John Arnold, Author at Headhunters Fly Shop

Conservation, Fishing Report

closures, hoot owl, restrictions

Recent warm weather has increased water temperatures and decreased flows on a number of Montana rivers triggering Hoot-owl restrictions. It seems the days of complete closures are over. Here is the most recent update for those wondering which rivers are under restrictions.…

Saturday Cinema – Thunderbolt and Lightfoot Locations

July 16, 2016

Un-Fishing

Lightfoot, Thunderbolt

We’re huge fans of the 1974 film Thunderbolt & Lightfoot, and not just because it’s filmed in this area. It’s a must-see modern Western starring two great actors. We’ve written about it before, and some feedback clued us into the…

Commando Style – Explore Rentals

July 6, 2016

Fly Fishing Travel, Headhunters Life

Camping, Explore, Phasmid, Rentals

As we head into a drought year with at least some fishing restrictions, we thought we’d throw a long overdue shout-out to our friends at Phasmid Rentals (now Explore Rentals) in Bozeman. Owner Will Cassella has been a customer for…

At least the hurricane force winds kept the flags flying all day.

The town that forgot how to 4th of July

July 5, 2016

4th of July, BBQ

photo essay by John Arnold Every once in a while, a town forgets how to 4th of July. Yesterday was that day for the village of Craig. A handful of folks drifted through town to celebrate our Nations independence on…

Montana Hoot-Owl Restrictions

July 3, 2016

closures, drought, hoot owl

Here we go. July 1 and we’re already seeing some “Hoot-Owl” closures around the state. That means that June was a little warmer than we like it. Or than the trout do. It seems early, and it also seems like…

Brown Drakes

June 24, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique, Headhunters Life

Brown, Drake

I have been chasing Brown Drake emergences for almost 30 years. For years on Silver Creek, a bit on the Henry’s Fork, and since I saw one on the Missouri, which was 15 years ago. They’ve been seen lately. I don’t…

Wilderness Cutthroat – Video

June 22, 2016

Conservation, Fly Fishing Video, Nature

cutthroat, Fisheye, Guy, photography, video

I’ve spent a little time walking around in the woods with Pat Clayton this spring and early summer. Fishing the mountains and looking for interesting things to take pictures of. For those who don’t know, Pat Clayton is the worlds…

PMD’s On Deck

June 3, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique, Headhunters Life

Hodek, Nymen, PMD, Quigley, Silverman

This weeks warm weather should get the Pale Morning Dun’s cranked up. Our very favorite Missouri River hatch. PMD’s epitomize downstream dry fly presentations on flat water. And the trout love them. That first week or 10 days is always…

Galvan Wins Yellowstone Angler 5 Weight Shootout

June 2, 2016

Fly Fishing Gear

Galvan, Shootout, Torque

The Yellowstone Angler just released the results of their 2016 5 Weight Reel Shootout. We were a little shocked to find out the winner was the Galvan Torque. Not because it’s not a great reel. It is, and it’s one of…

Upper Missouri Waterkeeper sues EPA over Water Quality

June 1, 2016

EPA, Upper Missouri Waterkeeper

Our friends at Upper Missouri Waterkeepers filed suit this week against the EPA over it’s approval of a so called “variance standards” for nitrogen and phosorphus pollution in Montana’s waterways. Excessive levels of Nitrogen and Phosorphus are leading contributors to the…

Dry Fly Leaders: Please Add Tippet

June 1, 2016

Fly Fishing Gear, Fly Fishing Technique

dry fly, leader, tippet

Some high-tech dry fly fishing is just around the corner here on the Missouri River, and a little discussion about leader design and tippet length is in order. The leader can be the most important element to any dry fly rig. For…

Missouri River Fishing Report: Holding Steady

May 31, 2016

Fishing Report

report

It seems like it’s been a while since I’ve seen a couple of chutes open at Holter Dam. Drove up today to watch the water pour over the top. I like it. Makes it feel like there actually is some…

Trending: Stream Access & Gubernatorial Race

May 30, 2016

Gianforte, Governor, stream access

You can’t really call attacks on our Stream Access Law here in Montana “Trending” because the attack is constant. If you live in Montana and follow the news or social media, you may be aware that Republican Gubernatorial hopeful Greg Gianoforte…

