372 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Nov. 26, 1891. 



the necessary qualities of a succeSBful bass angler are, 

 "patience, perseverance, endurance, skill and strength." 

 They have learned by long experience the true knowledge 

 of the movements of fish in all kinds of weather. These 

 are the men who kindly proposed to take us to the great 

 bass grounds. 



A large boat was placed on a dray in which we found 

 comfortable seats, and with sph'ndid roads and a careful 

 driver, we were safely landed on the shore of Sandusky 

 Bay, two and a half miles due south of Port Clinton, 

 vyhere there aw^aited our arrival another boat. The 

 cotmtry bordering the bay is rich in fruit and grain. I 

 learned that farming life was comparativelv easy, and 

 judging from the great number of modern buildings the 

 farmers are well to do. When the fields are weary with 

 their giving of their strength to so many harvests they 

 can rest for a season. The heavy land is for general 

 farming purposes, the light is planted in peach, pear and 

 other fruit, which of recent years has made this section 

 one of the wealthiest in the State. It was yet early in the 

 day when we arrived on the bay shore. Large flocks of 

 blackbirds covered the marsh; thousands of wild ducks 

 were sporting in the open water of the bay, while among 

 the reeds and rushes leism-ely walked many species of 

 rail perfectly unconcerned at the approach of any one. 

 Sandusky Bay is a magnificenC sheet of water, and on its 

 fretted bosom the eye could snatch, in the distance, bril- 

 liant gUmpses of the snow-white sails that sparkled in 

 the shadows of Sandusky city as they fell under the 

 beams of an autumn sun. The landscape surrounding 

 this bay is beautiful in itself, but still rendered more so 

 by the delicate aerial tints which lay on every object and 

 touched the whole with a mellow expression. 



At this point the bay is six miles wide, and after row- 

 ing about three miles southwest, over a stretch of shallow 

 water with marsh grasses just peeping above the surface, 

 we came to a deep channel, the margins of which are 

 bordered with pond lilies, wild rice and other aquatic 

 plants. This is the Sandusky River channel, and is nav- 

 igable for very large vessels. The moment we entered 

 this channel Montgomery and his spoon companion, Mr. 

 John Robison, who had joined us at Port Clinton, began 

 at once to manir)ulate the spoon, closely hugging the 

 grass. As Captain Marshall and myself were not 'ex- 

 pected to use the spoor , we lingered behind, expecting to 

 drop anchor at the first bend which looked as if black 

 bass fed. The spooners were soon out of sight around 

 the many bend?. Before hooking on our first minnow 

 let me attempt to describe this comparatively new black 

 bass fishing ground, for it is evident that if we were com- 

 pelled to take a boat several miles over land and then 

 row the same distance, all for want of nearer accommo- 

 dations, it must be a new field. 



Sandusky River from Fremont to where it empties 

 proper into the bay is one of the most romantic rivers of 

 our land. I ()nce took a boat at Fremont and rowed down 

 stream until tired; calling upon a farmer, I was informed 

 that I had rowed seven miles, while, "as the crow flies," 

 two miles away could be seen the steeples of the little 

 city. From Fremont in a straight line to the bridge 

 where the Lake Shore crosses the bay it is seventeen 

 miles, while to follow the river and the channel it is esti- 

 mated to be thirty- one miles. Every mile has its special 

 attraction. A hundred objects of interest continually 

 present themselves at each turn of the broad, deep river. 

