REELING IN ROOSEVELT RAINBOWS GALLAND WALKS YOU THROUGH THE BASICS OF CATCHING TROPHY RAINBOW ON LAKE ROOSEVELT
goal of 750,000 to be released in 2018.
BY BENITA GALLAND
MACK’S PRO STAFF
The Lake Roosevelt fishery is comanaged by the Spokane Tribe, Colville Tribe, and Washington Department of Fish and Wilflife (WDFW). They have done an excellent job of protecting and enhancing the Roosevelt Reservoir fishery.
Lake Roosevelt has the best rainbow fishing in the region. Both wild and planted triploid rainbows are held within the system. In order to preserve the native species, wild fish must be released. Hatchery triploids “those with a clipped adipose fin” are the fish you need to target. As planted fish “hold over” from one year to the next, they grow quite large. It’s more than possible to catch a 25-inch rainbow!
Roosevelt has the “ Lake best rainbow trout fishing in the region with both wild and planted triploids in the system.
— BENITA GALLAND | MACK’S PRO STAFF
There are currently 63 net pens on the reservoir, located north to south from Kettle Falls to Keller Ferry. Net pens are operated by a group of volunteers and the WDFW Sherman Creek Hatchery and the Spokane Tribal Hatchery produced the rainbow trout for transfer. In the spring of 2017, about 500,000 rainbows were released with a target
The combination of extremely deep, cool water and the abundance of shrimp and other feed produce the tastiest fish imaginable. The meat is firm and deep red, much like a sockeye. You can smoke or can the catch, but it is most tasty right off the barbecue or cast iron skillet.
If you don’t have a boat, don’t worry. Grab a bundle of firewood, some hot dogs and cocoa, then head out to one of the abundant, sandy beaches along the shoreline. I suggest you purchase the Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake Map published by Fish-n-Map Co. It was made by fishermen for fishermen and has all the information regarding fish locations, topography, etc. Winter through spring is fantastic bank fishing for the rainbow. During those months, fish migrate to the shallower waters and are easier to target. All you need is a light rod with a spinning or bait caster reel and you are good to go. Cast your line with a slip sinker out as far as you can. Use a hook loaded with Powerbait of a mashmallow and worm. Sometimes the simplest of techniques gives the best results. A cast and retrieve method is also productive. Rainbows can’t seem to resist Smile Blade® setups. I suggest you give the Mack’s Lure Promise Keeper® a try, as well. It incorporates the Smile Blade® and Wedding Ring® and its designed to cast. FOLLOW MACK’S LURE ON INSTAGRAM
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If you have a boat and enjoy trolling, the following tips should bring you success. I refer to depth, speed and lure presentation as the “Holy Trinity” of successful fishing.
TROUT & KOKANEE FISHING ON LAKE ROOSEVELT
DEPTH In the late fall, winter and early spring when the water is cool, trolling boards or side planers are an awesome advantage because usually the game fish can be caught in the top 10- to 25-feet. In early January this year, the water temperature was 37 degrees and the rainbows bit between 9- and 12feet. With the use of equipment, such as trolling and planer boards you can troll your line along the shallow shoreline, spacing your lines at multiple depths using weights or diving lures. This method also enables the angler to space presentations different distances apart, covering more water. The Double D™ Dodger is also a good way to spread lines out in combination with the action of a dodger. The added advantage of a two-pole endorsement gives some trial and error options when finding the desired lure, depth, speed or presentation that works on that day.
When the fish are in the top strata, the leaded line also does very well. Downriggers are effective, too, as is long-lining a lure with a light banana or snap weight. Rainbows tend to spook away from the boat and, for that reason, I try to space my lures 80- to 150-feet back, especially when fishing on the top. As the water warms, the fish follow the cool water and gravitate to the lower depths or areas of cool water
Lake Roosevelt is the stretch of the Columbia River above Grand Coulee Dam. This huge body of water extends over 150 miles to the Canadian border and provides Northwest fisherman with abundant trout, kokanee, walleye, bass, and other game fish. The Harrod’s join Bob Loomis and Lance Merz from Mack’s Lure for some outstanding spring fishing!
