I have been on a low-key mission to shake fins with a WA mackinaw for a couple of years now. Last year was my first true attempt and a pretty disappointing one with nary a bump from the depth dwellers. This year I went in with more of a plan targeting a shelf between 30 and 40 feet deep. Which is a really long wait even with a type 6.
This hike is loved by seasoned outdoor enthusiasts and the woefully unprepared alike (I saw someone "hiking" in leather pants.) Crowds are thankfully thinner at the lake. This has become an early alpine lake season trip to knock off the wintertime rust. With float tube, fishing gear and etc makes for a moderate to strenuous hike.
From the launch, I was almost immediately rewarded with a scrappy cutt that I think bit off a little more than he could chew.
Soon enough we make it to the water above the shelf and I start the "dredge"- Lots of line out, long wait, then strip in about 10-15 feet, let it back out, fin a little, then strip in some more, change direction, and rinse and repeat.
Soon I was into something heavy, that didn't want to budge. I cleared my line and got the fish on the reel. With a DEEP bend in the glass 6wt, I finally saw my quarry come up close enough to get an ID that it was indeed the laker I was hunting.
At this point, I am excited and a little scared. Something is going to give. Either the rod, the knots in my 3x flouro, or the fish. Each time I got him toward the surface, he would take a hard dive straight for the bottom. I was incredibly surprised. This fish had the fight of a large brown but with more juice in the tank. So much fun. After a lifetime or 5 minutes, not sure, I got him in the net. (glad I packed the bigger boat net.) Wowee, absolutely gorgeous specimen of invasive species. no official length, but he was too big for the stripping apron, so around the 2-foot mark. give or take. After a couple photos, it was released back to the inky depths.
With adrenaline still surging I caught a couple more feisty cutts, but my day was done. Despite the sore shoulders and cranky knees, I'm ready for the next Mack Attack!
This hike is loved by seasoned outdoor enthusiasts and the woefully unprepared alike (I saw someone "hiking" in leather pants.) Crowds are thankfully thinner at the lake. This has become an early alpine lake season trip to knock off the wintertime rust. With float tube, fishing gear and etc makes for a moderate to strenuous hike.
From the launch, I was almost immediately rewarded with a scrappy cutt that I think bit off a little more than he could chew.
Soon enough we make it to the water above the shelf and I start the "dredge"- Lots of line out, long wait, then strip in about 10-15 feet, let it back out, fin a little, then strip in some more, change direction, and rinse and repeat.
Soon I was into something heavy, that didn't want to budge. I cleared my line and got the fish on the reel. With a DEEP bend in the glass 6wt, I finally saw my quarry come up close enough to get an ID that it was indeed the laker I was hunting.
At this point, I am excited and a little scared. Something is going to give. Either the rod, the knots in my 3x flouro, or the fish. Each time I got him toward the surface, he would take a hard dive straight for the bottom. I was incredibly surprised. This fish had the fight of a large brown but with more juice in the tank. So much fun. After a lifetime or 5 minutes, not sure, I got him in the net. (glad I packed the bigger boat net.) Wowee, absolutely gorgeous specimen of invasive species. no official length, but he was too big for the stripping apron, so around the 2-foot mark. give or take. After a couple photos, it was released back to the inky depths.
With adrenaline still surging I caught a couple more feisty cutts, but my day was done. Despite the sore shoulders and cranky knees, I'm ready for the next Mack Attack!
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