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My first Goldfish/Trout

Fishing Report 
4K views 13 replies 6 participants last post by  Don Hershfeld 
#1 ·
In response to the "why no pictures" thread I thought I'd put this up to break the ice. Late report but I fished one of the local Montgomery County creeks this past weekend for the re-opening after closure 1. The water levels were a little high but very fishable. I got there mid afternoon but there were still at least 15 cars parked and the reports from the guys I talked to said earlier in the day it was a zoo.

Anyway, on my way downstream guy I talked to was nice enough to point out strange orange trout that was holding in the pool he was fishing so I left enough time at the end of the day so I could make a few casts at him. Sure enough, no one was fishing the pool when I came back and on my first cast it jumped right on my white roostertail. Not the best picture but it was a first for me so I wanted to share.
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#4 ·
Golden rainbow. They've been stocking some in Md waters for a few years now. Its a genetic mutation that they make in the hatcheries for kind of novelty fish. They seem to present a nice challenge normally. I think its probably because they stand out and everyone tries to fish for them and therefore they see a lot of different presentations. Nice Catch.
 
#6 ·
I'm glad you got your first one, and was likewise happy to get my first many years ago in WV, where they have been more commonly stocked for many years, and might have been originally isolated into a true-breeding strain, I believe (rolled out wholesale during that state's centennial celebration, if memory serves). If it can even be said that fish have them, they seem to be double-minded... they stand out so much they seem reluctant to leave their holding lie to chase things. But still needing sustanence, many times I've seen them break to and then quickly away from my offerings several times, on a single retrieve. Where it is legal to do so, after dark they seem to be more relaxed about foraging and more easily taken.

Have since had a change of heart about them though... the unscrupulous poachers can use them too easily for 'Judas' fish, which too easily reveal where the ordinarily-pigmented rainbows may also lie nearby. Same thing goes for ospreys, etc. Having also once taken a genuine (wild) golden trout in CA years ago, I now tend to think of 'palominos' more as fake sticks of butter with fins. Many of our region's trout streams are already artificial enough, without these man-made freaks further lending a bizarre aspect. Nevertheless, WTG! Btw, try a chartreuse wooley bugger next time you come across one.
 
#7 ·
If it can even be said that fish have them, they seem to be double-minded... they stand out so much they seem reluctant to leave their holding lie to chase things. But still needing sustanence, many times I've seen them break to and then quickly away from my offerings several times, on a single retrieve. Where it is legal to do so, after dark they seem to be more relaxed about foraging and more easily taken.
I'm sitting here amazed at how well you know these things, you're like that Mentalist guy of the fishing world. At first I thought you may have just pieced it together from my original post but you really nailed it, this fish must have seen every bait and lure known to man that day but then just as the sun was setting, in the fading light I saw him make two tentative moves before he just made a bee line for my lure and struck it hard within 4' of where I was standing.

Have since had a change of heart about them though... the unscrupulous poachers can use them too easily for 'Judas' fish, which too easily reveal where the ordinarily-pigmented rainbows may also lie nearby. Same thing goes for ospreys, etc. Having also once taken a genuine (wild) golden trout in CA years ago, I now tend to think of 'palominos' more as fake sticks of butter with fins. Many of our region's trout streams are already artificial enough, without these man-made freaks further lending a bizarre aspect.
I get what you're saying, it's definitely a freak of nature but it did add a fairly unique challenge to the day and catching that one was a highlight for sure. I went back and fished the same area a couple days ago and in the same stretch where I had seen 4 of them on the previous trip I didn't see even one so the balance of nature has already been restored.

Btw, try a chartreuse woolly bugger next time you come across one.
:thumbup:
 
#8 · (Edited)
Gee, I don't even have any direct knowledge of who or what The Mentalist actually is (no TV by choice here, but I think I can guess that's the medium... all puns intended!). But I'd like to know, can I quote you on that one? It can be added to a long list of such 'accolades', which are really nothing more than the product of an entire life with nearly all its attentions/intentions mis-spent (?) from an early age entirely upon fish - even fish I have not and will not ever see or fish for, in fact. I'm as happy to watch fish as to try and catch them, and will add that spending more time at the former will definitely improve your ability with the latter. With some species in some venues in fact, the very best thing you can do (to make a catch) when you've got a fish in your sights, is to do nothing else but watch for a spell. Why rush to cast, and so miss out on the ripe op to collect useful intel? The fish we don't immediately and instinctively begin to fish for can teach us a good deal more than those we promptly and actively engage. My 0.02, but if you routinely try it... you'll like it. More relaxing for one thing, and actually adds to the confidence/drama/satisfaction when you DO try for the critter, so its even better than instant gratification!

Totally convinced I was just born this way, and so now I teach the very few folks who wander out my way, who DON'T merely want to be taken out for a day's fishing, but who instead sincerely want to learn how to fish smarter, not harder. They are a distinct minority, but this can sure save a lot of otherwise wasted time on the water, and $ too, in the long run. Welfare would be personally more lucrative, but I enjoy sharing that peculiar 'gift' at Streams & Dreams with the open-minded and influenceable whether they be newbies or remedial candidates for instruction.

