Hunting and Fishing 2018 – Page 2 – Montana Wounded Warriors

Grass Range Elk Bow Hunt 2018

Montana Wounded Warriors had the honor of being invited back to hunt on a private ranch in the Grass Range area with two Warriors, Dean Murray and Chase Giacomo. We spent days scouting and several weeks total invested for this hunt. It was an amazing trip of archery hunting. Chase shot an awesome bull elk – his first archery kill, and his first elk – all on opening day. I believe this was the first archery kill for MTWW. It was a great trip and so awesome to see Chase harvest his first elk. He worked for it and earned it for sure. Dean got on a big bull or two, but the wind decided to redirect his arrow (his story). Dean did manage his first archery kill on a prairie dog though. We went back a week later with Dean and walked our butts off all around the property, but we just could not find the bulls. The land owner had informed us that the elk had moved into the rut and relocated out of the bachelor pad we were hunting. Dean was not able to get his elk, but it was a great trip regardless, and well worth the hard miles and effort put into it. Thanks again to all who made this possible.

South Fork Fishing Trip July 2018

Fort Peck Fishing Trip 2018

This summer, Montana Pikemasters put together an awesome fishing trip for six Montana Wounded Warriors up at Fort Peck. We had a great time and cannot thank Clay Buckmiller and the Montana PikeMasters Billings Chapter enough for doing this trip for us. The Warriors (Ethan Bailey, Shawn Komarek, Alissa Bare, Vinny Togno, Paul Mereness and MTWW board member Chris Grudzniski) got to spend three days of fishing and laughing on several volunteered boats and captains on Fort Peck. The weather was beautiful and the water was calm and perfect. We could not have asked for better conditions. Thank you Rock Creek Marina for hosting us with lodging and great food. Thank you for all the boats and fishing gear that we used… and lost. We had a great trip. Clay was an awesome cook making us fresh northern pike and walleye caught on the trip. A good time, and a lot of laughs, was had by all and we look forward to doing this again.

8th Annual Cast and Blast

Once again Montana Wounded Warriors had an awesome weekend in the Flathead Valley. The Flathead Valley Clay Target Club did another fantastic job with our cookout on Friday night and the trap shooting the rest of the weekend. The club provides a wonderful environment for our wounded vets to be able to relax and enjoy the company of the club members and to get in a lot of time with their shot guns. This year we had another belt buckle winner in the new shooter category. Congratulations to Dustin Anderson.

We also had our annual fishing trip on Flathead Lake with Mike Howe and his guides with Mo Fisch. The fishing was really good this year, with all three of our boats being very successful at landing multiple lake trout. It was an beautiful day to out on Flathead Lake.

Thanks again to all who made this a successful fundraiser.

McLeod Fishing Trip May 2018

Montana Wounded Warriors were invited to the Riverstone Ranch, just south of Big Timber in McLeod, MT, for a fly fishing trip of a lifetime. Three wounded warriors and their wives, Luke and Tamara Thomasson, Johnny and Ginger Byers and Reo and Michelle Phillips, enjoyed 5 days of absolutely awesome accommodations and hospitality.

After settling in on Monday, the 14th, the ranch manager, Craig Greenlee, took everyone on a tour of the ranch, showing us their different fishing holes. This was just a small taste of the adventure that was ahead.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, we met up with George Anderson of Big Timber Fly Fishing. The Yellowstone and Boulder Rivers were running really high from snow melt after the long winter, so George suggested we go to a couple of smaller lakes and try our luck fly fishing for rainbows and browns. The weather was spectacular with bright sunshine and beautiful views of the Crazy Mountains. Each couple was in their own boat with their guide, who helped those not experienced at fly fishing. After a few pointers from the guides everyone hit the water. The fishing was incredible. There was constant action from the fish hitting our flies and many large fish were netted. These lakes were catch and release, so after photo ops of our vets and their wives with their fish, they went back in the water. Both days were very successful with everybody catching their largest fish ever on a fly line. This truly was a once in a lifetime fishing experience.

On Thursday, we headed up to Big Timber to take a tour of the Shiloh Sharps gun manufacturing facility. We were shown how Shiloh Sharps reproduces the Buffalo Guns of the late 1800’s. These rifles, chambered in the older cartridges including the famous 45-70, are beautiful pieces of craftsmanship. Seeing how these guns are made was just a bonus to the already awesome trip.

Then we headed down to the Natural Bridge where the winter runoff of the Boulder River comes down through a rock tunnel, and when the water is high enough, flows over the tunnel as well as through it. We hiked around and explored many angles of this incredible rock formation created by the force of water. Then we headed back to the Riverstone Lodge. After lunch, we headed out to shoot sporting clays on the lodge’s course. Everyone enjoyed the challenge in the amazing setting.

