Pyramid Lake Fishing Blog

My Dad (Ted) and I made it to Pyramid Lake around 2pm PST Friday (March 29th) night to find buddy Steve already fishing and doing pretty well.  We also hooked up with Bruce who was for all intents and purposes our guide and a rockstar stillwater fisherman to boot.   Bruce had already been fishing most of the week so he already had things figured out for us.  Just had to throw our ladders in the water and start catching fish (yeah, right).  Surprisingly, this was almost how it worked out.  It didn't take very long for me to get a few dips on my indicator and the skunk was off.  Steve was on a mission to set the IGFA record for a cutthroat on 3kg test line, which was 7lbs 4oz.  He came very close with the near 7lb fish (above) on the first evening.

Later in the afternoon/evening the wind picked up and started pushing larger 2-3' rolling waves into our ladders.  More than a few times I had a roller knock me off the top step of my ladder and had to frantically grab the handle just to hang on.  Extreme fishing if I have ever seen it!  The coolest part was the fish were still biting!  The problem was that a netted fish would divert your attention from the incoming waves.  Ted learned this the hard way and took a wave about shoulder height while fighting with a netted fish.  He was less than thrilled to have the 40F water go down his waders!   I had good bite the rest of the night when it was just me and another fisherman (Ernie) sticking out the rollers. 

After tent camping on the beach we had a decent morning bite at the same spot the next day.  The fishing was considerably slower than it was on Friday, but there was a good morning bite for about 2 hours follow by a spotty action the rest of the day and evening.  Ted managed to nail a nice 7lb fish with an indicator and a black midge. Later that evening there were pockets of decent fishing, but none were as good as the previous night.

Later that evening I tied into a better than average fish.  I learned this trip that an average fish is affectionately called a "shaker" because that is about all they do on the end of your line once hooked.  







Through out the trip we found ourselves having to lend a hand a critical times to each other.

Reaching out and netting someones fish was not an uncommon occurrence. 









 
Sunday morning continued even slower than Saturday night so we decided to pickup and move around a bit.  I had a good time doing this because we got to learn more of the lake and in the afternoon we found a deserted beach that had some BIG fish cruising up and down it.  I got a couple small bumps right away, but didn't hook up.  Soon thereafter, however, I was in mid strip when I noticed a small pod of fish cruising about 20' in front of me.  I tried to strip in to get my Wolley Worm in front of them, but it ran into an immovable object in the form of a large cutt.  The beast turned out to be an 8lb fish, my biggest fish ever on public water! 

About an hour after landing this toad, I was yet again mindlessly pulling my bugs through the water, when I noticed a large dark brown silhouette following my fly.  As I lifted my fly to recast (it still hadn't sunk into my brain yet that my fly had caught the attention of a lake monster), the fish turned his profile toward me and I could see his considerable size.  He was easily bigger than my previous fish.  Alas, he realized he was chasing some funny, not to mention there was a funny looking guy standing on a ladder right in front of him, and he peeled off back into the depths.  As if I already needed another reason to comeback, I now have the image of this gator burned into my memory.  I shall be back to catch you! 

The rest of the day and night were fairly slow.  We had good action on the deserted beach for a couple hours and then nothing.  We hit another hole or two and got a couple more bites, but that's about it.  That night we converged at the local watering hole (Crosby's Bar) to chat with some buddies.  It turns out they had pretty slow fishing as well, but there were still quiet a few big fish stuck including at least one 15 pounder.


Monday morning was our last day on the water and the wind was blowing like crazy.  Steve decide to forego the wind and just head for home.  Ted decided not to fish, and I figured I might as well take another shot at that 10lb fish.  Bruce and I got a couple more shakers, but that was about it.  Tough end to a tough trip, but one that had pockets of sucess and plenty of big fish.  What else could you ask for in a fishing trip?