“The fishing was great! The catching, not so much.” So I overheard as an angler came off the water back at Bakers Hole a while back. Yuk yuk yuk. He was so pleased with his joke, I heard him repeat it to another tourist a few minutes later.
So it was.
My plan was to wait out some forecast bad weather at Grizzly RV Park in West Yellowstone, with power to keep warm and the pipes unfrozen. After the cold front and snow, more fish would be running up river. So far, so good. But while I had hoped that the snow would keep me housebound for only a day, it continued over Monday night to mid-day Tuesday, and the daily highs aren’t going to be enough to clear the roads.
Since I use a motorbike to get to the river, icy and slushy roads are no bueno. The RV park closes for the season on Friday, after which the weather is forecast to improve, with sunny days in the high 40’s. The whole point of sticking around was to try and catch some big lake-run browns and rainbows from the Madison, and if I can’t get them this week, it will be tough to stay much longer. There are no options for camping near the river…
I just booked three more days at the other RV park in town, which was full this time last year. I walked by earlier today and they had spaces open. Only trouble is that I couldn’t get a spot Friday, so I have to find somewhere to park Friday night. The rest stop just outside of town where I spent a few nights last year is now posted heavily with no camping signs. The camp host at Bakers Hole told me that people were making an atrocious mess in the woods with garbage and human waste, but that if you were quiet and self contained, the authorities would probably leave you alone.
So the new plan is to fish Friday through Monday, then bail out for southern climes. I love it when a plan comes together!
TRAVELINGWITHTOOLS 