Work trip = Spring Stillwater Trout (days 1-3)

[Joey Bagels]

Work keeps me hopping and this week finds me in Utah, land of beehives, beautiful desert canyons, and hungry cutthroat. I'll be here a few more days, but arrived just before 5:00 pm.

I got my rental car, swung by the lodging establishment to make sure all's swell, and headed to a Stillwater recommended by Stenacron (much gratitude for the tip last year). Light was fading, so I didn't stop to take many photos. A flicker was calling from a stand of aspen nearby. A male loon was paddling around and diving every so often. Canada geese called to each other and the setting sun accompanied a slight breeze. Enough to riffle the lake's surface. Midges hatched. Trout rose. My rod bent.

It's been awhile since I've played a trout on light tipper (8 months), so I babied her. She pulled line and I reeled. Sluggish in the cold water, she came to hand.

A beautiful creature.

She ate this:

Two more were long distance released and I didn't mind a bit. The robins calling from the brush heard me curse my luck and offered their trilling sympathies.

So I toast the day and get ready to welcome tomorrow.

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[karstopo]

Re: Work trip = Spring Stillwater Trout

Very nice report and photos, Joey. I'm glad that you take us along on your journeys. Looks like a whole lot of solitude and mountain splendor up there in the Wasatch. I love looking a photos of cutthroat trout. Nice fly, does it have a name?

---------- Post added at 07:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:11 AM ----------

Looks like the barb is bent down on the hook. If so, is that intentional? I've bent barbs to get the bead to go on the hook. Sometimes, I leave them bent. I think it makes it easier to remove the hook from the fish.

 

[mcnerney]

Re: Work trip = Spring Stillwater Trout

Joey
Thanks for sharing the awesome photos of Utah and the beautiful Cuttie!

 

[Joey Bagels]

Re: Work trip = Spring Stillwater Trout

I'm not sure of the fly's proper name. I saw some online and figured they looked good, so I wrapped a few. And I always end down barbs on flies. Easier on the fish and myself when I inevitably hook my clothes, fingers, etc. Finishing my coffee and about to head out to today's adventure.


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[Joey Bagels]

Work trip = Spring Stillwater Trout (days 1+2)

This morning I hit another Stillwater full of anticipation and enthusiasm. My planned spot was inaccessible because the road is still snowed in. Much more of the lake is frozen than I'd expected.

Plan B was a bay with nice northeastern exposure to the warmth of the spring sun. Ice was retreating and I saw a couple of half-hearted rises. Time to deploy the tube!

I drifted with a pair of midges under an indicator, enjoying the sun and quiet. No trout interrupted my meditation. So I tried casting a bugger and Callibaetis combo to the same effect.
A wind picked up and my feet began to feel like ice. After 3 hours and no fish, I decided to retreat and ponder my options. I discovered my neoprene waders had leaks in both heels. Small, but enough to soak my feet. Fortunately I have my backup pair. The wind had really kicked up by now and an ice sheet spanning the entire bay got dislodged from the opposite shore, moving like a crystalline tectonic plate, inevitably closing off all access to the water I had just been paddling in. Very impressive to watch. So...Plan C...back to the lake I fished yesterday.

The world is trying to break free from winter.

My loon friend was still around. Also geese, an osprey, mallards, and a Swainson's hawk. I was content and even the rocks seemed to be enjoying the day.

No fish bothered me here either. I take some small comfort that not one of the people I saw or talked to today caught anything either. Tomorrow is supposed to be rainy and cold. I'll be out dredging the depths with a bugger or wooly worm or zonker.

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[Joey Bagels]

Re: Work trip = Spring Stillwater Trout (days 1+2)

Another day, another round of fly flinging. Headed back to the big lake to see what the ice situation was. Better. So off I went.

Since midges weren't money yesterday, I went with a bugger and Callibaetis, casting and retrieving. Didn't take long.

It was a little rainbow.

Not bad, but not the 2' long cutthroat I'd hoped for. Ah well. Back to it.

The wind was picking up and the threat of snow and freezing rain loomed in the surrounding hills.
But I still managed another before the freezing blast came.

Nothing huge, but that's fine by me. Got back to the car to warm up and sip some coffee and saw the temperature.

Walked the shore after packing to see what may be washed up.

This ends my 3 day adventure. Now to plan for the next one.

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[slowdown]

Your a BAD MAN going out in a tube in that!! I'm a sissy when it comes to that. BURRRRRRRR....

Thanks for the trip and pic report