Trout Week; Day 4

Trout Week 2012

We're rollin out with day 4 of Trout Week with one amazing fish!  A fish so uncommon that catching this trout would be a true catch of a lifetime.  I have yet to land one of these treasures, but Dave Piavis Jr. from PA's Wild Trout has been making a habit of it for years.  Take a glimpse inside the secretive culture of the Tiger Trout.  The most treasured trout of Pennsylvania.

Stream Name:------------

Stream Location:Luzurne County

Features: Pretty secluded, Ive never seen anyone else fishing my section.  The biggest brook trout from here is 16, brown trout, 24, rainbow 19, tiger 18.  I've also pulled channel cats, smallmouth, walleye, and rock bass from this section

Target Trout:Wild Tiger Trout

Weapon of choice:Ultra light trout rod with regular mono.

Bait/Lure/Fly:I'll tell you that when you're trying to target a Tiger Trout, it's best to use minnows, Tigers have a much larger strike zone than the other trout, and also attack with a lot more force!

Section of Choice:I'm very secretive about this place, I try to do my best to make nobody sees me making my way to my spot. I don't park anywhere near it.

X-tra Info: This spot was passed down to me from my dad, I've caught most of my memorable trout from here, and have only kept one trout in the 3 years that I've been fishing it. I feel that if more people practiced catch and release we could have more places like this in PA, we could have more spots like this! I also feel like if I shared this place with people it would lose its magic for sure, sorry you guys, but look at these pictures. If you had a spot where you could catch these, would you tell anyone?

For those who do not know, or maybe unaware of this species, the Tiger Trout is a hybrid fish, different from the Golden Rainbow trout that we looked at yesterday.  Whereas the mutation of a gene in the rainbow led to the golden rainbow, the tiger trout is a combination of two different trout.  Can you guess which two?  

 

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That's right.  When a brook trout and a brown trouts reproductive material mix you will end up with a tiger trout.  This is generally a happy natural accident within streams.  The PA Fish and Boat Commission considers a natural tiger trout possibility "biologically possible, but extremely rare."  The PAFBC also tested the waters with raising and stocking tiger trout within the commonwealth waterways.  But this program was discontinued in 2005 due to "no biological advantage" of stocking tiger trout compared to the other trout.  As a hybrid fish, tiger trout are sterile.  They can not reproduce.  Instead, all of their energy that would otherwise be used in their reproduce development is used in place to grow.  In other words, tigers can grow big fast.  Although the PAFBC does not continue to raise and stock tigers, many cooperatives and private hatcheries do.

So what does this all mean?  It means if you catch a tiger trout you are a lucky fellow.  I attempted to find a stocking scheduled list from 2005 but was unable to track down a legit document.  So unless you know of a specific stream and have caught tigers there before, it is hard to plan a trip in solely in search of catching tiger trout.  But here are some hints that you could look for that will lead you to a potential tiger area.

- Fish a stream with a high brook trout population.  Brown trout are pretty resilient and are in most streams.  If you can find a stream with a high brookie population upstream from brown trout, you may have the perfect storm.

OR

- Fish downstream from hatcheries.  Fish escape hatcheries all the time and there is a chance that a tiger may have escaped.  Remember above when I mentioned that the PAFBC discontinued tiger trout stocking in 2005?  The year prior, in 2004, Hurricane Ivan swept through Pennsylvania flooding numerous locations, including state fish hatcheries.  A large number of tiger trout escaped from this event and can be found in many streams across PA.

An in-depth Google search may lead you to discover tiger trout locations that are otherwise locked down and under a Masonic Temple by anglers.  Otherwise you're search for tiger trout may become a life long endeavor. 


Good luck and fish on!

Write this down!  Trout Week day 3 prize pack code: Hybrid Treasures

Trout Week; Day 3

Trout Week 2012

It's day three of trout week and it is time to take a look at possibly the most targeted trout of all in Pennsylvania.  You know you have tried to catch this fish as it is hard to miss in the water.  Rather than blending in with camouflage like the browns, brooks, and rainbows do of the Commonwealth, the Golden Rainbow (also known as the Palomino) trout is highly visible throughout stocked waterways. No matter if you are a fan of the golden rainbow trout or not, you must admit that you have thrown enough line at this trout to try to catch.

If you are curious regarding the taste I can tell you for a fact that golden rainbow trout do not taste differently than regular trout.  The result of this trout's color is due to a pigment gene mutation.  Originating from wild and wonderful West Virginia, the golden rainbow was a pure accident.  Drawing such intrigue and curiosity, the original golden rainbow was spawned with a regular healthy rainbow trout.  The result, was more golden rainbow trout.  The mutated pigment gene was prolific that all trout spawned from this strain lacked regular rainbow trout coloration.  With that being said, all golden rainbow trout that are stocked in PA are directly from the 1954 golden rainbow discovered in West Virginia.  For more golden rainbow info, check this out.

