pmmpete:
The lake whitefish bite has started in Flathead Lake, and it looks like it's going to be a good one. The "bite" is when the whitefish come into shallow water, around 50-60 feet, to chow down on baby perch about .5" to .75" long. It typically starts in the middle of July and extends into August. I was fishing for lake trout, but encountered some whitefish and switched to fishing for them. I caught 5 between 18" and 20".
Whitefish are usually found right on the bottom, but I found a large school of whitefish stacked up from the bottom at 110 feet to 60 or 70 feet. I tried jigging for them at various depths, and ended up snagging one. I wonder if you can catch suspended lake whitefish by downrigger trolling with a small lure? Has anybody tried this, and if you have, what kinds of lures did you use, and what success did you have?
Ravensfan:
Nice fish Pete! Are they a good eating fish?
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bb2fish:
I used to catch whitefish on Flathead Lake using perch colored rooster tails. Mountain whitefish seems less prevalent here in Oregon, but I'd catch them on trout flies too (hare's ears and pheasant tail nymphs). I didn't know that lake whitefish and mountain whitefish are two different species.
Those are some big ones, Pete! Did you smoke them??
pmmpete:
--- Quote from: Ravensfan on July 12, 2017, 09:38:06 AM ---Nice fish Pete! Are they a good eating fish? --- End quote --- Lake whitefish are excellent cooked, and they are excellent smoked.
--- Quote from: bb2fish on July 12, 2017, 09:46:31 AM ---I used to catch whitefish on Flathead Lake using perch colored rooster tails. Mountain whitefish seems less prevalent here in Oregon, but I'd catch them on trout flies too (hare's ears and pheasant tail nymphs). I didn't know that lake whitefish and mountain whitefish are two different species.
Those are some big ones, Pete! Did you smoke them??
--- End quote --- Yes, lake whitefish and mountain whitefish are different species. Mountain whitefish is a native species in Montana, but lake whitefish were introduced. Were the whitefish you caught on Flathead Lake mountain whitefish or lake whitefish?
I have smoked lake whitefish, and they're very good smoked. There are commercial fisheries for lake whitefish on the Great Lakes and in various places around the eastern United States, and smoked whitefish are available in delicatessens around the east. For some reason they are usually smoked whole, with the head and skin on. Google "smoked whitefish" to see some pictures. I fillet them before smoking the fillets.
pmmpete:
Amik came from Idaho to Montana on vacation, and I got him onto some lake whitefish.