Catching Rainbows and Taming Tigers

My father-in-law took me fishing for my birthday a few days ago. We headed up to a lake that we've had some of our best days on numbers wise. This lake is mostly known for it's rainbows and Cutthroats, but in recent years,  it is starting to become a good spot to hunt for Tiger Trout.

 

We launched around 10 am to perfect weather. We both started trolling flies making our way around the lake. We would pick off 10-12 inch rainbows from time to time, but nothing consistent. I wanted to try getting into some tiger trout, and after a couple more rainbows, I decided to switch things up. I put away my fly rod and pulled out my spinning rod and decided to try a big Rapala. I also adjusted where I was fishing on the lake.

 

I've always had more confidence when fishing Raps compared to flinging flies, and since it was my birthday, I figured I had good vibes on my side. That must have been correct, because on my third cast, I had a great hit. Once I felt a couple of violent head shakes, I knew I had something good on the end of my line. At first he came straight to me, and I could hardly reel fast enough to keep tension on the line, but the second we made eye contact two things happened. 1: the fish took off on one of the hardest runs I've felt from a fresh water fish, and 2: my mindset went from having fun to "holy crap, I need to land this fish" because I knew it would be a new personal best if I could land it. My father-in-law said my voice got higher and higher as I fought this fish and got more excited. Each time I got the fish close I'd get a better look and realize just how big it was before it tore off again on another hard run.

 

My first attempt at landing the fish didn't go well, as I didn't get the net low enough and I thought I had knocked the Rapala out if its mouth. Luckily I got one more try, and this time I got him in the net. This Tiger measured 24 inches in length which confirmed that it was a new personal best by a few inches. What a great birthday gift! My Father-in-law snapped a few pictures, and then I released him to grow bigger. While taking pictures, he had a fly drifting in the water that a rainbow apparently couldn't pass up. He hurried and put the camera down and grabbed the rod so he could land it. That's multitasking at it's best in my view.

 

I ended up landing 3 more 14 inch range tigers, but had a couple good sized fish follow me all the way to the boat. My Father-in-law landed a bunch of rainbows making for a fantastic day on the water. On the way home, we saw three bull elk just off the road, and just around the next bend a cow moose right on the road. They were the exclamation point on a perfect day.

We had the lake to ourselves.

Typical Rainbow we caught on this trip.

 

Beaver lodge.

 

Thick, with solid shoulders.

Great colors.



24 inch Tiger; a new personal best.

My First River Monster

After years of wanting to go after this species, I finally got the opportunity to go after my first river monster. I got the invite from Kent whom I had chatted with on a fishing forum, and  I jumped at the chance. We headed to Idaho and fished for three days. We launched every day at sunrise, and fished late into the day. Kent taught me the ins and outs of rigging up to catch these prehistoric giants, along with giving me knowledge about the area. The wind blew us everywhere the first day which made fishing difficult.

 

The first bite came about 3 hours in, and Kent told me to grab the rod. I grabbed the rod but didn't feel anything, making me question whether I had a bite. Kent assured me, and told me to set the hook. I set it and felt nothing so I set it again. about that time I saw my first glimpse of a White Sturgeon as it jumped out of the water. Once that fish woke up, to had my drag screaming as it made several hard runs. My body soon told me I needed to be in better shape, as my arms and lower back started to grown as I fought the fish. It took about 15 minutes to get the fish to the side of the boat. The Sturgeon measured out to 4ft 10 inches. We took a few pictures, released the fish and within 10 minutes, another one hit. Fish On! This fish put up a good fight for a few minutes, but we soon had it to the boat. This was a smaller 3.5 footer.

 

We fished several spots throughout the day and landed two more Sturgeon with Kent landing one the went just under five feet (the big ones get up to 10 feet long where we were fishing). These four on the first day turned out to be the only Sturgeon we would catch for this trip despite having perfect weather the last two days.

