________________________________________

8/22/16

Southern Salvelinus

The past two weeks have been very enjoyable, chasing brookies in southern Utah waters, but I'll get to that in a moment.  Before any of that happened, Holdsworth and I visited Strawberry Reservoir in search of big cutthroat.

Choosing to float near the dam, along the cliffs, we did alright for 20" cutthroat.

 photo DSCN5610 600x450_zpsvjfm8ew3.jpg

 photo DSCN5611 600x450_zpssrs69dfv.jpg

 photo DSCN5612 450x600_zpsr8dven6o.jpg

A 20 inch cutthroat is not small, but for Strawberry, it's a standard.  To be "big" in Strawberry, it needs to break the slot (22" or better).  We didn't catch any of those.

After floating for a few hours with only slot cutts to hand, we decided to see what we could do on the river below the dam.

In one of my favorite spots on the river to dip a jig, I got a solid hookup from what would have been my biggest brown from that river, looking to be at least 2ft long.  Sadly, it broke me off quickly between the branches of a half-submerged tree.

Ultimately, I had to settle for a small brookie from the river before calling it a day.  So we ended up with nothing very noteworthy on the day, but it's always fun to get out.

Next Saturday, I compelled Aaron to decide where we'd go for the day and he voiced his interest in revisiting a place we'd gone to, years before.

This lake really kicked our butts on our last trip, not in terms of fishing success, but in terms of getting to the lake.  The tightly wooded hillside leading up to the lake seemed devoid of trails at that time and we essentially bushwhacked our way to it.

It was pure punishment to push through the downed timber and living trees and our reward was to catch small brookies, almost at will.  It was a rough trip, but still a good one.

This time around, I had since done a lot more research and exploration of the area, leading me to believe a better way to the lake existed.  We followed my inteded route and actually kept the bushwhacking limited to the last couple hundred feet.

At last, an easier way to this beautiful natural lake.

 photo DSCN5616 600x450_zpsfmxdklyr.jpg

Expecting to catch small skinny brookies, we were very pleased to see some healthy fish filling our hands, pretty much right away.

 photo DSCN5620 600x450_zps5mi3efhl.jpg

 photo DSCN5622 600x450_zpsljnjiiif.jpg

 photo DSCN5623 600x450_zps4jbpgdoc.jpg

 photo DSCN5626 600x450_zpssedloe9x.jpg

 photo DSCN5628 600x450_zps4nsivlku.jpg

 photo DSCN5636 450x600_zpseavyqvve.jpg

Not only were they healthy and biting agressively, they fought really hard too.  We had a great time and the fish were more than willing to come visit us.

We ended the day with more fish caught than we cared to count and broad smiles across our faces.  My biggest on the day was 16.5" and sturdy.  It was wonderful to see such a positive change for that lake, and for our fishing success.

 photo DSCN5638 600x450_zpsytmxtbup.jpg

Our next trip was a 400 mile day trip for the purpose of fishing a couple of lakes we'd never visited.  The first lake was one I'd wanted to see for the past 10 years or so.

After an easy 2 mile hike, a dream of mine came true.

 photo DSCN5656 600x450_zpslltcebkx.jpg

A beautiful natural gem in the rocks seduced me as I stared in awe from shore.  The crystal clear water made it difficult to grasp just how deep the lake was, but floating it demonstrated that fact quite well.

Gaps between huge boulders that rested only a couple of feet below the surface were anywhere from 15-30ft deep and the fish could be seen throughout.

Those fish were also able to see us and it was difficult to trick them into biting.

 photo DSCN5657 600x450_zpsxem9jm9r.jpg

Eventually, I cracked the code and was able to coerce a few of them to play my game.

 photo DSCN5658 600x450_zpskelv3ur6.jpg

Scar face:

 photo DSCN5659 600x450_zps4h2xaos9.jpg

Several fish came to hand for me, all of which were beautiful Colorado River cutthroat.

 photo DSCN5661 600x450_zpsbtjflcji.jpg

Aaron had a harder time at the lake, but did catch two fish, one of which was a 17" tiger trout that took the jig direcly under his tube.

 photo DSCN5668 450x600_zpsn22wbvs7.jpg

Nice fish!  We continued at the lake for a short while longer and I caught a couple of beauties before we set off to the next spot.

 photo DSCN5671 600x450_zpsjqyg2dhw.jpg

Cutthroat colors will always make me smile.

 photo DSCN5672 600x450_zpsy9gqgk5m.jpg

This guy had a mean overbite.

 photo DSCN5677 600x450_zpsd4vbt2jk.jpg

Our next lake was just a quick hike away, but worlds different as far as fishing action was concerned.  We had a plan to fish this one and, believe it or not, everything went as planned.

Once we were in position, fat handful brookies came in, one after another.  It was lights-out, great fishing.  My first four fish came to me in about 10 minutes total, only having migrated about 10 feet from where I started.

We were vertical jigging, mostly, and it was very effective.  It was so effective that I strayed from the plan and tried different presentations in different areas, just to break up the non-stop action (plus I needed a break to eat a sandwich).

Aaron was in heaven and I believe he spent more time with a fish on the line, than he did casting/jigging.

 photo DSCN5688 600x450_zpsdldtttiw.jpg

 photo DSCN5689 600x450_zpssvkuvhvy.jpg

 photo DSCN5693 600x450_zpssqfzh8uw.jpg

It was a great day!  Every fish fought really hard and we only had a few come to hand that weren't decent sized brookies.

Aaron caught the biggest one of about 16" and just a hair under 2lbs.

 photo DSCN5701 450x600_zpsxcmsixs5.jpg

Not only was the fishing incredible, but the scenery of the lake, plus a beautiful sky really made the whole thing gel into a very memorable trip for us.

 photo DSCN5704 450x600_zpsho4lzeqs.jpg

Thanks to a quick afternoon thunderstorm, we had a lot of clouds painting beautiful pictures across the sky.  The calm silence after the storm also did wonders for the surface of the water, which was gladly photographed.

 photo DSCN5708 600x450_zpslmdzelhb.jpg

Glass.

 photo DSCN5711 450x600_zps9ahopv6f.jpg

We stayed a bit too long to get out during daylight, but it was worth it to see the beautiful sunset from such a place.

A perfect way to end another fabulous day of fishing in southern Utah.

 photo DSCN5720 600x450_zps54nwawof.jpg

Happy Fishing, Humans.

6 comments:

  1. Incredible report as always LOAH! Stunning fish and scenery. You got to love it when it all works out, and I'm sure it was a bit of work to make a day like that come together. Keep it up!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Those are some really nice and thick brookies.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Replies
    1. Any omission of place names in my reports are purely intentional. Sorry.

      Delete
    2. I'm also sorry I didn't publish your last comment, where you went ahead and dropped several lake names. I'm not against sharing, but I don't want to share with the entire worldwide web.

      If people have spent some time on the mountain, they'll be able to recognize the Boulder lakes I visited. Not every southern lake I posted was on Boulder, however.

      If someone really wants to know, they can utilize the many resources available (maps, stocking reports, forums, word of mouth, etc) and go exploring. That's how I've found most of my spots and how I keep my finger on the pulse of trout fishing throughout the state.

      It requires some effort and research, but it works and it's really great to check out a hunch and reap fat rewards as a result of those efforts.

      I encourage others to do that, rather than hand them info I feel was earned through time, energy, and thousands of miles traveled.

      I hope you understand.

      Delete
  4. Sounds like an awesome trip. Love that mountain.

    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.