The Trout Zone

Sunday, September 01, 2024

The Wyoming Saga: Fly Fishing the Green River For Days

After getting a small taste that first evening in camp, I was excited to really explore this new to me section of the Green River. Having read about this incredible fishery, I knew it had some serious potential. Only time would reveal some of the secrets held by this fine trout stream.

The interesting thing about this trip is that it helped me make significant strides forward as both an angler and a guide, at least in one way. Even as long as I've been fishing, I still learn a TON every single year. In fact, the longer I fish and learn the more I realize how little I actually know. Still, each bit of knowledge adds up to enough information to be dangerous. I'll return to this idea a bit later. For now, let's dive right into the Green River.

Day One Fly Fishing the Green River in Wyoming

The cool morning had us up and out of our sleeping bags and in the warm truck as soon as the sun came up. It was frosty, and neither of us were prepared mentally for that I think. Still, the warm truck got us excited while the cool morning kept us driving all the way to Green River Lakes. After a quick look around, we drove a short distance back downstream to a spot we had passed on the way up. A nice high vantage point quickly gave us the opportunity to spot several very large trout. Even better, a light hatch was coming off, apparently a few tricos and some blue-winged olives.

We quickly rigged up. The warm sun had things downright comfortable at this point, and we were soon casting to rising fish. I say fish instead of trout, because we would learn some interesting things about this rise in subsequent days. For now, we assumed we were only casting at trout and our success affirmed that perspective. Several quality trout and some much larger fish missed later, the hatch petered out.

Blue-winged olive on the Green River in Wyoming

Green River Wyoming fly fishing Rainbow Trout

Trying to extend the morning, I switched to a nymph rig and managed one hard pulling native, a whitefish. The big brown trout I had originally spotted in the pool eventually eased away in all the commotion, and finally we decided it was time to move. I'm not much of a stationary angler, and we had already fished that one pool very hard. It was time to cover water.

Moving downstream in the truck, we found several other great spots to fish. To be fair, aren't they all? My favorite section was a piece of beautiful meadow water that reminded me of some of my favorite brown trout streams across the west. My favorite rig was put together for that scenario (top secret, sorry!) and I caught a few fish including a nicer brown trout. By this point, lunch had come and gone and the day was winding down.

Green River Wyoming fly fishing brown trout

We wanted to fish that water back in camp again, so we headed back for a relaxed evening of supper and fishing at camp. A few fish were caught, but nothing noteworthy, and it was time to get some sleep in preparation for another big day the next day.

Day Two Fly Fishing the Green River in Wyoming

On our second day on the Green River, we wanted to hit some of the incredible meandering meadow sections that we had passed going up the valley on our first day. Undercut bends went on for seemingly miles. John's truck could pretty much go anywhere we wanted to, so there weren't really any limitations on accessibility. We finally settled on a section that had those big sweeping bends that look so fishy.

While I didn't have any particular big goals for the Green River, John was locked in on fishing big dry flies. I was experimenting with various methods and flies and catching a few here in there, but John persevered with some big foam and was ultimately rewarded with our best fish of the day by far. It was an incredible eat that happened after he had seen a rise on the far bank. The fly had to be within inches of the bank, and a great cast got it in the feeding lane. A big slurp, a great hook set, then some serious side pressure as the fish dove for cover all worked to get the big rainbow trout out in the open.

I happened to be close by at the moment and helped with the net while also witnessing the eat. It was an incredible sequence and was our first really nice fish of the trip. It got us excited to keep fishing hard for a few more days. I eventually caught a few on dry flies as well, so it was an exciting day.

Chunky Green River rainbow trout fly fishing in Wyoming

It was on this second day that I made an interesting discovery that would lead to my enlightenment. John's big rainbow kept us focused to work all the way through a long section centered on where we had parked the truck. We were getting close to turning around when a particularly deep bend pool caught my attention, mostly because of the high bank above it that allowed me a good view of the stream.

We covered a lot of water, but this pool in particular had me intrigued. We fished our way through and on up until we ran into some other anglers before turning around. On the way back down, I wanted to look at that one pool again. Sure enough, when I climbed up high for a view, I saw some big dark shadows. By this time we were starting to recognize whitefish versus trout and the majority of these big shadows (quite a few actually) were big brown trout for the most part. I didn't have one big "Ah Ha" moment, but the wheels started turning.

Following Days Fly Fishing the Green River in Wyoming

The next few days were more of the same with a town trip or two thrown in for good measure. We also made the long run down to the first big tailwater on the Green below Fontenelle Reservoir. Unfortunately, water temperatures there were significantly elevated near 70 degrees, so that adventure ended up as a bust.

On one particularly relaxing day, we ran up to the same pool we fished on our first day. It was cloudy with a threat of rain, and the bugs poured off. It was just exactly as you imagined and dreamed of. The only problem was that we didn't see as many of the big fish as we had on our first day. Then we noticed even more rises down in the heart of the pool. I had caught one nice brook trout and John and got a fish or two, but overall we felt like there was an opportunity to do much better if we could just crack the code.

Green River Wyoming Fly Fishing brook trout

The possibility of something amazing convinced us to cross the stream and drop down the far bank. The fish were rising hard and good dry fly fishing has to be enjoyed whenever possible. It took a while to hook that first fish, and I don't really remember which of us did that. What I do remember is that it was a whitefish. Okay, no problem, there are lots of other rises, so on to the next one.

After we had each caught several whitefish, it began to dawn on both of us that maybe, just maybe, all of these podded up fish were whitefish. Dry fly fishing is exciting no matter what, and I recalled a story in one of John books about fishing on the Madison for rising whitefish. Still, they were whitefish and not trout. Both of us were there for trout, rightly or wrongly. Eventually, we tore ourselves away from the still voracious feeding and went looking for other options.

