Wylie’s Fish Camp – Star Valley, August, 2025

50th and 51st day Fly Fishing – August 15th & 16th, 2025

This is year two for me at Wylie’s Fish Camp. Last year it was all new and I knew Mike and Troy but not Wylie or any of the others. What I had learned on this trip was how each of the participants in the camp were connected and this also included me. One of my connections was Douglas Barnes who I met through Mike many years back and Douglas and I had become fast friends. Well, he was an invitee to fish camp for many years and Douglas and I became fast friends and fished together quite a lot. His drone shot of the two of us on the Teton at dusk is still on the front page of my blog. The third connection I have to this group is with Rob, who owns The Acocote Inn in Xcalak, Mexico, and is also a close with Mike and Douglas.

Beyond the fly fishing, groups like this one are all about the connections. Creating and sharing experiences together is really what it is all about. The featured image at top is a group shot of the entire crew.

50th Day Fly Fishing, Greys River, August 15th, 350cfs, hopper dropper

This day was a special day for me because Wylie and I fished the Greys 1:1, although Wylie’s dog Molly was also a great companion on the trip. Flows were low and Wylie needed to leave early to pick up pizzas for camp that night. It was a slow day, Wylie picked up a few up around mile marker 24. I struggled and didn’t get a single eat on the upper stretch. Also, I forgot to take pictures this day so I don’t have any visuals to share. We stopped a couple of times as we headed back towards the canyon mouth and I picked up one nice cutt on a hopper and that was my day and Wylie’s too.

But it wasn’t the fishing that made the day, it was hanging out with Wylie and Molly. We chatted about a number of topics and I really felt that I got to know Wylie better.

That night, while waiting for the pizza to show, I went down to the river with my same rig from the Greys. Mike had told me about a spot that was loaded with whitefish. I found the spot and immediately began catching whities. Twelve fish later and I headed back for cold pizza. After dinner, I decided to rig my Euro rod and head to a different spot Mike told me about. Well, I picked up seven more for a total of 19!

51st Day Fly Fishing, Snake River float, Wyoming, August 16th, 3500cfs, hopper dropper

This was a great day for me. Mike and crew had chosen to float the Snake River below Jackson. They helped me to get over my fears on this day which were totally unfounded. But having driven the Snake River Canyon many times, my though was “this is where the whitewater rafts always go. The rapids are too dangerous for drift boats!” Before the trip, Mike assured me that the section we were going to float (Prichard to Elbow)was actually quite easy and mellow. So we launched a total of five boats – 2 rafts and 3 drift boats, which included nearly everyone who was staying at fish camp. The photo below captures the flotilla and the entire crew! Note what a beautiful section of the Snake this is!

Today was a great day because I had Paul and Bryce in my boat with me, and we had an excellent time together. Bryce had floated with me last year on the South Fork. Fishing wasn’t great. We were all fishing hopper droppers and I was getting lots of refusals on the hopper and should have changed the fly to something smaller, but you also have the dropper and need to make sure you have enough foam to suspend it. But, we all managed a few on the dropper and Bryce had a good sized fish on that got unbuttoned before we got it to the net.

Paul pictured above as we wroked our way down the Snake River.

Ice Cream Social and Award Ceremony

On the last night of fish camp, we have really yummy BBQ for dinner, followed by an ice cream social. Then, awards are given out, biggest fish of the year, etc. Well, I ended up getting an award for the most fish caught at fish camp because I had caught the 19 whitefish the night before. I was stunned!

Fish Camp was loads of fun and I am already looking forward to next year!