Lake Chelan Someting Catchy Kokanee derby 2016:
What an amazing weekend and fun derby to participate in. Team Holy Moly was ready to go to work! This was my first derby for the new boat and a first as captain. I brought my cousin and another buddy and we were ready to see what lake chelan had in store. The weather was absolutely phenomenal, no wind, flat glass calm and sunny. And the fish were on the bite.
Day 1:
Day one was the long haul. Start at 4am and fish till 5pm for weigh in. We launched at the Mason boat ramp and headed out towards the Monument and state park. Right away we were marking a lot of fish from 40-80 ft, and shortly after putting the rods in the water it was fish on!
After finding a few good schools of kokanee we were looking pretty good. But as soon as we found them, they scattered. And with that we started to struggle with landing the others we hooked for the next couple hours. Redemption was oh so sweet. Not soon after marking a big fish at 60 ft the rear rod slammed into the water. And before I could grab the rod, line is screaming off and the fish is on the surface thrashing. It was an intense and nerve racking fight, but soon I was able coax the fish to the net. What a fish is was! My first Lake Chelan Chinook!
We found a few more kokanee after the King and the bite shut off like a switch. So plan B came into action, Cutthroat time! What a fun fishery to do when the kokanee bite slows down. We had our Wicked lures ready and targeted the rocky shorelines by the state park and monument areas. Just about as soon as our lines hit the water, we had our first cutthroat hooked up. (Only hatchery cutthroat can be kept, and 5 a person) The cutthroat were all over the shorelines. Constant action all afternoon and saved the day for us.
Day one came to a close with 1 nice king, 11 cutthroat and 7 kokanee. A decent day to start the derby off. Velocity Rods and Reels were the ticket to getting all of our fish for day 1. With Rocky Mountain Tackle, Macs DD and custom Dodgers paired with wicked lures, olympic tackle flies, and rocky mountain tackle squids accounting for our Day 1 fish. What a fun day on the water.
