FTF

 Of course that's an acronym for what the current CEO, morale and recruiting officer at Team X has decided will be our new motto. Fish through Friends or Friends through Fish , whichever floats your boat ... and that's what it's all about. In fact I'm thinking we'll slowly but surely evolve Mile 14 into a Team X resource and try to grow our brand of geographically and culturally diverse team of fishing friends. I even have a logo in mind.....You guys will want a shirt .

And why....?  Well., I had a bit of a catharsis in my fishing life lately.  I was at a Cinco De Mayo get together the other day and was introduced to a well known fly fisherman who regaled me with the difference between fishing for Montana trout with terrestrials and fishing for Alaska trout with beads and , ugh, even plugs . In the conversation I asked him what his favorite place to fish in beautiful Montana was and....mmmm....well it got real quiet real fast , I was told he doesn't tell people where he fishes. I didn't ask him where he caught the most or where he was going tomorrow, I asked what his favorite place was. So Mike all I can tell you is this....you're one of the few ( out of thousands ) of fishermen I've met with a me and me only attitude so you're gonna have to go to prep school to get that coveted Team X invite . In short it goes like this....we are ALL about the furtherance of this thing that brings us all so much joy. We strive to see all fishermen catch fish, we don't keep secrets, we enjoy seeing you Mike catch a fish as much as we enjoy catching one ourselves, maybe more......So Mike , try to be like this guy .

Me and ol K.L. there spent our first winter together in Mazatlan . When we weren't passing the day talking of books and Mexico fishing he took me under wing and steered the course for my new pursuit of Walleyes on Montana's beautiful Lakes. He made lists of tackle for me , he explained the spawn and where to look, knots, flurocarbon or braid , bait and best of all how to catch them for fun by jigging. I showed and told him I had plenty of tackle from guiding a lifetime in Alaska and he told me that I had two major problems... all of my stuff is to big and I don't know a thing about what I'm doing. So, shopping and Team X emeritus Ernie Mills fixed that with his generous donation of plugs and blades and, well just so much cool tackle and then K.L. fixed the later with patience and interest in my fishing. Mucho Gracias. Here's the first Walleye I ever jig fished two days ago. I missed two good bites before on the third I waited for the flutter on the down drop and set without feeling pressure like I've learned to do....magic is all I can say.

I'm a Shimano and Daiwa guy. K.L. told me that 2500 size was about right and he too is into Shimano. So I settled on the Daiwa Regal because I remembered how smooth one was that I bought years ago and they're mid price with 8 bearings. I kinda figured for these fish smoothness was better than durability because unlike a Silver salmon they ain't gonna smoke drag and wear out your rollers etc. I put them on the 7' fast action Shakespeares that I used in Alaska and it's a sweet system that I could finally feel the bottom with . And I traded the Power Pro braid I love for the recommended 8 lb P-Line Flurocarbon ....out with the old, in with the new...anybody need a half dozen 4 and 5000 size Stradics with 20 lb braid  ?

So I got myself about 5 Plano boxes that are chucked full, a thing of beauty . I found me an old Canada 

Dry wood crate that they fit into perfectly   and thanks to K.L. I now the difference between a Flicker Shad and an X Rap all the way down to the use of Lindy rigs and Slow Death hooks, and oh, you gotta have it all in different sizes as well. And slip boobers, out with the Styrofoam red ones that could float a Volkswagon and in with the nice yellow wood ones that look like they could be hand carved.

Even Keith Holtan all the way from Alaska pitched in with the Skinny on these whirly bird jig thinga ma jigs that he said would help in stained water like we have now from spring run off....And I'm still wondering how he had intel on the Walleye bite in Lake Helena but hey...that's the way Team X works !

Being an ol Salmon guy I'm a big believer is scents . Now I know they don't call them Walleyes for nothing as they hunt with their exceptional vision but a good shot of Anise smell or maybe some Berkeley Gulp can't hurt eh ? And yes Phil, I'm still buying Pro Cure products although next time I see ya I gotta ask about that ' water soluble '  deal on the label of my anise spray.

And I got my connectors and beads all organized so you're not floundering around in a tackle box looking for an assortment laying on the bottom.....and then my rubber.....and more plugs ...and I'm thinking I need a few more .....well, we'll see as move along on Walleye hunt 2023. Did I tell you I announced an all you can eat Walleye feed before a June 1st....I love pressure , made a living getting used to it on everyday of fishing.

So thanks to K.L for the expert ( a friend told me once that an ex is has been and a spert is drip under pressure ) help and guidance. It takes village. Keith in Alaska, Marty at the Hardware store , Ben who showed me the needle trick, Willie that sends me links to tackle deals , the guy in the beautiful Lund yesterday that told me I was trolling to fast, Todd at Elk Mountain who told me where to find Pike....just everybody , thank you ! And Mike, I'm not saying you won't make the team, in fact we might need you as a kind of interpreter for some of the weirdness we bump into from time to time here in Montana....All I'm saying is this : to quote Team Xer Jacques Lizin from Arville Belgium " Think about it ! "

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April showers bring more showers

 Or so it seems around here.  As I type this thunderheads are building over the mountains and more snow / rain / is on the way.  Kinda slowed down the adventurous life here at Mile 14 and not much to write about until now...I was at the lake this morning at sun up like I like to do . Had my hearing aids in and it's one thing they really do for me, in a quiet setting I can hear the birds and the splashes of the fish and well, it's just great. I felt good. It might not be a 35 pound early May Kenai King but for me, right now this fish was great, my first of the new season..

I'm pretty sure that the one that bit the tail off my swimfish was bigger...guess it had to be. But we're off and it's a start . I'll be on the big water in the next few days and after spending the winter in Walleye school I'm confident we're gonna be eating Walleyes. A strange local fishing report landed in my text messages yesterday. Keith in Alaska sent pics from a friend who had many nice Walleyes on Lake Helena just yesterday, he even included a pic of the lure. Thank you Grasshopper !  But. it puts me in a predicament , Lake Helena is farm field fed and so full of chemicals that there are warning signs about the bloom and harmful effects.....never mind that the water is so thick that I see it clogging the cooling system on the beautiful Merc outboard I just bought.   So, I gotta give Lake Helena a pass, it's just too strange and new to me, we'll fish the Walleyes where the waters clean . Here's the view this morning from the lake. I saw two different Osprey dive and catch a Bass like the one I caught and I spooked a big ol Blue Heron into the air, or did he spook me ?

And how about this sunrise from the house. It's what made me the morning person that I am.

We fell in love with this house at first sight. It had it all, corner lot, privacy , upper west side , no stairs, expansive views...but we kinda glossed over that it had only one large garage and no place for my truck and boat. so after a year of massaging all the options and out of  concern from all these thunder storms with hail etc. I ordered and built a carport for the old white truck I love. MP and I hauled in gravel and leveled the pad. ( she shovels just like a guy ) 

Then we built the frame and took a few days off to get over those sore muscles. Then we set up scaffolding and the hardest day of all was moving the scaffold and driving several hundred self tapers into the roofing. And we ended up with this, problem solved.

So with the chores, well some of them , we're ready for summer. Hope you come back to Mile 14. We're gonna do a cash recovery trip to Jackpot Nevada real soon. Catch enough Walleyes by June first to have that fish feed I promised and who know....adventure.....How's about a song ?  I used to sing this for all the little kids we love 35 years ago or so and it was a favorite . I was going to facebook it for them and forgot so.....I guess it's little apropos, a song about aging, moving on, changes.