06-15-2013, 08:34 PM
Please do disagree! Those are some great brookies. I was just joking around and generalizing, because in many of the streams in SE Idaho that have brookies the fish are overpopulated and stunted.
There are some great brookies in the state. Just look at what they pull out of Henry's. But unfortunately I have fished many streams and mt lakes that are over run with mini-brookies. The problem is that brookies are too good at reproducing and surviving.
If you can find the rare lake or stream where their population is kept somewhat in check either through predators or lack of good spawning, then you have found a little piece of heaven. Treasure it!
They are a beautiful fish, and sometimes they are about the only fish that will survive in some places. When I catch one over 10 inches, I have to take a minute and just admire it. I love brookies that aren't stunted, and they are tasty too!
I mostly catch and release trout and bass, but I adore a high mountain streamside lunch of fresh brookies. Yum! Eating some will not put much of a dent in the population, so I do recommend it. They usually can use some thinning. If the ave size is 10 to 12 inches, they probably don't need a lot of thinning, but if they are less that that .... eat up!
Streams like Eightmile Creek south of Soda Springs are a shame though. It is infested with 4 to 6in brookies. If they were kept in check, or everyone kept a hundred a day, it could be a good stream.
A great place for little kids to play with the sardines, but I can't tell you how many I launched into the bushes on my backcast. I didn't even know I had one on my rod, and it's an ultralight 3 weight rod. The last time I was there, there were so many small ones rushing my fly, it was hard to say if there was anything in there that was bigger. Anything else just didn't have a chance to get caught.
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There are some great brookies in the state. Just look at what they pull out of Henry's. But unfortunately I have fished many streams and mt lakes that are over run with mini-brookies. The problem is that brookies are too good at reproducing and surviving.
If you can find the rare lake or stream where their population is kept somewhat in check either through predators or lack of good spawning, then you have found a little piece of heaven. Treasure it!
They are a beautiful fish, and sometimes they are about the only fish that will survive in some places. When I catch one over 10 inches, I have to take a minute and just admire it. I love brookies that aren't stunted, and they are tasty too!
I mostly catch and release trout and bass, but I adore a high mountain streamside lunch of fresh brookies. Yum! Eating some will not put much of a dent in the population, so I do recommend it. They usually can use some thinning. If the ave size is 10 to 12 inches, they probably don't need a lot of thinning, but if they are less that that .... eat up!
Streams like Eightmile Creek south of Soda Springs are a shame though. It is infested with 4 to 6in brookies. If they were kept in check, or everyone kept a hundred a day, it could be a good stream.
A great place for little kids to play with the sardines, but I can't tell you how many I launched into the bushes on my backcast. I didn't even know I had one on my rod, and it's an ultralight 3 weight rod. The last time I was there, there were so many small ones rushing my fly, it was hard to say if there was anything in there that was bigger. Anything else just didn't have a chance to get caught.
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