Ron Olsen
On Tuesday June 8 six of us met at Rattlesnake to explore the concept of vertical/dabbling for trout. We had a fine day with light winds, just a brief rain shower, and lots of fish in the lake. This is something I have been trying out for several years, and while I do see some of the ‘snake regulars really knock them out, I do get my share and attempted to share that knowledge with David, Bob, Bruce, Kevin and Terry.
We met about 8:30 and were on the water and searching for fish. Found them with Garmin Striker 4 CV in 46′ and anchored up. Used a Type 7, measured depth using forceps, and then cast and let line go vertical, so flies just off the bottom. I used my usual initial Rattlesnake searching patterns, a blood worm below a grey boy snow cone, both #14. Let them sit on the bottom, then inched them up very slowly. After about a half hour of nada, someone turned the switch on it was basically nonstop action for two plus hours. Game on! I never really had to switch patterns which is unusual. Keep working those flies up, as some takes were at 10’. Others watched, and followed technique and got into fish with balanced leeches (red, white and black), blobs, and a few other flies. The anchoring and keeping the fly stationary with very slow upward movement was key to takes, which were often VERY subtle, and sometimes rather violent; the tug is the drug…. I would guess I had at least 40 to 50+ takes and managed to set on enough to keep it interesting. Trout ran up to 16″ most 10 to 11″, and one sucker at 17″. Answered questions as they came in and encouraged all to keep at it as it is a learning curve. Sometimes that paint just doesn’t seem to dry….
Some eventually switched to trolling which also produced fish. And one other small highlight, a pair of eagles stole a trout from an osprey, fun to watch the aerial battle.
Tight lines, Ron
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