Calling all readers!

Ok, this is a little shameless but I have entered a caption contest on the Hopper Jaun blog, some sweet montana fly co. swag goes to the winner... and I want to win! The blog is a sweet blog and ive been lurking on it for some time, but finally made an attempt at one of his contests. Soooo, if you feel like going over and checking it out please consider voting for my comment " throw your purse at it" or I guess if you like one of the other 4 finalist better, vote for them... but check it out if you have the time. You can find the post at hopperjaun.blogspot.com Thanks and tight lines-

Gearing back up

Well the grieving time has passed and its time to move on. With my departure back to Alaska only 6 days away I'm in need of a few new rods. I plan on hitting Cabelas tomorrow for a new 5 or 6 wt C.G.R and I'm thinking of buying an Echo switch rod for the rest of my Alaska fishing this summer, maybe its time for something new. Anyway just thought I would fill you all in on what I have in mind... stay tuned for more adventures, they are only beginning-

Theft ends the C.G.R chronicals

Its over, my rod is gone, actually most of my rods are now gone, I don't even own a modern reel anymore. The details are unimportant.. but since the 7/8 C.G.R is gone I won't be posting any more war story's for it, I was on the verge of purchasing a 5 wt but I don't think I care anymore.. cabelas can send me a new one if they feel like it, but since the Riverkeeper only has 31 readers I doubt that will happen. So I guess I will kick around and find a new rod to flout the attributes of, I'm thinking of contacting Steffen Rods and commissioning the build of a sweet 8 wt steel head rod, but that will take a while, maybe I will win a sweet review of something on the Outdoor Blogger Network.. who knows.. the cabelas rod was worth the money and performed past my expectations and I would definitely recommend one to anyone who wants a sweet glass rod. Here the last photo of the last fish my beloved rod beached... good bye my friend.. it was fun-

Cabelas C.G.R and North Idaho Bass

Well after returning home last week from a long stint in Alaska it was time to head to hope Idaho for a few days of fishing and family time. I had been looking forward to some trout fishing on the Clarke Fork and the Pack River, but apparently the huge snow pack and the warmer weather had conspired against me by blowing both rivers out. I walked around the condos basically feeling sorry for myself when I spotted a rather large small mouth sitting on a Redd... and the whole direction of the week changed in a heartbeat. Now im not one to typically chase Bass, but I'm also not one to turn his back on an opportunity so bass fisher I became. Armed with my newer cabelas 7 wt and a box of trout flies ( the black buggers and purple egg sucking leeches were the stars of the show ) I polished off the remainder of that day with 12 small mouths and 2 large mouths.. not bad for a steelhead/trout guy I thought. I lost alot of fish the first few days to docks, rocks and weeds, the 4 lb tippet I had just wasn't enough for fish that are such talented escape artist. I managed to round up some 12 lb izor line and put an end to that problem. The glass rod was amazing, fought the heavier fish very well and was still soft enough in the tip to make the smaller fish enjoyable. I know I have always called them ditch pickles, but I have to admit they were worthy adversaries in a time of need.. no Bass were killed in the making of this post- Happy Independence day-

M.I.A

Well I realize I have been MIA for a while here on the Riverkeeper, Very tough working conditions, poor Internet connections and some depression have had me just not feeling the blog mindset. 2 weeks ago I also lost a 15 year friend who died in his tent of cardiac arrest after a grueling 20 hour summit day on Denali, he was 52 and in excellent health.. its been haunting me a little. But I'm now back in the land of the living and currently taking a vacation in a great fishing spot and hope to put a couple of exiting post together in the next few days. I'm gonna include some shots from the last month of fishing, everyone loves a good photo, right? no stories though.. can tell every tale I guess- Brad

Its Coming!

The Alaskan suns rule of the sky is becoming longer by the day, Break up and springtime may be days if not hours away. I spent a day casting my cabelas C.G.R into an empty and barren Quartz creek just to get the feel for her... by next week the lakes on the kenai will break up and the kings will enter the rivers... and tens of thousands of hungry Bows will fall back into the rivers... and then I will present the greatest Glass rod review ever written ( by me ) here's a few pics to get you all by until then. I'm also gonna give my old glass eagle claw convertable pack rod a few hours in the sun... should be good-

Naha River Alaska steelhead 2011

We all have our favorite place, sometimes its simply the end of a dock on a quiet lake, sometimes its a river that enchants us, the Naha is mine. Access is plane or boat only, no road scars the river bank, garbage is non existent, and once again I believe I was the first to fish it this spring. Unlike years past the snow was gone due to a very mild snow winter, as nice as the walking was due to the lack of snow the down side was the bears so fresh out of their dens you could smell them long before you saw one... I saw 4 in 6 hours. One of the greatest things about the Naha is the fact that the river is home to both Big steelhead and some of the prettiest fat rainbows you could ask for. I was hoping to shoot a video but constant SE Alaska rain made that idea too difficult. Dustin an I started out on the lower river and fish were scarce, within 30 minutes he had landed the first fish of the day, about a pound er and dark. That would be the only fish landed in the first 2 miles of river, and the only fish my lead bouncing friends would hook. Ray and Jim caught up to us and declared some real estate at a nice cut bank and started to fish. I watched for a bit, then faded into the timber to the trail and started humping up river as fast as I could. The fish were most likely higher in the system in my mind so I had to fight myself to pass up dozens of likely spots and keep going.... and it paid off. 3 hours up the river produced 6 landed steelhead ( one cracking the tape at a staggering 37 inches ) and none of the others smaller than 30 inches. I swung a black sleech for a bit and then switched it up to an articulating trailer trash fly, and the trash was the star of the day. I also used double bugs free drifted to bang about 7 or 8 of the most stunning rainbows you could ever hold. I have included the few pictures of fish I took, without a partner it is hard too take pictures without risking hurting the fish, the rain was falling hard and the rocks were slippery and wet so a snapped a couple quick ones, some are poorly exposed because I rushed it. When I finally headed back down river I just joined the guys where I had left them and we decided the tide was right to leave. Back at the boat the numbers and cameras came out.. gear fishermen- 1 Fly- 6 steelhead and the trout for extra credit.... Man I love Alaskan steelhead and road less rivers! I will be in Alaska for two more months so hopefully many more posts will follow-