I am planning to fish in the dillon, twin bridges, to ennis area this fall and want to do a mostly self guided trip. does anyone have any suggestions for good books to read? if you were to fish with a guide for 1 day which river would you choose, madison, beaverhead or big hole?
also suggestions for good, affordable cabin rentals for a week in late september will be appreciated too.
thanks for the help
Am reading “havana nocturne” about how the mob owned Cuba, then lost everything to Castro. Good read.
“Game of Thrones” series…couldn’t put it down.
“Dresden Files” series by Butcher. A wizard who helps NYPD solve magical based crimes. Excellent book, “Storm Front” was first…I am wating for the others from the Library.
3 books, 3 genres. That ougta get you started.
Mike
Oh yeah…big hole river…never done it, but wanna try for grayling
Rizeye…I may be a bit biased, but maybe something here would work? A fiction novel and 2 flyfishing books to choose from. 
http://relongbooks.blogspot.com/
Ralph
If you’re looking for a book on MT fishing, I’d suggest Chuck Robbin’s Flyfisher’s Guide to Montana or John Holt’s Montana Fly Fishing Guide East (you’d want West if you were on the other side of the Divide). Of the rivers you mentioned I’d get a guide for the Beaverhead; there is some decent wading, but access isn’t nearly as easy as the Madison or Big Hole and a guide could row you into spots you’d never get to on your own. There are some inexpensive cabins in Ennis (can’t remember the name); never stayed in them but having driven by them, they look habitable. Don’t know about Dillon or Twin Bridges (I camp).
Regards,
Scott
mike - you are 1 of several that suggested Game of Thrones.
ralph - the blood of angels looks promising.
scott - thanks for the advice.
I try not to read books about fishing when I am on a fishing trip. “Killing Lincoln” by Bill O’Reilly comes to mind.
By the way, I just finished A Dance With Dragons (book 5 of the series) and am going through withdrawal. Started reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo for a change of pace and venue.
Regards,
Scott
Inventing Montana is the book I’m currently reading.
Trout Eyes: True Tales of Adventure, Travel, and Fly Fishing - Good short read and easy read while sitting next to a fire.
I’ve been down the “books” road for fishing Montana.
My advice is get yourself a good guide and follow his instructions.
They know their waters today, not five years past.
But hey, what the heck do I know??
bobby, Inventing Montana is a book that is centered around fly fishing Montana, but not how or where to fish in Montana.
Paul
I read his post to mean he was looking for books to read on vacay, not just guidebooks.
For Guide Books, I’d second the John Holt suggestion.
Non-guide, fly fishing books, I’ve really enjoyed the Knot (nail knot, clinch knot, blood knot, etc.) mystery series by John Galligan.
I also like A Good Life Wasted (By Montana-guide David Ames).
If I was only going to do one with a guide, I’d guess it would be the Madison’s 50-Mile Riffle section out of Ennis. That water is so strong, you can’t really wade it, IMO.
i like to read about all sorts of things. i appreciate a good book or 2 to pass the time while traveling during the trip. I also want to read about the rivers in the area so I know what to expect as far as size of the water, distances, access points, etc.
so thanks guys for the suggestions.
also so people seem to think the madison would be the river to get a guide for, so does anyone have any experience with guides there?
If you like history I recommend, Destiny of the Republic, and the bio of James Polk, A Country of Vast Designs.
For fly fishing history I recommend Ed van Put’s books.
Randy
My favorite book hands down for Historical fiction is James Alexander Thom’s “From Sea to Shining Sea”.
as for historical fiction books, i really like Allan Eckert’s series Winning of America, it starts with the Frontiersman then Wilderness Empire, The Conquerors, The Wilderness War, Gateway to Empire & Twilight of Empire. great read about movment westward and the confrontations with the indians. he gives a very fair account from both sides. plus all his other books are great.
You don’t say how you are getting there – but if you are driving from back east, I would consider getting a good book on Custers last stand, read up on it a little and then visit the Custers Last Stand National monument while you are driving to Western Montana. It will let you see first hand the lay out of the land, how the battle played out and just how bad Custer screwed up. As much as I have read and seen in movies on the history of Custers Last Stand, until I saw the actual area I didn’t understand how it could happen – after going there, I now get it. Just my 2 cents but hope it will help.
I am flying into western MT, not sure which town yet since i’m not going until end of Sept i have time. i have been to eastern MT but not the battlefield. that would be a great trip some day, probably when i go fish the bighorn.
that brings up a point, sorry for all the questions, but you all are a wealth of knowledge and are willing to help; if i were to take some time off fishing for a day or 1/2 a day, where would you go to see something unique?
If you’re planning to divide time among Madison, Big Hole & Beaverhead, I’d fly into Bozeman (more flights, better connections, cheaper than Butte/Helena, closer than Missoula or Great Falls); Jackson may be an option, too, but their car rentals have been a bit high for me. For sightseeing, besides Yellowstone/Grand Teton NP (which a month wouldn’t do justice to), Buffalo Jump State Park, Red Rock Lake Wildlife Refuge, Lewis and Clark Caverns, Humbug Spires come to mind.
Go see the pit mine in Butte. Awesome what humans can do to screw up the geography.
Am gonna go to west virginia some day to see the missing mountaintops