First Fish on the Dry 2010 and Updates

It has been a bit since I have posted much on the blog, but that will be changing soon. I leave Wednesday morning for a few days Steelheading and I am sure that there will be plenty to write about when I get back. I will also be looking to do some updates to the website in the near future as well. Now onto the fishing report...

The other day I headed out to my local "super secret" Cutthroat pond with my friend and coworker Justin. Upon arriving there were plenty of midges coming off and a few Chum Salmon fry swimming in the shallows. I decided to go with a Callibaetis dry fly and Chironomid dropper and Justin started out with a little baitfish imitation. This was only my second outing with my new 6' 1wt Scott Fibertouch rod and I was quite curious to see how it handled the dry dropper step-up. The rod handled the setup quite well and  I picked up a few fish on the dropper and Justin had a few grabs with the fry imitations. After a bit the wind kicked up and the fish started actively rising on the far side of the pond. This prompted me to make my way over and on the first cast was rewarded with a beautiful native Coastal Cutthroat and my first fish on a dry for 2010!

Dry fly caught Coastal Cutthroat!

Book Review: An Entirely Synthetic Fish by Anders Halverson

When going through the different species of trout on my Trout and Salmon Species Page, one common thread are the problems Cutthroat and Redband Trout face from competition and hybridization with non-native Rainbow Trout. While Rainbows are native to the west coast of North America and northeastern Asia, they have miraculously managed to find their way into streams on every continent (expect Antarctica of course!). The question is what made people fall in love with the Rainbow Trout, while other trout species got swept under the rug?

I recently had the pleasure of reading Andres Halverson's book An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How the Rainbow Trout Beguiled North America and Overran the World. This book dives in the history of the Rainbow Trout's spread and the mindset of the fisheries managers that deemed it in the public's best interest to spread this trout as far and wide as possible despite the negative implications on native populations of salmonids. The book comes full circle, starting by showing mind set that set the stage for the spread of this trout. During which time the Rainbow Trout came into favor as environmental degradation led to diminished native populations and the hardy Rainbow Trout was pumped into as many waters as possible in an effort to "improve on nature." However, as the environmental movement began these management practices started shift first to prioritizing wild trout management and then native trout. I would strongly recommend this book to any fisherman!

For more information check out:

http://andershalverson.com/home