Where would you go to catch the largest trout in America? Not just one big fish like the Arkansas’ White River produces, but the average size of fish after fish.
Hop in your camper or catch a flight to Reno, Nevada, and set your sights on Pyramid Lake, home of gargantuan, prehistoric Lahontan cutthroat trout, which can weigh up to 30 pounds. Yes, it will cost you in time, trouble and expense, but the silver lining is mega-trout. At Pyramid, people don’t register their fish in inches, but in pounds! Recently, I made my third trip to the lake to feed my hunger for the rich bounty.
So let me give some pointers on how to make the trip and net some fish. Let’s cover some logistics first. I’ve made the 800-mile, one-way drive to Pyramid twice, and you expend time, trouble and energy.
Switching to air travel, I took American to Phoenix and on to Reno, about a five-hour journey. For lodging, a big crowd camps at the lake, which I have done once and recommend to those with hearty spirits. The hotels in Sparks are about 30 miles from the lake. A Paiute tribal fishing, camping and boating permit is required for all fishers, depending on how you fish the lake.
So what’s the pyramid scheme? How do you fish it? From a ladder, of course.
Yes, it is wild, but for most of the season, from October through May, there will be dozens of people standing on ladders in 4 to 5 feet of water. I’ve never seen this approach anywhere else. It allows the angler to be not only in a better casting position, but mostly out of the cold water, as fishing can last for hours. The big ladder lineup looks like a circus as people are casting and landing huge trout. The Lahontans are mostly happy because of catch-and-release rules.
So how does this unique strain of trout get so large? Well, besides genetics, these fish are eating machines and require a lot of calories that are provided by their primary prey, the tui chub. This minnow runs from 4 to 9 inches and is found mostly in schools of hundreds of fish. When the Lahontans chase them into shallower waters, the mammoth predator is targeted by fishers on ladders, in float tubes, from boats and atop large rocks. When the fish travel from the depths to casting range, pandemonium abounds.
For the fly fisher, bring two 7 or 8-weight rods matched with a floating and full-sink size 400 or 500 grain lines. While you catch fish on the sink, using the floating line with a balanced leech beneath an indicator (a bobber is best) draws the most interest and hookups. You might think this is ‘chuck and let it sit’, but the wind and wave action means you regularly recast.
Another imperative for the boat technique is to use a graph to measure lake depth and to spot fish. On each of my trips to Pyramid, I have fished with my long-time friend Wade, an outstanding lake fisher. He has a deluxe equipped Tracker boat utilizing four graphs. While this seems like overkill, you always have a graph to consult, no matter where you are in the boat.
A final key ingredient for success is to use a trolling motor with a spot hold function. As it sounds, the motor will reset itself regularly to keep you in position to work an area that has fish. One more hint for success: Set your indicator to keep your fly about a foot off the bottom and in the fish zone.
Our early May trip was not the best time of year for experiencing a good bite with happy fish. The water temps pushed 60 degrees. The fishing season runs from October until June, with better Lahontan activity at the beginning of the season into winter. Where do you fish on a lake almost as large as Lake Tahoe? As in most cases, follow the locals to some of the best fish-holding spots.
“Wade, that is a big fish,” I called out as his fly rod doubled over and bounced as the head-shaking beast did the down and dirty routine. Twisting, tumbling and turning, the trout was only interested in ejecting the fly.
I was manning the net and got the shakes and jitters as Mister Big neared the surface and had the look of an easy 10 pounds. It was and beat my best at 9.5. We weighed our trout using the uniquely amazing Fishtechy AI-proof ball.
Where do you go to catch fish like that? That place doesn’t exist except for Pyramid.
