Enormous rainbows

[JDTuna]

Originally Posted by bigfishy

Impressive for sure buuuuttt??? triploids rite next to the farm thats raising them?? common...Would it be more challenging to cast into the holding pens and try to fight them out to the river??Guess i'ld do it if i lived there but not often....New Zealand has lots of gigantic native and wild trout that would keep me busy over those engineered mutants.....I think RV toyed with the idea of stocking triploids at one time...Not sure what the hold up waz? Impressive size none the less

The rainbows and browns in the canals are a wild, self sustaining populations. They are not tripod, or stocked. Pens were used to raise salmon, not trout.

These canals hold both brown and rainbow trout up to 40 pounds. No trout fishery in the world can produce as many trophy wild trout.

[JDTuna]

Originally Posted by Rapidfflow0

Go to British Columbia for steelhead bigger fish and a reasonably cheap easy DIY trip. 7 years in a row for me now

Beautiful fish! BC does have big steelhead, but very few (if any) would approach 30 to 40lbs like the fish in the canals.

[Rapidfflow0]

Originally Posted by JDTuna

Beautiful fish! BC does have big steelhead, but very few (if any) would approach 30 to 40lbs like the fish in the canals.

True but I see plenty of wild sea run 20lb steelhead every year and have personally witnessed 2 at or over 30. A friend who goes to bc every year did this trip last year. He loaned me the book written by the guru of that canal fishing over there. His exact words were save your money and do an extra month or two in BC

[Rapidfflow0]

This is what you want to get your hands on if you really want to know about that fishery.

[icebadger]

very impressive fish indeed.. i have never witnessed a rainbow trout at 33lbs then again i have not traveled outside the U.S. that much to have seen anything like that..

[O'Connor]

Pulaski area is of course great, but besides the lake ontario tribs there are two other trout fishing spots I've tried which are incredible.

1.) Olypmpic Peninsula, Forks Washington. Fish the Calawah, Hoh and Sol Duc River for Natural steelhead. late January - March is when the native fish come through. The scenery is insane..the hoh river is opaque in color. never seen anything like it. We did very well steelhead fresh from the Pacific...fish are so bright you had to wear sunglasses. also sprinkled in were cuthroat trout. Piscatorial Pursuits is the guide I went with. excellent.


2.) Milwaukee Harbor, Milwaukee, WI. Fished with Eric Hataaja. Former Marine, real solid guy....about as enthusiastic a fisherman as you can imagine. check him out on FB. absolute enormous browns. He fishes all the tribe of Lake Michigan and the lake itself. High recommend. Was catching teen sized browns in the shadows of Milwaukee sky scrapers while guys in suits were walking by. good times. good steelhead as well.

[RichS]

I fished NZ about 20 years ago for spawning run bows in the Tongariro. Imagine fishing pubic water with a good shot at a lake run rainbow up to 15lb. and seeing 1 other person all day. I caught a 2,5 & 7lb in 1/2 day fishing. Lost a big one when the line wrapped around the reel seat. The guys at the shop said the fishing had been slow. Fished other rivers for browns and never saw another person. Would love to get back, but I'd go to a remote spot for big browns. I can watch NZ trout videos all day.

[Capt. Lou]

I have to agree BC can to produce some big bows . I fished several rivers out their and lakes for kamloops as well but the Dean was my favorite . I got my biggest steelhead on the Dean min 90's estimated weight over 20# + Those Dean fish fought hard and it's a beautiful piece of water , a friend got a 30# fish out of the Thompson . There were big bows in many of these waters but lately they taken a hit , but like they say timing is everything .
The Kamloops Rainbows at the Douglaston Lakes ranch were some of the toughest bows I've taken they could literally pull your float tube all over the lake.
All fly caught fish out west .