fly fishing trout (dane county, wi)

Why does it seem my luck has taken a turn for the worse? This was the second time that I’ve experienced an automobile breakdown on the side of the road in the last 2 months. The first left my car crippled in a small Illinois side-of-the-highway town over 120 miles from home. Two different tows and two repair bills and the car is still having problems. I currently still have a friend doing some work on the vehicle as we speak to stop an oil leak. Both shops never fixed what was actually wrong with that car (a loose hose above an O2 sensor) and my friend saw the problem with in 10 minutes of looking at my engine. A couple turns from a screw driver and the car hasn’t died since. A good mechanic is worth their weight in gold.

This time I shredded a tire on my wife’s truck while traveling the 90 expressway heading north to the driftless area. It was 5:30 in the morning when I had the left rear tire blow while driving. I forced my way onto the shoulder where cars were flying past me with out even moving over. I was forced to keep one eye looking over my shoulder at all times. Finally the Wisconsin State Police showed up to give me a hand with an industrial jack and some traffic control. We get the new tire mounted and time to hit the road… Guess what happens now? I go to turn the car on and the battery is dead. 40 minutes later the tow truck shows to jump my truck and 79$ later I am back on the road again!! Even though my brain said to turn for home after the blow out I pushed forward.

My 2 hour and 20 minute ride turned into almost 5 hours. On the way I stopped of to do a little recon of a small stream just to south. Rumors of big dumb trout carried me there. In the middle of the summer the overgrowth looked almost unmanageable. The creek was skinny and cold and looked like it had some major potential. I will have to remember this for next year in the spring…

a beautiful driftless creek

Finally I made my destination. All this hard work and I had only 2 hours to catch something. The water was up 2 or 3 feet still from the heavy does of rain we received earlier this week. It was also stained a nasty rust color. I already made the decision to fish the closest park to the headwaters to find the best water quality. I fished a pool in-between a bridge and a set of riffles. I did see some fish rising to the opposite bank and it kept my interest for an hour and a half without any strikes. I moved upstream and spent the last 30 minutes fishing a serious bend that dumped in to a slow pool. A series of cast to the pool turns nothing up. I moved closer to the tail-out of the bend and one long cast resulted in a long overdue strike.

fishing stained water

This is my second trip where catching even one fish came down to the last 15 minutes. I kept my head on straight and fished hard and it worked in my favor. Maybe I didn’t slay them but catching one fish on a day I could have caught none is a victory to me.
 

rainbow trout success!!!

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fly fishing trout (blue ridge, ga)

This was the last day of our vacation. I still had one goal in mind and that was to catch photo and release a Georgia trout. With only a couple hours to fish I made the choice to fish the Toccoa River again since I had caught one fish and hooked three more there the last time. I wasn’t able to grab a photo of that slippery 9 inch bow, that one jumped right out of my hands the second I unhooked him. Note To Self- photo all fish before unhooking them, especially when your doing so from in the water.

check out my previous post here from- 07-11-2010

The sun was just rising as I pulled into the gravel lot sitting under Blue Ridge Lake. The fog was just as thick as it was when I was here the last time. I’m not sure if there’s always fog on the Toccoa or not? I will say its welcome any time I’m ever there. Even when the sun is up and the day begins to really heat up, your glad when the breeze pushes a gust of 70 degree fog over you. The cold air smells clean, feels moist and your instantly cooled.

sunrise on the toccoa river

I chose to work the same deep slack water pool where I had seen trout rising before. After a couple fish broke the water on the surface I felt a little bit more confident in my decision to return here. That feeling quickly disappeared after I had used up 75% of my fishing time, gone through a half dozen flies, and tried working the pool from 10 different angles. Then it happened, it’s the worst feeling a weekend warrior could ever have. The phone rang, I looked at the screen and it’s the wife calling wondering when I’m gonna be back. We settled on 90 minutes from then, which gave me 30 more minutes to catch a fish and 60 to get back to the lake house. Game on…

I changed my presentation one last time, I tied on an elk hair dry fly with a size 22 copper john dropper. Eight drifts from that it happened, and my dry fly got pulled under the surface. I set the hook and the fight was on. I hand lined in my second Georgia trout, this one was a small brown. Quick photo on the bank and my mission was accomplished with just minutes to spare.

a georgia brown trout

I’m happy to say I explored many truly awesome areas in the Chattahoochee National Forest, and I would recommend to anyone to give these trout a shot if your ever in the area. Even though these seem to be smaller then the average fish I find in Wisconsin, the scenery here more then makes up for it. I’m sure if I had just a little more time here I would have been able to really catch some fish, but that’s not the case. Time to pack.

