Kokanee Fishing On Wallowa Lake In Northeastern Oregon
Trip Highlights: Wallowa Lake has been setting some pretty remarkable records in just the past few years.
Up until the last decade, Wallowa Lake was a pretty typical medium-sized high mountain lake. It doesn’t look as long as it is, nearly five miles from end-to-end and a half mile across with a depth of almost three hundred feet.
The topography of the near-shore bottom makes it difficult to fish. On the East side, where most of the big fishing catching occurs, there’s a collection of sunken tree’s, truck-sized boulders, and subtle dips that all hide big kokanee.
Our trip had been timed for the middle of May, which was one of a few optimum times to consistently catch big kokes. During the late spring, big kokanee move up into shallower water areas to feed on minnows. These shallow water areas range anywhere from 10’ to 35’.
My net appraisal of Wallowa Lake formed over two days of fishing with Mark Moncrief is to hire him as your guide. Even a seasoned fishing vet will get frustrated learning this lake for these huge fish. It’s a very specialized fishery with specific gear, riggings, and locational patterns that would be difficult to master in a week, let alone a couple of days.
The good news though is that they’re there. Big 20” plus kokanee, and there appears to be a healthy, if not growing, population of these fish. As I already knew, kokanee are a landlocked species of sockeye salmon. Their life cycle mirrors that of their saltwater cousins as they feed, spawn, and die just like any anadromous salmon does. As I learned, these fish had “morphed” from plankton eaters, which is what Sockeye are, to carnivores eating mysis shrimp and a particular sucker-minnow that lives in the lake.
This change in feeding behavior has resulted in staggering growth rates that are now tipping the scales to over 5 pounds and 24” in length.
A 20” kokanee is considered a trophy anywhere, and Moncrief had, in one season, boated 78.
Kokanee aren’t the only story at Wallowa Lake. There’s also fabulous river fishing close by in the Wallowa, Lostine and Minam rivers, along with dozens of small lakes a short hike into the hills.
Wallowa Lake is also home to lunker lake trout and good rainbow fishing too. Smaller kokanee are also readily available in the lake as well, kokanee that by most any other standard would be considered “big” at 12” to 15”.
Rigging for the big fish is somewhat complicated.
You’ll need a fully-equipped boat complete with downriggers (preferably electric), an excellent fish finder, troll speed indicator, reliable trolling motor and long (8’) limber rods loaded with a small diameter 12 lb. test line.
Depth, speed, and rigging are all essential components to success at Wallowa Lake.
Moncrief, a hardworking hunting guide, applied his work ethic in the boat and moved between his fish finder and downriggers from start to finish as he controlled his trolling motor with a handheld cable-driven steering device.
This system allowed Moncrief to work efficiently all day long while maintaining precise steering control as he navigated carefully along subtle breaks and alongside fish-holding bottom structure.
We kept the downrigger balls positioned anywhere from 5’ to 10’ above the bottom depending on the area. At times Moncrief would drop the downriggers into pockets and then match their contour by carefully adjusting his dowriggers in response to the information he was reading on his fish finder.
At times we’d “see” the fish as our baits passed by and got struck hard enough to break them loose from the downrigger clip.
Mark uses different riggings throughout the year, while we were there he preferred an Apex Kokanee Killer tipped with a maggot and coated in Pro Cure Prawn/Shrimp oil. This lure was tethered to a 30” leader behind a silver Sling Blade Dodger produced by Shasta Tackle.
This combination was placed about 30’ feet in back of the boat and then attached to the downrigger clip.
Make sure the clip you choose has a very light release. The key to catching these trophies rests in how easy you can take it on the fish. You’re only halfway there when you get them to bite. Keeping them on and ultimately landing one of these monsters is the real challenge.
Apply to much pressure anywhere along the way and you’re sure to lose the fish. Kokanee have very soft mouths, which calls for long, light limber rods, and Sling Blade Dodgers that cut easily through the water and provide very little resistance during the fight. It’s a carefully matched system that requires complete attention the entire time you’re on the water.
The big fish seem to bite best early and late in the day, also a slight chop on the water is a plus.
An important part of this show was my guest and friend Gary Miralles, the owner of Shasta Tackle. Gary was the one who originally presented the idea to us of fishing Wallowa Lake. He’d been there the year before and caught a couple trophy fish and shared his story of success with us. Gary had also made a welcome decision just before we arrived at the lake.
A trolling expert himself, Miralles had gone to the lake early to pre-fish for our trip and was having some difficulty getting dialed-in for the trip. He was catching fish, but not the trophies we’d hoped for. He made the recommendation to enlist the services of the lake’s expert, Mark Moncrief. We did, and were able to land a 20 ½” fish with Mark’s guidance.
Gary’s a passionate angler who’s parlayed his expertise into a thriving tackle company that’s the result of years of on-the-water success he’s enjoyed as a Northern California lake guide.
Gary’s lures are quickly becoming a staple among serious trout anglers. I’ve saved many a trip with his crushed orange Cripplure, and caught fish on his Hum Dinger spoons, Sling Blade Dodger and Sling Blade salmon spoon, and his new Koke-A-Nut that’s only now beginning to surface as one of the region’s “hot new kokanee baits”.
You can find out more about Gary’s company and his video on trolling techniques by logging onto: www.shastatackle.com or by calling (530) 275-2278.
Finally, this is a getaway I’d recommend to anybody. It’s picturesque, the town of Joseph is inviting and filled with neat little shops and some nice restaurants that make taking the edge off a long day easy.
Mark Moncrief is a first rate fisherman and guide. You’d do well to embrace his services.
| Host: |
Trey Carskadon |
| Guide: |
Mark Moncrief, Tri-State Outfitters - 541-426-4468. |
| Phone: |
541-426-4468 |
| Location: |
Wallowa Lake in Northeastern Oregon |
| Species: |
Kokanee |
| Equipment: |
You’ll need a fully-equipped boat complete with downriggers (preferably electric), an excellent fish finder, troll speed indicator, reliable trolling motor and long (8’) limber rods loaded with a small diameter 12 lb. test line. |
