10 Monster Brook Trout

Whenever you see the broad back of a monster Brook Trout pushing through shallow, glassy waters, a fly fisherman quickly remembers the great respect for a wily old foe.  A fish that has survived many years of fishing pressure and has all the best genes to become the “big one”.  Sometimes these huge Brook Trout live in waters somewhat isolated from humans as well. 

It seems like just yesterday that my buddy and I rode our four wheelers past a lake that we initially thought was void of fish.  During this same trip my fly fishing buddy and I caught so many football shaped Brook Trout that we became bored.   A pending storm was coming so we left.

It was during our ride back that we accidently stopped at that lake we thought to be void of fish.  To our total amazement right there near the inlet stream was an unmistakable Brook Trout.  The red belly and the white leading edges on all fins give a male Brook Trout away every time.  At that point it took literally seconds to rig up our rods and gear.  I’ll never forget how we moved through the bushes with extreme stealth so as not to scare the fish.  Once we got closer, we could see about 20 or so large trout in slightly deeper water just waiting to move into shallow water to spawn.  Most serious fishermen understand that Brook Trout spawn in the Fall and the males become especially aggressive during this time.  Both of us knew that as long as we didn’t do something stupid, make a loud noise, or become visible…we would have a memorable day.

When the fly fishing ended, there were 10 Brook Trout caught and every single fish weighed over 5 pounds.  In fact, there was one fish that was considerably larger.  We knew it was probably the state record.  As snow began to fall so heavily that fly fishing wasn’t an option, we packed the largest fish up and headed downhill to the nearest certified scale.  At the time, the state record for Brook Trout was 7 pounds 3 ounces.  To our disappointment the fish fell short of the record by just a few ounces.  In my personal opinion the one hour trip to the scale easily caused a significant weight loss.

In my family, we never have had a traditional Christmas meal (turkey and all that stuff).  That year was no different because it involved the bright orange meat of a huge Brook Trout J

Even though I missed out on several ounces , the “10 Monster Brook Trout” day will live in my memory forever.