Jigging kokes in summer

[Rooster]

Been thinking of trying to jig kokes like we do in the winter through the ice. Has anyone ever done that here in Utah? I want to give it a try this weekend, but don't want to waste my time if it isn't worth it. Ive seen videos of people doing it in Oregon and other areas in the Northwest, so i think it will work.

Any input will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[SeaDog]

Hi,

Well here in Ct. there are many who jig at night (We're allowed to do that here) at anchor. (daily 8 fish limit and No pocession limit)

1. Not having to troll in the heat of the day and burn up gas and constantly adjusting speed is great!

2. It's quiet, lot cooler at night, with drinks and snacks on ice, radio to listen to a ball game, and ........ in my opinion -> the Kokes put up a much better "full energy" fight (Micro-light gear 3-6 lb. test) and not having to chase down a lure or be dragged thru the water.

Only 3 waters have Kokanee east of the Mississippi and we're lucky to have 2 of them here in Ct. (One ...West Hill ...4 miles from my house).thumbsup

Oh! Caught 5 last night -> All about 13 inches and very fat! -> And smoking up 40 fillets as I write this!

SeaDog

 

[jekern1015]

I have a buddy who fishes that way up at the Gorge on the Utah side. I personally have never tried it. I would imagine on the smaller lakes like Porcupine it would work once you found a school.

 

[SeaDog]

I have a buddy who fishes that way up at the Gorge on the Utah side. I personally have never tried it. I would imagine on the smaller lakes like Porcupine it would work once you found a school.

Hi,

We here in Ct. found, by trial and error, that we let the schools come to us while at anchor.

As you know, Kokes are temperature sensitive, so we have located almost all the underwater springs at West Hill and anchor over them.
Springwater comes out at 52 to 54 degrees and the Kokanee will stay very near that water source.

We found that they tend to circle in schools around this water in small schools and massive schools on the average of every 15-20 minutes, and between 30 to 47 ft down.

Yup! We got their movements pegged pretty good. thumbsup

And "Man!" do they ever hate getting pulled out of their comfort zone.
The acrobatic shows I've seen them put on are incredible because they have all their energy.101shock1101

Try it -> Lots of fun! -> I get almost my daily limit every time I go out!

Best regards,
SeaDog

 

[Brown bear]

what are you useing to jigg for them in Ct at night?

 

[SeaDog]

hitmyfish

what are you useing to jigg for them in Ct at night?

Hi,

I learned this from you west coast guys!

On the boat I use a 5-5 1/2 ft. very limber micro-light rod with small ultralight reel spooled with 4 or 6 lb. test "Nano-Fil" line (new from Berkley ...Great stuff).

The rig is this ........reel->Line->Med. Quick Snap-> #0 or #1 Spro power swivel-> 18 to 20 inches 10 lb. test floro->Quick Snap->Jig (Hali or Kodiak glow type jig, the long kind with original chain and hook removed->2 to 3 inch dropper of 8-10 lb. test floro with Quick Snap tied in at both ends->one end gets snapped into the jig and the other end gets a #8 Gamakutsu red octupus hook or #8 Gamakutsu glow hook of any color->baited with 2 maggots and 2 kernels of "Green Giant Shoepeg Corn".

NOTE: Quick Snaps allow me to change jig colors fast and see what the Kokes prefer at the time.

I check my FF to see what depth the Kokes schools are cruising at and let my jig down to 1 ft or a bit less above that exact depth.
How do I get so exact -> From face of reel I measure 2 ft. up the rod and mark it with some white electrical tape. I back off on the drag and strip out line 2 ft. at a time till I reach the desired depth then retitend the drag but on the light side. 1/2 pull = 1 ft.

Jig sloooooowly 3 inch or 3 ft. (what ever attracts the Kokes attention->the jig is the attractor like a dodger is trolling) and always keep contact with the jig. Pause at the bottom of the down stroke for a few seconds.

This is finesse fishing just like ice fishing for gills.
Bite will barely be perceptable or WHAM! Rod will get doubled over.
Once you are sure you have a fish on -> DO NOT STOP REELING IN EVER!
Need long handle boat net to land them.
Have had them shoot to the surface like an ICBM even before getting 1-2 turns on the reel, tail walk like a Tarpon, Zig Zag wildly, jump as high as 5 ft. over the boat and back over.
Have had them jump -> hit me in the shoulder or head and one the other night, right in the face!

LOTS OF FUN ! thumbsup

Try it -> You'll like it! hitmyfish

SeaDog

 

[Rooster]

Thanks for all the input!! I have beeen wanting to give it a try here for a while. Your setup is basically what i had in mind. I was going to be doing it in the day, so I was just going to use a very small Kastmaster or other small flashy spoons.

Going to give it a try tomorrow.

Wish me luck.

Rooster

 

[Rooster]

Well, I gave it a try to no avail. Tried jigging for them out of my tube with the wife. Tried jigging about 20-25' below the surface. Used many different types of spoons, but all i have to show for it was one decent brown....

I'll have to try it another time when my brother is taking the boat.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Rooster

 

[SeaDog]

Well, I gave it a try to no avail. Tried jigging for them out of my tube with the wife. Tried jigging about 20-25' below the surface. Used many different types of spoons, but all i have to show for it was one decent brown....

I'll have to try it another time when my brother is taking the boat.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Rooster

Hi Rooster,

Really need a fish finder to find the exact depth the Kokes are at.
As I said -> They are very temperature sensitive and will swim in a narrow band 2-3 ft. wide.
Old method was to let your jig all the way to the bottom and come up so many turns, at a time on the reel, till you blindly find the correct depth.

Oh! FYI -> Just started to use the #8 Gamakatsu glow octopus hooks in "hot pink and white" (really glow a long time), so far they work very good and they are very very sharp !

SeaDog

 

[SilverBullets]

Well, I gave it a try to no avail. Tried jigging for them out of my tube with the wife. Tried jigging about 20-25' below the surface. Used many different types of spoons, but all i have to show for it was one decent brown....

I'll have to try it another time when my brother is taking the boat.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Rooster

Like SeaDog mentioned a fishfinder is a must. Since you got a trout at the 20-25' level you might just try going a bit deeper to get into the kokanee. Try going down 5' at a time until you get hit. Also, kokes like to hang along the bottom off shelfs. Where i fish the suspended ones are at the 40-50' level, but there's some nice ones hugging the bottom as deep as 100' down. While anchored up or when it's calm let your jig down until it hits bottom and reel up a foot or two...then start jigging. They generally hit either when the jig drops or when you pause and lift the rod tip...you'll think you snagged the bottom until the bottom starts pulling back!! more info... http://www.kokaneefishingforum.com/fishing-forums/showthread.php?t=5952