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dock fishing (dawsonville, ga)

The vacation continues… When I wasn’t out chasing trout in the mountains we were able to do a lot of fun things as a family. We still found some time to do some fishing right off the dock in the back of the house. We caught some carp, catfish, bluegill, crappie, and bass. Of the few times we fished from the dock, the most fun was when me, my wife, and her sister fished late at night. I actually didn’t fish at all that night, I was content to rebait my wife’s and sister’s fishing poles with tiny chunks of canadian night crawlers. It was enjoyable to watch her catch a couple fish and have a good time just talking with her sister. She did hook a giant catfish on the kids fishing pole that was strung with 4 pound test that quickly wrapped her up in the brush in front of the dock. I knew she was hung up when the fish stopped pulling and the line was still so tight that the rod was doubled over. I made the mistake of trying to hand line the fish free from the snag when the line snapped. I don’t think that she will ever let me live down the monster fish I lost for her. Heres just a couple photos...

luke with a catfish

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fly fishing trout (blue ridge, ga)

Second day of my vacation started as early as early could start. I had taken a nap the night before to sleep off the drive from the previous day as well as the fishing from that morning. I woke up at midnight from my nap at and caught the remaining people who were still up cocktailing. I ate my dinner that was in the fridge and hung out and had a couple drinks with my wife, her brother, and his girlfriend. By the time I turned on the computer and did some research on some local fishing spots it was 2:30am. Why the heck wouldn’t I just stay up and go fishing? Killed an hour and by 3:30am I was packed and on the road to Blue Ridge, Ga.

The destination was the Toccoa River. This river has trout above and below Blue Ridge Lake, today I was fishing the tailraces below the dam. Got there early enough to have a solitary breakfast at the Waffle King, gear up in their parking lot, and still had some time before the sun came up. I was on the water before the sun hit horizon and the fog had a chance to melt away. A call to local water management department informed me there would be 0 generators at the dam running till 2:00pm and 1 generator from 2:00pm and later. This is something you need to pay special attention to because there is no sirens to warn you of the on coming surge of water. The reports aren’t gospel either so they recommend you pick a marker in the water to see if the water levels are rising. Growing up fishing the White River while visiting family in Arkansas I remember vividly that those sirens ended my fishing trips with my uncle.

foggy morning on the toccoa river

Started fishing the park closest to the dam. The water was at least 15 degrees colder then the Chattahoochee and actually had to take breaks to warm my legs up even though the temperature made it well into the 90’s. Wasted lots of time that morning fishing the shallow runs and riffles. 3 hours and no strikes, didn’t see one other person catch a fish in that time either. Made my way down river and found some trout rising in the deep slack water. Actually, I had one fish strike my indicator so made the decision to switch to a dry fly with a nymph dropper. From that point forward I went 0/3 on strikes only to look at my fly and notice a completely bent point… crap. Switched my fly out and the next strike I landed my first Georgia trout only to have it jump from my hands as I reached for my camera… double crap. Oh well, at least I saw it. It was my trophy 10 inch hatchery rainbow, I hope it isn’t my last .

an angler fishing in the fog

On the way back I made the mistake of taking hwy 60 back and quickly found that it a 30mph drive through the heart of the mountains in the national forest. Lots of groups of motorcycles, porches, and corvettes racing around every corner. Scenic but unbelievably slow, don’t attempt this drive without wanting sharp curves going downhill.

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fly fishing trout (helen, ga)

This was the first day of our family vacation in Atlanta, Ga. We made the 12 hour drive from Chicago through the night, the day before. This was for the benefit of both my kids and my wife and I. By the time the kids woke up we were already in Nashville. We were staying at a beautiful lake house located in Dawsonville on the shores of the giant Lake Lanier. The next morning, I woke up early in the morning and decided to venture out to explore the streams and rives in the Chattahoochee national forest.

