[TroutFishingBear]

Fished the white river today because I had always wanted to try it. I was disappointed with finding very little public access at first, and also disappointed that the local tackle store didn't know where a certain SWA was. After trial and error, we found a place to fish at about 9:30 AM. We got down there and found the river to be high and very fast, yet shallow, but very clear. I threw a curly tail for 10 minutes with not a strike. So I put on ole mister wiggly (nightcrawler) and first cast when I was drifting it...BOOM nice bow. ~15" and healthy. Very colorful. He had a very fat leech on his jaw which I pulled off. Hooked in the lip and I let him go. We fished around this area for 15 more minutes and I caught 1 more 13" bow that was fat and my dad caught a 12" bow and 17" bow. We also headed upstream a bit and found a few more decent pockets. I hooked a nice bow maybe 17" or so and he jumped and got away. We went to the other side because it looked like there was a bit more slack water over there, especially where some logs were which would be THE SPOT later. Went over to where the logs were and was disappointed to snag up 5 times, 3 nightcrawler rigs and 2 curly tails, without a strike. My dad hooked a small bow and lost it. I cast out on my 6th rig, quite annoyed by this time, but was pleased to have a nice hit. I set the hook and after a nice battle caught and released a bow about 17". After yet another snag I went up the head of the little slack water and cast out. I brought it up over some shallow water and it dropped in the slack. I had a slight bump. I set the hook and had something HEAVY on. I could barely move the thing. I reeled it in a few feet and saw a monster rainbow. After seeing me, he got scared and really started to fight! My drag was screaming and I jumped in the flowing water that was almost to my chest to follow him downriver. I followed him about 100 yards downriver and had finally got him fairly close. After a long battle, including snagging me up once but he got himself out, I finally got him in. It was a HUGE rainbow that I estimate at 25" and probably all of 6.5 lbs. I held him up and right before we took a picture he wanted nothing of it. With a powerful surge he went out of my hands and was in the river. Its too bad I didn't get a pic but I don't think I'll ever forget him...what a monster. I was thinking to myself it couldn't get any better than it is now...I would be wrong. I went up to the SAME SPOT, cast out and brought the wiggly into the slack water. I saw a huge, monster of a trout charge it and miss, I then saw him do it again and this time he didn't miss! I set the hook and my drag screamed like that for the first time this year. He jumped and I saw a fish that made my last catch look rather petite: at least 9 pounds and he was a brown! He screamed my drag and I followed him downriver. The last fish was a great fight but nothing in comparison. This fish got me in the current and screamed about 50-60 yards of line in nothing flat. I made my stand near a big boulder and tough current. I couldn't walk down the bank any further because of the trees on the bank,and I couldn't wade in the river because it got too deep and too fast. I decided to try to tire the beast out. After about 10 minutes I had maybe gained 10 yards of line on him if that. He was just too strong and there was no chance in hell I was going to land him, I knew this. 5 minutes later my line must have been as thin as thread and stretched out like no other...he snapped the line. Most anglers would be disappointed, but I can honestly tell you it didn't bother me too much. I had just fought 2 huge fish for 25 minutes and my arms were tired and I was stunned. I couldn't believe this river! I sat there for about 10 minutes, thinking about the last 25 minutes or so. During that time my dad lost a nice fish, easily 4 lbs or so. I barely noticed. He also landed a monster 5" rainbow in the same spot I got the two monsters I went upstream a bit more and landed a nice 2 lb bow. We then went a few hundred yards downstream at another hole that was similar. We caught a bunch of nice bows...nothing over 16" though. After this we each had 9 trout landed and probably each had half a dozen lost. It was about 3 now. I took a nap (tired from fighting the monsters!) and when I got up it was about 4:30. I saw a promising looking run and caught a 2 lb. whitefish out of it on the first cast. A few hours later I met up with my dad again, he with 12 trout now and I with 11 trout and a whitefish. I caught one last trout, a beautiful, but skinny, 16" bow. After this it was about 6:30 and we decided to call it a day. Saw a raft that just pulled out and talked to the two guys. They had caught 40 fish total, mostly on panther martins and worms. They said they caught a few between 5 and 7 lbs as well. We knew a raft was the way to fish this river, it was mostly pocket water with few holes or slack water inbetween. The fish were all over though. This is perhaps the most overlooked stream in colorado

what a day...
BTW fish near the city park in meeker and some downstream and upstream from there. Great fishing. Watch for private property.

 

[Oats]

Where is the White, never heard of it. Is there anything else besides bows and browns?

 

[TroutFishingBear]

Where is the White, never heard of it. Is there anything else besides bows and browns?

I caught a whitefish. No sign of cutts all the rainbows were pure strain. It is around meeker.

