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pimpler
06-13-2010, 02:31 PM
Just heard from a pretty reliable source that another Wallowa Couty local just caught a record fish at Wallowa Lake. Some confusion as to whether it weighed 9.8 pounds or 9 pounds 8 ounces, but either way it would break the current world record fish from British Columbia that weighed 9 pounds 6 ounces. Will share more info as it emerges.

smokin' Kokes
06-13-2010, 04:17 PM
another world record first week of August?
12 pounder+

kokanee kombine
06-13-2010, 04:42 PM
hey pimpler,you are correct.my father in law who lives in josrph was at the store at weighin and saw the fish along with half the town.he said it came in at 9 lbs,10 ounces .guess we will find out,we are headed to the lake for a couple days this after noon.the guy said he lost one bigger yet,but it's not in the boat to weigh!go wallowa lake!

pimpler
06-13-2010, 10:56 PM
The enjoyment of fishing is the fishing and not the catching. Every fisherman dreams of someday catching the big one. If I have given even one other fisherman the enjoyment of the anticipation that the next fish he hooks could be the new world record I am totally happy. The influx of fishermen and their families and the money they spend in Wallowa County is good for our economy and I can still enjoy my time on the lake because I don't care who catches the biggest fish - I just want everyone to enjoy the time they spend fishing on one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.

Lip Ripper
06-14-2010, 12:51 AM
Gilligan,

I was one of those poor suckers that came through your town in April. And I spent several hundreds of dollars and I didn't see any body that didn't want my money. So just set back and enjoy the crowd and it will be gone before you know it. Then all of the businesses can say what a nice summer it was. You might look at the Green Peter forum and that's where I live and see how people help people. My hat is off for the input that Pimpler has helped several people be a better fisherman, maybe you should practice it also.

Kokanee Wizard
06-14-2010, 01:03 AM
Pimpler, you've hit it spot on. I hope someday to catch a big one but for me it's more about the fishing, the scenery, and the company. Wallowa is special in a number of areas. I concur, it's one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.

I was in the dark gray Duckworth on May 22nd when it was snowing on us. It was good to talk briefly to you. I wish I lived closer so I could fish it more often. I envy you. Best Wishes and thanks for sharing the information.

Gilligan112
06-14-2010, 01:05 AM
Hey guys,

I did not mean to offend everyone. My point to P was simply "Why ruin a good fishing hole by inviting everyone?" P has caught many more big fish than I have. I would never trash my local fishing hole. He has done that in spades! I hope you all forgive me for speaking out.

Tdog
06-14-2010, 02:33 AM
What ever happened to doing the work yourself? I believe that half the challenge of fishing is the work that is put in to successfully find a pattern that produces the big fish.

Wallowa is a small Lake and a relatively fragile fishery. While Flaming Gorge and some of the other larger systems can accomodate significant pressure, I think it is reasonable to have concerns about what level of fishing pressure Wallowa can endure before it has a negative affect on the future of the fishery, especially the large strain of fish that are being targeted.

We can talk all day about how great it is to support all of the businesses in the area, but who is going to support them if the fishery is over utilized? I think that's what they call "robbing from Peter to pay Paul"?

As a fisherman who has fished the Lake for a lot of years, as well as one who would like to continue to fish the Lake long after this big fish hype has passed, I think these questions deserve serious consideration.

Statistically, it is very likely that the attention and the coresponding pressure from all of that attention will have a negative impact on the fishery. This cycle has repeated itself pretty much any place that is within reasonable reach of the majority of the fisherman.

The good news is that we all have a chance to fish for the next world record Kokanee. The bad news may be that Wallowa will never be the same after such an amazing season.

If there is any question whatsoever about the future of the fishery then I think a reduced bag limit for over-sized fish would be a great idea and would probably discourage some of the out-of-town fisherman from coming for the wrong reason. It's pretty near impossible to have quantity and quality at the same time and expect a fishery to hold up to the pressure.

If as a trophy fishery it is to be fished, then as a trophy fihery it should be managed.

smokin' Kokes
06-14-2010, 05:55 AM
I did not see that heavy of fishing pressure on Wallowa Lake the first week of June that I was there. The most boats I saw out on the lake fishing at any time was no more than 12 or so.

The town of Joseph needs all the economic help it can get from tourist dollars with the downturn in cattle prices, the ranching economy, logging industry and tourist real estate. The majority of businesses in town were land speculation related real estate companies, we know where real estate prices have went.

It's obvious from talking with the locals and the state park staff that much of the young people employment depends on the tourist industry, sightseers, tram riders, water skiers, jet skiers and a few fisher people. One young woman I talked with had taken a temp job in the tourist industry so that she could stay in the town where she was born and raise her son, a single mother with spunk and drive.