Thank you to the lodge managers, Craig and Deb Greenlee, as well as their staff for their incredible hospitality. Thank you also to George and all the guides at Big Timber Fly Fishing for the great couple of days they showed our vets on the water.

Big Horn Fishing Trip May 2018

Montana Wounded Warriors were able to take 5 vets – Justin Morin, Chad Wigley, Rob Turner, Mike Kuntz and Mac Vosbeck – as well as their spouses on a trip to fish on the Big Horn River. Our trip was guided by Jesse Sanchez. We spent 2 days fishing – some went up to Bighorn Canyon, others were guided down the Bighorn River and some fished from the shore. A good time was had by all.

Big Timber Bear Hunt 2018

Montana Wounded Warriors would like to send a HUGE thank you out to Cameron Mayo and the Absaroka-Beartooth Outfitters. This awesome outfitter donated a spring 2018 bear hunt to Montana Wounded Warriors. We had the pleasure of taking Clint Mainwaring on a fun filled time of cold, wet, and rainy days. Our energetic guide, Cliff, kept us out all day spotting for bears and the weather just was not cooperating. On the last evening, on the drive off of the mountain, we spotted this beautiful cinnamon bear and Clint successfully took his first bear. It was a great trip and a fun time to be in such miserable weather to suffer with a fellow Warrior. Clint worked hard for this bear and we were honored to be there with him to see him get one. Thank you Cliff, Cameron, Sarah and all the great people involved with Cameron that made this possible. Great job Clint!

Big Timber Turkey Hunt 2018

For the second year in a row, MTWW was grateful to partner up with Absaroka Beartooth Outfitters on a successful turkey hunt. We had a great weekend with 4 Warriors, Darrel Deleon, Deondrai Ramsey, Floyd Ackle, and Jerad Werning. This trip was in the beautiful mountains surrounding Big Timber, Montana. The Warriors had beautiful weather and great guides that took them around to see dozens of turkeys and other wildlife. We started off the weekend with a big dinner to get everyone introduced and the fun never stopped from there. The next morning, our super guide Clint, took the first two warriors right to the turkeys and the first one was in the bag. The other two warriors came back after spotting them, but not finding the right ones. We had a fun day enjoying the time together and the non-stop hazing of each other. The evening turned into another successful event with all three turkeys being harvested. Another big dinner and night of laughs soon turned into an all-night bonding experience that those in attendance will never forget. Friendships forged bonds from another great trip. We want to thank Absaroka Beartooth Outfitters again for the hunting opportunity and returning experience. Another great trip in the books.

Mountain Lion Hunt 2018

Nick Riley, of Columbia Falls, MT, contacted Montana Wounded Warriors with an offer to take our wounded veterans on a mountain lion hunt. Nick has dogs who love to run the cats, and over the years, Nick and his sons have enjoyed chasing the lions through the mountains of northwest MT. Many of our wounded vets applied for a mountain lion tag in the area where Nick hunts. Dev Stutsman was the only one who was fortunate enough to draw a tag. The first time Nick took Dev hunting things were slow and they were unable to cut any fresh tracks. The second time out was much different. They found fresh tracks and the dogs got on several different cats. Eventually the dogs were able to tree one of the lions. The first lion that was treed made things quite exciting as it leaped from the tree and began to run again. The dogs were able to get back on the trail and within two hundred yards had the lion treed again. Dev made a good shot and shot his first mountain lion and the first lion ever taken on a Montana Wounded Warriors trip. We would like to thank Nick Riley for his generosity of time and effort to make this possible. It is a hunt that Dev will remember the rest of his life. We hope to have the opportunity for more of our wounded vets to hunt with Nick for lions in the future.

Fort Peck Ice Fishing 2018

Well we did it, we put our first trip in the books for the 2018 season, and it was one to remember. We were led by the awesome guide Jesse LeNeve to give the Wounded Warriors Jim Lish, Mac Vosbeck, Chad Wigley and Michael McGouldrick an ice fishing experience to remember. The men couldn’t have picked a better time to go and be hit by some nasty snow storms. The Warriors worked their butts off and gave it their best effort but several feet of snow did make it difficult. Jesse never let that stop them from having a great time. The Warriors even got a little extra time together with being snowed in at the marina and had to wait an extra day till the county could come plow the road and get them out. Fishing might not have been the focus of this great time, but the camaraderie sure was. Thank you so much Jesse for all that you did for our Montana Wounded Warriors, and thank you Warriors, for your service and making this a memorable first trip of the season.