Brookie Weekend

I decided to spend my time this week in pursuit of the ever-lovable brook trout.  Two days were devoted to its pursuit.  I think the work paid off.

*LONG POST* Reader beware  

Friday

I found myself at a lake that has a lot of potential.  

It's a little off the beaten path, but does receive a healthy dose of anglers.  The hard part for me was not being able to float it.  You see it is a water supply lake for a city.  In other words no boating, no floating, no wading.  This really is a pity for a guy who enjoys the float tube.

The lake was swarming with brookies.  They were very visible in the crystal clear water.  No wonder this lake has a tendency to stunt.  No toads, but some fat little guys.

There were plenty of places that looked fishy.

Fallen trees scream brookie lair...and it was.

I was having the hardest time photographing fish.  They were spunky and plenty went back in the drink without getting their mugshot taken.  This lake has a lot of potential.  There very well may be some hogs hanging out, but one would have to weed through a lot of fish to find them...plus you're limited to shore here.

Pretty things though...  

Pretty place too...

On the drive home I stopped at creek not far off the road.

There's fish all over this area. Gave this one a nose piercing...

Saturday

I set my sights on a lake that required a hike, and has a history of some pigs.  The hike was a little over a mile but wasn't bad at all.  I recently picked up some backpack straps for my float tube.  I may look funny walking down the trail with a big ol' tube on my back, but man is it comfortable.  The hike provided some cool scenery.

I arrived at the lake to stormy skies and looming thunder.  I stuck myself on shore for a while until the weather cleared.  Except for a family camping further down shore, I had the lake to myself.

I was getting no love from shore, but as soon as I ventured out in the tube it was fish on.

The fish all seemed pretty healthy.

This lake is fairly large.  I'm sure some bigger fish dwell here, but I found none today.  The beauty of the fish I did catch was worth it though.  Not to mention the beauty of the lake.  I love being absolutely alone on a great lake...on a Saturday nonetheless.

The sun even started shining for a while.

Jigs won out again today.  Worms would work when needed, but the fishing was quicker with jigs.

I'll try to just let the pictures do the talking.

I love brook trout...

purty

The storms soon returned to cut my float trip short.

I quickly made my way back to shore.  The temperature was dropping fast.  I captured a few shots on my way out, but then the rain began.  Halfway through the hike back it actually tried to start snowing on me.

Even though I was cold and wet, my heart was warm and a smile was on my face.  Those little brookies sure can be addicting.

Life is short, live it well

Cimarron

Montrose, Colorado is a pretty nifty place for an angler to live.  Day trips can easily be taken to some of Colorado’s premier fishing holes.  The major draws to the area include the Gunnison, Blue Mesa, the Grand Mesa, and PaCoChuPuk to name a few.

The Cimarron is a tributary of the Gunnison.  Thus, it is often overlooked by a lot of anglers.  It can be a tough river to fish.  There are not a lot of established trails and bushwhacking is usually required.  I found myself on Saturday seeking solitude on the Big Cimarron, and I found it.  I was the only one on the river.  

The water was a bit discolored, but the jigs found fish eventually.

Nothing big today, but the fight was good.

It felt good to get away from the crowds.   This really is a beautiful area.

In the past, I’ve caught bows, cutts, and brookies out of this stretch.  The rainbows were more than willing to play. Black seemed to be the go to color for jigs…but heck I even pulled out the long rod and got in on some dry fly action.

This stretch of river is full of MASSIVE boulders.  The holes created are hard to get to and very, very deep.  Runoff has developed many log jams as well…a fisherman’s playground.

Plenty of fish in the river too. :D

I was fortunate enough to weed through enough bows to find this guy.

I’m such a sucker for brook trout.  It was a skinny little thing though.

All fished were released in good health.  This was my last fish of the day.  He was caught out of the first hole I started the day from.  Sometimes it’s good to backtrack.  Deep colors on this guy.

Good day on a quiet river.

Life is short.  Live it well.