Striking Gold, the Story Continues

A nice stop for lunch and some California Gold. The hike up was uneventful (and not particularly scenic), until we arrived at what I will dub Halfway Meadow, about an hour into the stroll. In typical meadow-creek fashion, the tiny stream meandered through the lush meadow, twisting and turning this way and that. Each bend, pool and run contained as many beautifully colored 4-7" Golden Trout as you could catch, before an errant shadow would send the whole lot scurrying every which way. Stealth, as with most small streams, was the order of the day - the deeply cut banks beguiled the fact that this stream flows in a much more robust fashion during the high water of Spring and summer snow-melt, the low-water no doubt playing a part in the paranoia of the delightful inhabitants.

Fortunately, the fish were perfectly happy to rise to a decently presented anything, so the robust floatation of the Spongebob Caddis made quick work of a few dozen pint-sized trout while we spent a couple relaxing hours in the meadow enjoying lunch and the crisp mid-day air of the High Sierra.

A low profile and casting from out of sight was the key to the meadow stream. "You planning on eating all that?"As we stepped back onto the trail, we quickly began the ascent portion of the hike, where the required elevation gain from 10,200 ft to roughly 11,000 feet picked up in just a couple short miles. The hike, as promised, turned out to be quite mild, though as we passed groups of other hikers on the trail, I couldn't help but look at their packs, reminded of my own just a few years back, and think to myself how much more enjoyable their hike would be if they could shave their packs from 40lbs + to sub 30lbs. I'm far from an ultralighter, but I did come to the realization a couple years ago that a lighter pack meant a more enjoyable hike, without sacrificing anything in the way of camp comfort.. It leaves me more time and energy to spend on fishing. If you're still backpacking with a 45-lb pack, you need to really consider looking over your gear list and figuring out where to shave the pounds - you'll be surprised how easy it is.

Just 100 feet from the site of our tent, the pond offered great warm up fishing. Not a bad view too!As we crested the ridge beyond which lay our destination lakes, we were struck by the beauty of the landscape, and by the wind - mainly the wind. There on the unprotected shelf, the wind was gusting what must have been 40mph. Hoping to find a nice sheltered campsite near the middle lake in the drainage, we arrived to find the promised location had excellent wind shelter in all directions, except the direction the wind was blowing. When a large group we had passed atop the ridge stopped to inquire if they might use this site, we happily obliged and sought a campsite closer to the granite walls that offered shelter from the howling wind. This middle lake offered quite some length for fetch, and at one end the wind had frothed the lake into foot-tall swells with whitecaps, not the mirror-glass sheen of a tranquil alpine lake we'd been looking for anyway. We took a few moments to consider our options while chipmunks watched us, growing ever bolder as they eyed our trail mix.

Typical cruiser from the pond. California Gold. The search for shelter brought us to a small pond, just below the outlet of the larger lake, but with considerably more shelter, and improved access to other parts of the drainage. We would make this home for the first night, though we ended up liking it so much we never moved camp. The small pond was filled with 5-8" Golden Trout, and between the strongest gusts, was perfectly fishable in the wind. The campsite proved an excellent location to make hikes to the other lakes in the area. We made quick work of setting up camp, and spent some time fishing dries to the small cruisers in the pond.

I couldn't help but be drawn to the sounds of the flowing water in the outlet stream, a steep, brush choked stream that lead down to the next lake in the system. As I fished the stream, were I could, I was impressed with the size of the fish that were making a living in this tiny water.

I caught this fish accidentally, trying to hook his larger pool-mate.

Robert caught up with me as I reached the banks of the downstream lake, and we continued flogging the water with small dries until hunger got the best of us. Back at camp we fired up the Jetboil, had a couple mountain house meals, and plotted revenge on any and all Oncorhynchus Mykiss Aguabonita specimens that had eluded us in the afternoon session. After a short hike, we were again standing on the shores of the lake. Dusk just moments away, the lake was filled with rings, as if rain was falling upon the surface, only these disturbances were coming from below the meniscus, the evening rise was upon us.
Its not raining.
Fishing to risers in the light of the moon. Welcome to the Sierra. The fish obliged us with more than our fair share of rises, and we returned the favor with quick photos and a hurried return to the water. To reach more fish, we waded ever further into the icy water, and the bites continued. Fish turned from eager to downright stupid as the moon rose, and we fished until the chills got bad enough to force the headlamps on and the reluctant march back towards camp.

Night falls quickly in the high Sierra, and the warmth of the afternoon gives way quickly to the chilling cold of the moonlight, and your intrepid angler/narrator found his way into the sleeping bag before Primetime television would have normally come to a close. Finding sleep in the evening hours is always a challenge, and awake, bored and intrigued by the piercing light of the full moon, we decided to step out of the tent for some experimentation with P&S cameras and long exposures, capturing some interesting images of a California 14'er basking in the moonlight, though wishing that my SLR battery hadn't reported dead earlier in the evening (it was back to "full" charge after a night of rest, go figure).

A California 14'er in the cool light of a full moon.

Comments

[Ben]

Ray,

What a fantastic looking trip. The photos are superb and I really enjoyed reading your account of your expedition. Thank you for sharing.

Ben

[Professor]

Stumbled across your blog via Trout Underground and I'm digging it. Did my own Golden hunt earlier this year in the Northern Sierras where I live. Great post and great pictures!

[Luc]

Enjoying your trip though your prose.

[Josh]

God those goldens are gorgeous little fish. The Sierras are absolutely beautiful, and it looks like you had a fantastic trip. Thanks for showing us the pics.