 

Arrived early to get lines in the water.

My first ever White Sturgeon at just under five feet!



Second of the day at 3.5 feet

Kent's first hookup that went just under 5 foot.

My last Sturgeon of the trip at 3.5 feet.

we put in lots of time the last two days but couldn't locate any Sturgeon. Kent landed a nice catfish while going after them, but we decided to pull the smaller rods out and go after other species. We hooked into Smallmouth Bass, Perch, Crappie and Blue Gill. Kent snapped his rod getting it stored, so we taped it up, and he proceeded to out fish me with it until the final crappie he caught broke the rod for good. A huge thank you to Kent for the invite, and teaching me how to catch these giant fish.

26 in Channel Catfish

Part of the old Oregon Trail.

This little Crappie was the last fish landed of the trip, after finishing off Kent's rod.

Hebgen Lake Ice Fishing (Late Feb)

With the warm weather Utah has had this year, ice fishing options were at a minimum. Because of this and work as of late, I thought I wouldn't make it out this year. That's when my friend Rob called up and invited me to join him and his boy on a quick weekend road trip to fish Hebgen Lake in Montana.

 

We headed out Thursday after work and arrived at our cabin at Kirkwood resort after a five hour drive. We awoke the next morning to -3 degrees; a far cry to Utah's temps this year. They also had several feet of snow. We did a quick set up on the ice just to get fishing. The ice shacks could wait. We had the task of getting through 24 inches of ice with a hand auger. I guess I can say I've worked out this year now. The fishing was slow, but the fish we did land were all quality fish. I had one break me off the first day, and I lost one the second, and that's the only action I got the whole trip. Matt out-fished his Dad by a few fish (he always catches the most when he comes with us). Even though the fishing was slow, it was so nice to finally get out on the ice.

 

We were only 15 miles away from West Yellowstone, so we headed there to get some dinner. It was a sound plan until we got there and realized a lot of places were closed for the season (despite the snowmobile crowd). After our first several choices were closed, we settled on a pizza joint that turned out to have some pretty good pizza.

 

We headed home early the second day due to the high winds making it near impossible it fish. on the way down the canyon, we got to stop and watch a herd of Big Horn Sheep just off the road. It's the largest herd we had ever seen, especially that close. It was a great trip, and we plan to do it again, only earlier in the season this time.

 

Quick setup on a cold morning.

Two feet of ice and a hand auger... Not it!

I thought it wasn't going to end!

Was I out fished? Ya, you could say that...

A group of Big horn Sheep right off the road on the way home.

Trading White Snow for White Beaches

I'm late on posting this, but what an incredible trip we had over New Years! We had a family trip that took us to the Turks and Caicos islands. We were greeted by the warm sun, which was a stark contrast from the snowy conditions of Utah. We made it to the resort in short order, and headed to the beach. The Turks has some of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen, and you could see for days under the water. This also made the snorkeling trips really fun. We also spent a good amount of time at the water park, and eating at one of the 19 different restaurants that were available at the resort.

 

A few of my brother-in-laws and I also made a fishing trip on one of the days. we trolled out to our spot, catching yellow tail and bar jacks along the way. Once we made it to the spot we bottom fished, catching all sorts of new species. we also nabbed a few lobsters, and Conch to finish off the trip. This made of a delicious meal that night. If you've never had conch salad before, I highly recommend it.

 

It was so fun hanging out with the family and seeing everyone have a great time, especially the little ones. The final picture of this post shows just how much fun they had.

 

Flying in.

Picture perfect.

The fishing trip produced multiple new species.



Added a few Lobsters for dinner.

Conch shells for souvenirs and Conch salad for dinner.

The days catch fed all of us. What a treat!



Lots of snorkeling to be had.

Cruising around on a catamaran.

Happy New years!

The view while eating breakfast.

Largest hot tube I've ever seen.

catching up on sleep after a fantastic trip. Until nest time...