Alpine Fishing for dummies?

[dberdinka]

Hey all, I'm packing up for a trip that will take us to some alpine lakes. Supposedly the fishing is great. I considering grabbing some hooks and line and do a little fishing Huck Finn style.

 

What the heck do those suckers bite on? Worms, gummi bears, left over tortellini? If I'm not fly fishing am I wasting my time?

 

Any stories are greatly appreciated?

[icegirl]

if you are not fly fishing you are wasting you time

[Alex]

darin, in my experience a small spin-casting set up with some small spinners works fine! the rod is much more portable and durable than a typical fly rod.

 

fly fishing is cool n all (its what I do), but certainly no guarantee of dinner there.

 

its amazing how easily the fish land when there is no regular fishing pressure.

 

PS: call me up if you want some company on your trip!

[cj001f]

darin, in my experience a small spin-casting set up with some small spinners works fine! the rod is much more portable and durable than a typical fly rod.

There are alot of durable decent quality 5piece flyrods for reasonable money out now. 5pc rod + reel & flybox is a nice BC setup - and you can fish the streams on the way in too!

[Ducknut]

Like cj said you can get backpacking rods for flyfishing and spinning. Spinning is usually easier for lake fishing especially if the shores are forested and the lakes are deep. If you are above treeline or the lakes are shallow enough to wade for casting then flyfishing can be a blast.

 

Only other hint is think about how you are going to cook you catch if you plan to eat it .

[specialed]

Hey all, I'm packing up for a trip that will take us to some alpine lakes. Supposedly the fishing is great. I considering grabbing some hooks and line and do a little fishing Huck Finn style.

 

What the heck do those suckers bite on? Worms, gummi bears, left over tortellini? If I'm not fly fishing am I wasting my time?

 

Any stories are greatly appreciated?

 

Sounds fun. Let us know how it turns out

[dberdinka]

Only other hint is think about how you are going to cook you catch if you plan to eat it .

 

mmmmmhh...We likes to eats the fishies we do!

 

[JayB]

Spinning gear works pretty well on naive fish most of the time, but there are those occaisions when you see tons of feeding activity and can't get a bit on a lure to save your life.

 

For those times - bring a casting bubble (bobber that has one chamber for water and one chamber for air) and a small selection of dry attractor patterns in the size 16-20 range. Supplement with a few beadhead chironomids in the same size range if you've got them.

[Crackbolter]

I thought I might chime in since I am one of those climber-who-packs-his-flyrod types.

 

Check this out: http://www.watrailblazers.org/forum/viewthread.php?tid=62

 

Check their forum for more info on what to use, etc.

 

I pack a flyrod because for the amount of energy it takes to haul it up there versus the amount of energy you gain from eating a fresh trout, it is worth it. It is still a gamble if there is some level of uncertainty about the contents to a particular lake but there are ways around that

[marylou]

But the important thing is it's way fun.

 

Spin or fly, don't forget to get a license, it's a big fine if you get busted without one.

[dukiebird]

There are girls that flyfish!?!? You are the coolest women alive!! It is a sport, that, while cool, is undoubtedly dominated by weiner. Anywho, I digress.

 

Fly rods are lighter, spinning rods are easier to fish for less-than-Lee-Wulff types, but catching a trout on the fly is more fun. Easy too, with those wacky alpine lakes, just throw somthin bushy that floats out there on the water, the trout will destroy it. If you're lookin for food, though, in line spinners (i.e. roostertails) are the best way to catch a lot, and fast. I usually cut off two of the three hooks that are usually on the spinners out of the box, cause you pretty much HAVE to keep anything that bites a treble, horrible wounds. I always release natives (cutthroat), but pretty much if you catch rainbows or brook trout, you're doing the lake's critters a favor by keeping them. Where exactly are you going? I might be able to point you in a good direction. You gotta let us know how you do, I'm always on the lookout for a new alpine lake with good fitchen'.

 

Word up to the Fly Casters, you are all gods amoung men (and women)...

[griz]

Spinning gear works pretty well on naive fish most of the time, but there are those occaisions when you see tons of feeding activity and can't get a bit on a lure to save your life.

 

For those times - bring a casting bubble (bobber that has one chamber for water and one chamber for air) and a small selection of dry attractor patterns in the size 16-20 range. Supplement with a few beadhead chironomids in the same size range if you've got them.

 

Yeah, if you are a true novice at fishing then go with the spin rod, bubble and a fly. I pretty much don't like spin rods but they have their place...though not in my hand. If you have fun with it then try fly fishing. More challenging and thought provoking. I'd recommend a little bigger flies than JayB... like in the 12-14 range. Foam black beetles kind of kick ass nearly always and a general bead head nymph works. Some people carry lots of types of flies backcountry but in reality I use only about 3 patterns for fishing the backcountry in the summer. #14 Black Beettle, a black nymph with a silver beadhead that I custom tie#14, and a tan foam body caddis pattern that is custom as well#14. Caught allot of nice fish between those 3 types over the years, for sure. Use a 4lb tippet to tie your flies onto or Climax makes the best stuff at 3.8lb with a great color to it.

 

I'd check on the regs for the area too. Allot of wilderness areas don't allow any types of bait fishing. Flies and lures only. Bait sucks and anyway.

 

Good luck, dude and post a TR, for sure.

[lummox]

fyi: (tip from the trailerpark) a cup of bleach will make a lot of fish float.

[JayB]

I haven't cast a lure since 1988 but I have seen lesser beings use the casting bubble with some success on the high lakes....

