis Dry

We did get a few rises on elk hair caddis, golden stones, chernobyl ants, beetle and even San Juan Worm dropper.

Matt Donald with a Rock Creek Brown that took the San Juan Worm dropper.

Thanks to Jill and Matt for a great morning on the creek. I really enjoyed sharing it with you. Come back soon!

Sharp Hooks and Tight Lines,

Ron

Creek Fishing Well

Rock Creek has been fishing very well recently!

Cary Patterson with a nice Rock Creek dry fly Brown

The spruce moths are out in force and a good dry fly pattern to use is an elk hair caddis. I'm liking the gray and tan body flies. Size doesn't seem to be really important, within reason. Hoppers are also working pretty danged well. I know Zac has been dropping different nymphs from his dry for his guests and the fish are eating those too.

Paul Hayne and one of Rock Creek's fine dry fly participants!

I fished the Clark Fork with my nephew a couple of evenings ago. Spencer turns 9 years old in a couple of days. This was his first time to fly fish. He landed his first brown trout on a dry fly and to say he is excited about and hooked on fly fishing would be a real understatement. Elk Hair Caddis, PMD's, Parachute Adams, Purple Haze and Rusty Spinners are all working on the Clark Fork at the right time of day.

Mornings and evenings are proving best right now. Middle/heat of the day, not so much unless you have plenty of cloud cover.

We have had several afternoon showers roll through but not enough to muddy the waters. We take a break if there is lightning in the air, otherwise we're fishing!!

Sharp Hooks and Tight Lines,

Ron