Big Fish Question

[Brown71]

As many of you on here know, I spend a great deal of my fishing, especially in the fall/winter chasing very large trout. Usually 3-5 days a week in some regard. I am always looking for new places, while religiously fishing the ones I know produce.

And I also know there is some great anglers on this board, and I have a question about an area that is perplexing me a bit, and am interested to hear some opinions on it. So here goes, long winded post, sorry lol.

One of my go-to places for big trout in fall is a decent, but not exceptional by any means trout stream for most of the year. It is listed as an approved trout water, although Im not sure the upper reaches are stocked. I do almost zero spring stocker fishing. It flows into a marginal(maybe very marginal) bigger stream/river. There is a fairly long(1-1.5 mile posted stretch in the middle reaches of the stream. I don’t know of any stocking/club type fishing in this area. One farm owns a good deal of it. The sections above this are where I fish most.

So, I hit this area after rains in the fall, and I have tended to find a good bit of big what I would call migratory browns in this area. One of the better spots for numbers if biggies I’ve found, but not the best for size. I did get one large male here in 2011, 29 inches 9 pounds, but most I see here are 18 to 22 inches.

But, the numbers are what amazes me, and there seems to be more than ever which is what prompted this post. I fished it today, after those weekend rains. I was amazed at what i saw/caught. I saw 14 large trout(I counted), and I’m sure a few I didn’t see.

No fish actively spawning, but I’ve seen them spawning here before. I landed 2 19 inch, and 1 21 inch, all quality looking browns. Plus a few small guys...

So my question to you all is, where are they coming from? Is it the marginal river it flies into? You guys know I’m a believer in marginal waters. Or are they coming upstream from the posted wasters? Or both? Let me also say these fish are not here in summer, heck they weren’t even here 2 weeks ago I checked it and just caught 2 smallish fish.

Thanks for any opinions, this one has got me thinking lol!

 

[Brown71]

That doesn’t sound right, the way I worded what I saw/caught. I saw 14 larger size trout, I obviously didn’t catch 14. I caught 3, and a few small fish. Sorry about that

 

[salvelinusfontinalis]

Likely migratory.

You could try asking the landowner but that good be a good and bad idea in multiple ways.

Dont overthink it too much. They are there focus on the big river. See what is around and close. Quarries/ Underground seeps? Dams or tons of woody debris?

 

[Brown71]

Yea I’m leaning towards d the river too. I catch some good browns out of a river much worse than this one lol. I believe they are WAY more tolerant than the what they’re given credit for. Thanks for your input!

 

[Tups]

Brown. Is the creek within a limestone region? Are there any cold water tributaries entering the creek in the vicinity of your fall hot spot? Is any portion of the watershed designated Class A?

 

[jifigz]

Browns are definitely much more tolerant of warmer temps than they are given credit for, no doubt. And it is hard to say without further knowledge of your situation where the fish are/come from..you have the best knowledge and guess because you're the one familiar.

 

[Solitariolupo]

You might wanna check out if a club stocks. They where stocked at one point somewhere. I’ve heard of stocked trout getting stocked in a bigger creeks and they run up springs that feed it and get stuck up them. They could be swimming up from larger bodies of water that is the instinct of trout. Was just talking to a guy that fishes stocked creeks but doesn’t fish where they stock he fishes on private property. He said they swim up and since no one fishes for them they get big like around 20in but they live up there. Check into a little more about the creek I’m sure you’ll figure it out.

 

[rrt]

Brown,

I agree with Sal: don't overthink it. Heck, most of us don't catch a lot of trout like that during a season, let alone in a day. I'm sure you'd like to figure it out,; but if you don't, just be glad you have a spot like this.

 

[Brown71]

Thank you all for your input. And I won’t let it rot me lol. It’s just interesting the numbers there.

Most places I catch my really big fish, are actually low number type places.

And to continue with the tolerance of browns, one of my favorite big trout fall spots is a river that most people laugh at you when they see you fish it. I know I’ve posted that before but it never ceases to amaze me how much people underestimate them. Trout, like all animals, are survivors to say the least.

And to reply about the limestone influence, this is nit in a limestone area. But I do think there is a few springs around high upstream due to the water staying decent all year.

Thanks again

 

[govtmule]

Take me there and I'll answer your question..

 

[silverfox]

I'm sure it's not the same stream, but there is a stream I fish that has puzzled me as well for the same kind of reasons. Huge browns and it isn't stocked. The marginal water it flows into is stocked in some places. In the stream I'm referring to, there is some limestone influence and the fish are there year round. I think in my case, it's more like the fish end up there seeking refuge and end up staying more than leaving. I'm sure some do move in/out of the stream and into the main river.

