It's that time of year! The weather has finally warmed up to the spring like conditions we've all been waiting for. And with that, the water will be warming up also and the fish will start to get more active.
My favorite time is coming. April saw some good and bad days on the water. Still had to be patient, but we were normally rewarded.
The creeks started to flow a bit in the past few weeks and that has brought out some bugs and debris on the water. This has also brought out the small, insect eating fish. So, we have been hooking into a lot of shakers lately. At least it keeps us running for the rods. Most days have been consistently producing the small bug eaters and have had a few big ones mixed in to keep it exciting.
One of our best days in late-April saw us hooking into 12 rainbows. The first few were only small and had us wondering if we would find a big one. But after catching half a dozen little guys, we finally hooked into a hog.
Wayne was on the rod and held on while this fish ran the counter out to over 500-foot of line. What a great run. We saw the fish jump about six times and then made a mad run towards the boat and spit the hook. Heartbreaker.
Another couple small fish came to the boat and we were beginning to wonder if we had lost our chance at the big one for the day. Well, finally we were rewarded. At 1:30 p.m. the line started screaming off the reel again. Wayne was first to the rod again and was hoping for redemption. After a 10 minute battle, he finally got the fish to the boat. A beautiful 14 pound rainbow. Maybe not as big as the first fish he lost, but still a great fish. His biggest rainbow ever.
About 20 minutes went by and then another rod started screaming. Looks like the afternoon bite is in full swing. Grahame grabbed the rod this time and the fight was on. He could get the fish with in 50 feet of the boat, but then it would run back out to 200 feet. A couple more times this happened until finally his fish was ready for the net. A nice chrome 14-1/2 pound rainbow. Almost a clone of the last fish. Great battle and some great photos.
For the next hour we landed another 12 pound rainbow and a couple smaller ones. This turned out to be a great day and it reminds me of what is still to come.
The water temperature hasn't quite reached our prime number yet, but when it does, these fish are going to go wild. Also, keep an eye open for the famous flying ant hatch. With the hot weather coming up, we should see these insects flying around soon. They will get blown into the water by the thousands. And that's when every fish in the lake will finally come to the surface and put the feed bags on!
Looking forward to the next couple months.
What are they biting on?
We've been catching a lot of fish on our bucktail flies. Lots of shakers at this time of year, but always a few big ones mixed in.
Favorite colors so far have been: black/white, grey/white, and still purple/white. The lucky numbers being: 210, 215, 222, 228 Apex lures are working well also. Similar colors as the flies. Black/white, silver, or blue/green has been working as well.
And my favorite Lyman plugs have also been producing some fish. Lucky numbers: 10, 16, 55, 69.
Gerrards are Spawning !
It's that time of year when the big Gerrard rainbows make their journey up the river. The numbers have been good so far and should continue until the second week of May. For anyone that hasn't seen this, it's something to experience. Right now there is over 700 fish under the bridge. Hopefully we see a few more show up over the next week or so.
You can check the ministry website for current counts. Check out this site here.
Our water temperature is rising and the fish should be turning on. Prime time is coming, so let's get out there!
Tight lines......
Kerry Reed is the owner of Reel Adventures Fishing Charters in Nelson. Call him at 250-505-4963 or find out more at his website here.