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slayerfish 
Group: Members
Posts: 134
Joined: Mar. 2004
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Posted on: Sep. 01 2012, 10:13 pm |
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Not much of a TR. We hiked in, caught some sweet trout and hiked out 5 days later.
Lots of off trail, lots of rocks, gorgeous weather.
Most trips are a numbers game of 150 fish each on a trip.
Slim numbers but big fish.
Headed to the hills with Bro and Roger. Not as far as we usually go. 7 miles of trail, 3 miles of rocks to Golden Lake, then another mile up to Big Brooky Lake. Due to the exposure we camped at Golden lake and had to day-hike up.
Day 1/2-Fished for Goldens and we all caught several biggest 15". Very easy to spot they have baby blue backs. If you've never caught a real Golden they pull like freight trains. Can't imagine what a 20''er would do-
Day1-
Rog got the 1st Brooky @19".
I got the 2nd Brooky @21" and 4-5/8 lbs on the de-liar.
Rog landed the 3rd @21" estimated 6 lbs.
Day2- Rog got the 4th Brooky @17.5" and 3.5 lbs.
Day 3- I got Brooky #5 @ 21" and 5.25 lbs.
Day 4 - We fished for Goldens in the freeking howling hurricane type gusts up to 50 MPH. Tough fishing but we all got a few.
That was it. 5 sweet Brookys and about 20 Goldens. Our first real Goldens and our biggest Brookys to date. The brooky lake was teeming with porposing giants that just would not ( almost ) hit freekin anything. Bro had 0 hits in the 3 days and he's a better fisherman than me. Half on flail stick and half on metal. They were fat and stubborn and we could see them and they could see us. They also seemed to be in pre-spawn mode. Another week or 2 and they should be aggressive. Maybe- 
Sorry 'bout the photoshopping, some awesome scenery to behold but just cant risk it. ;)
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countr21
Group: Members
Posts: 14
Joined: Jan. 2012
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 3:02 am |
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Wow!! What a douche you are......
No one has the stones to answer your distusting post but I will. How the hell can you post pics of you harvesting suc h beautiful fish??? What the heck is wrong with you?
You think your location is so secret? I know this location....it's in the southern part of the Winds. I've fished these lakes.
Why would you kill such beautiful fish??? It's a shame there are people like you out there depleting trophy fisheries. Way to go, dude......you are destroying fisheries so you can eat fatty, overbuilt trout. You're a C&nt.
It's a shame there are douches like yourself hiking the Rockies.....if it weren't for your kind, the Rockies would be filled with trophy lakes. But because of you, the trophy fisheries are few and far between. I hope you're proud you C%NT
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| Post Number: 3
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slayerfish
Group: Members
Posts: 134
Joined: Mar. 2004
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 9:24 am |
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Take an aspirin dude!
FYI- We ate the 2 smallest ones. A 19"er and the 17.5"er.
I suppose I could just tell the world the names and location and see if most out there agree with your views.
I'm guessing most don't so stifle yourself or I will return and kill them all! 
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| Post Number: 4
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tamarac
Group: Members
Posts: 236
Joined: Jan. 2008
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 9:43 am |
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I figured this to happen. Although I am strictly a fly fisherman catch and release guy at this point in my life, I also understand that taking a couple fish, even trophy sized fish from some fisheries is perfectly acceptable. It actually can help the fishery. Brook trout are voracious feeders, do not need an outlet stream to spawn and can easily take over a complete watershed if not kept in check. They are not indigenous to Rocky Mountain Lakes, were introduced a long time ago from the East coast, (they are arctic char actually) so there is no shortage of them in the Winds. They have in fact taken over once prevalent Golden Trout fisheries like Cook Lakes, where the world record Golden trout came from in 1948.
These lakes in question here are remote, and fishing pressure fairly light. Harvesting a couple large Brookies will not make a difference here and possibly even help the ecosystem overall, since it is so easy for Brook Trout to over-populate.
These are just my opinions of course, but based on 40 years of fishing, hunting and talking to wildlife biologists.
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| Post Number: 5
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slayerfish
Group: Members
Posts: 134
Joined: Mar. 2004
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 10:10 am |
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This is why the fishing forums don't allow C&R debates-
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| Post Number: 6
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tamarac
Group: Members
Posts: 236
Joined: Jan. 2008
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 12:00 pm |
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Yeah, to debate catch and release or any fishing ethics or policies, an understanding of fish/fisheries biology is required, plus an understanding of preservation vs conservation and which one is best for the sustainability of the fish species.
It is fairly complex. Things are not always how they look or seem, and often biased emotion has to be held in check.
