Late September pre-spawn Kokanee - still tasty!

Two weeks ago the kokanee in western Montana were still silver.  Now they have started to develop their spawning colors, and are hanging out around the inlets of lakes, getting ready to head upstream to spawn at the end of October.  I caught these kokanee today in Placid Lake.  They were 11” – 11.5” long, which is pretty good for Montana kokanee.  Although they were beginning to change color, they were still very tasty.  By December, after they spawn, I don’t like the taste of Kokanee either cooked or smoked.