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Thread: 2013 Dworshak Fishing Thread

  1. #51
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
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    North Idaho
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    118

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    I only fish lower by indian and canyon tell about june 1. I dont fish Canyon much because there are always to many boats there, and anything you can do in canyon you can do as well or better in Indian creek or across from Freeman creek in the flat. You have to fish it just right with the the ridge that comes into the lake. But they are there.
    I do fish the Dent side of the mouth of elk creek until about then also. I troll in about 400 yards , then turn and come back out. They lay on that side more than the other side. Put 100 to 120 foot of water under your boat and you will find some fish.
    After June 1 I fish above Dent bridge. I like to fish the bank on the oppisite side from cranberry creek. If they are catching fish under Dent bridge you will more than likley catch more across fron Cranberry.
    Hottest fishing I have is the 3rd week in june and I fish above reeds creek and magnus. I have a spot up there that holds tons of kokes and NO one ever fishes there. Everyone going by in boats looks at you like your nuts, but its good. We fished it 2 times last year with 3 of us in the boat and put a 75 fish limit in the boat both times with the first time taking about 4 hours and the second just under 3 hours.
    I then just chase the fish up the lake as they go. I will go to grandad after 4th of July, it gets real good into 1st part of Aug. You can catch Kokes at any time about any where in the lake, but these time lines and places hold true for producing lots of fish year after year. It may swing a week either way or more for when they are good, but always works. Im not one to sit around and wait much . If I dont start catching fish real fast I pull up and try some place else. Im going to get out in the next week or so and I will start above Dent. Fishing is always good around reeds, swamp and magnus until about mid july. By good I mean you should be able to put 30 or so fish in the boat by noon or so. Hope this helps, if not your welcome to come on our boat or follow when we are there. We have a 21 ft thunderjet Off shore with 150 yamha out board on it. Its blue with a half hard top and a black fish design on the hard top. If you see us come on over and say hi !

  2. #52
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    North Central ID
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    36

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    WOW, fishslayer13, thanks a bunch for the info. My buddy and I haven't got on yet this year (after about 6 trips)...obviously we're in the wrong spots cause we're using the right gear (same as everyone else). We've tried Canyon a bunch to no luck except for a real nice rainbow last weekend. Finally we got frustrated and went after bass and at least got some action. We're Kokanee novices but have digested this site thoroughly and have fished all lures, all depths with good electronics and still getting skunked. We'll take you up on the invite to shadow you. Headed out in the AM for a quick trip unless it's pouring....

  3. #53
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Hell's Canyon, WA
    Posts
    102

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    Thanks for all the helpful information fishslayer13, we will be looking for your boat when we are out there. Our boat is a 21' Northwest Jet, white with maroon top, raised rear deck, "The Kingfisher" is written below the side windows. We are going to have house guest for the next ten days, so our fishing will be curtailed, but will be checking the Kokanee Forum to see what we are missing.

    jumperzee, good luck on your upcoming trip, will be looking forward to your comments.

  4. #54
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Location
    North Idaho
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    118

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    Jumperzee, man thats a lot of fishing with no fish. On another page on this post I put my go to gear in a pic, are you using same type gear ? Hope you did good if you went today. If I can help you out some I sure will. Kenbarb , guests are only supposed to show when theres no fishing going on LOL ! But on a good note it should be better fishing by then. Will look out for you guys. Do you guys have vhf radios in your boats ? If so just give a couple shouts out to Fishslayer on channel 69 and if Im down there I will hook up with some of you guys.
    Tangle free line

  5. #55
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    North Central ID
    Posts
    36

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    Yeah, F13, we were pretty much using the same gear as what you posted and we we finally connected yesterday. Found a bunch on the downlake side of Indian Creek. Had pretty consistent action over the 3-4 hours we fished and boated 8 and lost at least another 8 or so right at the boat. All of them were real nice fatties - about 12" or so. Now we just need to work on our landing technique!!! We finally stopped using the net and just started hauling them in bassmaster style which seemed to work better, although I doubt it's the preffered technique. Got most of the fish on the downrigger at about 15 feet with a small set of silver flashers. Tried long lining flashers with and without weight and had moderate action on those. Speed seemed to be the trick for us...whenever we sped up, did a fast turn or started reeling in a line we seemed to pick one up. Color didn't seem to matter as much as depth yesterday. Headed back to give it another try today but we'll have a boatload of kids so it may be more of a bass day!

