In September…

…we put out the call for our community to send us their “why” they love Montana and the reasons they trek back to Big Sky Country for memories and adventure each year.  We are so grateful you answered the call!

Discovering Montana by Guerry Doolittle

A visitor’s thirty year adventure to Montana shares the story of what brought him back year after year, and how much Montana has come to mean to him.

In 1990…

…three of us, all living in South Carolina at the time, decided to make our first flyfishing trip to Montana. Our knowledge of western flyfishing was pretty much limited to what we read in magazines, so we enlisted support from young Dale Sexton, an employee (and now owner) at Dan Bailey’s in Livingston. We booked several days on DePuy’s and Armstrong’s spring creeks. The other two were familiar with fly fishing for trout and reasonably well equipped from years fishing upstate South Carolina and western North Carolina. I had nothing more than a Garcia Conlon rod left over from the late 1950s bass fishing in Georgia. Essentially, I went into Dan Bailey’s and said to Dale, “Here’s my credit card. Outfit me.” That first trip three of us stayed in a small two double-bed room with a rollaway added at Guest House Motel.

The first trip…

…so exceeded our expectations that we resolved to return the next year (1991).  I learned quickly the first year that I needed a separate room so volunteered to get accommodations. We booked rooms at the Talcott House, then a B&B owned by Pam and Gary McCutcheon. This was the beginning of a decades long friendship that we still maintain with Pam. Wandering downtown Main Street one evening we sauntered into Montana’s Master Angler shop and met the owner, Tom Travis. We booked Tom for a day of fishing and another long-term friendship began. In fact, in July 2023, our thirty-third consecutive year in Livingston, we spent several days with Tom and met Pam one evening at The Owl, owned by her son (only a toddler when we first knew him at Talcott House).  Further, we met Dale at Bailey’s and reminisced about his role in getting us started on the first trip back in 1990. They are among many friendships we have made in Livingston, Cooke City, and West Yellowstone.

We have now…

…rolled our same late July dates over on DePuy’s and Armstrong’s for thirty-three years. Our trip has gradually expanded from a week to almost a month in 2023, including a week in Cooke City and a week in Island Park (ID). Through the years, we have fished many of the popular places, including the Yellowstone, Madison, Henry’s Fork, Missouri, Gallatin, Lamar and Soda Butte, Boulder, and others, but still consider Livingston and Paradise Valley the core of our trip.

Another milestone…

…this year: after thirty-two years flying into Bozeman, I drove out from Florida. Four long days, but worth it. Fishing is great, but I now spend about as much time on nature photography as fishing.  This began when my buddies goaded me into buying expensive Nikon cameras and lenses at the former f-11 photo shop in Bozeman.  Really miss that shop, but Lordy I spent a lot there. Anyway, difficulties flying with fishing, hiking, and photography gear—plus the exorbitant cost of rental cars—motivated me to drive out.

We look forward…

…to renewing our acquaintances at various restaurants and fishing shops. People back home say, “Same places again? Why not something different?” I explain there is a lot to be said for familiarity and we enjoy hearing, “Hey, you guys are back, good to see you again.” Also, even though I’ve seen these same places for over thirty years, each time I am awestruck by their beauty and the surroundings. Throughout the years whenever someone asked about planning something, my response has been, “Anytime other than late July. That’s protected for Montana.