 The lofty woods, cultivated farms, clean-kept orchards, 

 and green meadow lands hem the very shore. All these 

 naturally invite the attention and awaken an interest for 

 the wonders of creation. The river has an even flow, sub- 

 ject to wind and tide of the lake. It is navigable to within 

 a few miles of Fremont. In all this long stretch of ter- 

 ritoi-y no one has been permitted to iish with any kind of 

 nets for twenty years. Bass, pickerel, mascalonge, carp, 

 eels, perch, sunfish and saugers live in comparatively un- 

 disturbed freedom. In the bends abong the gravelly bars 

 and sandy leads the farmers have no trouble, with native 

 bait, "to catch before breakfast a mess of bass," and 

 "occasionally get hold of some darned big fish we can't 

 land." 



the first movement, the moment your lightly casted min- 

 now touches the desired spot, a 21bs. bass strikes it with 

 such force and business that a tremor creeps through 

 your whole system. A dozen beauties are quickly added 

 to your string. Then to see your friend fasten the hook 

 into the jaws of a four-pounder: to watch him play him 

 subdue him, and land him successfully and artistically is 

 a sight worth rowing many miles to see. And finally to 

 have the pleasure "of catching as many as you want" is 

 indeed an uncommon treat. A cool hundred of these 

 broad-shouldered large-mouthed bass humiliated upon t 

 stringer alongside of your boat, after several hours' fish 

 ing, IS a picture rarely seen in other quarters. I admit i 

 is not a rule to catch bass "as long as they will bite, 

 among book-reading anglers, but not like Dr. Henshall 

 in his Okauchee Lake catch of 153, be contented with an 

 even 100, although twice that number could have been 

 taken if desired. We are satisfied that this river contains 

 more black bass to the square mile than any stream in 

 the world. When we left to go in search of our compan- 

 ions the bass were still making the water foam, and at no 

 time would they take the spoon. 



After rowing several miles up the river we discovered 

 our companions seriously casting the spoon, and with 

 strings of bass that would make a Pelee angler smile, 

 At the bend where they w^ere fishing the afternoon be- 

 fore, Montgomery_ caught with spoon dolbs. of bass in 

 one hour. I was informed by several resident farmers 

 that for twelve miles up the river "one could catch bass 

 at any bend, and that it was no trick at all to haul in .50 

 to IQO in an afternoon," We rowed a few miles up the 

 river, the bends became more frequent, the channel nar- 

 rower, the pond lilies thicker, the wild rice higher, and 

 Mr, Hollingshead found it no trouble to pick out a bass^ 

 with his spoon, at every bend. There is no question but 

 what this is really the "finest large-mouthed black bass 

 fishing grounds in the world;" as evidence of this fact 

 the reader can form some idea as to the supposed quantity 

 of ba?s in the river from what a bay shore pound-net 

 fisherman told us upon our return to the land. He said 

 he procured permission to set one net in the river over 

 night. The next day he filled "twelve barrels with solid 

 black bass." j. E. Gunckel. 



Toledo, Ohio-. 



Nature can furnish no fairer scene than that unrolled 

 to the ej^e after turning the last bend in the river. There 

 reposing in magnificent silence is the deep, winding chan- 

 nel creeping through thousands of acres of marsh grasses 

 until lost in the broad expanse of the bay. To the rear is 

 the dark forest, the high bluffs which reveal the river's 

 course. The cooing of doves, the plover's whistle over 

 the upland space, the whirl of wild ducks, the flutter of 

 birds, the sharp notes of sea gulls, and the occasional 

 shadows of eagles as they swoop over the counry within 

 rifle shot, all tend to show how wild and secluded is the 

 spot. This is the river, the home par excellence of the 

 large-mouthed black bass, and around the bends and at 

 the mouths of the few streams which empty into the 

 river he has reveled for ages in undisturbed freedom. 



Half an hour after we had entered the channel and 

 were leisurely rowing around the sharp bends, more par- 

 ticularly admiring the ever-changing scenery than look- 

 ing for a favorable place to fish, I carelessly called Capt, 

 Marshall's attention to a terrible commotion in the water 

 at a bend, where it looked as if there might have existed 

 at one time another channel. The disturbance very 

 much resembled ducks sporting. All about the point 

 the water was as smooth as glass, the fresh southeasterly 

 wind having no effect. He ceased rowing, stood erect 

 and for a moment was perfectly speechless. No one 

 can imagine the hajipy expression which played upon 

 his countenance, except those who have seen him make 

 a 21 run with his "registered cue," when he declared 

 they were bass feeding. We quietly approached nearer, 

 to a distance where we could not only see the fins of 

 bass weighing 8 and 41bs. but hundreds of them, and of 

 all sizes, darting hither and thither among a school of 

 minnows which they had evidently surrounded. A 

 dozen ducks could not have agitated the water more. 

