Kokanee in Merwin Lake

Question
When Is the best time to fish for them, and where on the lake should we go? We are new here, and don't know where to start.  

Answer
The spring is the best time to fish for kokanee in most lakes. But if you are willing to fish deeper with a downrigger, you'll be able to catch a fair amount through the summer.

Early in the season, March and April, Kokanee are in large, very concentrated schools near the surface of the water. You'll need to fish very shallow with little weight. Troll the west end of the lake, (where the water is warmer) until you start catching fish, then stay in that area and you'll notice patterns in where you catch fish, due to the large schools.

In may and June the fish will follow the thermocline (water temperature line)down deeper into the lake. As the water warms, the fish will go deeper and deeper. For this reason you'll need to fish deeper than you did before. Using a quality depth finder is an easy way of targeting the fish. If you don't have one, fish at different depths until you find them. Also, as the water warms, the fish will move to the east end of the lake where fresh and cooler water enters from the upper Lewis river.

Fishing for kokanee can be done many different ways. Jigging, trolling, and casting are most popular. Trolling will be the easiest way in Merwin due to it's size. Start by trolling a set of Luhr Jensen brand ford fender flashers followed by a wedding ring spinner. When fishing on sunny days, use silver flashers, and use copper or brass on overcast days. Wedding ring spinners come in two common colors, green and red. Use the red when the fish are shallow in the early season, and green when the fish move deeper. Use Green Giant white shoepeg corn for bait, just one or two kernels per hook.

Kokanee are strange in that sometimes they will bite best on things that other days they wont touch. If you aren't catching fish, make a change to your presentation about every 30 minutes, you'll eventually find something that works, then stick with it.

If you need up to date reports this spring, check out my website at www.nwfamilyfishing.com

Thanks
Kelly