LOCALadk Magazine
Issue link: https://localadkmagazine.uberflip.com/i/1472201
Brook trout thrive in cold, clean water, thus they are very well- suited to life in the Adirondack Park, where hundreds of ponds and small inland streams harbor these colorful beauties. Back in the 1970s, acid rain put a hurt on native brook trout fisheries throughout the Park. Aer the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act were passed (1970 and 1972, respectively), brook trout ponds slowly began to recover. But it took years before Adirondack lakes and ponds saw life as it was pre-acid rain. Bottom-up — from phytoplankton and insects to forage fish to brook trout — aquatic food chains finally normalized and brook trout returned to their historic sustainable numbers. e DEC has identified eleven very specific "Heritage" strains of brook trout native to the Adirondacks; the most common are Windfall, Little Tupper, and Lost Brook. About five years ago, I teamed up with the crew of Trout Power (fronted by J.P. Ross) along with Spencer Bruce, Ph.D., to catch and record DNA samples via fin clippings taken from trout in very remote Adirondack streams to see if individual heritage brook trout strains actually existed. e good news was that they did, indeed, exist. Individual stream ecosystems, with many different strains of brook trout, have stood the test of time. It is interesting to think that brook trout within just a short distance of each other could vary so greatly genetically — even within a shared watershed. ere are many ways to catch these prized specimens. From rock-hopping creeks as narrow as a coffee table to taking long hikes into remote backcountry, canoe on back, fishing for native brook trout can be an exceptionally variable experience. Perhaps the best-known approach for targeting brookies in Adirondack ponds is from a canoe equipped with a spinning rod rigged with a Lake Clear Wabbler. e Wabbler is basically a concave metallic spoon attached to the mainline on one side followed by a short leader on the other, with nothing but a small piece of nightcrawler or a small worm le whole for bait. As the angler slowly paddles along, the wobbling motion of the Lake Clear Wabbler reflects light and attracts brookies from a distance, who end up with an irresistible juicy worm in their face. Wabblers come in various sizes and weights, and just about every color under the sun to fit any pond-fishing scenario. LOCALadk 24