________________________________________

4/5/13

LOAH - B. Dammed

There's something special about beaver dams. A lot of people tend to dislike them, but I really enjoy fishing a good beaver pond.

In celebration of landing a new job, I decided to go out and hunt down some beaver ponds today and also to either confirm or dismiss a hunch that I've had for the last 4 years.

The places I had in mind were somewhat close, which was needed, having to be home to take my wife to work in the late afternoon.

For years, I've driven past certain parts of a creek I like and always wanted to spend some real time investigating some of its beaver ponds. Also, there was a mysterious puddle I've seen on the maps for quite some time and it was close enough to my creek that I could check that out too.

While driving to the place I would eventually call a "trail head", I had to pull over and try to get a feel for the day's fishing on the creek. Luckily, the fish were ready to play.

First came a sturdy little brown:

 photo DSCN3853_zps1b5a6069.jpg

Then a pretty cutthroat:

 photo DSCN3854_zps830bf8bf.jpg

It's a great little creek that often gets overlooked by passers-by.

 photo DSCN3856_zps81bcb504.jpg

After testing the mojo there, it was time to heed the call of curiosity. The hike wasn't brutal and as I got closer to my mystery pond, I could see some promising signs along the path of its outflow.

 photo DSCN3860_zpsef09dfa8.jpg

A mental note was made to just follow the water back down the hill and work that system back to my car instead of using the easier route along the mountainside.

First thing's first though, I had a date with a pond. Upon arrival, it was difficult to tell whether or not fish were present, but on my second cast with a Gulp minnow, I found my answer.

 photo DSCN3863_zps7447a89d.jpg

A giant smile spread across my face. It's a beautiful thing when I finally take the time to check out a hunch and it pays off. Seeing how the other fish in the area were nowhere near that size, usually, I knew I had just stumbled upon something special.

The fishing continued and the catches got better and better.

 photo DSCN3864_zps13006d72.jpg

 photo DSCN3865_zpsbdee79d6.jpg

A couple of others were came in without a photo, then I got the nicest one of the day:

 photo DSCN3866_zpsd4949dd3.jpg

What a beauty!

 photo DSCN3869_zps12b775dd.jpg

For some reason, the pond went quiet after that. Not a single bump after noon. Some time was spent in hopes of reviving the bite, but it wasn't meant to be. No matter. I've got a new place to fish for good sized cutthroat, within an hour of my porch.

As I had promised myself earlier, I took the scenic route down the hill and got my fill of beaver dams along the way. It was magical.

 photo DSCN3872_zps408d9e4b.jpg

 photo DSCN3873_zps04e58dd7.jpg

This tiny trickle was responsible for the highlights of my day.

 photo DSCN3874_zps4a1ee1de.jpg

Eager little mouths awaited the drop of my jig (now using a black marabou) and the next couple of hours were spent enjoying a free for all, catching beautiful little cutthroat, practically at will.

 photo DSCN3875_zps75e3619d.jpg

Stacks of ponds. The beavers have been busy.

 photo DSCN3876_zpsaeb80f2e.jpg

 photo DSCN3877_zpsacd3054d.jpg

Here's the biggest fish I got out of the beaver ponds.

 photo DSCN3878_zps03a49437.jpg

Paradise!

 photo DSCN3879_zpsbdcc73ae.jpg

Another stream flowed into the area and I wandered upstream for a short while on that, missing a few strikes from tiny cutts along the way.

 photo DSCN3881_zps4814be0b.jpg

Back to the dams, I slowly made my way back to the area where I was parked. It took awhile with holes like this around every bend:

 photo DSCN3885_zps063616ca.jpg

 photo DSCN3886_zpsf3fc9722.jpg

Oh yeah, I broke a personal record while I was at it.

 photo DSCN3887_zpsbc489ec9.jpg

My smallest cutthroat to date. A close runner up also paid me a visit:

 photo DSCN3889_zpsd570228d.jpg

Strangely enough, I was every bit as happy to hold them as the others. It was just a joy to be out, doing it my way for the day.

 photo DSCN3894_zpsd7b93dce.jpg

 photo DSCN3896_zpsf36a9401.jpg

And those cutts just kept rolling in.

 photo DSCN3897_zps48393a9b.jpg

 photo DSCN3898_zps5f74b14c.jpg

They never cease to amaze me with their snazzy looks.

 photo DSCN3899_zpsb6324104.jpg

What a great place to spend the time.

Once I got to my car, I took my time driving back home and took a slight detour to test the waters in a spot where two smaller streams converge. About a year and a half ago, I hooked a pretty good brown in this hole and today I did the same!



 photo DSCN3902_zps1f031861.jpg

It was probably snacking on tiny cutts to get like that. On my next cast, a smaller one came in, but it had a very peculiar spot pattern. X's and O's. Anyone for Tic Tac Toe?

 photo DSCN3903_zpscfdb49e7.jpg

More great water.

 photo DSCN3904_zpsd07759f9.jpg

This hole looked like a winner, but I ended up missing the bite I got.

 photo DSCN3905_zpsca6a8b46.jpg

This hole looked even better.

 photo DSCN3907_zps4ee38e6c.jpg

Nothing big came from it, but I was still able to pull one in.

 photo DSCN3908_zps6eae2d8b.jpg

After that, it really was time to hit the gas and get home. The day was filled with surprises and I accomplished everything I'd set out to do. It was another amazing day playing in the water.

 photo DSCN3880_zpscf5b3204.jpg

Happy Fishing, Humans.

4 comments:

  1. Beautiful! Love those little guys.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love a good beaver pond. just a little hard to find out here.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks! I just updated with a YouTube video of the bigger brown trout too.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfvriTD5YT8

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great video. Diggin the colors on the little trout.

    ReplyDelete

Like it? Hate it? Drop a line.

Some Background...

WHY FISH?

Why not go jogging, hit the gym, start a garden or whatever it is that normal humans do? What's so fascinating about these slimy little creatures that live in the water?

Fishing is a bit more to me than a hobby or a sport. It's an essential part of life that helps me connect with the Earth in ways similar to the long-practiced traditions of mankind. Wherever man has had a water source, there has been fishing.

It's only natural.

Happy Fishing, Humans.