Dad and the Kid 2009

[kglissmeyer]

Well, we made it out again. With schedules tight and gas a little more than we would like we stayed close to home this week and fished our favorite spring creek. Water was down a bit more, but it looks to be the level it'll be at for the rest of the Summer. Still seeing the weeds and debris from the high flows of the South Fork that swept through a month ago and they appear to be around 30-inches higher than the present level.
We arrived at 5:30, rigged up and were fishing by 5:45. There were a few fish on top, but we rigged up with our normal three-fly setup of a Parasol Emerger on top, a dropper about 18-inches down with a size #16 bead-head Pheasant-tail nymph, trailed by twelve-inches of tippet to a terminal fly of a size #14 olive scud.
I was into a good fish on the second drift and the Kid a few casts later. My fish took the Pheasant-tail, while Mike's beast ate a Chan's midge like the one we used at Henry's Lake - Buzz would be proud.
I ended the day hooking 16 fish and landing 12 of those, with 6 of those being smaller in the 12-inch range but the rest ranged from 19 to 22-inches. I also landed, in addition to mostly Browns, two Cutts, and a beast of a Cutt-Bow Hybrid. I've never caught a Hybrid in this water before, so this was a first. I caught all but one of my fish on the Pheasant-tail nymph, with one on an amber scud.
Here are some pics:


First fish of the day - spot-on 20-inches


The Kid's first fish of the day


Big old Hybrid, 22-inches and around five pounds


One of the Kid's four Cutts

Another successful outing. The Kid has turned in to quite the Trout hunter and it's fun to go with him. He makes me wish for the days when I could get around better and go to places a bit off of the beaten path.
Today the Kid is hiking in to Big Elk Creek up from Palisades Reservoir. We had a report yesterday that the big Cutts are hungry and en mass, so he couldn't wait to get up there. We'll have a report for you tomorrow.

Tight Lines,

Kelly.

[spinner1]

the colors of all the fish are WOW!

[Ron Eagle Elk]

Very nice, Kelly. That hybrid looks to be a tank. All great fish.

REE

[JeffHamm]

Great photos and report. Nice colours on those fish.

- Jeff

[Steve Molcsan]

Hey Kelly, Woza!

One week to go, boy I hope we can meet up!


Steve

[...EZ...]

Im glad that the creek is doin better, long ago it was no good and really high. I miss the good times! Not to much longer, then ill be there. Great hybrid pops, and the pic of mikes brown, those spots are huge. Big Elk is still awaitin me to, until i get home

[kglissmeyer]

Just a BIG thank you to all who read this and especially those who comment. I know not everyone who views this thread make a comment and that's okay, but it's sure good to get a little feedback. Thanks, guys!

EZ, the Big Elk does await and the Kid and Chris got out on it yesterday. Hiked in 3 miles and really knocked a hole in it! Mike lost his first fish (first cast), but landed the next fish (second cast) and it was a nice 19-inch beastie of a Cutt. And so the day went, fish after fish, hole after hole. They had a blast and estimated around 60 fish by day's end!

For some reason the Kid is a sucker magnet and he even managed to hook and land a huge sucker fish during the outing. The rest of the fish were all Cutthroat, most caught on nymphs as there was very little surface activity going on. They caught the majority of fish on a size #16 bead-head Pheasant-tail nymph fished under an indicator. They lost more flies than they could count, mostly on overhanging vegetation. Mike did catch his first fish on the Chan's Burgundy and Silver midge pattern Buzz tied for Henry's Lake - that's two different moving water places now that this fly has produced.
The Kid is out in the truck now sleeping off a 6-mile hike and an all day excursion to his favorite water. I've got to get him to work in another 20 minutes. We have all wondered if this water fished well early on, or if the fish just ran up there with the Kokanee run. Now we know, and the only reason to avoid it real early is runoff. Water levels are stable and it is clear as a bell.
I can't wait to get up there, but it will have to wait until I get the hip replaced - sometime soon I hope.
Here are some pics:


The boys of summer at the trailhead - Mike and Chris


First fish of the day and a dandy - 19-inch Cutty


Chris with one of the many for the day


Where we fish - Big Elk Creek, Idaho

More to come...

[kglissmeyer]

Here are more pics from Big Elk Creek:








What you do when you get hung up and it's your last good bug that the fish have been taking!

Even more to come...

[kglissmeyer]

Here are the last of them from Big Elk Creek:


Yes, the sucker-man cometh...







That's all of them. The guys dragged themselves home by around ten-thirty p.m. and fell right into bed. The Kid complained all the way to work about how tired he was. I commented that it wasn't a bad price to pay to do what he did all day yesterday on his favorite stream.
As for Dad, he's just grousing about not getting to go, but reveling in their success - darn bad hip, darn, darn job, darn, darn, darn!

'Til next time...Tight Lines,

Kelly.

[mgliss]

In the upper picture where It looks as though I am giving the peace sign I am actually showing that I had caught that same fish twice. I had just released him about ten minutes earlier and know it was him by the scar behing his dorsal fin. Kind of strange, but he must have been hungry bacause he hit it hard the secind time. Big Elk is by far my favorite water, not only for the fishing but the beautiful scenery, wildlife and sense of seclusion. There will be more posts on Big Elk Creek in the near future!!
mgliss