lake 22 report

[mcmahon2005]

On sunday i hiked up to lake 22. There were plenty of fish rising and i thought it would be great fishing. Unfortunately, i was only able to get one bite which didn’t result in a fish. I was using a blue/silver kastmaster, and mepps spin flies. I didn make a couple bad cast that bad a pretty big splash. Does anyone have any advice to help me for future trips. Im kinda a rookie at alpine lake fishing so any info would be appreciated.

[Brian Curtis]

I know some people swear by those blue/silver kastmasters so I’m sure I’ll get people who disagree with me chiming in, but in my experience blue/silver is not an effective color combo for high lake fishing. I’ve had good luck with blue/silver spoons in low lakes, but not high lakes. I much prefer red/brass or orange/brass. Try an orange/brass or red/white/brass Kamlooper Jr (3/16 oz) or a red/brass Krocodile. My favorite all around lure is the brass Jakes Spin-a-lure.

Some days the fish just aren’t hitting lures. You can carry a fly and bubble set up for those days.

The water in high lakes tends to be very clear so be sure you are using light line. I use 4 lb test line for spin fishing and go to a 2 lb leader for flies.

[mcmahon2005]

I use 4lb fireline which is equivalent to 1lb mono. What kind of flies would you suggest. Would a nymphs be better in a situation like that or a dry fly or streamer?

[Brian Curtis]

I just bought a spool of 4 lb FireLine the other day. I haven’t had a chance to try it yet.

If fish are rising I’d try starting with a dry fly. Vary the retrieve. I like to “pop” the bubble to give the fly some action. If that isn’t working I’ll try a steady, slow retrieve. Sometimes they don’t like any action.

[brownster145]

In my limited fly experience, when fishing a bubble and fly combo, a wet fly like a brown or black woolly worm, woolly bugger, or even a pheasant tail nymph, should work fairly well most times of the year.

My success with the blue/nickel Kastmasters has been great at times, not so great at others. Brian mentioned his opinion on the matter to me awhile back–that orange or red and brass is a more desirable combination for higher, clearer lakes–and I’ve found that to be true in my testing.

I’ve recently been building spinners for steelhead fishing, though, and I think spinners may become my focus on high lakes for the next couple years. Trying to find some combinations of metal and color that will be effective shouldn’t be too challenging.

Anyway, another thing you might consider is that the fish in a lake like Lake 22 probably see a lot more lures than fish in lesser known lakes. In rivers, at least, finding fish that haven’t seen much tackle provides a big advantage. I imagine this is true to some extent for lakes as well, and I can say that I’ve never had good luck in lakes on beaten trails, even when a few fish have been present.

Good luck,

Andrew

[Anonymous]

Some of you mentioned Fireline. What color do you use, I can only find green and smoke in the 4 lb test?

[Author]

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