The old expression speaks of “a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.”  

In this case, we were looking for a rainbow at the end a long, steep, descent into a remote valley.  

Wild rainbow trout are a rarity in Pennsylvania, found in relative handful of streams sprinkled around the state.  

The exact origins of rainbows in this particular stream aren’t known, though rumor has it that decades ago ‘bows were brought in from one of the western states and subsequently established a natural population.  

They spawn in the spring, not genetically altered to spawn in the fall (as do browns and brookies) like the hatchery products raised in the state’s hatcheries.  

During the morning’s long drive to the location we passed numerous streams, all running full and muddy from last week’s deluge of rain.  

I figured “our stream” too would have lots of flow, but felt it would still be fairly clear since its entire drainage is within a heavily wooded valley.  

The hike to the stream was about a mile, not bad, but the last few hundred yards were very steep, the trail soft and unstable.  

But the stream, of which we could get occasional glimpses of whitewater through tree openings as we inched down the slope, looked good; lots of water, but clear water.

The first stretch of water was unproductive, mostly one long riffle with little character.  

While the shoreline pockets would likely hold trout during normal to low flows, there was just too much current under the circumstances.

About a half-hour into the adventure I came on upon a run with more moderate flows.  

A slot that looked to be about three to four feet deep cut through the middle of the pool.  

I cast a green weenie to the head of the run.  

Aided by a couple AAA-sized split shot, the fly quickly sank toward the bottom.   

Its drift was soon interrupted by a feisty trout.  

Soon a fine, native brookie in the seven inch range was in hand.

My partner Dave Keith was fishing a brightly colored Woolly Bugger streamer on an ultralight spinning outfit.  

A BB-sized shot gave the rig enough weight to fish on spinning gear on the small stream, where casts of more than 15 to 20 feet are rare.  

Soon after I caught the brookie Dave landed a nice wild rainbow.

The next two to three hours provided lots of action, as both native brookies and wild rainbows took the subsurface flies consistently.

Many fish were landed; plenty of other lost or missed.

Dave caught a couple nice wild rainbows in the nine to 10 inch range.    

We covered over two miles of stream.  

With a long climb ahead of us we began the long hike back to the truck, entertained by a changing sky that brought sunshine, rain and hail over the course of the day.  

Fishing for stream-bred trout in mountainous, hard-to-access streams certainly isn’t an activity that appeals to all anglers.  

The fish are often small, but what they lack in size is easily countered by their natural beauty, as well as the fact that they are wild fish, not ones that spent their lives, prior to being delivered via a white tanker truck, in a hatchery raceway.  

When fighting against an ultralight spinning rod, or 3-weight fly rod, they give a good account of themselves.  And then there’s the adventure, particularly when it’s a stream you’ve never fished before, when everything is new.  

I spend hours poring over maps, Google Earth, and the Fish and Boat Commission’s wild trout stream listings, planning more trips than I’ll likely be able to fish during the balance of my lifetime.  

And the moment is indeed special when those preparations become a reality.  

Benefit Striper Tournament to be held on Lake Arthur: A hybrid striped bass tournament to benefit the Slippery Rock Community Library’s building fund will be held from June 14 through June 28 on Moraine State Park’s Lake Arthur.  

The tournament will be a catch and release event; cash prizes will be awarded for the top three fish. Fish caught must be photographed next to a tape measure so that the length can clearly be gauged. A second photo must be taken of the angler holding the fish and both must be clearly recognizable. Only one prize will be awarded per participant.

Entry forms are available at 12 locations throughout the region.

For more information, contact tournament director Tom Maher at 724-406-0046; or tmaher1203@aol.com.  

Funded almost entirely through community support, fundraisers and private donations, the Slippery Rock Community Library features over 5,000 books, provides story reading for children, has book clubs for adults, and hosts visits by therapy dogs.  

Additional information on the library can be obtained by visiting www.slipperyrocklibrary.org.  

Jeff Knapp is an outdoors columnist for the Butle Eagle.