Why Is This Hole A Bad Place For Trout To Winter?

Let’s hear your thoughts?

I have my theory……………….

Want some input here.

This time I have no idea. I’ll be interested in hearing your theory Len.

Because you’ll give it a case of “sore jaw syndrome”

Len, are your seeing many otter this year over there?

It’s part of the Kickapoo River?

yes….seeing otter on smaller streams.

This is Pine River near Rockbridge

Not enough flow?

Perhaps there is too much shade?

Good clarity, hard to sneak on. Clean rock ledge so guessing boulders are absent along with visible wood cover? I like your tests Len

Len, is that beaver den still there way over to the far left side of the pic? I know exactly where this spot is. I took a lot of beaver out of there over the last 7/8 years.

Thank God it doesn’t still look like 2007 – these were shot just to the north of your spot

BTW – as for a “bad spot” for trout – there is an eagle nest just a little ways to the north of there – Easy pick’ns for an eagle

no beaver dam there but there are remnants of one about 60 yards upstream.

All I can think of is lack of flow making it clearer and colder than the rest of the stream. Clearer plus no obvious protection/places to hide make trout vulnerable.

Bad place to be a trout, good place to be a trout fisherman?

Looks like yellow river

Its a very silty bottom with no riffles/places for the fish to actively feed on. Most stream organisms require high oxygen concentrations (areas of the stream after riffles). Plus the decaying material in the silt would rob the stream of oxygen. Am I right? If you put me on that spot come early trout season I would think otherwise…

Its casting distance from your back door and the trout don’t have a chance.

Lack of Midges to feed on due to lack of suitable bottom substrate. In regards to flow there is a lack of a “conveyour belt of food” situation due to low flow. Another way to answer the question would be because LenH knows that there are trout hear and he is going to beat up on them.

I am guessing that this part of the river may be in the middle 1/3 of the total stream length where the coldest water is during the winter months. And, if the hillside is on the south / southeast side of the stream, with a lack of transient sunlight the water would definitely be super cold and not habitable for trout food let alone trout.

First off I bet you are asking what a “Wintering” hole is. It is typically the deepest hole in the area that trout school up in and spend their winter. There are a few factors that make a good wintering hole. Slow current is required so the trout can hold in place. There typically is a fast water top of the hole to bring in food.

I fished this hole 10 times last March. It was new permission and I was really excited. I thought it looked like MONSTER water. I took friends a couple times because I didn’t believe I was doing so poorly. 10 outs….4 anglers total and ZERO trout.

I was looking at the photo this morning. The hole is clearly deep and it is the deepest hole in the area. The current is slow on the deep section.

There is a current section at the top of the hole. I just couldn’t solve the riddle. I put the photo on close up. I looked at the water first. Then I looked at the rock.

My educated guess tells me the HUGE rock face is facing north and west. This is the direction the winds typically come from in the winter here. There is lots of rock exposed . This rock face sucks up all that cold and transfers it too the water. This rock face super cools this hole.

I looked at the shallows and noted the bottom was very silty and thought about that also. If a trout wants to winter it needs food. Invertebrates need a food source to live there. Silty bottom means no food source for the main stay of that trout’s winter menu.

The water is too cold and there is no food.