  6. #56
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Hell's Canyon, WA
    Posts
    102

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    As a matter of fact we do have a vhf, will try to contact you next time out. Thanks again for all the good information, you are very generous.

    jumperzee, I am so glad you finally connected, would liked to have been there when you pulled the first one in. I think God made Kokanee for boat loads of kids, some of my best fishing memories are fishing for Kokanee with our kids, I'll bet yours will be too. Good luck out there.

  7. #57
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Lewiston, Id
    Posts
    128

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    Heading to Dworshak 6/12 with my daughter for an overnighter. Figured we'd start around Magnus. If you see a green Custom Weld with KFF stickers, a 12 year old girl and a busy dad say Hi!
    Real joy comes not from ease or riches or from the praise of men, but from doing something worthwile. -Wilfred T. Grenfell

  8. #58
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Lewiston, Id
    Posts
    128

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    Extreme temperatures force water managers to start Dworshak releases a bit early. There will still be plenty of water for the holiday week. Please anticipate the lake level lowering overnight and adjust your boat accordingly so as to avoid being beached in hth morning.--copied from the COE facebook page.
    Real joy comes not from ease or riches or from the praise of men, but from doing something worthwile. -Wilfred T. Grenfell

  9. #59
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Hell's Canyon, WA
    Posts
    102

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    Thanks for the heads up 3RivrFishr, will be heading to Dworshak Park Monday for three or four days. We were there about a week ago and the fishing was outstanding, had to keep adjusting for depth, and changing the offering to keep the bite going. Beautiful Kokanee, and nice size. Attachment 6475

  10. #60
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Hell's Canyon, WA
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    102

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    Camped at beautiful Freeman Creek Campground, pulled in late on Monday the 8th, and left Wed. afternoon. We had planned on staying until Friday, but we caught a lot of Kokanee too soon, and were afraid they might get soft if we stayed that long, had them iced down in the cooler, but it was really hot, the back deck of the boat was too hot to walk on without shoes. had to open the cooler every time we caught a Kokanee, so they were exposed to some of the heat, anyway better to be safe than sorry.

    Fished from the Freeman Creek Launch to the start of Elk Creek, caught fish constantly, but the hot bite was very early in the morning, found fish pretty much everywhere, when it would get spotty we would change location. Was wondering how the bite was at Canyon Creek so made a trip to check it out, saw hardly any fish on the fishfinder, there were three boats near us, we didn't see any nets out, fished for about twenty minutes, then headed for another spot about half way to Elk Creek, and had a Kokanee before the second line was out.

    Had dyed four colors of Shoepeg corn, and marinated in various scents, used Kokabow, Wedding rings, Squid, Needlefish and several other terminal lures, when one was hot we changed all lines to that lure, if it got a little slow we would try something else.

    Mornings are very nice and cool, but it starts heating up about 10:00am, and by noon it is starting to get uncomfortable, and at 3:00pm it is really hot, so be prepared. At one point we pulled into a secluded cove and took a dip, the surface water temp. was almost70*, like bath water, that was a good temporary fix.

    The Kokanee are really nice size, ten to thirteen inches and very chunky, really nice fish, we were releasing the smaller ones, but we actually didn't catch all that many small fish. Can hardly wait to get back, so nice to have such a beautiful place in our back yard.

  11. #61

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    Thanks for the info kenbarb. I was there Tuesday and fished mostly at Canyon Creek although I tried other spots. I caught a few before the heat got me. I spent too much time fishing at 35-50 feet (downrigger) before I found a bunch at 25 feet. I was surprised to find them that shallow when the surface water temp was 81 degrees. What depth did you find them at?



