Strawberry with 2knots 7/16

[Paddler]

This has been a breakthrough year for me.  I first fished for Kokanee two years ago and had some success.  Last year wasn't so good.  This year I've been refining my techniques with particular attention to not pulling hooks.  I'm using the Shimano Convergence 10' 6" mooching rods with Islander MR3 reels spooled with 25#(!) Big Game.  They're my ocean salmon setups, and Kokanee are salmon, after all.  The rods are quite sensitive, absorb the shocks very well and are long enough to keep fish out of the engine if they run that way.  I've recently been using the Scotty releases, but setting them light enough is tricky.  I rigged up a couple of Offshore black releases to try next trip.  I think sometimes the release itself can pull hooks before the fish comes off the downrigger.  I'm also now very careful to lighten my drag after setting out the rod so that it requires just a bit of tension to pull line, similar to trolling walleye with cranks behind planer boards.  The last thing is to be patient, let them run, same as chinook in the ocean.  Don't rush it, let them play out.  That makes netting a non event.  We let chinook play out so much that when they come to the boat they're actually laying on their sides.  No chasing them with the net, no knocking them off by accident.  Kokanee are the most fun I've had fishing fresh water, and are my wife's favorite salmon, bar none.

This is the homemade "wedding ring" I mentioned above.  I just sort of made it up with stuff I had on hand and didn't run it much at first because it didn't inspire confidence.  I had also been told that green was a no-no at Strawberry because of the cutts.  That has not been my experience.

I don't see a wedding ring on that rig? Were you just referring to beads and a spinner blade?

Yep.  My homemade imitation, hence the quotation marks.