This Christmas, we learned the hard way the importance of enunciation. While sitting on Santa’s knee, we asked him for a guide to dancing and a Buff. The Big Guy must have misheard in the worst way. When we looked under the shop Christmas tree on Sunday morning, we found quite the nasty surprise.

May your New Year be filled with feisty fish and happy surprises!

Spent the other night schmoozing at the holiday party of our friendly local wader manufacturer. Good fun and 3 drink tickets were had by all. The event was held in their soon-to-be (fall 2012) new digs. More like an empty warehouse than a world headquarters at this point. Rumors were squelched; there’ll be no retail outlet in the new building (if you believe the Big Cheese himself). A few loud sighs of relief were heard to emanate from us fly shop guys. Surreal moment of the night – being called a “hipster” by the Big Cheese’s wife. A nattily dressed Turd Ferguson was spotted working the crowd, perhaps drumming up funding for his next cable special, “I Catch More Fish in a Day than You’ll Catch in Your Life.”

There’s a new face around the shop (mine). As a newbie to the business (in more ways than one), I’ll be occasionally adding my perspective to the mix. Whether you want it or not.

Stay tuned….

Certainly no one has missed me around the shop but I am happy to let everyone know that I am alive and well.   I have found myself quite busy the last couple weeks running jets boats in the effort to clean up after the Oil Spill on the Yellowstone.  As most of you know the oil was spilled well down river from our beloved trout fishery on the Yellowstone but the area around Billings needs quite a bit of attention.  So for the next week or so I will not be at the boat ramps in Paradise Valley but I will be likely be at the boat ramp at Duck Creek.

“Check? Who brought what check?” Just another day in the life of Betty DePuy, forever captured by one of the world’s hardest working guides, Aaron Hansen. Them’s some serious camera skills, Arronn.

12 more crappy flies to the person who comes up with the best caption!

Fishing is fun especially when you are with anglers as enthusiastic as the kids from Eagle Mount, which is a non-profit in Bozeman that provides recreational opportunities for kids with disabilities.  Leslie Dominick Activities Coordinator at Eagle Mount and her husband ace fishing guide Stuart invited a few of us to help with the fishing program last week.  So with Will Lassiter, Tom Harms, Sotoshi Yomomoto and Franklin Coles,  I was able to spend the day fishing with a great group of up and coming anglers.

Thanks Stuart and Leslie .

As we look forward to our upcoming Mongolia  Taimen season starting in September it is great to know that someone has been skating flies for these monsters.  Thanks to Mark Weeks for sharing this awesome skater caught Itou from Hokkaido Japan.  In classic fashion Mark (the world’s greatest guide client)  rose this monster three times only to leave town and allow his guide to catch him the next day.  You’re the man Mark!

Thanks for the photos Mark and see you in Mongolia!