Hiking and Fishing

I planned a small wild trout fishing trip with some friends.  I researched a bunch of different opportunities.  Almost obsessively.  Looking at maps for places to fish never seems to get old.  On the way up to the stream I sat in the back and continued to study the maps and navigate our way to the stream.  Only one of us had been there before and they weren't quite sure where it was.  The scenery changes so much with the seasons it's easy to become disoriented.  When we found what looked to be the creek we geared up quickly.

The main reason I wanted to fish this area was the opportunity to catch wild brook trout. My friend told me the bottom sections hold rainbows then once you hit a certain elevation brookies start to get into the mix. We hit the trail and I forgot how far you can go and not realize it when you're talking with buddies. We passed up a lot of inviting looking water and there was one section that was too tempting and we had to throw our lines in.

I hooked up with a small dace but no trout. We continued back on the trail and gained some elevation. There had been some recent rain and there was a mist and fog that lined the trail. It had been a while since I hiked a mountain area after a rain in the summer. A recent jeep track became a small stream with rain water. The bigger puddles were full of tad poles most likely from tree frogs. The flowers were starting to come out and the wet landscape made salamanders venture out from the creek. Eventually we couldn't take it anymore and had to start fishing.

The sections just got prettier and prettier. The stream bottom started to change from a rocky sandy bottom to mainly cobble stones.

The fishing was slow and I couldn't seem to figure out what the fish wanted. I felt something crawl on my arm. I looked down to brush it off and noticed it was a good size black stone fly. I switched up from a double nymph combo and tried a good size stimulator. On my first cast I had a hit. The fish was too big to be a chub or dace. It had to be a trout. Like most wild water you only get one chance at the fish. I moved on and continued to fish pockets that could hold fish. There was one hole close to the trail where I figured everyone fished. It was a large plunge pool that looked like it obviously held fish. Most people that see this probably fish the pool, but how many people fish the tailing run? That seemed to be the best place to find less pressured fish. The water curved around a rock and along a bank. I tried to make sure there were no mistakes on my end. Gave the fly some dry shake and put some floatant on my leader. I didn't even really cast. I just let some line out and drop the fly into the main part of the run. I watched as the fly floated down bouncing along the riffles curved around the rock then was ambushed by a nice trout. This was one of those takes where you couldn't not catch the fish if you tried. Unless the fly just broke off. That fish was getting the fly no matter what. It was a fun little fight on the 3wt.

It's always fun to find out what fish will hit but even funner when it's dry flies. I hiked up further catching fish here and there. I figured the higher I went there would be a better chance at catching a brookie. I came to a point where the trail started to get serious gradient. You could tell most people didn't travel this far. The trail became a single track and there were downed trees crossing the trail. There was a strange noise in the bushes and as I got closer I noticed a turkey on the bank scouting me out. The trail started to work away from the stream and I was worried it wasn't going to go back. I kept hoping and hiking and I could hear the roar of the creek getting closer. Eventually it was close enough to where I could do a little bush whacking and get to a nice spot. My first cast had a fish slam the fly knocking it into the air. I kept working the pool and I would get recent follows but fish wouldn't really commit. It did seem the fish were more interested if the fly smacked the water then if it landed softly. I meant to cast in the middle of a run and landed just to the right in some slack water. I watched the fly and waited then just before I was going to pull the fly off the water a trout moved out of the run towards the fly. The fish moved at a pace that was fast but slow enough that I could make out all of it's coloring and beauty in the slack water. The fishes back broke the surface and it sipped the fly in and turned back towards the run. It had to be one of the prettiest takes I had every seen. The movement was so natural it was a chance to experience what this fish probably had done 1000 times before. I set the hook and the fish instantly shot out of the water. The fish took off downstream and tried to wrap around some logs. With some patience I was able to free the fish and land it. A very fat and healthy 9inch rainbow. The experience made my day and it wasn't going to get much better than that. I fished a little more but at a very slow pace that allowed me to enjoy the scenery.   It was an amazing day even with no brookies.

Fly Line Marketing

I constantly look at fly fishing related topics and gear.  A trend that I have found becoming more common is species specific fly lines.  Rio seems to be at the head of the pack with this.  The manufacturer has 9 different trout lines alone.  To me it seems like a smart marketing ploy but what I don't like is some of the descriptions.  I recently looked at the carp line.

Here is the description from Rio's website.

"Combines a medium length head with a smooth front taper for a subtle presentation. Wary carp will not be spooked by either the presentation, or the camo olive color."

Talk about bold advertising claims.  I really doubt Rio would take your line back and refund your money after you claim every carp you cast at still spooked.  Even with my skepticism I still wonder if these fly lines give you an advantage fishing for certain species.  The bass, pike & panfish line description offers a little more realistic description.