    Quote Originally Posted by kenbarb View Post
    Camped at beautiful Freeman Creek Campground, pulled in late on Monday the 8th, and left Wed. afternoon. We had planned on staying until Friday, but we caught a lot of Kokanee too soon, and were afraid they might get soft if we stayed that long, had them iced down in the cooler, but it was really hot, the back deck of the boat was too hot to walk on without shoes. had to open the cooler every time we caught a Kokanee, so they were exposed to some of the heat, anyway better to be safe than sorry.

    Fished from the Freeman Creek Launch to the start of Elk Creek, caught fish constantly, but the hot bite was very early in the morning, found fish pretty much everywhere, when it would get spotty we would change location. Was wondering how the bite was at Canyon Creek so made a trip to check it out, saw hardly any fish on the fishfinder, there were three boats near us, we didn't see any nets out, fished for about twenty minutes, then headed for another spot about half way to Elk Creek, and had a Kokanee before the second line was out.

    Had dyed four colors of Shoepeg corn, and marinated in various scents, used Kokabow, Wedding rings, Squid, Needlefish and several other terminal lures, when one was hot we changed all lines to that lure, if it got a little slow we would try something else.

    Mornings are very nice and cool, but it starts heating up about 10:00am, and by noon it is starting to get uncomfortable, and at 3:00pm it is really hot, so be prepared. At one point we pulled into a secluded cove and took a dip, the surface water temp. was almost70*, like bath water, that was a good temporary fix.

    The Kokanee are really nice size, ten to thirteen inches and very chunky, really nice fish, we were releasing the smaller ones, but we actually didn't catch all that many small fish. Can hardly wait to get back, so nice to have such a beautiful place in our back yard.

  12. #62
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Hell's Canyon, WA
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    102

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    amxerhull I can sure understand your comment about the heat, it got to us too.

    We were fishing with 3 ounce banana weights using 10# Berkley Fireline, about 60' feet out, the thin braid gets pretty good depth so I would guess about 25 feet down. Had downriggers on the boat, but we were catching so many fish using weights I did not use them until the last day, and then I only rigged one up, my wife Barb is not fond of downrigger fishing. I had some new Chamberlin Releases I wanted to try, and knew I would regret not trying them out. Well I've got to tell you, we should have been using the downriggers all the time. The terminal gear was 27' down, if I remember right we caught five fish on the downrigger in about one hour, had two long lines out at the same time, but they were not getting as many hits. It was a absolute blast playing the Kokanee without a string of spinners and a heavy weight. From now on Barb and I will be using the downriggers, the Chamberlin Line Release works like a charm, no false releases, and it trips every time a kokanee hits, no more dragging around fish, and watching your rod to see if a fish is on, they really work good. Google up Chamberlin Line Release, when you get on his website, he has a couple of videos showing how they work.

  13. #63
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Location
    North Idaho
    Posts
    118

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    Hey glad you guys are doing good. I havent been fishing Dworshak much this year, a couple other lakes have been getting my attention. 4 of us did go down a saturday a couple weeks ago and ended up one short of a limt. Guess we couldnt count that high cause we sure could have caught one more. Everything off the downrigger at 20 to 35 feet. We were up above reeds creek a little. Fish were smaller than last year at 12 inches or so.
    Last edited by fishslayer13; 07-13-2013 at 08:56 AM.

  14. #64
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Caldwell
    Posts
    138

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    Quote Originally Posted by kenbarb View Post
    amxerhull I can sure understand your comment about the heat, it got to us too.

