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MackPrince
03-31-2010, 11:21 PM
Please post your Merwin fishing reports here.

Tight lines and easy limits :)
-Mack

Bluknight
04-02-2010, 09:45 AM
Sure I'll post my Merwin report hear. After an early morning work session I packed up headed to Portco to fish springers on the Columbia. Much to my dismay the lot was packed and parked to Columbia Way. Not my idea of a relaxing day fishing.

Back home - repack with koke gear and on the water at 1100 am. Surprised to see about 15 rigs in the lot, but FAR better then the river.

Trolled outside speelyai bay for a bit and then joined everyone on the other side of the lake. Had several hits and misses, 4 good take downs on the line and then off before even close to the boat. While I was taking a pee break the wife hooks and lands two before I can finish natures calling!

I fished flat line about 40-60 feet behind the boat. Brass dodger with brass / black / red wedding ring (gulp maggots) on one. The other was a pink and silver dodger with green and white wedding ring (worms).

Probably would have done better if I had my downriggers along (no time to charge the battery for that). I marked several fish closer to the 20-30 foot range and I'm pretty sure I was not down that far. Much more enjoyable day than springer fishing. Saw several others caught.

MackPrince
04-02-2010, 03:35 PM
Great report.

I drove over the I-5 bridge yesterday and agree, it was a parade of fishing boats on the river.

kokaguy1
04-02-2010, 11:17 PM
Springer fishing is rediculous why bother. Look at the reports.450 boats 29 fish, 367 boats 21 fish, 1025 boats 45 fish I mean come on people figure it out.....thats just stupid fishing and a huge waste of time and money! I go fishing to relax and catch a few fish these people are into it for the galmor fish I guess, big deal. I mean who wants to spend all that time at the ramps dealing with all those people, I DON'T! The facts are that there are a select few fisherman that catch the majority of the fish, they'll read this and say I'm goofy and I get that, but come on, for the common folks running around in their $35,000 fishing machines..... it takes more then a nice boat to catch these fish...hellooooo. That's my rant for the day.
Now, for those of you who wish to fish the Columbia for springers I want to thank you all for providing my wife and I with all the enterainment while we sit on the deck at WhoSongs and have lunch watching no one catch a darn thing. Oh...by the way for those of you who want to say...I'm a guy who's just jealious of the people who can afford a $35,000 fishing boat....don't bother I have one!

MackPrince
04-03-2010, 01:17 AM
Understood Kokaguy. We'll watch for you on the lake (or on the deck at Who Song's as they sing "guacamole").thumbsup

Let's not hijack the report thread and switch to Springers or this could get tricky. 101ok101

smokin' Kokes
04-03-2010, 04:12 PM
MackPrincethumbsupworthy12101hearye

RibOwner
04-03-2010, 10:13 PM
Fished today from about 1-3:15 and got my limit of Kokanee. A good day to be on the water and to fine tune before my trip to Wallowa. It has been 3 years, and I can't wait to get back.

Tight Lines!

eenakoK
04-04-2010, 12:26 AM
Fished today from about 1-3:15 and got my limit of Kokanee. A good day to be on the water and to fine tune before my trip to Wallowa. It has been 3 years, and I can't wait to get back.

Tight Lines!
thumbsup
Nice going! Must be nice to get the rust off.. With the weather we have having lately, everything will be getting more rusty!

Gene
04-04-2010, 01:17 AM
what did you catch them on very interested ! may be on my way next weekend

Gene
04-04-2010, 01:23 AM
Fished today from about 1-3:15 and got my limit of Kokanee. A good day to be on the water and to fine tune before my trip to Wallowa. It has been 3 years, and I can't wait to get back.

Tight Lines!


how deep and with what Rib ! do tell need the inside scoop may be on my way soon.

Gene

kokanee_slayer
04-05-2010, 08:52 PM
Nice Fish RibOwner!!! Been watching the reports on Merwin for quite a while and may have to make the 90 mile trip south to check it out.

Birds Nest
04-08-2010, 02:52 PM
The fishing was fantastic yesterday,, we went out at about 11:30 and after loosing about 30 fish we finally ended up with our limit, Pink wedding rings ford fender bronze with .5 oz weight on the flasher, line counter at 47 ft so I figured we where fishing around 20-25 feet. 10 fish by 3pm and just beat the weather off the lake, couldnt ask for a better Wednesday! Get on out while the fishing is hot

eenakoK
04-08-2010, 03:11 PM
The fishing was fantastic yesterday,, we went out at about 11:30 and after loosing about 30 fish we finally ended up with our limit, Pink wedding rings ford fender bronze with .5 oz weight on the flasher, line counter at 47 ft so I figured we where fishing around 20-25 feet. 10 fish by 3pm and just beat the weather off the lake, couldnt ask for a better Wednesday! Get on out while the fishing is hot

awesomereport
Very nice. I may have to take the drive down there sooner than later! Thanks for your report..

Mark McWillis
04-11-2010, 07:54 PM
My wife and I fished Merwin today, for the first time. In the water about 0700. Tried green and chartreuse spinners and Apexes, at varying depths with no luck. Switched to a red Apex and a homemade red hoochie spinner at 1000 and we started catching fish. Wound up with 12 on and 10 in the cooler. The hoochie spinner caught 7 and the Apex caught 3. 15' deep with pink gulp maggots on both hooks. Sling blade dodgers with 12" leader.

Lots of sticks and logs in the water. Water temp 45° air temp up to 63° some wind but no big deal.

Gene
04-11-2010, 11:41 PM
Hello all,

went to Merwin today awsome day !~ lake was glass at the time we got there 0800. after a phone call to Kokonuts (who had landed 2 before I had arived ) told me to fish at 10 feet and behold 10 minutes in double hook up me and my father in law same time !! he was on a plain jane walmart red wedding ring, with shoe peg corn and willow leaf lake troll, little pro cure carp spit, as for me same except I had a pink splatter uv spinner made by radical glow, stayed with the same all day didnt have to change a thing, water temp 44, depth 10 feet. key to the day was speed change we wold be at 1.3 mph jump to 1.8-2 mph and wham !! right in the middle of the speed change. fished across from Speli up twords the dam about a half mile on other side. needless to say action all day some hits before I could even click into the clip ! limits for both of us !! pics to follow... thanks Richard, give a man a fish feed him for a day, teach him how, feed him for a lifetime. seen you out there Mark.....nice wake LOL!

eenakoK
04-12-2010, 12:05 AM
My wife and I fished Merwin today, for the first time. In the water about 0700. Tried green and chartreuse spinners and Apexes, at varying depths with no luck. Switched to a red Apex and a homemade red hoochie spinner at 1000 and we started catching fish. Wound up with 12 on and 10 in the cooler. The hoochie spinner caught 7 and the Apex caught 3. 15' deep with pink gulp maggots on both hooks. Sling blade dodgers with 12" leader.

Lots of sticks and logs in the water. Water temp 45° air temp up to 63° some wind but no big deal.


Hello all,

went to Merwin today awsome day !~ lake was glass at the time we got there 0800. after a phone call to Kokonuts (who had landed 2 before I had arived ) told me to fish at 10 feet and behold 10 minutes in double hook up me and my father in law same time !! he was on a plain jane walmart red wedding ring, with shoe peg corn and willow leaf lake troll, little pro cure carp spit, as for me same except I had a pink splatter uv spinner made by radical glow, stayed with the same all day didnt have to change a thing, water temp 44, depth 10 feet. key to the day was speed change we wold be at 1.3 mph jump to 1.8-2 mph and wham !! right in the middle of the speed change. fished across from Speli up twords the dam about a half mile on other side. needless to say action all day some hits before I could even click into the clip ! limits for both of us !! pics to follow... thanks Richard, give a man a fish feed him for a day, teach him how, feed him for a lifetime. seen you out there Mark.....nice wake LOL!

awesomereport

Sounds like a great day was had by all. Thanks for sharing the pics!

MackPrince
04-12-2010, 12:43 AM
Great reports guys.
-Mack

Kokonuts
04-12-2010, 01:59 PM
I fished Merwin Sunday with Gene & Kenny & it was really a BLAST! We couldnt have ordered better weather or Better Fishing!!

The fish were in the top 10 ft. I was using 2 poles & 2 DRs. I had 1 set at 2ft. & 1 at 8 ft. about 50 to 80 ft. behind the boat. I didnt get any doubles but twice I had just lost one when the 2 pole went off! I really have to warn you when running 2 poles close to the surface...MAKE BIG TURNS!
Nuff Said, I wont admit to anything! laugh hyst

I was using Brass 2 blade flashers , a pink /copper colored dodger with a Pink Hoochie, and a green large salmon blade spinner with glow beads in Pink, Green, White set up with a painted spinner blade in front.

I also used Pink Maggots on everything, never even got time to try the corn!

I had another friend who left just in front of me from the hideaway marina with his wife about 8:00, they had their 10 and had left the Marina before I came in at 12:00 with my 5!! I saw a lot of people hooking up all along the South Side all morning, thats why I say Get Out There Now!

101chromefish101.....Kokonuts

Duroboat Rider
04-12-2010, 07:30 PM
4-12-10 Hit Merwin in the early morning bite as with the other recent reports fish are on top. I also utilized my two downriggers and set one at 6 ft, the other at 8 ft running a pink hoochie with a few soft glow beads to help push the skirt up a bit, gulp maggots, and always DNA scent. Utilzed a dodger with glow flash tape and put 5 in the boat quick. Fantastic early season fishing!!!101chromefish101

eenakoK
04-12-2010, 07:39 PM
You guys are all killing me. It doesn't look like I will get out till the first week of May.
awesomereport

Kokonuts
04-12-2010, 08:26 PM
Work is S-l-o-w for me this week, Its really tough being semi retired! Soooo I'll be at my RV & fishing the rest of the week! See You There!

Kokonuts...nananana....

Bluknight
04-12-2010, 10:53 PM
At the ramp at 0630 with duraboat I believe. Sorrow I didn't introduce myself as a KFF guy. It didn't hit me until after you left and noticed that you were in a duraboat. Go figure!

Rainy morning with water surface temp 45.5 to 46ish. Ran on top at 30 pulls with red/black WR with a dodger. Not much for an hour. Switched to a green WR and a dodger and changed to scented corn instead of gulp maggots. Rod didn't even make it into the holder. I worked pretty hard for my 5 fish by noon but it was fun.

I noticed duroboat was hooking up a bit more than me so I decided to join in his downrigger games. Caught three on the service and two on DR at 16 feet. Thanks for the intel duraboat. Hope your puppy warmed up.

Kokanee Kid
04-12-2010, 11:12 PM
Bluknight, those my friend are some nice looking fish!!

101goodpost101

*Rip'n Lip*
04-14-2010, 06:25 PM
What color of Maggots are you guys using? I am planning on heading out there Friday morning with a few buddies for the first time this year! Yeehawwsignfishin

Gene
04-14-2010, 06:56 PM
the hot pink ones worked for me on Sunday, before I could get my line in the release got one on. Kokonuts gave me a hand full to try and didnt put them down the rest of the day !

RibOwner
04-14-2010, 11:27 PM
Most likely barring any wind this weekend, I will be there with my two girls to get their first fish.

I will be in the Alumaweld Stryker with my KFF sticker.

John

*Rip'n Lip*
04-15-2010, 12:34 PM
I will be out there Friday morning at around 8. I have a 16 aluminum Valco (old school) boat with only my electric trolling motor so it will be easy to find me out there with no motor. My motor died on me but it will not keep me off the water.... Say hi if you see me out there and thank you for your tips. I am off to buy some Gulp Maggots... I will posted my success Friday night....

101chromefish101

Duroboat Rider
04-15-2010, 03:02 PM
Yes, i would state also go with the Hot pink gulp maggots. Also look at putting on some DNA Kokanee Scent which is also pink on your lure that combo is a Win Win. If you have a tandem hook rig put 2 on the top and one on the bottom seems to be the best set up.

May also suggest having a few different rolls of flash tape to help change colors on your dodgers. I just recently used a half and half silver/nickel with Glow Flash the other day. Chartruese and Hot Pink are some other good ones to have.

Good Luck out there and put some in the boat!!!

Rod -Duroboat Rider101chromefish101

Duroboat Rider
04-16-2010, 09:36 PM
Took the boss fishing today and got 2 limits very quickly this morning with 2 doubles. The Kokes were right on top this morning. I used two rods with flasher and pink hoochie. Kept the leader length from flasher to hoochie/snubber about 9 inches. Gulp Maggots for Tipping. I also tried out two rigs with flashers and Father Murphy's bugs (ghost bug) in pink/glow. Tipped them also with maggots and took 4 all the biggest fish were caught with these. Scented with DNA Scent.

eenakoK
04-16-2010, 09:57 PM
Took the boss fishing today and got 2 limits very quickly this morning with 2 doubles. The Kokes were right on top this morning. I used two rods with flasher and pink hoochie. Kept the leader length from flasher to hoochie/snubber about 9 inches. Gulp Maggots for Tipping. I also tried out two rigs with flashers and Father Murphy's bugs (ghost bug) in pink/glow. Tipped them also with maggots and took 4 all the biggest fish were caught with these. Scented with DNA Scent.
awesomereport

Sounds like a good time was had!

chuck83
04-19-2010, 12:18 AM
19 for 20 we started fishing at 2:30 and went home around 6:00 apex and red wedding ring tipped with corn or pink maggots worked great.