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| Post Number: 7
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tarpon6
Group: Members
Posts: 131
Joined: Feb. 2011
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 7:22 pm |
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There is one simple rule, don't keep more than you can easily eat that day. I've seen BP trip pictures with stringers of fish- no way they ate them all. Nothing wrong with eating a few smaller fish. I think almost any conservation minded fisherman in the Winds would say all goldens should be released.
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| Post Number: 8
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countr21
Group: Members
Posts: 14
Joined: Jan. 2012
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 8:55 pm |
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No, removing fish from trophy fisheries is absolutley UNACCEPTABLE!!!!! By the very definition trophy-trout lakes have very low fish densities and the lakes are usually small. Even light angling pressure can send fish numbers into a nosedive.......PERIOD!!!!
Again, I know this area well. These lakes are not large and the fish numbers are EXTREMELY LOW!!!! The OP just emphasized my point....they caught only a handful of fish over the course of many days. And this area is not that remote. I pop into the area almost every summer and I can get there in only 4-5 hours.
All it takes is a handful of meat anglers like this douche to absolutely destroy trophy fisheries. I remove dozens of trout from backcountry waters every summer but I only do it in fisheries that benefit from harvest i.e. lakes that have a tremedous biomass of trout but made up in 7-10 inch increments. Removing trophy trout from lakes that support only small numbers of fish is just plain horrific. It's completely selfish and is the main reason why trophy lakes are on the steady decline.
I've seen hundreds of brook trout lakes and there are only a dozen or so trophy brook trout lakes in the Rockies. Harvest all the brookies you want but do you really need to do damage to a trophy fishery just for a little meal? IGNORANCE.
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| Post Number: 9
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swimswithtrout
Group: Members
Posts: 7236
Joined: Jan. 2005
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 11:01 pm |
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Discuss all you want HERE
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Ya, it's a 6 1/2 year old thread of mine.
As to the "Trophy Lakes" in question, they were illegally stocked by outfitters fairly recently. They had been barren, and just as was the case of Finis 's stockings, the few illegal fish grew to ginormous proportions.
It's still the same. The fish would not even be their except for for a few private individuals trying to create their own private fishing hole.
Brook Trout are the scourge of the West, trophy's or not. If they do manage to escape downstream, they will destroy the decent Golden fishery just below and the string of Cutt Lks below that. That's why WY F&G is so glad to tell anyone who asks, where they are.
They're not supposed to be there !!
WY and many other states would be wise to follow MT's lead with their requests for all fisherman to kill every brookie caught in several sensitive drainage's in the Beartooths, and I'm not talking 8-10 " brookies
I'm talking about lakes with 16-19", "Brook Trout" at the small end and topping out nearly as large as the above.
Brookies are yummy ! Catch all you want/eat all you catch, and toss the rest out for the otters.
My boot measures exactly 14" to give some scale for these from a different lake.
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Want to see The Wind River Range in widescreen 1080p ?
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| Post Number: 10
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vigilguy
Group: Members
Posts: 463
Joined: Mar. 2003
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Posted on: Sep. 11 2012, 11:48 pm |
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Agree with SWT and Slayerfish.
We went in to these lakes on the 30th of August...saw some monster brookies on the shelf on the south end of the lake, but we couldn't get them to take our flies before the storms moved in. Not sure if the full moon had something to do with it...but they were not interested in what we were casting. I had a professional fly fishing guide with me, and we were both getting skunked that day.
From what I understand, the Brookie lake was indeed stocked with Brookies by accident, and there is no evidence that they are spawning. I imagine that they will die out naturally before too long and the Game and Fish will re-stock the lake with Goldens.
I doubt that I will ever keep a Golden...but as far as Brookies go, I do not have much sympathy for them, due to their prolific nature.
HYOH.
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| Post Number: 11
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slayerfish
Group: Members
Posts: 134
Joined: Mar. 2004
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 8:35 am |
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Gorgeous "Frying Pan O' Death" SWT.
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| Post Number: 12
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vigilguy
Group: Members
Posts: 463
Joined: Mar. 2003
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 9:42 am |
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Here's a photo I took from two years ago at the spot we are talking about...
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| Post Number: 13
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tamarac
Group: Members
Posts: 236
Joined: Jan. 2008
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 9:44 am |
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Again, Brook Trout can spawn without an outlet stream.
This is why they grow large and thrive in Alpine Lake environments in the west.
The poster belligerently questioning the actions here is painting with too broad a brush. Every species of trout is not equal.
As others have reiterated, if these large fish were Golden Trout most would have a huge problem with it.
But invasive, voracious species like Brook Trout are not the same issue.
And, only two large Brookies were kept. If it were a dozen or more, possibly an issue.
And, these lakes are not 'small' as implied and they are obviously deep enough to over winter fish.
