Eddie Rivard Fly Fishing: Eddie went out to Wyoming

In August of 2014 I traveled with my dad and brother to the state of Wyoming where we fished the Tongue River and had good times.

Eddie went out to Wyoming

Eddie went out to Wyoming. He was lookin' for a trout to catch.

He was in a bind 'cause he was way behind he was willing to, "match the hatch".

When he came across this old guy nymphing a run and nymphing it hard.

Eddie jumped up on a pine tree stump and said, "Hello I'm Eddie Rivard"

I'd guess you don't know me but you've probably viewed my blog.

And if you'd care to learn something new let me show you how to catch a hog.

Now you cast a pretty good fly rod boy but give Eddie his due.

I'll bet a barrel of pride against your hide because I think I'm better than you.

The guy said my name's Randy and you have a lot of nerve.

This was my spot until you showed up I'm going to kick you to the curb.

Eddie string up your pole and cast your fly rod long.

'Cause summers broke loose in Wyoming and Randy hates your song.

And if you win you get to know that you are the best.

And if you lose than it was all in jest.

Randy strung up his rod and said, "I'll start this competition".

And line shot out right from his guides as the waters they did glisten.

As he let the nymphs float in the water he attained a drag free drift.

It wasn't long before he landed, a seventeen inch fish.

When Randy finished Eddie said, "That's a dang nice trout.

Now sit down on that log right there and I'll show you what I'm all about".

"Water on the mountain" Run, Fish, Run!

Eddie shoots line like bullets from a gun.

Trout in the river chasing after my fly.

Eddie does your fish bite? Why child why?

Randy bowed his head because he new that he'd been beat.

When Eddie laid his twenty incher on the the ground at Randy's feet.

Eddie said, "Randy just come on back if you ever want to try again".

I done told you once you son of a gun, "I'm the best there's ever been".

And he sang

"Water on the mountain" Run, Fish, Run!

Eddie shoots line like bullets from a gun.

Trout in the river chasing after my fly.

Eddie does your fish bite? Why child why?

Any trip to the Tongue River in the Big Horn Mountains of western Wyoming must begin with a stop by the Fly Shop of the Big Horns on main street in Sheridan.

There is a statue in front of the store of the original owner. We thought it was pretty cool and tried loading it in the truck but it was firmly attached to the sidewalk.

This place has a bigger selection of flies than any other fly shop I have ever been to. Look at all the hopper patterns!

The guys working were very nice. They answered all of our questions very professionally.

In the spring of 2014 some of the preeminent fly tiers of the Driftless Area participated in a fly swap involving nymphs. Somehow I was allowed to participate in this swap. I would use and catch trout with many of the flies I received in this swap.

One day while I was fishing the Kinnickinnic earlier this summer I showed these flies to another angler I encountered on the stream. This was a man of great wealth and power. He wanted the flies and offered me 13,000 dollars for the entire collection. He explained to me that it was all the cash he had on him at the time and I said, "No way".

The zebra midge is so effective. It catches trout from coast to coast. It catches trout like butter on toast.

The Sparkle Pupa by champion tier Tdoran proved to be a trout magnet in the mountains of Wyoming.

Here is a photo of the Sparkle Pupa after it spent time in the jaws of many trout.

Some other flies rose to prominence over the course of my time spent in the mountains.

A while back I ordered a nymph assortment from the Winona Fly Factory. Included in the assortment was this Bead Head Caddis Larvae. It was probably my top producer of the trip. I also caught trout on similar flies that I tied myself.

Brook Trout are not native to Wyoming but they exist here in good numbers. I have had a lot of luck both in Wisconsin and Wyoming with this Olive Conehead Rubber Legged Bugger pattern that I bought at Mend Provisions.

I noticed many flowers were in bloom.

It is always good to be back in the mountains.

This was right before we got to pet the moose. They are such gentle giants.

The giant rock formation is called, "Twin Buttes".

Here is my brother Sam fishing below one of the Twin Buttes.

The river was nice. Seconds before this photo was taken a Bigfoot disappeared into the forest. If only I was quicker at taking out my camera.

If you love the trout you must pet them.

Here is Sam with a nice Rainbow.

In the center of the photo you can see the moose about to cross the river. I did not try to pet this one.

My dad pulled a trout out of the pocket water.

We figured out where they keep the explosives.

The South Fork of the Tongue is very beautiful.

I was trying to figure out if this trout was a Cut-Bow or a Cutthroat Trout. A Cut-Bow is a cross between a Rainbow Trout and a Cutthroat Trout.

Jimmy didn't make it.

One night we saw some bull elk on a hillside.

We stayed at the world famous Arrowhead Lodge.

One day while eating at the neighboring Elk Lodge I noticed that they had Rocky Mountain Oysters on the menu. I have always wanted to try these.

So I ordered them.

They were very tasty.

Catching trout makes Eddie smile. I was so happy.

The Cutthroat Trout originally got its name from being very shrewd in it's business dealings. It was only in 1974 that someone noticed the orange stripe underneath its mouth.