Today was a day to experiment with different presentations and see what the kokanee wanted. It was tough fishing as the “bite” turned off and the kokanee in the area developed lock jaw.
I stayed on top of the school for the whole morning, because I wanted to see if I could find a trigger to “turn the bite on.” Presentation size and color didn’t make a noticeable difference. I tried lots of different gear. I will post pictures of some of them. I only used one scent, which might have been the key variable needed here.
The fishing remained tough all morning. The area I was fishing had multiple depths and I had to be careful not to dredge bottom and come up with a lure covered in weeds. The wind was pushing the boat enough which required the use of the gas motor and a long setback of 100ft as I was trying anywhere from 10ft to 35ft depths.
Most kokanee were caught at 17ft using a Brad’s kokanee cut plug and Brad’s dodger or Gibbs dog tail dodger. A Paulina Peak Tackle spinner hoochie caught one kokanee as well.
I made a new batch of Kokanee Corn and was experimenting with some new scents and techniques. Next time, I might have to make a batch of garlic bloody tuna.
The kokanee fishing this spring has proven to be more difficult than last year (which is a great challenge and will help with the learning curve). This could be due to a number of factors:
1. It could be due to higher angler hours on Ten Mile Lake, which is both good and bad, because fish size might suffer, but people are learning about kokanee and getting to eat what is stocked as a catch and keep fishery. The ice fishing season might have contributed to smaller fish size as well.
2. The strain of kokanee stocked has changed and the new strain might not be growing as quickly or as large as the older strain.
3. Like last year, the larger fish seemed to appear out of no where. Maybe the kokanee are “hiding” and waiting to be found.
4. I have been fishing different/new areas of the lake this year. Maybe I am missing the larger kokanee each fishing trip and have yet to find them.
5. I am trying lots of new gear this year and not staying with the “normal” kokanee setups from last year. Of course, there’s no right or wrong when it comes to kokanee fishing which is what keeps me intrigued.
A fun day on the lake experimenting with kokanee gear.