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#1
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I have only caught Atlantic salmon once in my life. Fourteen inch
juveniles in Gull Lake, Michigan about 10 years ago. I had been fishing for smallmouth bass and was surprised to tie into a pod of these surprisingly strong fish. They faught frantically. Alas, no jumps. That's all I know of the great leaper ... that and Lee Wulff's tales of salmon in that eponymously titled book. Now I've caught plenty of rainbow trout and I can attest that they jump quite often. When a good sized rainbow belly flops after going airborne you can feel the heft of the fish and the slap of the water telegraphed back to your line hand which is desperately trying to maintain control of the fly line. That's a great feeling. I've also hooked into big rainbows while trolling for salmon in the Great Lakes. It's amazing to stand witness to an unlikely sequence of events which begins with the captain yelling "fish-on" while we drag silver-plated spoons using downriggers. The rod holder is only 5 feet away from the bench where I am seated so it takes less than a second for me to get to the transom and make sure that the barb has sunken solidly into the jaws of Mr. Onchorynchus. Before I can even blink I am staring at a 12 lb steelhead that has rocketed from 60 feet below the surface into low earth orbit. Well it might be a "very low" orbit but an altitude of 10 feet is nonetheless impressive for a freshwater fish. Even a century of hatchery breeding has failed to induce a genetic amnesia of its prediliction for leaping among the rainbow trout. Yesterday I took a leisurely drive into the Santa Cruz mountains arriving quite late for a fisherman, 1 PM, at the boat rental at Loch Lomond, not Scotland but California. Unlike most impoundments near the San Francisco bay area this one actually has a natural feel to it reminiscent of a Sierra Nevadan lake or a midwestern spring pond. There are no powerboats and the shore is rimmed with plenty of greenery. I asked to rent a motor boat and was offered a choice of foot or oar. I guess all the battery powered boats were already rented out. I rigged up not knowing what to expect as it was my first time there. I let out about 90 feet of my Airflo Depth Finder integrated shooting head line with a size 8 marabou streamer wearing Mickey Finn colors. Nobody was having much luck except me. I rowed back and forth for about 3 hours continuously and hooked a fish about once every 30 minutes. Maybe it was my syncopated rowing, the pauses and stops, the quiet splashing of oars that led the stocked trout to my fly instead of the broken back Rebels and jointed Rapalas being pulled behind the steady mechanized hum of the MinnKotas. All I know is that even a 12 inch, hatchery raised rainbow can jolt the rod nearly out of a rowboat and pull a 200 grain sinking head up to surface while it decides to take a gulp of air in its attempt to lose the hook. That and the fact that the guy working at the dock was impressed with my "skills" as he called my luck. Today my arms and back are sore but that is a small price to pay for the recent imprint upon my mind of a quiet Sunday afternoon filled with visions of jumping fish. Leap on little rainbows and big ones. Til next time. Mu Young Lee Santa Clara, CA |
#2
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"mu" wrote in message
ups.com... I have only caught Atlantic salmon once in my life. Glad to see you're still around and posting. Nice trip. I have been reading an older Steve Raymond book "The Year of the Angler". There is a chapter on a lake he called Hosmer lake (don't know if it's a real name or fake) that was stocked with Atlantic Salmon. I believe it was in Washington. Anyone know if it is real and if the Salmon are still in there? Curious Wayne |
#3
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On Mon, 26 Mar 2007 22:38:47 -0400, "Wayne Knight"
wrote: "mu" wrote in message oups.com... I have only caught Atlantic salmon once in my life. Glad to see you're still around and posting. Nice trip. I have been reading an older Steve Raymond book "The Year of the Angler". There is a chapter on a lake he called Hosmer lake (don't know if it's a real name or fake) that was stocked with Atlantic Salmon. I believe it was in Washington. Anyone know if it is real and if the Salmon are still in there? Curious Wayne It's real, and the Salmon are still there as far as I know. It's been a few years since I've been there. http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/centralorego...r/hosmer.shtml JR would probably know more current info. Don |
#4
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![]() "Wayne Knight" wrote in message news ![]() I have been reading an older Steve Raymond book "The Year of the Angler". There is a chapter on a lake he called Hosmer lake (don't know if it's a real name or fake) that was stocked with Atlantic Salmon. I believe it was in Washington. Anyone know if it is real and if the Salmon are still in there? Curious Wayne Hosmer lake is in the Oregon Cascades, and has both Atlantic Salmon and Brook Trout. Its not a place one would go to seek solitude as its quite heavily fished. Bob Weinberger La Grande, OR |
#5
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![]() "mu" wrote in message ups.com... Today my arms and back are sore but that is a small price to pay for the recent imprint upon my mind of a quiet Sunday afternoon filled with visions of jumping fish. Leap on little rainbows and big ones. Til next time. Mu Young Lee Santa Clara, CA Thanks for the ride along Mu, I'm looking forward to some of the same, our lake opened up last week! The fingerlings that we have been raising all winter are now catchables and will be released soon, the carry overs from previous years should be 20 inches or better. Some of the triploids have reached the 8 - 10 lbs. mark... I'm off this afternoon to float the Bitterroot for 4 days, should break the cabin fever! ![]() Thanks, JT |
