Thanks Pat. I believe it is a tightly packed school of kokanee.Fred @Wanative - nice! I see the old Johnson next to the new Yamaha - looks like a GREAT fishin' boat. Tell me what you're showing on the Garmin - a school of landlocked sockeye? What time is dinner?
No-Are downriggers necessary for kokanee fishing?
No. They are all over the water column currently. I used a half ounce weight about 4 feet ahead of my dodger and my partner did as well and outfished my downrigger rod. Later he switched to a 3 oz. weight and still hooked fish.Are downriggers necessary for kokanee fishing?
I remember a friend of mine who chased Kokanee over on this side of the Cascades, used lead core but he had something like 50 or 60 feet of monofiliament trailing behind the lead core to get it waty back behind the boat. I see folks using side planers on Roosevelt.No-
This time of the year (water temps in the low to mid 50s) it is not uncommon to see schools on the surface and those fish can be caught flat lining- no weight place a long distance (150 feet or more) behind the boat. Kokanee are boat shy and the boat will push them away. Have even caught some of those surface fish casting small emergers to them but that can be tricky as they constantly moving (often approaching 1 mph).
aA also get away a with a 1- or 2-ounce weight above a dodger which seems to help provide action to the lure/bait at the slow speed the kokanee seem to prefer, target speed would be 1.1 or 1.2 MPH though it sometimes pays to experiment with slower or faster speeds. Even better would be lead core lines, often fish a lead line 2 to 4 colors behind the boat and that approach has the advantage as gear raises and lowers on boat turns which can be effective. However, neither option provides the consistent depth control that a downrigger would. One of those small lake downriggers that clamp with a 4# lead ball is a reasonably cheap way to get into the kokanee game. Unlike down rigger presentation in saltwater salmon fishing for kokanee (and sockeye in lakes) it pays to get you gear aways behind the boat. I tell beginners to use the rule of 100; that is the distance behind the boat and the depth should add up to 100 feet or more. If fishing down 40 feet set your gear 60 feet behind the downrigger.
Again, take heed it can be an addictive fishery.
Curt
I remember a friend of mine who chased Kokanee over on this side of the Cascades, used lead core but he had something like 50 or 60 feet of monofiliament trailing behind the lead core to get it waty back behind the boat. I see folks using side planers on Roosevelt.
Are downriggers necessary for kokanee fishing?
To expand a bit to the excellent starting point in a kokanee bait. White shoepeg corn is what one wants (smaller and more bite shape). Soaking that corn in the oil from a can of tuna has become a standard. I typically add some borax to my bait brew. I often also add some additional scent to the rig as I fish. Have some scent is a key to producing more fish, while most of the time I not sure that it makes a great difference which scent is used. However there are times some scent will out preform better than others. Scents to consider include some generic "kokanee scent", krill, garlic, herring oil, squid, and/or clam. After more than a decade of experimentation in hard-core kokanee fishing if limited to a single scent it would be clam and I hate garlic.I guess now would be a good time to discuss the dirty word in the fly fishing vocabulary "THE BAIT". My process is no secret as you can U Tube it. I start with a can of drained white kernel corn in a zip lock bag. To this I add the liquid from a can of inexpensive tuna in water or oil. Then give the tuna to the cat, he may or may not eat it. Refrigerate for a couple of days mixing occasionally. I then divide the corn into 5 separate bags and freeze them. For under $2 you have bait for for 5 days of fishing.