events

Thursday Missouri River Upcoming Events

Thursday Upcoming Missouri River Events Update

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Thursday Upcoming Missouri River Events Update August Fishing Bugs: Trico’s, ants, hoppers, Callibaetis, Caddis, Spruce Moths, beetles. Trico’s steal the show on this one, at least for Headhunters. The afternoons can be filled with good attractor fishing, but not everyday. Mostly dead shit on the water that trout eat. The #1 top water diet … Read more

Headhunters Fly Shop 2016 Event Calendar

Headhunters Fly Shop 2016 Event Calendar

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A few dates to get into your calendar for the upcoming 2016 season. Headhunters events, community events, and hatch events that can make your vacation planning easier.

The water looks like it will be in the average range for the summer ahead. At this early point we feel that we can state that fact. But Mother Nature does make the call.

February

February 6th: Headhunters Free Spey Casting Clinic. Sold Out

February 10th & 24: Headhunters Fly Tying Night in America. Wednesday @ 6pm-8pm. 

Midge Hatch: Can start in the middle of the month. We will keep you up to date here on this very site about the activity. Some epic hatches can get your dry fly mania going.

March

March 5th: Headhunters Free Spey Clinic. Sold Out. If any openings occur we will inform you here on this blog.

March 9th: Final Fly Tying Night in America @ the shop 6pm-8pm

March 15th-April 30: Spring Special Guide Trips $350. Our famous Spring Special for all to attend. Full day guided trips to knock the rust off.

March 15th-April 30th: Spring Special Lodging pricing. Call Headhunters today to get killer deals, 30% off,  on Craig Trout Camp losing and other great Missouri River area lodging!

Midge Hatch: Continued Midge action throughout the month. Get your early season dry fly fix.

Skwalas?

April

Spring Specials all month long with Guide Deals @ $350 and area lodging discounts.

Blue Winged Olives: Late in the month. If water temps rise early we can see some BWO action earlier in the month. Look for 42F for the start of this historic spring hatch.

The big bugs may come too.

Great nymphing all month long. The streamer gang gets going too. Strip the big bug for the big brown trout.

May

One of the favorite months for the Headhunters staff. Good to great blind dry fly fishing and probably the best in streamer fishing. More big brown trout are caught in this month than any other. Meaning, the biggest brown trout. 

March Browns: The middle of the month can bring out this early mayfly. The fish get kinda stupid for this bug. We love the March Brown hatch here on the Missouri River.

BWO’s: Good afternoon action for this twice yearly hatch.

May 20th: Montana Fly Fishing Film Festival. Headhunters hosted night before event at 8pm. Come enjoy some Montana made films, food, beer, and swag the day before the Craig Caddis Festival.

May 21st: Saturday the 10th Annual Craig Caddis Festival and BBQ Cook-Off. Big time event in Craig. Come one come all. Food, beer, live music, live and silent auction, parade…a good fundraiser for the Craig Volunteer Fire Department. Email Mark if you want to be involved, donate any auction items, or BBQ for fame! mark@headhuntersflyshop.com www.caddisfestival.com

June

Caddis Flies: The beginning of our favorite summer hatch. Get ready. One of the two busiest months on Montana’s Missouri River.

Pale Morning Duns: This 2 month hatch begins about the 3 week of the month. You want in?

June 18th: Headhunters Summer Solstice Party. A big time afternoon BBQ and party. Contests, swag, fun with your favorite Headhunters til dark. More on this as we get more planned. As you know, we love to throw a good party.

Brown Drakes: Late in the month. This short lived hatch brings out some regular visitors to the Mo.

July

Trico Hatch: Can get rolling on July 5th. Lower water years it can start earlier. Higher water years as late as the 4th week. Many anglers favorite hatch. An amazing Missouri River hatch.

July 4th Party: Another big time party at Headhunters. America’s Birthday. Afternoon BBQ with fireworks at dusk.

PMD’s, Caddis, ant and hoppers too: The best dry fly month of the year. Consistant dawn til dusk.

August

Dry flies all month long. Getting more difficult as the moth progresses. Some don’t like the month because of the weed growth in August. Techy dry fly anglers like it for the difficulty level. Not many anglers during latter half. Pretty quiet.

September

September 3rd: 2nd Annual Browns and Brews Craft Beer Festival. This afternoon even 4-8pm is bound to be one of the summers best. 6 local breweries will share their beer during this tasting event. Live and silent auctions, live music, and food vendors will round out this Saturday Labor Day Weekend event. Book your guides and lodging now for best availability.

One of the better nymph months. The angling pressure increases again as the kids are back in school. If the month is cold you can see some BWO action late. The Pseudocloeon comes and drives folks mad. A fun time on the river.