The lake protectors have far more to worry about than a few "outsider" fisher people coming in to use the lake and enjoy the scenic beauty of the Wallowas. Dozens of new homes with septic tanks and commercially fertilized lawns have went in on the western shore of the lake with dozens if not hundreds more to follow, REAL lake and fish killers. The crystal clear high plankton levels clean water of Lake Wallowa will be gone forever in a few years from high levels of introduced nitrogens and bio matter from the failed septic tank systems and fertilizers.

Most of us come there to catch ONE fish, not dozens that we can and do from other lakes that are high fish count producers with consistent spawn production yearly. I turned most back using gentle circle hooks that set in the corner of the mouth and use a live release rubberized net and only kept 2.

The only catch and kill fishery I saw on Wallowa was the small planted rainbows.

pimpler has done all real fishermen a friendly fishing camaraderie gesture, giving some basic tips on the lake. I made my plans and booked my reservation to fish Wallowa long before he caught his "BIG ONE" which he earned by hours of diligence, hard work and fishing in bad weather.

All of us that are stewards and protectors of sports fishing had mentors who taught us the sport; showed us how to put on that first huge hammered long heart shaped brass salmon spinner 50 years ago, taught us the drifts in a special steelhead stream that they had learned from their grandfather, showed their neighbor's son how to tie on his first dry fly and make it settle lightly on the water without a ripple. Fishing is about teaching those who follow us the thrill and enjoyment of the outdoors, not hogging it selfishly to oneself like a secret in the dark

The GREAT FATHER put the lake there for all to enjoy in a reserved respectful way and not just for the "locals".

Cliff

Gilligan112
06-14-2010, 09:23 AM
I got an email from the moderators explaining why my original post was pulled. They were quite correct. Being a newbie to this type of fishing board, I didn't realize I could simply PM a member. My bad.

The sharing of fishing techniques and tales of success are great, in my book. However, "Call someplace paradise......kiss it goodbye." And that is precisely what we're dealing with here this summer.

TopFuelKokanee
06-14-2010, 09:31 AM
This site is open for discussion of all things kokanee (and other things as well). We will not all agree with each other. That is ok. But what will not be tolerated is name calling or disparaging comments toward a particular person. That is why I deleted the earlier post by Giligan112. So please continue discussion, but keep it civil.

Cannon
06-14-2010, 10:55 AM
The world record was broken yesterday at Wallowa 9 pounds and 7.76 ounces. I tried for four days to get the big one but didnt make it. I even got spooled once in the process. A fellow from Pendleton caught the big one right after i pulled out.

smokin' Kokes
06-14-2010, 03:46 PM
the Big Ones make runs like sturgeon or halibut, just keep slogging like a freight locomotive. no wild jumps, no concerted body twisting and contortions, just keep peeling off line.
my 6 pounder peeled off 100 yards like nothing, I didn't turn him, he turned on his own several times.


The world record was broken yesterday at Wallowa 9 pounds and 7.76 ounces. I tried for four days to get the big one but didnt make it. I even got spooled once in the process. A fellow from Pendleton caught the big one right after i pulled out.

vvBob
06-14-2010, 04:32 PM
I don't know why guys are so worried about this fishery. Do you think the lake is going to get fished out??.....Most of those big fish will die this fall of natural cause.
Then the cycle will begin anew.

I was up there the last week in May, Joesph can certainly use the publicity.

Fallriverguy
06-14-2010, 04:57 PM
I don't think it is so much that the lake will be fished out, but more about upsetting the balance between the kokanee and the mysis shrimp. As far as I know, Wallowa is the only koknaee lake with introduced mysis shrimp that has not crashed. If managed correctly, it might be possible for this to be a sustained trophy kokanee fishery.

May the big Wallowa kokanee continue to gobble up the shrimp and grow to amazing sizes!

And, congrats to the fisherman who landed an amazing kokanee!

jzell
06-14-2010, 07:43 PM
I share the concerns voiced by FRG. No question last year and this will have a lasting effect on the local economy from visiting fishermen. What effect the increased pressure (whatever that increased level may be) will have on the fishery and the balance of aquatic life therein, is yet to be known.

The internet and the regional media and it's speed of delivery definitely has a huge effect on the increased level of pressure. When records are set the flood gates open big time.

Be wise and take only what you need and make sure you leave plenty for the future.

fishslayer13
06-14-2010, 10:04 PM
I have gone over to wallowa, once last year and twice this year.
The first trip this year was in the snow storm in may that dumped 4 inches of snow. That trip we caught 3 fish over 3 lbs and 2 over four. This last weekend we caught 35 kokes, 2 were in the low 3 lb mark and the rest were
12 to 16 inches. Out of them 2 trips 5 fish came home with us !
So not all non-residents are there to fish it out.
I wish I could have figured out how to catch the big ones last weekend but it just didnt happen. The most boats I saw were about fifteen. Im not thinking that this will fish out a lake or harm the population of kokes. Like vvbob states they will die. I do belive an adjustment could be made on the limits.
I marked on my fish finder hundreds upon hundred of fish both days.