One section had more gradient than much of the valley and appealed to me because it looked more like the water I was used to back home in the Smokies. We made a point to fish through the heavier pocket water, runs, and fast pools and caught a lot of nice fish on nymphs. Nothing noteworthy, mind you, but still a good time.

A faster section of the Green River in Wyoming

It was at the end of that section that both of us realized that the ongoing cloudy weather could produce a good evening hatch back at camp. We headed back intent on taking advantage of another opportunity to fish the camp pool. It turned out to be the right call.

The Camp Pool

That evening, we got a little burst of late sunshine. That was just what we needed to trigger that evening hatch. Bugs started to pop as the sun sank lower over the western hills. Fish started rising, slowly at first, then more and more. It was a difficult pool to fish. Apparently all the fish were well aware of the camp and the fact that pressure almost always came from that side of the river. Thus, the best rises were right in the far current or across it along the far bank and structure. It required long accurate casts, stack mends or similar for slack, and maybe even a reach cast.

We both downsized to 6x tippet for the small bugs that were hatching. A spinner fall started and the fish went from the occasional rise to a feeding frenzy in minutes. We took turns every other fish. The best spot was towards the middle and back of the pool and the long casts required meant you couldn't fish too close to each other.

Both of us lost several flies to some rather large fish that made quick work of our 6x. John finally got the eat of the evening on a long cast to the far bank. He got just the right mend, fed a little slack into the drift, then the fly was sipped by an athletic rainbow trout. While not the largest fish of our trip, it was easily one of the most memorable. It was one of those moments that burns into your memory and will bring me back to fish that same pool again someday. The light was fading fast when John landed that fine rainbow trout. We gave a few more casts out of general principle, but it was clear that the rise was just about done.

Evening spinner fall eating rainbow trout on the Green River

Back To the Brown Trout Pool on the Green River in Wyoming

On our last day on the Green, we weren't certain that it would even be the last day. Our trip still had several days, but because we had gotten ahead of schedule by cutting our backpacking short, we had some wiggle room. The North Platte had come up in conversation and we were learning towards starting back towards home with a stop at the North Platte along the way. However, I had one place I wanted to revisit: the brown trout pool we had discovered on our second day fishing the Green River.

Something else had happened between our first discovery and our final visit. We had noticed a Subaru with rod racks making the rounds of the valley just like us. They had Wyoming tags and at least appeared to maybe be local. One day, as we were passing by, we noticed them pulled off at this particular location and scrambling in a beeline down the hillside to fish that pool. That was my second clue that this pool was a special place.

I had also had time to reflect on many of the streams I have fished closer to home. It was occurring to me, slowly but surely, that brown trout will stack up in a handful of spots prior to the spawn and often much earlier than most people realized. I know quite a few places where they will be congregating by sometime in July, both here in Tennessee and out west. My suspicious were growing that in just a few days on this new to me stream, we had stumbled onto one of these extra special spots full of big fish. The spawn was still plenty far enough away that we could fish for them in good conscience.

The day was cloudy, perfect for chasing brown trout. The roads were seriously messy. The deep mud was slick and I was thankful we were in John's truck. When we got to our spot, we eased down a side road and parked out of the way. The made driving down seemed extra slick. When we got out of the truck, we realized it wasn't just a little slick, it was like greased ice. Oh well, we were here now.

My fishing pack was reorganized for this final day on the Green. I had switched out some fly boxes and was fully prepared for targeting big browns podded up in deep water. A quick glance from above confirmed that they were still there. I also saw one of the biggest shadows gliding around that I've seen in a long time. A fish in the 15+ pound class and over 30 inches was just one of the monsters in this pool. Unfortunately, it soon disappeared and never made an appearance again. The other quality fish were still there waiting for us though.

We started working the pool with deep nymph rigs and plenty of weight. I cycled through my favorite flies for brown trout in this particular scenario. Eventually, we started getting some eats. Some were big whitefish, but some were quality brown trout. The biggest fish eluded us, giving me some major incentive to return to this spot someday, but we found some great fish. Fittingly, our fish of the trip on the Green River came on our last day which is as it should be.

John's nice fly fishing Wyoming Green River brown trout

Fly Fishing Green River Wyoming big brown trout

At some point while fishing that pool, the light became some of the most dramatic of the whole trip. Dark clouds in the background framed the brilliant foreground, lit up by the late season sun. It provided the perfect setting for fishing this great pool.

Brilliant light on the Green River in Wyoming

By the time both of us had caught a quality brown trout or two, our minds were going back to the truck. We had a steep hillside to get back up and the slick mud had us slightly concerned. While we could have fished that pool for the rest of the day, neither of us wanted to be stuck for the night. Working on getting ourselves out of the potential predicament and hitting some water with better access to round out our day seemed like the thing to do.

Finishing Our Green River Adventure in Wyoming

We hiked up the hill to the truck and got everything put away. Then it was time for the moment of truth. John fired up the truck and started backing up the hill. That initial part wasn't too bad, and despite some slipping and sliding, he was soon on the final short section approaching the main road. This was where things got really sketchy.

John already had the truck in 4WD. That part was mandatory just to get back up to where we were. The next part would challenge the off road credentials of this truck. I won't drag this part out other than to say that before all was said and done, we were using crawl control, driving through fields, bouncing over rocks, and by some miracle eventually cresting the rise back onto the main rode. The truck was already super dirty, so it wasn't obvious from appearances that we had been through quite the adventure getting back on the road. Thankfully, that is what these trucks are made for.