My first destination was the Chattahoochee River, which is the river that feeds Lake Lanier. There are 2 different sides of the river, one above the lake that starts as a mountain stream that flows in to the lake, and one below the lake that is a tailrace fishery. I chose to start my expedition above the lake in the small mountain tourist town of Helen, Ga. This is a quaint Bavarian influenced city where the famed river flows through the heart of its downtown.

the chattahoochee river in helen

The scenery was magical but the fishing stunk. Furthermore, the best stretch of this river was private. Not that you couldn’t fish it, but if you wanted to you would have to pay a hefty sum of money for a “guided” trip through a local outfitter. This “protected” stretch of river is located just below the Nora Mill and contains some trophy trout by anyone’s standards. The problem is, these are fish that are raised on a steady diet of trout chow that you can purchase from the vending machines located on the walkway above the water. You can look down from the walkway and see hundreds of trout sitting in the pool below the spillway waiting for the next “hatch” of trout chow. In my opinion this is equal to fishing a kiddies’ pool stuffed to the brim with giant trout.

nora mill

The water I did fish looked like it held promise but no strikes. Then 10:00am rolled around and the recreation tube traffic started and hordes of people on inner tubes started to float their way down the river. Time to get out of here, so I did what any good father would do….. I went back to the house and grabbed the family and came back and rented some tubes. Yes, I joined the ranks of many others that have “tubed the hooch.”

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fly fishing bass (grundy county, il)

My morning started with the aspirations of trout fishing in SW Wisconsin, but an incoming storm changed everything. This seemed to be a decent front pushing in from the west, local weather predicted rain for 6 hours. It was 4:30am and I was already awake with half a Red Bull already downed, what do I do now? I did what any hard core weekend warrior would do, I packed the rain gear and decided to drive 2 hours in the opposite direction. I hoped the shift in location would take me out of the direct path of the storm and buy me a couple more “dry” hours of fishing time. After 20 minutes of swapping gear is was heading south searching for some river smallmouth.

a grundy county creek

I made great time and was at my destination quickly. I was running my normal recon routine, following the river downstream by car, looking for some promising stretches of water. The river was running high and murky, but the further south I went the water looked more and more promising. I was following the stream down a farm road, when it happened. Rather nothing happened, my car just died. One second I was driving and the next the car completely shut off as it was moving down the road. I came to a stop and gave it a few minutes and tried to turn the engine over again and again and again, nothing. So there I was, stuck on a gravel farm road 2 hours from home with the storm front I was trying to dodge starting to roll in on top of me.

same creek just upriver from last phot

Needless to say, the day from that point forward was filled with tons of waiting. Waiting out the storm, waiting for a tow, and waiting for my unhappy but willing wife to drive 2 hours with my 3 kids to pick me up. I did spend the middle of the day getting acquainted with a small town by foot, my car is currently still there getting fixed. Maybe I’ll get my redemption next weekend. I know one thing, I’m going back sometime soon.

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carp fishing (fox chain of lakes, il)

Fathers day was awesome. It had been awhile since I was able to take Lucas (my youngest son) out fishing with me. Last week I was out in Las Vegas for a national sales meeting with my company and had no time to fish. The 5 weeks prior to that I was making a long drive out to the driftless area of Wisconsin, and didn’t want to have my son deal with 5 hours of driving. Needless to say, he was itching to get out and fathers day was the perfect day to be together.

luke's carp, i just help with holding it

We met Neal and his girlfriends father (Dan) around 7:00am. Neal’s friend Eric and his brother made it out a little later. We were all set for a solid day of carp fishing and a home cooked breakfast on the shore from chef Neal. The weather conditions changed just about every 5 minutes. We experienced everything from wind, drizzle, and blue bird skies.

a fox lake carp

The fishing wasn’t anything out of this world. We were scratching a fish every now and again, but we sure were waiting a long time in-between bites. To keep busy, my son combed the beach for shells and bugs and filled the rest of his time with throwing rocks and sticks in the water. Its really amazing how my son can entertain himself for a long period of time as long as he is in the outdoors. We were out fishing for 6 hours and didn’t hear one complaint or have to discipline my son once.

