High Country Fishing Trip

[3325]

My GF and I have done a high country fishing trip the first week of July for the last 3 years. I've been on an informal mission to fish every lake in the Weminuche.......

Very nice pics, Poser. Thanks for sharing. Nice area. I've driven 550 quite a few times but never gone into the backcountry.

Louis L'Amour set a few western stories in that area, and I've tried to figure out some of the story settings over the years with the Colorado Atlas and Google Earth. I know the setting of one novel, Sackett, was the backcountry on Vallecito Creek with a story of finding gold in a little hidden valley. I think that's probably Roell Creek or Rock Creek? But I'm not sure. You've probably been on all those creeks.

 

[Poser]

Very nice pics, Poser. Thanks for sharing. Nice area. I've driven 550 quite a few times but never gone into the backcountry.

Louis L'Amour set a few western stories in that area, and I've tried to figure out some of the story settings over the years with the Colorado Atlas and Google Earth. I know the setting of one novel, Sackett, was the backcountry on Vallecito Creek with a story of finding gold in a little hidden valley. I think that's probably Roell Creek or Rock Creek? But I'm not sure. You've probably been on all those creeks.

That story is set up Johnsnon Creek aka Grizzly Gulch which heads up from Vallecito Creek over Columbine Pass into Chicago Basin. There is actually an old mine just off Columbine Pass. The lake there, unfortunately, does not hold any fish -probably got fished out by Chicago Basi traffic.

 

[JeffRaines]

It’s not nearly as hard as some anglers like to make it seem. Just pay attention to the rod loading on your back cast and you got it.

I’ve been fly fishing almost exclusively for 14 years.

I think a lot of people are off put by it due to the elitism that some of the guys carry with them. I’ve had coworkers, upon learning that I fly fish, scoff and be like “oh you’re one of them”. I had to remind them that I still gear fish occasionally and I grew up on gear, and don’t mind eating fish either. After a bit their guard comes down.

Fishing is fishing dude. I don’t care if you’re a gear guy or fly. I don’t think of myself as better than anyone else, and fly fishing certainly isn’t hard to learn or do - otherwise my dumb ass wouldn’t have ever figured it out!

 

[thinhorn_AK]

I’ve been fly fishing almost exclusively for 14 years.

I think a lot of people are off put by it due to the elitism that some of the guys carry with them. I’ve had coworkers, upon learning that I fly fish, scoff and be like “oh you’re one of them”. I had to remind them that I still gear fish occasionally and I grew up on gear, and don’t mind eating fish either. After a bit their guard comes down.

Fishing is fishing dude. I don’t care if you’re a gear guy or fly. I don’t think of myself as better than anyone else, and fly fishing certainly isn’t hard to learn or do - otherwise my dumb ass wouldn’t have ever figured it out!

Yeah I have a buddy who is always like “screw fly fishing, I want to keep what I catch”…you can do that with a fly rod bro. The same guy is always talking about how much better the fishing is where he’s from in Kansas because he can “limit out” every day. Ok bro, if you want to limit out on small mouth bass and blue gills, have at it.

I had another buddy who had the same sentiment “I just can’t get into the whole catch and release thing”…,then keep some, nobody cares.

I still spin fish a bit for some stuff but mostly just when chucking buzz bombs and stuff like that. I did try a few spin casts while on a float for steelhead, THAT was lame. A few casts and I’ll never use a spinner for steelhead. I can’t explain it, it was like the lowest point in my sporting “career”. I can’t believe people spin fish for steelhead, I’ll be an elitist about that until the day I die.

 

[Poser]

I definitely have no issue with eating some trout. Some of these lakes are over populated as it is. I don’t eat fish from a lake with a very Limitied number of aging fish, but if it’s jumping with pan size trout who are feeding all day, then the lake health will totally benefit from removing some fish.

 

[JeffRaines]

One of the scenarios I spin fish is high mountain lakes. I know fly fishing can absolutely be productive on stillwater, I just dont enjoy it nearly as much as I do moving water. I guess its the way I'm wired.

Plus with some of the mountain lakes in the cascades backcast room is a concern without a floatation device. I just say the hell with it and take the gear up.

It's still fun... and yeah, if it's a lake with abundant trout I may keep a few for dinner that night if I'm spending the night. My favorite by far is brook trout to the point I dont bother keeping any others. Those things are tasty!

 

[JeffRaines]

Ok bro, if you want to limit out on small mouth bass and blue gills, have at it.

I've eaten both - bluegills are great... but bass don't get enough credit when it comes to table fare. I wouldn't pick it over some of the other fish, but it's not nearly as bad as I expected it to be.

 

[Poser]

I've eaten both - bluegills are great... but bass don't get enough credit when it comes to table fare. I wouldn't pick it over some of the other fish, but it's not nearly as bad as I expected it to be.

I used to eat a lot of bass when I lived in TN (and fished with bait casters). I’d tend to agree. Crappie and small catfish are definitely better, but nothing wrong with eating some bass. That being said, I’ve never been of the mindset that I need to keep and eat every fish I catch and there’s definitely nothing wrong with just enjoying fishing for the aesthetic of fishing which, I suppose is where fly fishing tends to be more gratifying because the technique is more artistic. At the same time, picture perfect casts don’t necessarily catch fish any better than ugly casts.

I suppose it’s just all about exposure and setting. If I saw a guy fly fishing on the Tennessee River, I’d tend to think he was a bit of a kook. When I think clear mountain waters, I think fly fishing. When I look at the Mississippi River or a TVA reservoir, fly fishing doesn’t enter the conversation.