Wanted to send you a report on my family’s summer getaway to Crescent Lake this past August 3^rd through 5^th.  This was primarily a family trip with lots of time spent with the kids on the shoreline wading the lake and relaxing in the sand.  Of course, I couldn’t help but tow the boat along, and manage a few early morning fishing trips while the wife and kids slept in.  We actually arrived Saturday afternoon and were fortunate enough to find a nice campsite in the Spring Campgrounds near Tandy Bay.  No fishing that evening, just a campfire and having fun with the family.

Sunday morning I got out on the water around 5:30 a.m. and went straight to rigging.  I was trying to target the browns, but since Crescent has macks as well, I knew this could be a tough proposition.  I focused on the 50 foot water column and quickly zoned in on some arcs down in Tandy Bay.  With the water temps running at 63 degrees Fahrenheit, I figured the browns should be around the same depth as the other lakes we have been working this summer.  With that as my reference point, I lowered the ball to the appropriate depth and went to fishing.  I quickly caught a dink brown of about 15” or so, and then got followed up by a mack of around 3lbs.  Around 7 a.m., I tied into a better fish, but was quickly disappointed to see the white belly of a 6lb. mack swirl to the boat.  I was instantly impressed with the success of the morning and headed back to camp at 10a.m. to tell the wife and kids about my morning fun.  After a nice breakfast, the kids wanted Daddy to show them a fish, so we all loaded up in my little Smokercraft and headed for open water.  I have tried this in the past with no success, but this time the good Lord above shined down and rewarded me with a fish for the kids.  Only 30 minutes into the fishing expedition, the rod bounced in the holder with the ball set at 72 feet deep off the Summer Homes.   I had one of my favorite laker lures on, and without a doubt knew I had a small mack on.  My wife was pumping up the kids with “Daddy’s got a fish”, and they were getting excited and anxious to see what would surface from the depths.  The fish stayed on, and soon it came into view at about 20 feet below the surface (YES, the lake was that clear!).  As it got closer to the boat, I could make out a BROWN TROUT!?!  I was absolutely flabbergasted.  It was a nice looking hen of around 20 inches and 3lbs. or so.  This was the deepest brown I had ever caught, and was one of the deepest I’ve ever heard of in the trophy trout world.  The fish splashed the kids a couple of times on the surface, and they both got a real giggle out of that.  After that, I thought we’d get some more fishing action, but the kids did a 180 on me and wanted to go swimming.  Okay.  We boated to the nearest beach and played for the rest of the day.

Monday morning came early, but I was once again on the water by 5:30 a.m.  I went back to working the same water column and depth with one of my favorite minnow imitating lures in black/silver, and instantly started hooking fish once again.  This morning was fantastic with 7 fish landed.  Three more macks came to the boat with one being a 25”, 6-1/2 pounder that fought really good.  The other four fish were Browns with three of them being pretty nice fish.  I caught the first around 6 a.m. over by the island.  I was pleasantly surprised to find an Aurora Black Lucky Craft Pointer 78 still stuck to the outside of this 20”, 3lb. Hen’s mouth. This was a first for me in my fishing experiences.   That was like getting a $15 tip from the Brown Trout God’s for letting this hen return to her home to grow old.  Someone learned a valuable lesson the hard way.  It is not a good idea to tie a $15 lure to 6lb. test line!  Thanks though…..  The next fish of the morning was a dandy 23”, 4-1/2lb. hen that slammed my offering in 40 feet of water.  I could not believe the girth of these well feed browns.  They were just chunks, and most put up extraordinary battles once hooked.  I tried to do the best job I could with photos, but it is pretty difficult when fishing solo.  Finally, around 7:15 a.m., a handsome 3.5 pound buck of 22 inches came to the net.  This was a rare hookjaw for me this trip, as most of the browns in the Tandy Bay area seemed to be females.  Just like the previous day, I fished until my 10 a.m. promised deadline, and then headed back to camp for breakfast.  Our family took a day trip to Crater Lake after breakfast which was simply spectacular.  It was only about a 1-1/2 hour drive from Crescent and cost $10 at the gate.  My wife and I had only been there once before as kids, and neither one of us really remembered it.  Of course the kids had never been, and we were glad we picked a Monday to go, as there seemed to be less tourists.  It was an amazing site to see, and one I’m glad we did as a family.

Tuesday morning was my last chance to fish, and I was feeling VERY optimistic about my chances for a brown over 5lbs.  Like clockwork, I was fishing by 5:30 a.m. and within 2 minutes of having my gear in the water I got slammed by another dink brown.  This was the quickest bite of the 3 day trip, and good vibes were already coming over me.  Fifteen minutes later, my rod is met with a solid tug and a couple nice screaming runs.  I could tell this fish was better than the others, as long as she wasn’t hooked in the tail or dorsal fin or something.  Sure enough, a chunk of a brown at 22-1/2” and 4-1/2 pounds subdued to the net.  WOW, these fish were just fatties!  After pics and measurements, she swam back home.  I quickly went back to the drill I’d uncovered, and was quickly rewarded with another brown.  The bite was definitely on this morning, and the action was fast and furious.  I’d fished Crescent many times before where one to three fish days were the norm, so I was just loving the hell out of this!  I landed a feisty 3lb. hen in Tranquil Cove that jumped out of the water three different times.  She fought like a much bigger fish, but I didn’t care.  I was catching fish and lots of quality ones while having a ball all by myself. 

Then it finally happened.  Around 7:15 a.m. when the lake was glass calm and the skies were blue, my rod slammed hard and stayed down like it was hung on the bottom out in front of Whitefish Cr.  I knew I was in deep enough water however, unless I had found a dreaded anchor line.  Then “Thump, Thump” went the rod and line started to rip off.  WooHoo, I thought!  This is a good fish and I’m hooked up solid.  All of a sudden the line raced to the surface and a dandy looking brown leaped from the water and shook its head and tail like its saltwater cousin south of the border.  Whoa, I hollered, as I struggled to keep this scrapper on the end of my line.  The fish took a few more runs but slowly worked to the boat while staying very deep.  As the fish worked closer, I would catch a glimpse, but not enough to make out the size.  I knew it was a brown, but how big was it?  Finally, a beautiful hen brown came to the surface and swam out of reach of the net multiple times.  I could see that the fish was BARELY hooked from all the leaping and carrying on.  I kept calm and luckily the fish cooperated by not going on one more crazy run.  She slide into the net, and instantly I knew by the weight that she would go over the 5lb. mark!  After some quick setting adjustments to my camera, I was able to snap a photo of myself with her prior to the release.  She taped in at 25 inches and weighed an even 6 pounds.  This fish definitely put the cherry on top of all already excellent family vacation to Crescent Lake.  From the good time that the wife and kids had, this might be an “annual” Daniels family excursion. 

Good Fishing all,

R.D.

“Browns – Coyotes of the Fishing World!”