Planning Fishing Trips for the new season

Lake Trout can be caught near the surface just after ice off. 

However, I've caught Mackinaw in Lake Tahoe in 200' of water during late summer from my kayak.   I'm guessing I should be able to do the same in Oregon.

[Wait, why am I sharing my AOTY secrets?]

Let's just say trolling isn't the only way to catch a trout.

Brian

The state record in Oregon for lake trout(Macinaw) is 40 pounds 8 ounces at Odell lake...
It was set 23 years ago. How'd you like to put one like that on the AOTY board ? Odell lake is southeast of eugene on hwy 58.  I am so going here .

Paulina looks looks way cool. 6300 foot elevation in a Caldera(collapsed volcanoe). It has the state record brown trout and Kokanee salmon. The original Paulina brown Trout record was an asterisked 35 pounder that was hooked and dying and was netted off the surface(1965).


heres the list of all the Oregon Trout records:

Trout, Brook    9.6     1980      Deschutes River            Burt Westbrook
Trout, Brown   28.5   2002      Paulina Lake                Ronald Lane
Trout, Bull       23.2      1989       Lake Billy Chinook        Don Yow
Trout, Cutthroat  9.8   1986      Malheur River                Phillip Grove
Trout, Golden     7.10    1987       Eagle Cap Wilderness        Douglas White
Trout, Macinaw or Lake     40.8    1984 Odell Lake       H V Hannon
Trout, Rainbow    28.0     1982     Rogue River         Mike McGonagle
Trout, Steelhead    35.8    1970     Columbia River       Berdell Todd

And for Washington:

Steelhead Trout   35 lbs 1 oz   Snake River  Gilbert Pierson 11/23/1973
Rainbow Trout   25 lbs 11.36 oz   Rufus Woods Lake  Dick Hill 1/8/2001
Lake Trout   35 lbs 7.04 oz    Lake Chelan  John G. Hossack 12/31/2001
Lahontan Trout  18 lbs 0.64 oz   Omak Lake  Dan Beardslee 7/1/1993
Dolly Varden Trout   10 lbs 15 oz  White Chuck River  Leroy Thompson 8/5/1999
Cutthroat Trout    12 lbs 0 oz    Crescent Lake  W. Welsh 7/1/1961
Bull Trout    22 lbs 8 oz    Tieton River  Louis Schott 4/23/1961
Brown Trout    22 lbs 0 oz    Sullivan Lake  R.L. Henry 5/22/1965
Brook Trout    9 lbs 0 oz     Wobbly Lake  George G. Weekes 5/7/1988

Pisco is near some great Trout fishing lakes, like he mentioned..

Lake Trout can be caught near the surface just after ice off. 

However, I've caught Mackinaw in Lake Tahoe in 200' of water during late summer from my kayak.   I'm guessing I should be able to do the same in Oregon.

[Wait, why am I sharing my AOTY secrets?]

Let's just say trolling isn't the only way to catch a trout.

Brian

bsteves

Well it sounds like if I'm going to put one of those "Macs" in my boat, a little research is in order.

Yakker- Laker techniques are all over the map. In Chelan, trolling, via downrigger, is common, as is bouncing leadhead jigs on the bottom. On Tahoe, there's a guy that has developed a light line trolling technique. In Chelan, the lakers are following kokanee, which are following the mysis shrimp. Mysis shrimp are light aversive, and while near the topwater at night, they dive for the bottom during high light periods. The kokanee and lakers follow them. Both Chelan and Tahoe are amazingly clear. 50+' of visibility is common, so light lines or flouro topshots are nice.

Here's a pdf from the LuhrJensen site about fishing Odell Lake for Kokanee and Lake Trout.

http://www.luhrjensen.com/techreports/501OdellLake3.pdf

Roy, when the time comes do make the run for Lake Trout, let me know.   I'll keep an eye out for other potential lakes.  I'm hoping to find something maybe with a "no power boat" reg or lake with out a boat ramp that would give us kayakers a potential advantage.

