The Confederated Salish-Kootenai Tribes and Montana FWP are sponsoring three public meetings April 12-14 to gather ideas for an upcoming environmental review that will address how to reduce lake trout predation on bull and cutthroat trout in the Flathead Lake and River system.  

What anglers should know about Flathead Lake, lake trout and native trout  

In the last 20 years, populations of migratory native cutthroat and bull trout that use both Flathead Lake and essential connecting habitat in the Flathead River and its Middle and North Forks have plummeted. As a result, angling opportunities for bull trout has been completely curtailed for bull trout and severely reduced for cutthroats. Biologists conclude the primary reason for the precipitous drop in native trout is predation from an expanding population of non-native lake trout that occupies Flathead Lake. Lake trout numbers in the catchable range are now estimated to be about 400,000 in the lake. Subsequently, adult bull trout that use the lake and which migrate into the upper river now number only around 2,500 – 3,500 individuals, which is a small percentage of their historical average. In recognition of the problem, the 10-year co-operative plan guiding fishery management on the lake developed in 2000 by the Tribes and FWP sought to reduce lake trout numbers by employing recreational angling and fishing tourneys. Results from this plan, now in its 10^th year, indicate not enough lake trout are being removed to speed recovery of bull and cutthroat trout populations.  

Historically, fish like this were plentiful in the Flathead......now they are rare.

And so the Tribes and FWP are evaluating the potential for additional measures for lake trout removal, including a carefully designed pilot project involving gillnetting. The intention is to reduce the lake trout population further – perhaps by 25 percent or thereabouts — providing an edge for bull and cutthroat trout to increase their numbers, while not eliminating angling for lake trout.   

The Tribes and State want to know what you think and are holding scoping meetings on proposals to increase the removal of lake trout. Meetings will be:  

• April 12 in Polson at the Kwa Taq Nuk Resort 7-9 pm.
• April 13 in Kalispell at the Red Lion Inn (20 North Main), 7-9:30 p.m.
• April 14 in Missoula at the Wingate Inn (5252 Airway Drive) 7:30 to 9:30

What you can do -  Attend one of the meetings or submit written comments and tell the Tribes and State in your own words:  

• The objective for bull trout and cutthroat trout recovery in the Flathead Lake and River system should be population numbers similar to what they were in the 1980s, before bull trout dwindled to levels necessitating prohibiting angling for them and their listing as a threatened species      
• The environmental study on additional lake trout removal should include a preferred alternative that supplements angling with effective measures such as gillnetting and trapping.     
• The environmental study should include an evaluation of how its proposed action will benefit the river system above the lake, including the important recreational and outfitted angling that occurs there for both species of native trout.      
•  Any personal experience you have with fishing for Montana’s native trout, especially in the Flathead region.  

THIS IS CRITICAL: Submit your comments in the next two weeks to:  

Barry Hansen
project chief Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
 Box 278 Pablo, MT 59855
barryh@cskt.org  

and  

Bruce Rich,
fishery bureau chief
Montana FWP
1420 East 6^th Avenue
Helena, MT 59620
brich@mt.gov

Every guide has one or two or three………..It’s the button you push when you get the questions you’ve answered 1000 times over the course of your guiding career. Not all of them are stupid questions. So, you push the button and out comes the spiel. You can spiel for over an hour while you take a nap and drink your coffee on the way to the ramp.

How did you get into guiding? How did you end up in Montana? How did you get into fly fishing? What do you do in the off season? Has anyone ever fallen out of your boat? How deep is it here? How did your truck get here? Did we go in a circle (not kidding)? Are we using the right fly? When do the deer turn to elk (not kidding)? Have you ever tipped your boat over? Are you going to row the boat back up to get the truck?

So here is the spiel:
How did you get into guiding?
- I grew up fly fishing. When I moved to MT I got a job at a fly shop and the owner turned me into a guide.
How did you end up in Montana?
- I travelled to MT a bunch as a kid with my grandparents and  my mom graduated from the U, so I moved here after high school.
How did you get into fly fishing?
- My dad taught me when I was a kid. (Thanks Dad)
What do you do in the off season?
- Before I started the shop I would ski, tie flies, and hunt in the off season. Now that I have a shop there is no off season. Logs, reports, permits, preseason orders, inventory, web updates, online store management, taxes, daddy daycare, etc……………
Has anyone ever fallen out of your boat?
- The last person who ask me if anyone had ever fallen out of my boat, fell out of the boat. Yup, Navy Seal style, ass over teakettle, right out of the front of the boat.
How deep is it here?
- Don’t know why but a lot of people want to know how deep it is in various spots throughout the day. Your guess is probably as good as mine.�
 How did your truck get here?
- The truck arrived at our take out via the shuttle service that we paid $30 to move it. This seems very magical to a lot of people.
Did we go in a circle (not kidding)?
- Usually questions like this are answered by the significant other in the boat.
Are we using the right fly?
- Believe it or not, all guides want you to catch fish. The fly on the end of the line was chosen based on its proven ability to catch fish and the ability of the angler to fish it.
When do the deer turn to elk (not kidding)?
- Usually questions like this are answered by the significant other in the boat.
Have you ever tipped your boat over?
- I know a few people who have tipped their boat over with clients.  So far I’ve managed to avoid it. Knock on wood because it could happen to anyone. Water does some funny stuff and when your eyes are stuck staring at the fly it’s possible to make a mistake.
- Are you going to row the boat back up to get the truck?
I don’t think it’s possible for any one person to get a boat up 6+ miles on any of the rivers we guide.

Like I said, not all are stupid questions and as a guide we encourage questions so keep’m coming because it’s all part of the fun.