Fly Fishing an Insane River for Huge Trout! (Bull Trout Pt. 2)

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Bull trout are a threatened species known for their aggression, and in my opinion, they’re some of the coolest fish on earth. After catching my first two bull trout on day 1, the focus changed to trying to find a slightly larger fish. Don’t get me wrong I was thrilled with the fish I had caught, but according to the US fish and wildlife service the average size of a bull trout is around 25 inches, something I hadn’t cracked on day 1. So I did something I thought most people hadn’t done and I brought out a musky rod with the intention of throwing overly large flies for some overly large fish.

So the forecast for day 2 called for overcast and lots of rain. And rain it did. I didn’t stay dry for long standing in thigh deep water throwing streamers in the pouring rain. But William and I figured this rain would surely bring the bull trout out. Having fished for brown trout and musky this was the type of weather I lived for, when the knowledge of the impending fish catch drives you beyond what world normally be your breaking point. But one thing we didn’t account for was muddy water, something we thought wouldn’t be an issue on this particular river.

After a full morning of failure we decided to go back to what had brought us success on the first day of fishing in a last ditch effort to salvage our day.

I’m just going to be honest with you, we never salvaged the day. As it got later the water started to change color, and the bright blue water of the previous day faded from existence. Without any real knowledge of how the bull trout would react to the dirty water our confidence quickly depleted. And after 8 hours without a single fish to show for it other than a small whitefish and redband William had caught earlier, we called it a day.

After our previous failure on day 2 we devised a plan we thought was full proof. We were going to nymph just to catch fish, because to be honest at this point I wanted to catch a white fish and a redband trout anyway, both species I had never caught. But another part of our plan was to visit a local fly shop when they opened and ask them how on earth to catch a fish. We had the gear, but neither of us had enough knowledge on the area to know exactly what flies the fish would be likely to take. We had read about how bull trout could be caught on nymphs as well, and considering the streamer game seemed to be totally dead, we didn’t have another option. So that’s exactly what we did, we fished for a few hours in the morning, went to the fly shop, got some flies and amazing information, and hit the river again. And that completely changed the trajectory of our trip. Take it from me, everybody should go visit and support your local fly shops.

Finally we had found fish. Granted nothing was very large and we were freezing to death. But just catching fish after a full day of nothing was welcome. There was only one last fish I wanted to catch, and that was a redband. After getting my rain jacket I continued fishing, and FINALLY after some time I had one eat… and what transpired was arguably one of the coolest moments I’ve ever had fishing.

That may not be super crazy to people who live in bull trout country, but to me it was like watching a fairy tail unfold. A story I had heard many times before about these insanely predatory fish had actually happened to me, and it was a huge bull trout. Which gave me an idea…. Yeah we were catching fish on nymphs, but clearly that big guy wanted a full meal. So after we returned to the car I grabbed my streamer rod for one last chance at a big bull trout.

After a full 2 days of fishing I had finally netted another nice bull trout, and at 21.5 inches it was my biggest of the trip. This fish felt incredibly lucky because a lot of things had to fall into place for it to happen… and just based on the previous day of fishing it seemed very unlikely to happen. But this is a great lesson in never giving up and using the resources you have at your disposal to make your trip successful. That means reading everything you can, going to fly shops, and paying attention to things that are happening while you’re fishing. Overall this was an incredible 3 day trip and my favorite this year so far. The country was wild, the fishing was awesome, and the company was great. I will 100% be going after bull trout again this year, maybe more than once if I have my way. If you guys have any suggestions on where you’d like to see me fish let me know in the comments below. And as always, thanks for watching.

I hope you enjoyed this mini series! Thanks for watching!
#troutfishing #fishing #flyfishing #outdoors #nature #sports #youtube

[noahfertick]

That first run you were catching them in is the same one my grandpa caught his PB 34" bull trout in a few decades ago! He just recently gifted me the streamer rod and Hardy Princess he caught it on, I'm hoping to get my first bull trout on the same river with that soon. If I had to recommend one river to visit in the entire PNW it would be that one, it has to be one of the prettiest spring creeks in the US. Glad you got to experience it!!

[PEIQING-LHL]

The scenery is so beautiful. The fish is so big. I envy it. Thanks for sharing.

[DavidSpain-ic]

Great Adventure! Thanks for taking us along. Tight Lines!

[rickhomick]

As a old fisherman i enjoy your video's, i first would love to know where this stream is, also i would love to aee you lay each fly your using in the palm of your hand... i am 76 and just getting back into fly fishing and i don't know the names of the a big one....

[Lee-fuf]

Kid, you're good. And never apologize for being a legit good person. Peace out.

[lewis]

I’m from the U.K., I’ve always dreamed of catching a bull trout! All the best.

[craighaldane]

That's one beautiful looking river to fish.

[JW]

Up in Trappers Lake in the Flat Top Wilderness the minimum size to keep for Cutthroat Trout is 21” . So there some nice ones in there. There is a lower pond there that is crystal clear with a deeper section that turns to blue and the trout are in the center where the flow is. A long cast with a fly rod. They are skittish too so presentation is everything. It reminds me of a miniature Lake Tahoe. Those were some great times in Colorado. 😊

[Matthewguykinney]

These are great videos! I fish that river all the time and it is a really tough place to catch a fish, especially a bull trout! Good work!

[EastonBibbings-txip]

I've been a bass fisherman all my life and always hated anything to do with my flyfishing. But there's something about the way you fish and film your videos that make them fun to watch for me. Almost like your flyfishing is the equivalent of power fishing in bass fishing. Please keep it up😂

[JeremyAndersonBoise]

In Idaho, while fishing a triple nymph rig (all barbless), I caught a cutthroat, a bull trout and a whitefish in one cast. We see Bull trout chase our cutts and redbands around here constantly, occasionally they will chomp them. Also have had big browns crush small bows on the hook. Those are the really memorable moments fishing, the ones you would never imagine. (We have legit big bulls up in central Idaho, but the drives and hikes are not for the inexperienced.)

[billhackett]

I subscribed to trout routes and love it. As always I’m enjoying the video.

[MatthewPrince-eu]

Thanks for sharing. My home water. On the river last weekend and caught multiple white fish, redband, and brown. Last summer my son caught a huge bull way lower down in the system. This special place feeds my soul.

[JeremyAndersonBoise]

11:40 - I could tell by the way that fish fought that it was a whitefish, they do a thing I like to call the “the whitefish wiggle.” 😂

[fish-kh]

I have siad this before but you are the reason i started to fly fish i coming back to tell you that i got my first trout fly fishing and im hooked and saving money for a new setup because i got a boat for Christmas

[RalphJackson-hh]

Again thank you for the content the amount of discipline time and dedication you take to produce the highest tier quality trouting is not lost on me

I cringed literally when I read the weirdos whining about the size of the native brook trout you were catching in your video about fishing for Maine Brookies

Just wanted to do my part watch the whole show and give you some engagement Hardman

[supreme_calamitiz]

As a steelhead fisherman, I always get anxious when I see a video with someone using a float and I'm like "he should have set there! He should have set there too!!" But it's obvious you know what you're doing! Keep fishing!!

[AndrewBeveridge]

I took a photo of that same exact spot as the start of the video years back when I hiked that stretch. Always fun when you recognize a river by the thumbnail.

[kenwintin]

Glad to see that you got that big Bull Trout. I newt could be done.

[bowriver]

If you want huge bull trout. Alberta Canada is the place. Sheep River, Bow River, Highwood and Elbow rivers and a few others as well.