![Trout Fishing in Idaho: A Newsletter by Robertson Trout Fishing in Idaho: A Newsletter by Robertson](https://i1.wp.com/bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/bradfordera.com/content/tncms/custom/image/b5c99bf4-6fa2-11e6-aeaa-e319e980b767.jpg?resize=600%2C315&w=1200&resize=1200,0&ssl=1)
Wide dry plains and sages stretched along the steep slopes around me. As I stomped onto the ground, a small cloud of dust exploded around my boots and slowly drifted away. Incredibly bright sunlight was shining from the bright blue, cloudless sky, thank goodness for my sunglasses and a hat. Strangely enough, there is a strip of thick willows 30 meters wide winding down the valley in front of me, and in the center of those winding willows runs a clear stream of trout, singing and splashing among the stones.
In these arid conditions it is possible that there could be something living in those crystal clear waters; surely they must be too hot for trout. But when I dipped my fingers into the swift current, the waters were surprisingly icy.
The water itself is crystal clear, incredibly transparent. Even four-pound test leaves a shadow on the bottom. I’m glad my little reel is filled with fluorocarbon monofilament to help camouflage my presentation. How far away can trout see you? There is no doubt that these conditions will require crawling and crawling to stay out of sight.
I’m parked at the KOA campground, where I just took my first shower in three days. We stayed in tents in the valley, slept on cots, ate in a tent and walked 100 meters to the primitive latrine. You can talk about your television, iPods, phones, computers, email, gas stoves, electric lights and soft beds, but a hot shower is the true mark of civilization and genuine, wonderful comfort. I was lucky enough to have hunted a nice mule deer. Now I can fish.
Feeling much more human after that smoky, soapy sky, it was time to take the UL and go fishing. The access road to the camp crossed the creek and a large deep hole swirled beneath it. There were several trout in the eddy. For an Eastern boy, seeing so many trout in a heavily fished stream was a dream come true.
I snuck to the bottom of the hole and slipped like an eel through the willows. The boot prints of a previous fisherman were still muddy on the small beach in front of me. This small beach was the only area you could fish from, but those tracks didn’t bother me at all. Any angler naïve enough to stay in plain sight would spook all the fish in the hole.
After waiting five minutes, I cast, letting my piece of Nightcrawler pass through the hole. Several rainbows emerged from the whirlpool, hit the worm, released it instantly, and returned to the depths. I managed to catch one and then sat for a while and thought.
Surely there must be additional trout in the deepest part of the hole, beneath the fast water shooting under the bridge. Perhaps the fish that were actively feeding were kept there, while those that were kept in the calm water were not hungry. I put on two small sinkers and cast as far down the bridge as possible, leaving the line slack to get a deep drift. I tensed just in time to feel a blow. Setting the hook, my UL bowed deeply as the trout darted out of the current, doing a full summersault in that bright sunlight, a halo of water droplets surrounding it. Wow, what a beautiful view.
I couldn’t believe how hard the trout fought and when it was finally on the beach, the bright red cut on the underside of its jaw was clearly visible showing it was a rainbow killer cross. The rainbow was tough and thin and upon unhooking it I quickly discovered that those tiny teeth were longer and much sharper than those of the eastern trout I was used to. Having forgotten my forceps, my index finger was soon cut and bleeding from releasing trout after trout.
The next morning, daylight found Gary Housely and I investigating a nearby reservoir. Its waters were also crystal clear, you could distinguish a trout from a perch 10 feet deep. The shadow of his lure could be clearly seen at that depth moving across the bottom; Such clarity is hard to believe, it looked more like glass than water.
Within an hour, we landed a dozen rainbows each up to 18 inches. About one in six trout seen would hit a carefully presented fly while it remained hidden. The amount of fish that came up was amazing and many more trout were too far offshore to reach. In such clear water, even the movement of the moving rod would spook them.
This area of Idaho was trout heaven; It was easily possible to catch 100 trout a day, or more, if one was willing to fish long enough, especially in the stream. Gary Housley of Tennessee and I caught enough trout to feed the 24 deer hunters in camp and fried them up for breakfast the next morning. You couldn’t believe how quickly those crispy pieces of trout disappeared; most were simply surprised at how delicious the well-prepared trout were.
So hunters, if you’re planning a trip west this fall, pack your fishing rod too. You will not regret.
Keynote USA
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