Cruising back down the main (also dirt, but better) road, we agreed on one thing in particular: the rest of our fishing that day would be in spots where we didn't risk getting stuck. It had been a close call. That actually took us to some neat spots, but it was clear that our trip was winding down. Everything that I wanted to explore had been explore, but checking a new river off my list sounded good.

That evening in camp, we discussed our options and decided to make the drive over to the North Platte. We didn't even know where on the North Platte. That would be determined the next day with some cell service in town and our old friend Google. We got as much ready to travel as possible that evening, then hit crawled into our tents for one last night with the Green lulling us to sleep as it chattered away behind camp. Little did we dream that the best was yet to come...

Saturday, August 31, 2024

Opportunity To Have Your Voice Heard on Tennessee Fishing Regulations

Here in Tennessee, TWRA will solicit comments through from hunters and anglers about the regulations they would like to see implemented. Right now, that is happening through mid September for fishing regulations for the 2025-2026 years. While I generally have little hope of any serious changes happening that will result in improvements in our fisheries, there is always a chance.

I have written in and made several recommendations. Here are some of my ideas along with commentary on why it would be useful.

First, all of my comments revolve around trout fishing primarily, but the general principles will apply to other fisheries as well if that is what you care about. A little background is important to understand my perspective.

I have been fly fishing for somewhere close to 30 years and fishing the Caney Fork for probably 25 or more of those years. When I first started fishing the Caney Fork River, it was before Center Hill Dam was "repaired" for leakage and the continuous minimum flow was stupendous. The biggest thing that the minimum flow did, other than keep cold oxygenated water in the river, was to make it harder for people to access every nook and cranny in the river. In other words, the fish had plenty of places they could hide to avoid the heaviest fishing pressure.

Fast forward to now, and not only is the minimum flow lower than it was then (despite whatever the Corps of Engineers claims) but the number of anglers and other river users has sky rocketed. That's not all bad, but it has been hard on the trout fishery. While many anglers pursue catch and release, there are also many people who choose to harvest their catch, some legally and others without regard for the regulations. That last bit is a separate issue, but the main point here is that more fish than ever are leaving the river.

As long as I've been fishing the Caney Fork, it has been more cyclic than any other water that I fish. Some of that is driven by weather and environmental factors, but a huge component is simply fishing pressure. It goes something like this. Each cycle begins with the river fishing poorly. Word gets out that fishing on the Caney is terrible, and people quit wasting their time and money to come and fish it. For the next 2-4 years, the fishery gradually improves as more and more fish are able to hold over due to one simple factor: they are being left in the river. Unfortunately, word eventually gets out that the Caney Fork is back and fishing is on fire. All the anglers who want to catch and keep their limit return in force. Soon, everyone is talking about how it is like the good old days. Plenty of fish including lots of nice ones are being caught. However, the river can only lose so many fish before the fishery yet once again collapses and the cycle continues.

Right now, we have special regulations on the Caney Fork River. Those regulations allow for only one fish over 20" a day to be harvested. I've seen anglers with stringers of big trout, so enforcement would help a lot, but that is not the only problem. The fact that fish over 20" can be harvested means that there are very few fish over 20" in the river. Brown trout have to be a minimum of 24" and you can only harvest one per day. What does that mean? As soon as browns hit that 24" mark, they are usually harvested. If not right at 24", almost always within just 2-3 inches of that mark. Thus, while the Caney Fork could be absolutely full of big trout, they get harvested right about the time they are getting to a truly special size and you can forget about many ever getting to truly impressive dimensions.

This brings me to my first recommendation. I would like to see a 30" minimum size for brown trout regulation enacted on both the Caney Fork River and the Clinch River. Both rivers are capable of growing big brown trout about as fast as one could hope for. While it is great that we have reasonably decent numbers of smaller brown trout on the Caney Fork, I am far more interested in catching browns over 24" than I am in catching brown trout under 24". Imagine, if you will, a river where catching brown trout over 24" is almost a given. That is what the Caney Fork could be. However, it not only needs to be protected through vigorous enforcement, but also with special regulations.

Both the Caney Fork and Clinch have the same problem with rainbow trout. Both rivers have a 14"-20" protected length range (PLR). Fish in the PLR must be immediately released. That means that both rivers have some nice fish between 14" and 20", but as soon as fish hit 20" they are harvested. I would propose expanding at least the top end of the PLR to 24" and it wouldn't hurt my feelings to expand the bottom end on the Clinch.

Speaking of the Clinch River, as it is now acknowledged as a wild rainbow trout fishery, albeit a somewhat fragile one, it needs a significant overhaul on regulations. First, the daily 7 fish limit needs to be significantly reduced. I would suggest a two fish a day limit if we can't just have a catch and release river. Furthermore, I would suggest making everything from the bottom of Miller Island upstream to the weir dam a catch and release zone. While unlikely to be implemented, catch and release zones are crucial to protecting spawning fish. For examples, look to some of the best trout waters in the country which have seasonal catch and release zones or even total closures (which I could support as well if it can be determined when most of the spawning success happens). There is a reason why everyone wants to go fish the White River in Arkansas, and the quality fishery is largely driven by special regulations, catch and release zones, and seasonal closures.

Finally, at a minimum, the Clinch needs to have a seasonal fishing closure from just above (say 50 yards upstream) the mouth of Clear Creek extending down to the weir. There are a variety of reasons why this section is so crucial, but it all revolves around spawning class fish. The water above the weir dam often has major water quality issues with low dissolved oxygen in the late summer and early fall. Clear Creek contributes water with very high dissolved oxygen (DO) and fish spawn in Clear Creek as well. Thus, just prior to spawning, spawning fish will stack up in the high DO water coming out of Clear Creek. Unfortunately, a lot of people know this and catch these spawners and put them on stringers. Right now, that is completely legal albeit not ethical. Changing the regulations to protect these fish will go a long ways towards rebuilding the wild rainbow trout fishery on this river to what we saw 5-10 years ago.

