Lava Lake, Oregon & Tui Chub (Larry’s Success)

 

From Larry Tamiyasu:

“These two rainbows are from this last weekends fishing trip to Lava Lake.”

“Two weeks before, as I was kicking my float tube back to the launch area, I was casting a blood leech over some weed beds and stripping line in with my type 5 sinking line. I caught a Tui Chub and brought it in and “bonked it” and released it back into the water for some osprey’s dinner and then I cast out again, only to catch another Tui. This time as I was stripping the Tui in, all of a sudden a HUGE rainbow came out of the weeds and engulfed the Tui that was on my line! I dropped my rod tip, and the Bow turned and I set my hook. This fish was in the 8 LB class, easily, and it jumped in the air, and as it was making a run, it spit the fly. No Tui, no Rainbow…..”

“This last weekend, Steve Hughes and I went back to Lava, looking for some big fish. I used my own Tui Chub imitation all day and produced 9 nice fish, but none coming close to the “one that got away”.

Larry Tamiyasu

Larry Tamiyasu is one of several in a group that travels about Oregon fishing stillwaters and they do quite well from early in the year at ice off until late Fall. The early season posts I made, in which you saw pictures of the East Lake Campground boat ramp and shoreline snow covered, were taken by Larry Tamiyasu. The Tui Chub story is worthy of note and there are only a few good Tui patterns out there. In lieu of a super accurate pattern, the Minnow Bugger that I have posted several times, in the appropriate size, would work well too. Thanks to Larry for sharing his beautiful pictures. Look at the tail to head ratio on the second fish below. That will be a big fish someday