Short front taper to easily load the rod and turn over big flies

Warm water coating holds up in high heat conditions

Slightly heavier belly for easy casting

This is definitely a more practical and realistic description.  Although is this just a selling tactic?  Of course "Bass Line" sounds more attractive than 8wt floating line.  Is there really a difference?  Rio isn't the only one to put fancy names on their lines.  Other manufacturers are doing it as well.   Usually when fishing for stripers you use sinking line.  Line manufactures know this.  What would catch your eye more a generic sinking line logo or this?

 Again I have no problem with this.  I just wonder if there really is a difference between one line over another.  I personally have never bought a fly line to target a specific species.  I use floating line 90% of the time.  Exploring some more I also found that line manufacturers not only sell species specific lines but also fly specific lines.

It's really amazing how much marketing there is out there for fly fisherman.  The selling tactic is have the right gear for the right situation.  I even fall for it myself from time to time.  If you get too carried away you can have a rod and line for any situation.  Which is great but how many rods can you carry with you at one time on a stream?  I would hate to get to a point where I start saying dumb things like "Sorry, I can't go fishing with you tomorrow I don't have any trout line."

Gills and Smiles

Took my mother to the monster gill spot.  It's almost impossible to fish for panfish and not smile.

The Best Fishing

This morning I checked out a location that was given by a friend.   The water was like most around this area.  There are many small bodies of water that are on the fence between lakes and ponds.  They usually have the same species of fish.  A higher end neighborhood was near the lake and I expected to see a no fishing or a residents only sign.   Luckily there was no sign and I could see small brim fleeing from the banks as I walked closer.  The sun was just coming up and the reflection of the trees were broken by carp fins.   I made my way around looking for panfish and bass beds.  There was a place where a creek fed in and a grass carp was mudding.  I had a popper on and decided to give it a try.  There's no way to properly explain the excitement of a big fish going towards a popper.  The time between the fish started moving towards the fly and it actually eating it I was in disbelief.  I only believed the fish actually ate the popper when I stripped to set the hook and saw an explosion of water and fins.  Grass carp fight very strange.   I have only caught two but both behaved the exact same way.   They would fight for a few seconds then let you bring them close to shore.  Once you had them close enough to almost touch they turn around and sprint for deeper water.   These sprints show their power and they happen over and over.  After about 7 rounds of this scenario I was able to land the fish.  I couldn't get that great of a picture because of the lighting and my crappy camera.

When the fish took off it doused my legs with water soaking my feet. Last May was the last time I caught a grass carp and strangely enough it was also on a popper.

Later I headed to a familiar pond that usually has monster gills. The action was slow in the beginning. I ended up trying something I'm not fond of but works. Panfish often succumb to peer pressure. If they see other fish chasing something they follow along. I dropped my popper size down to get the smaller to medium size fishes attention. Then sure enough the bigger fish started to investigate. The monsters seemed to be located in a small 6foot radius. They hit hard and almost swallowed the fly ever single time. I'm not sure why these gills get so big and I don't really care as long as I can catch them.

Even with a 5wt these fish can put a nice bend in the rod. In between catches I had a grass carp rise for the popper and refuse the fly. I'm starting to wonder which carp are more aggressive, commons or grassies. May is usually my favorite month to fish. This type of start is only making me believe that more.

Red Eye

Reports of people catching Roanoke Bass or often called "Red Eye" started popping up. I thought it was a little too soon in the year to start seeing them. Then I saw a report with pictures. This was enough incentive to get me out to the river this morning. The water was higher than normal but running clear. My gut told me to go with a crawfish pattern. I tried that for awhile and I didn't get much action. As I moved downstream I found some deep holes lined with rocks.

I just knew there had to be a Roanoke here. I worked the water and had a few hits. I noticed some fish right in front of me so I cast just beyond them and watched as my fly was hit about 10 times before going near the bottom. I cast out again to watch the fish behavior. As I was letting my fly dive it was hit instantly. The fish wasn't big but it didn't have the orange hue that gives a sunfish away. When the fish came out of the water I knew right away it was a red eye.

A fish with red eyes sounds spooky. You can see from this fish the ruby red eyes are beautiful. I have a real fondness for these fish. I guess because they are so difficult to catch. Especially a good size one. I worked the rocks some more and I noticed I would have more action from fish if I did nothing at all. Just let the fly dive down to the bottom. When you think about it that is the least threatening behavior of prey. I cast near a rock and let the fly dive down right in front of it. I saw a gaping mouth come up from under the fly and inhale it. When the fish turned I could tell instantly it was a Roanoke and the biggest I've hooked yet. I was fishing off a log jam and had to work the fish around some limbs.