If you are interested in seeing better fisheries here in Tennessee, then reach out to TWRA and share your thoughts on what can be done to improve our fisheries. I would suggest asking for a 30" minimum size limit on brown trout on the Caney Fork and Clinch. I would also strongly suggest a seasonal closure OR catch and release zone on the Clinch River around Clear Creek down to the weir dam at minimum. Submit your comments at:

https://stateoftennessee.formstack.com/forms/2024fishingregcomments

Saturday, August 24, 2024

The Wyoming Saga: Changing Gears Onward to the Green River

Most fishing trips have unexpected moments. Our first came rather early in the trip with the bad wind day, but timing-wise it allowed some neat things to happen since it freed up a couple of days on our loose itinerary. We just wouldn't find that out until later. Still, this was my first Wyoming fishing trip outside of Yellowstone National Park. The very expensive non-resident fishing license had deterred me in the past and likely will in the future. It is hard to justify paying that kind of money for a fishing license when I can get a Yellowstone National Park fishing license and enjoy some of my favorite streams and rivers anywhere with excellent fishing. Still, there were moments in this trip that will require revisiting for further exploration. The Wind River golden trout trip is definitely going to happen again, for example.

Hiking Out of the Winds

Our goal that morning was simple: bust our butts back down the trail to John's truck, drive over South Pass, and on to Pinedale. Just north of town, John knew of a little campground that was right on the Green River. He also knew some good places to eat in Pinedale and even though it hadn't been long, backpacker dinners were starting to get old. That was motivation enough for me. I'm always a sucker for food.

We started hiking out early while the shadows were still long and it was nice and cool. We weren't in such a hurry that I forgot to take some pictures both in camp before leaving and also along the way. There was a small patch of fireweed just behind our camp. That morning, the rising sun light up the flowers perfectly while deep shadows lingered behind.

A little further above camp, a small colony of pikas had shown themselves while we were hiking up to the golden trout lake. They have to be one of my favorite (maybe even THE favorite?!?!) alpine and subalpine critters, and it is always a major highlight of my trips to the higher mountains out west to see them. I chased them up and down this rocky gully for a bit before the thought of that good food in Pinedale got me moving.

Fishing On the Hike Out

Hiking out, we didn't see too many interesting critters. There were a lot of squirrels active, however. It was getting a little late in the season and they were working overtime to get ready for the next winter season. I'm always a sucker for any animal photos, so I would periodically stop and try to get a creative shot of them.

A bit more interesting than squirrels was the fishing. We stopped at the first lake we had hit on the hike in. There were just as many fish cruising around even if the wind was much worse than on our hike in. Still, we found a sheltered shoreline where many fish were cruising. Not only did I add another big (to me) tiger, but I also added a cutthroat to my total trip catch tally. I caught more brook trout as well, but didn't bother to photograph anymore because none of them on this day were noteworthy.

Another tiger trout in the Wind River range

I also managed a selfie that showed me looking a lot more tired than I was actually feeling. It also showed the Peak Design capture clip. Notice a clip on both shoulder straps which enabled me to balance the strain on each side of my body by switching back and forth from time to time. This proved key to keeping my back, shoulders, and neck happy and not too sore. I tend towards having back and neck problems, so this innovated way of carrying the camera probably would NOT work well for me if I was just carrying it on one side the entire hike. As it was, I really enjoyed the system and got a few pictures that I wouldn't have otherwise of gotten.

Driving Out of the Winds to Pinedale

The road out was decent but not great. I was glad that we had John's truck instead of my car. The car would have made it, but we made much better time in the truck and it took the ride just like it was supposed to. As we started to turn the corner from the east side of the Winds into South Pass, the already breezy day really started to howl.

The winds were cranking through South Pass. By the time we were approaching the Green River basin, the sky was full of dust and haze from blowing particulates. This was a windstorm of epic proportions and we were both thankful to not be hiking high in the Wind River mountains trying to camp or get a camp stove to burn long enough to boil water for our meals.

At this point, I was just hoping that the winds would relax enough to pitch camp on the Green so I could get a good night's rest. We still had that stop in Pinedale as well.

Town Trip to Pinedale

By the time we cruised into Pinedale, both of us were hungry. Things like getting groceries for the next several days of camping or stopping by the local fly shop could wait. We had to find something to eat. John had been to the Wind River Brewing Company before and knew they had good food. We pulled in and found one of the last few parking spots. A full parking lot is always a good sign for food quality even if it means you'll end up waiting longer for food.

Thankfully, they had our food out quickly. I had the Street Tacos with sautéed veggies and they were delicious. It doesn't take much to make me happy, and a good meal after backpacker dinners really hit the spot. After taking care of that, we headed to the grocery and made a stop by the local fly shop.

The guys in the Two Rivers Fishing Co. were helpful and friendly, something I've come to realize isn't to be expected in all western fly shops. They gave us a few tips and we quickly finished our shopping in town. The hour was getting late and we still needed to go find a campsite and get setup before dark.

Camping at Whiskey Grove Campground

Heading out of town, we turned up 352 towards the vast National Forest land in the headwaters of the Green River. The Whiskey Grove Campground was just a short distance down the rougher gravel/dirt road that continued all the way up to Green River Lakes. John knew of a great fishing spot behind the campground, so it didn't take much more to convince me that this would make a good base camp.