I very much admire and look up to pimpler for his pure heart and love of fishing for kokes. I hope to meet him some day!

When pulling out my boat on sunday I talked to a nice guy who was telling me that he had fished in the boat he had, with father as he grew up. What a wonderful thing, I wish I would have ask him his name. There is more to fishing than catching fish as others have stated and to me thats the fun in life.
The area is full of great , nice and polite people. My wife and I love to go there for more than just the fishing.
I dont mind leaving the $500.00 for a weekend it cost me go for a couple days!

hubtucker
06-14-2010, 11:07 PM
Just got back back today from Wallowa. Was there last Wednesday thru yesterday. Left anything below 17 inches to grow, however only came home with 4 fish, largest 20 1/2, four pounds. Threw back at least 15 to 20 fish a day, mostly 8 to 13 inches. Also, came home with a lot of memories. Fishing partner caught a 20 lb. (estimate) Mack on Friday. We did measure it at 34 inches. Hope to post a pic soon when he gets it to me. He had the only camera aboard.

HiTechKoke
06-14-2010, 11:17 PM
+ FallRiverGuy
+ jzell

It's a bit of a dilemma when a lake breaks records 4 times within a year period it is definitely going to get some added pressure. The Internet and external coverage in press etc. can definitely play a factor where one decides to go fishing or in Wallowa's case take a vacation since thankfully it is out of the way for the majority of people.

The same thing applies to Flaming Gorge as they certainly have seen an influx of activity the last few years when they had what I'd like to call "silly fishing" a few years ago and I had the opportunity to fish it that year for a few days. The Gorge is a lot bigger body of water than Wallowa but they both get their winter time off to rest a bit.

One thing to consider about Wallowa from my understanding is that there is no external planting program unless you guys know otherwise. Wallowa's Kokanee population is dependent on the one headwater that feeds it or if there is any in-lake spawning capability that was discovered in the Gorge among the cliffs. That makes it more sensitive to the year to year populations that are able to spawn and if they are able to spawn do they have the normal conditions to spawn based on water flows and availability.

In California the majority of lakes have no natural spawning (with a handful of exceptions) so what is left at the end will die and not have the opportunity to contribute their genes onward. I'd sure like to see those Wallowa monsters spawning this fall. Given the depth and girth of the slugs this year I gotta think half of their bodies will be exposed above water as they jockey for the spawning beds. I hope it is a good water year so they have ample room to do the wild thing!

Kevin

Cannon
06-15-2010, 04:50 PM
It is my understanding that there are both lake spawners and stream spawners. As far as the lake being fished out, the only fish taken were predominantly those over the 15" mark. Most others were released unharmed. There are a ton of fish in the lake. My fishfinder in the early morning was having screen spasms and crying out for mercy.

The population has been cyclical in the past with larger fish one year and smaller fish the next. So in saying that, we can expect some fluctuation. Some of the larger fish I caught were not mature, meaning they would have spawned next year. I like to open up the bellies and look to see what they have been eating and their bellies were full of the typical spring fare.

The shrimp have been in the lake for many years now and the lake has not crashed due to the shrimp population as in other lakes. This may be due in part to the layout of the lake in relation to the prevailing wind. The lake gradually slopes off one end to the deepest part and then slopes gradually up the opposite end. Possibly the lake is forced to turn over every time they get a good wind. When that happens it brings the shrimp up to the feeding area of the Kokanee which would keep the shrimp population under control. This is just my theory, but after doing extensive research on this, it makes sense. If you graph (with your fish finder) the end of the lake after a good wind, there is a large school of fish on the downwind side. They didn't get there by accident. When the sun comes out full, they (the fish) are gone.

The cause of the crash in all of the other shrimp infested lakes is that the shrimp migrate deep during the day and come up at night when the fish are more dormant. The fish in turn feed during the day while the shrimp are deep at night. In Kootenay Lake in Canada, where this whole shrimp thing started there were upwelling currents that brought the shrimp up to the shallows where the Kokanee could feed on them. Dams changed the current patterns and the kokanee population crashed. That isn't going to happen here!

smokin' Kokes
06-15-2010, 06:06 PM
the mysis shrimp may be contributing to the unique long term fluctuations of several complex strains of ocean run now landlocked sockeye, centuries old strains of natural geological events landlocked sockeye transplanted by man, and artificially created by man "kokanee" into Wallowa Lake from indications of ODFW studies. ODFW biologists are concerned that the shrimp directly compete with sockeye for food, zooplankton. There are at least 3 major gene pools at work here and more than likely more unofficial bucket brigade do-gooders dumping in kokanee strains in the middle of the night.
This was an stable river/lake system ecosystem until disturbed and biologically damaged in the last 150 years by tampering.

http://www.coastangler.com/kokanee/odfw.html

The following is quoted from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Internet site. This site features the weekly recreation report, the latest department news releases and much more.

