Salty
09-11-2009, 10:17 AM
Well, I've been a little trout crazy lately. It started with a trip up to PG and then to Rupert and the ferry home in August. I put my sweet little Abu-Garcia 6 1/2' UL spinning rod and reel through the paces in lakes and rivers up there and had too much fun catching rainbows and even one cutty around Terrace.
Its about a perfect outfit for this kind of fishing. I've got it loaded up with 8lb test spider wire. (I know, should be less but I don't like littering the bottom with lost lures ) :tongue: I can still feel every little tap as the gear touches bottom or strikes from even minnows. I rarely miss a hit of a good fish as a flick of the wrist sets the hook right now it seems. .. Bought this rig this year and its already a bit of a veteran and will be for years to come it apears. :cool:
So the trout crazy continues back at home on the island. A buddy and I hit a few lakes last weekend. Had some fast C and R action in several spots. I killed one panner rainbow and about a 14" cut.
Yesterday I made a quick stop to the confluence of two rivers where another small stream hits as well. Its one of the most gorgeous little pools around and has few but sometimes very good sized cutthroats. The recent heavy rain had backed off and the water was up a couple feet from its drought levels of two weeks ago. The water though, was nice and clear.
I saw a small jumper as I scanned the pool and casted down stream a bit from there to a deeper depression. The yellow Blue Fox lure skipped off the surface landed again and I started a slow retreave. I felt a tap and raised the rod to feel resistance. There was a pause, then two head shakes then nothing. I tryed a few more casts in the same area to no avail. I spooked that hole I thought.
I moved upstream a bit and casted to the far edge of the other side of the pool. A fish absolutely smashed the lure as it hit the water, I pulled up sharply on the rod tip to a couple nice strong head shakes. A pause, a couple more head shakes then the reel starts screaming and the line heads to Cucamunga. WTF:shock: The fish ran back and forth several times and it was all I could do to keep it in the big pool for fear of having no chance if it hit the fast water. I'm thinking WTF is this, stealhead maybe? Then it jumped. Three times. A bloody Coho! What the hell buddy your a month early I'm thinking. ..
I'm not sure if it was more an act of playing the fish or an act of trying to not break the rod or cook the reel. lol Anyways, many minutes later I dunno 15 maybe I finally had him played out pretty good and getting him to my feet for about the tenth time I was able to do a tacky gum boot landing on the beach. The little single hook was just hanging on to the corner of his mouth and came out when I touched it. The camera was in the truck and I voted to nix that idea and get him cleaned up and released asap. (Salmon not open in this stream). I've caught shit loads of Coho in the ocean and am pretty good at estimating so I'll call him a very hook nosed male, bright and silver and about 14 lbs. I grabbed his tail, irrigated his gills by moving him back and forth and he came to and shot to the middle of the pool.
I looked the wee spinning rig over and it looks to be unharmed. I think I will be retiring it though, as far as any more river fishing goes this year. lol. ..
Its about a perfect outfit for this kind of fishing. I've got it loaded up with 8lb test spider wire. (I know, should be less but I don't like littering the bottom with lost lures ) :tongue: I can still feel every little tap as the gear touches bottom or strikes from even minnows. I rarely miss a hit of a good fish as a flick of the wrist sets the hook right now it seems. .. Bought this rig this year and its already a bit of a veteran and will be for years to come it apears. :cool:
So the trout crazy continues back at home on the island. A buddy and I hit a few lakes last weekend. Had some fast C and R action in several spots. I killed one panner rainbow and about a 14" cut.
Yesterday I made a quick stop to the confluence of two rivers where another small stream hits as well. Its one of the most gorgeous little pools around and has few but sometimes very good sized cutthroats. The recent heavy rain had backed off and the water was up a couple feet from its drought levels of two weeks ago. The water though, was nice and clear.
I saw a small jumper as I scanned the pool and casted down stream a bit from there to a deeper depression. The yellow Blue Fox lure skipped off the surface landed again and I started a slow retreave. I felt a tap and raised the rod to feel resistance. There was a pause, then two head shakes then nothing. I tryed a few more casts in the same area to no avail. I spooked that hole I thought.
I moved upstream a bit and casted to the far edge of the other side of the pool. A fish absolutely smashed the lure as it hit the water, I pulled up sharply on the rod tip to a couple nice strong head shakes. A pause, a couple more head shakes then the reel starts screaming and the line heads to Cucamunga. WTF:shock: The fish ran back and forth several times and it was all I could do to keep it in the big pool for fear of having no chance if it hit the fast water. I'm thinking WTF is this, stealhead maybe? Then it jumped. Three times. A bloody Coho! What the hell buddy your a month early I'm thinking. ..
I'm not sure if it was more an act of playing the fish or an act of trying to not break the rod or cook the reel. lol Anyways, many minutes later I dunno 15 maybe I finally had him played out pretty good and getting him to my feet for about the tenth time I was able to do a tacky gum boot landing on the beach. The little single hook was just hanging on to the corner of his mouth and came out when I touched it. The camera was in the truck and I voted to nix that idea and get him cleaned up and released asap. (Salmon not open in this stream). I've caught shit loads of Coho in the ocean and am pretty good at estimating so I'll call him a very hook nosed male, bright and silver and about 14 lbs. I grabbed his tail, irrigated his gills by moving him back and forth and he came to and shot to the middle of the pool.
I looked the wee spinning rig over and it looks to be unharmed. I think I will be retiring it though, as far as any more river fishing goes this year. lol. ..