We were up early and all had a hearty breakfast at the David Thompson restaurant, packed up our gear and check out of the motel.

The Icefield Helicopters facility is a nice log office building, there were three copters setting on their pads and the copter ground crew greeted us. We drug our gear toward the large scale built into the deck concerned that we had too much stuff. We were right. Each member of the YG was weighed, and then each person’s gear was weighted. Liftoff weight of the helicopter is critical, especially at 9000’ altitudes.

So, our careful packing went out the window as each of us were tearing thru our gear, eliminating item after item. "I’ve got bug spray & sunscreen; leave yours here." Extra rods, spinning gear, rod cases, fly boxes, and extra cloths were all tossed, and even with that we barely made weight.

Dave Jensen arrived with our guide Steve Benke. Dave had emailed us just prior to leaving for the trip, saying that he had a staffing problem at his Fortress Lake Lodge (read: 8-pound Brook Trout)( www.fortresslake.com). He was to be our guide, but instead had to go to Fortress Lodge and Steve would be our guide for the trip.

Dave carefully looked over the weight records and said the YG members were "pretty big boys" (AB is 6’-0" & 190#, he’s is the smallest of the group). He didn’t think we could get the guide, our fishing-gear, the camping equipment, food and us up to the 9000’ camp with two helicopters.

Dave consulted with Icefield Helicopters owner Ralph and they came up with a plan. MS, GK, Steve and their fishing gear would go in one copter; AM, JR, AB and their fishing gear in a second copter and a third copter that was going in to pick up another group in the area would haul in the tents, sleeping bags, camping gear and food.

We are heading to fish Michelle Lakes on the side of the Wilson Ice Field.  Here is a map from Ice Field Helicopters showing the route and location of Michelle Lakes.  Map from Ice Field Helicopter Tours Web site - http://icefieldheli.com  Visit them and their web site - they are great folks and really do professional helicopter rides for folks like us!!  You can see another map of the region at http://www.srd.gov.ab.ca/areas/clearwater/bighorn/map.html  and look at the map for Job/Cline FLUZ - it shows trails and other related features of the area including the Michelle Lakes.

We went into the office to sign the risk waivers while the crew fueled the copters, then gave us a safety briefing and stowed our gear aboard. MS, GK and Steve took off first with Ralph at the controls. The copter returned a half-hour or so later. AM, JR & AB’s gear was stowed next to the helicopter pad with us crouching next to it hanging onto our hats. The copter slid in and landed right next to us. A crew member loaded our gear; then, keeping our heads down we were quickly loaded into the chopper, AM & JR in the back, AB in the front seat….with "see-thru" floors!

The flight up the Cline River valley and the spectacular surrounding mountains is hard to describe with words. Unbelievable!! The Cline River crashes thru a deep granite canyon surrounded by forests, 13,000+ foot granite mountains, glaciers and lakes.

Near the headwaters of the Cline, the chopper angled to the left and was at full power to rise up over a high ridge between two sheer-faced granite mountains. We got our first glimpse of the Michelle Lakes, azure blue from glacier flour, surrounded by near barren rock being way above tree-line, falls from the upper lake tumbled into the lower lake, and the lower lake terminating in a sheer 900’ falls into the valley below. The mountains above the lakes were covered with glacier ice.   We went by spectacular mountain after another - an endless stream of wonderous beauty.  You can tell by the sedimentary rocks that this used to be an ocean bottom!

Ralph told us that the upper lake had about 200 Golden Trout in it and the lower lake had about a thousand. The trout had been transplanted from the Kern Valley of California (where Golden Trout originated) in 1977 and have been self-sustaining ever since. There are only 6 lakes in Alberta with Golden Trout, he added. Michelle Lakes were named after a young girl who died in a car accident  when her father petitioned the Government to rename the lake in remembrance to his daughter.

The copter landed on a small gravel outcropping, we bailed out next to the skids and kept our heads down while Steve unloaded the gear. The chopper lifted a foot or two then moved away from us as gracefully as a hummingbird. We stood up and just gawked at our surroundings….unbelievable….it was like we’d landed on the Moon. The sights were stunning, yet alien…..we had to pinch ourselves to make sure this was all real. We were giddy with amazement and excitement about being in a place like this.

Our Lunar Landing Site

Second Helicopter with our team arriving

Disembarking

See Ya' tomorrow!

Stranded?

It was the 10^th anniversary of our Yellowstone Gang trips and we commented that we couldn’t believe that AM & AB’s simple commitment 10-years ago to fishing "all the Great Rivers of the West" had led us to this spectacular place.