flow. In the summer, they usually bite in the 30- to 50-foot zone, but fish don’t follow rules well. TROLLING SPEED A good speed for rainbows ranges from 1.6- to 2-knots or faster, depending on your lure and how active the fish are. Speed up or slow down to find the magic tempo. Bear in mind that it may change as the day brightens, water warms up, or the fish decide to mess with your mind. When it comes to speed, I want to know my lure speed exactly. Yes, your GPS on whichever sonar unit you own, measures speed, as do some other high tech methods. They, however, are not correct indicator of lure speed. One of the most important peices of fishing equipment on my boat is the Luhr Speed Indicator. Most of the time, that indicator speed will be at odds with the high tech readouts. A difference as small as 0.2 knots may determine a successful day of catching versus a day of sight seeing. LURE, COLOR & PRESENTATION Rainbows are the easiest of the game fish to target on Roosevelt. They seem to love the bling! Smile
WATCH THE NWO ON YOUTUBE
Blades® or Flash Lite® blades are great attractors. You can attach a 2-, 3- or 4-Bladed Flash Lite® Troll to your lure’s leader. Smile Blades® can also be strung on the leader “just separate the blade from the lure by using a bead or two. Using a Smile Blade® in front of a Pee Wee™ Hoochie or a small squid, fly or Wedding Ring® spinner is usually a sucessful combination, as well. My favorite setup is a streamer or muddler fly with a Smile Blade® or Wedding Ring® Blade at its nose. I often place a Wedding Ring® Tapered Bead at the head of my fly, then top it with a Smile Blade® 1.1 or 0.8. Use a two-hook setup with a single- or treble-trailing hook, topping the front hook with a piece of night crawler or maggot” rainbows love worms! As I mentioned, these fish follow no rules and bling may not be their thing on certain days. Give small, straight or broken back plugs, hockey stick- or plastic mini cut plug-style lures a try, too. When the fish seem to want attraction and action, use a Sling Blade™ (4”, 6” or 9”) or a Double D™ Dodger (4.4”, 5.8” or 7.6”). Did you know that you can bend the Sling Blade™ and Double D™ Dodger to 2
increase its action? Try different dodger sizes to adjust lure action. Also, shorten or lengthen your leader to slow or hasten the action of your lure. A Wiggle Hoochie™ Bill, available in clear or UV options, rigged on the tip of your hoochie will also increase the action of your lure substantially. Green, pink and orange lures and blades seem to be the most effective colors throughout the year. That being said, it is always wise to give some other color combinations a try if you are not getting the strikes you want. Give brown, chrome, purple and black tones a try, too. Also, UV and glow setups will give you an advantage in deeper waters. Often, water color, temperature and depth will dictate the winning color of the day.
SONIC BAITFISH™ (SBF)
TIPS & TECHNIQUES
THE 5 MAIN VARIABLES FOR
RIVER JIGGING THE SBF BY PETE ROSKO
SBF TECH GUIDE
When done right, river jigging a Sonic BaitFish™ (SBF) will outfish any other technique over 90% of the time. There are three main rivercharacter variables when fishing out of a boat — current, bottom structure and depth. CURRENT | Vertical jigging on a slow drift is about as close to the
perfect presentation that one can achieve in sport fishing because of absolute control of lure placement and its resultant downward flutter (which is the most effective lure action that causes a fish to strike). However, if I cannot jig my line straight down, because the river current is too fast, I must change my technique in order to feel my SBF being bounced against bottom structure. Here is the perfect — and most times only — answer to neutralize a fast-moving current. Cast downstream directly inline (NOT sideways) to where your boat is headed. In order to telegraph the feel of a strike, or the lure against any structure, you must eliminate any bow (bend) in your line or else any fish you hook will be by pure luck. Do not fish with loose line! Maintain tension on your line to increase the lure’s darting and vibrating action in addition to increasing your hookups and telegraphing structure. BOTTOM STRUCTURE | When you acquire the ability to easily feel where your lure is at all times, you are well on your way to becoming a “Top Gun” angler! You must be especially good at feeling bottom when working your SBF through rocky structure where most prized fish are located. You will lose many lures to snags when feel of structure is lost. My personal lures-lost-to-snags is almost zero for two main reasons: 1) Especially in rocky structure, use only the lightest-weight SBF that can still telegraph the feel of the lure against rocks. This lighterweight lure will glide through structure instead of diving into it like a sinker; 2) Since you originally cast straight down current into your drift, any snagged lure can be un-snagged as your boat passes over and beyond the point of the snag. Reversing your drift path to retrieve a snagged lure depends on water depth. The deeper the water, the