If this were a problem in wilderness lakes don't you think Fisheries biologists would recommend strict limits, both size and numbers?
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| Post Number: 14
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slayerfish
Group: Members
Posts: 134
Joined: Mar. 2004
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 10:22 am |
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You will never quell the ire of the C&R elitists. It's like debating abortion.
In their mind they are absolutely correct and no facts will get in the way of that.
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| Post Number: 15
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tamarac
Group: Members
Posts: 236
Joined: Jan. 2008
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 10:32 am |
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The emotion of zealotry is forever problematic to societies worldwide.
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| Post Number: 16
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tarpon6
Group: Members
Posts: 131
Joined: Feb. 2011
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 10:40 am |
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Somebody needs to tell me where these lakes are so I can help with controlling brook trout populations.
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| Post Number: 17
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vigilguy
Group: Members
Posts: 463
Joined: Mar. 2003
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 10:47 am |
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| Post Number: 18
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vigilguy
Group: Members
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 10:47 am |
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| Post Number: 19
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vigilguy
Group: Members
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 10:48 am |
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tamarac
Group: Members
Posts: 236
Joined: Jan. 2008
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 12:00 pm |
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I heard these lakes are in Nova Scotia.
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| Post Number: 22
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Cutthunter
Group: Members
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Joined: Mar. 2007
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 5:34 pm |
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Look, if you start thinking about the number of people who have the time, ability, and care to hike to lakes like this, you arent dealing with a very big number. Then figure out how many of them fish, and then think about how many of them are actually successful, the number gets low. Then think about how many keep the fish. Its not that big.
Brookies that big are not spring chickens, probably not going to live that much longer, would rather have someone eat the fish than them rotting at the bottom of a lake.
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| Post Number: 23
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tamarac
Group: Members
Posts: 236
Joined: Jan. 2008
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Posted on: Sep. 12 2012, 8:22 pm |
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Yeah this subject spurs lots of emotions in people. Just look at Dave's commentary from 06 that he linked and count the exclamation points.
Keeping this in perspective is difficult. But fish biologists consensus will tell you that catch and release is a viable tool in fisheries management sometimes. And it will also tell you that harvesting large fish is sometimes preferred and often tell you that harvesting small fish is definitely wise and much preferred.
It is a complex subject, for those who care to look at it empirically, and not just from the sportsman's perspective. So many variables to factor in. It is not a linear science, and it is not ALWAYS best to do one thing or another. Regardless of what you believe, there are no absolutes here. This is not an either/or situation necessarily.
Every fishery is an entity unto itself, and every species reacts differently to it's habitat. Even individual fish are different sometimes based on genetic composition and not food availability. This is why States have fish and game departments and scientists to help us figure out the best courses of actions to take.
It's a case by case, water by water issue. In this particular case, knowing the remoteness of the lakes and the species involved, it is not unacceptable to keep some large Brook trout to eat.
Just my .02 cents.
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| Post Number: 24
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Topo
Group: Members
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Joined: Jul. 2006
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Posted on: Oct. 07 2012, 5:15 pm |
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i agree with what you said Tamarac. It is case by case, every fishery is different. In this case, these two bodies of water above the "Golden lake", these brook are at the end of their life cycle. The Wyoming F&G made a boo boo and inadvertantly stock brook instead of Golden. Luckly there is no natural reproduction happening and they will all be dead by 2014. Thats when the F&G will attempt to get it right and stock the Goldens. I already have my calendar marked for 2017, the Goldens should be HUGE!
Whether or not Slayerfish knew the circumstances, he was not wrong to keep a couple, it did not and wont affect this fishery.
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| Post Number: 25
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Rics
Group: Members
Posts: 172
Joined: Mar. 2006
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Posted on: Oct. 20 2012, 10:40 pm |
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God bless you. They're nice fish. Eat what you keep. Release what you don't.
Rics in Pinedale.
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Rics
www.trekkerman.com
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| Post Number: 26
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double cabin
Group: Members
Posts: 15438
Joined: Nov. 2005
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Posted on: Oct. 28 2012, 1:19 pm |
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I'm grateful to fishermen/women for their colossal conservation dollars, but I've always thought the catch and release debate was a bit out of hand. For one thing I personally would not be terribly proud causing major trauma to a fish let alone dozens/hundreds without harvesting any of them. Plus trout is too darn delicious.
Thanks for some awesome scenes Slayerfish.
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We have nothing to fear but an industry of fear...and man skirts.
http://www.facebook.com/media/albums/?id=129511480442251
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| Post Number: 27
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BillBab
Group: Members
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Posted on: Oct. 30 2012, 7:55 pm |
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YUM!
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"Asking liberals where wages and prices come from is like asking six-year-olds where babies come from."
Thomas Sowell
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