Guided Fly Fishing for steelhead on the Grande Ronde River and 2013 Steelhead Forecast

Posted on September 9, 2013 by grant

This post is primarily promotional I just want to say up front.  I am making a new category on my blog for any future promotional posts so if you are a subscriber and don’t want to receive any of these kinds of posts, you can simply go to your subscription settings and take this category off of your email notifications.  I don’t plan on using this category a lot, probably a couple times per year to let people know about new services at Minam or if I do another rod give away or something along those lines.  Now back to the subject of the title:  Guided fly fishing trips for steelhead on the Grande Ronde River. Continue reading →

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How to tie the Hedgehog Fly pattern

Posted on August 30, 2013 by grant

I laid my eyes on a Hedgehog fly pattern for the first time about 3 years ago.  At first I was not sure if I was supposed to think it was a small mouse pattern or a very large stonefly pattern.  Your interpretation of this fly could vary whether you look at it from the top or bottom, but fish look at it from the bottom.  The underside perspective of this fly gives the impression of a large winged bug.  Either way it looked interesting, versatile, and looked like it ought to float through any kind of water you put it in.  I bought a couple and stuck them in my flybox thinking I might try to skate one for steelhead or use it during the spring salmonfly hatch. Continue reading →

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Wenaha Timelapse video

Posted on August 29, 2013 by grant

I spent a few days with a packraft, fly rod, and camera on the Wenaha last weekend and had a perfectly enjoyable time.  I will do a more in depth trip report later that includes the rest of the pictures and video I have to go through, but I wanted to share the time lapse sequences I shot and put together.  My good friend Dave Brannan put together some guitar music to accompany.  You wont be able to see everything in the nightime timelpase shots unless you put the video in the highest resolution and full screen.  Enjoy, Continue reading →

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Upper Minam River Packrafting Video

Posted on August 15, 2013 by grant

I purchased a GoPro camera this spring with the intent to start making some videos of float trips.  On our upper Minam River float trip, I took lots of video but have had no time to edit it and combine with the photos I had taken.  Unfortonately the batteries died before we got to the biggest water of the day, but there is still some fun footage.  Renee from the blog Adventures with Packraft offered to put the video of our trip together.  So without further introduction the movie and a big thank you to Renee for taking the time to put it together: Continue reading →

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Fishing on the Little Minam River August 2012

Posted on August 1, 2013 by grant

I found this trip report from last summer that I had nearly completed but never posted on the blog.  On this trip I explored most of the Little Minam River, including an awesome gorge section with many waterfalls that the trail does not follow.  So without further introduction, a trip from last summer:

Now that I have hiked, fished, and floated the majority of the Minam River and the North Minam River I decided it was time to turn my attention to the last major stretch of water that I had not explored, the Little Minam River.  There is a waterfall on the Little Minam River that stops upstream migration of fish and now presumably a genetically isolated fish population above the falls.  Below the waterfall section is the Little Minam Meadows which I had also not visited yet.  The combination of the Little Minam being the main tributary in the lower half of the river system, a waterfall somewhere with a genetically isolated fish population above it, and some lovely meadows sounded like plenty of good reasons to start exploring. Continue reading →

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Packrafting with a flight–Minam River Lodge to Minam Motel: May 26, 2013

Posted on July 31, 2013 by grant

I know, I know.  I have been neglecting the blog.  I know.  But there has simply been too much work to be done at the Minam Motel to get it up and running these past several months.  Necessity gets in the way of enjoyment too often in life.  I am now so far behind on photos and trip write-ups that I don’t know if I will ever catch up.  For tonight, I will just give you a quick run down of a fantastic day trip—flying into Red’s Horse Ranch or Minam River Lodge and floating in Feathercraft made Baylee River Runner packrafts (available to rent or buy from us at the Minam Store) out to the Minam Motel as a day trip. Continue reading →

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Upper Minam Packrafting 2013

Posted on July 16, 2013 by grant

I am still swamped with the motel/rafting/guiding at Minam this spring so am still behind. But for now enjoy this trip report from Renee Patrick and Kirk Barnes on our packrafting trip of the Upper Minam River.

Minam motel ad

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Grande Ronde Steelhead and Minam Operations

Posted on February 20, 2013 by grant

I have yet to catch up on my pictures and writing.  Tried installing a new operating on my computer the other day and still haven’t gotten it back fully functional.  Most programs are still uninstalled.  But for those who would like to know steelhead fishing on the Wallowa and Grande Ronde have been quite good lately.  Ordinarily I put river reports up on the Minam Raft Rentals website, but that would require an additional computer program installed on my computer which I have not done.  I am posting a few pictures and updates on the Minam Raft Rentals Facebook page, so go there to check out some of the latest action as well. Continue reading →

Posted in Grande Ronde River, Minam River | 2 Comments

Blalock Mountain Sunset Timelapse

Posted on January 26, 2013 by grant

Somehow winter is passing quickly for me this year.  It seems like yesterday I was fishing in a t-shirt catching early steelhead on the Grande Ronde while rowing hard to avoid the many rocks at low water.  Two months of barely keeping up with work and daily tasks and all of a sudden the days are getting longer and warmer.  It wont be long until we are floating the river again catching steelhead. Continue reading →

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Grande Ronde Steelhead Fishing Report: October 2012

Posted on October 24, 2012 by grant

I began doing solo hiking trips into wilderness areas not because I hate people or find them a nuisance, although there are those.  Rather, I began doing solo hiking trips because I loved hiking, exploring, and fishing in the Wenaha.  I began exploring the Wenaha with close friends and it was not until they either could not go or did not feel the need to go when I began exploring the canyons, woods, and rivers by myself.  And so also have my many solo rafting trips down the Grande Ronde progressed. Continue reading →

Posted in Grande Ronde River | 6 Comments