July 20, 1912 
FOREST AND STREAM 
. 75 
“Now, that Reminds Me”—IV. 
By O. W. SMITH 
Photograph by the Author. 
“ TOW, that reminds me’ of a live bait almost 
1^1 as attractive to rainbow as minnows; I 
have grasshoppers in mind. Did you ever 
try them ? Well, let me tell you that they will often 
turn the trick in July and August when flies prove 
unattractive and earthworms unavailing. Of 
course in fishing large rivers or lakes where 
overgrown rainbow and trout are to be found, 
one should not attempt their capture until along 
toward sunset, unless the day be a mizzling one, 
when they are apt to bite any time. Personally 
I have caught my largest rainbow when using 
grasshoppers, and I have found them a good 
bait for brook trout, too. It is not the easiest 
matter in the world to become a good ’hopper 
fisherman; the secret lies in manipulating the in¬ 
sect in a perfectly natural manner, for unless 
the fish be ravenously hungry, they will regard 
with suspicion a grasshopper that can travel up¬ 
stream, feet sticking in the air. 
“I have found my best ’hopper fishing for rain¬ 
bow in rather wide and slow-moving streams, 
where one can handle the gymnastic insects to a 
nicety, and where the record-breakers are some¬ 
times hooked. Probably the Peshtigo River, Wis., 
is one of the best rainbow streams in the Middle 
West. I have fished it several times going in 
from Ellis Junction on the C. M. & St. P., then 
I have gone in from the northwestern line, leav¬ 
ing the road at Mountain, Lakewood and Laona, 
and I have also ‘hit’ the headwaters of the 
Peshtigo from Cavour and Armstrong Creek on 
the Soo Line. Undoubtedly the best fishing to¬ 
day is to be reached from the latter station; at 
any rate two years ago I found the August fish¬ 
ing all that could be desired. 
“I was late in getting away from town that 
year, and it was well toward the middle of 
August before we got down from the train at 
the little station of Armstrong Creek. Probably 
our host at the hotel could not understand such 
haste as we manifested, unless he attributed it 
to a desire to escape board bills; at any rate by 
dint of much persuasion and a generous fee we 
were enabled to get a driver to take us down 
to the mouth of Armstrong Creek at once, so 
at 8 o’clock in the evening we set out, bag and 
baggage. It was a long drive and the road not 
of the best, but years of campaigning along the 
edge of civilization has inured us to hardships, 
so while the wagon bumped from rock to root 
and back again, I hung to the seat and watched 
the stars which winked at me through the tree- 
tops and listened to yarns of my companion. 
Daylight and sun had arrived before we reached 
our destination, and with a sigh of relief I paid 
off the driver, who outspanned his tired team, got 
himself a lunch, then lay do'wn under the wagon 
for a snooze. But there was no rest for my 
companion and I. We got busy with the tent 
and before the uninitiated might think it pos¬ 
sible, had a comfortable camp established. Then, 
mid-day though it was, we jointed our rods and 
began fishing, the result being several good 
speckled trout and three fair rainbow. 
“When we returned to camp our driver had 
disappeared with his team, and we were not 
sorry to be left alone. One of the most enjoy¬ 
able features of wilderness camping is its lone¬ 
someness. You have not camped out until you 
have gone alone or with a single companion. 
Leisurely we prepared our mid-afternoon dinner, 
neither talking much, for in our work-a-day 
world speech is at a premium and in the out- 
o’-doors we are glad to keep silent. Then we 
rested until the sun, a great red ball, hung just 
above the treetops, a sign that the best hour for 
rainbow fishing had arrived. 
‘‘We camped at the head of a long rapid, wild 
and angry water with many an up-reaching 
brown rock, and deep eddying pool, an ideal 
rainbow water. Side by side we waded in, and 
side by side we walked with the current. The 
water was not much above our knees; that is, 
save in the deeper places which we watched out 
for. Casting was easy, for we had plenty of 
room, and when upon the surface of the water 
the swift current kept our ’hoppers bobbing and 
dancing in a very lively manner. We discovered 
that while trout are always found on the lower 
side of rocks, rainbow were often found above 
them. The instant a fish was hooked we could 
tell whether it would prove a native or a West¬ 
erner, their methods of fighting are so different. 
The rainbow’s actions are more electric than the 
native’s, while the former leaps from the water, 
something that the latter never does on a slack 
line. By the time night had gathered we had 
several fine fish, more than enough for breakfast, 
while we had liberated three for every one we 
kept. 
“Now, I am not going to tell you of individual 
battles, victories and defeats; there were many 
of both. Only remember the one who handles 
grasshoppers as he would flies is sure of plenty 
of rainbow on the upper Peshtigo. We found 
waders rather a nuisance, for we were always 
stumbling or stepping into deep holes and filling 
them, not only a disagreeable experience, but a 
dangerous one in that swift water, so we formed 
the habit of fishing without them and changing 
our clothes upon returning to camp. 
“The days passed swiftly and all too soon the 
last arrived, the last fish was caught, and the tent 
taken down in anticipation of the arrival of the 
promised team. Then we were bumped and 
tossed over the stones and roots once more and 
whirled away behind the iron horse, back to the 
desk and business. If you want to know what 
grasshopper fishing for rainbow trout is like, 
just visit the Peshtigo or like stream in dog 
days, and my word for it, you will be delighted 
with the experience and results.” 
A Real Sea Serpent? 
St. John’s, N. L., July 5. —Editor Forest and 
Stream: It is reported that the sea serpent has 
been seen at Englee down the north coast, and 
the fishermen are afraid to go out to the 
grounds. This is not a “holiday” tale, as cer¬ 
tainly some monster fish has been seen in that 
vicinity, as it is not easy to frighten Newfound¬ 
land fishermen with anything coming from deep 
waters. W. J. Carroll. 
Wisconsin Angling. 
The third season’s angling trip for the Pon- 
tinalis, in the rivers of Shawano county, Wiscon¬ 
sin, by the three boon companions (old members 
of the Chicago Ply-Casting Club) Geo. A. Mur¬ 
rell, William Wolfarth and Hawley A. New¬ 
kirk, was most enjoyable. They spent ten days 
with their good Indian guide and caught enough 
to have trout on the table for five people three 
times a day, and bring the law’s allowance home. 
It was a little early for the very large ones, but 
they secured from seven to twelve-inch trout, 
and the best flies proved to be, in their order, 
brown Palmer, queen of waters, cow dung and 
the professor. 
ARMSTRONG CREEK. 