dan's slob carp

The highlights for me was watching my son catch 5 fish all on his own, other then the help I gave him holding onto his belt loop to keep him on shore. Also, watching Dan hook into a slob and running through a third of his spool on the initial run was awesome. All together we caught 8 carp, 1 small cat, and 3 drum. The fishing was marginal at best, but the company was outstanding.. What a great fathers day!

me with another carp (neal's brother luke in background)

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bass fishing (lake coutny forest preserve, il)

Neal and I headed out for a quick trip to Independence Grove in hopes dropshotting up some decent bass. The weather was overcast early in the morning and we were fighting off an ugly storm moving in from the west. This would be my only fishing trip for the next week due to an upcoming sales meeting with my company in Las Vegas, so I really wanted to bend a rod on some fish. Being early June, I really was surprised at the amount of weed growth that was already taking control of the lake. The weeds were thicker now then they were at the end of last year! We settled on fishing plastics around the deep weed edges in the early morning and switching to some of the deep timber later.

The morning was just awesome for Neal, and he was quickly catching fish after fish. They were just hammering the Berkley hand poured 4 inch worms he was dropshotting. I finally started to catch up by the time we left and I think we caught a total of 14 fish. Here’s the nicest fish landed.

a healthy lake county, il bass

The one that got away….. I’m not going to make up some astronomical number on its size or weight. Typically when people do that to me, I tend not to trust what they are saying. I will tell you this, it was the biggest bass I had ever seen. Mid morning fishing timber with a cotton candy zoom finesse worm on a dropshot I hooked this sea-donkey. I wasn’t working the bait aggressive, I was locating the timber and just shaking the dropshot stationary. I felt a solid tug and set the hook on this slob. I knew from the second it was hooked that this fish had some shoulders. I played it slow only to have the fish spit the hook when it jumped. I felt like I gave it plenty of slack when it came up to jump but it wasn’t meant to be. Just another fish story I guess…..?

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fly fishing trout (dane county, wi)

a crystal clear dane county stream

Summer is in full swing here. The weeds are tall and the bugs are thick. The creek was flowing a steady pace and the water temps have risen some but the trout are still active. I’ve put my time into getting to know the lay of the land here but am starting to realize that summer isn’t always a fly-fisherman’s friend. The recent rain and constant sun have turned the landscape into a jungle of weeds filled with bugs and all sorts of other nasties. Lets just say that navigating my way to some of my new found spots was going to be downright impossible.

I was forced to fish closer to the easements where there was easier access and more trampled paths through the grass. I believe that the fish closest to the easements have seen a lot more flies, lures, and hooks. These are smarter class of fish (or they have been hooked before). They are quicker to turn there noses up at an inadequately presented flies and are wary of shadows. They also don’t take kindly to loud noises or people splashing through their pools. Despite all that, I was still able to catch some fish but its not the same finding those “uneducated” ones.

a small brown trout

another small brown trout

Caught a handful of browns and one rainbow again. One rainbow seems to be a consistant number for me lately. Fish were caught from the inside turns and the slack sections of the pools. Also sighted a trophy size brown (estimated 20 inches) rolling in a deep pool but wasn’t able to hook up.

wow! a rainbow trout

a colorful brown trout

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fly fishing trout (rock county, wi)

In my pursuit of trout on the fly I’m finding myself diving head first into the unexplored (at least to me) area of western Wisconsin . Every location and every stream has a certain charm and personality unique to only itself. This Rock county creek is no different.

cool looking rock county creek

The scenery here was wonderful and the water was skinny, fast, and cold. There must have been some deeper water here but I never did find it. I wasn’t able to devote quite as much time to hiking and exploring as I would have liked. Rubber waders and a hot day will kick as tired guys ass. The banks were starting to become overgrown and the flowers were starting to bloom. This place in general seemed to be a little more unaltered. Not sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. I wouldn’t have minded a little more bank improvements and some extra fish holding structures. On the other hand, the untouched look has some merit too.

streamside

In the first 15 minutes of casting I was able to wrangle a slob brown which really set my expectations high. It was a healthy fish that really put all my skills to the test. The worst part of the battle was the actual landing of the fish. I was forced to jump from a 3 foot weedy bank into the pool I was fishing just to reach the fish. I tried to net him 3 times and just couldn’t reach him as he was thrashing wildly on the surface. I’m sure I spooked every fish for a quarter mile but I was just playing the hand I was dealt. Either way, I got a picture and released the fish!!