The other piece of the puzzle on the one I know of is that basically nobody fishes it. I don't think most people know it holds fish at all. Certainly looks more like a "chub crick" than a HUGE wild/stocked brown stream. I do know others fish it. I've seen some huge streamers in the bushes, but by in large, it's unknown. I've never actually seen anyone else fish it. So I suspect these fish wouldn't make it if most humans knew they were there. If it was on the stocking list I'm sure these big fish would be gone.

I think the fish go where they need to regardless of what us humans think about their choices. "The Sewer" down in WV is a good example.

Best advice is don't tell anyone about it. LOL

 

[gulfgreyhound]

The habitat must be right for them to stay there or somewher in the system. I know of one such in New York that gets little to no pressure . It does feed into a major stream, but I really think those fish are stream born.
Any one in Central Ny, I'll spot burn it . My Bad ,I don't beleve I'll make it back there. GG

 

[jifigz]

Browns will move and colonize waters that they find suitable. Right now it is an anything goes and they could be anywhere. There are many massive browns cruising the main stem of the Juniata right now and every trib has wild trout. This time of the year they can move up and down and go wherever before having to return to thermal refuges in the summer. Quite a few bruisers get pulled from the river by fishermen targeting other fish. So who knows. The best part is that you know where the fish are.

 

[larkmark]

DO NOT TELL A SOUL. And pray the fish comm. doesn't discover them because they might put it on a list or do some crappy project on it and then claim they created a new wonderful wild trout fishery. (Believe me I have seen it happen).

 

[Brown71]

Siverfox, great post. Glad to see someone else say some of the same stuff lol. I agree totally, the craziest part of a few of my big fish spots is no one fishes them!!! I think a lot of folks think I’m bs-ing sometimes but it’s the truth. These subpar rivers hold some big, big browns, and come fall they are looking for places to go. Period.

I posted some pics several years back, but I caught 2 huge browns (30 and 29 inch) right where a lowly stocked water flows into a marginal river that does has have some springs. Crazy spot, but it has produced a lot of big fish for me, although none as big as those 2. A few people (not fishing) asked me coming by if I was fishing for carp/suckers lol. I was throwing 1/2 crawlers on my noodle rod so I said sure am lol! So, I imagine there is a pile more of these spots around that I don’t know about but someone does.

And jfigz, your post is spot on too, and I’ve seen first hand some big boys out of that river in tribs in fall, but my luck hasnt been good at catching them there for some reason. Need to put more time in there for sure.

 

[salvelinusfontinalis]

DO NOT TELL A SOUL. And pray the fish comm. doesn't discover them because they might put it on a list or do some crappy project on it and then claim they created a new wonderful wild trout fishery. (Believe me I have seen it happen).

Id be curious to know which.stream here you are referencing.

 

[Mike]

I am more amused by the term “crappy project” and wonder what that refers to....habitat work or a special reg area? If it was habitat work, what made it “crappy?” If it was special regs, what was wrong with them?

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear Brown71,

I have no idea of what stream you speaking of and I don't really care to know.

I can tell you that if big fish are there and the stream is not blocked in any way by dams then the fish are there because of abundant food and good quality water and they could have come from anywhere at that point.

More times than I can remember I stood at the first bag of the Fiber-Dam on the Shamokin Dam side of the Susquehanna when the bags were first blown up for the year. If the river is flowing at a moderate level you can see dozens and maybe even hundreds of large trout, all 18 inch plus, swirling around against the concrete abutment.

They didn't all wash out of Penns Creek, I assure you of that.

Fish, like people when they have the opportunity, will travel for better places to be.

Regards,

Tim Murphy

 

[SteveG]

I feel the term "migratory" is incorrectly used in regard to brown trout. They don't know they're supposed to stay in specific lengths or branches of a watershed that we have given different names, or the classifications (Class A, cold water, warm water, exceptional value) we give the water. Barring dams or anything which makes movement impossible, all of the streams in a given watershed are essentially the same stream as far as the fish are concerned.
They'll go wherever conditions are best to feed and spawn at a given time. This is no different than a smaller fish moving into a better feeding lie because it was vacated by a larger fish. Albeit a much larger scale.

 

[jifigz]

SteveG wrote:
I feel the term "migratory" is incorrectly used in regard to brown trout. They don't know they're supposed to stay in specific lengths or branches of a watershed that we have given different names, or the classifications (Class A, cold water, warm water, exceptional value) we give the water. Barring dams or anything which makes movement impossible, all of the streams in a given watershed are essentially the same stream as far as the fish are concerned.
They'll go wherever conditions are best to feed and spawn at a given time. This is no different than a smaller fish moving into a better feeding lie because it was vacated by a larger fish. Albeit a much larger scale.

Why is it "incorrectly"used? Did a fish travel from one area to another at a given or specific time of the year for any reason? If so, then I'd say it migrated. Smallmouth bass migrate many miles to find wintering habitat and it all starts happening this time of the year.