Sunday Motivator

May 29, 2016

Fishing Report, Headhunters Life

Ninth

Ben McNinch shows us a dandy Brown he landed the other day. Right when the water bumped, but hey, that’s his day off. Do you think Ninch is going to take the day off because they raise the water a little?…

Things To Do: Tower Rock State Park

May 28, 2016

Headhunters Life, Un-Fishing

Rock, state park, Tower

We’re often asked what other activities there are to do around Craig if you’re not fly fishing, and hiking is at the top of the list for many. Unfortunately the Missouri River is surrounded by private land and hiking on…

Friday Foto – Storm Season

May 27, 2016

Headhunters Life, Nature, Photography

Our weekly image shows this wicked Thunderstorm that whacked the river last night around 8pm. This shot is taken near Cascade with the Adel Mountains in the background. Plenty of lightning associated with this cell. Finally. I love storms and…

Rising Water Fishing Report

May 26, 2016

Fishing Report

high water, report

Here we go. Runoff has arrived and with it a bump in flows. Not big enough to push the river out of its banks, but big enough to make you change tactics. The river is currently at 6790CFS (though it…

Take Your Kids Fly Fishing

May 25, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique

fishing, kids, School

School has or is winding up for most people in the region, and it’s time to think about getting those kids out on the water. It’s pretty easy to let them lay around the house for a week or 3.…

By the way… the Creeks are Open

May 24, 2016

Montana’s “small stream opener” falls on the 3rd Saturday in May each year. That was last Saturday, and we always hold the Craig Caddis Festival on the opener. Rain pretty much swamped most folks creek plans last weekend, but now…

Inconsistencies

May 23, 2016

Fishing Report, Headhunters Life

Weather

The above image shows Missouri River guide Eric Mondragon and clients shoving off into the wind at Wolf Creek on Sunday morning. We’ve had plenty of wind lately. Often from the north, which impacts everything from boat control and casting…

Fishy Art Show in Bozeman

May 23, 2016

Two of our favorite artists are holding their annual showing at the 406 Brewery in Bozeman on June 2 from 5 to 8pm. Pat Clayton – a.k.a. Fish Eye Guy – and Mimi Matsuda will be on hand showing their latest…

Sunday Hangover

May 22, 2016

Caddis, Festival

Under dark skies and on and off downpours, the 10th Annual Craig Caddis Festival was held yesterday in Craiglandia. Our annual fundraiser for the Craig Volunteer Fire Department was attended by hundreds, and despite the cool and wet weather, the…

McCune/Gould Spey Sessions Recap

May 3, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique, Headhunters Life, Troutspey

Gould, mccune, spey

Another long weekend of Spey Casting instruction with Mike McCune and Whitney Gould is in the books. We held 3 classes this year in what turned out to be absolutely perfect weather. No wind. 3 days in a row. In…

Spring Sale!

April 29, 2016

sale, Spring

BIG Spring Sale this Friday and Saturday at Headhunters. We’re trying to make a little room by clearing out some merchandise from last fall, celebrating Spring, and declaring an “end” to both Swing Season on the Missouri, and out “Spring…

Living Rivers – Cast

April 20, 2016

Fly Fishing Travel, Fly Fishing Video

Big Hole, Fellin, Waterkeeper

From Epic Montana comes a very nice video about our friend, fellow guide and Upper Missouri Waterkeepers PD Wade Fellin. One of the better fly fishing videos I’ve seen in a while, and one with a message that matters. Check it out…

Headhunters Hats for 2016

March 23, 2016

hats, logo

Q: When are the new 2016 Headhunters hats coming? A: They’re here. At least some of them. We get this question all the time in the spring. We’ve just received a number of new Simms logo hats, and they feature…

Freezout Lake Snow Goose Migration

March 22, 2016

Area Attractions, Birds Bugs and Wildlife, Nature, Photography, Un-Fishing

Freezout, geese, Snow

The Freezout Lake Snow Goose migration occurs each spring, and is a very popular event for nature lovers in the Great Falls area. Julie and I have logged many days at Freezout – but in the fall and with guns.…

March Mobile Fishing Report

March 19, 2016

Fishing Report, Fly Fishing Video

braden, mobile, report, video

Braden Lewis is bringing us the Mobile Fishing Report for mid-March. Fishing continues to change with the seasons as we move from winter to spring. Nymphs, streamers and now… dries. We should be talking about mayflies on next months video…

