Lake Simtustus 06/19/09 - 06/22/09 camping at Pelton Park

Heading out to Lake Simtustus again  , had a blast last year just getting comfortable fishing out of my yak.  Plan on targeting some kokanee, and some larger trophy fish (I've yet to catch one on my own  ).   There are suppose to be bull trout, that you can retain if 24" or larger.  I've read you look for the kokanee literally jumping out of the water being chase by the bulls...  I'll try and take lots of pics, there was a lot of wildlife to see out in the desert last time.  If anyone has any tips, feel free to share 

I should be getting my VHF in the mail today, I'll bring it just in case there are any other fellow NWKA members out there.

Nice to see you heading out to my "neck of the woods"!  Here is a bit of information on Simtustus.  The big, and I mean BIG, trout (bull/bows/browns) can be found at the log boom below the dam.  It's a long haul and you need a PB to get there from the PGE camp.  The situation is the turbines are shut down during the night, and turned on at 7am?  I may be off half hour or so, anyway the big fish are feeding on the kokes during the time the turbines are off.

The trick is to get to the log boom and tie off before first light, then at the crack of dawn start casting upstream.  Use a 7 inch black/silver sinking rapala and cast as far up stream toward the dam as you can.  If you make it up there it's your best opportunity to catch a monster.  When those turbines kick on the water starts to boil and move and the bite is over.  Then it's time to troll along the rimrock nice and slow and it's business as usual.

The lake is slow no wake pretty much from PGE park up the the dam, so it takes along time to get there. 
-Scott   

I should be getting my VHF in the mail today, I'll bring it just in case there are any other fellow NWKA members out there.

VHF is only for Marine use only. Don't use it on inland waters. Have fun and catch a monster...

I should be getting my VHF in the mail today, I'll bring it just in case there are any other fellow NWKA members out there.

VHF is only for Marine use only. Don't use it on inland waters. Have fun and catch a monster...

Only if you are speaking of Marine Band VHF...there's a lot more to the spectrum

VHF is only for Marine use only. Don't use it on inland waters. Have fun and catch a monster...

I was under the impression that the vhf radios could be used if you were on water.  I know i've heard/ seen them used on the Willamette, would this be wrong?  Also last year at Silver Lake, WA fellow NWKA were talking back and fourth on there VHF's...  Please explain

I'll just bring my normal walkies this time, will be on channel 13 (3), *shrugs*...

Thanks for the tips Scott, what is that like 7 miles or so to the log boom?  I'm really tempted to get out at like 3:30 and paddle all the way up there, fish it, and have the rest of my party pick me up around sunrise or whatever, and get a tow back or something. I paddled around 18 miles total a couple weekends ago, i was real sore at the end of the day but it was doable...I REALLY, want to do well in the AOTY, and unless I start catching some monsters i'm going to fail miserably.  It's real hard to place when I've yet to make it to the ocean, I've been saving for over a year for a dry suit so I'll make my purchase soon, then start figuring out my launches/landings.

Well time to start packing the car!

Have a great weekend everyone

I should be getting my VHF in the mail today, I'll bring it just in case there are any other fellow NWKA members out there.

VHF is only for Marine use only. Don't use it on inland waters. Have fun and catch a monster...

Only if you are speaking of Marine Band VHF...there's a lot more to the spectrum

I just assumed he had a Marine VHF. I also can't find any info about using VHF's on inland water. Got a resource for knowledge on this Jay?

I was under the impression that the vhf radios could be used if you were on water.  I know i've heard/ seen them used on the Willamette, would this be wrong?  Also last year at Silver Lake, WA fellow NWKA were talking back and fourth on there VHF's...  Please explain

I just assumed he had a Marine VHF. I also can't find any info about using VHF's on inland water. Got a resource for knowledge on this Jay?

If you are looking for communications on lakes, the VHF spectrum used by FRS and GMRS radios is appropriate. These are low power and inexpensive. GMRS (up to 5 watts) requires a no-test license (basically an application and fee) and operates at higher power than FRS (0.5 watts) but I doubt that many bother to pay the $80 or so fee or apply.

There is lots of bandwidth that is available to Amateur Radio operators, as well, and the Morse code requirements for these licenses have all been removed. However, each of these licenses require an exam. These radios can be operated at much higher power and include handhelds and stationary radios.

Marine VHF use is limited to the ocean and inland waterways, ie rivers like the Columbia and Willamette. I believe that using the Marine VHF frequencies on Silver Lake would be a violation of the FCC regulations. Of course, this probably doesn't really deter anyone.

This is from the Coast Guard FAQ (http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/marcomms/mfaq.htm#vhf):

I live far from the ocean. Now that portable VHF marine radios are inexpensive and unlicensed, and have 68 channels, can I use them for communicating with my buddies while hunting or similar purposes off the water? A recent outdoors magazine recommended I consider doing so.

No! Although the FCC does not require boaters with these radios have a license, users not following FCC rules on the use of these radios are still subject to severe fines. Although you may not be near the ocean, you may be near an inland waterway, or propagation anomalies may cause your transmission to be heard in a waterway. If this occurs, depending upon the channel on which you are transmitting, you could interfere with a search and rescue case, or help cause a collision between passing ships. The FCC recently established a family radio service for the purposes you describe. Consider using it instead.

I finally found a definition of inland waters at http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/mwv/navrules/rules/Rule03.htm. This makes it obvious that lakes are not legal places for using marine VHF frequencies.

"Inland Waters" means the navigable waters of the United States shoreward of the navigational demarcation lines dividing the high seas from harbors, rivers and other inland waters of the United States and the waters of the Great Lakes on the United States side of the International Boundary;