Larger Kokanee The Result Of Bucks Lake Hatchery Program   By: Dan Bacher September 9, 2008 More Articles by Dan

Bucks Lake, a beautiful PG&E reservoir surrounded by a thick forest of ponderosa pine, sugar pine and red fir in Plumas National Forest, hosts a large array of species, including mackinaw trout, brown trout, rainbow trout, brook trout and kokanee salmon.

Located at an elevation of 5,155 feet, Bucks is known best for its huge mackinaw. Macks over 20 pounds are caught every year by anglers trolling and jigging on the lake.

The DFG introduced the mackinaw into the lake not only to provide a trophy fishery, but to feed upon the over abundant, naturally reproducing population of kokanee salmon. Many seasons the kokanee have been quite small, ranging from 6 to 10 inches, because of ideal spawning conditions.

Fortunately, the kokanee are getting larger every year, thanks to an ambitious brown trout planting program conducted in recent years by the Feather River College Fish Hatchery in Quincy. College officials hope that the browns will not only provide an excellent trophy fishery, but also put a dent on the large numbers of kokanee.

"We are now stocking over 10,000 pounds of brown trout into the lake," said Zach Parks, hatchery manager. "This year we stocked 5,000 fish in the 12 inch class and 5,000 larger fish to 18 inches."

Parks said their brown trout program appears to be a success, as evidenced by the increasingly larger size of the kokanee landed by anglers and by increasing catches of browns to 30 inches by locals.

The kokanee caught during fourth annual Kokanee Power Bucks Lake Fishing Derby, established to raise money to fund the hatchery, were on the average 1 to 2 inches bigger this year during they than they were three years ago. In contrast with 2005 and 2006, when a 10-1/2 inch kokanee was a monster, the fish this year averaged 11 to 12 inches each.

This is one event that I won't miss because every year I have had a great time fishing with Bryan Roccucci of Big Daddy's Guide Service and John Yurkovich, owner of Uncle Larry's Fishing Tackle. This year was a little different than the past few because we caught just kokanee and two mackinaw to 3 pounds - rather than wide array of brookies, browns, rainbows and kokanee that we have taken in previous years.

The kokanee were particularly feisty. We landed limits of kokanee, but we also lost numerous fish, probably hooking around 40 fish total. We enticed the salmon while trolling at 35 to 45 feet deep with Uncle Larry's spinners in pink tiger, pinkie and popsicle behind Vance's watermelon, copper and gold dodgers

"This is the second day I've fished for kokanee at Bucks this year," said Roccucci. "Yesterday the trout bite died, probably because of the full moon and the rapidly dropping lake level. I hadn't even tried for kokanee before that because the trout bite was phenomenal throughout June and July. We caught anywhere from 20 to 40 fish every day until yesterday."

Most of the fish Roccucci had been catching the previous two months were fat, hard fighting rainbows in 14 to 17 inch range, with a few brown trout and brookies mixed in. Roccucci used frog pattern Needlefish, Dick Nites and other lures to coax the fish to bite.

Although we did very well on kokanee, many other anglers had a tough time, since the fish appeared to be scattered, and like the trout, put off the bite by the full moon.

Rene Villanueva of Steelie Dan's Guide Service decided to focus on mackinaw. His change in tactics was a good move, since he caught a 10 pound mackinaw, not only the big mackinaw in the event this year, but the largest fish of any kind caught during any of the Kokanee Power derbies at Bucks. He fooled the fish while trolling a 5-1/2 inch long blue and silver minnow plug at 65 feet deep.

That wasn't the only big mack taken by Villanueva. On the previous day, Villanueva landed an 8 lb. mackinaw while fishing a purple Mario Bug behind a Rocky Mountain U.V. dodger for kokanee.

Villanueva's fishing partner, Rich Crispi, didn't do too badly either. He took the big trout (non-mackinaw) honors by catching one of the few rainbows reported during the event.

If you want to target the mackinaw, trolling along the lake bottom in the early spring or summer is your best bet. The mackinaw fishing is good in the summer when the lake level is stable and slows down when the lake level drops a lot, according to Roccucci.

