Robert Walters, Joe Larson and I finished the fourth annual Cuttie-thon on Aug. 10th at 3:50 p.m.! It took 33 hrs., 15 min., and 20 sec. to do, but we did it in style. Mike Carlson and Cameron Mortenson made it through the first day, putting in great effort and catching many Cutts.–mostly on dry flies. Everyone had a great time (minus the pain, fatigue, rain and cold), and are now readying themselves for next year.

The first morning was wet from a thunderstorm the previous night. We started a little after sunrise after a hot breakfast of Cuttie-thon Coffee and MaryJane’s Farm oatmeal. The good grub got us off to a fine and enthusiastic start at 6:35 a.m. I managed to hook an 8-inch Snake River Cuttie within minutes of casting on the Greys, but unfortunately lost it before getting it to hand.

Special thanks goes out to those who donated time, money and equipment to this year’s ‘Thon. Tom Sexton, my Dad, did an incredible job of making sure we were fed and watered, and even kept dry when we took a break. Mike Peck fished alongside us, and also helped keep us equipped and happy at access points–even managing to find us after we passed all check points in the middle of the night! Tricia Curley, my mom and Jeff Houston, her friend helped keep blisters, cuts and pain to a minimum, with deft first aid kit skills. Ethan Sexton, my youngest brother, helped keep radio contact through the whole event and made sure we stayed on schedule. Heather Johnson and Mandy Mader cooked a delicious array of food for us to enjoy along the route. Jeff Shelly of Big Horn Meat Cutting donated his delicious jalapeno and cheese sausage and Happy Sticks, which did coincidentally keep us happy while snacking on them along the river.

Our corporate sponsors this year did a great job of providing equipment and refreshments that are so vital to our success. Fishing Properties (fishingproperties.com) donated a custom-built graphite fly rod for the angler catching the most fish, a $500 cash donation and access to their Dead Man Ranch on the Greys. The Oskar Blues Brewery donated a wonderfully cold supply of Dale’s Pale Ale and Old Chub for us to enjoy at the finish line. William Joseph provided two Exodus packs which make packing our rain gear, water, food, beer and fishing gear simple. Cloudveil donated a pair of 8x Pro Waders and boots that kept Mike Carlson dry (until he punctured them with a willow, but repaired with the patch kit), and sure-footed astream. Petzel donated two, very bright MYO series headlamps. MaryJane’s Farm donated a supply of her scrumptious, organic dehydrated backpacking dishes that make preparing an energy-filled and healthy meal simple. The Fly Shop of the Bighorns donated more than $250 of fishing gear including tippets, leaders, flies, sink and float putty and Orvis polarized sunglasses. Cliff Outdoors provided their original fly boxes, which I think are the best designs in the market.

Thanks again to everyone helping make this year a success. I will be putting a PowerPoint presentation together soon, to give to any interested parties. Please let me know if your fishing club, diabetes organization, conservation group or business would be interested in having me as a guest speaker. The Cuttie-thon story is an incredible and inspirational one!

Just tried my first mug of Cuttie-thon Coffee yesterdy morning; the smooth, strong and full flavor started off a beautiful, energizing and river-filled day! Bags of Cuttie-thon Coffee are now ready to be shipped to those wishing to savor their mornings. Contact me via. this website or email: zwaterwriter@yahoo.com, to let me know how many bags you need. I will ship ‘em ASAP.

Also, raffle tickets for a custom-crafted 6′6″, 3 weight fiberglass fly rod, reel, floating line, leader and box of flies are available. Mike Carlson built the rod and donated it to the Foundation. Thank you Mike! I had a chance to see his work a couple days ago, when we met in Jackson. It is amazing. His wraps are smooth and tight, the grips are comfortable to hold, and the varnish is sexy! Similar rods sell for $1,700. It is $5 for one ticket, or $20 for five tickets.

See, the ‘Buy these products…’ link for more info.

Joe and I have been busy researching the Cuttie-thon route on the Greys, and taking some time to work on my book in the Jackson Hole area. The Greys has finally cleared and is coming down to a fishable level. Caddis, Mayflies, Stoneflies and Dragonflies, are the bugs to match now. Joe, Morrison, a friend and Jackson native, and myself have been doing well on Elk Hair Caddis, Yellow Stimulator with rubber legs, Marathoner, Bison Sculpin, and a variety of smaller, soft hackle beadhead nymphs. Oh, and the mosquitoes have been miserable–hopefully they’ll be dead by August. In fact, I have been bitten by mosquitoes, deer flies, horse flies, ants, and something else I didn’t see, while fishing the Greys….

The route is going to be challenging. Many willow thickets are impenetrable, surrounded by cliffs and steep hillsides. Sometimes, these obstructions are bordered by deep pools in the river, which would fill your waders. But, we’ve been managing to get through with only a few cuts and bruises. Actually, I guess we have lots of cuts and bruises, but not all are from the Greys It will be easier in August, as we will be able to cross the river once it drops another foot or two. Morrison, a local angling expert, was surprised and disappointed she couldn’t get to the other side. She said the river is much higher than normal now. But she still managed to get around and catch some Cutties!

We will finish marking the route in the next couple days. Soon after, we should have a detailed map of the route and access areas. We are now off to the river–after I finish this delicious tin mug of coffee…. 

Joe Larson and I have been busy catching a few native Yellowstone Cutthroat here in the Bighorn Mountains while we wait for the Greys to clear up and become fishable. Run off is about a month late in the western Wyoming drainages–so we have been wading up and down the Bighorns to get in to shape for the big event in August. Once we get to the Greys, we will meet up with Mike Carlson to do a pod cast interview (which I will post on this site), lure some Snake River Cutthroat to our flies, and mark the two routes for this year’s ‘Thon. Joe and I will be doing a test run of a few miles on the river, to approximate the time it will take for the entire event. I’ll let you know how it goes.

On a recent trip to the Bighorn’s west slope, Joe and I found Yellowstone Cutthroat in post spawn condition in two small streams. We caught several natives in the 5″ to 9″ range, in a variety of colors. We also landed a few Brookies–adding them to our creels and eating them for dinner. They were firm with bright orange meat, and tasty! I found the Cutts. in the tributary stream to prefer wet flies, while the Cutts. in the main channel would rise confidently to dries.

The stream dumps in to a beautiful canyon, with ledges that completely overhang the stream’s width. We found arrowhead chippings, a Water Ouzel nest, and Lupine in full bloom. I was still recoverring from a severe migraine headache the previous week, and found myself gaining strength with each step in the canyon–even though I was sucking air like a raging forest fire!

Thank you for visiting Cuttiethon.org. I hope you like the new look. Check back soon for printable donation sheets and other information about participating in the 2008 Cuttie-Thon!