strange? trout behavior

"snakefiddler" wrote
(snip)

it was pretty cool - one more addition to my collection of memorable
sightings experienced while fishing.

any of ya'll ever seen this before?

your interesting little vignette puts me in mind of one of the most
memorable sights i have ever beheld while astream. the fact that you have
now visited hazel creek may help you appreciate the scenario.
pamlico jim and i had planned to walk up past the second bridge to begin
our fishing, and as we neared our jumping in spot, we stopped at the
"measuring station" pool, the biggest pool on hazel, to rest for a moment.
the tail is split by an island, and the old, rusting iron pole that measured
water height for log floating back in the twenties marks the head. i
suppose the pool is thirty or forty yards long and twenty or thirty yards in
diameter, and over a man's head at its deepest point. the water is, of
course, gin clear.
we stood there on the jeep road, idly staring into the gorgeous water
for maybe a couple minutes, when we were startled by the sudden emergence
from the white water at the pool's head of a trout about a foot long,
streaking downstream on the far side of the pool. right behind him, and i
mean *on his tail* was the largest fish i ever saw in hazel; over two feet
of ****ed off rainbow. the pair turned right, towards the road, at the
pool's tail, and circled back up to the measuring station at warp speed.
when they reached the pool's head, the "little" fish lept out of the big,
white water like a salmon headed to his spawning place, and disappeared into
the smaller pools upstream.
the entire incident took only seconds from start to finish. neither jim
nor i had a chance to utter a word until it was over. we caught our breath
and nearly shouted to each other things like "jesus, did you see that!" "my
god, the size of that trout!" "he was gonna *eat* that foot long rainbow,
for god's sake!", etc.
at any rate, since that day, each time we pass that pool, we always stop
for a few minutes and stare into the pool and into the past, hoping to see
that remarkable display re-enacted. i reckon we have been by there more
than fifty times since, but no luck in further fantasies.
hazel is a pretty place, now ain't it, jen...

yfitp
wayno

snakefiddler wrote:
i was fishing what was very clear waters of one of my local streams
yesterday (on a foggy, drizzling afternoon), when i sat on the bank to
change my fly. as i sat there, i was distracted by a motion that i detected
from the "corner of my eye." when i looked into the water, i spotted a
brookie, about 8-9 inches long speeding *down stream*. fascinated by his
beauty, and grace, and what seems to this newbie to be strange behavior, i
followed the fish, and watched him turn into a spot by which i have often
been frustrated, as it is clearly a great hiding place for trout, and of
course nearly impossible to cast to.

it was pretty cool - one more addition to my collection of memorable
sightings experienced while fishing.

any of ya'll ever seen this before?


Not strange at all. Think he got spooked.

Willi

From: Willi & Sue
Newsgroups: rec.outdoors.fishing.fly
Date: Sun, 24 Oct 2004 17:49:10 -0600
Subject: strange? trout behavior

snakefiddler wrote:
i was fishing what was very clear waters of one of my local streams
yesterday (on a foggy, drizzling afternoon), when i sat on the bank to
change my fly. as i sat there, i was distracted by a motion that i detected
from the "corner of my eye." when i looked into the water, i spotted a
brookie, about 8-9 inches long speeding *down stream*. fascinated by his
beauty, and grace, and what seems to this newbie to be strange behavior, i
followed the fish, and watched him turn into a spot by which i have often
been frustrated, as it is clearly a great hiding place for trout, and of
course nearly impossible to cast to.

it was pretty cool - one more addition to my collection of memorable
sightings experienced while fishing.

any of ya'll ever seen this before?


Not strange at all. Think he got spooked.

Willi






Yeah, i've seen this often enough too...

eric
fresno, ca.

"Wayne Harrison" wrote in message
m...

"snakefiddler" wrote
(snip)

it was pretty cool - one more addition to my collection of memorable
sightings experienced while fishing.

any of ya'll ever seen this before?

your interesting little vignette puts me in mind of one of the most
memorable sights i have ever beheld while astream. the fact that you have
now visited hazel creek may help you appreciate the scenario.
pamlico jim and i had planned to walk up past the second bridge to
begin our fishing, and as we neared our jumping in spot, we stopped at the
"measuring station" pool, the biggest pool on hazel, to rest for a moment.
the tail is split by an island, and the old, rusting iron pole that
measured water height for log floating back in the twenties marks the
head. i suppose the pool is thirty or forty yards long and twenty or
thirty yards in diameter, and over a man's head at its deepest point. the
water is, of course, gin clear.
we stood there on the jeep road, idly staring into the gorgeous water
for maybe a couple minutes, when we were startled by the sudden emergence
from the white water at the pool's head of a trout about a foot long,
streaking downstream on the far side of the pool. right behind him, and i
mean *on his tail* was the largest fish i ever saw in hazel; over two feet
of ****ed off rainbow. the pair turned right, towards the road, at the
pool's tail, and circled back up to the measuring station at warp speed.
when they reached the pool's head, the "little" fish lept out of the big,
white water like a salmon headed to his spawning place, and disappeared
into the smaller pools upstream.
the entire incident took only seconds from start to finish. neither
jim nor i had a chance to utter a word until it was over.

