Tips & Tricks

General

• Single Hooks - If you're having a hard time getting bites, try using a single hook with your lure. If you're getting lots of bites, try using a treble hook.
• Stinger Hook - If you're losing a lot of fish, tie up some of these double type hooks.
• Banana Weights - Make excellent jigs. Use 1/2 oz. banana weights painted to your favorite color .
• Potski Eggs - Many times the addition of a red "Potski" Salmon egg with the white corn makes a big difference.
• Silver Blades - Use real silver or gold plated blades when fishing with spinners.  It does make a difference sometimes.
• Downrigger - When the fish are deeper than 30 feet try using a downrigger with the gangtroll attached directly to the ball. Attach your line via a stacker release a foot or so above the ball. I like to put my finger on the downrigger wire so I can feel the fish bite. Most times the release does not trip and this allows me to feel the bite, stand up, and pull the line from the release. That way when you get a fish you can play it without the added weight of the gangtroll. Note #1: A rubber Snubber may be necessary if you are not using a very limber pole. Kokanee have very soft mouths. Note #2: Some people prefer different makes of stacker releases. Note #3: Some prefer to use a stacker release that has a wire 6 inches to 1 1/2 feet long fixed on the downrigger wire where the stacker usually goes and put the release at the end of the wire. This allows much better visibility of strikes by allowing the fish to pull the fishing pole down.
• Flyrod - Make a special pole for downrigger fishing for Kokes using a #2 or #3 fly rod blank of 7 feet. This limber pole will help keep the hooks from tearing out of soft mouths.
• Salmon Trout Steelheader - Read the article "Catching Large Kokanee" in the June-July, 1996 issue of The Salmon Trout Steelheader magazine. It is a wealth of useful and effective tips and information. I personally have had excellent success with the following two tips gleaned from this article.
  1. Use RED size #4 Gamakatsu egg hooks with your spinners. On a recent trip to Odell Lake I limited out one day and caught half a limit the preceding day and only lost 3 hooked fish using these hooks.
  2. Flavor your corn (I prefer Anise) and keep it cold.
• Luhr Jensen Tech Tips - Techniques for Kokanee.
• Jigging Techniques - A short tutorial.
• Kokanee without a Downrigger - I do not use a down rigger so I use 6 ozs. of lead and judge my depth by  the number of pulls from my level winds which is 22 to 24 inches each pull. Then I really watch my speed and angle of the line entering the water. Through trial and error, and an occasional hang up on the bottom when I have not paid attention when I have crossed shallows, I have found that I am very close to my depth in feet being equal to the number of pulls( 20 pulls 20 feet, 40 pulls 40 feet) If I am consistent with pulls, speed, and angle of my line, it is usually just a matter of finding their feeding depth. It's like any other fishing, you need to spend some time and experiment until you get a system that works for you.  I use a fish finder and that is how I know how deep we have been when we have gotten hung up on the bottom.  I do not use rod holders except to rest and my younger boys will use them on occasion. I like to hold my pole. I feel every thing instead of trying to rely on my vision. Not that my eye sight is bad, but I can always feel the bites even if my sight or attention is distracted. Sometimes the bites are so subtle that you might miss it if you do not have contact with the rod. I have found this to be an extra edge on slow days when the bites come far and few between and the kokanee are not overly aggressive. Even   though kokanee have soft mouths, I will still set the hook when I feel a bite. Most of the time they hook themselves, but the additional mild hook set seems to help with solid hook ups.........Guy
• Flavored White Corn - Most people know that Anise is like salt to Kokanee.  Some know that Shrimp, Crawdad, Herring, and other flavors sometimes help.  But here's one that has worked real well for me.  I've always had extra good luck using a red Potski egg with my corn.   The trick here is to buy "Potski's Balls of Fire Nectar" and add it to your corn a day or two in advance.  Do this and the egg is not necessary.
• Jigging tip from Glen - I just have a simple little tip on how to know you are right on the bottom. I let my line out until I hit the bottom. I then reel up a little bit. I want my line to go slack when I put the tip of my pole under water about 1 foot.
• Tips from John Ward
  • Jigging: Especially when jigging deep near the bottom like 70 to 120 ft. you may get bit and start reeling up, and suddenly the fish is off so you lower your lure a few ft. back down to where it was: instead, when you think the fish let go, keep reeling anyway. You will often discover the fish is still on as you get within 10 to 15 ft. of the surface. The kokes will often follow the jig most of the way up and you don't feel the fish.
    