We pulled in and got lucky with one of the last good spots down by the river. I would get to fall asleep to the sound of a fine riffle on the Green just behind my tent. However, I didn't go to bed before catching my first Green River trout. The pool behind camp was just too good and I wanted to work a jig streamer. I rolled several very nice trout, and finally landed a nice little brown trout to continue my collection of different species on my trip list. This was a great welcome to a new-to-me section of the Green River. I had only previously fished the Flaming Gorge tailwater in Utah. It was a promising start to the biggest part of our trip in terms of time..

Friday, August 09, 2024

The Wyoming Saga: Golden Trout Found and Plans Adjusted

A Perfect Day For Finding Golden Trout

Fishing high elevation lakes is a gamble at best. Weather can change very suddenly, fish seemingly appear and vanish at random, or never appear at all. On some days you'll catch fish, while on others, you might think there are no fish to be found. I've been on a streak of having excellent luck while fishing high lakes, so I was likely due for a clunker.

We got up early to try and beat the wind. That is often the biggest challenge of fishing these lakes. The wind almost always comes up every single day. If it gets bad enough, you simply cannot fish. We were hoping to get there ahead of the diurnal breezes.

Getting up early has some benefits. There is a special magic to being outdoors first thing in the morning. Someone who is better with words than I can probably articulate the mystery, but I'll have to let my pictures do the talking. This is the lake we were camping on before the sun got over the horizon. Glassy smooth water teased the possibility of a perfect day for finding golden trout.

Dawn at a lake in the Wind River mountains

Hiking To Our Golden Trout Lake

After a quick breakfast, we hustled on up the hill. I was feeling good with no ill effects lingering from the episode the evening before. We were already long past having an "official" trail (many of the better golden trout lakes are off trail), so we just struck out in the right directly from camp, angling uphill to try and intersect the social path that had to be there. While there are not official maintained trails, there are still trails or paths going most places you want to go. In this fragile high elevation ecosystem, it is probably best to stick to those paths when possible to limit impacts to the landscape.

Looking back downhill towards camp and sunrise

Hiking to find golden trout in the Wind River Mountains

Gaining elevation rapidly, we crested an obvious bench and soon found the "trail." Making better time on the flatter tread that meandered across the small bench, we continued on. In places, dramatic views opened up where the ridge we were climbing broke away abruptly on one side or the other. One of those big views showed us another small lake that had me intrigued. I didn't feel like dropping down to check it out, however, when our main goal was just over the next hill above us, or at least that's what we hoped.

Sure enough, we crested a few false rises, and then, as I've come to expect with most alpine lakes, we saw our goal ahead and a little below. Wonder of wonders, it was mostly calm. A few ripples out in the middle hinted at what could be, however.

Alpine golden trout lake in the Wind River mountains

Fly Fishing for Golden Trout On An Alpine Lake in the Wind River Mountains

Reaching the water's edge, we got our equipment put together and started fishing. It didn't take too long before we saw fish cruising the edges. Having targets to sight fish for made a big difference. A dry/dropper seemed appropriate. I wanted to catch fish on dry flies, but many of the fish were down just a little in the water column, probably eating nymphs for the hatch we hoped would materialize.

I missed a fish or two. The first fish jitters had me going strong, especially when my long dreamed of golden trout were cruising so close by. John got things dialed in a little faster and got the skunk off for us as a team. That helped a lot. His prior experience catching golden trout made a difference getting started that morning, but I would eventually hit my stride as well.

Golden trout in the Wind River Mountains

After getting the appropriate documentation of that fish, it was my turn. It took a few minutes longer than it should have when I missed a couple of fish, but finally I hooked one that decided to stay on the line for me. My own first golden trout. It barely happened in time. The wind was starting to kick a little harder. Soon, those fish cruising the edge would disappear. Did they go elsewhere? Or were they there but I couldn't see them in the chop?

We walked that edge back and forth a little longer before starting the usual progression of wondering about the other side. You know, the grass is greener syndrome. Still, with the wind starting to blow and fish becoming scarce, it made sense to start searching them out. Thus, we started our circuit of the alpine lake. I had some other things I wanted to do as well.

Touring the Golden Trout Lake

I have more pictures than anyone reasonably would want to look at from this day. So if you aren't here for pictures, feel free to keep scrolling. This next part will just highlight my trip around the lake. We slowly fished our way around 2/3 of the lake before mostly just making time on the last third. At some point, I climbed way above the lake for some shots from above. I also took time looking for wildflowers and wild critters. You know me, I can't stay away from those things for very long, even when there are fish to be caught.

John casting into the wind for golden trout

Fishing for golden trout in the Wind River range

panorama of Wind River mountains alpine lake

More wildflowers while looking for golden trout

Back to Catching Golden Trout in the Wind River Mountains

As I started angling down the hill from my perch, I started noticing something interesting. As a good fly angler, I couldn't keep my eyes off of the water for long. Sure enough, dark shadows were cruising here at the upper end of the lake. John was still off down the lake somewhere, but when I yelled that I had found a bunch of fish, he started working his way over as well.

Best of all, these fish were cruising for a sparse hatch that was coming off. Some type of small dark mayfly was hatching and the fish were feasting. Cutting off the dropper, I went with a single parachute Adams and that proved to be the ticket.

The fish were cautious, but would eat if you got the fly where they could see it. If you caught a fish or missed a fish, that little area was spooked for a few minutes. You could either wait them out or move a few yards down the bank.

We started bouncing up and down the bank, casting to eager risers and catching just enough golden trout to keep us focused a bit longer. Still, all good things must come to an end. As the rise started to ease off, we realized we were both tired from sun exposure, exercising at high elevation, and our early morning start. Some food back in camp was sounding better and better.

