View Full Version : Good Brook Trout
http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/6076/set3y.jpg (http://img36.imageshack.us/i/set3y.jpg/)
All legal, a SRD brook trout suppression project
Guitarplayingfish
08-08-2012, 08:59 AM
Feel like sharing?.... :thinking-006:
greylynx
08-08-2012, 09:09 AM
Anyone starting to feel sorry for those Brook Trout?:)
I sort of am. But I know it is supposed to be for the better.:)
Guitarplayingfish
08-08-2012, 09:10 AM
Nope...Not in the slightest.
Brookies outcompete EVERYTHING at a young age and destroy native trout populations.. Get them outta there.
I have never tasted brooks before, are they good?
Flyfisher87
08-08-2012, 10:22 AM
I have the image of a nice shore lunch in my head right now. If I had some time I would have liked to been a part of this project.
Brook trout is damn good eats, IMO best of all the stream trout. Smoked, grilled on the barby or in a cast iron pan fried in half/half butter 'n bacon grease. These particular fish are out of Willow Creek above Indian Graves.
Only thing I haven't tried is pickled. Anyone got a pickled fish recipe to share??
the local angler
08-08-2012, 12:56 PM
looks awsome man. you are having much better luck than i am with that project. i hit waiporous creek and got nothing but cutts. i have thought about the willow creek area but unfamilar with that creek. might have to take a trek down there soon when i get back from BC.
Guitarplayingfish
08-08-2012, 12:57 PM
I assume it is too late to get involved in this program?...
Is it continuuing next year?
Rikkles Fisher
08-08-2012, 01:04 PM
Nice! What was the biggest one?
dryflyguy
08-08-2012, 01:09 PM
This article may have some connection
http://www.calgaryherald.com/travel/Waterton+scientists+study+trout+alpine+lakes/7048870/story.html
slingshotz
08-08-2012, 01:39 PM
Nice haul Taco! I pulled out 60 on Monday at Willow. It's amazing that Willow has been hit pretty hard this year and there are still pools full of those little buggers. It's crazy how well they reproduce, I gutted a 12cm one that had roe already.
Local Angler/Taco - We'll have to go and hit some of the tribs in Waiparous, they should be full of brookies too. I've noticed that Waiparous itself doesn't have a ton of brookies unless you go pretty far upstream. Have either of you tried Margaret or Johnson yet?
BeeGuy
08-08-2012, 02:41 PM
I fished the Johnson crk which flows into Willow.
It's small but there are numbers in each log jam and cutts in the chutes.
Biggest this trip was between 10"-11". Biggest so far this yr is just short of 12". Biggest last yr was just over 13". This yr the majority of fish seem to be right around 8" and all I've been doin' is swingin' a small muddler.
Beeguy, was that you fishin' Johnson on the Aug 1st check day? I'm the guy with the dark crewcab Chevy HD. I was a little surprised with what I found in Johnson, it was my first time ever fishin' it
Rikkles Fisher
08-08-2012, 03:23 PM
Oh really that's it? Some look like they could have been a bit bigger, my biggest is 14 inches, they are a pretty small fish in the creeks that's for sure, they are getting bad at Tay river as well this year but still more bulls so that's good.
There's a horde of them and may be why they tend to be smaller, Willow above Indian Graves ain't a very big stream.
BeeGuy
08-08-2012, 04:03 PM
Biggest this trip was between 10"-11". Biggest so far this yr is just short of 12". Biggest last yr was just over 13". This yr the majority of fish seem to be right around 8" and all I've been doin' is swingin' a small muddler.
Beeguy, was that you fishin' Johnson on the Aug 1st check day? I'm the guy with the dark crewcab Chevy HD. I was a little surprised with what I found in Johnson, it was my first time ever fishin' it
Indeed it was.
Results are in my signature. Love that meadow which runs along the southside of the creek. Wasn't too happy about the Grizz scat.
How'd you make out? It was my first time in that area and I only fished about 600m in 4-5 hrs. I was getting 3-4 fish out of every log jam. Biggest brookie was about 20cm and biggest cutt was about 22cm.
Good number of edible mushrooms growing too. Sadly, I didn't bring anything to put them in.
Coral mushrooms and brookies would have been an interesting dish.
Indeed it was.
Results are in my signature. Love that meadow which runs along the southside of the creek. Wasn't too happy about the Grizz scat.
How'd you make out? It was my first time in that area and I only fished about 600m in 4-5 hrs. I was getting 3-4 fish out of every log jam. Biggest brookie was about 20cm and biggest cutt was about 22cm.
Good number of edible mushrooms growing too. Sadly, I didn't bring anything to put them in.
Coral mushrooms and brookies would have been an interesting dish.
I only fished about a 100 metres just to see what it was. Robert (one of your group's leaders) had told me about it and that it used to be almost strictly cutt. I then hiked up Willow about 5k and fished back, 42 and 8 cutts.
The meadow is pretty chewed up anymore isn't it? My impression was that Johnson running murky for so long couldn't be blamed strictly on cows.
BeeGuy
08-08-2012, 05:00 PM
I only fished about a 100 metres just to see what it was. Robert (one of your group's leaders) had told me about it and that it used to be almost strictly cutt. I then hiked up Willow about 5k and fished back, 42 and 8 cutts.
The meadow is pretty chewed up anymore isn't it? My impression was that Johnson running murky for so long couldn't be blamed strictly on cows.
There is significant ATV damage back there.
