[Lead Dog]

It's Dry/Wet flys vs Roostertails/Artificial lures: I know alot of people on these threads fish, my question is how many use Flys vs Roostertails and other like lures, and which do you thing work best on high mountain lakes. I have seen where wind totaly ruins Fly fishing, but at other times fake lures aren't the answer either. How about some input? I personally like a Brown Roostertail with 2 hooks cut off and a pinched barb.

[salish]

LD, I fish flies almost all of the time, usually with wets, but sometimes with a dry if there's a hatch coming off. I use a plain old floating line and sometimes go to a 10ft sink tip line. I also pack a small spinning reel for when fly fishing is difficult to do, and I like Kastmaster lures in blue/silver, brass, and all silver. I also like Flatfish - can't remember the size but they're about 2" long. I also like the Mepps Spin-Fly, which is a singlehook lure made to look like a Wooly Worm with a spindle & blade. There are some other lures that I can't remember the name of right now that are good on high lakes. I remove all treble hooks and on lures and replace them with Gamaktsu siwash style single hooks and pinch the barbs. I probably lose a few fish this way, but they're easy to release, which is what I do with most of my fish. What is sometimes a real killer on high lakes is a casting bubble on a spinning setup with flies. I've had especially good luck with a bead head nymph on these types of rigs. So you can try flies even if it's windy. And then there's always good old Pautzkes Balls of Fire salmon eggs. Hey, I love dry flies and fine, hand planed bamboo fly rods, but I'm no elitest - if nothing else is working and I want a couple of trout for the pan I have no qualms about using an egg Curious to hear what others use. Cliff

[Hiker Boy]

I'll second the Flatfish recommendation.

[Lead Dog]

When we went to Idaho 2 years ago I put on a brown Roostertail and left it on for 7 days. That lure caught 75+ trout ranging in size from 15in. and 1 pound to 24+ in. and 4-5 pounds. After the trip it got "retired". I have had such good luck with the Roostertails that I don't use anything else. I would like to try new lures and will use your input in the future. I am going back to that spot in Idaho next year. The great thing about the lakes we went into is that since we left 2 years ago there's a good chance no body has been there since.

[Alpine]

I'd have to concur with Salish on most of his lure choices. One more that I'd suggest is a Super Duper. It's kind of a u-shaped lure (hard to describe) that has action similar to a flatfish. I've caught a lot of fish on those things!

[Blake]

Most mountain-lake trout will bite just about anything. For big old selective trout, i'd go with small drab colored nymphs and scuds.

[Brian Curtis]

I had a friend who used to only use brown Roostertails. Then one day we were at a lake and spotted a really nice fish cruising the shallows. He got is rod put together first and the fish would not hit his Roostertail. He gave me a shot at it. Using a spoon, I landed a nice 16" fish. From that moment on he started carrying more variety in his lure box. I find that from lake to lake and area to area and day to day the best lure changes. Sometimes flies are most effective. Some days they have to be dry, some days they have to be wet. Sometimes lures are the most effective. In some lakes the fish are deep, in others they are in the shallows. I've seen lakes were two people using different techniques each caught a different species of fish all day. I carry a variety of flies and lures. I carry 2 fly rods (I'm prone to breaking 'em. I once broke 2 rods in the first 3 days of a 13 day trip), a fly reel, and a spinning reel. If I'm fishing from a boat I'll normally start fishing flies or Flatfish (red, orange, or black and in certain lakes green), depening on how the lake looks. From the shore I'll often use spoons (It is hard to cast a Flatfish) Jakes Spin-a-lure(1/4 oz brass, black, or white) is probably my favorite, followed by Krocodiles (3/16 to 1/4 oz, brass and red) and Kamlooper Jr (3/16 oz, red/white or orange). I keep a few of other miscellaneous lures in my box in case the fish are being extra picky. And most importantly, I carry a Rite-In-The-Rain notebook and pencil I record the length of each fish and often the weight along with various notes about the lake. The information is then entered into the survey form at the Trail Blazers' website so it is delivered to the appropriate WDFW biologist.

[Brian Curtis]

[Trevor]

I've experienced equally amazing success on kastmasters and small tiger-striped spoons. Last year I caught a 7 pound rainbow trout in a lake in Monroe on a small-dotted-white kastmaster.

[Criminal]

Oh this just makes me miss fishing even more... Question: If I get my fishing license now, doesn't it expire in April? I think I should wait until then.

[Dslayer]

If I had to have only lure-it would be the brass Kastmaster-but the secret is less one 'special' lure/fly/bait then having a variety and being willing to adjust and improvise, colors, retrieves, 'baits,' to find something that works. I'm having more success these days with olive and black wooly buggers pulled behind a plastic bubble. Another lure I like a lot is Jake's Spin-a-Lure-Cliff got me on that one. I rarely fish a new place, so most of my spots, I have a 'baseline' of what's worked in the past and start from there. I always like to look at what other guys have in their tackle box, I assume they have what's in there because they catch fish with them. One of the things I got from this thread is brown roostertails-I usually always have black, but not brown-I'll be getting a few of those.

[Lead Dog]

A big thank you to all who responded. I'm going to have to buy a bigger backpack to hold all the lures I've read about!!

[salish]

[Dave Weyrick]

Don't forget to include the gold 1/4 oz. Thomas Bouyant spoon. I've caught more fish on this lure than all others combined.

[Lead Dog]

I keep my first aid kit in a 35mm film container. You mean I'll have to carry 2 now?