Bluknight
04-19-2010, 08:58 PM
Fished from 0730-1000 and got 10 to the boat with a buddy of mine. Probably lost another 5 that didn't stick. I've only limited on this lake three times in the past two years and this by far my quickest.

Fished across from Speelyai on the south shore. Caught fish at 15-25 feet on downriggers. Both rods running a lake troll off the cannonball and lure set 4-5 feet above the ball and about 20-30 feet back. (A big thank you to those that taught me this on my last post on attaching lake trolls!) One rod running a red WR and one a green WR both with silver spinners. Both baited with corn. My buddy told me it was scented but when I got home I gave it a good once over and found it was plain old corn! I did pick up one on a red hoochie and gulp maggots but switched over quickly when my buddy was out fishing me.

Water temp was 51.5-52. Up 6 degrees from last week! It appears they are starting to school a bit because I could finally mark them and then start getting hits. Hope that helps.

The attached picture is of my first mate that greatly enjoyed the day. It was enough action he didn't even get bored and take a nap! Good luck to all - I'm back again Wednesday.

kokaguy1
04-19-2010, 10:26 PM
Wife and I were out on Merwin as well Sunday the fishing was outstanding, pink Pee Wee, a little corn and a UV sling blade was our ticket to 2 limits. A great day out on the water but a disappointing day at the ramp...it never fails to amaze me the number of people that don't have any idea about ramp edicate .....

Gene
04-19-2010, 10:35 PM
it seems they will bite anything right now, im inquizitive on how you guys are rigging the trolls up to the ball. i just put the trolls on my main line and do just fine. if some one could snap a pic next time it would be great. i run my release clip off the other side of the ball.

skookum9
04-20-2010, 02:40 AM
Gene, it's not that fishing with your trolls inline isn't effective enough, it's that it robs you of some of the great fight that those koke's put up. When you put that troll on the 'rigger and just run a drag free line back to your lure, you're in for a lot more fun when you connect. If you haven't tried it then you're overdue. It is definitely worth the effort to learn to fish this way. In my opinion, it's half of the purpose of using a 'rigger in the first place.

Bluknight
04-20-2010, 08:45 AM
101ok101 - Exactly what Skookum9 said. That's the whole reason I spent the xtra money for the downriggers. I'll try to remember to snap a picture of the rigging when fishing tomorrow.

Get'nJiggy
04-20-2010, 12:35 PM
Fished Sunday with my dad (visiting from the east coast), my retired neighbor and 5 yr old son. We had a blast! 19 kokes and a nice 15" rainbow filled the cooler. Green, green , and more green was the ticket, but by looking at the reports I'd say that right now, anything will work.
http://www.kokaneefishingforum.com/fishing-forums/picture.php?albumid=106&pictureid=1158

SilverBullets
04-20-2010, 02:27 PM
it seems they will bite anything right now, im inquizitive on how you guys are rigging the trolls up to the ball. i just put the trolls on my main line and do just fine. if some one could snap a pic next time it would be great. i run my release clip off the other side of the ball.

How about a video? Scroll down to... "attractors on your downrigger weight"
http://www.vancestackle.com/tips.html

smokin' Kokes
04-20-2010, 08:19 PM
you guys are killing the kokes in the early season. last year was wet, cold, windy and miserable in April. mildest winter i've seen in years.

one way to get enough drop back and still have a light tackle fight in early season cold water where the kokes are still near the surface is use a hand line of 50ft of 100 lb mono or the same mono as a drop back off the ball clip.
run the release clip off the end of the mono to the sling blade and lure.
i also like to use trolls 4>5 blade Cowbells.
i rig them ball>50ft 100 lb mono>Cowbell>release>sling blade-lure.

the heavy mono doesn't self knot like heavy dacron braid. i pull it in with ball at surface and instead of bringing mono hand line in boat, i just let the surplus back in the water until i get to the release. easy to store, it self coils up

also works well to get the the Cowbells and lure back flatlining with no weight when the kokes are surface cruising.

going to try a planer board this year to get out to the side early season.

worn out from springer season. need a solid week of quiet koke fishing before the water skiers and jet rockets show up.

*Rip'n Lip*
04-21-2010, 12:29 PM
Great day of course. Had a ton of fish using ford fenders, pink wedding rings and pink gulp maggots...thanks for the tips on the maggots guys....was an amazing day out there. Had our limit in just a few short hours.

signfishin

smokin' Kokes
04-21-2010, 08:02 PM
lock at the hog bellys on rip lips kokes.
never seen such heavy gutted kokes for this early in Merwin.
look like late July fish.

algae feed must be thick as soup

Koke-n-a-smile
04-22-2010, 11:37 PM
Those are beauties! I am so jealous! Haven't been able to get out yet, my kids are in baseball, been working on a project vehicle, and of course work keeps getting in the way:(

MackPrince
04-25-2010, 11:30 AM
I was able to make it to the lake yesterday to as my wife said, "Get my fix." The weatherman got it right, 50% chance of rain, and it rained at least half the time I was there. I fished from 1-2:20p.m. and landed three. One was fresh from the hatchery (maybe 9") so he went back in the water.

I marked several good schools at depths from 15-45'. The new two pole option worked out, and I managed a double which felt like a chinese firedrill. For gear I had one rig with a green Sierra dodger and homemade spinner, and the other was a green RMT flasher with a hoochie. The keepers were already around 14" so late summer these schools will have some big fish.

Kokonuts, it looked like you had a boatfull that was enjoying the fact that you have a covered area during the rain ;)
1385

Mark McWillis
04-25-2010, 08:20 PM
My wife and I hit the water at 0700 and had 6 fish in the first hour.....then it took us the rest of the day to get the other 4 plus several dinks. BEAUTIFUL weather. 15'-18' feet on the downrigger. All the keepers were 12"-13" and fat.

skookum9
04-26-2010, 01:05 AM
I finally got to try Merwin out yesterday for the first time ever. I want to say thanks to all who I ran into out there who were willing to share info to help us hook up, everyone was very nice and helpful. If any of you were among those, thank you very much. The advice we got from other fishermen was not at all consistent but we tried a little of what everyone was saying. It seemed like quite a few others were having some success trolling and that is what my father and my uncle were most interested in doing so that is how we spent the day. I was in the bow of the boat much of the time trying to use jigs as best I could while the boat was in motion. The previous post was right about the weather, 50% of the time it was decent and 50% it was not good.

The trolling for us was slow at best. We got a late start but fished all the rest of the day with only two koke's and a squaw fish to show for it. Although they did get some other short strikes. By the end of the day my uncle had gotten a little too cold so we let him go to the truck to get warm while we went out for the last few minutes to give the jigs a try. In maybe 15 minutes or so of fishing with the jigs we had three fish in the boat, had lost a couple of others and had a number of other strikes. Jigs will definitely work on this lake and from what I saw yesterday they will work well. It was a fun day even if it wasn't an overly productive one. I look forward to hitting it again soon if I get the chance.

smokin' Kokes
04-26-2010, 01:06 PM
skookum

great intel report especially on the jig fishing kokes, something i'm still trying to learn.
what type, color and depth with the jigs?
jigging method, slow or rapid jerk and how much vertical movement? like walleye?

cliff

one nice thing about Merwin's nasty weather wind and rain, it keeps the water skiers and jet jockeys away

Kokonuts
04-26-2010, 09:06 PM
thumbsup Fished at Merwin Sat. & Sun, I had a couple of fishing buddies on the boat with their 5 year old Sons! It was a wild & crazy Day, just like the weather! We all workred had to get 15 nice Kokanee and it was another Great Day at the Lake! I cant post pictures now , I left the camera at the Lake.

Mack, Sorry I missed you in the rain, Greg & I were talking about the Get Together in June & we cant wait!

Kokonuts.....

eenakoK
04-26-2010, 09:16 PM
Kokonuts - congrats on the good fishing. Cant wait to see the pics!

skookum9
04-27-2010, 02:49 AM
Smokin'Kokes,

I basically fished it the same way I do at Odell and Wickiup, nothing really special to it. I used a pink and white Gibbs in the 1/2 oz and the 1/4 oz models. I've never fished for walleye so I couldn't say about that but I just cast out and waited a couple of seconds and then began to jig the lure back to the boat. Sometimes I would let it sink for several seconds before I began jigging it back but most of the kokes seemed to be willing to come up to the top few feet even if they weren't already there. I actually watched one come darting up from the depths right below the boat as my jig came to the boat. I stopped the jig and let it set there and sure enough he came and gave it a good bite but it didn't stick so he got away. Pretty cool to watch anyway, it was only 3 or 4 feet below the boat when he came charging up. In general, I prefer to cast to the fish I can spot rising, but with the wind and all, most of my casts were made "blind" fishing and the kokes just seemed to hit it anyway.

I don't know how much I am going to make it up to Merwin or Yale this spring but you are welcome to give me a holler anytime and see if I can meet up with you and show you first hand what I do. The very best time to fish this way is anytime the fish are showing on the surface and this is usually the first couple of hours in the morning and the last couple of hours in the evening. But with that said, it will still work all day long, it's just that you will have to have some faith in it and not give up just because you aren't seeing the fish.

Mark McWillis
04-27-2010, 08:00 PM
Skookum9,

Thanks for the jigging info. All this time I was thinking you were vertical jigging on suspended fish, not casting. That's the kind of info that makes this site so cool.

skookum9
04-30-2010, 03:20 AM
I've got a question for those of you who are more familiar with Merwin and the koke's that are in it. First off, I didn't know that it had chinook in it until we saw it in among our catch. Then, when I got home I notice that it survived the drive home that took nearly three hours. When I tried to fillet the chinook my knife slipped right through the backbone like it wasn't even there. The meat on the chinook was more red than that of the koke's, especially the one that was completely white. But when it was fried it was a terrible disappointment, a horrible eating fish. Is there something wrong with the chinook in this lake?

The next question is about the flavor of the kokanee. These were the worst tasting kokanee I've ever eaten. They weren't bad enough to be unedible but they didn't taste like kokanee should. I'd rank them right in there with rainbow trout. Did anyone else notice the taste of these fish not being up to par for what they are? Is this typical of the koke's in this lake? If so, are the fish from Yale or Swift any better or just more of the same? I love eating kokanee but these were not the kokanee I am familiar with and don't know what to make of it. I would love to hear if anyone has any info on this, thanks.

Birds Nest
05-01-2010, 01:21 PM
Had a Great 45 minutes this morning and quickly got my limit and lost a bunch too, I do have to say I like the 2 rod endorsement, it seemed to work out well, 3 doubles makes a giant smile all day long, and I wasnt even going to go this morning. fished along LMCH on one long pass 300 yds from shore about


skookum9

The fish taste great to me but how was one alive 3 hours after you got off the lake, mine get a knife to the gill, sit in the live well for 5 minutes than are packed on ice, I hear the turn very fast if not properly cared for. sorry for your bad luck.

I was unaware of any Chinook planted in there but my kokanee cut differnt colors as well some super red some pink/orange

Mark McWillis
05-01-2010, 01:48 PM
The next question is about the flavor of the kokanee. These were the worst tasting kokanee I've ever eaten. They weren't bad enough to be unedible but they didn't taste like kokanee should. I'd rank them right in there with rainbow trout. Did anyone else notice the taste of these fish not being up to par for what they are? Is this typical of the koke's in this lake? If so, are the fish from Yale or Swift any better or just more of the same? I love eating kokanee but these were not the kokanee I am familiar with and don't know what to make of it. I would love to hear if anyone has any info on this, thanks.

I don't have a frame of reference as all the Kokanees I've caught, and eaten, came from Merwin. I'll be interesetd to see what others say.

skookum9
05-01-2010, 02:19 PM
Birds Nest, you are right that I should have gilled them but I didn't. I've been spoiled fishing so high in the mountains in the spring that gilling isn't necessary. I've never had fish turn bad on me from waiting to get home to clean them but I do like to gill them when I can. Perhaps it was the warmer water of Merwin and the time to get home that made them not taste so good. Again, it's not like they were bad, they just weren't the great koke flavor that I am familiar with. It probably was the fact that they were out of the lake so long. And congrats on a great morning of fishing. I was hoping to be out there this morning myself but some things came up that made it impossible. Maybe next time. By the way, were you trolling? And if so, how were you set up?