This year the fishing was best right after ice out, while in previous years June and August were Roccucci's best months. On the day before Mother's Day, Roccucci's clients hooked three mackinaw ranging from 10 to 20 pounds and 6 browns and rainbows to 3 pounds.

"I troll K15 Stingfish with chrome blue scales to target the mackinaw in the spring," said Roccucci.. "During the summer, jigging with Crippled Herring, Buzz Bombs and similar lures is your best bet. The biggest mackinaw ever put in my boat was a 26 pounder."

Seventy anglers, including ten juniors, participated in the derby. Rick Coehlho of Manteca, John Zeman of San Jose and Mike Giovacchini of San Jose won first place with a total of 4 fish weighing 43.24 ounces. Their largest fish measured 12-3/4 inches long.

"We caught our fish while trolling Z Bugs and micro-spinners at 30 to 50 feet deep over 70 feet of water," said Zeman. Unlike many anglers who found tough fishing during the derby, they caught full limits of kokanee.

The derby paid down to fifteenth place in the adult division. The second through fifth place winners were the teams headed by Brian Russel, James Franco, Bill Back and Jack Baber.

Lauren Wilson won first place in the children's division, followed by Gavin Henderson, Jaden Melton, Tyler Burke and Hannah Harman.

Kokanee Power and Feather River College volunteers conducted the weigh in, raffle and other activities during the event. Randy Bergquist, Kokanee Power board member, was the derby chairperson. All of the funds raised in the annual event go to sustain the hatchery and scholarships for students.

Kokanee Power is donating a minimum of $ 5,000 per year, plus contributing to special projects that come up, according to Zack Parks. Every year the organization awards a $1000 Phil Johnson Memorial Scholarship to a student working in the Feather River College Fish Hatchery and three $500 scholarships to high school seniors entering the college.

"Zach has made the hatchery a state of the art facility," said Michael Bagley, chief instructional officer for Feather River College. "Our goal is to make the hatchery a destination that everybody comes to tour when in the area."

Bucks Lake Facts

Location and Size: This high mountain lake is set at an elevation of 5,155 feet 10 miles west of Quincy. The lake has a surface area of 1,827 acres with 14 miles of shoreline.

History: The lake is located in a valley known for almost 80 years as Bucks Ranch. In 1925, the Bucks Creek Project was undertaken by the Feather River Power Company. Part of the project, Bucks Dam, was completed in 1929. Title passed to the Great Western Power Company the same year, and later to Pacific Gas and Electric Company. About half of the shoreline is now owned by Pacific Gas and Electric and the other half is under the management of the Forest Service.

Season: Fishing season is year-round, but heavy snows prevent access to the lake from November through May or June.

Boating: Three paved boat ramps are available.

Camping and Lodging: A private concessionaire operates five family campgrounds and one group campground. There are approximately 63 family camping units and 3 group units. There are no restroom facilities on Lower Bucks Lake, so camping will be restricted to self contained vehicles. Campsites may be reserved through Reserve USA (1-877-444-6777). Each Campground has piped water with the exception of Lower Bucks Lake. For more information, call Plumas National Forest, District Office at (530) 283-0555, http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/plumas/recreation/rec_areas/bucks.php

Bucks Lake Marina, 530-283-4243, is a full service facility. Lakeview Cabin Rentals, patio and fishing boat rentals, RV park and campground, marina store, boat slips and a boat launch are available.

Bucks Lake Lodge, 530-283-2262, has a grocery store, restaurant, bar, gasoline, cabins, motel rooms and a game room.

Bucks Lakeside (Lakeshore) Resort, 530-283-2848, offers marina and boat launch facilities and R.V. camping.

Guide Services and Fishing Information: Bryan Roccucci of Big Daddy's Guide Service, 530-283-4103, and Allen Bruzza, guide and owner of Sportsmen's Den, Quincy, (530) 283-2733.

Feather River College Hatchery Information: Hatchery Director, Zack Parks, 530-283-9199. Kokanee Power, www.kokaneepower.org.

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