It was 4:30ish and I was the last to show up at the meeting place. Grant, Tim, Derek, and I headed out to the spot. I was stoked. When we arrived we had it all to ourselves. We pulled up and after stepping out of the car immediately spotted a couple fish cruising the shallows. It was cold and I really wanted to put my waders on but I wanted to see what they’d do with a mouse. I struggled getting my fingers to function properly as I was shaking with excitement. I finally tied one on and grant tossed it out. We could only get them to nose it. Ok, forget it. I’m getting my waders on cause I’m freezing.

The sun still hadn’t risen all the way when my indicator went down. I set the hook and it took of like a rocket. Dang, son! My heart started to beat. The fellas all stopped fishing and being the guides they are, couldn’t help but coach me through it. I didn’t mind. I rarely fish with others and was more than happy to make sure I got this fish in. I was fishing 4x so I didn’t want to make him work too hard for any line he wanted to take. As I worked him into the shallower water we got a look at him for the first time. He was thick. He had some unreal color. So much he liked he could even be a bow. Didn’t make sense so we were a little puzzled and kept changing our minds on what type of fish he was. He didn’t really look like a tiger. I finally got him into Grant’s jumbo net and I was beyond jazzed to see how beautiful he was. A very thick tiger with the most amazing colors I’d ever seen.

One of the overall biggest trout I’ve caught and probably the most beautiful. We snapped some pics and sent him on his way. Not a bad way to break in my new reel. The rest of the day the boys laid it to them and I pretty much sucked. I think I cursed myself when I said, “I don’t care if I catch another the rest of the day…” I was fishing the same patterns, the same depths, etc. and everyone continued to catch fish except me. Go figure. Although I would have been stoked to keep getting into fish that day, I know I’ll always remember that morning that I held the most beautiful fish I’d ever seen.

Check those colors!

About The Author

Chinese Boy
Google+

The ringleader at OSF, Nathan likes well-proportioned fish, moonlit walks by the river, and stripping streamers through dark lies on the dreariest of days. View full bio.

One Response

  1. Name

    Was stoked you trusted me to be the “net man” for Ya on your first big kitty. That was EPIC! You were happy as a clam….

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.