Golden Rainbows

[wshawkins]

Are you ready for Golden Rainbows?  That’s the word out from several interested parties of bringing these trout into the Eastern Sierra.  There are two types of rainbow trout out there often confused with the California Golden trout.  They are the palomino trout and the golden rainbow trout.  Both of these trout are rainbows that are of the albino strain.  The guess the thought is to stock the golden rainbow as a novelty for the angling sport.

What’s your thoughts?  Good or bad for fishing?

Some pictures of these fish I got off the internet

[Gary C.]

I don't like the looks of them and can't say I would be much interested in seeing them stocked. I guess that with the states recent decisions to only stock sterile non-reproducing fish anything is possible.

[fishpole]

That palomino sure is an albino. ? If only sterile fish are stocked won't that mean fewer and fewer and fewer fish until some day none.

[wshawkins]

Fishpole has a point.  It seems DFG is only thinking short term here.  Long term is not there strong suit.

I realize many of Eastern Sierra Trout lakes are “put and take” fisheries. That being said the primary DFG plants in the past have been in feeder streams and creeks providing what I call a native or self-reliant fishery.  Now most all that is being planted are sterile trout.  The problem I see going forward is that if for any reason DFG can’t make routine plants, in a matter of 3-4 years (can you say budget cuts!) a lake or stream that has poor or no spawning could easily become sterile and void of trout!  I speak mostly of drive-to-lakes.  Back-country lakes air drops have mostly ceased but luckily most of these lakes are self-reliant; at least the ones that still have fish in them.  Maybe I’m all wrong here and if so let me know.

Rainbow and brown trout non-sterile trout are still stocked by DFG...they're just not stocked too often.

Now how about them goldfish?  I mean the Golden Rainbow! 

[Trev Dog]

Now how about them goldfish?  I mean the Golden Rainbow! 
 
They would look better in someones Koi pond!
Strap on your seat belts for more bad news from elected officials with no business sense, tripping over dollars to be made in order to save pennies. Don't want to get into a rant so I'll close.

[charlie]

The Palomino's are kind of hilarious. They've stocked them (banana trout)  in ponds on the east coast since the 60's.  You can see them from quite far. Everyone casts at them like they were target practice. They get snagged more than fair hooked. They are to a true golden, what some spray paint on a cement wall is to the Sistine Chapel.  WS, I see problems with triploids, too. I think many biologists like to see their budgets expand, and as long as their studies are perpetuated, the heck with fisherman.
This all seems too much like a precursor to drastically cutting stocking everywhere. Idiots. By the way- Yellow Legged Frog tastes like chicken.


Charlie

[87corvetteking]

I think it would be cool if they were stocked, but only like 2 times in a season. That would give us another goal to shoot for each year

[wshawkins]

They market the Golden Rainbow trout back east as “golden trout”, but don’t be fooled.  Nothing can hold a candle to our California Golden Trout, especially the pure ones in the Golden Trout Wilderness.

I spent a couple of years in North Carolina while in the service at Fort Bragg.  I served in the US Army 82nd Airborne Division.  On my time off, North Carolina has a great mountain spot to try some fly fishing for trout.  If you love the great outdoors and the scenery of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Great Smoky Mountains then North Carolina has what you are looking for in scenery while you fly fish in mountain trout waters.  It is a place of scenic views, waterfalls, small towns, and some great fly fishing.

North Carolina had rainbow trout, Browns, Brook trout (known as “specks” in NC) and of course the palomino rainbow.  The golden rainbow was mostly stocked in what they called fish parks, where you pay to fish a lake or pond.  Charlie is right that they get snagged more than fair hooked.  They called them “Golden Trout”.  Like I said, don’t be fooled!

Oh yeah Trev Dog, have to agree on they would look better in someones Koi pond!  lol!

[fshrsmn]

wshawkins....I have heard they stock very little, if any at all, in the Smokey Mountains (inside the park). Do you know if this is true? My wife and I are planning a trip there for two weeks in May/June and plan to bring our pack fly-rods along. Also, after my school is done NC is one of the areas we are considering relocating to so the Smokey Mountain area will become our retreat area.

