OK GUYS, I need all of your advice......

[iso18 0]

So day b4 yesterday, I hooked and broke off the biggest trout I have ever saw in my life. Fish for that matter. I caught a 13lb carp once and this trout would not look small next to it. I fought him for about 5 minutes and had him within 2 feet twice, b4 he finally snapped my 4x tippet.

Here's my ? He is in a secluded stream, that doesn't get allot of pressure. The stream is small and where he lives it's pretty small also. Point is, I think he'll still be there in a few days,weeks,etc...

This is a fish of a lifetime and I don't wanna screw it up next time. Day b4 yesterday he hit a #2 wooly bugger with barbell eyes..I'm pretty sure the fly is still in his mouth.

What would ya'll say is the best approach to get this gigantian Brown to bite again?

All info is appreciated!

sincerely,

shane stover

http://www.elkriverflyfish.com/

[blakejd 0]

So day b4 yesterday, I hooked and broke off the biggest trout I have ever saw in my life. Fish for that matter. I caught a 13lb carp once and this trout would not look small next to it. I fought him for about 5 minutes and had him within 2 feet twice, b4 he finally snapped my 4x tippet.

Here's my ? He is in a secluded stream, that doesn't get allot of pressure. The stream is small and where he lives it's pretty small also. Point is, I think he'll still be there in a few days,weeks,etc...

This is a fish of a lifetime and I don't wanna screw it up next time. Day b4 yesterday he hit a #2 wooly bugger with barbell eyes..I'm pretty sure the fly is still in his mouth.

What would ya'll say is the best approach to get this gigantian Brown to bite again?

All info is appreciated!

sincerely,

shane stover

http://www.elkriverflyfish.com/

That is a question. If it is as big as you say it'll defiantly be a the trout of at least the next half a life time. Assuming you feel that the fish is sitting in roughly the say 50-100 ft of water if you can sight fish it I'd take my time and either work streamers past it or dredge nymphs. When i go for big fish i tend to fish multiple flies with an anchor fly that will sink fast but will still not hit the bottom. The next one or two flies are unweighted nymphs and then I'm not shamed to say i use a tail fly as a trout bead with a very light split shot that will keep the rig taught as it bumps along. I've also had great success twitching smallish streamers (size 10) for big fish if you know or suspect where they are at.

[JSzymczyk 0]

use the heaviest rod you have the strongest tippet possible. Don't mess around with small flies if you are SPECIFICALLY targeting a big fish. Be extremely careful with your approach. Get in position 15 or 20 minutes before you start fishing to let everything settle down and go back to "natural" conditions. Fish extremely early in the morning, very late in the day, or at night.

[primitivepete 0]

Good luck! it's always fun to find that big one. The big ones usually stay put till you get significant changes in water level or something that will make them leave their lie. It's not like anything else is gonna run them out.

 

I would not underestimate the little bugs first...those big guys still do eat lots of them, especially if they're floating by their nose all day and they don't have to work very hard. The biggest trout I ever caught was on a size 18 phesant tail nymph. I'd bounce a few things like that off him and see what sticks first. Natural looking stuff, no flashy things that may make it suspicious. Soft hackle caddis is a good choice, swung and then dead drifted.

 

If that doesn't work, bring out the big guns: sculpins, crayfish, baby trout patterns. Wouldn't even worry about dry flies unless you see it rise. If nothing works, throw a hopper that looks to be a reasonable size but not huge...if he wants it he'll take it the first time.

 

If you do hook it, let him run longer than you think you need to but keep pressure on him. If you can, get him into shallower slower water so you don't have to fight him in the current. I don't know how many people do this cause I don't fish with many other people, but my friend taught me to fight the big ones on the reel instead of trying to strip the line by hand. Haven't broken a fish off since started doing that unless it was my fault (bad knot, damaged tippet, etc.)

 

Let us know what happens.

[iso18 0]

I'm sorry guys I should have been more specific about where this trout lives! He doesn't live in a river ,or a creek. He lives in an old abandoned(maybe 10 foot wide) coal washing runway. Extremely tight and really no water for him to run through.

So when I was fighting him the other day. He came three quarters the way out of the water(Going through 3 and 4 inches of water) and climbing up small waterfalls like a salmon. There are trees tight up against the bank and that is how I lost him.

I had finally got 2 about 2 feet from him and he was just in the water looking straight up stream. Even though i was so close(I knew he wasn't ready). He was in that little bit of water because he wanted to be there. And when I started looking @ my net(Which is 23 inches long) and trying to figure out how I was gonna fit him in the net. He must have spooked, cause he turned and headed straight back towards the lie I hooked him in. When he took of , I spun around so I could point my Rod @ him and let the reel and rod take the pressure of the run. Only problem(When i turned my Rod hit a tree limb and the line musta snagged the limb for this is when he snapped me off!

