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Last time I was at Strawberry (three weeks ago) I talked to a DWR biologist and he told me that they are trying to get the kokanee to spawn in the reservoir (how they do at flaming gorge). He told me that once they get them to spawn in the reservoir there will be many more of them and fishing will be much better for them. This has got me very excited. I absolutely love fishing for kokes at the gorge but I would love it even more if I didnt have to drive 3 hours to catch them... A one hour drive to strawberry would be much better. I have not yet figured out the kokes at strawberry have any of you? My goal this year is to figure them out. Where have you caught kokanee at strawberry (location), how deep, what time of year, and tackle?
I will start... Two summers ago I caught a few 2 pound kokes in the middle of the channel straight out from the narrows on the strawberry side. In fact, right between haws point and the narrows. we caught them trolling at 30 ft, in august, using silver dodgers and pink squids.
Now its your turn..
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What do they do differently to get the kokes to spawn in the reservoir?
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I can't speak for Jr8fish but a number of years ago when I went up to Juneau Alaska, I found out when the local wildlife department stocked the local streams
with salmon, there was always some left over fish. Instead of just putting those extra fish in the local streams they just dumped them in one of the freshwater bays that is by the launch ramps. I guess the salmon would come back to those bays to spawn year after year. When I saw them they were just swimming in a big circle and every once in a while some of them were coming close to shore to spawn, I guess[:/]. The DWR or DNR started doing the same thing at the Gorge, some years back and found out that kokanee will spawn in the lake as well as in streams. I'm not sure how successful they are with this method but it must work or the fish would not come back to the same spot every year. At least that is what I have heard but it would be nice if Drew or one of the fish biologist would chime in to confirm or denies the story.
story.
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In the Gorge the in-reservoir spawning group is an entirely different strain. It's called the Roaring Judy strain, originated from the Granby, CO run, and happens to spawn later (Oct-Nov) throughout the reservoir. They tend to prefer shale areas, along the main channel, on the eastern side of the reservoir. The in-reservoir spawning group contributes about 95% of the annual recruitment to the reservoir.
The other strain is a Kootenai, which I believe originated from a run in Washington state. It spawns earlier (Sept) and is the fish you see running up Sheep Creek and the Green River. Those two runs collectively only contribute about 5% to the fishery.
Of course you also see some noticeable differences in the fish too. The Roaring Judy strain is not as red at time of spawn, noticeable bigger, and typically produces more eggs per female.
Hope it helps, Ryno
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All this Kokanee talk is getting me excited. I have had some luck with Rocky Mt Tackle in the narrows. I usualy do well in July using pink squid behind a pink and green dodger between 30-40 feet deep. I fish by the dam and in the narrows.
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Couple of questions. How far from the dodger do you place squid? And down rigger to get to that depth? How fast do you troll? Thanks
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Put your squid 3X back behind your dodger. So if your dodger is 4" long put your squid back 12" And my rule of thumb is if i am seeing fish on my sonar 5' to 15' down i run my squid and dodger 100' back and then hook it to your downrigger. If the fish are 25' deep or deeper you can run your dodger and squid 5' to 10' back, And trolling speeds 1.2 to 2.0 mph, I hope this helps
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Do you scent the squid or tip it with anything, or is it just out of the package? What pound test between the dodger and the squid? MANY THANKS!!
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tip your squid with berkley maggots. (color dont matter) and sent your maggot not the squid.
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I place my squid 12 to 18 inches back from my dodger. I troll 1.4-1.6 mph and I let out about 20 to 30 feet of line before connecting my line to the downrigger
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the scent I use is pro cure kokanee killer. It is a good idea to tip the maggot with the scent that way you dont gum up your squid or dodger
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Thanks, I had a rough idea, but the devil is often in the details. Thanks.
Would this be an OK time of year to try for Kokes?, and Where would you suggest at this time of year?
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That's some great info. Thanks for bringing it up. Nice to know they are encouraging the Kokes to get into a spawning habit, and interesting to learn of the variants that are "going at it".
Good tip - to flavor the tipping. I've tried showing flavor into a tube jig, hoping it would seep out slowly. But yeah - run into the same notion. What to do with the sticky mess when you change up baits.
Good info on dodger distance. Really hoping the Pig might be nice to me this year, and get me onto some of them silver-backs! THAT's why I got downriggers!
Do you ever try the 'gulp corn'?
Too bad we can use shoe-peg, but it is what it is.
Maybe if I hit Idaho later this summer.
Ah, the wedding rings....
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jr they spawn 3 places 1 on straw side and 2 on sc side. sc side is about a month later than berry side. s e corner of the dam and on the aspin boat ramp just like the cuts they return to spawn where planted. [fishin]
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