Today, you can find the golden rainbow stocked within most Pennsylvania streams with other rainbow trout.  But there is one stream that you can find golden rainbow all year long.  That stream is Spring Creek, located in Central Pennsylvania.  Spring Creek is a wild trout stream that begins in Boalsburg, meanders through Bellefonte, eventually entering into the Bald Eagle Creek in Milesburg.  Spring Creek mostly consists of wild brown trout, but all species of trout can be found throughout the stream.  Specifically, from the Bellefonte section through the outflow in Milesburg, all species, including the golden rainbow, persist.  The best part of Spring Creek is that the entire stream is catch and release.  So if you are looking to try and hook into a golden rainbow, you have a great opportunity.

Stream Name: Spring Creek

Stream Location: Centre County

Features:Wild catch and release trout waters, spring fed stream, generally consistent temperatures and water flow.

Target Trout: Golden Rainbow Trout

Weapon of choice: 5/6 weight fly rod.

Bait/Lure/Fly: Streamers in the early spring, scuds in the mid to late summer.

Section of Choice: The entire length of Spring Creek is outstanding fishing.  You cannot go wrong with where you chose to fish.  But if you want to attempt to catch a golden rainbow, you must head to Bellefonte.  Below the High Street bridge, this newly opened section is loaded with the golden beauties.  Many of which are 4 or 5 lbs, and some are even bigger!

X-tra Info: If you chose to fish this section of Spring Creek you got to be careful when parking.  The old Cero and neighboring properties are private and do not allow access to fishermen.  (I have been scorned numerous times when exiting/exiting the stream through this areas.)  The best place to park is at the Gamble Mill Restaurant and Brewery.  Not only is this parking lot free to the public, but after your day on the stream you can enjoy great food and amazing micro brew! 
 

 

  Spring Creek, Centre County, Pennsylvania
Although I have been fortunate to land a golden rainbow in Spring Creek, (picture above), I was not able to get that fish on film.  Below is a video I made of fishing for wild browns in Spring Creek.  This video depicts some of the browns that can be caught, but not the style of fishing that I indicated above, i.e. fly rod with streamers/scuds. 

 

Write this down!  Trout Week day 3 prize pack code: Golden Beauties 

Trout Week; Day 2

Trout Week 2012

Day two continues with the State Trout of Pennsylvania, the all mighty and beautiful Brook Trout.  Does anyone know why the brook trout is Pennsylvania's state fish?  The reason is simple.  The brook trout is the only native trout of Pennsylvania.  All other trout that are either wild or stocked in PA are from other parts of the world.  Brook trout are stocked in many streams throughout Pennsylvania, but for many avid fisherman, hooking into a native brook trout is the apotheosis of trout fishing. 

Native Vs. Wild
Today, people are still confused with the difference in the classification of fish.  Often times anglers still misuse the proper description when speaking about a fish they caught or a stream they have fished.  So just to clarify things...
Wild Trout:  A trout that is the product of natural spawning in a stream from previously stocked fish.  An example of a wild trout stream is a stream that was previously stocked but is no longer stocked, allowing for the fish to naturally spawn and continue to live without any assistance.  Spring Creek is an example of a wild trout stream in Centre County.
Native Trout: A trout, (specifically brook trout only in PA), that has naturally lived and reproduced in a particular stream since the arrival of European settlement.  Native trout are often much smaller than stocked trout.  Native trout frequent smaller streams with class A water quality.  Check out more about trout water classifications here.

Below you will find out more information on PA's native brook trout.  As much as I would love to fish every day and explore every stream that PA has to offer, I just cannot.  A special thank you to Dave Piavis Jr. from PA's Wild Trout for authoring this article and highlighting a native trout stream that has much to offer PA anglers!

Stream Name: Pine Creek

Stream Location: Outside of Wilkes-Barre, PA  

Features:Very clear water, the most colorful brook trout that I have seen anywhere around here.

Target Trout: Native Brook Trout

Weapon of choice: Ultra Light Rod with 4lb test, my favorite brand is Suffix.

Bait/Lure/Fly: A 1/100 oz micro jig, tipped with a waxworm, and small split shot. Spinners work alright here, but not quite as well as jigs.


Section of Choice: The last mile or so before it flows into the Millie on the other side of 309. I access the creek by turning off of 309 in Hanover Township onto Pine Run Road, and park my car on the side of the road and walk down the the path under the power line.

X-tra Info: Because of the small size of the creek, you'll really have to put your time in to catch anything over ten inches here, but what this creek lacks in size it makes up for in numbers. A lot of the bigger trout you'll see here will have huge heads that taper off into disproportionate bodies, I'm guessing that this is because of the small size of the stream also.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Native Brook Trout Fishing 
In this video, Dave illustrates how to catch native PA brook trout with the micro jig/waxworm set up.

 

Write this down!  Trout Week day 2 prize pack code: Native Brooks