In 1892the now-controversial ichthyologist David Starr Jordan published the formal description of a new subspecies of rainbow trout in the Proceedings of the National Museum. He quoted a Mr. H. W. Henshawwho first mentioned the new trout in an engineering report following collections in 1875:

These trout are found in very great abundanceeach pool and rapid numbering its finny denizens by the score. They may be taken in any sort of weatherat any hour of the dayby almost any kind of bait.


The only precaution required to catch them was stealth. Henshaw wrote:

With the proper care in concealing one's selfa pool may be almost decimated ere the alarm will be takenand I have seen fifteen fair-sized trout taken from a single pool in quick succession.


This first description of the habits of what are now known as the California golden troutor Volcano Creek golden troutwas echoed when I asked about them in the High Sierra Golden Trout Facebook group. The advice boiled down to"They'll hit anything -- just don't let them see you!" Past experience with goldens introduced to high lakes across the West left me wary of this advice. I've heard "they'll hit anything" beforeonly to show up and find a pod of big goldens sipping size 24 midge pupae with taste so discriminating I imagined them inspecting each pupa with a monocle before biting. Striking a compromise between the prevailing advice and my wariness of picky fishI brought only six fly boxes on my trip to catch these special fish in their native range.

Golden trout are native only to a tiny portion of Californiain two high-altitude tributaries of the Kern River: the South Fork of the Kernand Golden Trout Creekwhich was once known as Volcano Creek. Perhaps due to the nature of the sunlight and vegetation in the high-altitude meadows of these creeksthese offshoots of rainbow trout (now considered a separate speciesOncorhynchus aguabonita) evolved the brilliant colors that made them famous. The mystique of trout in general comes from their association with pristine wild placesand golden trout represent the pinnacle of that ideal. Across the Westthey have been introduced primarily to the highesthardest-to-reach alpine lakes—strongholds of coldpure water that require days of hiking or death-defying climbs to encounter. The native range of golden trout is almost mythical to those who treasure such thingsand July 2021 was my chance to live the myth.

I met a friend in Seattle and we flew together to Reno. After an overnight gear test and altitude acclimation day in pursuit of reintroduced native stream-resident Lahontan cutthroatand a sightseeing hike through the oldest trees in the world at Methuselah GroveI turned our rental car up Horseshoe Meadows Road toward the Cottonwood Lakes Trailhead. In the space of just 2.5 straight-line milesthe road switchbacks its way up 4,000 vertical feet of mountainside. The Alabama Hillswhich tower over the town of Lone Pine and provide the mountainous canyon backdrop of many Hollywood westernsdrop away in the distance until they look like pimples on the valley floor. Most of the road has no guardrailsand drivers have to weave around fallen rocks that get removed once or twice a day by Inyo National Forest staff. The road is wide and well maintained. Howeverin places like thismy mind wanders to the possibility that my car might spontaneously jump up into the air and hover-scoot 30 feet to the left or right before plunging us thousands of feet to a fiery death. I have not known cars to do thisbut some part of my brain does not trust them. I didn't make it far up the mountain before parking and turning the wheel over to my friendwhose rock climbing hobby belies a calmer attitude toward heights than mine.

The next morning we would begin a 6-day loop through the Golden Trout Wilderness. The crown jewel of the trip would be a visit to Volcanic Creek Left Stringera very remote and tiny creek believed to hold Golden Trout that never mixed with rainbows during the frontier periodwhen ranchers seeking larger table fare contaminated the rest of the population with Kern River Rainbow Trout genes. The fish that remain in Golden Trout Creek and the South Fork Kern are around 99 % pure golden trout and visually indistinguishable from the Left Stringer fishbut on a trip motivated by the pursuit of purity100 % is meaningful goal.

Regarding naming places...


I want to briefly explain why I'm sharing so many location specifics in this storyat a time when so many anglers are wary of people "hot-spotting" their secret honey-holes.

Golden trout spots are typically among the most closely-guarded secrets in fly fishing. Howevertheir native range is not. The name of Golden Trout Creek is a bit of a give-awaybeing located as it is in the Golden Trout Wildernessin a land where the Golden Trout is the state fish. The trailhead is hours from anywhereand the fish are hours from thereon the other side of a big mountain. Within their rangealmost every creek teems with them. They're very small—an 8-incher is a trophy—and nowhere are they bigger or better than anywhere else. The few human visitors are scattered across many miles of terrain. Because there are easier places to catch larger golden troutthe only reason to make this trip is a pilgrimage to honor these special little fish in the place they most belong.

I trust that almost anyone willing to dedicate so much work to such a modest goal will be respectful of the resourceand I don't expect this article to motivate enough people to detract from the solitude. Most who are inclined to do a trip like this have had it on their mind for years alreadyand they need no push from me. If this article helps a few such people plan a more enjoyable tripgreat. But its main purpose is to share the experience with those who might never be lucky enough to see it for themselves. Wilderness needs to be lovedbut not loved to death. In my estimationthis kind of story is good (or at least not bad) for this particular place.