We are back with our 4th blog from Flathead Lake in Northern Montana. After exploring Missoula for different places to paddle and play, Bryce and I hopped in our car for the 3 hour drive to one of the largest lakes in Montana, Flathead Lake. We stayed with our friend, Laine Averill, who is an avid SUPer himself. Everyday we would wake up and go for a distance paddle and come back to do some fishing off our boards for Northern Pike and Small Mouth Bass. After a couple days of not catching a fish, Bryce and I decided to slide in and have our luck spear fishing on this clear lake. The lake was pretty cold at a chilling 47 degrees, thank god for our 5mm wetsuits, hoodie, gloves, and booties. Since we heard that the pike grow up too and sometimes exceed 5 ft. in length, we decided to tie off our float lines to our SUPs so we would not lose all our gear to these powerful 50+ lb. fish. After 2 hours of diving we ended up only getting real cold and a small bass, still a big adventure to look for these prehistoric creatures in Montana.

After spending a lot of time on the Flathead we decided to explore the outer river systems. First up was the Swan River, this river comes from Swan Lake high in the mountains and winds through the valley and ends up flowing into the Flathead. So Laine, Bryce, and I started a couple miles up river at a put-in point and rode the river down. Because it was so cold up there, cars were stopping and watching us as we paddled down stream at every bridge, probably asking themselves “What are these guys doing”!!! There were a couple small rapids we went through and a couple shallow spots that we had to walk down but overall I can truly say it was one of the prettiest paddles I have ever been on. We ended up taking our boards out just above the world famous “Wild Mile”, which is the biggest set of rapids in the North West, and this set of rapids ends up flowing into the Flathead.
Because the purpose of our trip was to use our SUPs in every sport that Bryce and I enjoy, it was time to bring on the hunting! We had already: paddled rivers and lakes, ran rapids, fished and spear-fished from our stand ups, we knew we had to incorporated hunting into the equation somehow. So Laine, Bryce, and I started brainstorming on how we could use our SUPs to hunt, since we already scouted an area to shoot ducks and geese over a wheat field in the morning, we knew there was no need for them. But we left 3 Hobie ATR boards on our car just in case. The next morning we got up before light, drank some coffee, drove to the field, set up the decoys, and had a good hunt. But just before we left, a flight of Canada Geese flew over and we all shot in hopes of getting one of these elusive animals. I saw that one of the birds  dropped a wing and through past experience I knew that bird was going down, I kept my eye on it and spotted where the bird would of landed. So I told Laine and Bryce to pick up the decoys and I will meet them back at the barn. I took off running towards the truck and drove about a mile away to the edge of the river. As I pulled up I grabbed my binoculars and started glassing the other side of the lake. I finally spotted a lone goose sitting upright in the water 3/4 of a mile away. Without hesitation I unstrapped the 11′2 ATR and with waders and duck jacket on I set off for the other side. As I approached the animal it started diving and swimming away from me as wounded waterfowl do, so i stayed on it and finally retrieved the animal. What an experience and on a SUP too. When I got back Bryce and Laine were at the edge of the river amazed that i had the animal. Our dad always taught us to respect nature by working hard to find a wounded animal.
After a couple days of paddling, fishing, shooting guns, and staying on the Flathead we decided to visit the Averill Buffalo Ranch, a 3 hour drive away in the town of Browning. The morning we got there, we were greeted by 150 head of American Bison which came right up to our car for a closer look. While on the ranch we all decided to take a couple boards down and navigate through a couple different streams, creeks, and ponds to look for a couple beavers that have been spotted on the property. Even though we did not see any beavers, we saw lots of sign including: slides, lodges, and dams. After spending the day with Laine, Richard, and Nikki, we said our goodbyes and  headed towards Canada.
A special thanks to The Averill Family: Doug, Maureen, Chase, and Laine, you guys showed us another incredible trip.