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CHASING KOKE'S IN THE
CENTRAL VALLEY
By: Ron Wilson
July 21, 2010.... For the last month or
so I have been chasing and catching Kokanee Salmon in the central valley
lakes.
I started at
New Melones Lake
where I pre-fished for a
Kokanee Power tournament where we managed an 18th place finish
out of a 100 plus boat event. Lost a couple Kokanee the first day that
would of placed us near or in the winners circle.
My partner Guide Captain Gary and I had
found lots of Kokanee in the lake but just one
small school of fish
that would help in a tournament during a weeks worth of fishing. The
fish were schooled on a small knoll near a creek bed on the main lake 60
feet deep. They started to go at 10 a.m. and a jet skier shut them down
at 10:20 when he came in and did a few donuts right on top of them.
The next day we headed upriver to where
the water was coming in and found Kokanee at 40 feet deep and caught the
days top weight which moved us up into the money.
The
Kokanee salmon
being up the river that far this early seemed funny not only to me but
also several diehard Kokanee fishermen I talked to. Would there be an
early spawn? We didn't know but, the healthy fat females we caught
upriver were full of eggs.
My next Kokanee experience happened at
Lake Camanche when
I took a friend, Ken Moore of Ripon, up to catch a few fish for his
dinner table. I have caught a few Kokanee there before. None have been
planted but I think some small fry have came down from
Lake Pardee, which
empties into the lake.
There are not a lot of them in there but
when you catch one its usually a quality fish. I had one rod rigged with
a hoochie and others with Ex-Cel Lures. We were soon into trout and
Kokanee down around Hat Island. The trout and Kokanee were down at 50
feet and all in the 2 pound range. Ken had a great day fighting them and
was pleased with his days catch.
The next couple days I fished
Lake Don Pedro
chasing trout and Kokanee. Harold Willey and I started in 3rd bay where
we caught a couple trout and then moved down this side of Hatch and
Willow Creek where we caught a couple Kokanee and a nice trout. We then
moved to Jenkins Hill and caught a few more Kokanee before calling it a
day.
 I
had talked to a couple fishermen and they informed me that the bite had
been wide open near Hatch Creek but the fish had left.
The next day I took my oldest son Ronald
back to lake Don Pedro looking for the big schools of Kokanee that were
there last year. We started in second bay near the rock wall, but
nothing. Headed out by the big rocks in the middle of the bay for
nothing and finally over to Jenkins Hill.
I found the fish in very small schools, a
half dozen fish on the depth finder behind the island off Jenkins Hill
as you go into second bay. The fish were laying off the back side of the
island in 80 feet of water. I was dragging a orange and clear white
hoochie at 60 feet and that's the only bait they would hit.
My son did a great job of reeling in 10
of 10 fish hooked. A few weeks earlier he had lost 10 in a row so I
guess that made up for it.
The Kokanee are relating to structure and
in my mind they are already making there way upstream heading for the
spawning grounds.
Anyway that is what I think. I will let
you know more about them at Lake Don Pedro in a couple weeks when I get
back from vacation. Yes I know I am retired but my wife is not and this
is her time. |
