brook trout question

[ougot1]

are brook trout attracted to rattles or noise in the water ? i know they like anything that moves . any replies appreciated  !

[Bottle_O_Moxie]

This is a good question. 

If the brook trout are from a recent hatchery release, they may associate noise with feeding time and come over. 

If they are native, they may get spooked and swim far away from rattles and noises. 

I know that when I have been fishing through the ice for brookies in shallow water where I can see the bottom through the hole, the trout which swim by are attracted to movement above all else.  Through the years I've tried bouncing a Swedish pimple or jig bait off the bottom when nothing is biting and it never seems to work. I did this to make sounds and raise a bit of mud but it didn't help put any fish on the ice.

So I'll say no to rattles and noise, and yes to silent movement for trout...including browns. 
I'd be curious what others here have experienced. 

[Anomaly]

Hmmm.... I don't really target brookies anymore... I have had a lot of success with rattle stuff attracting whitefish, lake trout, yellow perch and walleye. Sometimes dull sound AND movement like pounding a large flashy heavy spoon on bottom works to bring fish in and then get them to take smaller presentations.

Color matters. For instance, smelt and other baitfish luminesce in shades of white, chartruese and greens when being pursued. So those glow colors are helpful. I had heard of this and used it before a regional biologist told me about riding otter trawls to sample freshwater fish. He witnessed the flashing of smelt and others trying to get out of the way of the net.

One more story.. In NY on Oneida Lake we used to fish yellow perch for $. Anyway, we noticed that whenever we punched a new hole (usually early ice with a spud) we'd catch a few and then next to nothing. So, I decided to just pound on the ice where I was. Worked like a charm!!! The more I pounded on the ice the more yellow perch and walleye would show up... The only problem with the walleye is we used 2# test for the perch and often the walleye would break off our rigs.... I wonder if this would work for togue and whitefish. I'm pretty sure browns would not be receptive... 

[Jack978]

For Brook Trout the less noise the better.

[Kilsdonk]

IMO Yes, I think Brookies are more aggressive than your average trout. When I see one cruise by my hole I usually try to reach for something loud and shiney.

Through the years I've tried bouncing a Swedish pimple or jig bait off the bottom when nothing is biting and it never seems to work. I did this to make sounds and raise a bit of mud but it didn't help put any fish on the ice.

Bottle_O I would try tying small jig about 6-10 inches above your swedish pimple. Use big jerks to attract the fish to the SP but when the fish get close or you have there attention let the SP bury itself in the mud and gently jig only the little jig.

[Dags Bait Maine]

Fresh stocked bookies school. The individual fish are emboldened when they are in a school. With the assumption that the sound interests a brookie and that if one fish can hear it they all can hear it, would mean for the entire school to come over and investigate. It is in my experience that rattling lures can create a behavior in brookies where they come in and attack quickly and if they miss others are right behind to follow up with a strike on any missed hook sets.
-Dylan

[Ryanfitzner]

It’s kind of hard to tell. I have fished in Utah and Pennsylvania and somethings that work for me and Utah do not work in Pennsylvania. I feel like even fish that are not stocked, but are in the same fishery as other stocks, fish act differently as they interact with stocked fish. Fishing is so hard sometimes as there are 1 million variables. There could be lots of different opinions by different people but ultimately you just gotta try it out and see what happens.

[joefishmore]

IMO Yes, I think Brookies are more aggressive than your average trout. When I see one cruise by my hole I usually try to reach for something loud and shiney.

Bottle_O I would try tying small jig about 6-10 inches above your swedish pimple. Use big jerks to attract the fish to the SP but when the fish get close or you have there attention let the SP bury itself in the mud and gently jig only the little jig.

Are 2 hooks legal ?

[woodchip]

2 Hooks are legal if your fishing for SMELTS.

[Bottle_O_Moxie]

I suppose we could remove the hook from the Swedish Pimple then have a bait of some sort attached above it.     Let the SP stir up the bottom and see if the fish go after the moving bait above?   I'm willing to try this on those slow days when nothing seems to be getting the fish excited.....

[woodchip]

Years ago in Lily pond in New Gloucester we use to be able to ice fish for Crappies and trout and i found that if you lay on ice with face over hole and a jacket over your head you could look down to Bottom and see trout schooling around they would not touch my jig but if i moved it around ans jiggle it the trout would hammer it.  I would go home with my limit every time and back then it was 15 fish limit on trout, they closed it to ice fishing years ago so i havent fished it for a long time. I heard they were going to open it back up to ice fishing but not sure if they ever will. it made a nice local ice fishing for families.

[nbourque]

Years ago in Lily pond in New Gloucester we use to be able to ice fish for Crappies and trout and i found that if you lay on ice with face over hole and a jacket over your head you could look down to Bottom and see trout schooling around they would not touch my jig but if i moved it around ans jiggle it the trout would hammer it.  I would go home with my limit every time and back then it was 15 fish limit on trout, they closed it to ice fishing years ago so i havent fished it for a long time. I heard they were going to open it back up to ice fishing but not sure if they ever will. it made a nice local ice fishing for families.

15 fish limit on trout? Lmao

[Anomaly]

2 Hooks are legal if your fishing for SMELTS.

Are 2 hooks legal ?

Actually, I checked with IFW. You can fish with multiple hooks/lures on a line, BUT ONLY 1 CAN BE BAITED. SO, like a Swedish pimple on the bottom and a fly or small jig above IS LEGAL...

[eiderz]

Actually, I checked with IFW. You can fish with multiple hooks/lures on a line, BUT ONLY 1 CAN BE BAITED. SO, like a Swedish pimple on the bottom and a fly or small jig above IS LEGAL...

