..."I had really thought it to be a Cutthroat when first hooked" reminded me of an experience on the South Fork of the Snake in March '08.

I was fishing a medium depth riffle with a tandem of rubber legs stonefly nymphs which had accounted for a half dozen or so pretty much routine mountain whitefish. The indicator went down, the rod tip went up, and there was a really strong pull.

"Big brown" I thought. "But it's acting like a whitefish." "Got to be a big brown." "No, must be a whitefish." So went the internal dialogue until I finally got it to the surface - a big whitefish. Big as in 23".

Mountain whitefish are a worthy target species in their own right, and, as Kelly noted, a good indicator of the health of the system. These fish are heavier than trout of the same length and often occupy difficult water that a lot of trout can't handle. They tend to pod up, and catching one is a pretty sure sign that you are in for a good time. Though they don't have the fighting endurance of trout, they pull hard as long as they can. They deserve more respect than they get from a lot of fly anglers.

John

P.S. Thanks for the good read, Ralph, and with apologies to Ron Eagle Elk.