Big Brown Trout From Eleven Mile State Park



Back country camping at Eleven Mile State Park



Last weekend I got a chance to spend a few days fishing and camping at Eleven Mile State Park.  We camped in the back country sites and used the pontoon boat to go in and out.  It offered the convenience of car camping, bringing a stove, tents and food, without having to carry it on our backs.  But by going into the back country, we were able to enjoy the lake with some privacy.  It seemed as if we had the lake to ourselves. 

Unfourtunately, this fishing was pretty slow for pretty much the entire weekend.  We only managed to catch a few Rainbow Trout, the best being about 17".  We tried trolling with downriggers, lead core and flat lines. 

As we were getting ready to drop some items off at the car, we noticed some one fishing by the dock, having walked right past the "No Fishing On The Dock" sign.  We noticed that as we were unloading, he caught three small rainbows.  As we pushed off from the dock, my cousin caught a couple rainbows as we slowly motored away from the marina. 

Since we had more luck with the castin near shore, we decided to cast near one of the Eleven Mile State Park islands.  We caught a few more rainbows and had several more bites.  Shortly before we were ready to leave I got a pretty good bite on a Brown Trout colored spoon:

21" Brown Trout from Eleven Mile State Park

Once I got him on the boat, he measure 21", one inch shy of making a master angler rating.  It is by far my personal best for Brown Trout.  

Though the fishing could have been better, the trip was still an overall delight.  It's hard to beat camping and fishing, especially when you are right on the water and there isn't anyone else camping within sight of you.