After two hours on a logging road and 30 minutes of following dirt bike trails in a car my old man and I encountered a beautiful, pristine lake. As soon as we launched the boat I was giddy with optimism, there were numerous acrobatic fish launching themselves clear out of the crystal-clear water. We paddled out to a shoal in the middle of the lake where we positioned ourselves in a way I could cast my pride and joy, a Fenwick 5wt, along the drop-off. I started with a size 10 mickey finn due to some luck with that pattern in the earlier lakes in our trip, but I soon found out these fish wanted nothing to do with my my brightly coloured presentation. I switched to a hefty olive bugger and stripped it through the water, instantly feeling the tug of an opportunistic trout. After a few more casts and an increase in the speed of my retrieve, I managed to convince an otherwise tight lipped fish to slurp up my bug.
A beautiful and feisty 12" cutthroat, with an amazing abundance of spots.
Luckily, there were no other anglers around to witness our interesting attire. Being the responsible fisherman that we are, we forgot the sunscreen. After a couple hours in a boat under a cloudless afternoon sky wearing our shirts and socks on our heads and shoulders, we grew impatient and decided it was nearing our time of departure. Soon after, while I was lazily retrieving the same chunky bugger I was instantly revitalized by magnificent take. This fish was much larger than the earlier catch and quickly brought back my excitement, when the fish was nearing the boat my father got a good look at it, preparing to net the beauty. Having not seen the fish myself yet, the rather loud "Whoa!" furthered my giddiness. I looked over the side of our tipsy dingy and caught a glimpse of a fish nearly the size of our 18" net. Without any warning it spat the hook and took off, almost taking the net with it and leaving me with no pictures and nothing to show of my trophy other than the always accurate 'One that got Away' story.
After another 45 minutes I got another sizable hit and wrestled in another wonderful fish.
A 14" cutthroat to conclude my fulfilling trip to the Sunshine Coast.
All fish caught were released unharmed.
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Topic: My Trip to the Sunshine Coast (Read 2830 times)