I am somewhat guessing on the chinook thing but one of the fish was covered in spots like a rainbow trout but a totally silver body of a salmon and had black coloring in his mouth. I'm pretty sure it was a chinook but I could be mistaken. I know that it was not a kokanee and I don't know what else it could have been but a chinook. The one thing I am sure of, I won't be keeping any more of them in the future. My catch will consist of only kokanee.

smokin' Kokes
05-01-2010, 03:50 PM
skookum9

there are landlocked chinook salmon planted in Merwin. WDFW and PacifiCorp have long range plans and have been experimenting with introducing chinook salmon into the upper N. Fork Lewis above the dams with the goal of recreating the chinook ocean spawning runs on the Upper Lewis. they have been hauling adult returned salmon around the dams and releasing up river. no experiments yet on gather and returning the smolt to below Merwin. going to be expensive but part of the grand plan to return all Wa. river systems to "native" fish run populations only. won't work with the damn dams.

doesn't work on the Columbia except for the billions of dollars spent on hauling fish, counting fish, measuring fish, radio tagging fish, chasing sea lions, buying off the native Americans with billions of $$$$ by the BPA

you ought to go see the smolt counting operation on the lower Columbia, at least $50 million invested in big boats, equipment buildings and the operation costs must be another $25 million a year.

most expensive fish in the world. the best Russian caviar doesn't cost as much.

the chinook in Merwin have a very bland flavor because the species is a predatory meat eater, not much minnow prey for them in Merwin except the kokes and the pikeminnows.
the few that there are do grow to 24" plus.

i've noticed that the flavor of Merwin kokes and kokes out of other cold winter snow melt lakes can be not as good in the spring before the algae and small plankton they eat starts growing with increased summer sun. Merwin and Yale are very late lakes to warm because of their drainage off two high mountains with heavy snow packs and ice glaciers. but this also produces the Aug. water temps of below 58d F that kokes need to be successful. most lowland lakes in the West are too warm anymore with all the development and summer drawdown to successfully reproduce and grow good kokes.

kokes can very bland and flat until the summer feed starts producing that rich Omega 3 fat that is marbled and layered in the meat. the fish fat is what creates their great flavor.
fresh right out of the water Alaskan sockeye have the same flavor difference compared to the jetted iced down 3 day old sockeye the stores rip off customers for $10 lb. here.
no comparison.

I keep my kokes on a 99 cent bag of crushed ice until home

smokin' Kokes
05-01-2010, 04:21 PM
what we're fishing for this year. payed for and planted in 2008
with the massive budget cuts in WDFW this year, most hatchery programs will be shut down
http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/stocking/weekly/2008.pdf
Merwin Lake
May 12 Kokanee 43,650 7.00 Speelyai Speelyai Net Pens

2012 fishing
http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/stocking/weekly/search.php?searchby=SpeciesStocked&search=KOKANEE&orderby=StockDate
Lake/Pond Date Species Number Fish per
Pound Hatchery Notes
LK MERWIN (COWL)
Cowlitz County - Region 5 Mar 12, 2010 Kokanee 22,300 8.68 Speelyai Hatchery Speelyai Net Pens
LK MERWIN (COWL)
Cowlitz County - Region 5 Mar 26, 2010 Kokanee 24,700 4.12 Speelyai Hatchery


does not include the variable natural spawn in Speelyai creek and several other small creeks on Merwin. WDFW used to estimate these as producing less than 5k adult size fish each year.

Yale has far more and much better koke spawning rearing streams, thus the far higher over population and small size.

skookum9
05-02-2010, 05:21 AM
Smokin' Kokes, that's some awesome information. Sounds like you know these lakes pretty well. Even if they tend to run a little smaller, if the koke's in Yale are a higher percent natural reproduction then there should be less chance of getting the white meated ones. As long as they're not too much smaller. :) Thanks for posting this info.

BigRedFisher
05-02-2010, 09:58 PM
I'm new to this site and will be fishing Merwin and Yale a lot this summer. I don't have a downrigger and was wondering if i should attach my weight directly in front of my dodgers or have some line in between.

MackPrince
05-02-2010, 10:17 PM
You can attach directly with an in-line attractor like a Ford Fender, but with a dodger or flasher I'd recommend an 18" leader to help give some swing room.

Great question. -Mack

BigRedFisher
05-04-2010, 10:05 PM
No reports lately.....guess the weather has been keeping people home. I should be out at Merwin Friday for my second Friday in a row.

kokaguy1
05-04-2010, 10:25 PM
Was at the lake Sunday 5/1 weather started off a little wet but got better as the day went along. We limited out but took a good part of the day. Thought it would be a fast day though, I didn't have my line in the water 60 seconds and had the first fish in the boat. Sling blades, pink hoochies and corn were money on this day. Lots of fun had by all.

BigRedFisher
05-04-2010, 10:33 PM
Thanks for the info!

skookum9
05-05-2010, 12:19 AM
Kokaguy1, how deep were you trolling? Did you find the fish schooled more in one place or another on the lake? Thanks for the post.

Kokonuts
05-05-2010, 12:48 AM
No reports lately.....guess the weather has been keeping people home. I should be out at Merwin Friday for my second Friday in a row.

Fisher.....
I plan on being on the water early Fri. , Sat. & Sun! I hope to meet you there! I'll be by myself in the 18 ft. Hewes with White Sides & Black Top named "Shes So Fine".


thumbsup.....Kokonuts.....Richard

kokaguy1
05-05-2010, 11:04 PM
Kokaguy1, how deep were you trolling? Did you find the fish schooled more in one place or another on the lake? Thanks for the post.

Well I can't tell you exactly how deep I was trolling as I do not have a down rigger however I can tell you I was out 45ft (per my line counter) with 2oz of weight?

As far as schooling fish goes, it was a weird deal, when we were marking fish they were scattered and we didn't get a single hit but when the screen was blank we were catching fishing. Sorry I know thats not much help.

I'll tell you this we should have stayed right in the area just outside os spiliyi (spelling) as thats where we got 3 hits and 2 fish right off the bat but we didn't stay there. Oh well live and learn.
GOOD LUCK TO YOU FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!

skookum9
05-09-2010, 09:56 AM
Well, another disappointing day at Merwin for me. I think it's getting to be too late in the year at this low of elevation for my surface jigging to be as effective. The kokes didn't seem to be on the surface like they were a couple of weeks ago. We didn't get to the lake until about 8am so we missed out on anything that may have happened in the morning bite. The evening bite really started to get reasonably good but we had to leave about that time so they could lock up the gate. During the rest of the day it was just one long, slow boat ride, a bored to tears boat ride.

We did see several other boats on the water who seemed to be putting fish in their boats at a reasonable rate, nothing fast but at least acceptable. Everyone we spoke with was very kind and offerred lots of advice, especially the guys in the C-dory. We tried our level best to follow all of this advice at one point or another but with almost zero success. Until the evening bite picked up we only had one fish in the boat apiece. I did lose a few fish at the back of the boat but not a lot.

Not a great report but it's how things went for us. I think this lake is going to have to wait for next spring to see me again, unless I hear of something worthwhile happening up there. Many thanks to all who were so kind and helpful to us. I don't know how many of you from here were there but I did recognize Kokonut's boat, "She's So Fine". I think this lake will fish great about next February and I fully intend to hit it then. I just can't do the all day troll and only catch maybe 5 or ten fish, I'm too impatient for that. Happy fishing to everyone.

Smalma
05-09-2010, 03:13 PM
In reviewing Smokin' Kokes Merwin planting information I was struck at the large size at which the kokanee were planted.

Fish that 4 to 8 to the pound are near catchable trout size (5 to 8 inches). Is it common in many waters that the kokanee are planted at such a large size? Up my way a kokanee of 100/# would be a large fish at the time of release and most planted at only a inch or so in length

I have to wonder if the bland taste attributed to the early season fish is due in at least part that much of their bulk was derived from a hatchery diet. And only after the fish grow substantial that they take on the more traditional kokanee taste - just thinking out loud.

Tight lines
Curt

skookum9
05-10-2010, 02:11 AM
Smalma, you may very well be onto something, I don't know. I think that is more likely than this being too early in the year. From what I've read, plankton are a mainstay of many species of fish during ice over times because that is the only thing there is to eat so not having the right food isn't really a problem. We haven't eaten the new koke's from Saturday's fishing yet but they were all very soft. That was after bleeding them while on the water and then putting them on ice as soon as we could. I was hoping to try the koke's from Yale but I think I might just wait until next spring to do that.

Kokonuts
05-10-2010, 12:15 PM
I was out Fri. & Sat. this week and had no problems getting 5 in about 3 hours. Started about 7 both days.
I am still using the same setups, Pink/ Copper Dodger with Pink , White, Blue beads and a Pink /white splatter blade then a Chartreuse / Chrome with Charteruse , white, beads on the 2nd pole. I did switch over to a small Lake Troll with 2 chrome / brass blades that I made up, it also worked very well but has more drag than the Dodgers.

All of my corn is still in the cans waiting to see if the Pink Berkley Maggots stop working so well!

On Sat. I dropped dowm to 20 & 25ft. and really connected with them. Sat. was a BEAUTIFUL day and a little warmer that the last few weeks. The sun was out all morning so I think that made them drop down a little.

Snookum... Nice to meet you out on the water. thumbsup

Kokonuts

Basser
05-10-2010, 02:46 PM
Fished Merwin several times in the past month, nice little fish but SLOW. If they didn't taste so good I wouldn't bother. Middle of the day is usually very slow, picks up in the evening. Fish seem to be scattered all over the lake, one place is about as good as another. Looking forward to next weekend, out to Patterson, hopefully 80 degrees and 75-100 bass!

Duroboat Rider
05-14-2010, 04:37 PM
Well It was tough yesturday. There was a early bite on top after we got on the water around 6:30. We landed 4, lost another 6. Using Pink Hoochies with glow beads above hooks. Also landed 2 on Father Murphy's Ghost Bugs. Both were tipped with Gulp Maggots and DNA scent. I ran 000 Dodgers 10 inches above with Glow Flash Tape.

A few where hit on the surface, one down at 45 feet, and the rest were hit around 30-33 ft with downriggers.

Fished from 6:30 to around 1:30

Rod101chromefish101

southside
05-14-2010, 05:24 PM
I took the afternoon off and fished Merwin for the first time ever. Armed with nothing but the great information I gleened from this forum and a general idea of how to go about things.

Put in at Speelyai at around 2:30. The parking lot was very full. Talked to a couple of guys to find out the bite was slow. The water temp was 58deg. with not much wind.

I forgot the downrigger and the electric motor, so I rigged up a macs flashlite, 1oz. lead with a green wedding with a silver blade tipped with shoepeg and started trolling at 25 to 30 pulls. No action for the first hour. Checked my speed by gps at 1.1 to 1.4

Then I noticed I was in naughtical MPH. changed over to miles per hour and saw that I was trolling at 1.6 to 2mph. Threw out a drift sock and got it down to .8mph and got hit by a very nice 13" Kokanee. My very first one landed by me when targeting them.

Used a great tip I got from here about putting the rod tip in the water when the fish starts to go airborne to get it swimming instead of jumping.

Trolled around for another hour for two drivebys with no hookups.

Great day on the lake and I will be going again real soon. Thanks again for the great information that is shared here.

Peace, Tom

kokanee_slayer
05-16-2010, 12:26 AM
Good reports!!! I'm just going to have to make the 90 mile drive south to check it out. Been catching plenty of fish but not much for size.

Koke-n-a-smile
05-16-2010, 12:40 AM
I will be on the water tomorrow am. It is finally my first trip of the year for Kokanee. I am going to try out some new gear, a down rigger and a Vance Staplin rod. Looks like I may have missed some great fishing, but even if I am just out for a boat ride, it sure beats the alternatives. Hope to see you out there!thumbsup

smokin' Kokes
05-16-2010, 05:34 PM
welcome to the affliction of koke fever.
like the way you worked out the speed, pattern and bite for the day.

yup, we're in the downrigger season now.
wait until you hookup a big one on light tackle, just a hoochie off the release, no weight. he comes off the DR release and goes Space Shuttle launch as a guy is setting there half asleep. comes out of the water 3 ft and does an aerial ballet flashing in the sunlight.
what was that as one wakes up
FISH ON.

they get really aggressive later in the season

Koke-n-a-smile
05-16-2010, 10:52 PM
Had a great day on the lake today. The new down rigger worked great, as well as the new pole. Caught the first one 30 minutes after getting on the water, then the bite was slow for most of the day. My youngest boy, 5, actually hauled in a rainbow trout! Had a couple get away, put a couple in the boat, all in all not a bad day at allthumbsup

Kokonuts
05-17-2010, 09:28 AM
I had an old back injury come back to get me this weekend so I didnt get out much.
I did take some friends out for their 1st. Kokanee trip on Sunday! I got them set up & we had 4 poles out on 2 DR's. I drove them around from about 8:00 until 4:00 and all we could get was 3 in the boat.
We did try just about everything I had , and covered a LOT of water but they werent hitting much!

