Late May/June

Run off this year has been weird. It comes, then it goes and then it is back again. I believe it has finally peaked, and the fishing will be a little more consistent from here on out. I have been able to get out a little in between the runoff and the fishing has been great. He are a few cutts from the past few weeks.

Most of the fish fell for the Rusty Mess streamer. It really has become my go to pattern. A new streamer my buddy Brandon conjured up dubbed "Las Vegas" has taken a few good ones also. I will post pictures of it in a future post.

Paying your dues

If I were to guess the percentage of each trout species in my favorite river it would go as follows.

Yellowstone Cutthroat and Hybrids-Approx. 90%

Rainbow Trout- Approx. 8%

Brown Trout- Approx 2%

This being said, I have been fishing it for 3 years now and each trip that I make, I go with the hope of catching a big brown. The 4 people that I have regularly fished this river with have all hooked up with and landed at least one big brown thus far. I however have not had that experience yet. I absolutely love Browns and if you catch one from this river, it will be BIG!!!! The past two weeks I have been doing alot of grumbling to Zack and Brandon about how I feel that I have put in my time and payed my dues and I want a brown. I have had this feeling all of 2013 that this would be the year that it happens for me. 

Well this week it happened and the story behind it will always be special to me. 

I got to a certain stretch that I love to fish and decided to go a few hundred yards up river to fish a ledge that I have pulled some good fish from. I threw my go to streamer (rusty mess) out and started stripping it along the ledge. A big fish came up and clocked the streamer with power that I have never experienced. I quickly strip set and then there was nothing, The fish was gone. I knew from the big red adipose fin that it was a big brown that had just ferociously attacked my streamer and my heart sank. I hollered to Zack who was a few runs down from me and told him what had just happened. I threw back out with the hopes of the fish wanting a second go and to my surprise, he hit it again. Another failed hook up!!!!!! We decided to let the fish alone and fish down river for a few hours and try again before we left for the night. After a few hours we returned to the area and I tried again. TWO more takes and still no hookup. Well I was about to give up, but decided to switch it up and throw something a little more subtle and give it one more go. I opened up the streamer box and searched for something and decided on the Cutty Candy that Chris conjured up a few years back. Well that turned out to be the lucky streamer. After a solid fight, I brought to hand this 21 inch beauty. 

I could not be happier with this Brown. I paid dues to the river for 3 years and was finally rewarded.