Then again, we all fish for all sorts of equally valid reasons (not all of which we might even be consciously aware), and so what particular twists of technique might best turn my crank (being mostly, but not entirely a fly guy) may be irrelevant to the next guy (which is hunky-dory-OK too... its all good and no one 'way' is inherently any 'better' than the next, although some ways are more purely and objectively productive, or maybe provide something more interesting/challenging to do between bites).

A lot of otherwise talented guys seem afraid to sling string and let feathers fly (maybe they've dabbled at it and yes, you stand a pretty good chance of getting totally frustrated and so quitting 'that nonsense'), but with only a little mentoring much (not all) of that is avoidable. Because what just comes naturally is unfortunately counter-productive, it takes a bit longer to become proficient with the long rod, but its so worth it and no, it is NOT inevitable that "you'll never go back", as is often heard. All forms of tackle have their preferential place, and the nice thing is being able to pick and then be able to perform with whatever happens to be best gear for exploiting the situation at hand. Viva la difference!!!

Oh yeah, almost forgot... the reason (I think) why a chartreuse ANYTHING will get their attention is that its bad enough BEING a palomino... the only thing more dangerous (from a survival standpoint) is being in the immediate company of another! When 'the other sore thumb' is small enough to be driven off or even directly consumed, its a good play for such 'goldens' to be making.

(Sorry for the length of this post... the only thing I am famous for is going LOOONNNNNGGGGGG>>>>>> on any topic that happens to be of personal interest)
 
#9 ·
No need to be sorry for the long post, that's what this place is all about. In addition to being an accomplished and very perceptive angler you have a poetic quality about the way you write. I've been trout fishing for 45+ years now, I think I was about 6 when I caught my first one on my own, cane pole and a worm but it was such a small creek you had to creep up on your hands and knees so as not to spook them. I've been fishing all my life but I'm just getting back into trout fishing for, like you say a lot of reasons.

Up until recently I haven't done much with a fly rod, when I was a kid I tried my Dads old split bamboo fly rod but after about 50 trees and no trout I gave up on it. Last year I bought my real first fly rod, I only bought it because I found a nearby stream that's fly fish / C&R only but it's loaded with trout so even a googan like me can catch a few... It's starting to get fun now that I'm over the hump of the initial frustration but if I really want a meal my spinning rod is always in my trunk.

So on Monday I went back to the same stream where I caught that palomino last week, this time with the fly rod since they seemed like easy pickings... caught a big skunk. I threw a mix of buggers (brown and black), streamers, and assorted bead heads (cj's and hairs I think) all to no avail. I was already a mile or so downstream when I discovered that the only pair of waders I own (without felt bottoms that is) has several small leaks... I saw a half jar of power bait on the bank, I thought about it but I resisted the temptation. It's hard to believe the difference between the sophistication level of the trout from one stream to the next, it could have just been the day but everything looked perfect, I'll figure it out at some point.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Thanks for the compliments. Its just fun to write about stuff you love, at least when its out of want-to without a speck of have-to involved. Unlike this TF board where I generally only lurk, my long posts are not always quite so universally welcomed elsewhere, although they are really intended just to liven up the joint and maybe more fundamentally than that, provide me with an outlet.

Seems we have some signficant things in common (many I'd bet). I caught MY first trout utterly alone and without guidance of any kind in a stream somewhere in or around Catoctin State Park not long after I was six years old, on a cane pole, with a braided black line (with mandatory large hardware nut attached for a pendulum weight) tied directly to a long-shank hook irresistibly ensconced with a big old chunk of my Mother's delicious (and rather effective) fried chicken, of all things!!! The first one to hit and also be detected (I didn't have a float, so I guess I was straight-line nymphing with a bamboo rod and friend chicken, technically speaking), I levered high above my head and well back into the woods, upon which I immediately pounced like a cat might an escaping mouse! I caught several of what I believe were most likely native brook trout that day, perhaps with one rainbow. All I can recall for sure was how drop-dead gorgeous those first trout were... quite a step up (if you will) from my first-ever piscine conquest (that's about what I thought of it as, at the time), a 'lowly' blowfish or northern puffer (and that's another long story I'll spare you for now, unless asked of course). As proud and surprised as I was to catch these beautiful critters during my first (successful anyway) stream exposure, they were just too pretty and I felt guilty about killing them, so I let 'em go instead. Thanks for jogging that recollection, really!

Now, as for your closing line... I know you didn't say "I'll figure it ALL out at some point" and that is a very good thing. Nobody ever completely figures out very many (if any) kinds of fishing of course (too many variables to be able to predict absolutely what an outcome might be on any given day).

However, once one gets sort'a close to doing so, a good bit of the pure delight in pursuing that kind of fishing starts to go by the wayside, at least for me. Kind'a like the difference between a first kiss and just another peck on the cheek? I'm a firm believer that the early-middle section of the learning curve (of whatever flavor of fishing we might be talking about) is far and away the most exciting and memorable and satisfying portion.

