Gorge bows

[Fishy43]

Hardly ever see people talking about the Rainbows at the Gorge, but there have to be some monsters in there, right?
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[cuthroat_guy]

That's cuz nobody will divulge that information......



Id give all my lake trout info out, before I would ever hint about the bows
[cool]

Good luck with that
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[brookieguy1]

Some of my favorite stillwater fishing is at the Gorge. The rainbow fishing in that lake is way underrated in my opinion. I've had so many great spring and fall trips there fishing for those 'bows. My favorite areas are Sheep Creek Bay and the Buckboard area. Olive maribou jigs in 1/16 ounce are my staple. A nice brown comes to hand occasionally also, as well as smallies.
As far as size goes, I've caught lots around 4lbs, but the average is a solid 17-18". My biggest is probably around 5#. There are surely bigger in there, as Dale Canty knows.
I don't even mess with the lake trout. The 'bows are much funner!
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[Hellsangler69]

I love going after them thru the ice . Didn't make it this year
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[Flyfishinglover]

Years ago in the summer time gosh I caught some nice fat 18" and some bigger guns who snapped my line that was 3+ years ago since I touched that lake. 12 lbs line snapped got to say something about the big bow that was screaming my drag till it broke loose..
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[fishnate]

How do you know it was a rainbow? Did you see it? We regularly catch pup macks mixed in with rainbows. Massive carp in there too.
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[riverdog]

Says you didn't check for nicks in the line. 12 lb test is more than capable of landing a 50 lb fish.
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[TubeDude]

[quote riverdog]Says you didn't check for nicks in the line. 12 lb test is more than capable of landing a 50 lb fish.[/quote]

[#0000FF]Not if there is a loose nut on the reel handle.[/#0000FF]
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[JLW]

[quote TubeDude][quote riverdog]Says you didn't check for nicks in the line. 12 lb test is more than capable of landing a 50 lb fish.[/quote]

[#0000ff]Not if there is a loose nut on the reel handle.[/#0000ff][/quote]

Or the Old slip knot....[crazy]
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[remo_5_0]

April when they "spawn" is when I go, found a few honey holes that hold some large Bows'. I love fishing the Gorge for them.
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[remo_5_0]

[quote fishnate]How do you know it was a rainbow? Did you see it? We regularly catch pup macks mixed in with rainbows. Massive carp in there too.[/quote]

Why would you dare question FFL? [:/] The kid catches monster fish and can tell by feel what type and size fish is on the end of the line! [crazy]
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[line_dangler]

The Gorge is a great place for bows. My absolute favorite for them, and yes there are some real big ones in there. I tell you what, when the water temperatures are cooler like around now through May it seems (in my opinion) to be the best time for them.

My favorite technique for them is to troll with worm harnesses and small trolls in front of the worm harness. I like to put either a small dead minnow on the end of the harness, or nice nightcrawler or crayfish. I tell you what when the larger bows hit them they go nuts. I can't tell you how much I love this. [fishin]

Also, you can get them with tube jigs darker green/red/brownish color (that resemble crayfish colors). If you fish from a boat you can gently drop/drag the jig on the bottow or just cast out as far as you can and let it sink and retrieve.

There are lots of bows in the Gorge that are 26 inches +. [fishin]
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[gmwahl]

The gorge is my absolute #1 favorite spot for large rainbows. I've caught bows up to 29" in years past (not too common, but its happened twice!).
I know that some like to fish it during the spawn for easy 18-20" fish, and I'm one of em, but they are really good to eat after they get the spawn out of their systems. I fish for bows at the gorge for the pan and leave the bigger lakers to catch another time.
As for a secret? Why not. I really catch my biggest ones fishing at night using dead minnows, 3-4" seems about right. It's not super fast, but it can be predictable at times. I fish them under a bobber about 3-8' deep and usually from a boat. The courtesy dock at cedar springs can be a hot bite also. If you want the fishing to be faster just a smaller minnow or night crawler is all it takes, but the fish size drops a little. June and July are my favorite months for night fishing and I've been surprised by several big browns over the years also while fishing at night.
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[fishjon]

November and 3" tubes fished in any shallow rocky structure. I've had lots of days when I've caught bows, Macs, and big smallies of the same rock pile. I don't know why but it seems like my November smallies are always the biggest.
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[fishnate]

[quote remo_5_0][quote fishnate]How do you know it was a rainbow? Did you see it? We regularly catch pup macks mixed in with rainbows. Massive carp in there too.[/quote]

Why would you dare question FFL? [:/] The kid catches monster fish and can tell by feel what type and size fish is on the end of the line! [crazy][/quote]

My bad, I am ashamed[pirate]

I'm headed to the Gorge this weekend. for bows and pups with my 6, 8 and 12 lb line. I'll throw some flies, some jigs and some cranks. I can't wait! I'll put most of them back so you guys can catch 'em next time.
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[FishMcFisherson]

Obviously it was a 60lb fish...
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[brookieguy1]

[quote TubeDude][quote riverdog]Says you didn't check for nicks in the line. 12 lb test is more than capable of landing a 50 lb fish.[/quote]

[#0000ff]Not if there is a loose nut on the reel handle.[/#0000ff][/quote]T-Dude, that's profound and hilarious at the same time!
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[Flyfishinglover]

It splashed like a whale about 30 ft away from me.
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[TheScout]

[/quote]
[#0000FF]Not if there is a loose nut on the reel handle.[/#0000FF][/quote]


Made my day...![cool]

Most often that tends to be my problem!
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Glad ya liked it.

We have all lost fish...for various reasons. But most anglers tend to fix the blame on the fish. In reality, it is usually fishermen who lose fish...not that the fish got away. Especially with broken lines.

Can't believe the lack of knowledge and/or preparation most anglers put into their fishing. They buy poor quality tackle...rods, reels, lines, etc. Then they don't change their line often enough. They have reels with poor drags and don't even bother to set them properly. Or, they have a heavy stiff action rod with light poor quality line. And don't get me started on knots. Some knots work and some don't. Many anglers don't take the time to learn the best knots for the line they are using and the type of fishing they are doing. They do a "power set" on a big fish and the line breaks. But it is the fishes' fault...or the guy at Sportsmans who sold them the wrong line...or put the line on the reel wrong. Anything but losing the fish because of poor equipment or technique.

I'm done here...at least for now.
[/#0000FF]
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