Last night I wrestled a tiger !

[riser]

It’s 5:30 Sun eve and I have a 5 hour drive ahead of me, but I couldn’t resist pulling off at a small stream in northern Clinton Co. for just one more hour of flyfishing. The first brookie unraveled my #12 Royal Wulff, so I tied on an old favorite: a #12 Cream Variant, as popularized by Art Flick in his “New Streamside Guide,” one of my go-to resources in the 1970s.

There’s an impressively deep pool in front of me and I flipped the fly onto the center of the pool, thinking as I did so that I should have introduced the fly at the head of the pool. My regret evaporated instantly as a fish demolished the fly. From the size, the deliberate take, the big slab sides, and the long dogged fight, I’m thinking it’s a nice brown.

As I bring the fish closer, I see it’s got sort-of vermiculations on its back, but it doesn’t look exactly right for a brook trout. That’s when it hit me: a tiger trout! It’s an honest 11.5 inches long and very chunky and healthy and it looks wild to me.

Of course I reach for the camera in my cargo shorts (I learned to wade wet in Utah, where all the guides disdain waders in the summertime) thinking now I finally have a photo worthy of the tough crowd on Paflyfish. Then the camera doesn’t turn on and I realize the battery is dead!

#%&@ !!!!!

Trust me. It’s a lovely fish. And it’s still there for you to visit.

 

[wildtrout2]

It seems like everybody's (almost) camera craps out when they catch a "wild tiger trout". lol

 

[streamerguy]

Congrats on the fish, but man that hurts! More often than not whenever I brookie fish I always take a camera, my phone(as a backup camera), and a net just in case my time comes to catch a wild tiger. Some people may think I'm crazy taking a net brookie fishing, but I'd rather be prepared so that once in a lifetime fish doesn't escape!

 

[boychick]

Sure you caught a tiger trout and it was ten feet long! Only kidding. A dead camera battery is a real bummer, at least you caught a rare fish.

 

[Foxgap239]

At least he remembered his camera. Same thing happened to me but I left my camera in the car. I was about to scream but then I remembered my cell phone. So the picture doesn't do the fish justice but at least it saved the day! You have a mental picture and got the experience, good for you! Congrats!

 

[pwk5017]

Pics or it didnt happen!

JK, while I havent caught a wild tiger, I did catch a huge smallie 2-3 weeks ago on the yough, and I also failed to photograph the fish. It was 20", or real close to 20". Ive been chasing that mark for a few years. I may have got him, but now I will never know. Sucks, but you still caught it, and thats all that matters.

 

[riser]

I left the cell phone in the car. If you know that area, you can't get a signal on any stream in the area, so why tote the phone? I wasn't thinking of backing up the camera.

By the way, I've located just 2 spots in southern Potter where I can get a signal (Verizon): at the top of the hill just south of Germania on Rt. 144, and at Little Lyman Vista on, I believe, McConnell Rd off Windfall Rd. This might help someone else out if they need to call home.

I won't have any trouble remembering that trout. In fact, I plan to catch him again with plenty of juice in the Nikon. Might have to wait until fall, though.

I started carrying a net on small streams a few years ago -- about the time I started carrying a digital camera. I had this guy in the net and inspected him closely. Like I said, healthy. And the water was cold.

 

[laszlo]

Sorry but I have to ask, What is a tiger trout?

 

[streamerguy]

A cross between a brook trout and a brown trout

 

[laszlo]

Thanks, that's what I thought, but wasn't sure. I seen pictures posted here and the rarity of catching one.

 

[salmonoid]

streamerguy wrote:
A cross between a brook trout and a brown trout

More specifically, offspring from a brown trout egg and brook trout milt. The offspring are sterile.

 

[krayfish]

I lucked into one during the Newbie Brush Up Day. I think it's my first one in 30+ years of ff-ing or maybe I've caught them before and just didn't pay attention. Obviously stocked but decent sized.

 

[SBecker]

That is just a really crappy brookie from next door.

 

[Chaz]

stocked brookie.

 

[krayfish]

So the physical appearance of stocked brook trout has changed that much since I last caught one? I'll stand by my claim that its a tiger or that it's an escaped coho from Shane's secret stocking of the Lehigh.

 

[SBecker]

There are some really crappy brooks from hatcheries. Also, they have stopped stocking tigers and Queen City does not raise them. That would leave it to be a wild tiger, and obviously it is not. Shush about the secret stockings of coho's. You are gonna burn it.

 

[SBecker]

There are some really crappy brooks from hatcheries. Also, they have stopped stocking tigers and Queen City does not raise them. That would leave it to be a wild tiger, and obviously it is not. Shush about the secret stockings of coho's. You are gonna burn it.

 

[slumdumb]

yes that is an bucket brook trout...

I would say 50% of claimed "Tiger trout" are really just stocker browns or brook trout misidentified

 

[wildtrout2]

Whatever type of trout that actually is, it is NOT a wild tiger trout. You won't see a wild tiger trout that size in Pa anyway.

 

[krayfish]

When did I ever hint that might be wild? I didn't.

Is it obvious that I haven't caught many stockers over the last 20 years. They are strange looking critters.