To illustrate Dennis' point ...
Quote:
Originally Posted by
DG
...Water only gets "too cold" for trout when it becomes frozen solid. I have caught fish (and not one or two but hundreds over the years) out of pools that had ice shelves out from the edges, slush floating down the thalweg, and/or anchor ice on the rocks in the shallows. We have resident trout here in creeks that are frozen completely over, then covered with several feet of snow, for several months out of the year. They manage.....
... a couple weeks ago this stretch of water was completely iced over. Above it were patches of open water, but there was serious anchor ice in most places. Today, after a few days of warm weather ...
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...001_edited.jpg
... this guy was the second fish hooked and first one landed out of that spot ...
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...002_edited.jpg
... out of a dozen plus hooked and seven or so in hand.
This spot, several hundred yards upstream, was also all but completely frozen over and studded with anchor ice at that time ...
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...013_edited.jpg
... and today gave up this guy ...
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...014_edited.jpg
... and two more nice fishies, including another 17" bow.
In between the above two spots, was a riffle that slowed just a bit ( not nearly so slow as the ice that choked it a couple weeks ago ) and had an extra foot of depth and gave up four more trouts today, three mid-teen" bows and a smaller brown.
On a quarter mile of recently all but completely frozen water, between shelf ice, anchor ice, and surface ice cover, I hooked over 20 resident trouts ( one brown, a half dozen plus cutts, and well over a dozen bows ) and landed around fourteen.
John
P.S. Did I mention that getting the fly down was, on and off, rather difficult because of all the slush ice in the creek ??