October 17, 2018 – I Grow Tired of Big Fish Stories – Northampton County Limestoner

A handful of very pretty rainbows this morning in the 12-13 inch range.

I never really saw this one, and the fight lasted all of 10 seconds, so I will spare you much of the details of another lost pig story today.  The short story is that the going was tougher today, a bluebird, cold front sort of day with leaves falling and the water still a bit on the high side.  I was out looking for a good one (or two) in a tough area to access and fish, especially in high water, and when my moment came, all I could do was watch this horse take off downstream with a full head of steam until *ping* I felt the hook come loose when I tried to slow it down.  The section is already snaggy with rip rap and old industrial rubble and even a couple tires, some newly deposited wood from all the rain, so I had gotten used to pulling snags out for a few minutes leading up to setting the hook on this fish. I truly thought it was another snag or a big sucker (though suckers aren’t usually holding in water this fast and the one I landed today was in a soft deep spot) until it shook its head twice and then took off.  It looked like a brown, but I only saw it for a second as it turned, so it could just as well be a big bow, as I have landed fat 18 inch rainbows in this stretch.  Perhaps one has continued to grow?  Can someone have two white whales?  I am going to land one of these things soon, I know, and I should be grateful that I am hooking them, as I know these fish are not easy to fool and don’t exactly bounce your rig when they open their mouths to take a fly, but I am a little tired of fish stories without the fish pics!  First world problems?

Uber Sucker!

Before the drama, I landed 4 nice holdover rainbows, followed by a solid and beautiful 14 or 15 inch wild brown too.  That would have been enough, especially the pretty brown who fought well and was holding in a very challenging spot where I always imagine the 20 incher on this stretch lives at least part of the year.  It is just too perfect not to hold numerous fish, and yet it usually holds nothing or only one fish good enough not to be too intimidated by Walter or Bertha.  Perhaps the one I lost today does live in this spot at times, as I have read that big browns may have several spots in a given stretch of creek that they rotate through in search of prey.  I will continue to approach this spot as if it does potentially hold the one (or a one?)…

Two shots of my consolation prize.

Fishing pocket water and deeper runs, a jigged pheasant tail took 3 of the fish, but two of them took a caddis larva too.  I saw one big mayfly, perhaps a late isonychia/slate drake, but fall caddis were still in the trees, so I am not surprised the caddis is still working well.  The stonefly was left alone today, and I am not quite ready to go to the midge just yet, so I am glad that well presented bigger bugs are still working.  I started fishing around 9:15 AM, and by 12:30 PM my long night of over-caffeinated teaching and grading was catching up to me.  Diminishing returns: When I hang one too many missed hooksets in trees or stumble one too many times in cold, fast-moving water, then I usually heed the call to quit.  The problem on this stretch is there is no way out besides to backtrack (which is always challenging enough the first time) or keep on keeping on until the next available place to climb out, at the end of the line, so I finished out the stretch placing a few casts in likely spots, secretly hoping to no avail to undo the earlier miss.  When I see the photos of the fish I did land today, I feel better, and it was a good crisp day to be outdoors, but dammit I do wish I had more than another big fish story to share with you today.  

Green and still moving a bit this week.