Arrived at Rattlesnake in the early afternoon. Surface water temp was probably in the mid to lower 60's. Much colder only a few feet deeper, according to swimmers. Marked fish along the eastern shore in about 17 ft of water, but they wouldn't respond to any deep flies. Ended up losing a woolly bugger in the process. Tried several different tactics until around 6:00, when the evening hatch slowly kicked into gear. Eventually went to a dry presentation. On the third or fourth pattern, I finally got it right. Casting to rises with the right stuff granted me the pleasure of seeing the sipping rises of two separate 12" trout take the fly. Had to call it at that point. I just needed to get the upper hand on a lake that has consistently defeated me in the past.

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