an excellent story, uncle wayno! I wish i had seen that. My first thought,
as i watched that brookie swimming down the stream to beat hell was that he
was escaping a hungry larger fish- (probably that big ******* that keeps
hitting my fly out there, and spitting it out!), or maybe he had wandered
into the wrong neighborhood looking for a little bit of "fun." ;-)

we caught our breath
and nearly shouted to each other things like "jesus, did you see that!"
"my god, the size of that trout!" "he was gonna *eat* that foot long
rainbow, for god's sake!", etc.
at any rate, since that day, each time we pass that pool, we always
stop for a few minutes and stare into the pool and into the past, hoping
to see that remarkable display re-enacted. i reckon we have been by there
more than fifty times since, but no luck in further fantasies.

i reckon that as with other events in life, even though we might like to
enjoy repeat experienences of such delights, it is just that scarcity of the
event that makes the memory so special.


hazel is a pretty place, now ain't it, jen...

indeed, uncle wayno. it is as you once said to me, that trout live in some
of the most beautiful places on earth.
i'm sorry i missed ya out there. ;-)

yfitm
snake


yfitp
wayno

"Wayne Harrison" wrote in message
m...

"snakefiddler" wrote
(snip)

it was pretty cool - one more addition to my collection of memorable
sightings experienced while fishing.

any of ya'll ever seen this before?

your interesting little vignette puts me in mind of one of the most
memorable sights i have ever beheld while astream. the fact that you have
now visited hazel creek may help you appreciate the scenario.
pamlico jim and i had planned to walk up past the second bridge to
begin our fishing, and as we neared our jumping in spot, we stopped at the
"measuring station" pool, the biggest pool on hazel, to rest for a moment.
the tail is split by an island, and the old, rusting iron pole that
measured water height for log floating back in the twenties marks the
head. i suppose the pool is thirty or forty yards long and twenty or
thirty yards in diameter, and over a man's head at its deepest point. the
water is, of course, gin clear.
we stood there on the jeep road, idly staring into the gorgeous water
for maybe a couple minutes, when we were startled by the sudden emergence
from the white water at the pool's head of a trout about a foot long,
streaking downstream on the far side of the pool. right behind him, and i
mean *on his tail* was the largest fish i ever saw in hazel; over two feet
of ****ed off rainbow. the pair turned right, towards the road, at the
pool's tail, and circled back up to the measuring station at warp speed.
when they reached the pool's head, the "little" fish lept out of the big,
white water like a salmon headed to his spawning place, and disappeared
into the smaller pools upstream.
the entire incident took only seconds from start to finish. neither
jim nor i had a chance to utter a word until it was over.

an excellent story, uncle wayno! I wish i had seen that. My first thought,
as i watched that brookie swimming down the stream to beat hell was that he
was escaping a hungry larger fish- (probably that big ******* that keeps
hitting my fly out there, and spitting it out!), or maybe he had wandered
into the wrong neighborhood looking for a little bit of "fun." ;-)

we caught our breath
and nearly shouted to each other things like "jesus, did you see that!"
"my god, the size of that trout!" "he was gonna *eat* that foot long
rainbow, for god's sake!", etc.
at any rate, since that day, each time we pass that pool, we always
stop for a few minutes and stare into the pool and into the past, hoping
to see that remarkable display re-enacted. i reckon we have been by there
more than fifty times since, but no luck in further fantasies.

i reckon that as with other events in life, even though we might like to
enjoy repeat experienences of such delights, it is just that scarcity of the
event that makes the memory so special.


hazel is a pretty place, now ain't it, jen...

indeed, uncle wayno. it is as you once said to me, that trout live in some
of the most beautiful places on earth.
i'm sorry i missed ya out there. ;-)

yfitm
snake


yfitp
wayno

snakefiddler wrote:
when i looked into the water, i spotted a
brookie, about 8-9 inches long speeding *down stream*. [snip]i
followed the fish, and watched him turn into a spot by which i have
often
been frustrated, as it is clearly a great hiding place for trout, and
of
course nearly impossible to cast to.

[snip]
any of ya'll ever seen this before?

I'd bet even if you could cast to the hiding place, unless you bumped
them on the lips with a subsurface fly, I doubt you would hook one.
Many times where they got to eat and where they go to "live" are two
different things.

Studies of the habits of tagged trout in northern Michigan have shown
it's not uncommon for them to range a mile or two a day and return to a
holding lair. I doubt an appalachian trout would or could range this
far but i have seen brown trout go a mile upstream to spawn on one
Georgia stream. As some as suggested it may have been spooked but it is
also possible (and I think more probable) it had gone upstream for a
feeding, or in search of a redd (spawning area)and was then heading
back to its safe zone. An 8-9" brookie in most of the applachian sreams
would be an alpha fish and more prone to get the choice feeding lies
and redd placement.

snakefiddler wrote:
when i looked into the water, i spotted a
brookie, about 8-9 inches long speeding *down stream*. [snip]i
followed the fish, and watched him turn into a spot by which i have
often
been frustrated, as it is clearly a great hiding place for trout, and
of
course nearly impossible to cast to.