This was always my understanding. As with many regulations, the rule book is pretty confusing because "1 baited hook" is in one sentence with "flies, lures" etc.. Further confused by the rules permitting 2 flies while fly fishing, and multiple baited hooks permitted for smelt.

We've trolled at ice out for salmon and brookies since I was a kid, we generally deploy two streamers per rod. All the wardens we've spoken with about it say it's ok.

[gamefisher]

We've trolled at ice out for salmon and brookies since I was a kid, we generally deploy two streamers per rod. All the wardens we've spoken with about it say it's ok.

Interesting.  Off a three way swivel or something?  Saw a picture of a great brown caught trolling in Maine yesterday!

[eiderz]

Interesting.  Off a three way swivel or something?  Saw a picture of a great brown caught trolling in Maine yesterday!

No hardware. We use a dropper knot with about 12" of leader, roughly 2 feet ahead of the rear fly. The fish don't seem to mind the leader against the front fly.

[9huskies]

Actually, I checked with IFW. You can fish with multiple hooks/lures on a line, BUT ONLY 1 CAN BE BAITED. SO, like a Swedish pimple on the bottom and a fly or small jig above IS LEGAL...

The rulebook says "Except as otherwise provided, it is unlawful to fish other than with a single baited hook and line, artificial flies or artificial lures and spinners."

My interpretation is you can use one single baited hook, or any number of artificial flies or any number of artificial lures or spinners. My reasoning is their use of the word "or". It doesn't say a single baited hook and line, artificial flies AND artificial lures and spinners. The section on fly fishing says you can use up to three unbaited artificial flies when fly fishing. It doesn't mention how many flies you are allowed to troll on the two lines you are allowed to use. Trying to push it to the letter of the laws will probably result in a ticket from a pissed off game warden.

[eiderz]

The rulebook says "Except as otherwise provided, it is unlawful to fish other than with a single baited hook and line, artificial flies or artificial lures and spinners."

My interpretation is you can use one single baited hook, or any number of artificial flies or any number of artificial lures or spinners. My reasoning is their use of the word "or". It doesn't say a single baited hook and line, artificial flies AND artificial lures and spinners. The section on fly fishing says you can use up to three unbaited artificial flies when fly fishing. It doesn't mention how many flies you are allowed to troll on the two lines you are allowed to use. Trying to push it to the letter of the laws will probably result in a ticket from a pissed off game warden.

The important point here is, the rule isn't clear. Although we have slightly different reasoning for why, we seem to be in agreement that more than one non-baited hook/lure/fly can be used.

For most of my life, I've been fortunate to spend around 200 days (at least a part of those days) per year in the field, hunting or fishing. The game wardens have always been friendly with me, probably because I act nicely towards them. I have never been threatened with so much as a warning for anything. Part of it's that I try hard to comply with the rules. When I'm in town with time to kill, I'm gonna head over to the IFW building and see what they think. Could be interesting. 

[Anomaly]

This was always my understanding. As with many regulations, the rule book is pretty confusing because "1 baited hook" is in one sentence with "flies, lures" etc.. Further confused by the rules permitting 2 flies while fly fishing, and multiple baited hooks permitted for smelt.

We've trolled at ice out for salmon and brookies since I was a kid, we generally deploy two streamers per rod. All the wardens we've spoken with about it say it's ok.

I asked specifically about crappie and whitefish on a jig rod. I was told one baited lure and others on the same line as long as there was no meat on more than one. I think soft plastics are not "meat" 

[eiderz]

I asked specifically about crappie and whitefish on a jig rod. I was told one baited lure and others on the same line as long as there was no meat on more than one. I think soft plastics are not "meat" 

I agree with you. I think we all agree that "bait" is fish or worm or larvae, alive or dead. Anything artificial is not bait. I've been meaning to have the conversation with the local IFW office for a while, hopefully this month.

[Bottle_O_Moxie]

It would be so easy to clarify that section of the rule book to define 'baited hook'.  Probably can be made crystal clear in 12 words or less.
IFW amends and revises the rule book every year or two.

Some folks call bait any item they have on the end of the fishing line including metal lures, and others (like me) may call bait all the rubber and feathery articles attached to a hook, and also including shiners, smelts and worms. 

If IFW means 'meat things' then it sure would be nice to say so for all to understand. 

Holy smokes they have 70 pages of fishing rules adding a few more words here would be easy. ()

...."Single-Baited Hook: A single-baited apparatus designed to catch only one fish at a time (Title 12, §10001-57). See Hook definition"......

The incredibly wordly and lengthy rule book does not have the word 'BAIT' defined.  they danced around it in the 'Artificial Lure' definition.   Wonder why that is?   

[woodchip]

What would happen if in a fly fishing only pond a guy tied on a piece of artifisel bait to his fly??? or artifisel lures only pond one would work on a piece of plastic scented bait. wish they could make laws clear maybe give fishermen more clear easier choices .

[nbourque]

What would happen if in a fly fishing only pond a guy tied on a piece of artifisel bait to his fly??? or artifisel lures only pond one would work on a piece of plastic scented bait. wish they could make laws clear maybe give fishermen more clear easier choices .

Plastic is artificial. Power bait is considered artificial as well.

[DowneastPescador]

What would happen if in a fly fishing only pond a guy tied on a piece of artifisel bait to his fly??? or artifisel lures only pond one would work on a piece of plastic scented bait. wish they could make laws clear maybe give fishermen more clear easier choices .

Well then you get into the definition of fly in the rules book…..which is pretty confusing too. You can use three flies on a line in a FFO pond but not flies with two hooks like tandem trolling streamers. I’ve often wondered if people ever throw on a plastic swim shad in a small size in those ponds that only see flies. Not sure if that’s legal but I think so.