Northwest Fishing Magazine September 2025 Volume 5 Issue 1 - Flipbook - Page 12
My buddies Ty and Alex
were in the second boat
helping with filming, and
between both boats, nearly
40 fish were caught that
first day. Nonstop action
with each angler trying
to outcatch the other.
Our guides instigated
the goading as we came
together - “Add three more
to the scoreboard”, “Well,
we got a 19’er, how small
were your fish?” The solid
number of fish was one
thing. Getting bit non-stop
is always fun.
Again, nearly doubledigit fish were caught by
every angler. But the size
of these fish is what was
most impressive. Routinely,
we were pulling in fish in
the high teens. Browns,
rainbows, and whitefish all
with shoulders on them
the size of linebackers.
While the one legendary
fish didn’t come, I was
never disappointed when
I hooked up. Every fish
was seemingly in the
respectable 13-15-inch
range, with some bigger
chunkier fish encroaching
on the 20-inch size. And
the fight? World-class. It
was like being in a phone
booth with a big offensive
lineman. At times, the fish
would seemingly be pulling
the boat with it as it swam,
dove, and jumped during
our battles.
Ironically, one of the more
memorable fish was a
small one that I didn’t even
land. Like a quarterback
scanning the defense, I did
my best to set myself up for
a positive play. 15 feet out
from the bank, approaching
some tree roots, I had an
excellent line on the fish.
The hook set was decisive.
But this fish was tenacious.
Immediately jumping out
of the water like you’d hope
from a classic rainbow trout
battle. It must’ve jumped
at least half a dozen times.
It ran at me, seemingly
knowing the weak spot in
my offensive attack.
