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Drove down to Avery, ID and then south on logging roads for about 36 miles to a trailhead just before Buzzard's Roost.The trail goes northwest at first but switches back and headed south into a steep valley that parallels Foehl Creek. The trail takes you down to the creek and then back up high above the creek heading east. There's another trail marked with a wooden sign on the right along that high ridge trail that gets you down to where the creek joins the Little North Fork of the Clearwater. The hike is rigorous and takes about 2 hours from the car to the river.

There's a nice camping area on the river where some yokels who lack respect for the woods and other outdoorsmen left paper plates, plastic forks and old tin cans strewn about.

The river is dotted with beautiful deep pools at the end of shallow runs. Monsters of the deep rise up after red and white #3 Mepps spinner bates like you read about. At the end of the day I kept 2 picture perfect 15" cuts that were deep olive green with red bellies.

I also hooked and released what I think was a bull trout in spawn. It was about 11" and was fire-engine red from the gills to the fins. Similar fish ranging from 6-12 inches in length were in every nook, cranny and pool as I worked my way up and down the river. There were lots of dying caddis flies on the water, but I didn't see many fish rising. I used a fly rod with a sinking sculpin colored fly to entice a 17" bull trout to bite. I netted him and released him without even pulling him out of the water.

About 3 in the afternoon I was packing up my gear and heard a rustle in the bushes just 30 yards or so upstream in the creek. I saw a brown bear that was about 3-4 feet high on all 4-s scrambling away from me upstream. Didn't have to use my bear spray. I didn't see any more of him hiking back out of the valley. It was one extraordinary day!

knotabassturd

10/21/2010 9:29:00 PM

YIKES! Close encounter of bear kind. Good thing it got scent of U and bailed. Sounds like a beautiful trip!

I used to fish some of the streams in the Sawtooths area years ago. I think the Lost River above a res, Little Wood too right around town (Ketchum). Remember parking at a bridge and working upstream seemed like right in town almost in September catching big trout (Cutts I think?) in almost no water right next to shore. There was some kind of mayfly that crawled out ot the edge of stream to hatch, decent size too for that late in year I think I was using about a size 12 compara dun... Anyhow, back to your success LOL. I can totally envision the pools and nice cold clear waters. Awesome fishing. Nice report!

knotabassturd

10/21/2010 9:33:00 PM

PS- you should read the writeup (I forget who?) about the St Joe River somewhere on this board more around the area you were. It was a great read.

knotabassturd

10/21/2010 9:41:00 PM

Aha, fishinPA I found the writeup. Not trying to change your post thread or anything (and thanx for the memory jog of beautiful trout fishing in Idaho rivers) just thought you would enjoy reading this writeup as much as I did. Here's a link:

http://www.washingtonlakes.com/ReadArticle.aspx?id=314

Rippasher06

10/23/2010 5:22:00 PM

thats a Kokanee .

Honkster

10/25/2010 4:48:00 PM

Yep. That is a kokanee. They travel up the Little Northfork from Dworshak Reservoir to spawn. I have stayed at the campground you speak of and it has always had gear stashed away by hikers for many years. My guess is that something....... like a bear..... go into the stashed gear and made the mess of the camp gear. Glad to hear the bear didnt make a mess of you!

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