Thursday, November 13, 2014

A Skunk, A Streamer, And...........

It's been awhile since my last post and I feel pretty good today so here it is. My last outing was Monday and the weather was still very nice, especially for November. They tell me it's going to get colder and some white stuff may coat the ground Friday or Saturday.

I reached the stream about 10 and found it to be almost perfect. With the sun working already for a few hours I knew the water temp had to be prime. I tied on a bomber and had the feeling it would be a great day on the dry. Two hours later all that was memorable was 1 rise to the dry, and 2 hookups on a wet fly that were very short lived. I fished many promising runs as well as those pools that hold some nice fish but they all came up empty.

So with dry and wet flies failing, I pulled out the meat flies, those pretty little streamers that can sometimes make an anglers day. Tied on a Mickey Finn and worked the water, 45 minutes later and several patterns and nothing. The time was getting on and I decided to work my way back to the car. I continued to fish streamers, but the thought in my mind was I am going to get skunked. Getting skunked is not a bad thing, we all experience it, besides it's not a skunk if you have a fish on and he gets off...is it?

I came upon this pool, it looked interesting. It had a swift run that flowed into a deep pool, and it also had a very nice undercut bank, a perfect ambush point for a brook trout. I crossed the stream to enable me to mak a good cast and allow the streamer to work those sweet spots. Several casts and nothing. I changed the streamer and said I'm going to fish this fly Maine style. Maine style is a method I picked up while fishing Upperdam, Maine. The method is to cast the streamer upstream and then strip it back to you downstream as fast as you can. The method was a killer on the landlock salmon and brook trout. So I cast the streamer upstream and stripped as fast as I could. I repeated it several times and suddenly I saw the swirl and soon felt the solid take of a trout. The fish was strong and he worked the pool as well as the rod. I had turned the brookie to me and was ready to lift him when he said NO. The fish ran again but the rod eventually won out. As I laid my hand under his belly I could not believe how big he was. As I turned to snap a photo I noticed the fly had come out. Just as the camera snapped the brook trout was making his escape. The master of the pool laid in the water briefly and darted away.


A beautiful brook trout anywhere, but for a small stream a trophy with out question.


My little streamer box. Can you tell what streamer the brook trout took?



32 comments:

  1. Such beautiful country up your way. That was a HUGE Brookie for a small stream, but that's what you do best.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark Kautz,
      Thanks.
      The country is a big plus......the brookie even bigger.

      Delete
  2. That's an old wise one you fooled right there---awesome fish!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kierran Broatch,
      Thanks.
      He has a few years of stream knowledge, just made a mistake I guess.

      Delete
  3. Your persistence paid off, Alan. That is quite a nice brookie for a small stream. Is that a female or a male? The brookie looked almost pink on the belly and a little slim, showing the brookie was probably not getting his/her fair share.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. RI brook trout,
      Thanks.
      He's a male, and the reason he is on the thin side is because of the spawning that has taken place. These fish will start putting on the feed preparing for winter.

      Delete
  4. Gorgeous stream and brookie. I really like the amount of flies you took with you. I tend to bring it all. I'm working on that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Justin Carfagnini,
      Thanks.
      That was the streamer box, most of the flies there have worked very well in the past. I also carry a box of dries and wets.

      Delete
  5. There is such a healthy olive tint to that fishes flank. Gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. RM Lytle,
      Thanks.
      He was handsome, a wonderful representative of his kind.

      Delete
  6. Beautiful fish. I need more stream time. Hopefully the cold spell will be short-lived.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. RKM,
      Thanks.
      Kirk, I'm hoping for a short cold spell to.
      Fingers crossed.

      Delete
  7. Stunning as usual Alan. Thanks for cheering up a compadre.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Howard,
      Thanks.
      I hope you are doing better friend.

      Delete
  8. Great story! The harder you work for them the sweeter they are. And that one is sweet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jim Yaussy Albright,
      Thanks.
      That's very true Jim.

      Delete
  9. Replies
    1. Apache Trout,
      Thanks.
      John I started tying some streamers with no body material just because of those sharp teeth.

      Delete
  10. Wow, that's a nice one. You find the best small streams to fish!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Adam,
      Thanks.
      The streams are out there. I'm fortunate to have the time to check them out. Things would be easier if we had more rain and the water levels were higher.

      Delete
  11. Nice going Alan - I will have remember to fish streamers on smalls streams "Maine style" myself !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark,
      Thanks.
      I think I may have talked to you about this style once while we fished.
      Always worth a try.

      Delete
  12. Very nice Alan....I've found that a skunking every now and then just makes us appreciate the fish that much more on the next outing we take. Or maybe I'm just looking to make myself feel better about all of those fishless trips I've been a part of , I guess it really doesn't matter in this instance because you ended up with a beautiful brookie to hand anyway!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. HighPlainsFlyFisher,
      Thanks.
      Very true my friend. A skunking is part of this angling thing and it only proves they are not as dumb as some would think.

      Delete
  13. Pretty photo of a toothy native!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. rivertoprambles,
      Thanks.
      Walt almost like a pike.

      Delete
  14. Beauty of a fish! Especially on a day where the skunk was starting to smell. Neat technique as well, thanks for sharing.

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    Replies
    1. Michael Curry,
      Thanks.
      The odor was heavy for sure. That backward strip really works at times.

      Delete
  15. Whew..you had me worried there for a moment. I didn't know "skunk" was in your vocabulary Alan..Rule of Thumb..The fish has to be in the net or in the boat to count?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. penbayman,
      Thanks.
      Skunk is a word I'm familiar with Mike.
      Thanks for the clarification.

      Delete