I have made three trips to the Berry since ice-up and have really done well catching a lot of very nice cutts. They really like foxyjigs or ratfinkies with a wax or meal worm either on the bottom up to 50' deep or suspended at 8'-12'. I have been at the ladders, chicken creek east, and east portal bay. But..... 50+ cutts and no bows? Any ideas where the famous Strawberry rainbows are? I heard they planted 2 million fingerlings last spring that should be about 12"-15" by now. Where in the world are they hiding, inside the big cutts?
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Them Bows are out their! I've took 5 home this year so far! but i have caught way more cuts though. I've caught all my bows real early in the mornin and all on piece of nightcrawler on ice fly with kastmaster above for attractor. There must be alot more bows this year cause last year I only caught 3 all winter!!
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[size 1]"They really like foxyjigs or ratfinkies with a wax or meal worm either on the bottom up to 50' deep or suspended at 8'-12'." You are fishing way too deep if you want to catch the rainbows. Try in water 15' or even shallower for the rainbows.[/size]
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I second what Kent has to say. You need to be really shallow to catch the bows. I've seen guys catch them in as little as 6 feet of water. Good luck when you head out.
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We caught several on the soldier Creek side this season.
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Where's the best access on the Soldier Creek side? From the turnoff on the highway?
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I have always heard the old timers say if you drill thru the ice and hit mud your still too deep. dont put much credit into that, plus I dont like buying new blades all the time, but I do know they are much shallower than the Cutts. [
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Is that just at strawberry or does the same theory hold true for rainbows in other lakes as well?
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Well I do know they dont usually hold as deep as other fish, but they can still be mixed in with perch at 40+ feet, and with the splake at 50 feet, but for a general rule they are usually shallower than most other fish. [
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Great tips. Thanks a bunch. I have Friday-Monday off and will have to get up there at least once or twice to fish for the bows in the shallows, weather permit. Saturday looks like a bust with the wind and snow coming in early Saturday. By the way, there are some huge cutts in the Berry. My friends sister-in-law caught a 19.5 pound (not inch) cutt 200 yards off the Strawberry Bay boat ramp two weeks ago. That had to be one mean chub munchin machine.[shocked]
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[shocked]Holy Crap! That's a monster!! I didn't know there was fish THAT big in there. I knew 10 lbs, but 19? Wow! How the heck did she get it through the hole? Oh yeah, what did she catch it on-just the usual? Got any pictures of that bad boy?
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[shocked]WOW[shocked] Sounds like the Berry is getting back to what it was so many decades ago. [
]Right on thats awesome.
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I guess they had a bit of a problem getting it to nose up into the hole and it took two to drag it up through. If it was a big Bow, they would have needed a chainsaw to get a "football" that size through the hole. My guess this fish either had a glandular problem or was just a big pig. Maybe that is where all the rainbows went I am not sure of the picture status, but if I get one, I will post it. I am not sure of the lure other than it was the standard thing they use tipped with a worm. There have got to be more of those chub munchers down there with someones name on them. Mine I hope.
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