Fishing for Big Brown Trout: Should you fish during Spawn?

SHOULD YOU FISH FOR TROUT DURING THE SPAWN?
Troutbitten Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2h99YzHLgIwbEMTDu9n6ZG

Brown trout have a way of making anglers lose their minds. There aren’t many other fish on the planet that can cause such division among the anglers that chase them. The passion these fish seem to invoke in people is probably part of the reason that they’ve been so successful, with brown trout living from Georgia, to Maine, and all of the way out to Rocky mountains and the Sierras. These fabled fish are arguably not only the most popular trout in the US, but also the world.

Okay so let’s not beat around the bush… This video was filmed on October 15th. And I know some of you are already hopping on your keyboard to leave a comment about how I shouldn’t be fishing because of the spawn… Which is exactly what I plan on talking about in this video. But before we go to far lets go over a brief timeline of the brown trout spawn. The fish generally start pairing up anywhere between September and October as they push up the creeks or look for their favorite spawning gravel. The spawn itself, or at least what most people consider the spawn, then starts and usually goes from November into December before a majority of the fish are done. Once the fish are done spawning the eggs sit on the nests, or redds for several months before they hatch. The fry then hatch and dodge predators for the rest of their lives pretty much. Now obviously this happens differently across the US, with some fish spawning as early as October or as late as February in some tail-waters. But the general timeline you need to know is the fish pair up, spawn, and leave the eggs on the redds throughout the winter months. In other words the spawn is a long drawn out process.

I’d just like to say that I am in no way advocating for anyone to fish while the trout are spawning, and in some areas it’s even illegal. HOWEVER I think that education is far more important than making blanket statements about what people should and should not do, and I find it hilarious with some of the hypocrisies that we as anglers tolerate, and even spread, without putting much thought into it. And one of them is what I just mentioned.. people avoiding November only to fish December and January.. or whenever post spawn is where you fish. When in reality I could argue that running through a redd post spawn is not only more detrimental because they all should theoretically have eggs on them, but the redds are also more difficult to identify during that time of the year because of sedimentation and other factors. Not only that but the brown trout this time of year are skinny, worn out, and generally in bad shape after spawn. So if you’re going to take the moral high ground and not fish for spawning brown trout, you should probably take the winter off too.

The next hilarious point I’m going to make is rainbow trout… and how literally nobody cares. I mean spring time is when the highest volume of anglers are on the water, which perfectly coincides with when the peak spawn is for rainbow trout, and even cutthroat if you live out west. Yet nobody says you can’t fish in the spring? Not once have I read a comment about how I’m fishing during the rainbow trout spawn? But here I am catching rainbow trout after rainbow trout, struggling to keep them off of my fly. Also let’s not forget that during the spring is when a high majority of the baitfish spawn, such as suckers and chubs, which are the main forage for brown trout. So you’d think if we loved brown trout so much we’d care about their forage too right? I know this is ridiculous but I’m trying to make a point.

What it comes down to is that if you truly wanted to leave wild trout alone and let them spawn without interruption, you wouldn’t be fishing from October to May, and then with water temps becoming an issue you really shouldn’t be fish a lot of rivers in July and August. Which leaves… let me check.. June and September? This assumes you have both wild rainbow trout and wild brown trout in your river system, or some similar combination, But my point stays the same. I think us as anglers, especially fly anglers who practice catch and release, feel we have some moral high ground while fishing and that we do no harm. But in reality fishing, much like hunting, is an activity where we are inherently effecting the fish in a negative way. So I think we all need to take a deep breath, relax, and let people enjoy these fish. And if you love them so much that you feel the need to only fish for 2 months out of the year, then more power to you. But as long as people are following the laws and regulations let them have fun and try to educate rather than demean them. Because the more people we have enjoying fishing the more people we have to protect the fish when the time comes. Thanks for watching.

#fishing #troutfishing #flyfishing