The ride to Martinsdale is beautiful. This little town sits next to Martinsdale Reservoir near the Musselshell River. This day I was accompanied again by Handy Randy! Our first expedition was fun, so we were ready to do it again.

The road to the lake required some 4WD action. Blowing snow quickly drifts the snow. Once we arrived at our destination, it appeared that the lake was gone! What is usually clear ice was covered with over a foot of hard snow. If you did not know where the lake was, you were lost.

I shoveled out some spots a few hundred yards from where I thought the shore was supposed to be. It took ¾ of the auger length to hit water. We cut 4 holes and cleared them out. Water pushed out of the holes, so we sat on top of the snow.

Randy was into a trout within minutes. After a few hours, we had our limits. No one was around and the wind was howling. Our warm gear helped if we kept our backs to the wind. If you dropped something, it went airborne!

Martinsdale trout are HUGE!!! Big Fat Rainbows that fight hard. Light line, long rods, and good drags are a must. Several trout were over 20 inches!

Our last trip required us to jig the rigs, today dead sticking was the ticket. With only 10 foot of water, we kept our baits just off the bottom. Glow jigs and Swedish Pimples with a single hook worked awesome. We sharpened our hooks and used a pinch or worm and maggots.

Normally we move around but today we stayed where we started. These fish fileted beautifully and will make a great meal.

If you wait for the perfect day to hunt or fish in Montana, you will rarely go out. At first thought, we were both thinking about turning around and going home. Glad we stayed and overcame the cold, wind, snow, and obstacles.

Tight Lines!

Montana Grant

For more Montana Grant, catch him at www.montanagrantfishing.com.