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Haven't tasted them since I was a kid. Simple pan fry like I did back then. Remembered them being very mild, tasty, similar to trout and delicious. That memory was accurate. Hoping to catch more to try in the smoker.

Yup, I actually ate that too before scraping the bones into the bin.

Forgot how tasty whitefish are. Simple flour/cornmeal, salt/pepper dredge in hot olive oil White for whitefish. There was NOTHING wrong with that!

Always like to keep it simple when tasting stuff for the first time, or in a very long time. Flour, cornmeal, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a hot pan. Looks OK... Um, there was absolutely nothing wrong with that! No "fishy" or funky taste/smell. Other than a few tiny, barely noticeable...

On the whitey board! Thought I hooked Moby Whitefish right away, but turned out to be a foul hooked sucker. Legit tested my cheapo 4wt though. Tried various patterns/rigs with no action. Was about to give up when this little guy ate a simple #14 dubbed body nymph on an indi rig. And yes, I...

Thread reboot. Heading down to the crick properly armed in the next few days. At least now that I've hooked/lost a couple on steelhead patterns. Shortfin grayling stoke is a thing! Stay tuned ...

Oh, I wish. That would be a very lost bull in this crick. Never heard of any caught in 40+ years.

Yeah, I was deliberately dredging when I hooked the first. Briefly hooked another after switching to a smaller steelhead fly. Bringing some PTs and small stonefly nymphs next time. There was a legit hatch of small black stones the whole time I was down there. And yes, I am unreasonably stoked...

Went back today. No steel but confirmed the suspicious plucks I felt at the gravel bar run. How a whitefish can get hooked on a steelhead fly is amazing. Nice chunky one too. Lucky it came off or it would be headed for the smoker. Taking a trout rod next time.

Agate collection so far. Would love to know the origins. I've heard that carnelians are local, so maybe the small red. The large blond was definitely in Missoula flood deposits, well above the river. So that much I do know. The others I can only guess.

A few gravel bar finds from yesterday's steelhead outing. Found 2 very nice petrified wood pieces. Maybe 3, but not sure if the large one is showing tree rings, or just sedimentary banding. The small agate is the typical amber/blond that is by far the most common here. The 2 larger agate lack...

Although I was blanked at the fly run yesterday, looking for agates on the gravel bar is an enjoyable way to rest the run. No new high water deposits since the last trip, but found a few nice, previously overlooked specimens. Found 2 really nice petrified wood pieces. Maybe 3 but not sure...

My old Ambassador 6600 / Buzz Ramsey IM7 outfit still works. First action its seen in a couple decades. On the board for 2026 with a purty wild steelhead.

Well, it actually did happen (finally) today! Just not the way I was hoping it would, but not complaining my first fish of 2026 was on a bobber. Really no other way to fish this spot with the tangled roots, logs, and thick brush. After cursing through a few tip wraps and branch snags, I...

Too wet to work outside... or even fish today. Tied my first fly of 2026. Maybe it'll get wet tomorrow.

Pacific wren. Tough subject for a cell phone camera.

Or from when? Any idea what type of rock?

Always seemed strange that "jack" steelhead (or other pint-sized forms) are relatively rare compared to salmon. At least in NWO and SWW. Only remember catching a couple. And this was back in the days of full punch cards.

Yup. I remember watching it with my folks. My Mom would mock how Marlin pronounced the capture stick Jim was always hanging off the landrover. "Don't ride your bike past the park, or we'll come after you with the capchoor stick."... Just realizing this now, but pretty sure her watching it...

Gneiss find!