When you are just starting to get your stuff together in a particular time and place, after a particular thing, its actually starting to make some sense, you can somewhat predict how you need to proceed or adapt under the various conditions, and so every single blessed (literally) "next time out" has the potential (which is frequently realized, if your timing is any good) to really bring more and/or larger fish to hand. Geez is that ever exciting!!! Then, assuming you go overboard with indulging that kind of fishing in that time and place... well, its not too long before you get to experience it at or pretty darn near its very best, which is (or can be) a two-sided thing.

I had that experience of icefishing for DCL's frisbee bluegills this past year, and it literally left me in a happy daze. Unfortunately, my success went straight from nearly zero to right over the top, and so there's now nowhere (at least productivity-wise) to go but down now (bummer!). Can't realistically ever expect to duplicate, much less exceed, my best day out there... anywhere! Classic case of too much, too soon kind'a spoiling (or at least shortening) the party. On the plus side however, few of us (and certainly not me) will ever have enough money or time to run out of new and exciting fisheries to try and master... its the old 'so many fish...' line.

So, as long as I'll be tolerated for running on and on, I'll be sticking my head into the FW board and may not be too shy about it. Its a lot bigger fishbowl than I'm used to, and I don't want to come off wrong by the way I might swim in it, y'know?
 
#11 ·
However, once one gets sort'a close to doing so, a good bit of the pure delight in pursuing that kind of fishing starts to go by the wayside, at least for me. Kind'a like the difference between a first kiss and just another peck on the cheek? I'm a firm believer that the early-middle section of the learning curve (of whatever flavor of fishing we might be talking about) is far and away the most exciting and memorable and satisfying portion.
Without going too far down this rabbit hole I'll say this. I've caught everything from Bluegills to Marlin and just about everything in between, I've lived in half of the states along east and fished in all of them including the bahamas and beyond. Figured it "ALL" out? no, never will.

I like the comparison you make between the difference between a first kiss and a peck as it relates to the learning curve but there's more to it than that, for me anyway. It starts out as more of a "wow" but if you went out on a first date every night eventually it would get boring. At some point, when you really get to know something, and then you discover something new / find something you never knew was there, it turns into more of an "ah ha" kind of moment and sometimes those "ah ha's" can be very rewarding.

It's like the difference between keeping my boat on a trailer vs keeping it in a marina - sort of like the difference between being single and being married. You're either going to cover a lot of ground or really get to know something well.... (or think you do). "Strange" as my single friends call it can be very rewarding when it works out. For sure some of my most memorable fish have been the ones that I did't expect when I was fishing a new area, but almost as rewarding are the ones that I overlooked a zillion times and didn't even know they were there until I cracked a new code.

Back to the orange trout... commercial / freak of nature yes - but I still think it's a good thing because it adds a new dimension to something very familiar, sort of like when my wife (on the very rare occasion) surprises me with a new nightie or something, that's the way I'm looking at it.
 
#12 · (Edited)
Wow! Given your handle and the initial topic of stocker 'goldens' (and knowing nothing else about you), I had no idea my correspondent was so well-traveled, broadly experienced, and could turn such a nice phrase/generate such powerful analogies either! "Ah-ha" moments and overlooked ops right under our noses are sweet things, indeed, and I like where you've taken this thread. Maybe somebody else who relates might care to chime on in?

:yinyang:Where's home for you, and might you care to casually get together sometime to chase this (or any other) rabbit trail? I'm near Deep Creek Lake, down by the Yock where Hoyes Run (a sad tale in itself) enters. Google "Streams & Dreams" sometime and you'll have my end nailed down pretty good. Sorry, but I'm just of a bold disposition (at least from the keyboard) and don't always beat around the bush much. Sounds like I'm essentially asking you out on a first date, don't it?!?

Btw, it might appear that I'm just a fly guy with trout on the brain:clapping2:, but nothing could be further from the truth. "If it has a fin, count me in" is my by-line, and I don't especially care whatever might happen to be the best way to make a connection with every/any fin-bearer out there. I've fished around some, but nothing like what you seem to have had to good fortune to explore. Thus I'd enjoy vicariously experiencing even a tiny portion of your fishing history I think, whether or not over a nice adult bev or perhaps some coffee, lemonade, etc.

Seriously, I'd love to meet/greet 'ya if you are even half-way open to that possibility, wherever. My email addy is "fishing4u2@juno(DOT)com", should you wish to make that connnection with a friendly fellow-addict. Now, to re-read your reply and give it an adequate op for more thorough digestion... nice. Might even have to have my fishing partner (and wife) read it too. In case you or anyone else might be wondering, they are the same person btw!!! Others have been posting that the shad are finally 'in' and its been too long (at least two seasons) since I happend to catch the Potomac in a fishable condition. I just re-read the entire thread (picking up on the words "local Montgomery Co stream" Sooo... how do you feel about that venue, maybe? I was THIS CLOSE to boogying down that way yesterday, but the rains predicted for today and the flashiness of the metro and suburban region's run-off spooked me. Hopefully things will not blow out (yet again, for me).
 
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