LOAH
07-24-2011, 03:52 PM
Lately, I've been daydreaming about one of my favorite creeks. This particular creek was a "curiosity spot" of mine a few years back, where I decided to walk in and check it out while traveling between some popular reservoirs.
As a result of that fateful trip, I was rewarded with some beautiful wild cutthroat in my hand. Since then, I've made plenty more stops along its banks, but never really dedicated a solid day's effort to uncover its true potential.
Not until this trip, at least...
It's surprising to me that I hadn't even visited the Manti this year, which I would have done several times already, most other years. The drive up Fairview Canyon to the summit is something I have always thoroughly enjoyed. The flowers are in bloom, the lakes are full, and the streams have finally calmed down enough to fish.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4984.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4991.jpg
My first stop was the spot where I'd missed a bite from a giant cutthroat, last year. Though I wasn't fortunate enough to find that bruiser again, I got the usual treatment from a couple of pretty little cutts before I'd spooked the hole.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4985.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4987.jpg
Trophies in their own right, but they weren't the size I was looking for. No matter, it's great fun and I could already tell the fishing would be great. (Much needed after a couple of recent skunkings, elsewhere.)
The next stretch I had in mind was where a smaller creek flows in, but it required navigation through thick brush and some rather swampy areas to get into it. I got wet, scraped, and filthy, but earning my right to fish this confluence was well worth it.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4999.jpg
Notice on the left, the crystal clear water flows in and mixes with the slightly more turbid water of the main creek. In the middle, a nice deep hole. What could possibly be in there?
Well, my first cast across that hole was uneventful, so I let my lure sink a little bit on my next cast and immediately after cranking, the battle was on with something big and strong.
Twisting and shaking, a large cutthroat resisted arrest, but I was finally able to subdue the beast and bring it in for questioning. What a pig for such a small stream! Over 20 inches long!
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4989.jpg
Now I've caught plenty of fish over 20 inches, but doing so on the Manti is something to write home about. There are typically only a couple of places on the mountain where the 20 mark might be broken, and those are reservoirs with a lot of available forage.
Come to think of it, I don't recall ever getting anything over 19 inches from anywhere on the mountain, despite missing a few hogs that continue to haunt me to this day. Nevertheless, I was very pleased with my catch.
Not yet feeling like I had worked that honey hole enough, I continued to cast through it and along the seam between the two waters. A couple of smaller cutts and a rainbow came to hand, this one being the only one I pulled out the camera for.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4990.jpg
Two other large fish swiped at my lure, but wouldn't come back for more. I vowed to return to the hole with a different lure tied on after some upstream exploration of the small clear creek that flowed into it.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5004.jpg
There weren't too many spots conducive to fishing along this side stream, but I was able to drop in between some branches and pull out one fish with a bad eye.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5002.jpg
Judging by the looks of "one eye", he can still find plenty of food in this fertile system.
After him, I could only spook fish from the other holes I found. It was time to go back for the other hogs in my honey hole.
Back at the hole, I was prepared for the larger fish with a Lucky Craft Pointer minnow tied on. Knowing the fish had already seen my Blue Fox, I felt it necessary to give them a look at something else, plus utilize their predatory nature.
Lo and behold, it worked and within a couple of casts, I was fast onto another big one!
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4994.jpg
This one was just a hair shorter in length than the first big one and every bit as aggressive. The first one had made my day and this one just broadened my smile.
What a great creek!
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5000.jpg
At that point, I'd done well enough to call it a day, but the day was still rather young and I was surrounded by other water. I left the creek and on my way out of the area, I decided to fish Cleveland Reservoir.
The reservoir is full! It felt necessary to take a picture because it's rare to see it without a huge bathtub ring of barren mud surrounding it. Thank goodness for a great water year.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5006.jpg
The fishing was actually pretty slow and the wind was more than I cared to bother with. A lucky cast got me a bite-sized rainbow and after that, it was time to go.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5008.jpg
The day was spectacular! I couldn't be more pleased with the fishing on the creek and it was great to get back to one of my "happy places".