    Lots of people jig with 2 to 4 ft. lifts. If that isn't working try a more subtle movement of 2 to 4 inches. This especially works near the bottom.
    
    Jigs come in lots of sizes, shapes and colors. Nordics in 25 gr (shallow) or 40 gr (deep) in red, orange, pink/white and sometimes lime should cover all your jigging. Of course you can make your own from banana wts. Some say it makes no difference, but I put corn on all 3 points of the hook and have done better especially near the bottom.
    
  • Trolling: I can't imagine trolling without a downrigger. You may not need it if the fish are up and active but then you are restricted. When the fish are deeper and you go to heavier weights you are really into guesswork. I agree with the tip that using a stacker release a ft. or 2 above the rigger weight that extends 6 to 18 in. from the cable works best on kokes. My experience with all the "lite" releases is that if a koke can easily release them, they will also self-release so I use standard releases on a medium to lite setting and when I see a bite (which is easy to see on your rod tip with this set-up), I just pop it out of the release and reel.
    
    I rarely use an attractor of the spinner type such as beercans, pop gear or ford fenders because they are rarely necessary and a lot of resistance, even on a downrigger weight. If you want an attractor on your downrigger weight., try a "flashlite" as they create very little resistance.
    
    I often use dodgers ahead of lures that have no action of their own such as plain hooks, glo-bugs and hoochies. The best leader length for me has been ony 12 to 13 in. Also, I have had the best luck with Vances dodgers and Gibs when I use a larger size dodger when I'm trolling deeper than 70 ft.
    
    I use only Gamakatsu hooks, often in double hook rig as described in the STS article. I also use bigger hooks, usually size 1 or 2. These larger sizes hook a little deeper, and I lose very few fish, a novelty in koke fishing.  I always use a couple of kernels of corn scented with anise, sardine or egg flavors.
    
    I've found it helpful to do a little zig-zag when trolling.  It seems to spur bites. If it's too crowded do this, take your motor out of and back into gear from time to time, it will have the same effect.
    
• What to do if you think you've caught a state record fish - By Norm Hesseldahl
  

  •  Photograph a side view of the fish to accompany your application

  •  Weigh the fish as quickly as possible on a state certified scale (supermarket meat department, etc)

  • Get the identity of the person weighing your fish as they will later have to sign the application as a witness

  • Get another person to be a second witness

  • Obtain and complete an application.  Cold water record applications are
    available at each ODFW district office, or from ODFW's I&E division, PO Box
    59, Portland, OR  97207.  Warm water record applications are available from The Oregon Bass and
    Pan fish Club, Contest Manager, PO Box 1021, Portland, OR  97207

  • To be eligible the fish must have been legally caught in Oregon, on hook
    and line.

• Flutter Lures as Attractors - by Ron Mohn         
       Over many years of fishing Kokanee here in northwest Montana, I've found using silver plated    flutter lures as attractors, 12-18 inches in front of almost any of the popular self-action kokanee lures, to be very
  effective.  Flutter lures offer little water resistence, so the fight of the fish can be readily felt.  This rig has been just as effective for me when flat line trolled in early spring or deep trolled using a downrigger later in the summer.  As a matter of fact, I don't even need attractors attached to the downrigger weight.  The flash from a silver plated lure tends to be a bit more yellow in nature but apparently can be seen further away than the flash from nickle plated lures, either in shallow or deep water.

• Sunscreen - by Jim in Antioch

       One lesson I learned last year the hard way after several skunk trips is if you use sun block make sure to wash your hands. I found that Kokanee don't like Banana Boat sun screen. I now used a container with wipes after applying it.

