rustbeltwilds
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oswayo used to stock brook trout there
A Good Brookie
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salmo
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I just assumed that the brook trout caught in the special regs section of Kettle were stocked. I know that above Ole Bull has a mix if wild browns and brooks.
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The camp my family is members of helps stock Kettle and Little Kettle. Until relatively recently (5 years ago-ish, maybe a little more) I can confirm the state stocked all three species. I remember many times holding the Brookie breeders in the current til they could hold position in the current on their own. Those things didn’t do well in the truck. The normal stockie sized Brookies were always fine.
Been a few years now of just Bows and Browns though. Which is a good thing.
On our trip a couple weeks ago one guy in our group caught a very obviously wild Brookie in the FFO on Kettle. I’ve caught wild Browns down that far before, but that’s personally the furthest downstream wild Brookie I’ve seen. FWIW.
Edit: To be clear, and back to the OP, I’m nearly certain that fish was not caught in Kettle.
Been a few years now of just Bows and Browns though. Which is a good thing.
On our trip a couple weeks ago one guy in our group caught a very obviously wild Brookie in the FFO on Kettle. I’ve caught wild Browns down that far before, but that’s personally the furthest downstream wild Brookie I’ve seen. FWIW.
Edit: To be clear, and back to the OP, I’m nearly certain that fish was not caught in Kettle.
Caught more brookies out of the DHALO area of the first fork the past couple days then I ever have. Landed at least 12 and im assuming missed a bunch more, every small fish landed was a brookie. I usually catch a couple nice ones each year around the mouths of feeder creeks but this was completely different . 1 wild brown
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Is there a brookie trib that runs into the First Fork in the area where you were fishing?
rustbeltwilds
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yeah tge big girl brookies always seemed not to travel well in the tanks on the trucks we had quire a few breeders go belly up
rustbeltwilds
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Every time there was a distance we crossed our fingers on them to make it too the stop
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Yeah, when you’d toss them they’d roll half on their side and start drifting downstream. They’d usually be trying to swim, but couldn’t overcome even modest current. We were able to successfully revive them, at least enough to where they could hold position on their own. Who knows if they succumb to the lactic acid later though. But sometimes it took 10 or 15 minutes of holding them upright. In 40 degree water this usually meant switching off in like 30 second shifts.
Never had an issue with the bigger Browns and Bows doing that, also.
nd1001
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I think I heard that a private club was stocking brook trout in Kettle but had to stop due to a gill lice issue. Maybe someone more familiar with the area or situation could confirm.
rustbeltwilds
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If ever a cultured fish that was a fat slob it was the big breeder brookies they looked like deflated balloons laying on the bottom of the raceways after being stripped of their eggs and shaking off the effects of the dose of ms 222 lol
JeffP
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it sure does. I'll see if I can find the pic.
JeffP
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JeffP
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This was after a huge flood ripped through the valley. It uproot huge trees. The pool was deep with a white sand bottom. Almost no cover except a small root that he came out from.
Roofin' Trouter
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Yep, I believe your 5ish years is pretty accurate. Might be closer to 10ish.. Maybe around 2016 or 17 PFBC stopped stocking and giving co-op nurseries Brookies in Potter County. I think there was a club that was stocking brook trout in Kettle that were bought from a private hatchery. Maybe Tamarack Sportsmen ?But with the permit process they have to go through maybe that has changed.
rustbeltwilds
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Prospector
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I assume some of you have seen pages 24-28 of the George Harvey book (Memories, Patterns, and Tactics). Those pages are very interesting. The brookies that make their way to Kettle can bulk up before returning to any number of tribs to spawn.
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