BeeGuy
08-08-2012, 05:18 PM
Here's the little cutts from that day:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo19-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo17-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo16-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo15-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo18-1.jpg
the local angler
08-08-2012, 05:23 PM
i did managed to fish almost the entire section of waiporous creek where accessable and even spots on the tributaries too. i got close to the head waters but fighting through bushes that were taller than me was a bit of a fustration and loosing lots of spinners and flies was kinda painful. i was driving my car so obviously i only got to where i could drive/walk.trying to make as little camotion as possible was hard so spooking the pool was a hard to control. oh well next time when i get back from BC.
Speckle55
08-08-2012, 05:25 PM
Brook trout is damn good eats, IMO best of all the stream trout. Smoked, grilled on the barby or in a cast iron pan fried in half/half butter 'n bacon grease. These particular fish are out of Willow Creek above Indian Graves.
Only thing I haven't tried is pickled. Anyone got a pickled fish recipe to share??
agree:sHa_shakeshout:
David:)
I assume it is too late to get involved in this program?...
Is it continuuing next year?
Sorry man, missed this.
You can do the ID test through email then you have to go on one supervised outing. I'd imagine they'd run the outings as long as there is interest this yr. Contact the Fisheries Biologists in Cochrane's ASRD office or Trout Unlimited Calgary
http://flyfishcalgary.com/board/index.php?showtopic=17847
Alberta Bigbore
08-08-2012, 08:11 PM
Awesome feast of fish going on in that house !!!
Here's the little cutts from that day:
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo19-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo17-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo16-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo15-1.jpg
http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg523/elbee69/photo18-1.jpg
Looks to be some rainbow genetics in a couple of those, especially the top one. Thats unfortunate too.
The Fisherman Guy
08-09-2012, 09:00 PM
Looks to be some rainbow genetics in a couple of those
I picked up on that too, but I am not an expert.
Can wild Brook Trout successfully reproduce with wild Rainbow and Cutthroat Trout?
It sure appears to be that way.
I picked up on that too, but I am not an expert.
Can wild Brook Trout successfully reproduce with wild Rainbow and Cutthroat Trout?
It sure appears to be that way.
Brook trout do not hybridize with cutties or bows, but do occasional hybridize with bullies. Rainbows and cutties however, are very closely related. Ive encountered a few brookie/bull hybrids, but they're definitely not as common as cuttbows. Brookies seem to have a competitive advantage due to being fall spawners which is part of why they seem to take over some creeks in such an effective fashion. That particular fish appears to be a lot more rainbow than cutty in my opinion, pretty faint slashes, distinct par marking, and spots which aren't really typical for a cuttie.
walking buffalo
08-10-2012, 12:18 AM
Brook trout do not hybridize with cutties or bows, but do occasional hybridize with bullies. Rainbows and cutties however, are very closely related. Ive encountered a few brookie/bull hybrids, but they're definitely not as common as cuttbows. Brookies seem to have a competitive advantage due to being fall spawners which is part of why they seem to take over some creeks in such an effective fashion. That particular fish appears to be a lot more rainbow than cutty in my opinion, pretty faint slashes, distinct par marking, and spots which aren't really typical for a cuttie.
Willow Creek Cutthroat are hybridized with rainbows. A genetically pure Westslope cutthroat is possible here, but it would have traveled downstream past an upstream migration barrier.
Jim Stelfox may be willing to share the locations of a few DNA tested sections of streams in the area that do have pure Westslope cutties. My fingers are sealed. :)
Great to hear from those who have joined this program. Thanks guys and gals!
Willow Creek Cutthroat are hybridized with rainbows. A genetically pure Westslope cutthroat is possible here, but it would have traveled downstream past an upstream migration barrier.
Jim Stelfox may be willing to share the locations of a few DNA tested sections of streams in the area that do have pure Westslope cutties. My fingers are sealed. :)
Great to hear from those who have joined this program. Thanks guys and gals!
Visually that top fish looks pure, looks completely like more than a few fish I have caught in foothills streams that contain nothing but genetically tested pure westslopes. In Willow itself the obviously hybridized fish seem to be contained below Iron Ck. In light of current warming trend reliance on thermal barriers may be somewhat misplaced.
This is my second season of the harvest program on Willow and of the roughly 340 fish I have caught so far, 10-12% have been non-brookie.
Sundancefisher
08-10-2012, 08:41 AM
Anyone starting to feel sorry for those Brook Trout?:)
I sort of am. But I know it is supposed to be for the better.:)
I feel sorry for them as much as I feel sorry for a nearby population of perch:bad_boys_20:
http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/382/set302.jpg (http://img824.imageshack.us/i/set302.jpg/)
More of the little buggers, good thing they taste good
walking buffalo
08-12-2012, 10:43 AM
Visually that top fish looks pure, looks completely like more than a few fish I have caught in foothills streams that contain nothing but genetically tested pure westslopes. In Willow itself the obviously hybridized fish seem to be contained below Iron Ck. In light of current warming trend reliance on thermal barriers may be somewhat misplaced.
This is my second season of the harvest program on Willow and of the roughly 340 fish I have caught so far, 10-12% have been non-brookie.
I was specifically refering to physical barriers such as impassable waterfalls.
Recent DNA testing of cutthroat trout for proposed oil and gas line development impact research has been showing a distinct trend. The only place pure cutties are safe from hybridization with rainbow trout is in isolated sections of streams where upstream migration is blocked by a waterfall.
Great work on making room for the Cutties! :happy0034:
The genetic diversity in westslopes from the different tributaries will be lost but yeah, currently, that's the only place that they are truly safe. We may have to do what the americans are doin' and build waterfalls.
Rumor is that the program may be expanded to include an unlimited rainbow harvest on Willow in the coming season.
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