Hiking Back To Camp After Fishing For Golden Trout

By this time, the wind was kicking pretty good. We had found those fish rising in the back corner of the lake on the one shoreline with a little "calm." There, the bugs stayed on the water long enough for the fish to find them instead of being blown off. Once we moved on around the lake back to our starting point, the full force of the high elevation wind was in effect and we were anxious to drop back down into the trees and hopefully find a little calm.

Sure enough, things got moderately better as we made our way back to camp. At that point, we wanted just enough calm to boil some water for our backpacker dinners. The hike back down went much faster than the hike up, mostly because we weren't working as hard physically going downhill. Coming straight up to 11,000+ feet in elevation from Tennessee was challenging, but we were doing better than I think either of us had expected.

Our hike would periodically be interrupted by red squirrels scolding us or birds chattering away, but we never saw any larger mammals this day. The biggest surprise was when a grouse spooked almost underfoot. I grabbed my camera and took a few quick photos before it disappeared. Not my best shot ever, but I did get documentation.

Decisions To Make

With a highly successful first day starting to wind down, it was time to consider our options for the next several days. The original trip plan involved hiking cross country the next day and dropping into another drainage to explore some more golden trout lakes. These were lakes that supposedly produced larger fish, so that was exciting.

What wasn't exciting was the forecast from John's Garmin inReach Explorer+. We already knew that our backpacking portion of the trip was potentially in jeopardy after the first couple of days. A weather system was supposed to move through and produce very high winds over the Wind River Range. With spot forecasts for our campsite showing winds potentially near hurricane force, we debated back and forth but ultimately decided that it would be smart to bail the next morning. Going to bed that night, we didn't know how significant this decision was for the rest of our trip, but time would eventually show us that...

Random Musings

A word on our destination lake. If you happen to have read my blog for many years, you've probably noticed a trend away from naming streams and waterbodies to giving rather vague info on where my adventures happen. That is all on purpose.

Just the other day, I saw someone lamenting online about how a favorite trailhead in the Smokies was not "secret" anymore and was always super crowded. They of course then proceeded to share pictures of said trailhead (easy to identify) and describe in great detail their day of fishing. All of this while posting to a fly fishing specific Facebook group. I could basically go retrace their steps and I'm sure there are some people who will do that. That's a formula for NOT protecting and preserving wild places. If people are willing to put in the time and effort to figure these things out for themselves, they are probably harmless. The people looking for quick and easy answers, not so much.

I have long ago made the decision that I'm not going to directly be the guy outing all these spots. Shoot, there are some places you can't pay me enough to take you. So, if you do just a little basic research, this lake is already "known," but I'm not going to continue that trend myself. To do so would go against everything I believe about backcountry fishing. That said, there is more than enough info on this post to figure it out fairly easily. If you have questions, feel free to reach out. I would be glad to discuss further via email, call, or text, but not on the inter webs for the whole world to read...

Thursday, August 01, 2024

The Wyoming Saga: In Search of Golden Trout Day One

Planning For Adventure

For many years, I've kept a rather loose bucket list. Unlike most people who have a bucket list, I'm not particularly organized. I've met more than a few people who are carefully working through a list, checking off adventure after adventure. That's not me. Rather, I have a vague mental collection of places I would like to someday visit. Since I'm well beyond the young footloose stage of life, these adventures are almost always intentional, but generally rare. Adult responsibilities are always getting in the way, so most of my adventures these days are a little more tame than in my younger years. That is clearly a problem I need to rectify, and I've been working at it little by little.

A backpacking trip in the Wind River range of Wyoming has been high on my mental bucket list since, well, probably just about since it occurred to me that I even had a bucket list. For many years, I thought the whole notion was kind of goofy. Then, one day, I realized that I really wanted to do a trip in the Wind Rivers. Next, it occurred to me that I also really wanted to visit New Zealand, mostly to fly fish, but also to hike and soak in the scenery. Even if my bucket list is only two destinations long, I now have one.

If I think long enough, I can come up with quite a few other places I want to visit and revisit. Some of my dreams are vague and unlikely, like spending every summer in West Yellowstone. Others are specific and easily attainable, I just need to make them happen. These are things such as finally visiting Hazel and Eagle creeks in the Smokies. Those are the only two major Great Smoky Mountains National Park drainages I haven't fished.

My buddy John had been to the Winds. After his first trip, I started contemplating attempting a trip. Not long after, I found a rather dangerous interactive map online. With all the knowledge I would ever need to plan a golden trout trip in the Wind Rivers at my disposal, I started the process that would ultimately lead to the kind of adventure that I'm always craving.

Golden Trout in Wyoming

The main problem with planning a golden trout trip (and one I'll perpetuate) is that no one who knows anything is saying much. There is some information out there on the inter webs, but most of it requires some sleuthing to figure things out. While golden trout are scattered around a few different western states, Wyoming is THE place to fish for them unless you want to chase them in their native California in the Sierra Nevada range. There are at least a handful of other western states where they can be found, but the Wind River range in Wyoming is the most similar to their native Sierra Nevada.

At one point, golden trout eggs were brought to Wyoming and the rest is history. Apparently, the golden trout did so well in Wyoming that the Wyoming Game and Fish started their own hatchery program. Wyoming is the best place to obtain some golden trout if you are a state or other entity in the market. They have the only genetically pure brood stock hatchery program with golden trout.

While they can be found in streams, these fish are best in the high alpine lakes that they prefer. Anyone who has ever fished a high alpine lake knows that they can be finicky at best. When a high country lake is fishing well, it will make you feel like the best angler in the world. If it is fishing poorly, you might conclude that it simply doesn't contain any trout.

