After a day of pushing myself to the limit and getting sick, Michael and I decided to take the day off (Thursday, September 28th, 2017) and cruise down the Gallatin River on our way to Bozeman, Montana, to do some exploring…
Good idea since we woke up to more snow…at West Fork…
Heading South along the Madison River… just past the Slide Inn…
This map indicates the route over to the Gallatin River from the Madison River Valley…287 to 191 North…
Lots of snow along the upper section of Hwy. 191…
Upper Gallatin River looking South, back towards Yellowstone National Park..
Upper Gallatin River looking North towards Bozeman, MT…This is a great overview of the Gallatin River…
A big open meadow where the Gallatin is more like a spring creek than a big river which it becomes down in the canyon…this is looking down river…
…and a view up river…
Michael and I stopped here to digest some informative signage and take photos…
Read… 🙂
…and this as well…
Yes it was cold. Michael and I saw only 3 or four anglers on the entire stretch of the river. Most of them were closer to Bozeman…
…moving right along…
We made a stop here and wished there wasn’t so much white stuff swirling around in the cold wind…The path appeared trodden but no one was working the water…
The opposite direction, down stream…
…a closer look… .1
and .2
Just a short distance off the highway…
Gallatin River Guides Fly Shop in Big Sky, Montana…We always check out fly shops I have been here a number of times on my last few trips up to Montana…
This place…
Michael liked the drift boat…
Some of the locals that fish in Montana…(This photo was on the wall in the shop. It was taken near Lolo, MT in the 1890’s)…* note the guys with the 45-70’s for bears…
I have no idea what this stuff is used for…
So I picked up another one of these – FOLSTAF to use. I will give my other one to Michael (R) since his Simms wading staff has been recalled …again…
Something in almost Mini Moo size for my Grandson perhaps ?
I always try and buy local rather than order something I have not been able to put my hands on…
Back on the road along the Gallatin River…
Closer to Bozeman…
Last view before the river wander off into flatlands near Bozeman…
The Family Fly Shop in Bozeman, MT…
I had contacted Joe Mathias of Firehole Outdoors about picking up some of his hooks while I was in Bozeman. He told me to visit this shop and that he would be dropping off some new hooks for me to take a look at… I picked up a few…
Matt Rosenthal owns the shop and he has a lot of other interesting things that one can find there…
More…
Michael and I made our way down Main Street in Bozeman to explore some places and we found this place…VARGO’S JAZZ CITY and BOOKS.
This place has just about everything. It reminds me of a bookstore I used to into in Beverly Hills, CA when I was a kid. If you are looking for out of print fly fishing books, this is the place…Michel had his mind blown by the architectural book he found therein (above)…
…and I found this book with the plastic, spiral binding intact …
…and the first few yellow pages inside which were lost from my copy…We could have stayed there all day…
But onward to my all-time favorite vintage ( not big box) outdoor store…Schnee’s / Powderhorn…
This is another store I could get lost in, for a very long time…Michael started looking at the backcountry cooking books…
…and a hat for his wife, Aimee…then he tried on a bunch of Filson jackets. I had to pull him out of the store…
..The down the street to The Last Wind-Up to look at some vintage watches…
On to HEAD WEST to look at more hats and maybe a hatband for ALLY…
Nope no hatbands for Ally…
Now he wants a Taco and I tell him to wait for dinner…TACO DEL SOL…
Michael calls his skateboarding buddy he hasn’t seen in a few years… so we head over to Redbrain Medis,, next to the Bozeman Brewery so he can visit…I have a Coke…
The buds…
Michael wants to spend some time at the Food Co-Op in Bozeman to see what they offer compared to where he lives…
Interesting…
Grain goodies…
This is not like my market…
Have to get some of this…
If I was still drinking (there still would not be enough)…
Healthy stuff…
Yummys…
We got a few items and checked out. The place was filled with young Montana State students…
So I get Michael on the web, by IPhone, to find a good place to EAT…THE OPEN RANGE…Score !!!
Menu…which changes each week…
We entered though the back door past this…
Into the lower dining/bar area…
To the elevated dining area…
Michael ponders…
Orders something I have never heard of that will put one under the table…
The “Wall of Dogs” stare down on us…
I order a Caesar Salad for us to split…
Then a 10oz, Culotte for the main course, while Michael has the Cast Iron Chicken…Mmmmmmm
No room for any of these…
One last look at where these wonderful dishes are made…
Back on the road to West Fork, from Bozeman, as the sun sinks in the West…
Almost in Ennis, Montana as it gets dark…
NEXT: An intermission with Ally, Nick and HERO…up to Bishop,CA for a November weekend...then more MONTANA
PT/TB
Awesome photo report. I’m glad you guys are having a great fishing vacation. Your photos bring back a lot of memories. Thanks for posting them on your blog.