5 Questions: Tim Linehan, Montana Outfitter

1. How is the state of the outfitting industry in western Montana?

“It’s actually pretty good. Like most businesses – and it doesn’t matter if your selling refrigerators or doing guided hunts – the economy has certainly whacked the entire tourism industry in the head.

“The nice thing about the northwestern part of the state right now is most of the outfitters are great individuals who care about the industry and work extraordinarily well on public lands for the most part, and with the agencies.”

 2. An initiative has been proposed that would abolish outfitter-sponsored licenses. What’s your take on I-161?

“I think I-161 is an unnecessary and brutal attack on the outfitting industry and essentially, without outfitter-sponsored licenses, non-resident license fees will be raised by as much as 61 percent. The outfitter-sponsored licenses provide 80 percent of funding for Block Management (public access on private land program). Without that stable funding mechanism in place, it’s possible the Block Management program could be seriously jeopardized.”

3. What’s the most exciting experience you’ve had while hunting or fishing?

“I would certainly say it was a huge whitetail buck that I had been hunting with a client for three years. Finally getting him … I knew an awful lot about this buck. He was probably seven or eight years old at the time.”

 4. The state has certainly faced economic challenges. How important is outfitting to Montana’s tourism industry?

“The outfitting industry generates approximately $167 million annually and contributes $11 million in state and local taxes, and provides $50 million in payroll for nearly 2,600 full-time and seasonal jobs. It’s important because tourism has significant benefits to rural economies.”

 5. What’s your best fish story?

“Catching about a 5-pound rainbow on the Kootenai River two times in 24 hours. I had a client and I was guiding when we caught that fish and let it go. … The reason I know it was the same fish is because it had a big head, 22 inches long and as big as a football, and she had a very clear, definitive scar.

“The following day, I’m telling the story about this fish to a different guy and sure enough, we caught that fish right there. I knew it was her because she had that scar on her back.”

(Tim Linehan has worked as an outfitter based in the Yaak for more than 20 years).