Once, when I was fishing a high country lake in Arizona probably 20 years ago, I started to arrive at a similar conclusion. Having worked my way nearly the entire way around the lake, it seemed obvious that the fish just weren't there. Mother Nature had the last laugh when a huge bald eagle swooped down and grabbed a trout that looked like it had to be at least two feet long.

After consulting with my buddy John who already had a rough itinerary in mind and then clicking through endless alpine lakes on the Wyoming interactive online map, I felt confident that we had a good plan. Still, we wouldn't know until we were there and fishing if our choice was a good one.

Anticipation Builds

On the drive out to Wyoming, I was almost in shock. It had been so long since I had embarked on a fishing trip out west that I had forgotten how exciting it all was. The drive is always fun in a way, because I much prefer seeing the countryside go by from up close. You never know what interesting things you might see. On this trip, however, there really wasn't anything particularly unusual about the drive. Wanting to be fresh for the backpacking trip, we timed our travel to spend a night in Laramie. That would let us get up, drive to Lander, and be on the trail in time to get into camp before dark.

We made it to Lander in record time. The higher speed limits out west are a real treat, especially for someone with a heavy foot. We took the time to stop at the Wind River Outdoor Company as I needed some new bear spray. Next, we went to the Middle Fork for an early lunch to fuel up for the trail. If you are in Lander, do yourself a favor and stop there for breakfast or lunch. The food was excellent! I had the quinoa power bowl with scrambled eggs and it was delicious!

After lunch, we headed up the mountain towards one of several trailheads. On the way, I had to stop at Rise of the Popo Agie to view all the monster trout.

Places like this make you try to figure out how to sneak in and fish! The pictures naturally don't do justice to the scene, so I'll just say the fish were huge and plentiful. The scenery was dramatic as well, ample reward for the months of anticipation.

Hiking Into the Popo Agie Wilderness

Both of us had only minor preparations to make to hit the trail, our packs already being packed. We started out at a surprisingly good pace considering that we both were coming from the flat lands of Tennessee. Thankfully, the elevation didn't bother me on this trip, although it might be hard to convince my buddy John of this. More on that shortly.

While we were on the far southern extend of grizzly country, we both had our bear spray strapped on and easy to hand. I also had a DSLR clipped on my shoulder strip using a Peak Design Capture system. While it does have some limitations, the benefits mostly outweigh any negatives. I foresaw the primary potential problem of having too much weight pulling on one shoulder strap over the other. My solution was simply to buy two of the Capture clips, one for each shoulder strap. I was able to switch the camera back and forth, balancing out the load so to speak. While I didn't get any crazy special shots, I did get a few that I wouldn't have been able to get if the camera was buried in my pack as usual.

My favorite, while not a great shot, was a moose. I also managed to get a picture of a deer before it ran, and made the time to snap some other shots that would have been skipped if I had to dig my camera out of the pack. Here are a few of my favorites from the hike in.

Fishing in the Popo Agie Wilderness

I had prepared for both dedicated fishing days and also quick pit stops. I had a Tenkara USA Rhodo in my pack for quick sessions along the way and an actual fly rod for the more dedicated all day fishing excursions. One of the lakes we were passing was supposed to have tiger trout. Having never caught one, I figured this might be one of my best opportunities.

When we dropped our packs for a quick break, it didn't take long to start spotting trout. They were everywhere. It also didn't take long for us both to hook up. I caught a few brook trout which were a treat even if they are invasive species out west. Since they are my native trout (er, char) here in Tennessee, I always have a soft spot for them. They were beautifully colored up as well.

The brookies were fun, but I really wanted a cutthroat or tiger. Then, finally, it happened! I caught my first tiger trout, and in fact, I caught a couple. The cutthroat were a little spookier, but I figured I would have more opportunities. Besides, I've caught lots of cutthroat over the years including most of the easily accessible subspecies, so I wasn't too worried about catching them.

Setting Up Base Camp

While the fishing was excellent, we still had a ways to go. Strapping our packs back on, we quickly headed out. The trail continued up hill (why do trails always go uphill?) and we trekked onward towards our chosen camping spot. When we arrived, both of us were tired enough that we almost stopped too soon. However, a quick exploratory trip yielded a much better camping spot. Soon, we were setting everything up as the light grew dimmer. A good place to hang our food packs wasn't too terribly far away.

As I started getting supper together, a migraine that had been lurking for a bit started to hit me hard. I hurried my food along as sometimes getting some food in me can help. Unfortunately I didn't get everything together quick enough. I got sick which was unusual but not out of the realm of possibility for me, but to all spectators, it looked an awful lot like elevation sickness. My buddy John was at least a little concerned. I could tell he was nervous and since I've had both elevation related sickness and routine migraines, I could tell that this was just a migraine. Assuring him that all I needed was a little water and a good night's rest, I headed off to bed. The next day would hopefully be a fishing day. If it turned out I was impacted worse by the elevation than I thought, it might be the day to hike out...

...to be continued...

Monday, June 03, 2024

Aurora Borealis in Tennessee

Yes, that's not a typo. By now you have probably seen everyone else's pictures via social media, but almost a month later, I'm still in shock. Seeing the "northern lights" was always on my bucket list. However, I assumed it would take a trip to Iceland or something similar to eventually get to enjoy this incredible phenomena.

I really owe a debt of gratitude to an old friend of mine who now lives in London. Reuben posted a picture on Facebook of the northern lights as viewed from northern London. I had seen the hype on social media and in the news, but hadn't thought much beyond that. Seeing that picture from Reuben convinced me that it was worth taking a look.

