There really is no place like it that I know of. Where else can you sit by the shore and watch native cutthroat trout two feet long rising less than two rod lengths from where you’re standing? It is a place that when hit right, never disappoints.
If you know where I’m talking about, please keep it to yourself. It’s not a very big destination, and one of those that when asked about I’ll simply nod my head in the direction of the mountains and say “it’s up yonder.” A crowd of fishermen would be able to overrun it in a summer.
There is nothing better than catching native fish in their native waterways. Personally, I get a kick out of pulling little cutts out of small streams, the kind where a fish a foot long is a monster and a trophy. But, when you catch native fish that are almost as big as your arm.. Well, hell, that’s even better.
Between the two of us, we landed four fish. Not all that many, but we hooked a lot more. Shitty leader material accounted for the loss of some pigs on my end, but once that was remedied it was a none issue. Amanda Fowler at Red’s Cottage had sent me a box of mixed flies a while back that I hadn’t really gotten a chance to use.
That night, her Wannabe was the fly to have. Slowly stripping this little leech pattern along, waiting for that heart stopping grab and big head shakes… That kind of fishing, combined with fish like this:
Will produce looks like this:
All the pictures in this post are courtesy of Shane Rickert.