We did catch 4-5 SQAW Fish, they are the first ones i've seen this year!

Kokonuts......thumbsup

Mark McWillis
05-17-2010, 12:36 PM
We fished Merwin Sunday 05-16. 3 people, 4 rods all on downriggers. We started off very early with what has been working and lots of other stuff. Fished from 10’ down to 40’ and by 1300 we had 28 fish. Unfortunately, 27 of them were small Squawfish. More on those later. In the afternoon we managed to catch 11 more Kokes. Depth was 48’ to 52’ feet. 4.25” Hyper plaid sling blade with white/orange and pink/orange hoochies 8” leader and pink Gulp maggots. 6 of the fish were the same fat 12”-13” fish we’ve been catching all year but 4 were over 14” and 2 more were right at 16”. We lost another one, almost to the boat, that looked and pulled like 18”-20”.

The Squawfish were really a problem and I think we would have been done, and much sooner, but for them. Several times I reeled in to change lures only to find we had been dragging a 6”-7” SF around the lake with us. They’re so small that we didn’t even notice they were hooked. Killed them all and “released” them. The cool part was watching 2 bald eagles and an Osprey swoop down and snatch them from the water!!

Fourteen
05-17-2010, 01:51 PM
We fished the lake from about 7 am today to 4 pm. and caught 6 koks and a trout . It was VERY slow compared to the last time I was there . My friend , myself , and his 2 boys started out around the corner from the dock and trolled half way down to Wood Village with only one bite . From there we motored to the rope swing area and picked up a couple of fish after 2 & 1/2 hrs on the water . Next , we moved around a couple of times and brought a trout in . Finally I ended back at the swing and we landed another 4 fish . All of the Kokanee were biting a hand tied dark green wedding ring & a gold and chrome dodger with a gold spinner . I tried a number of different colored spinners , bodies , dodgers & hoochies without even a sniff . All the fish were caught in about 25 ' of water . The scent of choice was Kokanee special .
__________________

Koke-n-a-smile
05-17-2010, 03:00 PM
You guys did better than I did. We had two Kokanee, one got off at the boat, a small rainbow trout, and 6 or 7 squaw fish. I caught the Kokes around 30 feet, on red wedding ring and a pink sling blade. We had to get off the water fairly early though, around 1:30 or so, so maybe we could've done better had we stayed out a little longer. We did seem to spot a lot of fish that were really deep most of the day, but didn't fish much deeper than the 30 to 40 feet we started at.

Koke-n-a-smile
05-23-2010, 11:11 PM
Had a great day on the water today. The weather was a bit wet, but the last time I checked, the fish don't care if it rainslaugh hyst Only had 3 squaw fish all day, which was way better than last week. The morning was a bit slow, we weren't marking any fish hardly at all. The first one I caught, I was actually reeling up to change my lure, and as I was looking at the action of the red apex I had on, a nice fat 13 inch Koke grabbed it! The fish were up pretty high, so we fished above 25 feet, and between two poles we had 9, all around 12 to 13 inches. All in all, another great day on the water! How'd everybody else do?

eenakoK
05-23-2010, 11:20 PM
awesomereport

Glad to hear you had a good day! Thanks for the report!

bhaz490
06-06-2010, 11:35 AM
I thought I would check and see if anyone has been up to the lake in the last week? I am planning my first trip of the year up to Merwin.

Kokonuts
06-06-2010, 03:06 PM
Sat. was very S L O W for me again! The weather was very nice all day. I am really enbarssed to say we only had 1 in the boat at the end of the day.

And what really hurt was that I had asked Sawdustsavage to join me for his first Kokanee trip! We did have a great time talking about everything from Fishing, hunting, the Oil Spill to big Goverment. I think we fixed most all of the Worlds Problems in 1 afternoon! I guess thats what can happen when a couple of old timers get together!

Kokonuts

Mark McWillis
06-06-2010, 06:12 PM
Sat. was very S L O W for me again! The weather was very nice all day. I am really enbarssed to say we only had 1 in the boat at the end of the day.

And what really hurt was that I had asked Sawdustsavage to join me for his first Kokanee trip! We did have a great time talking about everything from Fishing, hunting, the Oil Spill to big Goverment. I think we fixed most all of the Worlds Problems in 1 afternoon! I guess thats what can happen when a couple of old timers get together!

Kokonuts

Thanks for making me feel better. I was bummed about not being able to get up there now I feel better. 101goodpost101

Koke-n-a-smile
06-06-2010, 06:40 PM
Well, I guess that's why they call it fishing and not catching!laugh hyst I wasn't able to make it up there either this weekend, but should be there next weekend. Thanks for the report.

101chromefish101

Gene
06-09-2010, 11:16 AM
its Gene here, wish i coulod be fishing right now but i hail a hello from Mexico ! my navy ship pulled in here.....but man am i missing the fishing.. and to top it off my wife said my second JJ rod showed up in the mail !! well wish i was out there with you all keep the washington reports comming because when i hit port i check them first thing.

thanks for everything cant wait to see you guys out there next year.

SuperD
06-09-2010, 11:50 AM
Gene, you deserve our thanks. Troll for some dorado, tuna or marlin from the deck of your ship to stay in practice!

Fourteen
06-10-2010, 12:07 PM
Fished the lake today with No Fishin Just Wishin and a friend of his from 7:30 am until about 3 . We picked up 9 nice size koks , lost a # , and caught more trash fish then I want to count . The bite was generallly slow throughout the day and the 3 of us never really got into them . The fish were caught on a blood red wedding ring , a half red half green ring , and a a pink spin glow . Anise scent appeared to be working better than the others we tried . Most of the koks were landed in 25- 35 ' of water . We were using a 1/2 chrome 1/2 gold dodger & a UV sling blade for the most part . The weather was dry for a change which made for a GREAT DAY on the water .
_______

skookum9
06-10-2010, 10:36 PM
Fourteen, that was a great report. Sorry to hear that you never found the right combo for Dyn-O-Mite but am glad to hear you had a great time anyway. It should have been a better day than I had since I had to work all day. I'm glad that some of you out there are getting out there and chasing the fish around for those of us who are having to stay home and work.

I too would like to thank Gene for his contribution and sacrifice for our nation. I will pray for your safe return and hope you get lots of time to go fishing when you get back. Keep this country safe my friend. God bless.

Koke-n-a-smile
06-15-2010, 06:33 PM
Went out on Sunday. We got a late start, hit the water around 7:30 am. The day wes really S-L-O-W. We only had one little one in the boat before 1pm. Trolled around the lake looking for the fish, and just didn't ever find them. In the afternoon we headed down towards the dam, spotted some fish holding around 30 ft, so we started to troll that area. We were going back to the basics, just a red wedding ring, corn and a dodger. I had my two boys sharing one pole, and we just long lined it. I was putting my pole and my Dad's pole on the down rigger, when the boys pole had a fish jump out of the water! They reeled it in and it was a huge rainbow trout! We made several passes through the area, came up with 3 little Kokanee and 4, 14 inch plus sized trout. Not what we were expecting, but it was fun to reel them in. We finally had to call it a day, the wind really picked up and the water was extremely rough for the long ride back in to Speeliai. We saw quite a few people on the water, and the couple we talked to, weren't having much luck either. While the rainbows are fun to catch too, I would rather get the Kokes. If any one has any ideas on how to better locate them, please let me knowworthy12

Kokonuts
06-15-2010, 07:32 PM
Merwin has been real slow all month for me also. I dont know what happened but I was out most of the day Sat. & finally took the 1 I had out of the live well & put him back in for another day!
Sun. I stayed in and went out about 5:00 after all the ski boats were off the water.I went down the South Side where I had seen a lot of fish (not Biting) on Sat. and could not find any! I went back in about 7:30 with zip for the weekend
I am planning on going over to Yale thjs weekend!


Kokonuts......101whocares101

chuck83
06-16-2010, 05:37 PM
Try fishing above the squawfish. I fished for 4 hours on the dr and had 11 squawfish. Moved up to 10' on the dr and we got 15. One rod was on an 1 1/2 weight. Try changing the color of the blades on the wedding rings.

Kokonuts
06-16-2010, 09:17 PM
Chuck....Thanks for the tip! When were you fishing ?

KOKONUTS

Bluknight
06-18-2010, 12:06 AM
Fished today (6-17-10) from 0700-1200 and had a pretty good day. Not smokin hot but I've had worse. For clarification on this post I will be missing some key parts like speed and depth of water. Apparently the dumb*%& electrician does not know the red wire from the black wire when hooking up the new battery - oh yeah I'm the electrician by the way!

Started out front of camper's hideaway and picked up two rainbows first thing. One caught on green WR with tuna corn the other on red / black WR with a worm at 15-25 feet. Nice fish just weird for me because I never caught those here before.

Continued trolling toward the dam for awhile with no action. Moved to what I believe is Kokanee cove (the houses on the water on the north side). Starting picking up fish on about each pass. I had switched out to a red/green WR with a chartreuse spinner (still tuna corn). Apparently that was the ticket. I had to search around the boat to get my buddy at least a similar setup because he wasn't catching squat. Once we changed he started hooking up. All these fish were taken at 15 feet.

We lost a few at the boat and wanted to return a few of the smaller ones but had some gill damage so we kept them. Best of luck to those headed out this weekend.

Koke-n-a-smile
06-18-2010, 08:15 PM
Chuck, thanks for the tips. I will give that a shot.

Blueknight - Nice looking catch!101goodpost101

king koke
06-18-2010, 10:58 PM
Fished today (6-17-10) from 0700-1200 and had a pretty good day. Not smokin hot but I've had worse. For clarification on this post I will be missing some key parts like speed and depth of water. Apparently the dumb*%& electrician does not know the red wire from the black wire when hooking up the new battery - oh yeah I'm the electrician by the way!

Started out front of camper's hideaway and picked up two rainbows first thing. One caught on green WR with tuna corn the other on red / black WR with a worm at 15-25 feet. Nice fish just weird for me because I never caught those here before.

Continued trolling toward the dam for awhile with no action. Moved to what I believe is Kokanee cove (the houses on the water on the north side). Starting picking up fish on about each pass. I had switched out to a red/green WR with a chartreuse spinner (still tuna corn). Apparently that was the ticket. I had to search around the boat to get my buddy at least a similar setup because he wasn't catching squat. Once we changed he started hooking up. All these fish were taken at 15 feet.

We lost a few at the boat and wanted to return a few of the smaller ones but had some gill damage so we kept them. Best of luck to those headed out this weekend.

better report than mine worthy12

smokin' Kokes
06-19-2010, 08:41 PM
blueknight....nice fat kokes and way to go on changing until you found the hatch of the day...why do kokes have to be so finicky at times and other times, they slash at anything in the water
those are some football rainbows for this early in the year, they must be feeding like pigs.


koke smile.....Chuck's got you on the right path....the smaller pikeminnow/squaw fish hand below the kokes while they feed and poop. the poop drifts down and the pike/squaw have lunch....

extra speed helps also....above 1.5 mph helps keep the pike/squaws offs

also not using any bait/scent helps but also cuts down on the koke catch. the squaw/pikes are scent bait feeders until they get bigger and go after live meat on the fin.
must be why they love koke poop, the smell?tongue2signfishintooexcited101duh101

Mark McWillis
07-01-2010, 02:46 PM
Anybody fish Merwin in the last few days?

Calcan
07-04-2010, 12:17 AM
Left cressup launch at 6:30 went just past campers hideaway launch to the snag, fished until 10:00 caught 14, most good sized. Continued fishing until 1:30 no more, they disappeared went home good day fishing. Ford fender with pink apex 3oz lead at 100 feet with tuna corn, and pink dodger with that father murphys bugs on downrigger 35 to 40 feet with tuna corn. Have a good and safe 4th of July.

Bluknight
07-04-2010, 09:31 AM
Congrats on the good day of fishin / catchin. Thanks for the report.

Koke-n-a-smile
07-05-2010, 03:05 PM
101goodpost101Great report Calcan. We were out there around the same time but didn't have your luck.worthy12 I think my fish finder is a little wonky. We tried several areas of the lake, but all I caught were sqaw fish. My Dad got a nice sized fat Koke, and a lot of sqaw fish. Wish there was a bounty for them like there is on the Columbia, I could buy a new boatlaugh hyst It was a great day on the water, but now I am re-reading some posts here to figure out what I am doing wrong. I appreciate hearing someone did well out there, it gives me hope that I can figure this out a little better!

Kokonuts
07-05-2010, 05:41 PM
I fished with the Basman & we had a good day boating 9 & lost several more!

If anyone gets a "BIG ONE" with a 2 hook set up in his mouth hes the one that broke my line at the rear of boat!
I did get a good look & he must have been at Least 5 lbs!
Maybe a new Lake Record!....laugh hyst

We were fishing at 35 to 45 ft. & they hit just about anything in Green or Pink. we used Pink Maggots & plain corn and I think the corn did the best!