[marylou]

I need someone to show me how to get them off the hook without mauling them and rendering them half-dead by the time I get the little buggers back in the water.

 

Hey Timmay! You know what we need here?

 

The all-new super-fantastic Alpine Fishing Forum!

[griz]

ML,

1. Barbless hooks... just smash the barb with good forceps. That helps a shitload with making it easier to get out the hook and is much easier on the fish too

2. get a good soft mesh net. not the k mart plastic mesh fish killing crap.

3. good sturdy forceps to get the deeper hooks out.

4. wet your hands before touching them if you are doing catch and release. Not doing so destroys a "protective slime" on them and they can die from this later on.

5. once in the net, try to just lightly grab the lower jaw (and not grab /handle the whole body of the fish) to move the head around and keep the mouth open. It's rare where you really need to manhandle a fish to get a hook out. try turning them upside down too. it disorients them and they sometime are more passive.

6. work on the hook and fish in the water as much as possible. the head should be the only thing occasionally out of the water and even then dunk'em back so they can breathe abit if it is taking you awhile.

 

good luck and it does get easier with practice.

[JoshK]

So how would a person who has never fished once in his life figure out what lakes are good, get started, etc? I've always thought it would be more efficient to fish for long stays around high lakes. I have absolutely no idea where to fish, how to fish, what to buy tho. Somebody needs to make an Alpine Fishing for Climbers FAQ.

[Dru]

some indian dude showed me how you can fish using a coke can for a reel, and no rod, back in 1992. we ate a lot of trout, char and salmon that summer. i can't remember what the bait was though. maybe a chunk of bacon fat?

 

i have been on lakes where you didnt even need a rod the fish just jumped right in the boat! i like to club them on the head

[Gary_Yngve]

Yeah, this thread rocks! A few weeks ago we were seeing fish jumping everywhere in Earl Lake. Not that our rosemary hardrolls with garlic brie weren't appetizing enough, but some fresh trout would have totally hit the spot. I have a friend who likes to fish, so I'll have to pick his brain and report back.

[icegirl]

I pack my fly rod in with the tent polls, and the reel, well, it can stash about anywhere... My flys, well, either in a flybox, or in a film canister depending on what I'm fishin'. And occasionally just to be extra geeky, one or two on the shoulder straps of my pack

[marylou]

Griz:

 

Thanks.

 

I'm supposed to be using a net? Jeez, thanks for telling me, I've been desliming them so bad, and a net would help!

[JoshK]

Somebody answer my Q, I wanna try it out.

[griz]

Josh,

 

Looking to fly fish or do that spin rod crap ?

 

Someone could write entire books on your questions so I'll try to narrow it down with that 1st question to you.

 

Also, feel free to drop me a PM after you get settled in CO. Don't mind showing a newbie fly fisherman some good backcountry lakes. I'll be in Idaho/WY doing the floating/fly fishing thing til near the end of August but am good after that.

[terrible_ted]

Fly-fishing is the shit, but it's rarely the most reliable way to catch fish, especially on a lake. I grew up in Astoria, and my old man went to school with Dave Hughes. My old man is a gear-only guy, and Dave is one of those FF "dudes". Dave will readily tell you that my old man will always catch more fish than him. Always. Now admittedly, this is more a deal with coastal salmon fishing, but the example is pretty broadly valid.

 

If you hit a lake right, and uneducated trout are feeding near the surface, then all you need is a little colored piece of string on a hook to get a bite. If it's too bright, if the fish have been educated or there's too much to eat down low, then you have the classic FF dilemnia on your hands. How to get down deep? There are whole books on this.

 

A tiny spinning rod, a few lures and (ugh) a couple of worms are a far more likely path to pan-fried trout.

 

My hand-built, 5-piece 4wt Scott pack rod and a dozen flies is a far more likely path to nirvana.

 

As for getting fish off the hook: Take a paper clip and straighten it out. Jam one end into a cork. Twist a small 1/2" diameter loop into the other end. Pull the fish in close, get your hand wet, and grab him around the back, keeping your fingers out of the gill. If you flip him upside down for a second, they usually go limp. (You can use a net and skip the handling.) Slip the metal loop over the fly line and slide it all the way down to the fishes lip. Unless he's hooked deep in the throat, you should be able to just slip him right off the end of the line. When you get the hang of it, you don't even need to touch the fish, you just pull him in close, slip the loop on the line and pop the guy right off. Milt Fisher (RIP) showed me this quite a few years ago, and now I think someone sells the little doo-hickeys.

 

If he's hooked deep, you're better off just cutting the line off as deep as you can easily get. The hook will rust out and free him to eat in about a week. If he's bleeding (even slightly) from the nose he's going to die.

 

-t

[Braumeister]

Dberdinka, you're getting some good advice here, but I'll "cast" another vote for fly fishing (salmon run with a 5-weight--woo hoo!). If you don't have the time/energy/funds to devote to learning the craft before your trip, just go with cheap spinning gear available at your local K-Mart. My packrod is a Cabela's model that came with both spinning and fly-casting reels; the butt end is reversible for use by each and the sections pack down to something like 12" each.

 

As for "bait" you could try taking along a stick of pre-packaged "string cheese" and cast with a thumbnail-sized chunk--a buddy of mine swears by this but I haven't tried it myself. I've also had good luck with salted minnows for trout on spinning gear but I don't know if this is practical for your situation. Basically, you just fill a small zip-lock with Morton's and dump a bunch of minnows into it (probably a pretty horrible death); the salt makes them shinier-looking to trout who will slam 'em!