They have been the focal point of many novels, poems and more recently popular fly fishing films. Between the long hikes through charming scenery and slow-motion casting, rises the unmistakable golden head sprinkled with spots of black and brown, and often shades of red, to gently remove insects from the surface of the water before it slowly glides down back to the bottom of the river.
If such a competition existed, brown trout would be voted sexiest fish alive… well at least if it was up to me. They are the Jennifer Aniston of the aquatic world, but besides their obvious beauty it is their wit, their “playing hard to get” and the ability to frustrate anglers that have fly fishers falling at the proverbial feet of the species Salmo Trutta.
Bushman Brown taken on a 16 CDC Caddis
For a while now brown trout have been an obsession for me, more accurately big trophy browns. They are as elusive as they come, even more so in our local South African waters. I’ve been fortunate enough to hook a few decent browns from my home waters over the past couple of years and the hunt still continues for that elusive double figure. One thing I have learned in my quest for a trophy brown trout is that you have to be willing to move outside your comfort zone and think outside the box to better your chances at these elusive trophies.
Here are a few things to think about when you find yourself near a river or dam where monster browns reside.
Richard White with a wild river brown caught on a streamer pattern.
Big Browns love big flies
In fly fishing nothing beats the sight of a 20 inch plus Brown rising to a size 20 mayfly presentation, sipping it delicately off the surface… Truth is, conditions don’t always allow for that. On many occasions anglers have taken trophy sized specimens on small insect imitations (who will pass up a free easy meal?) but big brown trout get big because they are doing something different to all the other fish in the pool.
According to researchers, it’s around the 20-inch (50,8cm) mark where most Brown Trout adjust their diet and become largely piscivorous. Not only do they feed on larger prey like minnows, smaller fish, tadpoles, frogs and mice, as predators they also have a job to do… Like the great Kelly Gallop explains, large trout have the task of “cleaning up the weak, the dying, the injured, the very old and the very young. When targeting big browns we need to keep this in mind and when the water permits and conditions are right don’t be shy to fish larger baitfish, minnow or streamer patterns.
Mooi River Brown aggressively attacked a white zonker streamer.
Become a trout stalker
When I say “trout stalker” I don’t mean putting on knee and elbow pads to leopard crawl and stalk up behind a fish you spotted from a high bank, although stealth is highly important. I’m talking about the obsessive ex girlfriend hiding in the bushes watching your every move type stalking. That’s right, as soon as you find out where a big trophy brown lives put on your best camo outfit, go down to his pool, sit down and watch. Study the beast’s every move and try figure out where he hides, how he swims and patrols the area, and what he’s eating. Like I said big browns reach their trophy sizes because they are doing things a bit differently from all the others, you need a little bit more info on this specific target before stumbling down to the river waving all 9 foot of your favorite piece of graphite in the air.
Healthy stillwater brown caught on a red eye damsel.
Get away from the light
Low light conditions get big browns to feed aggressively. I have seen and experienced this on countless occasions. Early morning hours, late afternoons, over cast conditions and even in the dark of night (recommended around full moon) are the best times to target big brown trout. The trout are more comfortable in low light conditions, and aren’t as easily spotted by potential predators and can better ambush prey.
The brown trout’s eyesight is designed to spot silhouettes and contrasts in the water, even in poor light. Anything that jumps out from the background they will spot and investigate. Don’t worry about them not seeing your fly, as long as you have the right color, size and profile you are in the money.
Swinging an olive and white double bunny got me this feisty brown on the Mooi.
There are some dedicated anglers who continue to study and target trophy brown trout, always developing and perfecting new techniques to fool these clever beasts. Here are some of my favorite guides and anglers who like to think outside the box, follow their blogs and social media pages and you might get those creative juices flowing and start to think differently about targeting big brown trout.
Kelly Galloup; Galloup’s Slide Inn
Stu Tripney; Stu’s Fly Shop
Louis Cahill & Kent Klewein; Gink & Gasoline
Area Fishing: South Africa
Discipline: Freshwater Fly
Species Targeted: Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout, Smallmouth Yellowfish, Largemouth Yellowfish, Natal Scaly, Tigerfish, Bass, Carp
Rhuan grew up in a fishing family and being raised on the banks of the Vaal River he spent many hours targeting anything that swims. He started out as a lure angler fishing with his father in local bass circuits and money trails. He caught his first Yellowfish on fly in the Vaal River and has been hooked on fly fishing ever since. Nowadays Rhuan spends his time in the KZN midlands fishing the pristine trout waters in the area and every now and then he visits his home waters of the mighty Vaal River.
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