SPECIFIC STATUS CONDITIONS GRANDE RONDE/WALLOWA LAKE: The sockeye morphology became extinct in the Grande Ronde as the result of a barrier constructed at the outlet of Wallowa Lake in 1916. The barrier eliminated sockeye access to Wallowa Lake. Sockeye continued to be observed in Wallowa River below the lake until the early 1930s, when they become extinct. Two kokanee populations exist in Wallowa Lake, an inlet-spawning population and a shore spawning population. The shore population is a new population discovered in 1993. The two populations are reproductively isolated from all other kokanee. Kokanee population trends and age-class distribution have been monitored annually by creel sampling and inlet population age-class sampling since 1970. The populations fluctuate over time, but show no particular long-term trend. Models to estimate population sizes are being evaluated, but the spawning populations are known to include hundreds of fish based on observations on the spawning grounds. Mysis shrimp were introduced into Wallowa Lake in the 1960s. Although the shrimp are eaten in small amounts, they do not appear to be used as a primary kokanee food item and there is concern that they may be affecting the population dynamics of native zooplankton. Zooplankton populations have been monitored annually since 1986. Hatchery kokanee were planted in this population historically. The hatchery program was discontinued for a period, then reinstated in 1990 using Paulina Lake stock to evaluate the feasibility of using hatchery fish for harvest. Evaluation of catch contribution of these hatchery fish has been conducted annually through angler creel surveys. Preliminary results to date indicate hatchery kokanee have contributed less than 3% to angler catches through 1994. All hatchery fish have been marked. The hatchery fish are of mixed origin and less than 5% can naturally spawn with the wild fish. Marked fish were observed spawning in the shoreline population for the first time in 1993. No hatchery fish have been observed in the inlet population, but sampling of the population has been limited. Hatchery releases were discontinued after 1994. Preliminary results from the NMFS biochemical survey suggest that there has been some hatchery introgression in both populations, most probably from the historical hatchery program

Mark McWillis
06-15-2010, 07:46 PM
WOW...what a hog! If IGFA recognizes it as a new all tackle world record I don't think it will stand for very long. I'd be willing to bet that a 10 pound+ will come out of Wallowa before the end of the year.

smokin' Kokes
06-15-2010, 08:11 PM
the new Ron Campbell world record
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2010/06/wallowa_lake_yielding_monster.html

http://media.oregonlive.com/news_impact/photo/kokaneejpg-5e6811cfe21bfb5e_large.jpg

pimpler
06-16-2010, 12:01 AM
Ron, welcome to the kokanee of the month club. As I said when I first caught my fish, I didn't think it would be the record for very long. It turned out that my fish was the record for only five weeks. Enjoy the spotlight for as long as you can, but no matter what happens, remember the thrill of catching your fish. I know that no matter how big a fish ever comes out of Wallowa Lake I will always remember the special feeling that comes when you know that the the fish you have hooked is something special whether it is a 3 pounder or a 10 pounder. Congratulations!

sawdustsavage
06-16-2010, 11:49 AM
Thank you to all of you. The concern for this fishery shows that a great many of you hold this place near and dear. Thats awsome.
I had the privelige to fish one of the greastest BIG FISH steelhead streams there ever was as a young man. It to was remote and not very heavily fished. Remote in this river wasn't distance from a population center but there was no road access except at the mouth and upper end. It wasn't boatable so it continued to produce world class fishing for many years. In the end it wasn't fishing pressure or logging or loss of habitat that ruined this fishery but good intentions
In the early seventies this marvelous fishery was destroyed by the Shasta Disease. This was introduced by stocking the upper end of the river with cotaminated fish.
I was greatly relieved when I read that the stocking program in this wonderfull lake had been discontinued.
I have never had the priveledge of fishing Wallowa but I can tell by all the posts here that it too is one of those SPECIAL places. I will have the pleasure of fishing this lake in July. The thought that there probably is several more record fish in this lake does excite me. However the thought of fishing a lake that so many of you are so passionate about will give me much more appreciation of this place than the chance of a lifetime fish. In the end that is what it is. A chance. I take my hat off to Pimpler and the others that have paid there dues to catch these record fish.Most of us will never have the oppertunity to do this due to time and distance. We will be intrigued with that possibility tho.
I was pleased to hear the comments on catch and release. I agree 100% with that. This is not the place to fill your freezer. Its a place to fill your heart.

jzell
06-16-2010, 05:30 PM
Best one (actually two) liner I've read on this forum.

"This is not the place to fill your freezer. Its a place to fill your heart."

sawdustsavage
06-16-2010, 10:50 PM
Thank You for your kind words