    We were fishing with 3 ounce banana weights using 10# Berkley Fireline, about 60' feet out, the thin braid gets pretty good depth so I would guess about 25 feet down. Had downriggers on the boat, but we were catching so many fish using weights I did not use them until the last day, and then I only rigged one up, my wife Barb is not fond of downrigger fishing. I had some new Chamberlin Releases I wanted to try, and knew I would regret not trying them out. Well I've got to tell you, we should have been using the downriggers all the time. The terminal gear was 27' down, if I remember right we caught five fish on the downrigger in about one hour, had two long lines out at the same time, but they were not getting as many hits. It was a absolute blast playing the Kokanee without a string of spinners and a heavy weight. From now on Barb and I will be using the downriggers, the Chamberlin Line Release works like a charm, no false releases, and it trips every time a kokanee hits, no more dragging around fish, and watching your rod to see if a fish is on, they really work good. Google up Chamberlin Line Release, when you get on his website, he has a couple of videos showing how they work.
    Ken,
    I had never heard of the Chamberlain release till you mentioned it... Thanks for the tip I researched them and wow these are awesome!!! I ordered 2 right off and can't wait to try them out.

    I have always used the pinch pad and have cussed them the whole time. Now I have a reason (like I need one.) To go out trolling again LOL!!!!!

  15. #65
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Hell's Canyon, WA
    Posts
    102

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    JTM, You are going to love the Chamberlain release, no more false releases, or dragging small fish around without knowing it, really makes downrigger fishing fun. We are going to fish Dworshak Lake tomorrow, and am pretty excited about trying some new stuff, will be using six and a half foot light rods, should be a lot of fun without all all the spinners and weight between you and the fish. I have the Chamberlain Stacker releases and have modified them a little to make them easier to use, they were made specifically for braided downrigger line, have tried everything out in the shop, hope it works in the water. Tight lines, Ken

  16. #66
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Colton, Wa
    Posts
    20

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    Hi Ken,
    we were camping up at Cranberry Creek during the weekend. We kind of took it easy and not out too early. I was watching some of the boats fish in Cranberry and then give up.
    So I took that as an omen and we went up to Reed's Creek and Swamp Creek. We fished 2 days and caught about about 35 fish. We were using 3 ounces of weight so I figure we were about 25 - 27 feet. But it took a little time. Never really found a lot of fish in one place or the bite wasn't real hot.
    I am curious if wouldn't mind sharing the dye and scents you use for the corn ?
    Also, what terminal tackle were you using for on the down rigger if you weren't using flashers? We only have one down rigger but I would like to try that without the weights. Sounds fun.
    Thanks!

  17. #67
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Location
    North Idaho
    Posts
    118

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    fishfam----------You should be fishing magnus bay or even higher up this late in the year. If your not putting 10 or so fish per hour in your boat move on or do something different with your tackle.

  18. #68
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Hell's Canyon, WA
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    102

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    Hi fishfam, On our last trip we only got out early one morning, the first line went in at 5:30am, before the second line went in we had a fish on, then for about a hour it was a very hot bite, at times the screen was just loaded with Kokanee, when they started getting sparse we would turn around and go back through them. Looks like the hot bite may start at daybreak.

    We were wondering how the fishing was up around Cranbury Creek and Magnus Bay, started fishing at Indian and Canyon Creek last month, the fishing has been so good we have not gone past Elk Creek, unbelievable Kokanee fishing, how lucky can we be to have a fishery like this?

    Corn, I use the Green Giant Shoepeg corn. The dye I use is the same used for Salmon and Steelhead eggs, you can get it all at Camp Cabin & Home in Lewiston. I use small sandwich bags, put a few tbs. of corn in, them put a couple tsp. of dye, add just enough water to cover the corn, then put in cooler, you will need to monitor the color change, when it gets to the desired color rinse in cold water, spread on paper towel, put in a small plastic container, then add the scent.

    Scent, that is a good question, we do a lot of Steelhead fishing, and I have been using the same scents, Shrimp, Anise, and Krill, made by Mike's.

    We have also used the Pautzkie dyed corn, the red is very productive, it does not spoil, and has the magic scent they use.

    Here is what we do with the downriggers: Attach the flashers directly to the ball, 3' above the ball attach the line release, clip your line in the release so the lure extends 3' farther than the flashers, so if your flashers are 3' long, the line from release to lure would be 6'.