Happy Fishing, Humans.
As a result of that fateful trip, I was rewarded with some beautiful wild cutthroat in my hand. Since then, I've made plenty more stops along its banks, but never really dedicated a solid day's effort to uncover its true potential.
Not until this trip, at least...
It's surprising to me that I hadn't even visited the Manti this year, which I would have done several times already, most other years. The drive up Fairview Canyon to the summit is something I have always thoroughly enjoyed. The flowers are in bloom, the lakes are full, and the streams have finally calmed down enough to fish.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4984.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4991.jpg
My first stop was the spot where I'd missed a bite from a giant cutthroat, last year. Though I wasn't fortunate enough to find that bruiser again, I got the usual treatment from a couple of pretty little cutts before I'd spooked the hole.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4985.jpg
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4987.jpg
Trophies in their own right, but they weren't the size I was looking for. No matter, it's great fun and I could already tell the fishing would be great. (Much needed after a couple of recent skunkings, elsewhere.)
The next stretch I had in mind was where a smaller creek flows in, but it required navigation through thick brush and some rather swampy areas to get into it. I got wet, scraped, and filthy, but earning my right to fish this confluence was well worth it.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4999.jpg
Notice on the left, the crystal clear water flows in and mixes with the slightly more turbid water of the main creek. In the middle, a nice deep hole. What could possibly be in there?
Well, my first cast across that hole was uneventful, so I let my lure sink a little bit on my next cast and immediately after cranking, the battle was on with something big and strong.
Twisting and shaking, a large cutthroat resisted arrest, but I was finally able to subdue the beast and bring it in for questioning. What a pig for such a small stream! Over 20 inches long!
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4989.jpg
Now I've caught plenty of fish over 20 inches, but doing so on the Manti is something to write home about. There are typically only a couple of places on the mountain where the 20 mark might be broken, and those are reservoirs with a lot of available forage.
Come to think of it, I don't recall ever getting anything over 19 inches from anywhere on the mountain, despite missing a few hogs that continue to haunt me to this day. Nevertheless, I was very pleased with my catch.
Not yet feeling like I had worked that honey hole enough, I continued to cast through it and along the seam between the two waters. A couple of smaller cutts and a rainbow came to hand, this one being the only one I pulled out the camera for.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4990.jpg
Two other large fish swiped at my lure, but wouldn't come back for more. I vowed to return to the hole with a different lure tied on after some upstream exploration of the small clear creek that flowed into it.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5004.jpg
There weren't too many spots conducive to fishing along this side stream, but I was able to drop in between some branches and pull out one fish with a bad eye.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5002.jpg
Judging by the looks of "one eye", he can still find plenty of food in this fertile system.
After him, I could only spook fish from the other holes I found. It was time to go back for the other hogs in my honey hole.
Back at the hole, I was prepared for the larger fish with a Lucky Craft Pointer minnow tied on. Knowing the fish had already seen my Blue Fox, I felt it necessary to give them a look at something else, plus utilize their predatory nature.
Lo and behold, it worked and within a couple of casts, I was fast onto another big one!
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP4994.jpg
This one was just a hair shorter in length than the first big one and every bit as aggressive. The first one had made my day and this one just broadened my smile.
What a great creek!
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5000.jpg
At that point, I'd done well enough to call it a day, but the day was still rather young and I was surrounded by other water. I left the creek and on my way out of the area, I decided to fish Cleveland Reservoir.
The reservoir is full! It felt necessary to take a picture because it's rare to see it without a huge bathtub ring of barren mud surrounding it. Thank goodness for a great water year.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5006.jpg
The fishing was actually pretty slow and the wind was more than I cared to bother with. A lucky cast got me a bite-sized rainbow and after that, it was time to go.
http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/aa478/justisaurus79/IMGP5008.jpg
The day was spectacular! I couldn't be more pleased with the fishing on the creek and it was great to get back to one of my "happy places".
Happy Fishing, Humans.