Westy Based on the great information posted below, I change my answer to a definitive Coastal cutthroat. Thanks Thomas Mitchell for the education -- I always love to learn new things!
Are you sure about that Dan? That looks exactly like a typical O. clarkii clarkii Coastal Cutthroat to me. Westslopes typically do not have much spotting below the lateral line on the front of the fish. Plus, they are not native to western Washington (west of the Cascade crest) although there are a few headwater streams with some westslopes that have washed out of lakes,etc. like the South Fork Snoqualmie. Westslope images Coastal images Patrick - what we typically refer to as 'sea-runs' are the anadromous life history of the Coastal Cutthroat, Oncorhynchus clarkii clarkii. Of course, there are fluvial and ad-fluvial populations too. Westslope Cutthroat,Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisii aren't native to this side of the Cascades.
I believe you all may be right -- coloring is definitely that of a coastal cut. But it was high up in the foothills of the South Cascades -- a very LONG way from salt and I hadn't thought to find them here. How far up do they run to spawn? And how long do they hold the salt coloring?
Hi Dan. Coastals are not only sea-run. There are river-resident populations everywhere along the PNW coast. For example, they dominate the Snoqualmie drainage above the falls (impassible barrier). Depending on the river environment, they can be very 'chrome' or dark & spotted. Westslopes aren't native on this side of the mountains.
Thanks Thomas. Always something new to learn. So I'd agree this was definitely a coastal, then, with this new (to me) information.
I agree, helluva nice fish. That snag the dog is standing on looks very familiar... There are some nice trout in Washington if you make the effort to get off the beaten path and learn the ecosystem. Maybe not Montana nice depending on your definition of 'nice' but I'm pretty content with what we have here even if the Coastals are generally small. There's always the occasional ocean-going Mykiss to spice things up every now and then too!
My weapon of choice is Sage One 590 with a Redington Rise reel lined with Rio Gold WFF. BTW: Got that COASTAL CUT on a Royal Stimulator. Had a few other fish on stimies and, when the rains came, we went subsurface and had good success with smallish (Size 10) Pats rubberleg stones.
There are some W. WA streams with low elevation headwaters that are in shape right now. Had a good day on one of them yesterday.
Very nice trout indeed. As far as creeks go, don't overlook the forks of major river systems and I'm not talking about the Snoqualmie. Especially low elevation systems as previously mentioned. As we progress into summer, these upper forks will become very creek like. Unlike many small bushy creeks, these upper river forks offer lots of easy wading and casting room as the water levels continue to drop. The bug life is pretty phenomenal as well considering how often people write and talk about western Wa streams being somewhat sterile. Now if we can get the state to drop the two fish over 14" limit regulation that is currently on many streams. After seeing a close to 20" non-searun coastal cutt hanging on a stringer last year, it is a shame these native fish are getting bonked. It takes a long time for a fish to reach that size, not to mention some of the bows being harvested may hold the key to future wild steelhead recovery.
Nice - I'm right there with you and think the Rio Gold is the best trout line out there. It puts the sage performance taper to absolute shame.
Good to hear I'm not alone in my thinking. I also really like the Rise reel -- I'm not a big fan of big large-arbor reels for trout -- why get a 2 oz rod, they weigh it down with a big-ass reel. The Rise is a great mid-arbor reel with good action. I've had Donna's 590 Z-Axis outfitted with a Rise reel for 2+ years and she's hauled in some lunkers on that rig.
I have a clickIII on my small stream rod. Give that reel a shot sometime if you haven't already. It's one of the lightest reels made and really makes casting those light rods a lot of fun.
