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The Fight Fish Dreams are Made of...
by: Rick Schroeder 5/21/2012
I am one of those people that believe if you want to catch big fish you need to fish big fish waters. While this contradicts most of the fishing I do in the high country in the off season I spend a lot of my time trying to target these big fish waters. I have spent lots of time fighting them and losing them, and analyzing why I lost them afterwards. Up until this weekend I had never broke the 10lb class on trout, I have hooked into a few but because of nicked line, bad knots, wrong position, horsing the fish and just plain wrong technique I have lost the fight… and they have haunted my dreams.
This morning I woke up with a smile as I dreamt about the one that didn’t get away. I found myself on the Blue River for a couple hours as a trip lead for a Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing Event. I found a very nice untouched run and fished the run working the whole thing with not even a bump. I then moved to some slow deep water above the run and made the first cast, it was an instant hook up. Right away it took off downstream, I ran after it trying to keep up and reel in some line. Back up stream and around a rock, I followed making sure it did not snag on the rock. It sat in the current for a while occasionally headshaking whenever I tried to move his head to make him fight. Finally he had enough and took off downstream again. Once again I was trying to keep up this time he decided he was going over the waterfall and into the fast current. Trying to keep up the guy helping me net him eats it hard, but is OK enough to get up on his own. Using the current he takes me for another ride still I’m able to keep up.
Then things got ugly and he headed back to the waterfall and to the deep rocks. Thinking he is trying to get under the rocks I position myself above him on the waterfall, trying to turn his head down stream and not break off on the rocks. As I’m doing all this I see his head pop up the waterfall and he swims right up as if it was nothing. We were back above the waterfall now, my poor net man trying to keep up. The fight goes on with him moving in and out of the current and me arms burning wondering if I’m ever going to be in charge of this fight. Than it happened I tried to turn him and he gave in. He was on the ropes, I lift his head and move him to the net guy… but he still wasn’t ready. He saw the net and took off. Hoping it was his last big charge I start moving him to the net again. This time everything looks smooth and the net guy tries to net him tail first, being too large for the net he kicks out easily almost winning the battle. He will have to go in head first. Repositioning the net we finally land him. Roughly a 30 minute fight that had my arms burning my net guy a sprained wet wrist, but we had won. What a fight, my largest fish to date and a day I’m sure I’ll dream about for many more nights.
 Blog content © Rick Schroeder Member comments moosegoose, CO 5/21/2012 12:29:01 PM
Awesome fish, congrats! Coloradomrg, CO 5/21/2012 4:02:19 PM
Beautiful! masteroftheloch, CO 5/21/2012 4:23:57 PM
Wow, that is amazing! I have never seen a trout that big in any of the tailwaters I have fished. Even with the all the pigs that come out of the pan and the taylor this thing tops the charts. My hats off to you for landing this fish. By the way, I was hoping you would entertain me and tell me what size tippet you caught that on? Rick Schroeder (ePiC), CO 5/21/2012 6:31:03 PM
was using 4x... no record breaking here, lol. reconfisher, CO 5/21/2012 8:05:13 PM
Very nice rainbow man! and thanks for helping out with Project Healing waters! Browns Hunter, CO 5/21/2012 9:03:43 PM
Congrats, Rick! That is awesome! Well done! moosegoose, CO 5/21/2012 11:02:47 PM
Talked with one of the guys in Project Healing Waters this morning when I got to work. He was all smiles. He also plans to continue fishing when he gets home after he gets out of the medical evaluation board. Rick Schroeder (ePiC), CO 5/22/2012 5:36:30 PM
Alan, thats what its all about right there... we have one guy that went on this trip with us that went to guide school and got his license. Its great to see the passion they have for fishing and how it helps them emotionally as well as physically. skunkmaster, CO 5/22/2012 10:26:16 PM
Way to go Rick. Epic battle, Epic fish, for Mr. Epic! Congratulations. JKaboom, CO 5/25/2012 10:20:23 AM
Great story to match that AWESOME Rainbow!!!!
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