#6
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On Mar 26, 7:55 pm, "Bob Weinberger"
wrote: "Wayne Knight" wrote in message news ![]() I have been reading an older Steve Raymond book "The Year of the Angler". There is a chapter on a lake he called Hosmer lake (don't know if it's a real name or fake) that was stocked with Atlantic Salmon. I believe it was in Washington. Anyone know if it is real and if the Salmon are still in there? Curious Wayne Hosmer lake is in the Oregon Cascades, and has both Atlantic Salmon and Brook Trout. Its not a place one would go to seek solitude as its quite heavily fished. Bob Weinberger La Grande, OR Are there any landlocked salmon left in East Lake? I got into them one morning and caught a couple of dozen. At the time they were trying to get rid of them and the limit was generous. We ate a few but they were just so-so. We should have taken the grill, We would also catch some kind of big chub or something. I whapped them on the bottom of the boat and threw them out in the water. Within 5 or 10 minutes here came an ofsprey to have breakfast. |
#7
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BJ Conner wrote:
On Mar 26, 7:55 pm, "Bob Weinberger" wrote: Hosmer lake is in the Oregon Cascades, and has both Atlantic Salmon and Brook Trout. Its not a place one would go to seek solitude as its quite heavily fished. Are there any landlocked salmon left in East Lake? I got into them one morning and caught a couple of dozen. At the time they were trying to get rid of them and the limit was generous. We ate a few but they were just so-so. ..... Yes, though fewer than there were. BTW, eating fish out of East is not such a good idea due to high mercury levels. Hosmer reached a something of a tipping point a few years ago. Always popular with fly fishers and canoers, the population explosion in Central Oregon has added hordes of kayakers as well. Between May and September, it's a zoo. Given that there are only non-native trout/salmon there, and good moving water nearby, these days I only stop in passing to marvel at how full and crazy the parking/camping area is before moving on..... - JR |
#8
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![]() "mu" wrote , at the boat rental at Loch Lomond, not Scotland but California. I've never heard of it, but I may just look it up and take my pram over, just to be able to say "I secured two brace, fishing a cast of three wets, and wind drifting with sea anchors, on the Loch" g souinds like a nice day, thanks for the TR |
#9
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On Mar 27, 4:29 am, "mu" wrote:
I have only caught Atlantic salmon once in my life. Fourteen inch juveniles in Gull Lake, Michigan about 10 years ago. I had been fishing for smallmouth bass and was surprised to tie into a pod of these surprisingly strong fish. They faught frantically. Alas, no jumps. That's all I know of the great leaper ... that and Lee Wulff's tales of salmon in that eponymously titled book. Now I've caught plenty of rainbow trout and I can attest that they jump quite often. When a good sized rainbow belly flops after going airborne you can feel the heft of the fish and the slap of the water telegraphed back to your line hand which is desperately trying to maintain control of the fly line. That's a great feeling. I've also hooked into big rainbows while trolling for salmon in the Great Lakes. It's amazing to stand witness to an unlikely sequence of events which begins with the captain yelling "fish-on" while we drag silver-plated spoons using downriggers. The rod holder is only 5 feet away from the bench where I am seated so it takes less than a second for me to get to the transom and make sure that the barb has sunken solidly into the jaws of Mr. Onchorynchus. Before I can even blink I am staring at a 12 lb steelhead that has rocketed from 60 feet below the surface into low earth orbit. Well it might be a "very low" orbit but an altitude of 10 feet is nonetheless impressive for a freshwater fish. Even a century of hatchery breeding has failed to induce a genetic amnesia of its prediliction for leaping among the rainbow trout. Yesterday I took a leisurely drive into the Santa Cruz mountains arriving quite late for a fisherman, 1 PM, at the boat rental at Loch Lomond, not Scotland but California. Unlike most impoundments near the San Francisco bay area this one actually has a natural feel to it reminiscent of a Sierra Nevadan lake or a midwestern spring pond. There are no powerboats and the shore is rimmed with plenty of greenery. I asked to rent a motor boat and was offered a choice of foot or oar. I guess all the battery powered boats were already rented out. I rigged up not knowing what to expect as it was my first time there. I let out about 90 feet of my Airflo Depth Finder integrated shooting head line with a size 8 marabou streamer wearing Mickey Finn colors. Nobody was having much luck except me. I rowed back and forth for about 3 hours continuously and hooked a fish about once every 30 minutes. Maybe it was my syncopated rowing, the pauses and stops, the quiet splashing of oars that led the stocked trout to my fly instead of the broken back Rebels and jointed Rapalas being pulled behind the steady mechanized hum of the MinnKotas. All I know is that even a 12 inch, hatchery raised rainbow can jolt the rod nearly out of a rowboat and pull a 200 grain sinking head up to surface while it decides to take a gulp of air in its attempt to lose the hook. That and the fact that the guy working at the dock was impressed with my "skills" as he called my luck. Today my arms and back are sore but that is a small price to pay for the recent imprint upon my mind of a quiet Sunday afternoon filled with visions of jumping fish. Leap on little rainbows and big ones. Til next time. Mu Young Lee Santa Clara, CA Atlantic salmon are Salmo salar Rainbow trout are Onchorynchus mykiss TL MC |
#10
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