Trophy Trout Landed In Extreme River Conditions

She pushed forward choosing her spot and visualized her strategy as the water rushed around her legs, trying to get that trophy trout landed in extreme river conditions.

When she chose the top of the pool, it was angry, as if trying to dislodge every rock.

After setting up below her, I started in the middle and worked my way down to the tail, thinking I would have better luck there. There, the water was happy, dancing, then resting, before its rage built and quickened again. I started in the middle and worked my way down.

It was impossible to move back and forth, change flies, and cover 75 percent of the pool. Stacy stayed put and worked the fast water. I found nothing to work with moving back and forth, changing flies, and covering 75 percent of the pool.

Looking up river to see how Stacy is doing…

Here’s a little backstory.

In New York, we often sit in the dark at 4 a.m. on the side of the river to secure our spot for the day when fishing the famous Salmon River. Because we had nine days out there this time, we had the chance to wander and explore as much as we wanted.

We slept in, did laundry at the laundromat, had breakfast, and simply found a place to fish. We hiked for nearly a mile until we saw no other people.

It was fast and shallow, slowing into a long, deep pool, then speeding up and shallowing again. It was perfect. As our steps picked up in excitement, we saw a husband and wife emerge from the woods to the same pool.

It was short lived. We shared the pool for 20 minutes before they moved on.

Stacy chose a black and copper stone fly that day. It was a color combination we hadn’t added to our fly box until the night before.

My heart is racing and my hands are shaking as I look upriver to see how Stacy is doing. I see a Trophy Trout a steelhead trout porpoise through the water, too heavy to cut through the current.

The net takes two people to land a fish of this size, so the pressure is on. The odds of landing it would be greatly reduced if it made its way downriver, so Stacy wanted to keep it in the pool. As I race toward the beast, I wrestle with the net, pulling it from my sling pack as I race toward it.

It wasn’t a huge run, just small, short bursts followed by a short hang in the current. Stacy played it perfectly, keeping the pressure just right. You instinctively want to keep the line tight, but it is better to keep light pressure and let the rod tip bend and flex as it surges and rests.

Several times, the fish came to the net, then moved back to the middle of the pool. The longer you fight it, the more likely the hook will fall out. Every time the fish got close, Stacy would move out of the water.

As a result, her steelie’s runs were short and she was able to keep the trophy trout from surging into the current. She slowly worked the fish to the riverbank then netted it.

It was a fish of a lifetime! The monster tapered out to 32 inches with an equally massive girth. We hooted and hollered in celebration.

Sources: BDN