further the distance needed to go up-current beyond the point of the snag. At times, over several hundred yards are required. It works! This technique was especially deadly in snaggy rocky rivers like the Spokane River for rainbows and smallmouth bass and the western basin rock piles of Lake Erie for smallmouth and walleye. Caution: Avoid jigging in submerged trees and other lumber as snagged lures are generally lost in this structure. DEPTH | My minimum desired depth for vertical jigging in clear water is 20 feet or or ten feet in dirty or stained water. It’s to avoid spooking fish as you fish directly above them. However, if I am casting away from the boat, I have hooked fish in two feet of water. Remember, it is easier to spook fish in shallower water. Eliminate as much noise as possible. That includes casting with the lightest possible lure in order to minimize the sound of its splash upon striking calm water. Basically, the only times I will not follow my rules of casting down-current, versus casting in any direction, are when there is no wind and no snaggy bottom. ROD & REEL | The fourth variable affecting my jigging success is my rod and reel. In order for me to detect structure while jigging with ultralight Sonic BaitFish™, my rod and reel my accommodate my lure. Basically, my rod needs to be lightweight with a stiff butt and a very sensitive tip to feel small SBF swimming and boucning against structure. I like my rod tip section not to bend more than 1/3 of the entire rod 3
length. My rod is a G. Loomis SJR 720 6-foot Mag-Light IMX, extra-fast action that can handle up to a 1/3 oz. SBF. My spinning reel is a Mitchell Avocet 1000, spooled with 10 lb. Suffix braided line and two feet of 12-14 lb. Suffic fluorocarbon leader with an attached duo-lock snap for quick lure changes and maintaining lively lure action. Note: Always attach the wide bend snap to the nose of the SBF that is included in its packaging. Attaching the leader directly to a smaller SBF will kill its action. Always use a single tail hook, not a treble, to minimize snags will jigging through structure. Fishing a G. Loomis rod is not an absolute necessity as long as you can find a good substitute. The Mitchell reel is reasonably priced, durable and smooth operating. With this finesse jigging technique, I can get away without spending a lot of money on a reel. However, please do not sacrifice quality on your rod. It is the key to your success when finiesse fishing over structure. Please remember: think of your rod as a symphony conductor’s baton. It’s short and firm. A long and flimsy rod is useless when metal jig-fishing. A rod that is not firm cannot feel structure, or a strike, and is poor at setting the hook. A rod that is too long loses control in finessing a jig through structure. The shorter the rod, the better the control.
monthly issue of the Mack Attack Magazine and for your confidence in the Sonic BaitFish™. We, at Mack’s Lure, hope our monthly tips add to your success on the water. Look for us in the upcoming March issue for more timely tips and techniques.
COOK YOUR CATCH
VIEW HARROD COOKHOUSE RECIPES
Pull that kokanee out of the freezer and try this unique recipe for a change on the usual. As always, visit HarrodOutdoors.com for all your wild game and fish recipes.
KOKANEE EGG ROLLS INGREDIENTS • 1 lb. of Kokanee filets • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro • 2-3 green onions • 1 seeded jalepeno • 1 egg • 1/4 cup water chestnuts • 2 tbsp. soy sauce • 2 tbsp. water • 2 cloves minced garlic • 1 tbsp. Harrod’s Cookhouse Sunrise to Sunset All Purpose Seasoning. Start by skinning and deboning Kokanee, then cut into 1-inch pieces. Place cut kokanee in a food processor along with chopped cilantro, onion and jalepeno. Add egg, water chestnuts, soy sauce, water, minced garlic and Harrod’s Cookhouse Sunrise to Sunset All Purpose Seasoning. Pulse in processor until ingredients are wellcombined. Place a small amount of fish mixture onto egg roll wraps, add water to edges and roll. Deep fry in hot oil until golden brown. Serve with Fin and Field Sauce or teriyaki suace and enjoy! Watch this recipe on YouTube at the link below.
