Pictures A Few High Mountain Trout

[Shorty]

Here is a little brook trout I caught on my first cast at the Sibely Lake spillway in the Big Horn Mountains this last week.


Silbey Lake cut throat.


North Tongue River cut throat, 8000 plus ft. in elevation.


Very Nice North Tongue River Brook Trout, 8000 plus ft. in elevation.


Burgess Picnic Area - North Tongue River, 8000 plus ft. in elevation.

[SKershaw]

Nice fish, Shorty!!!

[Zach T.]

Gorgeous!

[fishtrap]

nice trout

[BPbowhunter]

Nice brookies and cutthroats! I love fishing those high elevation trout streams.

[LiquidSteel]

Looks like Heaven to me!

Thanks for sharing those photos!

[dlwilson]

those cutthroats are beautiful fish. I was lucky enough to spend a whole summer in missoula montana once and fished the blackfoot and bitteroot rivers all the time and i always loved catching the cutthroats.

[OldBaldGuy]

I think I caught that same fish two years ago, Shorty, before he got so big!

There's a guy on the fly anglers forum whose signature line is, "Trout don't live in ugly places." Your pictures here and the wildlife shots in the "Nature" thread show how true that is!

Were you fishing the area west of Buffalo or west of Sheridan?

[Shorty]

Originally Posted by OldBaldGuy

Were you fishing the area west of Buffalo or west of Sheridan?

This time we were west of Sheridan near Burgess Junction, we stayed at Bear Lodge which is at 8300 feet in elevation. The owners of Bear Lodge have made alot of improvements since the last time we were there twenty plus years ago. Normally we go west of Buffalo but both Meadowlark Resort and Deer Haven Lodge have been shut down by the state because their sewage systems are not up to code and are seeping into the lakes and streams. This trip was mostly a family reunion so my wife and I had to sneak away periodically just to get some fishing done, I sure wish I could have done more fishing while we were there.

OBG, are you sure it wasn't this fish that you caught two years ago? It would be more your size.

[Catfishin 4 Life]

very nice pictures

[fearnofish]

Nice pics man , that country is awesome.

[Chad]

Beautiful!

[Sandbilly]

Originally Posted by fearnofish

Nice pics man , that country is awesome.

Your picture brought back many great memories.

Growing up we would go backpacking in the bighorns right before school started. Usually went in at Hyattville, walked until Cloud Peak encompassed our vision, and fished a week to 10 days depending on how long the cornbread, beans, oatmeal and tang would last. Trout taste great twice a day at that elevation for about 3 days. After that we would get creative. The walk out always seemed longer with steak and a chocolate milkshake being the only thing on my mind.

In those days the majority of the road from Burgess Jct. down Shell Canyon was gravel and one lane oil with serious switch backs on both ends. We had stopped near granite pass to let the dogs run, fill coolers with snow and flip a fly one last time before heading back home.

We were milling around up there when this RV with TX plates goes bombing by on the gravel road, covering us with dirt. My dad just starts chuckling. An hour or so later we head down Shell Canyon.


The first set of switch backs there were skid marks and tire prints on the shoulder where this RV had to back up 2 or 3 times making the corner. By the third set of switch backs we could smell hot brake pads and noticed a RV mirror and some broken glass rubbed off by a granite wall, good thing he didn't go off the other side.

It wasn't far from there that we spotted the RV parked in some willows,(at least he found a soft landing.) Looked around but nobody there. RV was peeled some on the passenger side and the cabin looked like a tornado went through.

As we passed service station in Shell, there was a rancher with a big grin leaning on his pick-up, the TX couple looking very shook, and what must have been the tow truck driver with a definite scowl on his face. My guess is that TX couple never again vacationed in WY.

dc

[LundLover]

Gorgeous pictures! Very nice.

[mrcold]

Beautiful fish!


(how can you tell they're high? )

[Shorty]

Sandbilly, I am more familiar with the Tensleep side of Cloud Peak wilderness area as my dad and his siblings grew up in Worland WY. We have been visiting the Big Horns since I was a little kid, things have changed alot and the roads are much more friendly now than they used to be. I'm curious, have you ever made it up the trails past Helen and Misty Moon, there are some highly coveted Golden Trout in a few of those high altitude alpine lakes in the Cloud Peak Wilderness area.

[mkloster]

Awesome. Believe it or not I am leaving in two weeks for the North Tongue also. I've been there several times (below are pics from my last visit), but haven't ever found any other creeks that matched the NT for size/quality of fish. Do you have a stream or two in the same general area that you would recommend as side trips? Thanks.

[Shorty]

Do you have a stream or two in the same general area that you would recommend as side trips? Thanks.

I would stick with the North Tongue, we did fish a small creek (Sucker Creek) in the Dead Swede area but only caught a bunch of small brookies there. My uncle mentioned the little bighorn river as a place that he remembered for size but we never made it there. If you are staying at Bear Lodge be aware that a large black bear and smaller cinamon bear have been visiting the dumpsters there every evening. There are still lots of moose in the area to be seen too.

[mkloster]

We are camping at the Forest Service campgrounds, so the info on the bears is particularly timely! Good to hear about the moose. Hopefully some elk will be making their way to lower ground also.

[holdemplyer]

I don't fish for trout (unless you count WW stockers) but there is no doubt that they are some of the most beautiful fish there is. Great pictures Shorty!!!!