Casting For Recovery & Spey-O-Rama & Whitney & Mia

March 15, 2016

Headhunters Life, Troutspey

Casting for Recovery, Mia, Spey-O-Rama, Whitney

Our good friend Whitney Gould is teaming up with fellow Steelhead guide and Spey Caster Mia Shepard to raise funds for Casting for Recovery. They both will be competing in the Spey-O-Rama World Championship casting competition on April 22,23,24 at the…

Last Headhunters 2016 Free Spey Clinic

March 7, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique, Troutspey

clinic, HEadhunters, Montana, spey

In some incredibly balmy weather on Saturday – high 60’s – we held our final free spey clinic off the 2015-16 winter season. The full house enjoyed the usual classroom presentation, light winds, a wide variety of lines and rods,…

New Abel Reels in Stock

February 24, 2016

Fly Fishing Gear

Abel, reel, SD

We’ve just received a new batch of new graphics from Abel, and also a NEW REEL! Yes, the long awaited for Abel SD (Sealed Drag) reel is here, and we have two in stock, We actually received a couple late…

Mobile (or not) Video Fishing Report

February 20, 2016

Fishing Report, Fly Fishing Video

fishing report, mobile, vertical, video

If you check out the home page of the Headhunters Website today, you see a tall skinny video in the blog section, featuring our new Mobile Video Fishing Report. We’ve threatened to do this for years. Looks like we’re actually…

In Defense of Switch Lines…. Just Kidding.

February 16, 2016

Fly Fishing Gear, Fly Fishing Technique, Troutspey, Uncategorized

spey, switch. lines

Lately I’ve seen a resurgence in the dreaded “switch” line. Particularly on newer spey rigs purchased regionally. At our last clinic there were no less than 3 new outfits present rigged with switch lines. All were recommended as part of a rod/reel/line…

A Chilly Spey Clinic

January 18, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique, Troutspey

spey

Our rescheduled January Spey clinic took place in some Chilly conditions on Saturday. As you can see in the image above, plenty of ice in those snake guides. Plenty. Despite the fridgid temperatures, we had a full house and no…

Mike McCune & Whitney Gould Spey Clinic

January 18, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique, Headhunters Life, Troutspey

clinic, Gould, mccune, spey

The dates are set for our 2016 spey sessions with Mike McCune & Whitney Gould. For those looking for some hands-on Spey instruction in a small 3:1 classroom setting, you’ll find no better opportunity. Mike & Whitney are among the worlds best Spey-casters…

Spey Resource – Deneki Outdoors

January 7, 2016

Fly Fishing Gear, Fly Fishing Travel, Troutspey

Deneki, spey

Spey junkies are constantly hounding us for opinions, info, gear reviews, line recommendations and technical advice. I don’t think everyone who stops by or emails a question needs an answer. They just want to get a discussion going. It’s winter after…

Cold Dry

January 6, 2016

Fly Fishing Video

Cold Dry, Ivan, video, Yukon

Headhunters old friend and GoPro Jedi Ivan at “Yukon Goes Fishing” just released a smooth winter fishing video, “Cold Dry”. Looks like Ivan is behind the camera instead of wearing it these days. No GoPro? Who cares, good video with classic…

Spey Clinic Bumped

January 6, 2016

Fly Fishing Technique, Headhunters Life

bump, clinic, spey

Unfortunately, the weather is forcing us to move this weekends spey clinic to the following weekend, Jan. 16th, 2015. The forecast is for a high temperature around 12 and a low that morning of around 7 degrees. We have also…

You’ll Also Need a Reel…

December 17, 2015

Fly Fishing Gear

reels, spey

Spey rods garner all the attention when it comes to gear, but we get just as many questions about the right reel, and what budget reels are available for a new spey set-up. We posted some information on our current…

2015-16 Spey Rod Lineup

December 15, 2015

Fly Fishing Gear, Troutspey, Uncategorized

Here is the 2015-16 Spey rod lineup at Headhunters for those interested in casting and fishing with two-hands. With the introduction of micro-spey rods in the last couple of years, we definitely are seeing a switch in both what we carry…

