Whiskeytown Lake Kokanee- Hobie First Cast and JAOTY run

Whiskeytown Lake just west of Redding continues to kick down a nice grade of kokes this year.  I guided a father/son combo on Saturday through the Headwaters Adventure Company Hobie First Cast program, Shawn and his son Dallas came up from the Bay area to learn about fishing, kayaks, and to get away for Fathers Day weekend. 

They weathered a drenching rainstorm Friday night, but by the time they walked from their campsite to the launch ramp Saturday morning the sun was shining, the ospreys were fishing, and things were shaping up to be a great day.  We ran through the Hobies, the tackle, a little info on the fish and the lake, and within minutes of dropping lines Dallas had the first koke in the net.  Within about 2 hours they guys had pulled their limits of fat 12-15" kokes, a stellar day of koke-kayakfishing for anybody, let alone a couple 'rookies'.  I think they were sandbagging it a bit, they had no troubles out there!  We spent the next couple hour or so exploring the lake, eating lunch, and wrapped up the day with a lesson on fish cleaning and preparation.  It was great to fish with these guys, I felt lucky to be a part of their Fathers Day weekend.

With the bite so good I figured this was the time to get my kids out to scratch the koke off their Junior Angler of the Year list.  Last night I headed back out with my 7 year old, Jacob.  We met up with Fisheducator, dropped in lines, and Jake had his first fish within minutes.  The bite was a bit slower but we still had a fish on or a strike every 10 minutes or so, which isn't too bad.  Jake proved himself the fish magnet, beating me in both numbers and size.   I got in a bit of trouble for keeping him out a bit late, but it's totally worth it!

The bite should remain solid into September, and the fish are only getting bigger.  If you're looking to learn about koke fishing shoot me a message, I have a few weekend dates available and evening trips are a great option too.

Tight Lines,
beenfishin

Awesome pics and adventure Dad. Wtg on getting the kid on some fun kokanee action. How old is your son if you don't mind me asking? Peddling and catching off that Sport is kool. I can only hope my kid can start peddling or paddling a yak in a few. Congrats thanks for sharing

Fishing with your kids is great, but kayakfishing with them is awesome.  Watching them launch, maneuver around, drop the line, rod in the holder, keep that pace and watch for the bite, hit that fish and fight them in!!!!  Priceless!  When I was his age (7 years old) I was on the shore watching a bobber.  I've got 3 boys (9, 7 & 2), the 9 & 7 year olds I just setup and let them go, the 2 year old still rides shotgun of course. 

Super cool report! reading this put a big smile on my face. Your kid looks sooo happy, that just doesnt get any better!!!

This looks like a blast and it's only a little over 2 hours from me I believe. There are lots of different species here to be caught. How's the camping there if you don't mind me asking? Also your kid looks so happy to be out there catching fish!

Honestly when i have these guys out I don't even care to really fish myself, i just want them to hook up....okay maybe one for me every once in a while!
Whiskeytown is awesome, at the inlet up by the powerhouse is a great planter-trout fishery, lots of panfish in the weedy areas, the kokes are great of course too.  There's some monster spots that cruise around but that's a whole 'nother ball game that I haven't taken a crack at yet.

Camping wise, I'd say it's pretty lame in the summer (with typical days 100+ degrees).  The sites at Oak Bottom are stacked like a log deck, and you get the typical summer crowd of Eminem-blaring, dog barking, crying-kid, shouting parents...pretty much like anywhere in the summertime.  But in the spring/fall it's gorgeous and you'll likely have everything to yourself.  A better camping option would be to stay at Lewiston Lake, then make the 30 minute drive down (depending on the road construction on Buckhorn which could add 1/2 hour).  There's a campground over at Brandy Creek, but honestly I've never even been through it.  There's also a small campground below the dam called Peltier Bridge.  It's 'primitive', as in vault toilet, no power, tents only and like 6 sites.  Pretty chill, if I was going to summer-camp it that's where I'd go.  It's also right on Clear Creek which has a decent wild-trout fishery.

Honestly when i have these guys out I don't even care to really fish myself, i just want them to hook up....okay maybe one for me every once in a while!
Whiskeytown is awesome, at the inlet up by the powerhouse is a great planter-trout fishery, lots of panfish in the weedy areas, the kokes are great of course too.  There's some monster spots that cruise around but that's a whole 'nother ball game that I haven't taken a crack at yet.

Camping wise, I'd say it's pretty lame in the summer (with typical days 100+ degrees).  The sites at Oak Bottom are stacked like a log deck, and you get the typical summer crowd of Eminem-blaring, dog barking, crying-kid, shouting parents...pretty much like anywhere in the summertime.  But in the spring/fall it's gorgeous and you'll likely have everything to yourself.  A better camping option would be to stay at Lewiston Lake, then make the 30 minute drive down (depending on the road construction on Buckhorn which could add 1/2 hour).  There's a campground over at Brandy Creek, but honestly I've never even been through it.  There's also a small campground below the dam called Peltier Bridge.  It's 'primitive', as in vault toilet, no power, tents only and like 6 sites.  Pretty chill, if I was going to summer-camp it that's where I'd go.  It's also right on Clear Creek which has a decent wild-trout fishery.

Awesome man. My girlfriend got some last minute notice that she has paid holidays to use, so we're planning a little road trip. Thinking about stopping along Whiskeytown on the way to the Modoc Plateau area. I'd very much like to avoid the noisy, disrespectful people if possible. We don't mind camping places with only vault toilets. I'll do some research tonight.

Definitely would love to get some trout. I'll be limited to shore fishing only this trip though. We could probably rent a boat, but eh. Trying to keep the cost down. Any suggestions on how or where to fish for the kokes? I know absolutely nothing about them. Same thing for the pan fish. I've never caught any and would love to.

Jacob looks very pleased. wtg, Ben.

SOme very nice size to those kokes. Cool smiles on the kind as well.

Awesome job Ben and Jake!  I will be making a trip up sometime soon when I can find the time.

Ben, are the Kokes schooled up?

Sweet kokes Ben!  Way cool you got your son on them too.  I'm jealous of the average size you guys are seeing down there--our Bucks Lake kokes are on the small side this year.  How deep are you catching them?

Yeah the grade is impressive this year, we've landed well over 100 fish and I can probably count the number of fish UNDER 12" on one hand, everything falling into that 12-15" range, which should be hitting the 15-17" by late August.  Hopefully!

The fish are still spread out pretty good, and I've been focusing in the 25-45' range...I marked a few areas last night that looked jig-worthy, I'll be out again Thursday so maybe I'll give it a shot.    After the cold front that blew through last week the water temp dropped 10 degrees on the surface so they shallowed up a bit, but with 100 degree days here again they're back to their summer haunts.

Looks like a good time. I've actually been planning a trip up there for tomorrow. It's good to see that the fish are biting!

I'll be out there this weekend.  Fishing sat and Sunday morning.  Where were you guys fishing and how much weight was used to get down to the depth you needed?

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