Green Peter Reservoir - Oregon

• White colored lures and jigs - Generally speaking a predominantly white colored lure or jig seems to be a good consistent choice.
• 00 Dodger - Use a dodger in conjunction with a Ford Fender.  
• Super Duper - Rainbow Trout colored small "Super Duper" lure has proven to be a very effective lure in this lake.
• Buzz Bomb -Try a large 3" Buzz Bomb, tie a small swivel on the business end and hang a hook 3 to 4 inches below the swivel ( with your corn ). The fish are attracted by the lure but bite the corn.
• Tips from Dan - Here are some tips and tricks on Green Peter I thought I'd pass on for the readers of the page.
  

  1. Use the wind as an ally. It is real frustrating to try and troll against the wind, so why not let it blow you along. This can also save trolling motor battery. I often times drag a bucket behind the boat to help steady the boat and to help slow the boat down. If the wind gets too strong for even this then I pack up and head for protected waters. I have found that you can always get out of the wind up the Quartzville Cr. arm, and there are some kokanee up there too.

  2. Rod holders are important. I have found that when using downriggers a good rodholder is important. I tighten up the reel so that there is a flex in the rod and then carefully watch the rod tip for signs of kokanee bites.

  3. Good hooks are important. Forget the small hooks that often come with wedding ring spinners or other packaged products. Buy some high quality single #6 hooks. Catching kokanee is tough at best and good hooks are essential. We usually figure we hookup with half the bites and of the hookups we only get 1/2 in the boat. Rubber snubbers can also be a help.

  4. A good net is a real asset. I use a fairly large net with a handle that extends about 3 feet. I remember watching someone try to land a kokanee with a tiny net and a long rod. What a pitiful sight!

  5. Time of day is important with kokanee. I have found that early morning and early to mid-afternoon are the best times. I suspect that the pick up of the wind in the afternoons may have something to do with the improved bite then. Kokanee feed on plankton that are light averse. With the diffusion of light from wave action it may get the plankton and kokanee on the prowl? Interesting theory. This would explain why overcast drizzly days can be excellent kokanee fishing.

  6. Time of year is also important. At Green Peter I have had little success until the first part of June. Then it has been quite good through September. The last 2 years have been especially good at Green Peter. We have caught lots of fish. With kokanee you can keep the fish and not feel guilty since there are so many in the lake.

  7. Kokanee are very good eating. I have a Little Chief smoker. I especially like smoking them with apple wood. We also love them barbequed. And there is nothing better than roasting them over an open campfire after a long day of great fishing. Speaking of camping there is some really fine boat camping at Green Peter. The east bank road has been closed, but boat camping is permitted.

  8. Don't forget to troll slowly for kokanee. Those of us who come out of trout fishing backgrounds need to learn to slow down. I've heard the landlocked Chinook like a faster trolled bait, but for the landlocked sockeye of Green Peter, slow seems to work better.

  9. A good fish finder is essential to consistently catching kokanee. It allows you to find the depth the fish are holding and to find the locations in the lake where the fish are schooling. Once you know the depth then you can set downriggers to that level and have a good chance of catching fish.

  Good fishing!

  Dan
  Submitted by Dan Meyers

• Tips from Mary and Al - Got some great email from Mary & Al to good not to post:
  

  Last year we had better luck keeping the fish and getting them to the boat when we switched to Spider wire and started using some hooks we got from Cabela's made by Owner. They are size 4 rig'n hooks. They have a wide gap. Also I started putting a little soft white glow bead size 2 at the top of the hook and then adding the 3 pieces of corn. Got them from Cabela's too.

  Mary & Al
  Submitted by Mary Jarrott

East Lake - Oregon

• White corn and worm - A six foot leader after a gang troll, a size #6 hook, thread a kernel of white corn on the hook first then a piece of worm.

  Any questions? Additions?

Odell Lake - Oregon

• Tip from Mark Larson - If you have a chance to fish Odell on opening day, or ice-out, whichever comes first, try finding where there are a lot of fish jumping and try casting a small Buzz Bomb or Crippled Herring into the middle of them and jig it in fast so the jig doesn't go any deeper than 10 feet or so. That is the way I have caught my fastest limits.