Brian

Roy, when the time comes do make the run for Lake Trout, let me know.   I'll keep an eye out for other potential lakes.  I'm hoping to find something maybe with a "no power boat" reg or lake of a boat ramp that would give us kayakers a potential advantage.

Brian

I hear that, Thats why i like Eel lake, Not power boat restricted, but It's got a ten mile an hour speed limit.. I'll definately let you know when the time comes.

A little snippett from the PDF:

One of the biggest mistakes made by anglers is working a
lure too fast. Most will not perform correctly at fast speeds and
kokanee generally will not hit a rapidly-moving lure . . . they
need to be tantalized by it. The best advice we can give you is
to troll S-L-O-W-L-Y . . . the slower the better.

A Kayak fishers dream advice....Slow, I can do that..

Yakker- Laker techniques are all over the map. In Chelan, trolling, via downrigger, is common, as is bouncing leadhead jigs on the bottom. On Tahoe, there's a guy that has developed a light line trolling technique. In Chelan, the lakers are following kokanee, which are following the mysis shrimp. Mysis shrimp are light aversive, and while near the topwater at night, they dive for the bottom during high light periods. The kokanee and lakers follow them. Both Chelan and Tahoe are amazingly clear. 50+' of visibility is common, so light lines or flouro topshots are nice.

Pisco, you and Brian are full of it!  No, wait, I mean that in a good way.  That is great info and gives me an idea for how I can get close to those beasts.
At Chelan is that a fishery that is going to be good to go before April?  Just trying to juggle a work schedule and the Drano Springer Event (probably 2nd or 3rd week of April-my guess).
Was thinking what might work is a similar setup as I would be using for bottom fishing in the San Juans later on-- fairly light braid, say 20 lb, with a 15 lb flouro terminal to a lead head jig. (Assuming it's illegal to fish at night) 
Between these trips and keeping the wife happy  , am really hoping to make it to the Moucha area -tournament or not.
Rob.

At Chelan is that a fishery that is going to be good to go before April?

Here's a local guides report on Chelan and Rufus, from the Salmon U. site-

What continues to be very hot is the area above the Narrows on Lake Chelan for big Lake Trout. Also, the lower basin of Lake Chelan continues to be productive for eating sized lake trout at a great rate. Rufus Woods is still providing nice numbers of triploid rainbows. Roses Lake has had some ice fisherfolk out. They reported the action for rainbows is pretty steady at a fish every 15 or 20 minutes once you locate them.

On Lake Chelan try running up above the narrows. Loop across the lake on your trolling pattern at about the 315' contour. Keep those U-20 or T-4 flatfish working within 10 feet of the bottom at about 1.5 miles per hour. Also, the wide-bodied spoon by Critter Gitter has been producing some big fish. Spooling your downriggers with at least 500' of cable is a necessity in this portion of the fishery.

On Rufus Woods troll flies if the current is moving at a good clip. Try a Mack's Boogie Baits to utilize that enticing tinsel tail. Place an action disk by wiggle fin a few inches in front of the smile blade for even more erratic action. Use snap weights or downriggers to find the strike zone. When there is no current, cast spinners at shoreline structure. Try quarter ounce Promise Keepers in black and silver.

The kids tip of the week is a reminder. As I write this, it appears the worst of winter has finished pounding us with snow and cold. As the calendar progresses, get out there with your kid. With daytime temps moving towards 40, it feels balmy compared to our earlier frigid temps. Shake off the doldrums and fish. This is the best time of the year on Chelan.

Your safety tip of the week is to watch out for low water on Chelan as the PUD drops the lake level. Within a week or so the Mill Bay launch will become difficult for larger craft to launch. The rock pile just out and downlake from the launch has become a hazard to navigation. Watch out for your prop and lower unit.

Pictured above on 2-1-08 Mike Byrd of Selah, WA with a 15.7 pound deepwater Lake Chelan Mackinaw.

Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service; darrellanddads.com; [email protected] or call (509)687-0709 or toll free at (866)360-1523

Light braid with flouro topshot and 2oz jigheads is what we used a few years ago at Chelan.