a good brown

With all that excitement when I first arrived, the rest of the day turned out to be a real disappointment. I spent the rest of the time sweating while walking from shallow pool to shallow pool. The sun was beating down on me with absolutely zero protection from the sun. I was able to snipe 2 more small browns from some of the creek bends but I felt much of the water here was way to thin to hold fish. Again, maybe I just didn’t make it far enough in to the wilderness but I do see why they have to stock this creek. As a side note, I caught more ticks then I did trout today…

a small brown trout to end the day

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fly fishing trout (dane county, wi)

This was the second and final trip on my vacation and I was going to make the best of the time I had. I had already done the recon and found some great stretches of water I knew held fish just four days ago. The problem I faced was a major storm front had pushed through the area since the last time I was here. It had rained heavy in the area just 24 hours prior to me arriving. It was just enough to muddy the water and raise the height of the stream by almost a foot. To make matters worse, the wind was blowing strong today and some of those spots I had fished were really exposed to the wind….

a bridge over the creek

My two hour one way drive flew by with day dreams of spotted trout. I finally arrived and started my morning with a decent hike. This was the spot where I had done the best on my previous trip. Upon arrival I began to notice just how different the conditions really were. The stained water and the gale force winds quickly sent me packing. This was after a series of frustrating tangles and botched drifts over the deep muddy pool. This spot was unfishable and I decided to make my way upstream in search of some clear water and some shelter from the wind.

a nice pool

Two access points up river the water was much cleaner. I quickly claimed a nice turn adjacent to the road and started to fish the tail out where it dropped into a deeper pool. About a dozen drifts later and I was setting the hook on a substantial brown. I played the fish up and down though the current before putting the net to her. This happened to be the nicest of all the fish caught and I quickly snapped a photo and released her. I continued to work the bend and was able to pick off a few more dink trout. The longer I stayed, the more infrequent the bites became. I made my way by foot upriver passing almost a half mile of slack skinny water. Time to move on…..

my best brown this year!!

A short drive and a nice hike through a more heavily wooded area brought me to the last spot I fished today. As soon as I saw it I knew it held promise. This turn was so sharp and deep, there had to be fish there. I crept into position wading out to the point and started to cast upstream. I was casting into the shallow riffles upstream and letting the fly swing all the way around the deeper bend in a “u” shape. On my second cast the indicator disappeared and I set the hook. Fish on!! This time I managed a small rainbow!!!

the rare rainbow trout here

another brown

Cast after cast I hooked up with fish after fish. Some were landed and some were lost. I broke off on a fish that must have had the shoulders of a linebacker. Gotta remember to check my line. I must have caught almost 10 fish from this last pool. Overall the day was a huge success, I made the adjustments based upon the conditions that unfolded. I was now ready to go back to work…..

a small brown

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fly fishing trout (dane county, wi)

This was the first day of vacation for me so I was out fishing while everyone I knew was hard at work. Since I had some extra time I decided to drive out a little further then I normally would. It was a 2 hours ride, but I told myself it would all be worth it if I could just catch some trout. I’ve had that itch to do some fly-fishing since the last time we were fishing the spring steelie run. A month without a fly rod in a guys hand will do funny things to him.

looks nice doesn't it?

I rolled into the city around 8:00am. I took the next 30 minutes to drive all the way up and down the highway checking out the easements and access points. Access is easy here, with all types of water available. The stream starts as a slow trickle and really widens as you get further downstream. The rolling hills and bright green trees made a perfect backdrop for some great trout fishing.