October

Some anglers favorite month. Historic BWO hatches have been down but the Pseudo’s are around. Streamer anglers like October.

BWO’s: Generally late in the month. Good to great dry fly fishing depending on the year.

Headhunters Fly Fishing School: These are in the planning stages and we will post soon about this idea. Families, dry fly fans and nymphers alike will find something to learn at these Headhunters sponsored schools.

Headhunters Fly Shop January Update 1.19.15

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The New Year arrived and it has moved behind us and now in the distance.

Lots of anglers out this last weekend with the first weather weekend over 40F in the last couple months. With the warmth we got the wind. But, that did not keep the many thick headed Montanan’s from getting out of the house. Thanks for coming by and visiting us. Some Demo Spey Rods out the door and a few fly lines getting spooled too.

A few cabin rentals recently as Craig Trout Camp is open for business. The roads have thawed in town and the mud is emerging. Nice.

The water temps remain cool int he mid 34F range but it has not stopped the fisher folks. Water levels in the high 4K’s and will remain for some time. The water for the summer is sowing and building in the Rockies. We are all smiles!

A few events we have on our calendar for the month(s) ahead.

This Wednesday Jan. 21st: Headhunters Tying Night in America. Ninch and Mark will host this mid winter tying night Wednesday at 6pm til 8pm. We’ll see you for a couple hours of random fly tying.

Thursday Jan 22nd: The Upper Missouri Watershed Alliance is holding its first annual member’s meeting at the Craig School on Thursday January 22nd starting at 6:00 PM. The Alliance which is dedicated to the conservation and protection of the Missouri River for future generations will present their planned projects for the coming year. Public Welcome!

On the program will be a presentation by Grant Grisak, from Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks on the current “State of the Missouri.” Grant is a biologist responsible for Montana’s Region 4.

David Stagliano is a biologist with 18 years of experience in freshwater ecological studies. David has done studies of aquatic invertebrates in Idaho, Michigan, and Kansas and is currently the Aquatic Ecology Project Leader for the Montana Natural Heritage Program. David is the head of the Alliance’s aquatic resource committee and will discuss historic and current aquatic conditions.

Guy Alsentzer, Environmental Attorney and executive director of Missouri Riverkeepers, Inc. will give a presentation of their work to preserve the Missouri by enforcing water quality standards.

The Alliance will provide a potluck dinner with drinks. All interested parties are invited for an evening of fun and information and a chance to show your appreciation for the Missouri River.

Great Weather this coming weekend. Come out from Billings, Havre, Whitefish, Bozeman and Calgary. Good cheap lodging, discounted guide trips,a dn awesome wade fishing. Joe’s Bar open at 8am daily. Open late for your dinner of frozen pizza. The winter fishing is pretty good. Walleye guys are stacking them in the cooler at the dam. Ice fishers on the lake report a damn good Perch bite.

Sunday February 1st: Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl. Fly Shop closed at some point in the afternoon for pre-funking with the staff.

Saturday February 7th: Our next FREE Spey Casting and Fishing Clinic. Sign up today for the last couple spots. This well attended clinic is fun for all from beginner to advanced 2 handed caster.

Ninch says flies start arriving Feb 5th: Headhunters updates its world class Missouri River fly selection. Flies by the barrel-full coming in weekly as we prepare for the summer ahead.

The Missouri River’s Winter Fly Shop: We have all the stuff you need for winter angling on the Mo. Gloves, demo rods, hand warmers, free coffee, shuttles, spey line demo’s, information, lodging, sale items and flies.

Headhunters Fly Shop and Guide Service Spring Special: $300 Guide Trips start March 15th and run thru April 30th. This incredibly popular spring pricing special fills quickly. It books backwards from the end towards the beginning. The latter weekends in April are all but gone. Get on this soon if you want a specific guide for your spring warm up guide trips on the Missouri. Cheap lodging too. Craig Trout Camp and a couple other properties are involved in this spring special.

McCune/Gould Spey Clinic April 11th and 12th. This world class sustained anchor clinic is $200 and well worth it. A few who attended last year are already signed up for the second time Whitney and Mike will be here in conjunction with Headhunters Fly Shop. Call today for your reservation and deposit. Find out more about this clinic here.

Good fun to be had here on the Missouri River this winter. Good fishing, cheap lodging, great fellowship, Joe’s Bar, and Headhunters Fly Shop. Here entertaining the angler daily.

Montana Margaritaville

Montana Margaritaville – This Friday!

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Headhunters is famous for it’s last minute events, and here’s the latest. Our good friend Ron Bartek is sponsoring the first annual Ron Bartek Margarita and Ice Cream Social. Ron loves Craig, Headhunters, the Missouri River and Margaritas. He claims he is an expert Margarita mixer. To add another cool element to the mix, Chef … Read more