all i can say is WOW. if any of you guys/gals want to experience a unique trophy trout fishery, eagle lake is the place.
eagle is a natural "remnant" lake once a part of the great lake lahontan. after the last ice age and through the present, as lahontan receded, landlocked basins were left creating individual lakes such as pyramid, mono, walker, and eagle wherein each body of water developed unique characterstics as did the trout within them. eagle was one of the lucky ones in which fish can still survive. mono lake is devoid of fish. pyramid lake is famous for its gargantuan cutthroats.
the eagle lake trout is prized by any fisherman who knows about these rare fish. they forage on tui chubs and speckled dace also naturally surviving there. there is an active hatchery facility at the lake that seeks to maintain the genetic purity of the eagle lake strain. they conduct spring and fall stockings totaling over 250,000 fish per year. fall stockings contain the larger fish raised to ~ 1 lb. the hatchery tags all fish with liquid nitrogen which leaves a lifelong circular dark spot just below the dorsal fin. this allows one to distinguish the native fish from hatchery fish. they routinely inspect fish brought back to the docks, take relative weights, and track the success of each stocking event. once a year in the fall, they also release ~10,000 fish raised to 3 pounds.
due to poor rain totals this year, the lake is way down, and the pH has climbed to the mid-9's. there have been large fish kills in years past when the pH's rose to over 10. regulations are strict and strictly enforced to protect this place. due to the current conditions, all catch and release is prohibited. they've observed that at the high pH levels, the stress to the fish from catching kills it so they want you to catch and keep (i.e. you could be done for the day if you catch two fish before sunrise). its a two fish per day limit, with a "four in possession" rule, which comes into play at the bug stations between CA and NV. despite the heavy regs, its definitely worth a trip there.
prior to trip, the fishing was expected to be really tough by all who reported on it. once there, lots of folks we talked to were getting skunked. it was really tough fishing from both conditions and catchability standpoints. by all accounts however our group did really well, and my brother and i stumbled onto to a couple of techniques that really kept us on fish. i wish I could turn the clock back. the lake conditions ranged from calm and beautiful to raging waters with 6+ ft swells and 40-50 mph winds. The weather was really cold and we got snowed on one day��it was incredible to be fishing in the snow. in years past i was told 4 and 5 pounders ruled the day, anything less was thrown back. 11.5 pounds is the lake record. in our group this year, the "average" fish caught was ~2 lbs. my largest was 4.25 lb....which tied my brother and another feller for largest fish. they fight like salmon and really test you and yer equipment.
i never used to take any pics at all on these kinds of trips. i am getting a little better about this these days, and did get a few pics of these wondeful fish we caught.
my first eagle lake trout�..a sweet 2 pounder
me and brother with one of our limit catches
another limit catch for us
last day roundup.
all fish are put in community ice chests and divied up on last day.
being a newbie in the group, they let me keep a couple of my four pounders, these are the four I got to take home. we caught many more males than females, and most were wild fish. not too many hatchery fish. in the top fish you can discern the hatchery mark
the meat is intensely colored, pink like salmon. last night after getting home, we cooked one with butter in foil on the grill��..best tasting trout i have ever had bar none.
somebody slap me and wake me up
i dont want to go back to work