By 8:30am I was out walking the banks. I worked the first series of pools I came to for a good hour before giving up on it. I continued upriver and took a look around. Didn’t find a lot of water that I would call great but did find the entrance to one of the feeder creeks…. Maybe for another day. Got back in the car and drove to the next easement.

a deep pool

My second stop was just one road up river. From the second I pulled in I just knew that this was some better water. The runs and pools were just a little deeper. I made my way downstream. When I would come to a good looking pool I would walk clear around it out away from the stream. This was so I didn’t spook any fish and it allowed me to fish in front of me. The second pool I stopped was a nice fast run bottoming out in a deep pool that had a couple large boulders in it. Looked perfect. My second drift that made it perfectly in between those boulders was rewarded with a strike. One minute later I was netting a beautiful rainbow. Worked this pool for another 35 minutes and moved on.

a small rainbow trout

decent brown trout

The next pool I stopped and fished turned out to be the best spot of the day (go figure, it was the farthest walk from the road). It was the end of the line, right before the border of private land. It was the deepest pool I had seen yet, and I swear it would have been a foot over my head if I were standing in the water. Fast water was just rushing into the head of the pool. I spent close to two hours fishing here, getting to know every drop, turn, crease, and bend. I went 8/12 on hook ups. The only reason I lost those other four was from trying to fight the fish by hand instead of getting the line back on the reel.

one of the better brown trout

The only reason I left this pool was because I was running out of time. I wanted to see some more of the creek but family calls. Up the road I went to my last stop of the day. I had just enough time to pick off a few more trout.. and that’s what I did. In total I caught 11 fish, and released all 11. It was time to go and I had to get back on the road for another 2 hour drive. I spent as much time driving as I did fishing today. Was it worth it…..?

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fly fishing trout (walworth county, wi)

I arrived at 8:00am on a bright and beautiful spring day. I made the trip for the sole purpose of doing some recon and hopefully catching some fish. The access from the highway was painless getting down to the stream. Once you make it down to the stream there is a nice pool right under the highway easement.

the first pool under the highway access point

I spent 20 minutes just messing around in that first pool with no bites. I decided it was time to explore what this creek had to offer. I started to walk/fish my way down the entire length of the creek. The spring fed creek had crystal clear water. I made way along the bank passing some ultra skinny water stopping to fish some of the deeper bends. No bites

The upper section appeared to have less fish holding structure and the few fish I did sight were pressed deep into the undercut banks. As I made my way downstream I came across many obstacles. Hazards are everywhere. I climbed a mountain of brush, passed through tall thick reeds, and got a wadding boot stuck in the marshy muck that took a couple minutes to free. Forget about wading here because the muck bottom (found in most areas) will swallow you whole. This was hard work!

Once reaching the lower section the obstacles seemed to thin out. The last stretches of seemed to hold the most fish attracting structures. There were man made runs, fish bunkers, and strategically place logs all over the place. I really worked those areas hard and managed to catch a handful of creek chubs for the entire day.

I did spot some trout throughout the day. They were extremely skittish and need to be approached with stealth. I would suggest bringing a fishing buddy if you ever plan to visit here. There were many times throughout my solo fishing trip that I really could have used the assistance of a wing man. Be careful….

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carp fishing (fox chain of lakes, il)

Today I was meeting up with Neal and Randall for some bank fishing on the fox chain. We were planning on targeting some big carp, cats, and whatever else we could drum up. I pulled into the lot first and had enough time to set up 2 rods before Neal came rolling in. We fished together for almost 30 minutes before I caught the first fish which happed to be a decent crappie. He inhaled a jig and minnow combo on a rod that was sitting on the dock while I was rebaiting a different rod. After about 15 more minutes we decided to move to a different spot where we could really pepper the shoreline with some extra rods.

1st fish of the day is a crappie

fog + wind + rain = fishing in full rain gear

We pulled into the second spot and started to unpack the gear. Randall made it just about that time. Neal and I fished a simple bottom rig made up of an egg sinker behind an oversized swivel and a small live bait hook. We tossed those out and put the rod in a rod holder with a tight line and loose drag. We alternated our baits from minnows to leaches to corn and bread balls. Randall opted for a leach on a jig head and a second rod with a minnow and slip bobber.

Randall didn’t stay too long but was there long enough to catch a healthy young muskie. He caught him on the jig and leach combo right from under a dock he was casting to.

randall with a bonus musky

Neal was the cat fishing king for the day and must have gotten about a half dozen cats. He also lost a nice carp right up on the bank.

the catfish king

I ended up with one crappie three carp and a cat.

fox chain of lakes carp

mirror carp

carp fest

The weather conditions weren’t good. We ended up in our waders and rain coats very early and fished through the scattered showers all day. Despite the rain, we still found a way to catch fish, grill some sausages and brats, and have a great time chilling with some friends. All the fish were released.

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