 Now you gentle anglers who have dozed beneath the 

 shadows of umbrageous trees, occasionally glancing 

 through dreamy eyes at your motionless cork, or you 

 "lone fishermen" who have worked and waited for hours 

 at a time begging "for only one strike," or you ener- 

 getic, persevering anglers who have been searching for 

 years and would give any reasonable sum tb witness 

 such a scene as this; imagine yourself anchored upon the 

 opposite side of the stream, where your movements could 

 not be observed by the fish, and within easy casting dis- 

 tance, with light, strong tackle, several hundred choice 



TROUTING IN COLORADO. 



WAGON WHEEL GAP, Col.— I wonder if any of 

 the readers of the Forrst and Stream have had 

 an outing this summer in this far-away Eldorado valley, 

 or if any of them have cast a fly on the swift, clear- 

 waters of the Rio Grande and taken the lustv trout that 

 make their homes among the boulders of that stream. 

 I have no doubt some of them have, for your readers are 

 not confined to the eastern slope of the continental divide; 

 but if they have, I have failed to see any account of their 

 fishing or climbing. 



At the hotel at Wagon Wheel Gap there is a board 

 hung on the log wall, with a rude outhne of a fish upon 

 it, discolored on its lower half with red chalk, and under- 

 neath it this legend written: "G P , champion 



fisherman, 741bs,, March — , 1889." I didn't see that one 

 caught, but I did see one caught, or, rather, after he was 

 caught, which weighed 4ilbs. on Fairbanks' standard 

 scales, measured 83.1in, in length, and in proportion and 

 coloring was the most beautiful fish I ever saw. This 

 fish was laid on a large sheet of drawing paper, outlined 

 and painted in oil. It had a dark grayish brown body to 

 the middle, where a sort of water color line of parting 

 extends from gills to tail. This parting line, by the way, 

 is found also in the flesh beneath the skin. Over this 

 grayish brown body, which darkens toward the top of 

 the back, are scattered specks in spots of a darker brown, 

 almost black. From this line toward the belly and along 

 the sides the color is a bright vermilion, and the belly is 

 white; dorsal and tail fins a dark straw color, thickly 

 dotted with dark brown spots; large eye, and proportions 

 as nearly perfect as it is possible to imagine. 



The shining eyes of friend John as he came in to the 

 ranch before breakfast one morning with that fish was a 

 thing to be seen once and to be ever after remembered; 

 especially when it is remarked in passing that John is a 

 most enthusiastic sportsman, a most ardent and indus- 

 trious fisherman, who spent his whole two weeks vaca- 

 tion in the Rio Grande, wading its swift and icy waters 

 from early morn till frosty eve, without waterproofs of 

 any sort, intent upon taking the speckled beauties: that 

 he had been a fisherman all his life and had never before 

 secured such a prize, and that he was a confirmed old 

 bachelor and had never felt his heart beat and his pulses 

 quicken under the flashing eye of woman. 



At the ranch where we were domiciled there were 

 drawings of one of two catches by the owner, Mr, P., 

 showing larger fish than this one of John's, but it was 

 conceded that a lovelier fish had never been caught out of 

 the Rio Grande. It was a labor of love to transfer this 

 fish to canvas; speckled fins, flashing eye, vermilion red, 

 Caledonian brown, and all that the bachelor fisherman 

 might frame and hang in his apartments in Puebla, this 

 counterfeit of the trophy of his skill with rod and reel. 

