Lateral view of a Female Hexagenia limbata (Ephemeridae) (Hex) Mayfly Dun from the Namekagon River in Wisconsin

Hex Mayflies
Hexagenia limbata

The famous nocturnal Hex hatch of the Midwest (and a few other lucky locations) stirs to the surface mythically large brown trout that only touch streamers for the rest of the year.

Stream photos

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Skwala (Large Springfly) Stonefly Nymph Skwala (Large Springfly) Stonefly Nymph

Dorsal view of a Skwala (Perlodidae) (Large Springfly) Stonefly Nymph from the Yakima River in Washington

This Skwala nymph still has a couple months left to go before hatching, but it's still a good representative of its species, which was extremely abundant in my sample for a stonefly of this size. It's obvious why the Yakima is known for its Skwala hatch.

6 Recently Added Photos

27" brown trout, my largest ever. It was the sub-dominant fish in its pool. After this, I hooked the bigger one, but I couldn't land it.

Troutnut is a project started in 2003 by salmonid ecologist Jason "Troutnut" Neuswanger to help anglers and fly tyers unabashedly embrace the entomological side of the sport. Learn more about Troutnut or support the project for an enhanced experience here.

Evening exploring small streams

By Troutnut on July 6th, 2018

I spent an early part of this past Saturday day fly tying, researching spots, and preparing for a camping trip, then drove 2 1/2 hours to the South Fork Manastash Creek to give this small stream a try.

It was enjoyable, and most of the trouty-looking pools held a small trout or two, but it wasn't enough of a standout to hide behind the "Mystery Creek" designation. The fish and last fish of the day were nonnative Brook Trout around 8.5-9"; the rest were all Westslope Cutthroat.

Photos by Troutnut from the South Fork Manastash Creek in Washington

One of two nonnative Brook Trout I caught in this stream that held mostly Westslope Cutthroat.

The South Fork Manastash Creek in Washington

Comments / replies

Martinlf

Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047

Martinlf on Jul 10, 2018July 10th, 2018, 2:25 pm EDT

Pretty scenery and fish. Are the brookies a problem? That's sure a beautiful one.

"He spread them a yard and a half. 'And every one that got away is this big.'"

--Fred Chappell

Jmd123

Oscoda, MI

Posts: 2474

Jmd123 on Jul 10, 2018July 10th, 2018, 3:00 pm EDT

Wow, those Westslope Cutts sure are colorful! Give the brookies a run for their money if you ask me. Pretty fish and pretty country!

Jonathon

No matter how big the one you just caught is, there's always a bigger one out there somewhere...

Troutnut

Administrator
Bellevue, WA

Posts: 2758

Troutnut on Jul 11, 2018July 11th, 2018, 4:15 am EDT

The brookies are considered to be unwanted, and WDFW encourages harvesting them by having no minimum size and making them not count toward the overall trout limit. However, I have yet to fish a Washington stream where brookies totally outcompeted the native cutthroat or rainbows and became numerically dominant; I've only caught one or two per trip around here. That's not to say it doesn't happen anywhere, but at least it's not a widespread problem.

Jason Neuswanger, Ph.D.
Troutnut and salmonid ecologist

Jmd123

Oscoda, MI

Posts: 2474

Jmd123 on Jul 11, 2018July 11th, 2018, 10:59 am EDT

Glad our little brookies are not creating a problem out there, though I know they may be elsewhere. Nice that they end up being an occasional exotic "jewel", although as I've been saying the natives aren't exactly dull either! The gemlike beauty of these small trout, and the aquatic "wonderworld" they live in surrounded by spectacular scenery (in my case, not mountains but wildflowers), make these trips special in a whole different way than going after the big ones. And the occasional "big one" from these streams really stands out, and they may be few and far between, but they are there.

You got me thinking of the Pine, but right now our deerflies are pretty bad and our waters low and warm...time for more bass and panfishing, I suppose, if I can avoid those delta-wing attack jets! A.k.a., Chrysopidaeâ€¦

Jonathon

No matter how big the one you just caught is, there's always a bigger one out there somewhere...

Wbranch