[snip]
any of ya'll ever seen this before?

I'd bet even if you could cast to the hiding place, unless you bumped
them on the lips with a subsurface fly, I doubt you would hook one.
Many times where they got to eat and where they go to "live" are two
different things.

Studies of the habits of tagged trout in northern Michigan have shown
it's not uncommon for them to range a mile or two a day and return to a
holding lair. I doubt an appalachian trout would or could range this
far but i have seen brown trout go a mile upstream to spawn on one
Georgia stream. As some as suggested it may have been spooked but it is
also possible (and I think more probable) it had gone upstream for a
feeding, or in search of a redd (spawning area)and was then heading
back to its safe zone. An 8-9" brookie in most of the applachian sreams
would be an alpha fish and more prone to get the choice feeding lies
and redd placement.

"Wayne Knight" wrote in message
ps.com...

snakefiddler wrote:
when i looked into the water, i spotted a
brookie, about 8-9 inches long speeding *down stream*. [snip]i
followed the fish, and watched him turn into a spot by which i have
often
been frustrated, as it is clearly a great hiding place for trout, and
of
course nearly impossible to cast to.

[snip]
any of ya'll ever seen this before?

I'd bet even if you could cast to the hiding place, unless you bumped
them on the lips with a subsurface fly, I doubt you would hook one.
Many times where they got to eat and where they go to "live" are two
different things.

interesting- i had no idea. so, maybe i can stop knocking myself out trying
to figure out how the hell to get my fly over there without losing it to the
laurels! in a book i checked out from the libray, it was suggested that it
would not be unheard of for a fisherman to venture into such an area, and
remove some of the "obstacles" to effective casting, returning after the
spooked fish have had a chance to regain composure. now, i'm not yet
*highly* experienced, but somehow i find this strategy distateful. it
suggests to me that catching the fish takes priority to the enjoyment and
challenge of the sport- not to mention the fact that i don't think i have
the right to alter nature so that i can improve my ability to cast to a spot
that is obviously valuable to its inhabitants.



Studies of the habits of tagged trout in northern Michigan have shown
it's not uncommon for them to range a mile or two a day and return to a
holding lair.

fascinating....


I doubt an appalachian trout would or could range this
far but i have seen brown trout go a mile upstream to spawn on one
Georgia stream. As some as suggested it may have been spooked but it is
also possible (and I think more probable) it had gone upstream for a
feeding, or in search of a redd (spawning area)and was then heading
back to its safe zone. An 8-9" brookie in most of the applachian sreams
would be an alpha fish and more prone to get the choice feeding lies
and redd placement.


thanks for that interesting, and enlightening info, wayne

snake

"Wayne Knight" wrote in message
ps.com...

snakefiddler wrote:
when i looked into the water, i spotted a
brookie, about 8-9 inches long speeding *down stream*. [snip]i
followed the fish, and watched him turn into a spot by which i have
often
been frustrated, as it is clearly a great hiding place for trout, and
of
course nearly impossible to cast to.

[snip]
any of ya'll ever seen this before?

I'd bet even if you could cast to the hiding place, unless you bumped
them on the lips with a subsurface fly, I doubt you would hook one.
Many times where they got to eat and where they go to "live" are two
different things.

interesting- i had no idea. so, maybe i can stop knocking myself out trying
to figure out how the hell to get my fly over there without losing it to the
laurels! in a book i checked out from the libray, it was suggested that it
would not be unheard of for a fisherman to venture into such an area, and
remove some of the "obstacles" to effective casting, returning after the
spooked fish have had a chance to regain composure. now, i'm not yet
*highly* experienced, but somehow i find this strategy distateful. it
suggests to me that catching the fish takes priority to the enjoyment and
challenge of the sport- not to mention the fact that i don't think i have
the right to alter nature so that i can improve my ability to cast to a spot
that is obviously valuable to its inhabitants.



Studies of the habits of tagged trout in northern Michigan have shown
it's not uncommon for them to range a mile or two a day and return to a
holding lair.

fascinating....


I doubt an appalachian trout would or could range this
far but i have seen brown trout go a mile upstream to spawn on one
Georgia stream. As some as suggested it may have been spooked but it is
also possible (and I think more probable) it had gone upstream for a
feeding, or in search of a redd (spawning area)and was then heading
back to its safe zone. An 8-9" brookie in most of the applachian sreams
would be an alpha fish and more prone to get the choice feeding lies
and redd placement.


thanks for that interesting, and enlightening info, wayne

snake

snakefiddler wrote:
when i looked into the water, i spotted a
brookie, about 8-9 inches long speeding *down stream*.

I spectacle that I have witnessed far too many times. Sometimes when I
look close it seems I can see a middle fin bone extended in my direction
and an amused smirk on those fish lips. I've usually attributed it to a
reaction to my clumsy wading.

Russell