Thousand Lake Mountain Trip

I'd needed to get away badly these last few weeks, and I was searching for a place to fish that was remote but not under a lot of snow. Luckily, after talking with a good friend of mine, I settled on fishing what's accessible on Thousand Lake Mountain right now.

So Friday afternoon, I loaded up my gear and made the 3.5 hour drive into this beautiful country.

I was lucky to get in with good weather. I pitched my tent, gathered some firewood, cooked dinner, then immediately began fishing. After messing around with some Marabou jigs and different baits, I tied on the ever-trusty Jake's lure. Sure enough, my first cast resulted in a fish!

Not exactly the size of fish I was after, but a fish is a fish nonetheless, and I was happy to hook this one. Even though he was small, I got a lot of fight out of him. In fact, every fish I pulled in Friday night fought like a trophy sized trout! 

I kept catching these beefy rainbow trout all night long. Every Cutt I pulled in was proportioned just about what you'd expect for 8-11 inch trout. However, these Bows all had huge bulging bellies! This is a good sign, as it means  this lake is full of food and supports a good stable population of trout through the winter months. 

A lot of the Bows I pulled in were just beautifully colored. 

As the night progressed, I kept catching fish all in this same range. I knew that some bigger ones existed, it was only a matter of finding out exactly where. 

After I caught 20 fish, I lost count for the night. Right as the sun dipped below the mountains to the west, I managed to wrangle in this beauty of a Cutthroat. 

Absolutely gorgeous coloration! The odd thing about this catch, though, was how it took it. I was pulling the Jake's in along the shoreline, no more than 10 feet out. My lure can't have been more than 7 feet from shore when I saw a big dark shape following it. I slowed up for a second, gave my Jake's a little action, and the Cutt nailed it! Immediately, my drag started whining and this guy took off into deeper water. After a few minutes, I tuckered him out and landed him. I had to take multiple pictures, because I couldn't believe how pretty he was!

After that catch, I fished for a little while longer until dark, only catching smaller fish as before. The next morning, I made a short hike into another lake near where I was camped. 

On my first cast, I pulled in this nice Tiger. 

Easily, the best fishing of the trip! I fished that lake for another hour without a single bite, then decided it was time to get heading home. I took a few shots of the breathtaking views on my way out.

All in all, this trip was great, and exactly what I needed to get ready for fishing Boulder as soon as the roads are open!