 Long may you live John, and many times may you in- 

 dulge yourself in the exquisite delights of wading that 

 swift and chilly stream, sans waders, with your nine 

 flies (so that the fish may have a choice), your dim- 

 colored broadbrim shading your ruddy and ruddily- 

 whiskered countenance; and may you often bring to 

 basket doublets and triplets, and I shall not very much 

 envy you if you have a triumphant tussle with old 

 Whiskers himself. (Note.— Old Whiskers is the cham- 

 pion fish of the stream ; weighs lOlbs. by estimate. Has 

 oft been hooked, but never landed.) 



Truly, the fishing on the Rio Grande is the very per- 

 fection of sport. Though the writer took no 4-pounders, 

 he did take several of less weight, and though the water 

 is swift and an occasional header into the cold water 

 may reward the incautious step and slip upon the slip- 

 pery stones on its bottom, still there is to a lover of sport 

 rich reward, in the striking, playing, and landing of 

 these gamiest of all fish. There is nothing worth having 

 to be gained without effort, as one of our party, a 

 Denver banker, sageJy remarked as he came home one 

 evening with a nearly empty basket, and though wading 

 down mid-stream (or still worse, wading up), with water 

 well up to the top of your wading boots, for hours over 

 slippery stones, is not a lazy man's ideal of happiness, 



so delightful to tired city eyes, weary with book and pen, 

 and those resinous odors of the ever green pines and firs 

 and cedars, so grateful after the smell of city traflic and 

 city sewers, that tired limbs and luckless headers, and 

 even empty baskets are almost forgotten. 



And then the glad return after the fishing is over, that 

 broiled grouse, that browned trout: that cream, ah, that 

 cream! so thick that a spoon would stand upright in it, 

 and so sweet and rich, and those red mountain-gathered 

 raspberries that greeted us, the tired and hungry waders; 

 with what words, O Boniface, shall I describe them. 



Why, John, I believe, made a vow when he came to 

 that hospitable board (not that if flesh maketh my 

 brother to err I will taste no flesh while the world stand), 

 that while in this land of fish and game and moun- 

 tain berries and superlative butter and milk and cream, 

 he would taste no other meat, so help him Epicurus; a 

 vow, by the way, he religiously or otherwise kept. Me- 

 thmks if all sins could be atoned for by such penance, the 

 way to heaven were easy. Every day was Friday with us 

 all the time we were there. 



The fishing was the chief thing, and all indulged in it 

 more or less. Further up the river the ladies donned the 

 waders and took a hand, and enjoyed the sport, too 

 greatly. Now, it is not to be concluded from this that we 

 had no ladies at our ranch. Yea, verily, we did have lady 

 boarders, and young lady neighbors, who looked on with 

 interest while fathers and la-others, not to say sweet- 

 hearts, caught the fish; but came in for their innings 

 when evening and croquet, lawn tennis, music, or tiie 

 puppies were on hand; and did not disdain to play a good 

 second to the aforesaid brothers, etc, when it came to 

 putting away the trout from the dinner table. 



That word puppies must not be misunderstood. I 

 hasten to explain that at the P. ranch there were about 

 six half -grown water spaniel puppies, the shaggiest, play- 

 fullest, lovingest, teasingest puppies that ever tore a 

 1-ddy s skirts or played fox and goose with the kittens; and 

 there they were all day; and like puppies of veritable good 

 taste they fell in love with the young ladies of course; 

 and a romp whenever they met was the inevitable result. 



Yes, the fishing vA^as fine, the climate delightful, the 

 eating all that could be desired, the children the healthi- 

 est, heartiest of squallers, the sky blue, the sun bright, 

 the showers wet, the white tents like far off sails at sea, 

 suggestive of humanity and companionship, but running 

 through it all, ever present, never forgotten, like the 

 solemn monotone of the throbbing sea beat upon a lonely 

 shore, was the thought born of the silence, the solidity, 

 the majesty, the eternity of those pine- clad, snow-capped 

 mountains,' of our own transientness and littleness after 

 all. That grand diapason in stone, that mighty mysteri- 

 ous, unread and unreadable volume, the everlasting hills. 



