After what seemed like an eternity of Outdoor Shows (3 in 4 weeks), I finally got into my guiding season at LBC. I had heard from some people at the Redmond Show that it had been a little tough to put it mildly. One of the bright spots was Glen Chase's 12 LB. bull on opening day. Congrats Glen...if you read this, send me a photo.

Every year I hear outrageous rumors of monstrous bull trout exceeding State and even World records. Funny, I have never seen any photos to support these reports and encourage anyone who has caught a monster, please contact us with the report and supportive photo's. We at TTG would be first in line to congratulate you and tell your story.

Back to the guide trip. Kelly and I got out last Fri. to do a little exploring and see how the Metolius Arm looked for bulls. What a tough day! We only stuck one decent 8 LB. bull for about 6 hours effort. I was a little less than impressed with what we saw on the graph for both bulls and kokes. The major concentrations of bulls we did graph were hanging over 100 feet and we have determined from past experiences, that they often turn their nose's up at your offerings at those depths. I wasn't all that excited about getting out on Mon.

I had the pleasure of guiding Charley and Tom Moore from the Brothers Restaurant in Prineville, on my first guide trip of 2007. We meet at the ramp around 7:00 and immediately headed up to where Kelly and I had marked some bulls and kokes on Fri. After about 45 minutes without a strike, I made the move to one of my favorite spots for deep water bulls.

They were there but again holding really deep. We were working the riggers at 55-75 feet with 9" Shasta Slingblades towing herring in Protroll Roto-Chip baitholders. This setup had produced so well last year. It was a struggle but we managed to pick up a small bull of 2.5 Lb. and then one at 4.5 Lb. With only two other strikes that left only the herring heads, we finally decided to head back in.

The wind had picked up to 15-25 mph around 11:00 and it made it difficult to keep boat control and speed where we wanted it. Finally, I relented and we headed back out the arm toward the cove ramp. Just as we approached the island area from the east, I saw that the wind had dropped a bunch. I suggested that we take a look along the most famous run for shallow water bull trout on the whole reservoir. Good thing we did!

I ran half way down the run watching the graph. I was marking some bulls and the kokes were in tight. Just what your looking for. I convinced the guys to give the 1,000 yard run one shot. It paid off.

I had no sooner put the second rod in the holder, than it went over. A few minutes later, Tom is working a 4.5 LB. bull to the boat. I had just given Charley a 6 in. Lyman as a thank you and that was the lure that got hit. Maybe 5 minutes later, Charley gets to a fully arched rod with the drag sounding off so sweetly and works on what turned out to be the biggest bull of the day. This 9.5 LB. bull put up a good fight. Right after we got the rods back out, it is Tom's turn again and soon he has a 6 LB. bull boatside.

A total of (5) bulls going 2.5, 4.5, 4.5, 6 and 9.5 LB. wasn't too bad considering we were getting off the water at 1:00 p.m. I would have stayed longer, but the guys wanted to get back early.

I think conditions will improve as the water temps rise and high pressure sets up for a while. Look for reports to be steady for the next two months as I am booked up through the end of April.

Screamin' Drags, Rick