Give me some advance notice and I might be able to join you.

At the end of this thread is the report from Polepole, Floatin Cowboy and my self, from a trip 2 years ago @ Chelan. http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,2967.45.html

Only problem I see is, as Pisco points out, the Lake Chelan trout like to stay damn deep.  I don't suppose that Oregonian Lake Trout are surface feeders?

We hit them up in late-Mar/early-Apr a couple years ago jigging.  Here's part of a thread over at NCKA, complete with pics ... http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,2967.45.html

Hmmm ... a Chelan lakers plus a Rufus Triploid trip would give you a great shot an big trout.

-Allen

Only problem I see is, as Pisco points out, the Lake Chelan trout like to stay damn deep.  I don't suppose that Oregonian Lake Trout are surface feeders?

We hit them up in late-Mar/early-Apr a couple years ago jigging.  Here's part of a thread over at NCKA, complete with pics ... http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,2967.45.html

Hmmm ... a Chelan lakers plus a Rufus Triploid trip would give you a great shot an big trout.

-Allen

Pole, exactly what I was thinking- why not combine a trip and take the best of what you get towards the AOTY.  Probably have to be an overnight.  Now, if we can just get over the pass

So, guys, the weather has been darn nice over here for most of the last couple of weeks. It was balmy, today, I was out with just a single top shirt for much of the day. That's a big deal, after a month and half spell where it did not get above freezing.

Hmmm ... a Chelan lakers plus a Rufus Triploid trip would give you a great shot an big trout.

I'm looking to this coming weekend as a good shot to get out. I'm thinking of swinging by Omak Lk., though, on the way to Rufus Woods. (They are much closer together than they are to Chelan) Rufus fish are FAT but don't get all that long. Lahontans, on the other hand, can be quite snakey, which is actually good for AOTY points.

Scoring Scale (points per inch)

Lingcod = 4 pts
Rockcod = 7 pts
Cabezon = 7 pts
Halibut = 3.5 pts
Coho = 5 pts
Chinook = 4 pts
Steelhead = 5 pts
Trout = 7 pts
Smallmouth = 9 pts
Largemouth = 8 pts
Panfish = 10 pts
Walleye = 6 pts
Sturgeon = 3 pts

Anybody else want to join me? While this weekend may be good for me, the next will not, and I'm not sure about later in the month.

So, guys, the weather has been darn nice over here for most of the last couple of weeks. It was balmy, today, I was out with just a single top shirt for much of the day. That's a big deal, after a month and half spell where it did not get above freezing.

Hmmm ... a Chelan lakers plus a Rufus Triploid trip would give you a great shot an big trout.

I'm looking to this coming weekend as a good shot to get out. I'm thinking of swinging by Omak Lk., though, on the way to Rufus Woods. (They are much closer together than they are to Chelan) Rufus fish are FAT but don't get all that long. Lahontans, on the other hand, can be quite snakey, which is actually good for AOTY points.

Scoring Scale (points per inch)

Lingcod = 4 pts
Rockcod = 7 pts
Cabezon = 7 pts
Halibut = 3.5 pts
Coho = 5 pts
Chinook = 4 pts
Steelhead = 5 pts
Trout = 7 pts
Smallmouth = 9 pts
Largemouth = 8 pts
Panfish = 10 pts
Walleye = 6 pts
Sturgeon = 3 pts

Anybody else want to join me? While this weekend may be good for me, the next will not, and I'm not sure about later in the month.

Pisco--  You could have been reading my mind.  I was thinking Chelan and Rufus Woods but would be willing to leave it up to you- your neck of the woods and all.  Let me just do some lobbying with the wife...  and I'll get back to you.  Any one else?

Rob.


[Edit by polepole to make readable]

Cool!

Cool!

It was a close call- both at work and with the wife but the weekend got cleared up so I am good to go.  Where/when should we meet? 

Rob.

Dang, my week has been going the other way. At this point it's looking like I'll be lucky to get out for a couple of hours, here in the valley. But I'll make a special plea and see what I can come up with. Are you planning on a day trip, or longer?