  Submitted by Mark Kenneth Larson

Wickiup Reservoir - Oregon

• Tip from Mark Larson - With regard to The big Kokanee at Wickiup, the most successful people were anchored in about 60 feet of water by the dam. They had microlight poles and they were putting bay shrimp on the hooks of the Buzz Bomb and then lowering it to near the bottom and just letting it sit still. They had no leader. They were catching a fish about every five minutes. Some other people were using Crawdad tails, salmon eggs and corn, but the guys with the Microlight poles were out fishing everybody else.

  Submitted by Mark Kenneth Larson

Kootanay Lake British Columbia, Canada

• Tip from David Pasin - I saw your Web page and thought you would like some more techniques. I mainly fish on Kootenay Lake in British Columbia Canada. We fish various ways depending on the time of year. When the fish are on the bottom, less than ninety feet of water, we use Deadly Dicks. Funny name but extremely effective. The colors of choice are silver with fluorescent orange. We always bait are hooks with white maggots. We find corn falls off to easily. We drop this lure to the bottom and abruptly vertical jig it. Jig it no more than eight inches and always keep a tight line for most of the takes are on the drop. Never have slack.
  

  When the fish are schooling we troll with small dodgers and what we call Hot Dogs. A Hot Dog is a number four bait hook with a piece of fluorescent orange plastic, the kind off of a plastic grub, on the shank. Again we bait the hook with white maggots. The dodger is an Abe and Al version, size 000, and the hook is placed anywhere between 14 and 20 inches behind the dodger. the longer leaders are when the fish are not biting that aggressively and the shorter leaders for when they are biting aggressive. We use spinning outfits with 8 pound test line to help reduce the sharp bites. Always troll super slow and make a lot of corners. We very rarely use gang trolls because they take the fight out of the fish. When we fish for the larger strain of kokanee in the lake, up to 6 pounds, we may add a rubber snubber right behind the dodger.

  I am going to try the banana weight jig next time out. I hope you find these tips useful for my Dad and myself have the reputation as being the best Kokanee fishermen on the lake and this is the only way we fish for the best sport fish in the world, KOKANEE.

  Thank you for your time,

  David Pasin

  If you have any further questions I will gladly answer email.

British Columbia - General

• Tip from Jeremy Epp - When I fly-fish for them I have found that the pattern that produces the best for me is the Kokanee Thriller developed by Fred Curtis. Contrary to some of your fishing techniques, I have found that stripping it in with quick 4 to 8 inch strips with the odd pause produces best. I do admit though that trolling with bait is much more effective for overall fish numbers. Our trolling techniques, at least some of our techniques, are very different. During the early summer when the kokanee fishing is at its peak, we troll fast. "The faster, the better," is an expression I have heard numerous times from local anglers. The most common rig is a Ford Fender or Gang Troll with a wedding band directly behind it tipped with a maggot or a worm.

  - Submitted by Jeremy Epp

Stampede Reservoir - California

• A letter from John Sawicky - Here is what we use down here (from my limited experience) - a down rigger with100' line behind weight (release), Seps silver w/green dodger then 18" leader with Green wedding ring OR pearl/red dick night, both with 1 or 2 white corn kernels. Red wedding rings usually catch Rainbows.
  

  Others on Stampede use the flashers attached to the downrigger weight and then 6 feet of line from the release with wedding ring or dick night. Sometimes they use a dodger. These setups don't give much line to play the fish with. I like to have fun when I fish, that's why I use the first rig above.

  We've found most fish at the 35 to 45 foot level. This year I plan to rig up a thermometer to find the temperature levels. Also, in the late fall when they school up to spawn, I plan to try jigging. Another lake close by is Donner which is known for the big (20 lb) Mackinaw (Lake Trout) and I plan to go back there to try jigging for them. They hold out down around 180'.

  If you have anything else that you've heard about my area, please pass it along.

  Submitted by John Sawicky