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Why I love trout

2K views 29 replies 25 participants last post by  Ninja 
#1 ·
There are two reasons I get a little sad when I hear trout being bashed on this website. First, stocker bows are how many of us first got our roots in the sport as kids. I know that I would have given up the pain and misery of fishing long ago if it werent for powerbait and hatchery fish being dumped into local reservoirs. Second and more importantly, now that I am grown up and attempt more challenging angling feats, I realize the incredible value stockers have as a forage base to our very few predatory fisheries. Many of our trophy lake trout, walleyes, bass, and pike reach their sizes due to the MRT diet. After all, how else could our state record 'eye be greater than that of proclaimed walleye capitals Minnesota and Wisconsin?

I arrived back in Colorado Thursday with the plan of fishing the next three nights at one lake looking for a trophy walleye. Tonight was day three and failure seemed inevitable. As I approached close to ten total hours on the water without a sniff, the fish I had been longing for finally bit and I was able to wrestle her to hand.

She went 30 inches and 10.42 pounds. The best part of the interaction?? That had to be the ten inch stocker bow that was puked up and actually had two trebles hooked to, with the final treble hook stuck in the corner of the walleye's mouth.

If only she had kept her dinner down she might have gone 11 pounds and been a PB. My first thought after seeing the trout upchucked was that maybe now I can convince FishDr to do a little swimbaiting with me when I am back in the front range in a week.

Moral of the story: don't let the MRT mentality of CPW get you down. Instead, embrace our unique (and expensive) forage base, and you may just end up with a trophy fish. >:D
 
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#2 ·
Waita stay with it...beautiful oinker...and yes some us very much appreciate the role of the mrt as a forage base...it is the most common color in my tackle arsenal when it comes to stick and swimbaits...
 
#4 ·
Right on CK, awesome!!!! I don't think the MRT's are truly bashed as a species but the bash is for the way they are put on a pedestal by the CPW while the other species are getting a sentance of death! It is what it is and we just have to make good with what we are given! Tight lines!!!
 
#13 ·
Nice fish man! I agree trout are vital to this state in numerous ways although this belief that they're easier to catch than say a bass or pike imho..... couldn't be farther from the truth. Not every slimer will be caught and see big stocked trout get caught every year...... trophy sized fish of whatever species you may be targeting isn't easy and each species brings their own unique challenges. Moreover, A large pike is a heavy fish but when comparing a large trout to it...... that trout often takes a back seat..... what is considered a prized catch is often relative and you'll find many anglers defending whatever species they prefer. The degree of difficulty in chasing any species is really only measured by your experience chasing it. Here in Colorado landing a fish that isn't heavily stocked like a wiper makes it all that more rewarding when you do get one and happy to have the opportunity to do so. Solid report man! Thanks for sharing :)
 
#18 ·
You caught it with the trout so I think you should weigh them together. :thumb::thumb:

Not your fault the eye was belimic.

Wat to stay after'em and sharin.
 
#19 ·
Thanks everyone.

Fordo - Indeed the trout was eaten tail first. I assume the walleye downed my rogue head first though which would be the only way the front two trebles got back there deep enough to hook the decaying slimer.

pikester - I completely understand the real reason lots of people have a stigma against trout, and for the most part I am right there with you guys. I was just trying to throw in a little sarcasm/satire into my report for fun. Not like I actually have a deep respect for trout based on their role as a forage base haha.

I got to wondering last night, anyone have any idea how recent that trout may have been swallowed?? The pic isn't great but almost all of the skin was still on and it seemed like actual digestion was just beginning, with some pink meat starting to show. Just curious. I always thought they probably didn't feed for a few days after eating a huge meal but it just goes to show that sometimes they go into a short feeding frenzy.
 
#20 ·
Well done! I think some folks get upset at me every now and then because they want the "secret" (I have actually had people bluntly ask me what the "secret" is). I keep saying the information is all out there and they just have to put in time. You are one of the people that have figured it out pretty much on their own just by observing and putting in time. Ten hours is a long time to fish without a bite!

P.S.: the fact that trout is food for big predators is not a reason to love them. :D If you had said you liked catching trout, it would be a different story. But cool pic!
 
#27 ·
That's all I could think about as well. So after skunking a couple nights down in southern Colorado, I got back on the front range and took the swimbait rod out armed with an 8 inch Hudd. Wasn't huge, a little over 27" and a little under 8 pounds, but it was awesome to see an 'eye inhale one. Gonna be hard to go back to jerkbaits. My digital camera pooped out on me :( so I had to take pics with my flip phone haha. Sorry for the poor quality.

 
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