Trout Opener 2013
The alarm went off at 4am and even though I grumbled a fair bit, I pulled myself out of bed with the hopes of a big trout opener ahead of me. Darrell and I had found a spot along a Lake Ontario tributary that we were eager to fish – we observed at least 20 steelhead in just one pool the last time we were there, with another 10 fish in a second pool. It was likely to be a busy location so we hoped to get on the water early, but the plan never quite works out when you several animals to look after in the morning and three people to sort out (Darrell’s brother, Cody, was joining us for the day).
With the sun starting to hit the water, we arrived at the river and knew it would be a day of fighting for fishing spots. The good news – a lot of people were able to hit the river for opener. The parking lot was full of anglers pulling on waders, rigging rods, and grabbing nets. The trunk of our car held a variety of options for the three of us – float rods, fly rods, and spinning gear. Most anglers had come prepared with float rods and fly rods, so Darrell, in his need to always throw something different, decided to start with his ultralight spinning rod. I almost followed suit but I had bought a new float rod last fall and had yet to christen it with a fish, and it seemed like a good day to correct that.
It was a beautiful day on the river. This pic was taken later in the morning when the crowds had dispersed.
Weaving our way through people and trees we reached the bank and stopped to take a look. In the time we were looking, two anglers in the pool at the bottom of our run had landed nice steelies. It’s always good to see the fish are biting. We took a few casts where we were then decided to seek out a better pool, hopefully without so many anglers in it.
With the sun shining and everyone in good spirits, it was hard to be anything but happy while walking the river in search of an open spot. There were parents and children, friends, grandparents, fly fisherman, float fisherman, bait fisherman, and pretty much everything you could expect. It didn’t matter what technique you preferred, everyone was having a good time.
After taking some casts in a few spots we came to a place at the bottom of a set of rapids. It just had to hold a fish or two. With fast water rushing down the middle of the river, a couple of good boulders, a downed tree, a pile of foam, and deeper edges, this spot might as well have had a blinking neon sign proclaiming ‘Fish Here’. I am far from an accomplished angler, but I knew better than to pass up this opportunity.
I started by casting to the far side and had a few nice drifts that produced nothing. Then I cast on the inside, practically dropping the float right in front of me. The float started drifting, then disappeared. I really couldn’t believe I may finally have hooked into something with my float rod and as I went to set the hook, the lack of give had my hopes falling, I had to be snagged on a boulder. Yet, when I gave another tug, the weight started to move, then there was a splash right in front of me and my line started to shoot down the river. Woohoo! A fish, how amazing! Then I started panicking. I didn’t want to lose this fish and he was definitely not going to give up the fight easily. My mind started flashing images of my line snapping, or the tiny, wire hook straightening out. I knew this wasn’t a monster, but for someone who normally fishes tiny brook trout in creeks on opener, this was a nice fish. I loosened my drag, got into the river, and started following my fish into the next pool.
It took some time to wear down my little rainbow trout, but he eventually came to shore, still fussing about it, and Darrell was able to net him (in the really fantastic Frabill river net I had won in a contest from Recycled Fish). I wish I had a really nice picture to show you of me holding the fish that still makes smile as I type this. Unfortunately, we had some camera issues and all I have is this picture we got of him in the net. As I said, it’s not a big one – there were far bigger fish caught in this river today, but it was the biggest trout I have landed on opener, it put up a great fight, and absolutely made my day.
It looks even smaller in this picture than it really was.
After that excitement we fished a few more pools. I must have lost my concentration because I started making errant casts and managed to lose a hook, and then an inline spinner when I traded rods with Darrell for a bit. We made our way back up the river and stopped at the best pool in the whole area. Darrell’s friend had been fishing this pool all morning and landed seven while losing another seven. This was the spot we had been hoping to get to first thing in the morning, but while Darrell’s friend would have been more than happy to share, it was swamped with other anglers until our return trip. Darrell did manage to hook into a giant white sucker here that he eventually lost. By 10:30 it was obvious the fish were turning off and we took our leave.
I love fishing in areas like this. The wall on the other side of the river makes me feel like I’m a little more isolated.
A short stop at another stretch of river yielded a few small rainbows, but there wasn’t much action otherwise and I began to feel in desperate need of a nap so home we went.
It was a perfect day for trout opener and I saw happy, smiling people everywhere we went. The fish were biting, the rivers were in good shape, and the sun shone all day long. I’ll give the rivers a break for a day or two, but I am so happy to be chasing trout again. Today was wonderful.
argosgirl
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Looks like a nice fish. Good work!
Thanks! I wish I actually had a picture of me with it. It was so much fun, I can’t wait to go back!