Cascade Mtns, Washington USA

[bigtimber]

Trip photos

    Finally got out for six nights camping and six days of great fishing on my west side Cascade mountain streams, my cousin pictured joined me for the first two days. Found fish in most including my best yet, a 15" west slope cutthroat trout. Last season I started fishing longer lighter level lines (17-20ft 2.5LL) it has made a difference, I can reach back eddies on the other side of heavy currents like the one behind the giant boulder that I pulled the big cutthroat out of with a #12 kebari and generally keep more distance from the fish and cover water better, it has been eye opening. I now have a better understanding of why Oni talks about casting being the most important thing and why he fishes the long light lines he does.

   Fished five different rods on the trip, my Oni Type I was used to take the big fish and a few smaller rainbow and cutthroat, the Nissin Seikon Becchou 330 and 360 both great rods for the often windy conditions on the streams I fish, both have soft enough tips and a smooth 7:3 action that will cast 2.5 fluoro and lighter lines. Have recently purchased the Strooan and 245-206 rods from Esoteric, was looking for versatile rods for the small to very small streams I fish where a zoom rod can be just the ticket, both rods performed great and am excited to see what Daniel might be working on next. I fished the Strooan more than any other on this trip, it has a refinement in balance and casting normally only seen on more expensive Japanese made rods, not to mention a lot of fun with small to medium fish on the other end.

   Will be heading out again next week for five nights, this trip will be to the east side just on the other side of the Cascades, to fish some streams that have been closed for three years now, our Fish and Wildlife Dept. finally got it right and reopened everything to fishing again. I have found strategic places to set up a base camp so to speak that provides me reasonably ready access to multiple streams and I don't fish the same stretch of water more than once per trip in order to rest the fish, it has proven effective in keeping the fishing productive all season. Till next time, good fishing everybody!

Paul N

[Deleted]

Thanks for posting Paul. You are making everybody envious over on this side of the ‘pond’. Best wishes for your next trip.

David

[bigtimber]

Thanks David, I have been blessed to have grown up in such a beautiful place. My wife moved us with her work to the far east side of the state last November so I am actually much closer to Idaho and Montana than my old haunts but those heavily timbered Cascade mountain streams, something out of a fairy tale, call me back home. I was looking forward to finding new grounds but then our Fish and Wildlife reopened July 1st, streams that had been closed three years ago for no apparent reason, so I now have new streams to explore not to mention there are stretches of water that I haven't fished yet. For at least a few trips the Cascades will be my summer home once again but eventually I'll get the out of state license's for Idaho and Montana and start exploring. Come late September though I will have lived on this earth 5 decades, and it has been my custom the past few birthdays to be camping and fishing, I'll again head west for a few nights to celebrate on my home waters. Fall has always been my favorite season there are so many memories, fall salmon fishing, hunting Blacktail deer with family, getting gear prepped for winter Steelhead, those ghost of autumn still haunt me. People like different things but a mountain stream in early fall, tenkara rod in hand, is about as close to heaven as one gets on this earth. If you ever get the chance to visit this part of the world, and that goes for everyone, just let me know, I'm one of the best no fee tenkara guides in the Northwest, just ask my cousin.

Paul N

[Deleted]

Sounds great. Incidentally if you are not already aware Dr Tom Davis has an excellent blog, which you can spend many hours reading. He is based in Boise, Idaho and should give you a few ideas about that area.

David

[bigtimber]

Yeah ole Tom Davis's blog has kept me in the poor house since I started, every time he'd do a rod review I'd have to try another rod. I've always been kind of a gear junkie anyway but it has gotten ridiculous at times, I guess I've owned about 60 tenkara rods by now. I'm down to a more manageable 9 rods now and may still cut back some more. With much practice I can feel the difference in rods and have come to prefer certain characteristics in a tenkara rod most notably the ability to cast long light lines and fight the wind well while doing so. Most any rod will work but some are better at it than others. Teton Tom lives way down in SE Idaho and has some incredible waters to fish almost year round it appears. I'm close to the N Idaho panhandle and NW Montana we have more of the big timbered mountains up here that I prefer but winter conditions make it difficult to access streams even if they are open to fishing year round.

Paul N

[Deleted]

Paul
Thanks for the reply, especially your comment about the number of rods. I thought I had a problem with owning 5 but reckon I am probably ‘normal’.😀
Looking forward to more reports.

David