I agree about the little flies( I guide on WV's legendary Elk River) and 90% of the time I'm using #26 -32's flies. I hookk allot of big fish on these flies(rarely land them over 20 inches) but hook atleast 2 or 3 biguns every trip.

This watershed is totally different than where I guide . The fish in here will hit just about anything. I caught 63 the other day on my Golden retrievers fur wrapped around a #12 hook. A member of this site tied those up 4 me for giving him the fur. They sat in my box for around 2 years until the other day and boy did they ever work.

I guess the real ? is What are the best tactics on very small streams for Big browns.

Like I said,I'm usually fishing real technical stuff. But, that doesn't apply to this stream.

I'm not gonna be using any tippet smaller than 3x there anymore. My true ? is what are some of the best flies for larger trout in small secluded(low pressure) streams. Ans where I hooked him should i just give him a couple a days or should i wait longer.

sincerely,

shane stover

http://www.elkriverflyfish.com/

[riffleriversteelheadslayer 0]

give him 3 or 4 days and go right back with the same fly he hammered before if it fooled him once it will again

[violinjock 0]

iso18,

It really depends on what else is in the stream as far as food. I don't suspect you'll have to to get overly elaborate, but here are some ideas that work very well for me: 1) clousers tied with bead chain eyes and lava lace instead of bucktail, 2) sculpin patterns with grizzly marabou made to ride hook up, 3) wire shank articulated flies - I make my own shanks out of 105 pound American Fishing Wire single strand that I use for rigging dead bait for sailfish. Make sure the eyes are on perpendicular planes and if you want the hook to ride up (not a bad idea in tight places) bend the front eye up. A leech imitation can work very well. May I also suggest that the next time you hook the beast, tarpon roll the fish three to four times in a row to end the fight early and slam her into the net before she figures out which direction is up, as this has worked very well for me. I've had big fish in similar situations...I side pressure the fish immediately and occasionally also point the rod tip straight down if the fish tries to run too far to change the angle. This will confuse the fish and they will either stop their run or change their game plan. If you do it right, you can literally stand in one spot and end most fights with fish between 20 and 30 inches in less than 2 minutes. In case you're wondering, I only use a 9 foot 2 weight for trout and by using these salt water techniques I have yet to have a fish less than 28 inches take more than 117 seconds. I hope this helps!

[iso18 0]

Well guys, I went back to where I hooked that monster the other day and he was nowhere to be found. So I just kept fishing and saw a few other bugguns and finaaly hooked and landed a 19 and a 1/4 inch hook jawed brown. I'll take it. When i get home I'll post a pic. Or you can go to wvangler.com and see him in the (fishing reports and stories) section. Titled- Butter-Meat Flies...My name is the same on that site...thanx for all ure input. I finally got him to take a zoo cougar type(style) fly. Muddler head with a little marabou and black bunny strip for the tail.

shane

http://www.elkriverflyfish.com/

[iso18 0]

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu266/isoemerger18/031-7.jpg

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu266/isoemerger18/025-4.jpg

Their he is guys. Not the 1 I was after but he'll do!

shane

[violinjock 0]

Iso,

If not this year, then perhaps next year, I'm convinced you're gonna get him. Best wishes!

[riffleriversteelheadslayer 0]

nice fish Shane but don't fret it sounds to me like you found yourself a honey hole

[iso18 0]

nice fish Shane but don't fret it sounds to me like you found yourself a honey hole

U said it. Low pressure,literally thousands of small bows(everywhere for miles) and always a few browns.And out of 4 times fishing this area, I have saw over 10 fish in the 20 inch class and hooked 2 of them and landed the one.

shane

[primitivepete 0]

nice fish Shane but don't fret it sounds to me like you found yourself a honey hole

U said it. Low pressure,literally thousands of small bows(everywhere for miles) and always a few browns.And out of 4 times fishing this area, I have saw over 10 fish in the 20 inch class and hooked 2 of them and landed the one.

shane

 

 

Congrats! Sounds like a great spot. I never did catch the big one I kept after a few years ago, but man I've pulled some good ones outta that same lie year after year. Nice to know a place or two like that.

[poksal 0]

I'm putting a special good luck charm in the mail for you to keep in your pocket. It will help you find bigger fish there. You will need to send it back to me in 4 weeks to share with another lucky fly fisherman. Don't worry it isn't a GPS recorder.