The best area is the South Side, starting about 1 mile west from the hideaway launch and going to the west.

Hope to see you out there next weekend!...Kokonuts..signfishin

MackPrince
07-05-2010, 10:07 PM
Great report Kokonuts.

I'm heading up to the lake in the morning with my neighbor.

All he expects is a boat ride and time out... I think I can guarantee that. ;)

Get'nJiggy
07-06-2010, 01:03 PM
Hit it hard Monday morning (6-11:30). 3-6 with a really nice 15 1/2" fish, the other two were dinks.... Could never find a consistent bite, so just kept trying new spots. Pink Slingblade and hootchie got the most action. Felt like an April morning up there,cool and breezy with a little mist, no lines to launch or retreive. Sure not a typical holiday weekend in July.

Kokonuts
07-06-2010, 07:52 PM
I'll be back looking for more action on Thur. for the rest of the weekend. I have room for a couple of people so just let me know if you want to go!

Keep the reports comming!

Kokonuts........tooexcited

MackPrince
07-06-2010, 07:59 PM
Fished from 8a-12p with my neighbor today. He's a self described fly fisher, but after great action today and on last year's outing we may have a convert. In all we kept 8 released 1 and lost several tailwalkers. Keepers were 14-16"

Best results with Sierra Dodgers, and GVF Bugs.

Fourteen
07-07-2010, 12:49 AM
The wife & I fished Merwin today and caught 4 nice Koks and one about 10 " . We were using smily blades , green and silver , with home made dark green body wedding rings . One of our dodgers was a blue UV and the others were watermelon . The both of us never really got on the fish all day but did have a couple of short spurt periods where the action was fast . Most of the fish were caught in the middle of the lake at 25-30 ' between the water skiers raft and Wood village . Barbara and I had corn on our hooks scented with Kokanee Feast which worked the best . We lost 4 at the boat and a # others came off soon after they bit . It appeared to me that many of the fish were not hitting the the corn very aggressively today . We left the lake about 1 :30 pm when the pleasure craft traffic became a little to much .

Mark McWillis
07-07-2010, 10:59 AM
Kokonuts,

We're planning on being there on Friday. Wave if you see us. You know what my boat looks like! I'll have the VHF on, too.

carvingfish
07-07-2010, 10:24 PM
Hope to see some of you up there. Hope we can find some fish. guess thats why they call it fishing not catching LOL
Had a great time at the B-B-Q thanks for hosting and it was nice meeting al of you.

torenhg
07-09-2010, 09:43 AM
OK, so it seems a bit slowwwwwww at Lake Merwin. Been fishing at various depths and various rigs, mostly ford fenders and red or green wedding rings. Have fished depths from surface (i was surprised to catch one this late in the year, water was at 59 degrees on Monday) to 70'. My old faithful spot in front of the now trickling waterfall on the north side just west of the speliai bay did not produce anything, most people were on the south side so I basically trolled the entire area for 4 hours with one in the live well and one lost at the boat.

Tried again last night (Thursday) from 6:30 PM to sunset and only one on and lost at the boat.

So, will be giving this another try in an hour or so, This years fishing is terrible compared to previous years. Wondering if Pacificorp had budget cuts (Now that Warren Buffet owns them) and shorted the 2008 plant?

Mark McWillis
07-10-2010, 12:29 PM
We fished pretty hard yesterday to catch 10. 3 people and 4 rods out. Got 2in the fist 10 minutes and then one here, one there. My crew lost 4-5 and I lost one that was well bigger than average. All were caught at 45'-50' with assorted sling blades and orange/white, pink/white hoochies. My standard pink gulp maggots on all. Also caught about 8 Squawfish...far less than the last time we were there. Probably be back out tomorrow AM. I spoke to Kokonuts for a while and I know he caught a few, as well.

Calcan
07-10-2010, 07:12 PM
Arrived 6:30 this morning went to same spot just past campers launch hit one right away then nothing went to the slide still nothing. Then went to favorite spot across from the brown cabin ending up with 15. Forn fender, pink apex, three oz lead, tuna corn, 50 to 80 feet out. Down riggers did not produce much. Went home about 1:30 waves to much. Why do they have to go by the boat at full speed with less than 30 feet between me and the shore, I really do not care if they have a fancy radio or a fancy boat just would like some respect the same I give you.

Calcan
07-10-2010, 07:28 PM
How deep do you think I am: 1.2 mph, 12lb test line mono, ford fender A, apex lure apox 24 in behind FF, 100 feet of line according to line counter reel?

Koke-n-a-smile
07-10-2010, 09:33 PM
I couldn't make it out this weekend, but one of my buddies, who is brand new to kokanee fishing is killing them! Every time he goes out he is limiting out. Today is no different, he hit the water early and was done by 1:30 - 2:00. He says he is just doing what I told him, red wedding rings, fishing around 30 feet. Me, when I go out it is really slow for me. I hope to get a chance to go out with him and have him give me some pointers! Good luck out there!

Mark McWillis
07-11-2010, 04:10 PM
We fished today and WOW what a change from Friday. Cloudy, heavy overcast, drizzle, windy. Third boat thru the gate and second one fishing. 2 people 4 rods. Had 8 in the cooler by 0700 and released 5 dinks and long line released 3 that weren't. Caught number 10 at 0920. All nice quality fish. Only one Squawfish, this trip. Same place and lures as Friday and all at 40'-50'.

Kokonuts
07-12-2010, 01:30 AM
I fished Fri. morning and had fun boating 5 & lost a couple at the rear of the boat! Mark & I compared notes durning the day but I didnt meet anyone else from KFF.

I was feeling soooo good from the limit on Fri that I was back in the water by 6:00 Sat. morning & heading to that sweet spot on the South Side! As soon as I got set up and trolling about 1/2 hour, I nailed a nice one! WoW! This is FUNN! And that was it!
The water was great, the weather was great but the FISH werent hittng anything I put out. 101thumbsdown101
Corn, PinkMaggots, Hoochies, Apex, Wedding Rings, Spoons, even the LIL GUY didnt produce! All the colors of the rainbow didnt seem to help! I finally went in to the showers around 12:00!

Just another weekend at Merwin, Fish one day & Fish Guts the next!.......laugh hyst

Kokonuts

torenhg
07-12-2010, 08:26 AM
started around 0700 on Saturday finished up around 11:00 with only 2 in the livewell which I ultimately hooked into on the south side about .5 mile west of campers hideaway about 30' down. Was fishing with 2 poles and at any given time was anywhere from 100' to fhishing 100' off the back of the boat. trolling speeds ranging from .8kts to 1.4kts... every color on the planet (well, green, red, orange) usning silver, bronze, and red spoons.

Hope to be back this weekend to give it another go.

Kokonuts
07-12-2010, 08:57 AM
I hope to see you on the Lake Fri. or Sat.! I'll be at the "Sweet Spot" on the South Side, look for the 18 ft Hewes wite sides/black top called "SHES SO FINE".

Kokonuts........

Kokonuts
07-12-2010, 09:04 AM
I'll be on the Lake Fri. & Sat. Lets see if we can hook up!
Look for the 18 ft. Hewes, white sides & black top "Shes So Fine". I'll be at the Sweet Spot on the South Side about 1 to 2 miles west of the Hideway Marina.


signfishin...Kokonuts......aka Richard

carvingfish
07-12-2010, 05:14 PM
if your line is at 45 degrees you would be down 50 feet

Calcan
07-12-2010, 10:55 PM
Thank You I thought I was about 30 feet down.

carvingfish
07-13-2010, 11:24 AM
I have always use the rule for every foot in depth I want 2 times the depth equals the length with a 45 degree angle. the further back the angle of your line the less depth.
It has always worked for me any ways.

torenhg
07-14-2010, 09:22 AM
laugh hyst
To minimize need for a calculator on the boat I use a downrigger or;

use a simple rule,
o if i can see the lure on the top behind the boat = on the surface
o if i cant see the lure on the top = somewhere below the surface
o if i am catching fish = at the depth of the fish
o if i am not = not at the depth of the fish

use the stuff we learned in high school
Pythagorean Theorem
http://www.1728.com/pyth1.gif


http://www.easycalculation.com/images/angle.jpg
Important Formula:
Sin(q) = Opposite / Hypotenuse
Cos(q) = Adjacent / Hypotenuse
Tan(q) = Opposite / Adjacent

I need a frosty beverage to contimplate the dpeth calculation101idea101

MackPrince
07-14-2010, 01:19 PM
That's why I use leadcore... for each color out, trolling plate at 1/2, throttle at purrrr I average 7 ft down.

I'll update our "reports" tomorrow after I take my daughter out to the lake.

Koke-n-a-smile
07-14-2010, 11:26 PM
I'll be on the Lake Fri. & Sat. Lets see if we can hook up!
Look for the 18 ft. Hewes, white sides & black top "Shes So Fine". I'll be at the Sweet Spot on the South Side about 1 to 2 miles west of the Hideway Marina.


signfishin...Kokonuts......aka Richard

Hey Richard,
I am planning on being out there Saturday too. I will look for you, I can use some help getting into the fish again. I have been in a streak of bad luck for the kokes. I must be over thinking things or something. Let's hope they are biting! Now, if you need some advice on catching squaw fish...laugh hyst

...Koke-n-a-smile

MackPrince
07-15-2010, 08:26 PM
My daughter and I fished this morning (7:30-11:00) in between boat rides and managed to get 3 and loose 7. I noticed on the sounder that the fish are starting to layer their schools. Often with one group at about 18-25 ft and others usually larger marks at 40-60. With this pattern we should start seeing some pink sides and hooked jaws starting in the next few weeks.

Good luck to those who venture out this weekend!
-Mack
1755

torenhg
07-16-2010, 08:18 AM
Hopefully a good sign...

hope to be back in the water this weekend (Saturday Morning) and see you out there.

torenhg
07-17-2010, 01:26 AM
Glad to arrive tonight at the LMCH, hope to have the engine warming up at around 0730... see ya there

Koke-n-a-smile
07-18-2010, 09:39 PM
Fished Sat morning. On the water around 6:30 with Hot Rod. Good news, only had one squaw fish on all day. Bad news, only got one Koke. We fished the south side, down river from LMCH to the large snag. We marked a lot of fish, but couldn't get them to bite. The one caught was on an orange wedding ring, with a pink sling blade around 35 feet. We tried every color we had, and threw everything from Apex to hoochies at them. The other guys on the water we talked to were having similar issues. Hope someone else had better luck.

torenhg
07-19-2010, 07:43 AM
Fished Saturday and Sunday morning, on the water about 0730 each day. 3 poles out, one longline off of the back, 2 on downriggers at multiple depths mostly rangin from 25 to 60' but all the way down to 100'. fished mostly south side starting from across from woodland (skiiers raft) and troll back to Campers Hideaway. Also on the north side west of campers around the waterfall and then down the middle of the lake. looked like people were moving all over so figured no-one had any real action (including me). all in all, 3 in the smoker (nice size though), 2 drrive bys on the long line, 2 drive bys at 60', fish caught at 30-40'.

This seems odd for Merwin as I have always had very good luck there fishing with trolling flashers (fenders&other) and wedding rings (green was the color for me and i found that I have mostly red/orange in the tackle box).

Wont be up next weekend (honey do's) but probably the following (if I dont get too frustrated). I think I need to go to the coast and get some rockfishing in.... My boat is hungry and the only way to feed her is to fill up the fish wells...

Happy trolls to all

Kokonuts
07-19-2010, 01:50 PM
I was also fishing on Fri. & Sun! Fri was the best day for me but I only had 3 in the boat. I was fishing along side with King Koke and his daughter Haley & son Alex. They rode along with me for awhile to give Greg some time to try for the BIG ONES! He ended up with 4 nice ones. I lost 1 for Haley at the back of the boat trying to get the net under the fish.I had the dreaded "Slippery Fingers Syndrome"...laugh hyst and couldnt get them in the boat!. I lost severaL and should of had an easy limit.

Sun. morning was almost the same I managed 3 before I had to leave for home.
I am using corn now and sometimes the pink maggots but corn is working well. I fished the Sweet Spot on the South Side and used the usual gear. Wedding rings and the Apex were good at 45 ft. on Fri. but I dropped down to 60ft. on Sun. Water Temp was 67-68 and it was gray & cold in the morning!

signfishin.....Kokonuts

Koke-n-a-smile
07-19-2010, 08:37 PM
Way to go Kokonuts and King Koke, glad someone had some luck. I am not ready to give up yet, just need to keep trying. We tried some different depths, but to no avail. Seems like we have better luck fishing on Sundays. Maybe Saturdays are jinxedlaugh hyst Thanks for the info, see you on the water.

Calcan
07-26-2010, 10:45 PM
Fished saturday at merwin 2 squaw fish and only one koke. Fished Yale on Sunday 15 kokes no squaws but kokes are small and fight good. I hope they get that fire under control.