Have you ever tried fishing the Cherokee reservation area just South of the Smokey Mountains. I hear it can be really good there.

[wshawkins]

wshawkins....I have heard they stock very little, if any at all, in the Smokey Mountains (inside the park). Do you know if this is true? My wife and I are planning a trip there for two weeks in May/June and plan to bring our pack fly-rods along. Also, after my school is done NC is one of the areas we are considering relocating to so the Smokey Mountain area will become our retreat area.

Have you ever tried fishing the Cherokee reservation area just South of the Smokey Mountains. I hear it can be really good there.

There is no stocking of fish in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  They stopped that sometime in the 1970’s. There are over 2,000 miles of rivers to fish in the park.  Fishing is alive and well in most parts of the National Park.  This is one beautiful area with lots of trees and greenery.  In Great Smoky Mountains National Park, they have rainbow, brown, and brook trout.  They also have some smallmouth bass and rock bass in the lakes.  The prize in my book is the Native Southern Appalachian Brook Trout, which are brightly colored fish.  It’s a different sup-species then we have out here in the Eastern Sierra.  Next is the Wild Smoky Mountain Brown Trout found in many of the streams.  Can be difficult to catch but are the largest trout by far in the park.  Fishing is open year round.

I fished the Oconaluftee River, which runs right through the Cherokee Indian Reservation.  It’s a clear running river that holds brook, rainbow and brown trout.  Oh yeah, they also stock the rainbow golden there too.  Fishing is open year round.  The river is well-stocked and very easy to catch your limits.

Have easy access to this river from downtown Cherokee.  Bring your waders for best fishing opportunities.  In most areas of the river, it’s only 2-3 feet deep.  Plenty of places to fish along this river as it run about 30 miles through the Cherokee Indian Reservation.

Good timing on the question Fshrsmn as I was here just this last October visiting family and old Army and fishing buddy who married and settled here.  Fishing was good in the park and great in the reservation as the Brooks and Browns were spawning and bows being very active.  The fall colors were fantastic in October in most areas.

[charlie]

I've fished the Tenn. side quite a bit.  Little  River in Elkmont,Abrams Creek below Cades Cove and the  Greenbriar  over toward  Gatlinburg are all  good. Look up Little River Outfitters. They have a daily fishing report, and a very helpful message board.  I've caught a few 20" plus browns out of the Little River on muddlers and sculpin patterns.  The Little below Townsend turns into excellent smallmouth water.  I highly recommend LRO. They helped me from there first tiny store next to a rib shack many years ago. Now they have a state of the art flyshop. Still good people who'll give you good info. You should get into some good caddis hatches and some sulfurs.  Elk hair caddis, soft hackles, parachute Adams, Stimulators in yellow, yellow sallies, are good for the specs in the smaller water. I went every year for 15 years. My closest friend lived on the NC side and his ashes  were spread on the South Toe River. I haven't gone in a few years , miss him too much.  There are rainbows in most of the creeks.


Charlie

[fshrsmn]

wshawkins & Charlie,

  Thanks for the information. This makes me want to be there right now. I have visited the Smokey Mountains a few times but never tried fishing there. I told my wife about the area and how beautiful it is and she really wanted to go. We will definitely try the fishing both in the park and t the reservation. We are also traveling right by the White River in Arkansas and want to stop a look there too.

[wshawkins]

Thanks for the tips from that part of the country Charlie!   That's good info for my next trip up there.  Little Rivers Outfitters message board is a good find also.  I will defiantly use it for next time.  Thanks!

[charlie]

This is the Little River right around Memorial Day.  The Mimosas are in bloom on the lower river, and the Rhodys are starting on the upper. One friend used my killer cray for the smallie- great wet wading! My friend  throwing a dry underneath the boulder is about 2 miles above the Elkmont Campground.
Ws, after all the wonderful things you put on this forum besides the great info you've given me personally .... I owe you a lunch, some flies and a beer or two.....at a minimum.