There is a great dark sky location not far from home, probably 20 minutes away or so. We have used it to view things like Comet NEOWISE. With good visibility down to the horizon in most directions and most importantly looking north, it was the perfect place to try and catch the aurora borealis. After getting the toddler in her carseat, we started driving shortly after sunset. As the light faded in the western sky, our anticipation began to build.

We met my sister, brother-in-law, and niece on the side of the little country road. Thankfully, it sees very little traffic, so we were able to just stop in the road. When we all started looking, we weren't sure if we were seeing something special or the remaining light from the fine sunset. As it got darker, a shimmering glow began to rise and fall to our north. A quick camera picture with a longer exposure confirmed what we were seeing: it was the northern lights.

From there, the evening was magnificent. We stayed until a little after 10:00 pm which had pushed Little Bit's bedtime much later than ideal, but it was a pretty special set of circumstances. The colors ranged from pink, to red, to green. At the best moments, we could easily see everything with the naked eye. The shimmering lights rose to straight overhead and even south of us as the entire sky lit up.

Now I'll just have to go to Iceland for the fishing I suppose. Here are a few of the pictures from this magical evening in Tennessee.

Sunday, June 02, 2024

Cicada Carp Fishing

Why Fly Fish for Carp

Carp are not the first thing that most fly anglers think of when planning a fishing trip. For the few dedicated carp out anglers out there, that is just fine. Carp are a mostly untapped fishery that provides a ton of sight fishing fun with little pressure overall, except during periodic cicada hatches that is.

While I have begun offering a few guided fly fishing carp trips here and there each summer, it hasn't been something I've pushed hard. Carp fishing generally requires both precise presentations along with nerves of steel. Once a fish is hooked, you then also have to ace the test that comes with the fight. Carp are big, strong, and smart, and will try every possible method to break you off.

Fly Fishing the Periodic Cicada Hatch for Carp

The periodic cicada hatch offers an opportunity for everyone to get in on the fun, however. The volume of big fish up feeding on naturals on the surface is mind blowing. Anglers of all skill levels will get enough shots at fish to eventually make some count. While this may sound crazy to most people, carp fishing with a fly rod is the thing I look forward to the most with these periodic cicada hatches. Don't get me wrong. Catching big trout on dry flies is a blast and something I'll do as much as possible as well, but carp provide a whole different challenge and set of problems for the fly angler to overcome.

Tips and Tricks for Catching Carp During the Cicada Hatch

Throughout this current brood XIX cicada hatch, I have been noticing a few little details here and there that make landing these fish a lot easier. Some of these tips will apply to your trout fishing as well and more broadly, to sight fishing in general. While there are very few absolutes in fly fishing, most of these are good general guidelines to help you find more success chasing carp on dry flies or any fish you are sight fishing for.

Use heavy enough tippet - This one may seem obvious, but even on 1X I am often outgunned. My philosophy of tippet (feel free to ask me about that sometime if you don't already know) keeps me from going much heavier than 1X, maybe occasionally down to 0X, but 1X is where I usually land for most "big" fish applications. During my first experience with brood XIX 13 years ago, I found myself using 4X on the Caney Fork. It worked fine on the trout, but for the carp, it was a little more dicey. Now, I have learned a lot and fish much heavier tippet anytime I can get away with it.
It is always better to miss short - This one isn't quite as obvious, but with carp in particular it is important to not cast too far. Carp have a weird tendency to find the end of your fly line and follow it back to the boat. If you overshoot that cast, they'll immediately quite looking for bugs and come looking for the boat. It is better to be a little short than a little long. If you miss short, you can simply recast and try again. If you are little long, you've likely blown your shot. This applies to most sight fishing situations I'll add.
Lead the fish by a couple of feet - Carp move very erratically while looking for cicadas. It is best to get fairly close with your cast unless you are in very clear water. In that case, you might want to lead them by 5-6 feet. In moving water, you have the added problem of drag if you lead a fish too far. By the time the fly gets to the fish, drag has started to act and the fish won't eat.
It is best to have carp eat coming towards the boat or at right angles to the boat - This one makes sense once I explain myself. Carp have very sensitive lips. If they feel the tippet before eating the bug, they'll freak out. When they are going away from you, their lips will bump the tippet as they rise before eating the fly. If they eat while moving at right angles to the boat or coming straight at the boat, this problem is generally eliminated.
Wait for the hook set - This is obvious once you've missed a fish or two, but trout anglers will generally set way too early on carp. They will be very deliberate when eating your dry fly. Wait until the mouth closes and the fish turns definitively down in the water column before setting the hook. Then, when you do set, really set the hook. No soft trout sets. Give it the ol' bass hook set.
Low side pressure is your friend - During the fight, carp will generally try to run for structure. They are very good at finding all the obstacles and sawing your tippet off on logs or other structure. At some point, you'll probably have to turn that big fish. Do so using low side pressure, the lower the better. This is good general advice for fighting trout as well. Low side pressure will generally get fish landed MUCH faster than pulling up. Up freaks them out and makes them fight harder and longer while low side pressure can get them whipped quickly. This has the added bonus of keeping fish healthy instead of playing them to exhaustion.
BONUS TIP: Don't be afraid to twitch your fly but don't overdo it - This one is particularly tricky. I mostly rely on a dead drift only. Carp often refuse naturals on the water because they are fluttering. The time to twitch a fly is when a fish is in the vicinity but seems to be passing by without seeing your offering. Give it a little twitch to help the fish find it, then stop and let it sit still again. Trout are more likely to like some twitching, but carp mostly don't. However, if fish start refusing your dead drifted flies, try adding a twitch. I had a day last week guiding on the lake where the fish quit eating dead drifted flies around 3 pm. We started twitching and immediately were back catching fish. This was the exception rather than the rule in my experience, however.