Last Gorge trip of the year

[jacksonlaker]

My wife and I hit the Gorge for the last time on Sunday morning. This was my third trip down, and it has been a great year for big fish. Every trip has produced some 20" plus fish. We started fishing around 6:30, and caught one on the first rod set before I could get anything else down. We fished in the fleet at skunk cliffs for an hour and a half with no takers. Tried everything in the box, which is a lot of things ! I then put on an 8 inch Pro-Troll flasher which I usually use for macs. I ran an RMT orange squid behind it . I ran it 70 feet down, 75 back and it was game on !! I put another one on the other rigger and we caught 5 nice, big kokes in the next hour including a double of 20" right in the middle of the fleet to finish our limit at 9 AM. We tried for rainbows and macs the rest of the morning with no luck. We could have caught more Kokes but I don't like to beat on them during the rut !! It's sad another year at the Flamer is over, it is an incredible lake, the best Kokanee fishing in the country.

 

[lablover]

Those are some DANDY'S !!!!
Where headed up this weekend on a hunt for a RED for the wall, would you recommend Skunk Cliffs????
How far up from lucerene is that??
Great Report!
Thanks,

 

[liketrolling]

Those are some DANDY'S !!!!
Where headed up this weekend on a hunt for a RED for the wall, would you recommend Skunk Cliffs????
How far up from lucerene is that??
Great Report!
Thanks,

I think Skunk Cliffs is 16 miles from Lucerene going North on the west side.
4 weeks ago I got one that was almost red the bottom part of wild horse close to the pipe line in 40 ft of water I was trolling for rainbows.
Middle Marsh may have some to. the kokes move so you will have to find them.

 

[BAGGEDLB7]

How far back were you running your squid from that big dodger?

 

[jacksonlaker]

I was running it the normal 10 inches like I would on a smaller dodger. It looked ridiculous but hey it worked ! I also used my stiffer rods, not my Vance's spiral wraps. There is a lot of drag and tension when using those flashers. I think the bigger flasher just pisses them or they are protecting nests. We caught 3 females. Also using any rotating flasher will twist your line, so run an extra ball-bearing swivel about 16 inches up from the flasher. Hope you get em

 

[Propnut69]

That's a good way to end your season for the gorge. Not that it matter's all that much,but if you were fishing where the rest of the pack has been,you were not at skunk cliffs .Skunk is the first set of cliffs on the west side ,just north of squaw hollow boat ramp,up around the corner. The cliffs straight across from squaw hollow ramp don't have a name on the map. Some locals call this place ray's cliffs. Because when Ray Johnson fished in Wyo,this is where he would spend all day. Just trolling up and down that cliff line. I never seen him fish any where else but these cliffs. Anyway glad you caught some nice fish to take home.

In all the years that I have been chasing kokanee,I have never seen the big schools of fish,that are in the ray's cliffs area. We were out yesterday,and graphed some schools so big,they dang near turned the whole screen black with fish. We just keep working ,and working the schools,and were able to boat 5 nice kokes. I figure lot's of these fish are schooling up,and getting ready to make their trip up the lake,then up the green river ,up to plume creek hatchery,where they were spawned from.

 

[jacksonlaker]

I didn't think that was skunk cliffs. I have the Ray Johnson map, and I thought that's where they were. Someone told me where I was fishing was skunk cliffs, so I just went with it.

 

[BAGGEDLB7]

Thanks for the info we are heading up this weekend.