It’s fall and this is the one time of year I’ll specifically go out looking for brookies. They’re preparing to spawn in the lakes and there will generally be very few people on the water even though fishing should be very good. I used to fish Pierre Grey Lakes near Grande Cache and I would often be alone on the lake catching all kinds of brookies with only me and the gray jay for company.
I like taking my daughter Angela out for brookies because catching them can be the ultimate in simplicity. I use a small bobber and worm, working it along the shorelines.
Casts are short and I’ll look for fishy looking areas or the fish themselves. If the lake has some gravel, expect the fish to be congregating there. Near Edmonton, Chicakoo lake held brookies and every year without fail they’d school up near the only gravel on the lake, at the boat launch.
Another prime piece of real estate is near and around beaver houses. Brookies love them and working all edges of a beaver house is as close to a brookie guarantee as there is.
When it comes to brookies, I take my friends, nephews and whoever wants to go out and catch a fish. I can almost guarantee the brookies will be there and biting
While I make sure to set people up with the tried and true, bobber and worm, I have also experimented. I was impressed to find others also working like a small yellow marabou jig hammered fish but the real surprise was the muddler minnow. I’ve used this fly on a number of occasions and when worked near bottom, it triggers strikes like you wouldn’t believe.
Brookies bite through the day, but look to evening for the big bite. If you’re an early riser, first light is also good. I’m a get up at the crack of noon kind of guy so I spend more of my time fishing the evening bite. As the sun fades the bite becomes more intense and I’ve managed to even catch a few by twitching plugs and spoons.
Not only are brookies a lot of fun to catch, but they are as colorful as they come. They are perhaps the prettiest fish on the fin and sometimes their colors are so vivid, they defy reality. It’s a real treat to keep a few for dinner. Their flesh is slightly oilier than a rainbow and they taste terrific pan-fried.
