Hiked in and tried 10 minutes worth of powerbait in each before I decided to fish the larger of these two little Orcas gems. The smaller one was crawling with salamanders, and I figured the fish in the other at least wouldn't have such readily available food. Well, I was wrong--floated past quite a few salamanders (even two pairs that were engaged in amphibian reproductive affections!) and, despite the cooler water, saw a caddis or two hatch off. The fish were rising here and there--nothing steady, and none very big. Hooked 6 little brookies, the largest perhaps 8", in an hour and a half, on a #14 orange-bodied caddis. Missed a half dozen other strikes, as it was only my second outing in a float tube and I kept fiddling around and looking about.. Off-cycle for this lake? Or does it need to warm up enough for the biggies to eat all the salamanders and THEN start going for bugs? I'm depressed at the thought of a summer filled with 6" trout. If you have seen this scenario arise in other lakes, please post a reply.

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