My brother from Kansas wanted to fish and I wanted to fly. So we combined the two for a Fly2Fishing - flying into the Idaho backcountry for flyfishing. Originally, I had my heart set on camping at Moose Creek in the Selway-Bitterroot wilderness. I had landed this strip while learning my mountain flying skills at Middlefork Aviation. It was a magical place and I wanted to return. Then I came across a video shot by Steve Wright showing his landing at Sulphur Creek Ranch just inside the Frank Church wilderness at the headwaters of the the Middle Fork of the Salmon River.

Sulphur creek is an amazing place. Nice long runway (3,300’) with a gentle but noticeable uphill. Like many backcountry strips, it is oneway with go-arounds not such a good idea. As we circled overhead, the ranch hands cleared the horses off the runway. We touched down as the sun cleared the ridge.

The reality was that I had packed for tent camping so we had a tent, stove, water, and sleeping bags you don’t really need at Sulphur creek. In fact, the accommodations are rustic but still pretty posh for the wilderness. Our cabin had a  wood stove and a nice load of fresh wood. Fall at 5,800 feet has a nice chill. In addition to firewood, our cabin was equipped with electric blankets. The hydropower from Blue Moon Creek is obviously free, so why not? So posh.

As we moved into our cabin, a group of hunters was leaving. So far this season, hunters and guides at Sulphur creek are batting 100%. Not so good if you are an elk I suppose, but they are abundant in the hills around these parts, which may also explain the presence of wolves in the valley as well.

As I sorted flies, outside our little cabin, a visiting hunter told a great story from earlier in the week. “I looked up and saw wolf in front of me. In a panic, I turned around only to find a line of four more wolves on the trail behind me. I reached for my 45 to fire a warning shot, but the pack strap was over the shoulder strap preventing me from drawing the gun. As I uselessly struggled at my shoulder, the wolves got bored and left.“

This story went a great way toward explaining the reason the crew living at the ranch packs heat. Wolves really aren’t known to attack people, but there is something about being one notch down on the food chain that makes a person want to be armed while on the trail. My brother and I mostly enjoyed the sound of wolves howling at the moon from the comfort of our cabin beneath the warmth of the electric blanket.

Meals at the ranch are great, portions are large (potentially resulting in aft CG), but the quality is amazing. We ate family style with the crew. Hard to beat the food and company, so even if you don’t stay the night, Sulphur Creek makes a great backcountry breakfast place.

Before hitting the stream, we walked past the pond next to the runway. Immediately, my brother had a fish on - a nice cutthroat. Nice touch to have fishing off the runway. We lingered and caught a few more. Then continued on to the namesake stream.

Fall fishing on Sulphur Creek using dry flies was a bit tough. You could see the fish but they stayed near the bottom. I had two 18” fish take my dry fly but that was all for the day. Next year, I will try to make it there a bit earlier in the season. Still, I  enjoyed watching a school of white fish migrating upstream as I sat streamside with a sack lunch provided by the lodge.

As my brother and I hiked the stream, we came across the carcasses of salmon from the summer run. Amazing to imagine fish swimming upstream a thousand plus miles horizontally and one mile vertically to these headwaters. You can see these amazing fish live at Dagger Falls on the Middle Fork of the Salmon by hiking 7 miles down Sulphur creek and over to the Boundary Creek launch site. Earlier in the summer I was there with my son and a passle of boating friends launching on a 7-day whitewater rafting trip.

That time of year, there are amazing flying fish as well as great flyfishing as the migrating salmon struggle up Dagger Falls. In July, we lingered at the falls watching a pair of otters dine on the salmon that were not fortunate enough to make it past the falls. A bit of looking around and you will find obsidian chips and other signs from the ancient fishing camps of native americans who  once liberated fish from this area as well.

After a day of tough fishing on Sulphur Creek, we were told that the fishing at Moorehead lake was amazing. Abundant big fish, 18-22” still hitting on grasshopper patterns. So the next day we lined up some pack horses and were guided up the trail by Chris, the resident outfitter along with Valdene who joined to help Chris on some trail maintenance while we fished.

If you haven’t horse-packed, I tell you, it is awesome. We bolted up 3,500’ and 7 miles in no time (compared to the time it would take to hike it on my own). After passing a heard of elk, we were at the lake by lunch. As advertised, the trout fishing was amazing. In 3 hours we had a dozen or more BIG fish on the end of the line. I would definitely like to return to Moorehead lake.

So whether you are looking for a backcountry breakfast, fly fishing, hunting or simply relaxing in a rustic setting, Sulphur Creek Ranch is a great destination. Just be sure you have some mountain flying comfort before you drop in.

NEXT entry, will describe the next leg of the trip Moose Creek and Fish Lake.