SigMT

SiG MT 72 It's summer in Central Montana and Gould is in her glory, like the many other anglers driing and wading in these Blue Ribbon Trout waters. But her story is a lile different. She's not only a fishing guide and instructor for Headhunters Outfiers in Craig, Montana, she's the women's record-holder and seven-time world champion in spey casting. ese accolades come from the Golden Gate Angling & Casting Club in northern California, which hosts the Spey-O-Rama each spring. is competition in two-handed casting draws competitors from across the U.S., as well as Asia and Europe. Some come from Japan, Norway, and Scotland—home to the Spey River, where the sport was first introduced in the 1800s. According to Gould, spey is most associated with salmon and steelhead fishing; she got hooked on the sport as a fishing guide on the Kanektok River in Alaska. However, she notes, "Trout spey has been geing more popular in the U.S. the past 20-25 years, as people look for different ways to fish." In spey, two-handed rods of 11-feet or longer are used, equivalent to a five- or six-weight single-handed rod. "You basically use the same cast [as in traditional fly fishing], but two handed. It's a dynamic roll- cast that rolls above the water," rather than on the water, she explains. Gould adjusts her gear as she fishes, using nymphs and a single- handed rod for dead driing, and streamers and a two-handed rod for spey fishing from shore or in the water. An advantage to spey, Gould says, is "You get greater distance in your cast and don't need back-cast room; you can have bushes behind you. Two-handed casting is also easier on people with arm and shoulder issues because it's not puing as much pressure on the rotator cuff." According to Mark Raisler, Headhunters outfier and owner, "Whitney Gould is one of the world's best two-handed casters. And a first-rate instructor and trout spey guide." Well into her third season with Headhunters, Gould learned to fish from her mom, first taking up fly fishing at age 11 at her grandparents' cabin near Grand Forks, North Dakota. Now based in Cascade, she has guided in Washington and Oregon, and works a three-day spey school, the Jefferson Spey Sessions, in northern California each fall. Some of her biggest catches were made in Alaska, a steelhead of over 40 inches as well as king salmon. The Missouri's Blue Ribbon Trout waters offer excellent fishing between Helena and Cascade. Gould typically chooses streamers for spey casting and nymphs for dead drifting. Two-handed spey rods are longer, allowing greater casting distance from shore.

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