Mark McWillis
07-27-2010, 12:39 PM
Fished saturday at merwin 2 squaw fish and only one koke. Fished Yale on Sunday 15 kokes no squaws but kokes are small and fight good. I hope they get that fire under control.


How close is the fire to the boat ramp?

MackPrince
07-28-2010, 01:52 PM
I fished the North shore today between 5:30-7:00 a.m. with Sierra Dodgers paired with combos of some of my spinners and a GVF Bug.

Superstition paid off and I was accompanied by a seagull near the boat all morning. In all I released 2 pike-minnows and one 11-12" koke and kept 5 beautiful fat females. Twice I had the pleasure of a double hook-up. I'll post a pic once I figure out the programs on my new computer. Until then here's a cell phone version with my leatherman as a size reference.

I even managed to make it home while the kids were still eating breakfast. A great day indeed.
-Mack

Kokonuts
07-28-2010, 03:42 PM
Mack....Those are Great & it looks like you had a Blast!!

awesomereport

I havnt had much luck on the North side this year but it used to be my favorite. Where were you fishing? East or west of the houses?

I'll be up at the Lake Thur afternoon & fishing Fri & Sat. are you going back up?

Kokonuts 101chromefish101

Koke-n-a-smile
07-28-2010, 09:09 PM
Nice! Hope you left some for the rest of us. I will be up there Saturday in a buddies boat. He has been having great success this year and promises to show me his technique. How deep were you getting them at?

Calcan
07-28-2010, 10:45 PM
Don't know how close but saw a lot of smoke at Yale till the helicopters came hope they put it out.

MackPrince
07-28-2010, 11:57 PM
I left a few..thousand.101ok101

I'm not sure if I'll make it up Friday or Saturday, but I may try depending on the weather. The weekend parking is a little too crazy for me when it is hot.

Mark McWillis
07-29-2010, 01:00 PM
In all I released 2 pike-minnows and one 11-12" koke and kept 5 beautiful fat females. -Mack

Great trip! Thanks for the report. Please tell me that the Pike Minnows weren't alive when you released them??

Calcan
07-30-2010, 01:19 PM
I will be fishing Sat. morning at 6:00 hope to get my limit before the armada of skiers come out. Good Luck everyone.

Mark McWillis
07-30-2010, 01:42 PM
The planets re-aligned so my wife and I were able to fish today. 2 people 4 rods. First line in at 0530. Hooked the first fish before I got the third line in. Hooked the second before I got the last line in. Had 5 by 0600 and the final 5 by 0625. Also caught 3 Squawfish. Landed all the fish we hooked this trip. Kokonuts was just coming out to start fishing as we were stowing rods and downriggers. All fish were caught at 50' with various slingblades and pink/white orange/white hoochies and pink Gulp maggots. Started trolling West just West of the ramp at CH on the S side and didn't even finish the pass before we were done.

Calcan
07-30-2010, 08:46 PM
I hope its just as good tomorrow thanks for the report

MackPrince
07-31-2010, 12:59 AM
Good job Mark.

We got started a little after 7:00 and I think this picture sums it up for us.
-Mack

Bluknight
07-31-2010, 09:01 AM
MackPrince,

That photo is flat out awesome! I'm also amazed you got your little girl on the water at 0700! I can't wife to get out of bed by then!

Those are some big kokes! Well done all around sir

Koke-n-a-smile
07-31-2010, 05:59 PM
Got on the water around 0600. We caught our limits on a chrome apex, ford fender combo, a RMT orange Assasin and Sling blade, and orange wedding rings. All around 45 feet. It looks like I get to go out tomorrow toothumbsup
Here are mine from today...

Calcan
07-31-2010, 06:26 PM
We also had a good day out about 6:00 caught 15 nice kokes, 16 squawfish. (trying to keep up my part of eliminating them) What a great day not to hot, not to windy, and very few skiers.

southside
07-31-2010, 07:03 PM
Got on the water around 0600. We caught our limits on a chrome apex, ford fender combo, a RMT orange Assasin and Sling blade, and orange wedding rings. All around 45 feet. It looks like I get to go out tomorrow toothumbsup
Here are mine from today...

WTG!! I was the guy with the 14ft. smokercraft alaskan that launched and hit the dock at the same time as you did today!!

I finally managed to get a limit of very nice fish today. Pink hoochie with shoepeg behind a slingblade at 45 to 60ft.

Great chatting with you guys today, and thanks a bunch for all the fantastic info that gets shared on this forum.

KFF ROCKS!!! 101cheers101

Peace, Tom

Koke-n-a-smile
08-01-2010, 07:29 AM
Hey, it's nice to put a face to a name, good to meet you, and great job yourself. I am heading up there in about 15 minutestooexcited Hope it goes as well as yesterday!

Kokonuts
08-01-2010, 06:53 PM
Lake Merwin, Fri. July 30. I did my best to be on the water by 6:00 and was headed out to the sweet spot on the south side when I saw a friends boat headed in my direction! Sooo I pulled over to ask "Whats Up, where are you headed ? Thats when he said, My Wife & I are going in !
OK so when your buddy says he's going in at 6:10 IN THE MORNING, you're thinking BOAT TROUBLE, SOME ONE HURT OR SICK! RIGHT!!!! BUT NOOOO!
YOU"D BE WRONG!

And Thats when He says, "WE GOT OUR LIMITS! 10 NICE ONES! NO SQAW FISH JUST 10 NICE ONES! tooexcited tooexcited

And when I picked myself up from the floor, I asked him How in the H***
DID YOU DO THAT ? DYNAMITE? laugh hyst

OK Now you can ask MARK McWillis & his wife for the rest of the story!

Sooo after reading about Mark , I'll just say fishing was very good both Fri. & Sat at Lake Merwin!

Kokonuts

Gene
08-03-2010, 03:21 AM
Hi everyone from Panama again !! nice Kokes in the pictures, man wish i was there !! going crazy with out a Koke fix !! boat is covered thousands of miles away, in the middle of summer and im going crazy !! then the wife tells me the family planned a huge camping trip there !! nuts !! i will still be down here !!

Bluknight
08-03-2010, 11:21 AM
On the water at 0630 to find out my partner for the day has cancelled. Oh well - one line in the water will have to do. Started by Campers Hideaway trolling "downstream". Nothing.

Moved to what I know as "kokanee" cove. Found the fish off the point with the cabin on it. 130' of water trolling 1.5 mph with green/red WR with chartreuse blade. Fish came from 30' to 45' of water.

I started by assisting with squaw fish elimination. I think I ended up with 6-8 of those darn things! Seagulls were well feed and got to know my boat!

Started getting in to some kokes after about an hour. Long line released several. Ended the day at 1130 with 5 fish. Nice day.

Apparently I need a new fishing friend this dude has cancelled on my 3 times this year.

KokaRod69
08-05-2010, 09:18 AM
I went to work today, and decided that because things were slow I should go fishing. I didn't get to the lake until 10:00 AM because of the road construction. On the water and fishing by 10:30. First hook-up with in 1 Min. of dropping the downrigger down to 48 ft. between the water fall and the cabin on the north side in 125 ft of water. Lost it at the boat.Dropped the weight down again and before I could get the rod in the holder, fish on. Lost it at the boat. I repeated this pattern until I decided that my hooks were not sharp. Switched to a new Purple haze hoochie and a blue alvin wobbler and fish on. First one in the boat. All together for the day I lost 12 fish at the boat and did get a limit of fat 15" fish. All fish were between 48 and 65 ft. and all were from the north side of the lake. The most productive combination was a pink pearl hoochie, tipped with pink gulp maggots and a red sling blade ( with new hooks).

Bluknight
08-05-2010, 09:48 AM
Thanks for the report Kokarod. That road construction on 503 is a complete pain in the #*@! I know road maintenance has to happen and it's bound to happen in the summer BUT it still sucks.

Glad you had a good day. I'm hoping to repeat your success on Monday. Nephews are coming to town.

Kokonuts
08-05-2010, 11:24 AM
awesomereport I cant wait to go up tomorrow for all of next week!!Its "VACATION TIME"

Kokonuts....tooexcited

Mark McWillis
08-05-2010, 02:21 PM
Good job! I HOPE to be up there tomorrow, Friday, AM.

Kokonuts
08-05-2010, 07:40 PM
Hey Mark, I have to work in the morning then I'll be upin the early afternoon. Are you going to be up on Sat.?

Kokonuts

Mark McWillis
08-05-2010, 08:05 PM
Hey Mark, I have to work in the morning then I'll be upin the early afternoon. Are you going to be up on Sat.?

Kokonuts

Looks like tomorrow is a go but we will definitely not be there Sat. MAYBE Sunday...depends on the weather.

Mark McWillis
08-06-2010, 05:29 PM
Mary and I fished this AM. Started on the South side in our usual spot with the same lures and fished for 4 hours to catch 3 Kokes and about 30 Squawfish. Everybody else seemd to be on the Norh side so we trolled over there and caught 7 fish in about 20 minutes, including a triple! I also lost BY FAR the largest Koke I have seen in Merwin. ALL the Northside fish were bigger and fatter than the Southside fish. All at about 50' with the same stuff we've been catching them on all season. Windy and pretty cool. Hope to go back on Sunday.

MackPrince
08-06-2010, 09:54 PM
It all depends on the schools you find even along the north shore. My 5 year old picked up real quick that when I changed spots we caught three real fast, and that they were smaller than the previous spot. She promptly asked to "go back to the big fish."

Mark McWillis
08-07-2010, 01:33 PM
It all depends on the schools you find even along the north shore. My 5 year old picked up real quick that when I changed spots we caught three real fast, and that they were smaller than the previous spot. She promptly asked to "go back to the big fish."

You, sir, are raising a very bright child!! thumbsup

Calcan
08-07-2010, 09:49 PM
Fished the North side today caught our limit after fishing the south side by the fish platform (we caught about 20 squawfish and no kokanee). A little cool and breezy they are starting to turn red and BIG.

Bluknight
08-11-2010, 12:12 AM
Had my nephews in town and they wanted a fishing / tubing trip. Monday was the only option. Well for those of you that were out there....... we only fished because it never broke 65 degrees!

Didn't hit the lake until 1130 because their Mom wanted to wait for the sun to come out. Fished until about 2:30 before everyone was tired of the "cold".

Fished one downrigger at 35' and the other at 45'. Both got fish. One rod was red wedding ring with silver blade other was a red/green wedding ring with chartreuse blade. Hooked about 8 fish landed 4.

This was my first experience with teach a kid to fish and it went pretty well. He had a good time and kept engaged even during the slack times. He watched the depth finder for fish or "steered" the boat on the troll.

Oh yeah we seemed to find most of our fish in 130' of water up by the cabin at the point.

MackPrince
08-12-2010, 05:00 PM
Sounds like you "done good" BK

There is definitely a different atmosphere on board when you add in children.tooexcited

Koke-n-a-smile
08-13-2010, 09:46 AM
Fishing with kids can be a blast. Once you give them a "job" like steering the boat, or watching the finder, they really start to get into it. Plus, it puts more poles in the water:)

Mark McWillis
08-13-2010, 02:49 PM
We fished today on the N side and had the first one at 0545 and the last one at 0807. All were very nice, fat, fish. LOTS of fish on the box all over the water column. No squawfish this trip but we did catch, and release, 4 'Nooks.

Torres
08-13-2010, 08:58 PM
Nothing like a happy kid to end a successful fishing trip...

Good job BK!

torenhg
08-14-2010, 08:49 AM
Well, Been on vacation for the past 2 weeks. Had the boat with me, went to garabaldi and did so, crabbing, salmon, bottom fishing, and then tuna. killed the tuna and now am grappling with what to do with over 100# (after the split) of fresh tuna meat, sorry fishing gods, I had to freeze (with a vacuum sealer) some of it.

so, after the better reports here I should be on the water in just a little while. I normally fish the north side around where the waterfall (trickle now) is.

will give a report later, maybe from the water.

BTW, any of you guys on the radio out there?

Mark McWillis
08-14-2010, 03:43 PM
BTW, any of you guys on the radio out there?

I normally have mine set to scan all the working channels and 16. Hoping to fish tomorrow AM.

torenhg
08-15-2010, 08:45 AM
Got out on the water around 0730 and within 5 minutes into the troll at about 50' I had the first into the live well. fishing with 2 poles on the down riggers had a total of 5, all nice size, on the hooks. Kind of strange, I believe around 10:30, a huge wind just kicked up and blew like heck. Blew so hard that I had a difficult time getting the boat back into the slip without a little help. Oh Ya, the bite died off as fast as it started so the total was 5 in the bucket all caught in less than 45 minutes on the north side.