 

[Bronco]

TFB how do you fish worms, I'm heading to the N. Platte and floating down from saratoga for 1.5 days. Almost always fish rapalas and tail dancers but maybe worms might be a good idea also.

 

[The Hinge]

Actually, every river, lake or stream more then two hours away from the Denver metro area is overlooked. Wyoming is an overlooked resource for Colorado anglers too.

h

 

[TroutFishingBear]

TFB how do you fish worms, I'm heading to the N. Platte and floating down from saratoga for 1.5 days. Almost always fish rapalas and tail dancers but maybe worms might be a good idea also.

I've posted it on here before, but I'll post again. The only thing you have to watch is to make sure it is legal. You know it doesn't kill the fish since you hook almost all of them in the lip (I gut hooked my first one in my last few trips yesterday, an 12" bow. I cut the line and hopefully he lived. 56% of them live like that. Hasn't happened in a while.) I was fishing near the city park in meeker and a bit downstream of that so it was legal to fish them.

Use a fairly stiff graphite rod for sensitivity, but to have a good backbone for hooksets. IM7 is probably the best rating. You want about a 6 foot rod with medium light action. You need a reel with instant antireverse and one that spools roughly 120 yards or so of 6 lb. test. I have an abu garcia, I forget which one but I'll check on that. Spool on that 6 lb. clear original stren. I used to use 4 lb. but broke off way too many monsters...since I switched to 6 lb. it helps me a bit, but you still have to be very careful. Don't use any heavier line. Your rig is simple, a #6 eagle claw baitholder hook (any larger and you miss to many shortstrikes and you have to use too much crawler, any smaller you gut hook a few more fish.), and you put just enough splitshot about 12" above it so it barely ticks bottom. By water gremlins from sizes 3-5. Cast towards some structure, particularly upstream sometimes, and let the current do its work, keeping only a little slack in the line. It is much like a flyfisherman drifts a nymph. You get most of your hits slightly angled downstream from you or fully downstream.
Now...for spots to fish. Yesterday on the white, which I am assuming the N. Platte is like since it is fairly small, will have mostly pocket water and riffles. Find a deeper run with a bit slower of current, preferably one with rock or tree structure. (If you can find sandbars this is a big plus, rainbows love sandbars.) Drift your worm so it relates to the structure, so it is in the perfect swing when near that strucure, meaning you stand just upstream from it. Should work well. In general browns prefer shallower, faster, more rocky areas, and rainbows prefer slower, more sandy or tree cover areas. You can get good mixing sometimes though.
This is only a simple explanation of it and I could probably explain it more, but I think you'll just have to find out some of it for yourself...it's not too hard to learn and it will definitely be your A presentation.

 

[slayerfish]

Sometimes when the fish are real persnikity,I find that standing directly below the pool or riffle in question and then casting straight up river and fishing it back to you can have devastating results.Sometimes you must increase the weight a bit to get that good bottom feel.My uncle used to school me on pressured streams in the summer back in the day.

 

[Bronco]

Thanks for the tips that what I assumed but wanted to see if you where doing something differnent like pencil weights or slip bobber and jig or hook to float the worms with. Also the N Platte is a big river and fast its not like the White.

 

[slayerfish]

Bait fishing almost any Western river with bait is the same deal.Almost any river in the world in fact.I use the same setup for little brookys in a 3 ft wide creek as I did on the Clearwater river in Idaho for steelhead!Heavier line of course,but same method.

 

[scchase]

Just as a side note since I lived right close to the White River there in town for a few years you can also catch browns and cutthroat out of it in town then further up you will find some brookies. I also have long suspected that there is at least a small population of pike in the river due to bite marks on some of the trout I used to catch and that I know people used to throw pike over the bank at Rio Blanco.
The whitefish are also goodeating as well a cousin ot the species they make imitation crab meat out of so I pretty much assure you that you have already ate some at some point and just didnt know it.and really a shame they dont get more credit for being a good fish. Dont know how many times Ive heard fly fishers say they wish they could rid the river of them and for life of me I cant figure out why, they fight jsut as hard and take flies just the same.
Scott

 

[TroutFishingBear]

whitefish are alright, they are a fish at least that isn't a sucker and is good eating if you get it when it isn't during the spawn. This one (a 2 pounder) fought about like an 8" rainbow...wasn't too strong. That would be cool to catch a pike in that river.

 

[_colorado]

Thanks for the report TFB! I've always wanted to fish the White and you have renewed that interest!

 

[mobyJ]

Did you notice any Doves in the SWA areas. I went there a couple of years ago on a cast and blast trip. We caught fish and shot some doves.

 

[TroutFishingBear]

Did you notice any Doves in the SWA areas. I went there a couple of years ago on a cast and blast trip. We caught fish and shot some doves.

no doves. I saw one fox (I'm on a roll for seeing those lately), and I also saw one deer. That's it for critters.