Charlie

[wshawkins]

Thanks for the kind words Charlie!  I think with the broad knowledge of this Board, ask a question about anywhere in the States and I’ll bet somebody been there, fished that creek or lake and maybe even lived there for a spell.  Just like you fishing the Great Smoky Mountains for 15 years straight!  Beats me by a mile!

Nice pictures of the Little River and the small mouth bass!  You’re last picture is how I like to fish.  Great spot!  We were at the Park Visitor Center (Sugarlands) looking around at their natural history museum and the Little River Road was right there so I think I was fairly close to your fishing hole.

The other reason for visiting that area is the annual show of fall colors, which is something to see in the Great Smokey Mountains NP with the Sugar Maple, Red Maple, Oaks and Hickories all changing color about the same time.

Some teaser pictures from my last trip last autumn.

This is Oconaluftee River, which originates from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park



Interesting hike that goes to a cool cave



Watch your Step!



Great fall colors with low clouds coming in.  The Red Maple is my favorite autumn color!

[bstolton]

I dont like this at all, is the DFG, wait I`m sorry the DFW trying to turn the sierras into Santa Ana Lakes !!!

[johnjcampnfish]

Looks the same as those Lightning trout they stock in those SoCal put 'n take lakes.
http://www.google.com/search?q=lightning+trout&hl=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=7d5DUcLpA5DdqwGx8oDABQ&sqi=2&ved=0CC0QsAQ&biw=1284&bih=758#imgrc=_

[wshawkins]

The “Lightening Trout” is generating a ton of buzz in Southern California waters.  I guess their stocking them in Corona Lake, Santa Ana Lakes, Anaheim lake just to name a few.  Real similar to the Golden Rainbow, actually it’s same thing, just different waters.  Here is an article I found from Mt. Lassen Hatchery where this hybrid came from:


The fish looks like a rainbow trout, but is bright yellow-to-gold in color and sports a dark pink stripe that runs horizontally along the lateral line of the spotless body. The meat of the fish is bright pink, resembling more of a wild char or salmon filet. Anglers who have hooked the fish all seem to agree that the lightning variety fights uncharacteristically hard for a trout.

The hybrid came about after an employee at the Mt. Lassen fish hatchery discovered a male rainbow trout that was tinted gold and patterned with vertical stripes. They discovered that the unique coloration occurred due to a recessive gene that became dominant in the male rainbow.

Mt. Lassen is calling them “lightning trout.”

[Topwater Terry]

The more weird looking trout that are stocked,  the better.  Most of these stockers don't wind up breeding anyway,  the wild fish take care of that...

[wshawkins]

I would surmise that if Golden Rainbows were stocked they would not last long because they are so easy to target.  Spawning in the wild is unlikely, because golden rainbows are highly visible in both streams and lakes and to both anglers and predators like blue herons, ospreys and eagles.  They are probably triploids trout anyway, which renders them sterile.

There was a lot of excitement among the fishermen on the Oconaluftee River fishing for Goldens last autumn.  I did not see any.


Fly fishing the Oconaluftee River in Cherokee, NC

[SN]

Interesting discussion gentlemen and great pictures, just don't know why they don't stick to the rainbow and try to improve them.
how about eating a rainbow golden or lightning?
is it the same or will the casual fishing population just toss them aside?

[wshawkins]

These are golden rainbows are out of Corona Lake, one of several Southern California lakes that are stocking them.  They say their very tasty and fight hard.  These come from the Mt. Lassen Hatchery, known for growing some large size trout.  I think they will be very popular!

[saudust]

From the looks of that, I'd have no problem eating or catching them.  I drove past Corona Lake the other day and it isn't my type of fishing hole, but if they are growing them that big I'd best change my thinking.  Those need a cedar plank and a slow cook.

[SN]

nice color wshawkins, thank you for posting this picture

[wshawkins]

I seen some wild rainbows in the back-country before with the pink meat color but nothing like these fish.  Makes you wonder what kind of diet they fed them at the Mt. Lassen Hatchery to get that color?