    Sure hope this helps with your rigging, there are probably better ways to do it, but this works for us. One thing for sure, just when you think you have it all figured out, you find out you don't. Ken

  19. #69
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Colton, Wa
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    20

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    Thanks for the information Ken.
    I was at camp cabin and home and picked up some Pro-Cure Anise Plus.
    I looked at the Pautzke corn but didn't grab it.
    I am a very surprised at how well the fishing sounds down below Elk Creek still or perhaps we just like to move up for a change of scenery.
    The fishing was good up at Swamp Creek but not what I would call hot. We really didn't start fishing until 10:00 or 11:00 AM.
    We didn't return to camp until after 6:00 PM. We take quite a few breaks and let the kids tube a little and swim.
    Sometimes we drop them off on the shore and my wife and I keep trolling. They do catch quite a few small mouth!
    When you rig the down rigger in this fashion what lure do you use, wedding ring, Apex etc... ?
    Thanks again.

  20. #70
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Colton, Wa
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    20

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    Ken,
    I meant to ask what fishfinder are you using. i have been struggling with my Humminbird I purchased last summer. It seems to want to loose the bottom. I think I have that problem mostly resolved. However, this past weekend we were catching fish but I never saw any on the finder...

  21. #71
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    Jun 2012
    Location
    Colton, Wa
    Posts
    20

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    fishslayer,
    we went as high up as the Osprey nest above Magnus. Didn't do as well there . So we went back down to Swamp Creek. Did better there.
    Sure weren't doing 10 fish an hour though. This was probably one of our lesser trips in terms of catch.
    We generally stick with wedding ring, banana weight, maggot or corn. We try to change speeds and depth and different color beads.
    Also different color flashers. I haven't yet tried a dodger with Apex or hoochie.

  22. #72
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Location
    North Idaho
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    Fishfam --you were just short of one of my best fishing spots. I have never done well at the nest but I have seen a lot of people fish there. The first narrow spot on the lake above the nest is called the pinch, its about 100 yards wide. This is where a bunch of fish hang up. Its hard to fish with it being that narrow. But run past the creek a little and then hit the other side on the way back down and keep doing circles in there that are about 200 yards long. On the low side turn around in the wide spot where the nest is and head back up the other side. I always fish the narrowest places I can find this time of year. My 10 fish an hour is probably off a bit for most as I forget we run 4 downriggers on our boat. So if your catching 5 or 6 an hour with 2 downriggers , its about equal ! I had some friends last week run up to grandad and said just below the bridge a quarter of a mile they hit a limit in about 3 hours or a little more. They also said the higher up that they went the bigger the fish were. I dont know why that would be. But they felt sorry for me working so much this year and brought a plate of fresh smoked kokes in. Some were 15 inches most about 13 or 14 but heavy. The fish don't stay in the pinch long but should still be there, I would think. These fish are on the move and more active and aggressive. They are moving so as to spawn, so they have attitude. If their not there they will be up at gold creek somewhere maybe. But lots of fuel to get up and back. I always put in at dent.
    I run double sickle hooks on everything I run for kokes. I put a white shoepeg corn on the upper hook that has been soaked overnight in smelly jelly anise and only smelly jelly, no other brand has had the same results for me ! If the fishing is slower than what I want I will also add a maggot to the back hook so that the black head part of the maggot is facing the fish and is wiggling at the fish. Some days it makes all the difference in the world, some days they don't care at all.
    I'm not going to make it to Dworshak again this year as I'm packing to take the boat to Canada for halibut ,salmon and bottom fish for 2 weeks.
    Hope this helps all of you !

  23. #73
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Colton, Wa
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    20

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    Fishslayer, thnaks for the info. We will be going up tomorrow for a 4 day weekend. probably camp around swamp creek or Magnus.
    Have fun in Canada.

  24. #74
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    Mar 2010
    Location
    Colton
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    74

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    Fishfam,,,,is that you Randy??? ....sue

  25. #75
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    Jun 2012
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    Colton, Wa
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    Yep it's me ...

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