HOOK POINT | The fifth variable is your hook point. Without a sharp hook point, you will miss strikes without realizing it. The complete angler carries a fine-tooth file. One of the very best is the Luhr Jensen file. Keep it lubricated after each outing to keep the rust off its carbon metal surface. A hook file, coasted with rust, is useless. If the hook does not dig into your thumbnail, as it’s run over its surface, the hook is dull. Monitor the sharpness of your hook like a world record fish depended upon it. Thank you for subscribing to our 4
GUEST COMMENTARY
LOCATING PERCH ON THE ICE BY DANNY COYNE | PRO STAFF | BCFISHN.COM One of the most enjoyable fish to target during the ice fishing season has to be the yellow perch. Once the schools are located, these fish are plentiful and they make some of the best table fare to be had. Perch are found throughout the interior of the Pacific Northwest in many freshwater lakes that are accessible during the winter months. Perch fishing is a great species to fish to take newcomers or young anglers ice fishing as it can offer non-stop action. The key to a good day of ice fishing for perch is to locate the schools. These fish tend to school up tight during the winter months, so once you locate one, you will locate others. Early ice season offers some of the best fishing for perch and they will tend to bite anything you throw at them. In the first month of fishable ice, you’ll find perch hanging around in shallow bay areas feeding on insects nestled among the weeded bottom. As the season progresses, the fish will move out to a bit deeper water, holding on points and drop off ledges. Unlike its distant relative, the walleye, perch don’t just hug the lake floor. They can vary from one foot off the bottom to suspending within a few inches from the ice surface. Start by targeting near the bottom and then work your way up the water column until you locate the school.
A good tactic in locating the school of perch is to drill multiple holes in a crisscross pattern that covers an area of approximately 40 yards. Start fishing the hole closest to the shallow water first. I like to begin the day by jigging a small spoon, such as a Mack’s Lure Sonic BaitFish™, tipped with maggots, meal worms or even regular cocktail shrimp. Using a small spoon will help locate the active aggressive fish you’ll want to keep the school from leaving — this is when you should slow down your presentation. Once I get on top of an active feeding group of perch, I switch from a spoon to a Mack’s Lure Glo® Hook or plain hook tipped with bait. If the fish are near the bottom, slap your presentation on the bottom to stir up silt, as this will attract the fish even more, thinking it’s a feeding frenzy. In no way are perch trophy size fish, but they do provide a lot of enjoyment to catch, especially during ice-over. Once you get a grasp on the basic understanding on how to locate the active fish, you will be in for an enjoyable day of non-stop ice fishing action. Not to mention, the white, flaky meat of a perch is a perfect ingredient for some great tasting fish tacos.
SHOP FOR ICE RIG VALUE PACKS
WATCH THIS: CASCADE LAKE PERCH FISHING
Learn effective ice fishing techniques for jumbo Yellow Perch with Mike Hall & Bobby & Robin Shindelar on of the Western Ice Fishing Association on one of the world’s top perch fisheries. Join the Western Ice Fishing Association on Facebook.com/WesternIceFishingAssociation
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QUESTION
HOT DEAL | USE CODE: CAPX25
OF THE MONTH Have a questions you want answered? Send your inquiry to us and yours may be featured! Simply send an email to media@mackslure.com or reach out to us on Facebook, Instagram or YouTube. Just search @MacksLure and you’ll find us!
Q: I’ve heard a lot about Glo® Hooks, especially for ice fishing. How would you recommend using them?
PHOTO OF THE MONTH The Koke-A-Nut™ Glo® Series (COMING SOON) has been hammering the Kokanee, but also the landlocked kings. Here’s David Mayo showing off his on Oroville Res.
A: That’s a great question! And the Glo® Hooks are an awesome ice fishing tool that can be used in conjunction with other products or as a standalone lure for various panfish. Attach a Glo® Hook with a 2-inch leader to the tail of a Sonic BaitFish™ or rig a Glo® Hook with a Double D™ Dodger 4.4 or Sling Blade™ 4” to increase your attraction. Simply attach a 14- to 16-inch leader to a Glo® Hook in the color of your choosing. In between the dodger and the hook, attach a couple of split shot weights to help keep the presentation vertical, then slowly jig up 4- to 6-inches, then drop and repeat until your rod starts dancing. Mack’s Lure actually now sells an Ice Rig, which features this exact setup. Choose between three color options in the Glo® Hook variation or three color options in a Hum Dinger® option. Find it in the attractors section online or click on the ad on page three to purchase. .
VIDEO OF THE MONTH Mack’s Lure’s Bob Schmidt and Mike & Jill Roth join Angler West TV to fish Hanford Reach salmon with ScentFlash™ UV Paddle Flashera and Wedding Ring® spinners..
Facebook.com/MacksLure @macks_lure
To submit your catch, send us an email at media@mackslure.com or tag us on social media using #MacksLure.
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