Trout Academy is a fishing channel that follows Derek Olthuis as he fishes and shares his knowledge with others. Derek is a guide, author, photographer and instructor that has traveled the world in search of trout and char. Derek's life passion is to help anglers learn new skills and refine their abilities on the water. Subscribe to follow along on the adventures and hopefully learn new techniques. To book a trip with Derek visit flyfishcamps.com. You can also follow Derek on instagram @derekolthuis or the Trout Academy Shorts RU-vid channel @troutacademyshorts
I have an 11’ 3wt euro rod that I have used to become proficient at bottom bouncing small nymphs on my home river. At approx 1500cfs, I use bead head flies and 2-3 B size split shot. I am practicing using larger, heavier baits (1/8oz to 1/2oz) on 7’ spinning rods to imitate baitfish and sculpin, but would like to know how heavy of a fly you use on your rods. I need the length of my euro rod and can’t figure out the ideal setup.
Yeah, if they got rid of the lodge yuppies that don’t know how to fish and don’t respect catch and release ethics wouldn’t be there abusing the fish and the lake.
Haha, yup. I imagine AK had some rivers that were insane before they started getting fished because even now it is one of the best places in the world.
Yeah, it is wild. There are very few small fish around. The river has some resident fish that are smaller but you rarely see anything below 5-7lbs in the lake.
Thanks, feedback like this helps me a lot. The rounded lens is a trial camera where I can hit record and just fish. A lot easier than the tripod, which unfortunately misses a lot of the action, but knowing that people might not like it is helpful. Thanks
Haha, it's funny what works for some people, I feel the same about a Hare's Ear, they never seem to catch many fish. It must be a confidence thing more than the fly....
Local here ! I saw this exact same school of breeding nurse sharks! Around the same time. We tried to fish the jacks but they we'rent biting. My boss really loves to eat them so he dropped me off infront of the school with my speargun and I was able to get one 😂
wow awesome headed to mckenzie river labrador 3rd week of august, just got a bunch of mice . i’d love to catch a quality of brookie like the ones you netted in vid!!!
From what the guides told us they have insane insect hatches and they eat a lot of fish. They obviously have a lot of mice from how keyed into mice they were. Thanks Dan!
I fish on the Kenai River in Alaska, and when I use sculpin patterns in the late fall, I am usually Spey casting. Now, I catch fish this way, and I love Spey casting, but I wonder if I could catch more fish with a different technique. Yes, I am on the bottom, but swinging means the fly is moving pretty fast. After watching your sculpin video, that is not how they move. Do you have any ideas on how to improve my catch rate? Should I stay away from sculpin patterns when swinging?
Those fish on the Kenai may or may not be eating the swung fly as a sculpin, my guess is they see a lot of food and eat because it triggers something in them to eat. That being said I am sure sculpins are a big food source for them and it is probably worth experimenting. Personally I would get a longer rod, say a 10' 7wt and try fishing them euro nymph style with a sculpin tied jig style and bounce it along the bottom. I bet you would catch some fish and maybe, you might catch a lot more. My buddy Gilbert Rowley fishes steelhead in the fall on a euro set up and has had a lot of success.
It definitely will set an unrealistic standard if you are not conscious about it. haha. I dream about going back, knowing there are fish that are pushing 10 pounds.... I feel very fortunate we had a chance to fish there!
Cool video! I assume with the overcast and your dark clothing with you always standing up looking for fish, that they were spooking 10 to 15 ft away from you so you werent seeing them. And since you were doing long casts in the beaver pond thats why you were catching them compared to the short casts where you may have been spooking them in the creek holes
I am sure that all plays a part. Usually the fish aren't very spooky in this creek but there is no doubt I spook plenty of trout whenever I fish. Thanks for the comment.
One of the most common ways people spook fish is by walking. Fish feel vibration and movement through their lateral lines and often spook before you see them because they feel you walking on the bank. I would say the second most common reason fish spook is they see your shadow. Be aware of your shadow as you approach the water, even the shadow of your rod. Movement of course is another factor and fish will spook if they see movement that seems unnatural or alarming.
In Canada if you call cutthroat trout "cutties" your car windshield could be smashed. Make sure you have car insurance up to date. Same will happen if you fish for steelies or bullies. 🙂
Thank goodness someone got on this topic. Cracks me up when I see people tie unweighted sculpins that are swimmy and floaty flies. Doesn't matter how much it looks like one, if it doesn't swim like one it's not hitting those action match the hatch triggers of true sculpin behavior, then it just shows it's the only other fish you can name in the river. Thanks
Bingo, if the fly doesn't act like what it is representing or even get to the area where the food item lives it seems very ineffective. Thanks for the comment!
