Dodgers on a fly rod for Kokanee🧙‍♂️

Divad

Divad

Whitefish
Anybody get into this sorcery? I’m trying to troll for Kokanee, I can get a sink 6, heavy weighted fly into some strike zones but nada. Even with corn 😈

I’ve watched a few comparisons now on people trolling identical w/ and w/o a dodger. Without people get skunked.

Thinking of running a 3” 6ft up from the fly. Hoping to get something no more than 1:8oz or honestly more like 1:16.

But this would also allow me to eliminate weight on the fly making A LOT more movement.

Ideas?

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Lue Taylor said:
Aren't you suppose to post in Gear-Fishing Dirty Bag😂
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Fair point I was thinking lakes relevant to Kokanee. And still on a fly rod and reel. Not that deep cmon

Edit: if this is suppose to be moved can someone do that so I don’t have to repost. Not sure where this belongs but I’d venture it’s the roids to The Rocks looks, so to speak
 
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20 gauge aluminum at 2sq in surface area, (probably roughly a 3” dodger) weighs 3.1 grams. So I could also make one I guess
 
I do it (sort of;)). But I have a bait-casting reel attached to the fly rod :).
Just replace the Spin N Glo with your fly. Make sure to use a short leader from your flasher to the fly (8”). It gives the fly more action-
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You can probably get away with it very early in the season...but in the summer, the fish are down...
 
Set up from 15-20 years ago???. Trolling with sink lines. Not sure how deep we really got, but guessing 20-30 feet. This was a fishy friend's recommended set up we used. Gonna guess on lbs and feet. From fly line anout 4-5’ of 10-12# leader with a hookless tube flash fly with lots of 2-3” silver tinsel and a sparse amount of red and orange mixed in. Threaded the line through tube and made a perfection loop and a bump of glue that helped keep the tube fly from sliding down the line. Connected using a loop to loop another 3-4’ of 6-8# leader with a daphnia type fly and think we even tried adding a second daphnia fly - 1’ behind. ? Here’s a pic from another site but it was similar to this fly. It worked. Trolled slow and added jigging action sporadically. Used the set up twice, in the 3rd leg of Lake Roesiger and Lake Chelan with decent success in early am. Good luck.

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There's a big reservoir north of where I live, it has kokanee. Over the years my buddies and I have caught kokanee with a fly rod, full sink line and a soft hackle fly. Sometimes tipped with corn or a maggot. I started experimenting with what used to be called K-flies tied with a trailing treble hook, hot orange and chartreuse bodies were our go to flies. I've never used any kind of flasher but then I've been skunked more than once.
 
I convert one of my 4 weight glass rods to a kokanee rod a number of years ago. That soft action is just about prefect to keep those soft mouth kokanee on the hook. A second on the arrow flashers.

The flasher is perhaps more important to impart action (a darting action) on the lure of choice as an attraction.

In the spring (water temperature in the low 50s it is common to see schools of kokanee on the surface boiling and jumping. A fly rod with a floating or slow sink line, a flasher and fly/lure of choice. The kokanee are pretty boat shy it can be important to fish well behind the boat (think at least have the full line out). When fishing with a flasher to maximum the action (and strikes) a short leader (10 to 12 inches) behind the flasher is usually the most effective. There has been days when the chironomids are hatching have had success with a pupae pattern behind the flasher. A little scent on the lure of choice can increase its success. Once the lake warms the kokanee will follow the thermocline down and if you want to use the fly rod consider filling a spool or reel with mono (10 to 12#) and a downrigger though with experimentation lead core line can be effective. A great fish that can be demanding in your presentation but smoke kokanee are wonderful and well worth the effort.

Curt
 
I would keep an eye on speed more than gear. Maybe the line is dropping the fly too low? In my experience you can be 15 feet above em but a foot below it is over
 
This might be an option, I have some experience with a rig like this on a fly rod in lk. wa and sam., and used to troll it in high mtn. lakes too. We made our own out of normal pink setups or beads and rings we had, and a bright colored fly, or flies, trailed close behind. Use a swivel.

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Smalma said:
I convert one of my 4 weight glass rods to a kokanee rod a number of years ago. That soft action is just about prefect to keep those soft mouth kokanee on the hook. A second on the arrow flashers.

The flasher is perhaps more important to impart action (a darting action) on the lure of choice as an attraction.

In the spring (water temperature in the low 50s it is common to see schools of kokanee on the surface boiling and jumping. A fly rod with a floating or slow sink line, a flasher and fly/lure of choice. The kokanee are pretty boat shy it can be important to fish well behind the boat (think at least have the full line out). When fishing with a flasher to maximum the action (and strikes) a short leader (10 to 12 inches) behind the flasher is usually the most effective. There has been days when the chironomids are hatching have had success with a pupae pattern behind the flasher. A little scent on the lure of choice can increase its success. Once the lake warms the kokanee will follow the thermocline down and if you want to use the fly rod consider filling a spool or reel with mono (10 to 12#) and a downrigger though with experimentation lead core line can be effective. A great fish that can be demanding in your presentation but smoke kokanee are wonderful and well worth the effort.

Curt
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That’s what I’m on! A 4wt and I run a Reddington classic trout which is a noodle as well. So what weight spoon is the one you use/d you’d say?

I’m all about this dodger/spoon thing, I’ve tied reverse flies, and every jangle dangle intruder to try to get a wobble but nothing like a dodger/spoon. You and @Porter2 mention a short run behind it to the fly which will make for less tangles on the short start cast too 🤙

Tom Butler said:
This might be an option, I have some experience with a rig like this on a fly rod in lk. wa and sam., and used to troll it in high mtn. lakes too. We made our own out of normal pink setups or beads and rings we had, and a bright colored fly, or flies, trailed close behind. Use a swivel.

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I like that idea @Tom Butler if you trolled it at high mtn lakes I’m guessing that was with feet. Venture to bet at lower speeds like that the spoon will not get to a full spin and wobble. That is also an option.

I’m going to mock up some aluminum sheet Dodgers tomorrow and make a couple if I can before buying.
 
Please don’t overthink this…. Go out. Attack it however you want….Just enjoy the moment. Every trip on the water or the stream side or just hiking the hills
…..it is a blessing.
 
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Porter2 said:
Please don’t overthink this…. Go out. Attack it however you want….Just enjoy the moment. Every trip on the water or the stream side or just hiking the hills
…..it is a blessing.
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As an engineer I enjoy the overthinking but I get your gist, and respect it.

Maybe you’ll see a fly specific dodger one day named in your honor. “PorterPaddle” “Overthought Dodger”, the latter would help describe the price point I’d target...
 
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