Winter Kokanee

Is winter kokanee a thing?  Just curious as duck season winds down and we have a few months of quiet in our world.  Last year halibut heated up really fast in Feb though.  I'll probably go any ways but was wondering if folks did have some success. 

Thanks!

Sand

Winter kokanee is definitely a thing, but it doesn't necessarily involve kayaks. Shown below are a couple of pictures I took while ice fishing for kokanee. And here is a link to a short video I took while using an underwater camera to sight fish for kokanee while ice fishing a couple of weeks ago:

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Cool!

Is winter kokanee a thing?  Just curious as duck season winds down and we have a few months of quiet in our world.  Last year halibut heated up really fast in Feb though.  I'll probably go any ways but was wondering if folks did have some success. 

Thanks!

Sand

Hell yes its a thing! You can catch Kokanee any time of the year.  However, its harder during the spawn months. I'm headed up to Bullards Bar tomorrow for them. Nothing big this time of year. Maybe 9-10" at most, but Bullards is loaded with them and its a 10 fish limit there. Launching at the Dark Day ramp at 9am.

Kevin

Nice to hear!   I am re-rigging my kayak hauler and will take a shot at Bullards in a few weeks.  Thanks for the info. 

And ice fishing.... brrrr.   Lol

Sand

And ice fishing.... brrrr.

When wearing a drysuit with appropriate amounts of clothing under it, you can kayak comfortably in temperatures around freezing. When wearing appropriate amounts of clothing, you can ice fish comfortably in temperatures below zero F.  All thanks to the clothing and gear.

 

And ice fishing.... brrrr.

When wearing a drysuit with appropriate amounts of clothing under it, you can kayak comfortably in temperatures around freezing. When wearing appropriate amounts of clothing, you can ice fish comfortably in temperatures below zero F.  All thanks to the clothing and gear.

I just ordered all new base layers to wear for wintertime fishing.  The one thing i'm still looking for though is some good warm waterproof gloves.

Insane video thank you for that!

I just ordered all new base layers to wear for wintertime fishing.  The one thing i'm still looking for though is some good warm waterproof gloves.

See my post at https://www.northwestkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=21815.msg227951#msg227951 for some suggestions about cold weather kayak fishing gloves.

Love your idea!  Thank you!

I’ve was fishing Bullards all summer since the ocean salmon were 10+ miles off shore. The lake is loaded with them and are a lot of fun to catch. I also went a few times before Xmas. No downrigger needed this time of year. We were letting out 65-70’ with a dodger and micro hoochie and was getting limits of 8-9” fish. Can’t wait to go back in mid spring and summer when they are bigger.

+1 on bullards. I've researched the topic for PNW lakes, and they generally go really shallow or really deep in winter, and head up the lake away from the deepest/most open water. I've gotten them last month at Whiskeytown up shallow. If they're shallow you can't really mark them so most people think they simply go away during the cold months. I find the meat more fat-loaded during the winter, although size is smaller and fish can be harder to find.

My Bullards Bar trip Saturday was awesome.  No wind, glass surface and sunny. Kept 10 Koke's. C-n-R'd 1 Rainbow and 9 bass.

Kevin

My Bullards Bar trip Saturday was awesome.  No wind, glass surface and sunny. Kept 10 Koke's. C-n-R'd 1 Rainbow and 9 bass.

Kevin

nice! I've been thinking about Bullards recently, how is the water level now?  Last time I fished there was early summer, and the water was really low.

My Bullards Bar trip Saturday was awesome.  No wind, glass surface and sunny. Kept 10 Koke's. C-n-R'd 1 Rainbow and 9 bass.

Kevin

Awesome Kevin!  Hoping for good weather this weekend, and might head up to Bullards.  Need some salmonoid redemption!