Trout are funny creatures. One minute, they are chasing down baitfish and minutes later, they will refuse everything but a size 16 Parachute Adams. It can be difficult to predict what they are going to eat, and when they are going to eat something. On the other hand, sometimes feeding patterns will exist for days or weeks. This can depend on a lot of things including the stretch of water, the time of year, and time of the day. One piece of water might not fish exactly like a piece of water one mile upstream.
In my last post, I mentioned how I caught some brown trout on the Gunnison River by swinging a soft hackle. This was a stretch of water that I had never fished before and I was experimenting with some different strategies. I just happened to stumble on something that worked on that particular day, on that particular stretch, at that particular time. By coincidence, the VRBO that I was staying at just happened to be a few steps away from a stretch of the Gunnison that was about a mile downstream of where I had caught a few fish by swinging a soft hackle. I had tried some nymphing and threw some dry flies near the VRBO but hadn't caught anything. However, I had hope and optimism pushing me to swing a soft hackle on the Gunnison one morning.
So there I was, wading through the water and swinging a soft hackle just outside our rental property. I wasn't catching anything but was enjoying the sound of moving water and feel of sunlight on my face. I was about ready to call it quits when Wendy came to the edge of the water to check on me. I told her that I wasn't catching anything and was about to call it quits. As we chatted, I let my soft hackle fly swing in the water downstream. I believe she was in mid sentence when I almost had the rod ripped out of my hands. There wasn't much need to set the hook because luckily for me, the fish that was on the line pretty much set the hook on itself with an aggressive take.
It wasn't a big fish but it was a brown which got my heart pumping. I like browns more than rainbows so I got pretty excited. Wendy watched as I landed the small fish and I'll be honest, that felt pretty good. I like it when my wife thinks I'm good at something and shares joys in my successes. As I watched the small trout swim away, I started to make a lot of connections. The fact that my high school basketball coach taught me this technique over 10 years ago went rushing into the front of my mind. The realization that the same fly had worked two days in a row on different stretches of the same river was something I couldn't overlook. Finally, the reality of catching fish on new water with a fly and technique that absolutely nobody (AI and websites included) suggested was pretty rewarding.
Fishing is an experiment. We fish different places with different flies/lures. We target different species of fish at different times of the year. Sometimes we use what worked the last time we fished a spot. Sometimes that works. Sometimes nothing seems to work and we just have to start trying different flies/lures and strategies. Sometimes our guesses work and sometimes they done. When you are fortunate enough to catch a fish, especially in conditions that have you questioning your confidence, it's a darn good feeling. So keep experimenting, getting out of your comfort zone, and trying new things when fishing gets slow. You might find something that works and brings a smile to your face...and a tug on the end of your line!
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