Mark McWillis
08-15-2010, 02:57 PM
We fished today and had a very slow start. Lines in at 0530 and didn't get the first fish until 0615. Done at 0700. Fished the N side and didn't get anything until we were 1/2 way to the cabin. Went past the cabin and we were marking a LOT of fish got 'em all on one pass. 7 squawfish this trip. Keep in mind that this is a 120 qt cooler 101chromefish101

Koke-n-a-smile
08-15-2010, 08:01 PM
Nice job, those are some big fish! You sure know how to fish in hurry!101goodpost101

Calcan
08-16-2010, 10:43 PM
I agree nice fish. I saw you going in just after 7:00. We ended up with 9 had to go in early.

No Wishin Just Fishin
08-17-2010, 11:44 AM
Fished yesterday with 3 poles and took about 5 hours to get 20 fish. They were all nice, about 15-17 inches. Bucks graying up for spawning, but cut red, and firm. Shasta blue UV with red wedding rings and red skeleton blade. Corn was soaked in YUM anise and kokannee feast. 55-60 feet took most. Only 2 pikeminnows all day

MackPrince
08-18-2010, 12:48 AM
Well I made what I think is my last Summer trip to Merwin today. I started well later than normal this morning (8:00) but had a blast taking my neighbor out fishing for his 71st birthday. Several times I got some good comic relief watching him set the hook and wince knowing he should resist the temptation. Most of the fish were chunks getting ready to spawn, but we did eye hook an 11"er and kept it as well. I'd venture out again but I'll be on the road the next three weekends. Good luck everyone and keep the reports coming. We have a great thread this year.

-Mack

Kokonuts
08-18-2010, 09:11 AM
101goodpost101 Its always nice to see someone having funn fishing! Sorry to hear its your last trip this year but its been a great season at Merwin!

Kokonuts thumbsup

Fourteen
08-19-2010, 12:45 PM
I fished the lake yesterday with the wife and caught 8 koks . It was sure a different day from the the recent reports . Low pressure sometimes causes the bite to slow down after high pressure has been with us for a while . We had to work for the fish that were landed starting from about 7:15 am to 2 pm . A small pink spin glow with glow beads caught most of the fish with Shasta's UV blue dodger , the skeleton pattern . Barbara and I used "Kokanee Feast" scent on our corn which outfished the other (anise) that we brought . All of the fish were netted in the Wood Village area in 50 - 55 ' of water . We hooked a couple of " dinks " that bit our lines as hard as any fish I have put in the boat at Merwin . The both of us also must have had a dozen bites that never hooked a fish . I would guess that they were VERY small fish hitting the leaders . I wish everyone the best of luck for the remainder of this year at the lake . This was our last trip . Now it's off to catch some fall salmon . I want to thank all the fishers for their informative posts the past months . They have been very helpful .
_________________

Mark McWillis
08-20-2010, 01:16 PM
Mary and I fished this AM. First fish at 0600 last one at 0715. Northside with the same stuff we've been using. 45'-50' deep in 120'+ of water. Got 'em all on one pass. Ended up about 400 yards past the cabin on the point. Still graphing LOTS of fish when we quit. We had one big buck that was starting to turn but the flesh was still very firm and red and he was the biggest fish this year so in the cooler he went. No "Nooks or Squawfish this trip. This will probably be our last trip this year as we will be out of town over Labor day and by mid-Sept they wil be getting along towards spawning, I think. We had a great first year of Kokanee fishing.

Kokonuts
08-23-2010, 12:49 AM
The fishing is still very good at Merwin. I managed to get limits on Thur- Fri.and had some friends out on Sat., 7 year old Justin and his Grandfather Merril. Justin out fished us both and reeled in 8 before it was time to go in!!
Hes a Natural & going to be agreat fisherman! signfishin

I was using a Pink Apex and 1 of my Pink "LIL GUYS" both with Berkleys Natural Maggot for all of the fish! Fished both sides of the lake!

Kokonuts tooexcited

Bluknight
08-23-2010, 09:11 AM
Thank you for the recent reports gents. I was thinking it would be getting too late for the kokes but glad to hear it's still going. I have a gal at work that wants to try fishing with her son. The best I can do with schedules is next Monday.

I hope they hold!!!

Koke-n-a-smile
08-23-2010, 11:58 PM
Way to go Kokonuts! I have been on vacation, and am heading out again next weekend. I am glad to hear they are still biting, and hope to get out at least one or two more times before the bite goes off. Keep the reports coming!101goodpost101

Kokonuts
08-24-2010, 12:31 AM
Way to go Kokonuts! I have been on vacation, and am heading out again next weekend. I am glad to hear they are still biting, and hope to get out at least one or two more times before the bite goes off. Keep the reports coming!101goodpost101

I will be fishing on Fri.& Sat. so I hope to see you there!

Kokonuts signfishin

Bluknight
08-24-2010, 11:00 PM
Fished from 0700 - 1130 today. Wind was not very cooperative. I felt a bit like a cork in the ocean out there for a while.

Surface temp was 68 - 69 degrees. Winning combo for me was a red WR with silver spinner or red and green WR with chartreuse spinner. All taken between 40-50 feet. Tried the apex and hoochie rigs and just could not get a bite. Apparently that is not my go to rig.

Fished North side past koke cove and then moved to the south side to find some more fish when they disappeared. Enjoyed the day but could have had a little less wind.

Variable size on the fish - 4 or so in the 13-14 inch range that were nice ones then some little guys. Several sqauwfish spawns added to the changing out of bait. Those seagulls should be well fed!

One more trip for me next Monday to get my nephew and co-worker son into some fish. Hopefully some will still be left.

carvingfish
08-27-2010, 09:13 PM
So having never fished Merwin and only yale lake once. And I only have sunday to fish where would be good place to go for a couple of Kokes? and what tackle/color should i be using. I have red maggots and Corn and tuna oil.
Should be there around 6AM sunday stop by and say hay.
Bruce worthy12: confused: 101eatdrink101101 smilie101
I'm open for suggestions and bow to any knowlege I can gleam from all the all knowing ones

Mark McWillis
08-28-2010, 01:52 PM
Looks like we'll be up there tomorrow, as well. Do you have downriggers? If so I'd start fishing on the N side in 120' of water and start fishing 50' deep with a slingblade/pink hoochie/pink Gulp Maggot. That's what we'll be doing.

Calcan
08-28-2010, 10:51 PM
What a beautiful day warm very little wind caught two nice ones(they are cooking as I write), got a big red one to the back of the boat then he got off, and only 4 for the seagulls. This will be one of the last times for this year at Merwin, will be going to Wyoming to fish with my brother for the holiday weekend.

carvingfish
08-29-2010, 08:41 PM
got a late start alarm went off but forgot to check volume rolleyes got there around 6:30 got in water arrive at north side in 119 feet of water, couldn't find my Red maggots tore boat apart decided to use one ones and dye them red but then couldn't find Dye GRRRRRR so rigged up rods went to set up down riggers but the extension Pin broke so couldn't extend my scotties out GRRRRRR but it worke ok anyways. Finaly get fishing go about 100 yards rod goes of landed real red kok about 16" Finally start feeling good thinking all tha bad sstuff is over. put the kok back in the water swims away nicely. get all set up drop every thing back in get 2nd fish this one feels larger than last get him to side of boat and he is ver large go to net him and hook gets tied in net bye bye fish. real nice fish but oh well. all fish were caught at 55 feet.
find several schools below at 90 feet so set down rigger to 85 feet bank nother one on get to side of boat real red a again and shake him off. then I got 5 chinook smolts and all this time my buddy has not even had a hit doing same thing, go figure.
fishing died of on north side so went over to south side hook across from boat ramp anouther one land it and keep it 17" fish for 2 more ours and get one more. went home with 3 fish. and my buddy never even touched one.
but all in all nice day no strong winds cloudy and no rain. not many guys had more tna a couple of fish. so this will be my last day this year for koks look forward to seeing you all next year. time to chase the salmon and walleye in washogal area. then get out doing some sturgeon fishing.
Thank you to everyone for the help they gave me this year.101chromefish101101chromefish101

kokonee animal
08-31-2010, 03:42 PM
MackPrincethumbsupworthy12101hearye

catching 5 koks is better than fighting boats on the columbia AMEN:

torenhg
09-01-2010, 09:01 AM
Was up last weekend but had to get the place in order for out of town guests this week. Will be up on Fri, Sat, Sun, and maybe Monday. Out in the boat allot but maybe fishing only in the morning. Hate to see the season starting to wind down but like the previous post, I am looking forward to the salmon run on the columbia and willammette and will be out there. Sturgeon sounds great as well, those things are great to fish for, great to catch, and great to eat... My first year Tuna out of Garibaldi was a few weeks ago, now I'm hooked and so is the brother and dad.

Hope to see you all up there with tight lines and full fishwells. My smoker will be cranking out kokanee, Tuna, silvers...

Mark McWillis
09-03-2010, 07:29 PM
After reading somewhat mixed reports we decided to go ahead and give Merwin another try. We slept in a little and didn’t get to the ramp until 0530 and we were still the first boat there. We decided that we were only going to keep this years fish so I smashed the barbs on the hooks and off we went. We fished the North side with 4 rods all right at 50’ deep. We had to fish until almost 0930 to get 2 limits of keepers. We also released 12 “next year fish”, 5 small ‘Nooks and fed the Seagulls 8 hitch hikers. We also released one but nice hen that was pretty red. The others, as you can see, are still doing just fine and the darkest of them still had firm, red meat. The eggs in the hens were just slightly loose. Again, keep in mind that this is a 120 qt cooler.

Same drill as we’ve been using all along. Small sling blades in pink and orange UV with pink/white or orange/white hoochies. Pink gulp maggots on both hooks. No clear winner on colors, all caught fish. There were LOTS of fish on the box. Based on this we will probably fish again on Sunday and Tuesday. Just can’t make myself drive down to B10 for that melee.


http://i695.photobucket.com/albums/vv318/mmcwillis/Fish%20pics/090310-Kokes.jpg

Bluknight
09-03-2010, 10:28 PM
Nice report and nice kokes - Thanks Mark. It's nice to hear someone else say they don't want the craziness!

king koke
09-04-2010, 12:39 AM
Man!, between your reports and kokonuts you guys are killing me. Too bad for me I won't be able to make it again this year, violin. li'll nate (natalie) has kept me from going much this year (baby girl). My other two (Haley & Alek) had a blast going a few times this year and keep mentoning the BBQ and can we go on richards boat (kokonuts)101rave101 I hope to bring mine too . Mark how many nooks have netted? any good size to them? Next year would like to meet you out on the lake sometime. It's going to be a long winter can't wait for next year and see you all on the water!! Greg (King Koke) 101cheers101 awesomereport

MackPrince
09-04-2010, 02:37 AM
Great reports everyone. It's good to know the fish are holding out this long.101goodpost101

Koke-n-a-smile
09-04-2010, 10:43 AM
Great report, I have been on vacation and haven't been able to get out there for a few weeks. Now, my buddies are telling me the salmon are running in the Columbia and are enticing me to go out there. I was thinking I wanted one more run at the kokes, I need to figure out how "hot" my boat is so I can fix it this winter. One way or the other, I am heading out tomorrow morning.

Mark McWillis
09-04-2010, 03:45 PM
Mark how many nooks have netted? any good size to them?

We've caught about 12-15 over the season that I would say are about the same size as "next year Kokes" and another 10 -12 that were about 6", or so. I am convinced that there are bigger "Nooks in the lake. I lost a very large fish, a few weeks ago, about 1/2 way to the boat. The leader broke between the 2 hooks. I saw him and he was well over 20" but he wasn't close enough to ID. I am convinced that it was a "Nook. Next year I may try and target them by trolling Rapalas or Coyote spoons, on 2 deep downriggers, under the Kokes.

southside
09-04-2010, 05:05 PM
After reading somewhat mixed reports we decided to go ahead and give Merwin another try. We slept in a little and didn’t get to the ramp until 0530 and we were still the first boat there. We decided that we were only going to keep this years fish so I smashed the barbs on the hooks and off we went. We fished the North side with 4 rods all right at 50’ deep. We had to fish until almost 0930 to get 2 limits of keepers. We also released 12 “next year fish”, 5 small ‘Nooks and fed the Seagulls 8 hitch hikers. We also released one but nice hen that was pretty red. The others, as you can see, are still doing just fine and the darkest of them still had firm, red meat. The eggs in the hens were just slightly loose. Again, keep in mind that this is a 120 qt cooler.

Same drill as we’ve been using all along. Small sling blades in pink and orange UV with pink/white or orange/white hoochies. Pink gulp maggots on both hooks. No clear winner on colors, all caught fish. There were LOTS of fish on the box. Based on this we will probably fish again on Sunday and Tuesday. Just can’t make myself drive down to B10 for that melee.


http://i695.photobucket.com/albums/vv318/mmcwillis/Fish%20pics/090310-Kokes.jpg

Nice job. I saw you go by and waved. I was in my 14ft smokercraft. I got up to the lake around 8 and found a limit of very nice 15" fish just east of the launch in 90ft of water. Same setup but with shoepeg on both hooks. 50 to 60ft on the rigger.

