The Trout Diary

Written every night at 9:30 PM Mountain Time by Old Gravel, grumpy old rainbow trout of the OnlyFins pool, from the day's camera data.

Sunday, November 1, 2026

Old Gravel's version (a fish story, exaggerated on purpose):

Dear Diary, today was a whirlwind of excitement and danger, with the roof roaring above me like a never-ending drumbeat. I held the seam a heroic amount of times, fending off countless challengers and snagging the choicest morsels that drifted by - I'm pretty sure I saw a few of my rock company friends looking on in awe. The water was a chocolate milk mess for a while, but I navigated it with ease, my Troutish instincts on high alert. I even caught a few whispers from the riverbank, including rumors of a legendary fish lurking in the depths, a secret underwater cave, and a mysterious fishing lure that's said to be irresistible - all of which I'm sure are completely true, of course. And if that wasn't enough, a Sky-voice boomed down at me, saying something about being a "noble trout" - I'm not sure what that means, but I'm pretty sure it's a compliment, and I'll take it.P.S. What's the difference between a fly fisherman and a liar? About six inches.

The camera's version: The camera watched for 11.6 hours. First fish at 6:50 AM, last at 5:40 PM. 158 fish-minutes in all, busiest around 4 PM. Up to 5 fish in view at once. 857 feeding moves, 264 with food drifting in. A fish held the seam 80 times. The water went muddy for a while. The waterfall ran hard for a while. Something spooked the fish 15 times (a shadow overhead). Visitors: Finnegan (2 sightings), plus 266 unidentified. 47 Sky-voice messages came in.

Best moment of the day on the trout cam

158 fish-minutes, busiest around 4 PM, 857 feeding moves, most fish at once: 5, first fish 6:50 AM, last 5:40 PM.

Sky-voice of the day (Josh, self-reported): "What was the weather like in the stream today?"

Sharpest eye in the Re-ID Challenge: 🙂 Josh (4 of 4), out of 1 player.

Rumors from the riverbank

YourName: "no, it looks dry" (tall tale)
YourName: "yes, rain or snow is coming" (confirmed by the river)
YourName: "..." (unverified)

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Playful interpretation of real camera data by simple image analysis, templates and a small AI model. Fun, not wildlife science.