Warm winter has been fly for trout
A trout, one that looked to be in the mid-teens, rolled on the spinner but didn’t hook up. A couple casts later it, or one like it, summoned a bit more energy.
The lightly lip-hooked brown put up a strong tussle considering the frigid 30-odd degree temperature of the mountain stream. After being slipped in the net, the thick bodied 16-inch wild brown trout quietly posed for a quick photo, then swam back to the security of the deep pool.
During that recent unseasonably mild mid-January day I enjoyed action from several other quality-sized wild browns, fish that were either landed or lost, and a few that just nipped/bumped at the lure. It was the last in a string of a wild trout excursions that had produced both browns and brookies from streams in Indiana, Jefferson, Armstrong and Venango counties.
Typically, I prefer to fly fish for trout. When dealing with relatively small streams that are flowing cold and quite full, however, it requires a lot of rigging/re-rigging to properly fish a variety of areas.
Take for instance a deep, slow, pool — high-percentage holding water during the winter. A nymph (or tandem set of nymphs) drifted close to the bottom would be an appropriate presentation. To get it there will likely require a split shot or two. And you’ll need a bit of room to maneuver a fly rod, even a short 7-footer.
The next area you choose to fish could be a faster run. Even in ice-cold water trout can be found in faster water, so you don’t want to pass these spots up. But you’ll probably have to remove weight to get the right drift and keep from constantly hanging up.
Suffice it to say that in this situation, there’s much to favor the spinning rod teamed with a small spinner.
Even in ultra-cold water, trout will chase, that is if you put the lure right in front of them. Sometimes they’ll follow a spinner for several feet before actually hitting it. When you’re dealing with undercut banks and log jam holes, ones enclosed with bankside brush or overhead limbs, a short spinning rod can shoot a cast tight to the sweet spot. And even if you don’t catch a fish, it will often show itself with a follow or a bump, making a spinner a great prospecting lure.
St. Croix’s 5.5-foot ultralight spinning rod, from its Trout Series, is a perfect rod for fishing small to medium-sized trout creeks. I don’t care for those super small spinning reels, the ones often marketed as “mirco” reels. Their small spools create a lot of line memory and tend to be line twisters. Instead, I opt for the smallest version of standard spinning models put out by firms such as Shimano, Pflueger and Diawa. If the reel is rated on its capacity for four-pound test line, and weighs around 6.5 ounces, it’s likely a good choice to team with an ultralight trout rod.
I’m a fan of the no-stretch attributes of braided line, providing the air temperature is above freezing. 10-pound test braid with a two to three-foot section of 3X fluorocarbon tippet tied in as a leader is a good set up. Use the back-to-back uni-knot or a triple surgeons knot to tie the braid to the tippet. If it’s sub-freezing, braid, which absorbs water and turns to rope, is not a good choice. Some folks don’t care for braid; good old four-pound nylon monofilament remains a good option. If you’re concerned with line twist you can use a swivel snap, or tie in a barrel swivel a few inches from the lure.
There are many good trout spinners available, ones that bite well in the water and spin during the slow, steady retrieves that are productive now. Sizes 0 and 1 are most appropriate here, typically ranging from 1/16 to 1/8 ounce in weight. For the sake of the fish, it’s a good idea to pinch down the barbs, and even cut a tine or two from the treble hook.
Jeff Knapp is an outdoors columnist for the Butler Eagle.