It has been a great year learning how to target these great fighting fish.

Thanks for all your help!

Peace, Tom

Koke-n-a-smile
09-05-2010, 09:45 PM
Well, I opted to go Kokanee fishing instead of the battle on the Columbia. We started out the day going down the north side towards the cabin. I got one dink and had one good size one spit the hook just out of reach of the net. Fed the seagulls a couple too. This was all before 8am, which for me is quite good. Then the day got really slow. We saw Kokonuts, as we passed, he said he only had 3 in the boat at that time. We decided to give up on the north side around 10:30, after we couldn't get a bite. So, we decided to head over to the south side and troll up towards the LMCH marina. We ended up getting two more in the boat by noon. By 1:00 the bite really started for us, and we limited by 3:30, almost all were caught between Camper's Hideway and Speelyai. All in 80 to 90 feet of water, and we had the down rigger between 47 and 39 feet. Pink and White Hoochie, with a Copper dodger painted half with pink was the hot setup. I think this is my last trip for the year, so I look forward to seeing you all up there next year!

Mark McWillis
09-06-2010, 12:11 PM
Mary and I fished Sunday with my friend, Carl. We dropped the first line at 0600 and had the last of the 3 limits at 0925. All on the North side and all right at 50' on 1 pass going West. Now, here's the thing....if you turn around at the cabin you'll miss most of the fish. We were marking, and catching, fish well past all the houses. We also fed about 10 Seagulls and released about 6 'Nook smolts. It was also pretty cool that when we pulled out there were only 5 rigs in the parking lot! Mary and I are planning on going back out tomorrow for what might be the last Merwin trip of the year.

Koke Hunter
09-12-2010, 11:27 PM
Started trolling at 7:30 this morning with my daughter and stopped at 10:00 with only one Koke to grill for breakfast. We camped at Cresap last night and left from the moorage then worked the right side near an inlet to a small boat launch. It was a beautiful sunny day today and I hated to leave. I really don't know the lake yet so I am probably not hitting the right spots but I did see plenty jumping and we had a big pink one break the line at the hook when it was inches from the net. I just use the pre-made wedding bands, is there a better line to use for resistance to sharp teeth? The silver one we ate for breakfast was 14" and tasted great! I saw multiple fishing boats heading towards the west end of the lake as I was coming in after 10am. Were any of you guys out there today?

Kokonuts
09-13-2010, 12:11 AM
I fished Sat. & Sun morning , and picked up 3 on Sat and 0 on Sun. I really think the season is over now! The larger fished have all moved into the spawing areas.

This was my best year at Merwin and I really had a lot of good times on the water. Sat & Sun was a perfect end to the year!

Soooo I hope to see you all back out there next year!

Kokonuts signfishin

eenakoK
09-13-2010, 01:44 AM
I have enjoyed reading all the reports from Merwin! I hope to be able to make the trek down next year! Thanks for letting me live vicariously through you all!
signfishin

Mark McWillis
09-13-2010, 02:23 PM
Mary and I fished Thursday 9-9-10. Lines in at 0630 and it took until 1015 to get 10 bright "this year" fish. We released 7 that were dark, 8 SF, 5 next year fish, and at least 6 'Nook smolts. This was our last trip this year.

We had a very successful year at Merwin. We were never skunked and only failed to limit twice, thanks largely to info I gleaned from this forum. Pretty good first year of Kokanee fishing!!

MackPrince
09-13-2010, 09:23 PM
"Pretty good." I'd say so Mark. I think you were able to get more fishing in than some of us combined.

Great reports everyone. I'm trying to decide if I should start the polishing projectg on my old boat, or keep the motor rigged up for any random weekends. For now only time will tell.

Bluknight
09-13-2010, 11:55 PM
Fished Saturday 9-11-10 from the crack of 0900 until 1230. The wife was with me so we don't start early but had two rods in the water. Went home with 5 nice bright fish.

I had trouble missing several fish and a couple getting off. I realized I was using some of the first wedding rings I tied. Apparently I was using too large of hooks on those. I've down size since last year. Switched out hooks and what do you know we started sticking fish. The wife was sure it was her playing bagpipe music but I think the hooks helped as well.

Fish were scattered - picked them up at 35' and 50'. Very nice day on the water. Saw you out there kokonuts but when I thought of trolling by to say high you were high tailing up to the cove. When I got up to the cove you had left. I think you were running away! nananana

I think that's it for me this year - it was a blast and I do appreciate all the info folks have past on.

Koke Hunter
09-23-2010, 12:21 AM
Weather report looks good for this weekend... Anyone planning to drop a line in Merwin? I know it is late but I still have a pretty fulll tank of fuel and it sounds tempting.

Kokonuts
09-23-2010, 12:30 AM
I went by the Hatchery at Speelyai on Mon. and there are plenty of RED Kokanee in the creek.

If you do catch any in the lake now they will be smaller & next years fish!

Kokonuts

Koke Hunter
09-23-2010, 12:43 AM
I guess if I hadn't caught a few silvers last weekend I wouldn't be thinking about it. This is my first year owning a boat and I just enjoy being on the water even if the bite isn't on. It is just awesome on the lake in the early morning and a great stress reliever. This is the last weekend for Cresap Bay to be open so it is my last chance to hit the water.

skookum9
09-23-2010, 01:39 AM
Koke Hunter, where'd you catch the silvers? I put in a few times in the end of August at Astoria but didn't have a lot of luck. Are you picking them up in the Cowlitz or where? I'd love to hear if you don't mind sharing, thanks.

Kokonuts
09-23-2010, 09:18 AM
Hunter.......

I know what you mean about being on the Lake, its great just to be out there!

I'll be working on my RV Fri. & Sat. at the Hideaway sooo I just might see you out there on the water!

Kokonuts.....thumbsup

Koke Hunter
09-23-2010, 09:19 AM
I was referring to a couple of silver Kokes in Merwin that had not yet turned color.

kokonee animal
09-24-2010, 12:30 AM
You guys are all killing me. It doesn't look like I will get out till the first week of May.
awesomereport

DB, THE FISHN REALLY PICKED UP AT AMER. LK. HIT IT AT EARLY DAYBREAK AND START FISHING AT 4O FT. OUTSIDE THE BOAT RAMP AREA . START AT 15 TO 20 FT. DOWN AND GO WESTERLY TO THE OTHERSIDE AND FIFH THE 56 TO 65 FT. WATER. E. TO WEST OR NO. TO SO. WHEREVER THE FISH ARE SHOWING. AS THE DAY LIGHTENS GO DEEPER. PINK HOOTCIES AND VANILLA FLAVORED SHOENPEG CORN AND ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! KOKONEE ANIMAL.awesomereport

Koke Hunter
09-25-2010, 11:45 PM
Just got home from Merwin. Launched at Cresap and started fishing at 6:30am today. My daughter and I fished until noon and pulled out when we ran low on fuel. My daughter agreed that we should keep fishing so we hauled to the gas station and re-fueled then dropped back in at Speelyai. We fished until 6:30pm. The weather was absolutely awesome today and of course it brought out the water toy and jet ski folks that I tried to stay away from. We caught a total of 7 fish all in the 12-13" range. I swore a few had a slight tint of pink in the sunlight but while cleaning them I could not find any pink on the scales. All the fish we caught were on the south-west side of the lake. I think I am now finally ready to winterize the boat. If anyone is thinking about Yale, don't bother as it is very low already and could be an outdrive killer.

Koke Hunter
10-02-2010, 09:04 PM
So, I tried it again today. Launched at Speelyai at 7am and fished until 3pm. My daughter and I only caught 3 silver keepers and released a few next year fish. I have yet to catch a red Koke but I did see some dead ones near the boat launch. I was surprised that the water was about 4' lower this weekend than last. At least I know where a bunch of the stumps are located now. I wanted to check out the hatchery on my way out but wasn't sure if I could turn my boat trailer around down there so I skippped it. Is there decent shore fishing near the hatchery? I saw a group of cars going down there at 6:30am. I am really done with Merwin for the year, really. :D

MackPrince
10-03-2010, 02:08 PM
I don't know KH. You say you're done, but I think you'll still get one more trip in... maybe to Swift. :)

Koke Hunter
10-03-2010, 03:41 PM
I hear that Swift has some very impressive Rainbows. Don't they let the water level down in Swift this time of year same as Merwin and Yale? The only reason I haven't tried Swift is that I am concerned about not having a kicker and the possibility of a mechanical breakdown. I hear the wind can bring big waves and there are not many boaters on the lake so I would hate to be stranded. I would definitely be interested in going on Swift the same day as a buddy that way we can watch out for each other.

Cosby
10-23-2010, 09:45 AM
I hear that Swift has some very impressive Rainbows. Don't they let the water level down in Swift this time of year same as Merwin and Yale? The only reason I haven't tried Swift is that I am concerned about not having a kicker and the possibility of a mechanical breakdown. I hear the wind can bring big waves and there are not many boaters on the lake so I would hate to be stranded. I would definitely be interested in going on Swift the same day as a buddy that way we can watch out for each other.

The water level at Swift as of 10/23 is: 5 feet below full pool. Here's a link that shows water levels at all 3 lakes in real time: http://www.srh.noaa.gov/productview.php?pil=RVMPQR I'm headed up there either Wednesday OR Thursday of this coming week with a couple of friends. You're correct about there being some impressive fish in Swift. I normally fish Swift in the Summer and early fall. Last September I hooked a HUGE rainbow that jumped a dozen or more times on the way to the boat until he spit the hook about 20 feet behind the boat. Bent my hooks so bad I had to replace them. The thing about the wind at Swift is that it "normally" begins blowing mid-morning and from the west, so I like to launch early and head straight for the dam (approximately 11 miles). Makes for a much smoother ride when I decide to come back in. The other thing about Swift is that is ALWAYS a place to fish "out of the wind"(coves and inlets). Good luck if you decide to go!

Koke Hunter
10-23-2010, 11:46 AM
Thanks for the update and link to reservoir levels. If I didn't just winterize the boat I would head up there and check it out especially since I am off work this coming week. Let us know how your trip went.

Cosby
10-29-2010, 08:09 AM
Thanks for the update and link to reservoir levels. If I didn't just winterize the boat I would head up there and check it out especially since I am off work this coming week. Let us know how your trip went.

Headed to Swift yesterday with a couple of friends, although I was sure I wouldn't be able to get my boat (21' Thunderjet), in the water as I realized after my last post that my math was off by 10 feet (water level at Swift was actually 15 feet below full pool instead of 5 feet). The water level yesterday at Swift was 13 feet below full pool, and as it turned out I had no problem launching my boat. Fished from 8:00AM 'till 3:00PM and went home with our limits. Great day on the water.

Koke Hunter
10-29-2010, 11:09 AM
I am glad you were able to get out and the weather was nice yesterday too.
So were they rainbows and what size? Trolling or?
Thanks for the update,
Russ

skookum9
01-17-2011, 02:00 AM
I was wondering if anyone had been out to Yale yet this year. I think it's open year 'round. Maybe Merwin is too. I've been wanting to go but I hired the wrong mechanic and a two day repair on my fishing truck has turned into a 14 week wait (and counting). Also, the weather has been quite nasty and I fear that it may be a wasted trip to go up there. Thought maybe I'd ask around here to see if anyone knew if it was currently even possible to get to those lakes. Hope everyone has been surviving this winter well.

Cosby
01-17-2011, 08:08 AM
I was wondering if anyone had been out to Yale yet this year. I think it's open year 'round. Maybe Merwin is too. I've been wanting to go but I hired the wrong mechanic and a two day repair on my fishing truck has turned into a 14 week wait (and counting). Also, the weather has been quite nasty and I fear that it may be a wasted trip to go up there. Thought maybe I'd ask around here to see if anyone knew if it was currently even possible to get to those lakes. Hope everyone has been surviving this winter well.

I believe you're correct about Yale being open year 'round, but I'd check the reg's if I were you to be sure. I do know that Merwin IS open year 'round. Merwin is currently 13 feet below full pool and Yale is 2 feet below full pool. I've never fished either lake this time of year so I can't give you any advice, sorry. I generally start fishing Merwin end of April or May, then through the summer and early fall. Good luck.

RibOwner
01-17-2011, 06:39 PM
Last year I fished in March and was successful, but cold. I am itching to get out there this year with my new Arima. I need to do a quick shakedown sometime soon.

John

torenhg
01-18-2011, 07:36 AM
Not sure how the fishing is but I was up at Campers Hideaway yesterday and the lake looked like a mucky mess with trees and whitecaps. Was pretty nasty.

Good Luck, Maybe Sturgeon?

kokaguy1
01-18-2011, 09:34 PM
Not sure about Yale but Merwin should start to show some life towards the end of March, April for sure and May it's on. These days however I would just stay home and tie spinners the weather has pretty much made all bodies of water a muddy mess, and Merwin probably has all kinds junks in it and the water I'm sure is way too cold.