The Missouri River, MT Fishing Report… This past weekend I was invited out to fish the Missouri River near Craig, Montana with a few local trout bums/NOMADS from the Lansing area.  “What a stunning piece of water!” We caught lots of rainbows and browns in the 16-20” range.  Most of the fishing was in riffles and runs under a strike indicator or “bobber” with size 16-22 nymphs on 6X flourocarbon.  We ran into a few BWOs and Caddis and had some success on dry flies. I love it – the town of Craig consists of 3 fly shops, 2 bars, a breakfast place and a general store.  Go to: http://www.nomadanglers.com/photos/montana/
For some pictures of the trip. We are planning trip out there in the fall if you are interested - $995 5Days fishing - 4 Nights - BE A NOMAD!

Hey Nomads,For anyone I didn’t get a chance to talk to before I left…I took a job with the federal government doing sea lamprey assessment based out of Ludington this summer. Downside…it’s a job…Upside…sea lampreys like to spawn in all the same places that trout & salmon do, so I’m going to get a chance to see some awful good fishin’ holes all over the Great Lakes Region right through the end of October. Case in point…I’ve just spent three fantastic evenings on the Platte River, and if you’ve never fished it…you need to. First time I’ve had the chance…great insect hatches…Hendricksons, Slate-wing Mahoganys, BWO’s, & Sulphurs all mixed together from noon to 8pm. Not a lot of size on the bug-eaters, but they make up for it in pure numbers…40-50 fish in a couple of hours each night….Browns, young Steelhead, & Coho smolts from 4-10 inches smashed my dries until it got too dark to see’em every night. There are plenty of steelhead still in the river too. Here’s my take on the Platte…if you’re like me…& enjoy smaller technical streams with a lot of action & the chance for a bruiser on light tackle in beautiful surroundings…you NEED to make the trip! Tonight I took my 7′ 4-wt Orvis T3 down to a road crossing just outside of the town of Honor…caught 30 mixed browns, juvenile steelies, & coho smolts on a #18 BWO parachute (see pic) until I walked up on a pair of Steelies on gravel with what I thought was a nice brown hanging behind them gorging on eggs trying not to get killed by the buck. I switched to an unweighted orange Real Egg & 3 casts, 3 logjams, and a 50 yard sprint downstream later brought a small but feisty young steelhead buck to the net…& all on 5X tippet. Snapped a few quick pics & sent him on his way. I’ll be sending Brian regular fishing reports from around the Great Lakes…will be visiting Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and all things Michigan…Keep your eyes peeled Nomads!

Often you hear people call a fish they have caught a “toad”…well maybe we should start re-thinking this a little bit.  Here is a picture of a “toad” that had a “toad” for lunch.  Start looking for “toad” patterns at the shop!  Screw the mice!    This fish was caught caught near Grayling…

Here are a few fish pictures from the Muskegon River…

Thank you Jim Reed for sharing some of you skills of working with deer hair! Spinning and stacking deer hair is tricky task to many fly tyers but with a little direction one can start creating functional divers or small little rodents out of hair. Jim is an active member of the Wooly Bugger Fly Fishers in Howel, MI and is very passionate fly tyer that loves to share his wisdom. For more information about classes and seminars like these visit our website: nomadanglers.com

Thanks Again, Jim

I’ve made the cover of the most recent ORVIS catalogue!  That’s my hand on the back for the cover! Photo shot on the Au Sable River near Grayling…Thanks, Tom

3-3 & 3-4
Fished the Pere Marquette on Monday…
Warm weather + eggs = trout and steelhead on fly rod.
Also we checked out the Fly Fishing Film Tour in GR on the way back home. 
Way cool…inspiring films for us NOMADS.

These things are selling like hot cakes! Currently the Miller High Life Bobber is on back order.  Sorry about the incnvenience. These work great after a hot summers day on the PM!