Denis Peirce: The big one that didn't get away at Lake Pyramid

We have just passed the winter solstice and these are the shortest days of the year. With all of the recent foul weather there have been a shortage of fishing reports coming across my desk.Many of my sources have been indoors, staying warm and dry. I have been keeping in contact with my sources for Pyramid Lake, Nev. waiting for the action to pick up. A rule of thumb is that the shore fishing will be poor until there are 10 consecutive nights of freezing temperatures. That’s what it takes to get the water temps down and bring the larger trout in to the shallows to feed. Last week, Dave Stull made plans to be at Pyramid Lake early Saturday morning.

Many members of the Gold Country Fly Fishers Club might remember Dave as a past club president during the late 1990s. He went north up the west shore beyond the end of the pavement to “Monument.” Dave had his gear set up and was casting from on top of his ladder by 7:45 a.m. The air was a brisk 28 degrees with an overcast sky. On his first few casts Dave noticed that after beginning his retrieve, the water on his fly line was turning to ice in his rod guides. Occasionally, he would have to hit the rod with the palm of his gloved hand to knock the ice off. This is the recipe for a good-sized fish at Pyramid Lake, winter, low-light conditions and stormy weather.

Dave ties his own bugger style flies for Pyramid and on Sunday he was fishing a two-fly rig. The top fly was white followed by a black point fly both in size No. 4. The technique is to cast his sinking “shooting head” fly line as far as possible and begin the retrieve after it had reached the bottom.Fifteen minutes into his day he had a solid hit but the hook did not stick. Dave immediately cast back out to the same area hoping for another shot at this fish. Retrieve ... retrieve ... retrieve ... nothing ... nothing ... nothing, his line is almost completely back in. Suddenly, he gets the take not more than 15 feet from his rod tip. Before he knows it, the fish has him all the way into his backing, a run of almost 100 feet. This was the first of three runs. Each successive run was shorter and less powerful than the first. Dave had planted his ladder at the limit of his chest high waders. He got off the ladder and began working his way back to the beach. The danger at this time is that the fish will seek refuge at any available structure. On a beach at Pyramid Lake, ladders are the only option and bigger fish have been lost after getting wrapped up in a ladder and breaking off. Dave successfully navigated the fish inside of the ladders and headed for the shore.It took 12 minutes to beach the beast. The best way to land a fish of this proportion is to back up to the beach well above the water’s edge and slide it onto the sand. Attempting to hoist a fish this large is a good way to break your line or a rod.

For those who are not familiar with Pyramid Lake cutthroat trout, the big February Derby at Crosby Lodge has frequently been won with a 12- to 13-pound fish with the 25th place fish coming in at the 8-pound range. Dave Stull’s 15-pound, 32.5 inch trout is truly the fish of a lifetime at Pyramid Lake. Dave’s strategy was to present a black fly chasing a white minnow in the shallows. He was hoping to target big trout chasing minnows in the shallows. This was a winning combination. Maybe the only thing he could have done to improve his odds would have been to increase the size of his fly. His trophy cutthroat had a freshly caught 8-inch tui chub in his stomach.Maybe there is a lot to the saying “big fish, big fly.” Merry Christmas Dave, and many happy returns.

Denis Peirce writes a weekly fishing column for The Union and is host of “The KNCO Fishing & Outdoor Report,” which airs 6-7 p.m. Fridays and 5-6 a.m. Saturdays on 830-AM radio. Contact him via e-mail at dpeirce@theunion.com.