bruce02
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I still can’t access LAP either. Could this be because we have to renew for next season to get access?
Agree Jerry’s pic 2 July post points toward rainbow due to faint pink stripe. Although pic doesn’t show all of tail fin, looks like many small black spots on it, from top to bottom. Browns don’t have that.
If river spawned rainbow, exciting..might have happened before, but when caught, could not be distinguished from rainbow fry from TIC or WV box programs. Or maybe TPWD had some really small rainbows in some of their stockings.
Someone’s likely to catch a baby brown too, plenty of those stocked this year.
I thought of river spawn rainbows, but thought they were spring spawners (normally), and such fry would be even younger than TIC Browns. What about river spawn Browns? Mentioning as not sure how straightforward it is to reliably distinguish rainbows from Browns at so young age.
Only brown trout eggs used this year in trout in classroom program. (Previous years only rainbow eggs used). Surplus eggs from that were placed in the WV boxes in river, in January. Fry hatched in classrooms (1-3” per report) were stocked into river in May.
Since from same batch of eggs, would assume roughly similar egg hatch timing.
WV boxes were located in Maricopa area. Per photos, looks like fry were stocked at JDL, (but possibly not all there).
Chances are good you caught some of these now 4 – 5 month old browns. Either hatched in WV boxes in river, or in classroom.
Alex,
Yes it is Jeff. Met in late 80’s when lived up there. He worked Jack Dennis’s fly shop in Jackson, met through mutual friend. From NE USA somewhere. Mid 20’s then. He might have been doing some local guiding for shop, but never mentioned it. International Ff’g was what he talked of mostly (but had not done then).
First time fished w Jeff, he invited me to meet him at Lewis Lake Campground. Sunday in October, 1 hour before sunrise. Spawning Browns at Lewis Lake outlet (Lewis River) was his plan. Timing has got to be perfect, different every year, he warned. Big snow that night, 4wd necessary to get from south YS Park entrance to campground. Jeff was there, tent in parking lot, collapsed on him due to snow. Nobody else there. Bad news from Jeff evening before just at dark, Browns not running yet. We gave it a try at sunrise but still no fish. He went back same place 3-4 days later and slayed them (I had to work).
Fished w him later in WY, and Belize. But story above is vintage Jeff C. Boundless energy, can’t sit still 10 seconds, FF’g fanatic, the craziest time of year, craziest time of day, place where/when nobody else goes.
I got transferred from WY to Europe. But nothing Jeff did later surprised me. Global, 4oo+ fish species on fly. Etc. Etc. Would be fantastic keynote speaker at Troutfest.
Interesting about FFTUSA. Always wondered about it. Old friend from my WY days long ago into that, initially local/regional competitions. Later, somehow selected for Team USA in World FF Championships; was 1st American to win an individual medal in that. Thought he’d “retired” from that stuff, but he fished w Team USA this February in something called FIPS Mouche Masters FF Championship in South Africa.
Forecast not calling for upcoming significant rain event. Can’t imagine what work on lake or dam would require a (relatively small) increase from 300 to 450.
The Comal County- GRBA contract requires GBRA to request a deviation annually from USACE, to allow intentional GBRA operation of lake level within a 909 to 910’ “recreational pool” (but only from April through end of summer). USACE approved that deviation for years, but beginning in 2016, they decided to no longer approve it. Since USACE officially and legally is the authority when lake level is >909’, their denial of the deviation request effectively means a “recreational pool” does not exist (from USACE’s perspective).
GBRA said this recent flow increase to 450 was directed by USACE. The reason might be nothing more than USACE observing that for last 2 weeks or so of GBRA operation, the lake has been steady at about 909.4’, and USACE wants to get it moving down again (toward 909’).
In Norway where I lived and fished 19 years, they did not have sea hawks (Ospreys). They had sea eagles. Specifically the subspecies called white tailed sea eagle. Wingspan over 8 feet.
I wish you guys could see them in action. They normally terrorize cod, haddock, and other large salt water fish. But in mid summer, during the Atlantic salmon and sea run (brown) trout spawning runs, they came inland, to the rivers.
I remember first time I saw one grab and fly off with a salmon, at least 15-20 lbs, from the Suldaslågen river I was fishing. I had to sit down, and take a couple pulls of scotch from the flask.
Thank goodness no sea eagles in Texas.
Tube Guad a time or two in summer myself. With regard to more trout surviving the summers (and growing really big!), GRTU and summer recreational floaters are pretty closely aligned. Both want reasonable summer flows (and banking up some water (e.g. 910’) beforehand to make that more likely to happen). They are our allies on this.
Henry, surely there are no worm dunkers at LAP sites? Or in other spots within same special trout regulation areas as our sites?
Artificial only, I thought. But no, illegal only if you have a trout on the stringer with bait on line. In my years living in WY, MT, and Norway, they knew that “artificial only” can only be implemented and enforced successfully one way…Bait on line, get a fine.
Enjoyed your story. Especially re the spin rod. You are clearly a stronger wader than me, and this combined with spin rod’s fast casting, longer casts, no backcast required gives you a significant advantage in the higher water.
Have chunked hardware and plastic this season few times. First time in my life for trout in a stream. Mostly from bank as flows have generally made wade exploring not for me.
Note Sattler gauge recalibrated today. Reading ~700 cfs instead of ~830. USGS corrected historical data also.
Sattler flow was very close to same as New Braunfels gauge, which could not possibly have been correct.
Agree w/ Joel. GBRA operating to hold lake steady at 910’, is probably awkward. Little to no operational headroom to handle even relatively minor rain events using their modest 750 cfs max. thru generators. Steady at 910, result in more handovers to USACE/flood gates opened/no power generation.
Alex, little more info since you mentioned dam integrity. The 943’ elevation spillway (which is separate from, and a few hundred yards south of the dam itself), is there specifically to protect the dam.
The top of the dam is 974’. The design max. lake level is 969’.
When the spillway overflowed in 2002, lake level reached 950’. Still 19’ left below design max 969’.
Primary mandate is flood control. Never underestimate that fact. 909 is the design conservation pool (for drought, etc.). 943 is the overflow dam’s emergency spillway.
34 feet of lake capacity between these two elevations was designed to capture nearly all major flood events without spillway overflow. Overflowed only once.
Flood gates release max. 5200 cfs. But this is next to nothing compared to lake inflow associated with very big rain. Therefore, dam/lake must capture most of the water inflow in such events.
Downstream infrastructure long ago learned to handle 5200 cfs. But spillway overflow is determined by how high the level rises above 943’…70,000 cfs when spillway overflowed…another matter entirely.
We are fortunate whenever GBRA holds level at number above 909. 910 even more so. 1 foot closer to overflow, so risk of spillway overflow increased slightly.
