Wilderness Cutthroat – Video

I’ve spent a little time walking around in the woods with Pat Clayton this spring and early summer. Fishing the mountains and looking for interesting things to take pictures of. For those who don’t know, Pat Clayton is the worlds underwater trout photographer. You probably know whim as “Fisheye Guy Photography“. Last week we were chasing Cutthroat around in some high elevation streams and lakes, and ran into this incredible spawning ritual. Dead-centered it, as they say. Pat began taking some of his superb still images, and after doing the same from above the water, I decided to shoot some video of this incredible scene. I could have sat there and watched this for a couple of days.

Wait, I did…

And no, we did not fish. They spawnin’!

When I got home, I decided there was enough material for a short edit. A kind of “tribute’ to our native Cutthroat Trout, and the Summer Solstice. Many in the Northern Rockies associate Cutthroat  Trout with Wilderness. Much the same that Elk and Grizzlies are symbolic of the backcountry. We’ve combined Pat’s underwater still photography (always incredible) with my video to produce this “unfishing” production. If you’re serious about trout, the environment, native species and habitat, you’ll probably dig it. And if you love high-elevation Cutthroat Trout you’ll really dig it. If you’re looking for some hip-hop (or banjo’s?) and millennial, flat-brimmed, bearded, badassery – you’ll have to look elsewhere. There’s no fishing in this one.

This is full time business for Pat. He’s a Fine Artist, and makes the majority of his income selling large prints. Constantly on the lookout for new subjects and places to shoot, he is either a) hiking the high country and looking for underwater photography opportunities, or b) at home on the computer editing those images, or c) scouring the back-allies of Bozeman and Livingston for high-lake intel. In the winter he skis. It’s been quite an experience for me to tag along on a few of his missions. Seen some awfully cool stuff this spring.

You can too. But you can’t drive to these spots, and there’s no fly shop or shuttles available. You won’t get an up to date fishing report except from yourself. Pat and I have failed, succeeded and hit a couple of home runs this spring. So put on your boots and go, it’s pretty fun stuff.

Check out Pat’s photography at:

http://fisheyeguyphotography.com

and if you like a little humor with your art, follow him on Facebook.