Brook Trout

While the changing seasons do mean that the summer fishing days are coming to a close, there are some positives. One of them being beautiful brook trout getting even more colorful.

Bobby Lake

Since classes start back up this week, Britt and I made one last backpacking trip. Headed to Bobby Lake for what was supposed to be good fishing for brook and rainbow trout. That may be the case, but all I ended up catching was one tiny rainbow. Granted it was very fat for a 4" fish, but that isn't enough to make me think it'd be a good option for a return trip.

Britt did make a friend who seemed to be rather hungry.

The Joys of Sleeping in a Tent

Britt and I hiked into a couple lakes over the weekend. It was a nice, short hike. Even the off trail hike was easy. Some fish were caught on the lakes and fish was had for dinner. It was shaping up to be a really good trip....then the fun happened.

Let me set the mood. It was a full moon and it looked almost like a flashlight was being shined on the tent. Very eerie stuff. Then around 10 that night Britt heard something. I wasn't sure what it was. It slowly and quietly walked beside the tent (on the opposite side from the moon, so there was no shadow). It went away for about an hour. When it came back again it walked by the tent, trying to figure out just what it was and what was inside it. It came back a few more times that night. We could hear it sniffing at the bottom of tent. Needless to say, it was not a very good night of sleep. Unfortunately, there was no place by the tent where tracks could have been left, so I guess we'll never know who it was.






"I swear the map says the lake should be right here! Why is it just a pile of rocks?"

Gold Lake

Backcountry

Made another trip into the backcountry. Here are a couple quotes:

"I always think those ultralight backpackers are crazy until I put my pack on."

"It's too bad it's so pretty up here."

Those sum up my feelings for hiking pretty well. It was a good trip despite having to cross over decent amounts of snow and Britt being trapped in the tent trying to avoid mosquitoes. In one lake the fish were small and in the other they were bigger, but in neither lake were they numerous. However, the views and solitude on 4th of July weekend made things just about perfect.

Maine Brook Trout in Oregon

There are some fish that I will always associate with certain places. Westslope cutthroats will always remind me of Glacier National Park and the summer I spent there. Yellowstone cutthroats remind me of the Yellowstone River and Park. Brown trout make me think of Spring Creek and the other streams around Penn State. Then there is the brook trout. No fish makes me think of Maine more than brook trout. So, today I thought of home a lot as I caught several nice brook trout. This is the time of year to catch them. They are fat from eating all summer, hungry because they now winter is quickly approaching and gorgeous because they are preparing to attract a date. I thought I'd share a little slice of Maine today. I caught more fish than these two today, some a little bigger, but none were prettier.

Backcountry Lake Outing

After a change in plans I headed to Linton Lake for a day trip. In between periods of sunshine and downpour the fish were pretty active. I was able to get this little brook trout (I had heard they were in there, but had never seen any evidence until this guy) and a nice male brown trout around 15". Pretty nice way to spend one of my last free days before my life is taken over by economics again.

PC Lifestyle

Can you find the fish in the top picture? Hint: It's a brook trout, look for the red and white fins.

With the core exams successfully in the rear view mirror I have had time to do the things I've been wanting to do recently but haven't been able to. Not surprisingly I've been out fishing and tying a lot of flies. I made it out yesterday to Gold Lake and hiked into Upper Marilyn Lake. While it was a slow day it was far from a slow evening. As the sun set on Gold Lake things turned on. The rings from rising fish could be seen all over the lake. Some fish were so exuberant they broke the surface and flew through the air chasing bugs. It was fun to be in my float tube with fish rising all around me.

Britt also had some luck. I told her if she wanted to make the blog she had to have a fish picture and now she does.