The fish was only 8inches but a trophy in my eyes. I look forward to hunting these guys in the future.

Good Friday

Friday's like this are always good.

There's a secret spot I always fish every time I'm in Boone.  There isn't a lot of fish and you have to work for everything you catch.   The fish that are there are wild and a 10inch fish fights harder than an 18inch stocker.  I have yet to catch a fish that didn't jump the instant it was hooked.   It's a place I appreciate and hold dear.

Bass, Bluegill and Dinosaurs

I'm not sure about other fisherman but when I have a horrible day on the water I have to do another trip to wipe it off the books.  Saturday was an abysmal day on the water.   A thunderstorm hit the night before leaving the river muddy and high.  It was the highest I had ever seen it.  I was leading a fishing trip and I tried to make the best of it.  Too say it was rough is an understatement.  To top it off I had a friend drive an hour just to be there.  I was going to try teach him how to fly fish and maybe get him on a white bass.  The river conditions were too dangerous.  Basically he stood on the banks and watched me fish.  He was a good sport about the whole thing but I felt bad.  The water was so dark and high I figured the fish were deep and hunkered down.   I managed a couple fish but I had to really work at it.  I almost went to another fishing spot right after just to get this one out of my mind.  I needed to get home to put in some family time. 

Sunday we went to the NC Zoo.   There was a new Dinosaur Exhibit that I wanted to check out.  I have always been fascinated by dinosaurs.  I can still remember as a kid watching the movie Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend.   I was always into dinosaur books and finding fossils in the California desert.  Even now I enjoy watching the Jurassic Park movies.  My daughter has recently been talking about dinosaurs a lot and I was hoping she would be really into them.  I was a little afraid these dinosaurs might scare her.  They were animatronic and made noises.  They also moved a little and provided a special surprise for myself. As we walked through the entrance I could hear the dinosaur sounds in the background. I kept watching my daughters reaction and she did the opposite of what I expected. She ran towards the first dinosaur she saw.

I knew right away she was going to enjoy this. She had a blast and it was fun to watch her get excited when there was a new creature around each turn.

The detail on the dinosaurs is amazing. I imagine a lot of work went into making them. The movements were pretty good too. They didn't have the robotic lifeless movement I've seen in the past. My son didn't know what to make of every thing. I think he was just going with the flow and watched his sister.

There is a kids show called Dino Dan that my daughter used to watch all the time. I think that is the only reason she knew what a T-Rex was right when she saw it. It was probably my favorite one and really gave you the feeling of how scary it must have been to be chased by this guy.

While we were walking by one dinosaur we all felt a strange sensation. It was like someone shot water at us. I realized it was one of the robots on the side but while I was checking it out I felt water hit me in the back like a kid was behind me with a super soaker.

This guy nailed me. Luckily I took the brunt of the water so none go on my family. It was pretty funny though my back was drenched. The water scared the kids but it didn't take long for them to forget about it.

This was an awesome exhibit and I'm sure we'll check it out again before it leaves the zoo.

I was still a little bitter about the fishing experience yesterday. I wanted to get out some where even if it was a local lake. I knew my wife wasn't going to be happy about me asking. I decided to give it a try any way and she gave me the go ahead. I hurried to a local lake that I usually fish in the summer. I figured with the warm weather we've been having maybe the fish will turn on early. The water conditions were perfect. I started around a small island. I noticed a swirl and cast right for it. Instantly I had a small bass on.  This lake always seems to have fish with in 8ft of shore. It's almost useless to cast straight out. All of my success has come casting parallel to shore. The closer to the bank the better. This day was no different. There are drainage pipes that usually always hold a bass. I put on a popper and worked the edges. After a couple of casts I had a fish on. Most of the bass are like this.

They are small and skinny but fun to catch.  There seemed to be bass every few feet. The hard part was they hit so close to shore it was hard to get a decent hook set. I had tons of fish stay on for maybe 10seconds and come off a foot from shore. Honestly I kind of like that. It's like the perfect release. I get to fight the fish and feel what it had to offer and then it's gone with out much stress. The panfish weren't about to let the bass have all the fun. They were out in full force too. The gills were enormous.

You can't tell from the picture but this fish is very large. I tried to take another pic with my hand behind the gill and you could not see my hand at all. The fish flopped off literally as I was snapping the picture. I caught a red breast the same size and it came off as I grabbed the hook. I'm going back another day and seeing if I can possible get one over a pound. Today I was targeting bass and I caught so many that I almost didn't even bother going further than half way around the lake. It was the kind of day you dream about. You'd see a swirl or disturbance in the water throw your popper and have something hit it instantly or with in 30 seconds. It was ridiculous. Definitely one of my best days ever fishing this lake. I guess it takes a horrible day like the one I had before to make me appreciate this one.