Most rainbows spawn between March and May, so keep an eye out for redds and focus on deeper pools and runs to avoid disturbing spring spawners. (Shutterstock photo)
March 20, 2026
By David A. Brown
While many of the nation’s quality trout fisheries merit eye-candy status, the season’s kickoff reminds us that the juice is in getting to our spot, achieving that ideal casting angle, and making the right presentation to fool a trout.
Joel Nelson, a St. Croix pro-staffer from Cannon Falls, Minn., knows trout hot spots often stand within casting distance of bank walkers, but commitment means immersion and, for him, the challenge is the fun part.
“Trout fishing in my neck of the woods is hand-to-hand combat; it’s sliding down a muddy bank to get to where the fish are,” he grins. “Sometimes, if the water is skinny, you gotta sneak up to a pool to avoid disturbing the trout, and then make your presentation without being seen or felt.”
Of course, not everything goes right all the time. And, while good catches reward us with photos to remember them by, it’s often the trout that got away that sear important lessons into our brains and stoke the resolve to continue our pursuit and make ourselves a promise: “I’ll get ’em next time.”
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Case in point: Nelson, who trout fishes with his sons Micah, 17, and Isaac, 20, recalls an early spring trip to Minnesota’s Whitewater State Park, where multiple rivers offer a diversity of wet-wading opportunities. The boys were younger, but dad’s lessons connected them with several fish, including a big brown that won its battle.
“There were some tears over the lost trophy, but we had plenty of action, and my boys learned a lot about trout habitat and structure. It’s a good memory for all of us.”
PRODUCTIVE HABITAT As spring trout season gets underway, higher elevation lakes and ponds will yield plenty of rainbow, brown, and brook trout. To make the most of the opportunities, Cory Kellar, a tackle industry salesman and self-described trout aficionado from Reno, Nevada, stresses a go-with-the-flow strategy.
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“I look at a river or stream as a conveyor belt,” he says. “I ask myself, where would be the easiest place for a trout to hang out without having to work too hard for food?”
Nelson refers to the classic riffle-run-pool sequence as Trout Fishing 101. While streams of higher slope typically follow a step-pool form, those with lower slope flow with more gradual transitions punctuated with deeper feeding/resting zones.
“The pool gives trout a lot of options,” says Nelson, who used to guide in various Yellowstone National Park streams. “The base or tail of the pool is right where the bottom starts to come up. It’s a little shallower, but the trout will still stage there when they’re not active.
“The middle of the pool is where the deepest, coldest water is, and where the trout’s attitude often goes from neutral toward positive. The head of that pool is where they usually feed, taking advantage of any baitfish that get washed down.”
Nelson notes that, while most pools in his area have softer bottoms, rocks can be prevalent, as is the case in many Western fisheries and Eastern mountain streams. Nevertheless, the concept remains the same, and that’s why he stresses the importance of reading the water and picking out key target areas.
CONDITIONS COUNT While Nelson is always on the lookout for warmer water, with spring unfolding, he is more concerned with the water’s clarity than with its temperature.
“Early spring can be difficult because, if you haven’t yet had much melt water, a stream can be gin clear—with the water level low—and the fish can be very skittish,” he explains. “As spring progresses, however, those clear areas will start to get murky. You don’t want dirty water. You want the fish to have enough clarity to see your bait, but not so much that they can also see you from across the pool. So you gotta search for the right mix.”
Current is key, as the water’s speed typically determines feeding opportunities and fish positioning. That’s particularly true in tailwaters, where scheduled dam releases—either for power generation or flood control— will increase or decrease flow rates.
“During lower flows, the fish will be scattered. But when we have higher flows, fishing along the banks becomes more productive,” says Christy Graham, Trout Management Program Coordinator for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. “Then you can count on trout using rocks and little pockets in order to get out of the main current.”
As the water begins to warm, trout become increasingly active and more eagerly prey on baitfish and hatching bugs. (Shutterstock photo) TOP OFFERINGS Nelson loves his dry flies, but he knows they can be a tough sell in early spring. A better call is drifting a proven nymph pattern—like a Hare’s Ear or Beadhead Prince Nymph—through the trout’s feeding zone with an indicator. Mend the fly line as needed to keep the offering drifting naturally, and keep tabs on the float to set the hook at its slightest twitch or pause.
In tight spots where vegetation or other cover hinders fly-casting, spinners like the Panther Martin Classic, Worden’s Original Rooster Tail, Mepps Aglia Flashabou, or Blue Fox Classic Vibrax fished on a light spinning outfit will let you pinpoint casts and properly cover target areas.
“In the springtime, those fish put the feed bags on, and those spinners perfectly mimic various minnows trout prey upon,” Nelson says, adding that he likes said lures in gold and silver, but bright pink, red, and orange often deliver in slightly stained water.
Kellar, meanwhile, is big on spoons like the Thomas Buoyant and Luhr-Jensen Krocodile, as well as baitfish imitations like the Rebel Tracdown Minnow and Rapala Husky Jerk. He also likes drifting Berkley PowerBait Trout Bait, Power Eggs and Mice tails on a light-wire mosquito hook with a small split shot placed 10 inches above the bait.
Kellar, who owns Black Beard Worm Co. , says you can also just go natural and fish live earthworms, which rainbows will gobble readily.
“My best-selling worm is a large nightcrawler, but a little garden worm will work,” he says. “You can also catch crickets and grasshoppers for bait along the bank, or walk a river and turn over rocks for hellgrammites.”
Graham adds that some folks will sit around a boat ramp with a teeny hook and piece of worm and catch sculpins to use for trout bait.
THE HUNT As Kellar notes, elevation factors into species availability, but it can also separate good days from great ones.
“A lot of it is accessibility,” he explains. “Usually, the harder you have to work to reach a fishing spot, the better or rarer the target is.”
Growing up in Fresno, Calif., Kellar spent many days hiking uphill to the Dinkey Creek Chain. With multiple lakes requiring progressively more effort, he found the opportunity increased with distance.
“At Dinkey Lake One, I could catch rainbows. At Dinkey Lake Two, I would start getting into some brook trout. At Dinkey Lakes Three and Four, I’d find greater numbers of rainbows, browns and brook trout. And at the top of the lakes chain, I would get into golden trout.
“When you hike from lake to lake, the journey is always rewarding, and so is accomplishing the mission of targeting trout of a specific species or approximate size.”
Nelson says we’re only as good as the places we fish, so it pays to learn to bypass unproductive water. He also advises not to settle for the easy stuff, because if anyone can find it, everyone will.
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