Mystery Browns
John K. Bradbury
5/8/00
Many years ago, my companion and I were spinning an almost inaccessible, but excellent trout stream in the "Snowy Mountains" of N.S.W. We wondered why the water began turning turbid and cursed the prospect of no fish after a half day of scrub bashing to reach the area. Suddenly all hell broke loose and we were dragging out vast numbers of brown trout; fish after fish after fish.
The water was literally mud. How did the fish see the lures? We were soon releasing the catches because of acquired bag limits and we gave up as the novelty wore off.
The river is noted for its rainbows normally; rarely are browns caught on lures. We didn't catch one rainbow that afternoon. We heard later that we had been downstream some miles from a river crossing that was being repaired by bulldozers. Next day, the stream had cleared and we were back to only rainbows.
Fishtales One Year Ago: 05/03/99 - The Slo-o-o-o-o--w Approach - Jim Pope explains how an why to use a jerkbait
Fishtales Two Years Ago: 05/04/98 - Remembering Mother - Cathy Lewandowski, known as mommyfish in chat, tells how her mother instilled a love of fishing, and of teaching kids to fish, in her and how she is passing it on to her children.
