Early Patterns For Trout Lakes

“Typically you want to use just enough Nitro to cover the hook or to float a spawn bag,” he says. “Some guys get a little out of control with it and use too much. A ball of Nitro should be barely larger than a real salmon egg, most days. Orange, salmon-egg pink, and rainbow swirl patterns are the hottest selling versions of Nitro Premium.

“The rigging is nothing fancy. In clear water, a 2- or 3-foot fluorocarbon leader testing 4 to 6 pounds, tied to a small black or non-reflective barrel swivel is key. Trout are line-shy and suspicious of everything. A sliding egg sinker goes on the 6- to 8-pound mainline above the swivel. Eagle Claw sells egg sinkers, too, and I use a 1/16-ounce version on flat-calm days but might go up to a 3/8- or 1/2-ounce sinker on really windy days. At the end of the leader, tie on a size #8 Eagle Claw 141 hook and you’re in business. A lot of people use hooks and line too big for the job. Use the smallest, lightest example of everything that you can get away with.

“Location is simple for rainbows. The biggest fish in stocked lakes are broodstock and holdovers. Every year they come back to the boat ramp where they were originally stocked, following a false spawning urge,” says Smiley. Of course, lakes where natural reproduction occurs tend to have a stream or two running in, though some rainbows like the Kamloops variety can spawn in lakes. All rainbows, however, gather or stage near stream mouths in early spring.

Brookies and brown trout continue using shallow flats. In lakes without many shallow flats, the biggest flats become key spots. In a lake with lots of them, the key spots tend to be near creek mouths or along shorelines where there’s seepage from an adjacent wetland.

“Cruisers can be located visually, too,” Smiley points out. “They can be approached by spin-fishing with ultralight tubes and marabou jigs scented with Nitro Gravy, giving them something to key on.” The presentation has to be slow, which means trout have time to get a good whiff. If they smell L-serine, a natural amino acid on your hands that repels trout, it’s adios el trouto.

“Fly-fishing can be effective at ice-off, too,” he says. “We’re imitating trout or salmon eggs with patterns like nuclear eggs, crystal-flash eggs. Bunny-strip leeches work, too—anything slow. Rainbows pretend they’re spawning until the water is just over 40°F,” he adds. “A brief window opens for success with floating Rapalas and Husky Jerks, but when the water hits 50°F, insect hatches start to become prolific. That’s when baitfishing from shore really tapers off, because trout are so focused on the insect activity.”