STORY BY KAREN BOSSICK

PHOTO BY ED NORTHEN

Did you know that the Snake River is 1,078 miles long and the largest tributary of the Columbia River?

It rises in western Wyoming, then flows through the Snake River plain of southern Idaho before coursing through the rugged Hells Canyon along the Oregon-Idaho border.

It then winds through the rolling Palouse Hills before emptying into the Columbia River at Tri-Cities, Wash.

The Hemingway Chapter Trout Unlimited will introduce you to a portion of that Snake River—the part below the confluence of the Henrys and South Fork near Menan, Idaho--during its April get-together.

The free “Exploring the Diversity of the Snake River Fishery” presentation, open to the public, will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, April 4, in the upstairs gathering room of Whiskey Jacques in Ketchum.

Larry “The Legend” Larsen, the owner and head guide of Snake River Fly Shop, will introduce those present to the many quality and diverse angling opportunities in the river from Idaho Falls to Blackfoot, Firth to Rose, Blackfoot to American Falls Reservoir and American Falls Dam to Massacre Rocks State Park.

Larsen teaches fly fishing and tying for the physical education department at Idaho State University.

Ohio transplant Dave Raisch, who works alongside Larsen tying bugs that inspire even the toughest of fish to bite, will assist Larsen in telling tall tales about the brown, rainbow, and cutthroat trout, as well as the smallmouth bass, carp and sturgeon available in this section of the Snake.

The program on the Snake River will be augmented by a short update on the status of the Pebble Mine.