Texas. 



ANGLING NOTES. 



AAVELL-KNOWN New York sportsman, now residing 

 at Beloxi, Miss., writes us that for fishing that 

 place is unsurpassed. Weakfish, bluefish, sheepshead, 

 and redfish (channel bass), can he caught in numbers 

 sufficient to satisfy the most exacting angler, and in the 

 fresh-water ponds and streams the big-mouth bass take 

 the fly all through the year. Good quarters can be found 

 at the Montrose Hotel. 



Were it not for the long sea voyage and the insect 

 pests what a paradise for anglers Newfoundland would 

 be. In the northern part of the island there are hundreds 

 of lakes and ponds, streams and rivers that are absolutely 

 virgin waters and teeming with speckled trout. Otter 

 and eagle are the only creatures that disturb the fish in 

 that great wilderness. While hunting there this fall we 

 could see the trout darting in every direction when we 

 forded the brooks; but when one is hunting big game he 

 has no time to stop and fish, besides which most of the 

 ponds were covered with ice and the trout were spawn- 

 ing. We caught a few with our hands in the smaller 

 brooks to see if they were the same old favorites, and we 

 found they were the true speckled trout. 



Our men told wonderful tales of 5 and 61bs, sea trout 

 that frequented the head of Hall's Bav during June and 

 July, together with many a sly allusion to the salmon 

 and grilse they had netted. Of course the poor settlers 

 have no other way of getting them and it is not hkelv 

 that these poverty-stricken and half-starved whites and 

 Indians are going to deny themselves either trout or sal- 

 mon when their herring nets are so handy, and the pools 

 are filled with fish. 



We had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Maurice Thorbura 

 in St. John, Newfoundland. This gentleman is the 

 crack angler of that island, and a thorough sportsman in 

 every way. While we were enjoying a little game supper 

 at his cosy bachelor apartments, he showed us two fine 

 specimens of speckled trout preserved in alcohol, one of 

 which weighed, when caught, a little over 41bs.. and the 

 other 31bs. They were taken in Lake George only a few 

 miles from St. Johns. Sir. Thorbiirn related with much 

 pride, as well he might, how he killed eight of these 

 superb trout during some two or three visits to this lake, 

 using the brown-hen dressed on a No. 8 hook. He said 

 very many people had fished for them unsuccessfullv, as 

 they required the lightest of tackle and only would" rise 

 to a fly late in the evening. Scarlet-Ibis. 



Feeding Habit of Trout.— Mr. Orestes Pierce, who 

 supplies the city of Portland, Cal., with water, has splen- 

 did facilities for rearing fish and devotes a portion of his 

 leisure to their introduction and propagation. When 

 catfish were fashionable Mr, Pierce obtained some of the 

 Eastern stock and placed them in a reservoir. Now he 

 has catfish enough and to spare, but, although their 

 number is legion, they do not grow large, and because of 

 a prejudice against their whiskers the Chinese can not 

 be induced to eat them. Michigan whitefish have been 

 successfuly acclimated by Mr, Pierce also and their 

 growth is very satisfactory— but, to return to the trout. 

 The cherished pets of the establishment were a lot of 

 sleek and handsome trout, some of which, for conveni- 

 ence of display, were kept in a large crate moored in one 

 of the lakes near the olfice. The trout were regularly 

 fed and were always on hand to be admired by the 

 numerou-s visitors. Oo one occasion the crate was 



..i,',,-^ - . . . - , hauled up above the surface of the water for some pur- 



still that mountain air is so pure and fresh, and those pose when it was discovered that the bottom had fallen 



wows iow to act under such oiroumstanGes. Now watch I their nearer, ever shifting tints at purple and brown are the Inolosure about feeding time from forde of habft, 



