INDIANANGLER

michaelhas posted some good info about trout fishing being opened at avalanche river in the Niligiris.
Please post your trout experiences and bait / tackle.Am sure will be of good use to those of us who are interested in this rather unique sub set!
Best
Axx

In terms of tackle, I would advise to go as light as possible. A 5 to 7 foot spinning rod, a 1500-2000 size reel and 8lb powerpro braid or 4lb mono would be an ideal set up. Size 0 to 1 mepps spinners do well, especially the comet. Small Kastmaster spoons also do well.

Braided line with a fluorocarbon leader will give you a good combination of lower visibility and longer casts.

Cheers
Bops

Hi Eljefe,

Trout feed mostly on insects (nymphs, emergers, adults). Ofcourse, the big trout need bigger morsels.

My experience with trout fishing, is through fly fishing. Though my first trout was taken on powerbait, used with a spinning rod. Powerbait is a dough like material (is pink/rainbow colored, and can have some glitter).

http://www.berkley-fishing.com/prod.php ... p=PURSTBGC

Observe if the trout are feeding on the surface, or sub-surface.
If you cannot spot the trout feeding, they are most likely feeding on nymphs close to the bottom of the river/stream.

If you do not have access to fly fishing gear, you can use a spinning gear along with a plastics bubble float. Tie a nymph fly (size 14 Hare's ear is a good one) to the other end. Also tie two small lead shot (BB size) about eight inches from the fly. This will keep your fly close to the bottom.
Faster water will require more weight to keep the fly near the bottom. Best thing is to start with two split shots. You can add/remove a split shot depending on the water flow/current. You can also change the size of the split shot.

The line/leader length from the bubble float to the fly should be about 1.5 times the water depth. You should be able to adjust the bubble float, depending on the depth you are fishing. If you keep on hitting the bottom frequently, you need to move the float upwards.

Cast directly across, and allow the fly to move downstream. Keep a tight line to the bubble float, and watch for the slightest movement of the float.
A trout will take a fly, and spit it out in an instant. So at the slightest hesitation of the float, strike.

In running water, a trout will generally lie behind a rock/boulder facing the current. This provides it with protection from the current, and it can also observe food flowing down with the current. You need to identify such locations, by the disturbance on the water surface. Cast your fly/lure so that it moves along such submerged rocks/boulders, where it can be seen by trout behind a rock/boulder.

For the lake do not use the split shot. You need to use a plastic flaot which you can half fill with water. This will help you to cast.

In a lake, it would help to have a small boat/canoe. I use a float tube for lakes. Else you are restricted to fishing the shore. In a lake, you need to give action to the fly (retrieve, pause, , retrieve .......). Mostly the retrieve is only 4-6 inches. Vary the retrive to see what works. The retrive would imitate a nymph (e.g mayfly, caddisfly) moving in the water.

Catching trout in a lake is more challenging, than catching one in running water. This is because in a lake, the trout has all the time to observe the fly. In fast water, a trout has to make instant decisions. The faster the water, easier it is to fool a trout.

In 1996, I spent a month on a work assignment, at Hindustan Photo Films factory in Ooty. Did not have my fishing gear with me, but did go out to fish with a local to Pykara. I remember catching some small fish (no trout). Came to know later, that there was good trout fishing at Dodabetta.


tight lines

Makarand

Thanks Guys,
Gets better and better!
I was told by an old timer( not on this forum) that "...fly fisher men are like bridge players, while the rest of us are poker players!"

While we must broach the fly fishing tutorials later, its still great to hear from you all about 'trouting' in general.

Play it again Sam!
Best
Axx

Hi,

Here is a photo of a 26 inch cutthroat trout, caught at a mountain lake in the eastern Seirras, California.
The trout took a size 14 Hare's ear nymph fly, tied by me.




tight lines

Makarand

Most of the regulars use a Daiwa Spinmatic-X 500T Ultra Light reel with a 3lb to 4 lb monofiliment line and use a light trout rod. In the river the spinners used are 0, or 1 and in the lake we even use a 2 to cast along line as the lake gets deep quickly. none of us use any type of bait.

Take to Rapala countdown CD3 in colour RT and FT .They will get u all the trout.Mepps 0-2 in silver . blue fox XD type spinners sz 2 in yellow with red dots , Blue fox vibrax black with yellow dots(Black fury)..There are many more in spinners and mepps XD does rather well .You will find them below the boulders and in the running water part of the pool . Cast across the running water to the other bank of the stream and bring in the spinner /rapala into the running water and to your feet.You should get a hit as soon as the lure touches the running water - for as u approach ur side of the pool the trout see u and move across. My last trip was 20 trout in gen area Banjaar.My max count so far has been 130 trout on 2 rods in 2 days.
I have fished lakes for trout- there they are wise and dont give much to lures and there I could only get to them in the rocky shallows or where the stream came in. They also grow big in lakes as because of being cautious -their life span is longer. I caught 2 brown trout in Changu Lake in Sikkim Ht 17000ft and they were about 7 lbs each
Hope this will help...Good luck...Ham

sorry I forgot to mention about the Indian Trout .Just go in for Luhr Jensen spoon red with a white stripe in the centre .Trout hit me 3 times in one cast.This was very recent . One would hit get hooked -come off, then the second would do the same and so would the 3rd. I landed 11 that mid morning .This lure is an absolute must but I have not tried this lure on the rainbow or the brown trout. Cheers...Ham

I'd love to get into fly-fishing and try it on a lot of different species... as far as trout goes, they do become spoon/spinner shy relatively quickly... but in places where they have not seen a Mepps. No. 0 or a No. 1, its criminal to spin cause you'll be landing fish after fish like there is no tomorrow... if you want to have some real fun with browns and rainbows in virgin waters, then you need to take 4 days off and tag along with me!!!

To add to Sualeh's point about trout rivers in our part of the world being to fast flowing and full of rapids, yes thats true 90% of the time.

Their is a series of meandering streams on the Ghizer side of the Shandur Pass which are wonderfully suited to wading and flyfishing.

On spinners you can get about thirty or so in a day but on the fly it depends on how they're feeling some days you can get hundreds other days almost nothing.

Most of the fsh are quite small though so its a great place for practising your flycasting. All except for maybe a couple of bigger ones for a fry up MUST be released.

Hi Suleh,

I have seen a lot of fishes in the Changu lake. But the height is 12500 ft and not 17000 ft. The lake is frozen from Nov to Mar. The locals told me that fishing is not allowed there.

Sualeh,
yes there appears to be a mess up in the height. I still feel its more but stand corrected . It freezes 4 months in a year and it is after the freeze up that the fish are extra active. locals then also way back in 78 and 87 said You can not fish but being in uniform we could do that.we could take permission from Fisheries HQ in Gangtok.
Cheers...Ham

Hi Apoo,
there is the manmaichu and the sabraichu lake also there.Sabraichu is at a higher altitude -higher than Nathula -have u been there.There is trout there aswell. Did they let you fish Manmaichu ?
Ham

Sualeh U are right .Actually I have to recollect everything.and thus mix up at times. Now I distinctly recall a lake in that area at 17000 and there were no fish there.I did not believe it so we made a floating platform and went to a small island in the centre of it .This v small island had a gentle slope and I was sure if fish (Trout or any other ) were there we would see them. there was nothing ! and the journey on the floating platform was so dicey - I wonder how we ever made it back.there at that alt the area becomes mountain stone desert
this side -ie Ur side is more beautiful
WW...Ham