Snow Day

December 14, 2015

fishing, SIMMS, winter

We should be waking up to an all-day snowstorm in Craiglandia this Monday morning. Sunday was a beautiful, almost windless day on the Missouri River. I spent it doing something I just don’t do that much anymore in the winter.…

iMOW Tips In Stock

December 13, 2015

Fly Fishing Gear, Troutspey

During swing-season, MOW tips are one of our biggest selling items. You always find you want (need?) another size for a specific spot or conditions. Unfortunately, RIO has been out of these for some time. It’s always good to run…

The End of the Hunt

December 12, 2015

bird, hunting, kowalski

If you live outside of Montana, you think Montana’s are all about trout fishing. They are, but it’s hunting that really motivates many (most?) Montanan’s. Big game season is over, sans a few shoulder season and damage control hunts. Upland birds…

Tying Knots – Friday Photo Essay

November 13, 2015

Headhunters Life, Photography

essay, knots, photo

Going through the last 12+months photos recently and realized something. I have a lot of pictures of my friends tying knots. Lots. You’re probably asking yourself, “why in the hell would you take a picture of someone tying a knot?…

Some Flicks.

November 11, 2015

Fly Fishing Travel, Fly Fishing Video

video

Here’s a couple of fly fishing videos I recently viewed. That I like. Hide under your desk for a few minutes and watch. Or pretend that you just received some incredibly important email. Thats what I do.

Utah Stream Access Win!

November 10, 2015

Conservation

stream access, Utah

Occasionally greed loses. Even in Utah, the state leading the way to privatizing federal/public lands. This week, Utah Judge Derek Pullan struck down the states 5 year old “stream access”law (quotations denote sarcasm). Never-ending hard work from the Utah Stream Access Coalition,…

Craig Trout Camp Open All Winter

November 10, 2015

cabins, winter

The entire Craig Trout Camp at Headhunters will be open for the entire winter for those who spend just as much time fishing the Missouri during swing season. The Rainbow & Brown, Craig House and Sutton Place will all be…

OP Steelhead Rules Comment This Week!

November 9, 2015

Conservation, Fly Fishing Travel

JP, OP, Rules, steelhead

Headhunters guide JP Basile contacted me the other day asking us to let readers know that this is the final week from commenting on proposed regulations changes in Washington, some of which apply to Wild Winter Steelhead on the Olympic Peninsula (there…

Women’s Spey Clinic

November 9, 2015

Fly Fishing Technique, Headhunters Life, Troutspey

clinic, spey, troutspey, women

Headhunters manager Sara Roholt and guide Beth Hood held our first women’s spey clinic this weekend. As expected from these two, the clinic was a success and all who attended learned a thing or two about spey casting, rigging and…

Two-Handed Report

November 7, 2015

Fishing Report, Troutspey

report, spey, troutspey

above: Mark Raisler and Beth Hood readying the 2hand arsenal for a day on the Mo. FINALLY We’re finally getting the right conditions for both swing and boat streamer fishing to produce some fish. It’s been OK for the last month,…

Spooky Saturday!

October 31, 2015

steelhead, witch

Popular on Headhunters social media yesterday, our friend the Wicked Witch of the Grande Ronde is using her powers to try and skate up a Steelhead. The way the wind is blowing on the Mo’ this weekend, it seems as…

Local Boy Wins!

October 30, 2015

Guides, mattioli, Max

We rarely highlight any of our guides, we think they’re all awesome. A professional crew that does a huge number of trips every year, with smiles that last until mid-September (mine used to last until early June). If NFGuide Max…

“Mend” Kickstarter

October 25, 2015

Fly Fishing Video, Headhunters Life

Kickstarter, Mend

Simon Perkins/Sharptail Media and Nick and Kami Swingle/Two-Fisted Heart Media are seeking some support for this film project. Check out the trailer below By some accounts, Joey Maxim died on November 21st, 2011. The car crash was horrific, so bad…

Guided Spey Trips

October 20, 2015

Headhunters Life, Troutspey

guided, Microspey, spey, trips, troutspey

Requests for guided two-handed Spey fishing trips on the Missouri River have been on the increase. We’ve actually done some the past few seasons, but have not formally made it an official part of our guided trip packages. Until now. Beginning…

El Nino Impacts Montana Winters

October 20, 2015

el nino, snowpack, Weather, winter

excellent images and video from NOAAclimate.gov We’ been reading all summer that a potentially big El Nino event could impact North America this coming winter. It looks as though that forecast will prove correct. The Pacific is warming rapidly creating…

Foggy Sunday Mornings

October 18, 2015