Fishing Forum

Took a 360 mile day trip to the south for a chance to float around and bend the rod.

Upon arrival, the water was still calm at the state park, so I tossed out a minnow to soak while I pumped up my tube and readied my gear.

Before I knew it, a nice thick rainbow was on the line.



The hard fight was appreciated greatly. It gave me hope as I shoved off in the tube.

Knowing my float time was limited by the impending wind, I kicked out to the west side of the dam to drag some beefy streamers along the face.

Before getting there, I picked up a chunky girl on a chironomid. Bad pic, but she was just under 19 inches and round.



She really didn't want to come in. I dare say that these Otter 'bows fight harder than any other rainbows that I've met.

Another mean rainbow sat on my lap after playing tug-of-war with a white zonker. That was my most productive fly for the day until it popped off.



The fish brawl continued for a short while before the dreaded wind arrived. At that point, I retreated to the shoreline, working the north hump between the boat ramp and the pavilion at the state park. That was the only area with calm water, but I couldn't get any action there. After a couple of hours without a bite, I left the park and went out to the south point.

The finger of land that stretches out into the water provided a bit of a wind break and a perfect platform to get in some fly casting from shore. The fish were staged just off the leeward side of that point and within my casting range.







From the point:





My only other trip to Otter Creek (last April) left me somewhat disappointed with only a few skinny fish coming in. I'm very glad that I had the chance to change my opinion of this great fishery.

The day ended with bunch of rewarding battles from nice chunky rainbows. The smallest fish of the day was over 16 inches long and very thick. The rest were just icing on the cake.

The light ducked behind the skyline to end another great day of fishing.



Happy Fishing, Humans.
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Excellent report and pictures LOAH. Thanks for sharing. What a great day of open water fishing.
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Good job LOAH. Thanks for the great report. You drove 360 miles to report on my stompin' grounds! Shoulda went there instead of Fishlake yesterday. (We won't talk about that!) I know where I'll be next week.
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