Dr. Nebz
06-10-2011, 12:25 AM
This was a three day adventure out into Grandaddy Basin in July of 2009. We did the very long drive from SLC in on Friday morning to the trail head. We had friends Chris and Mike, that we were supposed to meet up with on Saturday out there, but we were not sure we would be able to find them being the area was so big. There were a lot of crazy things that happened on this trip. And it was those crazy things that made us all feel alive out there that weekend. And no one will ever forget the "Brookie." I know I wont, as you will see.
Day 1
We arrived at the trail head around 11 am or so and start our push for Hades Pass. This trail works you out all the way up. It is pretty hammered from the horse travel on it, so it for sure makes it an extra effort hauling a 50 lb pack. Me and my best friend Jared finally made it to the pass for a break and to take it all in. The peaks up here were amazing, and you finally get a look at the Granddaddy. It is massive! After a nice rest, we pushed into the basin. Passing Granddaddy Lake, then arriving at Betsy Lake, we found a nice spot east in the woods. We set up shop and proceeded to get our fish on. I caught at least a dozen Cutthroats out of this ranging from 13-16" on average. Jared nailed an 18'er which was fat! After a long day hiking and fishing, we decided to get dinner going and settle in for a nice relaxing night.
Day 2
We did not skimp on the food on this trip. This is why our packs were so heavy, well ok beer does not help that either. We both had a great breakfast, and decided to get the dishes washed up to head to Mohawk lake to try to find Mike and Chris. Just then, a huge bolt of lighting came down less than 50 yards of our location. You could hear the hiss, sizzle and pop, then the concussion was deafening. I dropped all my cookware, and realized I could not see Jared. I yelled out and he came walking up the rise towards me and was as white as a sheet. He said he saw the bolt and just froze. We were both a bit scared at this point, because we did not know how this was shaking out for the weather and we were pretty remote at this point. After about an hour the skies broke clear and we shook it off and made our way to Mohawk Lake. This is a large lake as well, and we decided to fish a few areas to see what our luck would be. As we are walking the south side I hear my name being called. Way out here really? I look up and to my surprise, is Chris and Mike sitting up on a Boulder in the talus field having a PBR. After connecting, Chris proceeds to tell me he was fishing a pond close to the lake, and he saw a monster Brookie in there. That it had taken his fly and he wanted it back. He wanted to go back up there, and with our spirits up and our curiosity peaked, we all started packing up to the pond. We threw everything at them fish for like almost two hours. A couple of hits, but other than that, nothing. I circled east around this pond and saw two huge boulders sitting close to shore, looking like great shelter. I decided to hook on the Husky Jerk and give it a whirl out there to see what I would get. First cast I see a silver flash, and I slowly crank it in. Threw it back out and got three cranks and this big one comes out from behind the boulders and tried to swallow it whole. Blam! I set the hook and my pole beds huge! I am yelling at Chris who is about 10 yards away to get over there and he comes running. I gave out a "yahoo" and landed the biggest Brook Trout I have ever caught. Measured he was 16.5" and my scale showed he was over 3.5 lbs. I think all of us were just in awe of this beast I just reeled in. Mike did well in the meantime and nailed a nice size fat Cutty that, with the Brookie, going to make one hell of a fish cookout. That fish was beyond delicious. That would have been a $30 fish at a fine eating establishment. It fed four people and a dog. Unreal! After we savored some whiskey by the fire and made some smore's and we all eventually crashed out. It was a good night, and a way cosmic day.
Day 3
Weall woke up hungry and put together a great breakfast. We just could not stop talking about that fish. It was amazing. We fished Betsy Lake that day, but the winds had picked up, and a few bites here and there, we decided it was time to pack it up and head out. It is not a gut busting climbing to the pass as it is getting in from the North Fork side, but all of us were ready for a break once we hit the pass. We had a nice hike out, and beers at the car when we got down. It was one hell of a trip, one that I will remember for a lifetime.
Day 1
We arrived at the trail head around 11 am or so and start our push for Hades Pass. This trail works you out all the way up. It is pretty hammered from the horse travel on it, so it for sure makes it an extra effort hauling a 50 lb pack. Me and my best friend Jared finally made it to the pass for a break and to take it all in. The peaks up here were amazing, and you finally get a look at the Granddaddy. It is massive! After a nice rest, we pushed into the basin. Passing Granddaddy Lake, then arriving at Betsy Lake, we found a nice spot east in the woods. We set up shop and proceeded to get our fish on. I caught at least a dozen Cutthroats out of this ranging from 13-16" on average. Jared nailed an 18'er which was fat! After a long day hiking and fishing, we decided to get dinner going and settle in for a nice relaxing night.
Day 2
We did not skimp on the food on this trip. This is why our packs were so heavy, well ok beer does not help that either. We both had a great breakfast, and decided to get the dishes washed up to head to Mohawk lake to try to find Mike and Chris. Just then, a huge bolt of lighting came down less than 50 yards of our location. You could hear the hiss, sizzle and pop, then the concussion was deafening. I dropped all my cookware, and realized I could not see Jared. I yelled out and he came walking up the rise towards me and was as white as a sheet. He said he saw the bolt and just froze. We were both a bit scared at this point, because we did not know how this was shaking out for the weather and we were pretty remote at this point. After about an hour the skies broke clear and we shook it off and made our way to Mohawk Lake. This is a large lake as well, and we decided to fish a few areas to see what our luck would be. As we are walking the south side I hear my name being called. Way out here really? I look up and to my surprise, is Chris and Mike sitting up on a Boulder in the talus field having a PBR. After connecting, Chris proceeds to tell me he was fishing a pond close to the lake, and he saw a monster Brookie in there. That it had taken his fly and he wanted it back. He wanted to go back up there, and with our spirits up and our curiosity peaked, we all started packing up to the pond. We threw everything at them fish for like almost two hours. A couple of hits, but other than that, nothing. I circled east around this pond and saw two huge boulders sitting close to shore, looking like great shelter. I decided to hook on the Husky Jerk and give it a whirl out there to see what I would get. First cast I see a silver flash, and I slowly crank it in. Threw it back out and got three cranks and this big one comes out from behind the boulders and tried to swallow it whole. Blam! I set the hook and my pole beds huge! I am yelling at Chris who is about 10 yards away to get over there and he comes running. I gave out a "yahoo" and landed the biggest Brook Trout I have ever caught. Measured he was 16.5" and my scale showed he was over 3.5 lbs. I think all of us were just in awe of this beast I just reeled in. Mike did well in the meantime and nailed a nice size fat Cutty that, with the Brookie, going to make one hell of a fish cookout. That fish was beyond delicious. That would have been a $30 fish at a fine eating establishment. It fed four people and a dog. Unreal! After we savored some whiskey by the fire and made some smore's and we all eventually crashed out. It was a good night, and a way cosmic day.
Day 3
Weall woke up hungry and put together a great breakfast. We just could not stop talking about that fish. It was amazing. We fished Betsy Lake that day, but the winds had picked up, and a few bites here and there, we decided it was time to pack it up and head out. It is not a gut busting climbing to the pass as it is getting in from the North Fork side, but all of us were ready for a break once we hit the pass. We had a nice hike out, and beers at the car when we got down. It was one hell of a trip, one that I will remember for a lifetime.