But I digress. The purpose of this article is not to make you hungry, but to examine the properties of one of my favorite lures: Flatfish, Kwikfish, Lazy Ike- there are several brands of wide-wobbling plugs, commonly referred to as banana plugs due to their elongated, curved shape. Originally carved of wood, most of these lures are now manufactured from molded plastic. They float when at rest, but the tapered front end acts as a diving lip, forcing the plug under the surface when trolled or cast and retrieved. Unlike the tight, uniform wiggle of minnow plugs such as Rebels and Rapalas, banana plugs have a more pronounced side-to-side motion, punctuated with random, erratic, darting movements where the lure veers to the left or right for a moment before returning to center.

This unique action has a well-earned reputation for triggering big trout, and I frequently employ banana plugs to great effect on my local lakes. On my two most recent outings to Fallen Leaf Lake, Rapalas failed to produce, trolled minnows took only small fish, but my Jointed Kwikfish lure trolled on leadcore line caught brown trout to 20 inches and mackinaw to 6 pounds. I also conducted a seminar for a client aboard his boat on Lake Tahoe last week; an experienced angler, he has a selection of large Flatfish lures he uses when backtrolling for salmon in the Sacramento river, but had not thought to employ them for trout in inland lakes. Well, while we caught some fish shallow trolling Rapalas at sunrise, I told him stories about banana plugs- that the former State Record mackinaw, a 34 pounder, was caught in Tahoe on a silver Flatfish, and that my largest fish from Fallen Leaf, a 10 pound mack, bit a custom painted, K-16 Kwikfish.

So when the topline bite slowed by midmorning, he was agreeable to letting me clip a banana plug to the downrigger release and lower it to 30 feet as he slowly trolled off a steep-sloped point. And when shortly thereafter he reeled in and released a fat brown trout, the very species he had told me he hoped to catch on our trip, he became a banana believer. Here are some tips for using these plugs on your favorite trout waters.

Size: These lures run from tiny 'fly-rod' sizes on up to six-inch salmon models. The smallest are great lures for stream trout and modest rainbows and brook trout in lakes. Pinch a lead splitshot on to your line a foot or two up from the lure and retrieve or troll very slowly to keep it from popping to the surface. For larger trout, don't be afraid to go big, up to the four or five inch size. These models dig down into the water column and stay beneath the surface as long as they are properly tuned, and trolled or retrieved at the correct speed.

Speed and Tuning: So what is the correct speed? Worden's Flatfish comes with instructions to troll 'very slowly', and I agree, for the most part. Start by putting your lure in the water with only a few feet of line out, watching its action as you troll or retrieve it just fast enough to keep it beneath the water's surface. At one mile-per-hour or less, the plug's movement should be a uniform, side-to-side motion. As you pick up the pace, you'll begin to see that random, darting action I mentioned, until the speed where you'll see the lure not just dart to the side, but attempt to make a complete circle and turn upside down, at which point it will pop to the surface.

This either means you've exceeded your lure's optimal speed, or that it needs to be tuned. Just like Rapalas, improperly tuned banana plugs will track to the side, tangling other trolled lines, or even turn over completely, swimming in line-twisting circles. Check the metal ring, or 'eye' to which your line attaches at the front of the lure. It should extend straight forward and be screwed in tight; if the ring is bent to the side or partially unscrewed, your lure will not track properly; grab your needle-nose pliers and straighten out the problem!

For years, I used Flatfish exclusively, but lately have found more success with Luhr Jensen's Kwikfish, largely because they come out of the box more precisely tuned, and track better at higher speeds than Flatfish. I'm not alone in this opinion, either; salmon and steelhead guide Dan Carter spends a lot of time backtrolling banana plugs in rivers where the swift current can challenge their ability to track and wobble correctly. When I once asked him which brand he preferred, Dan told me "Flatfish are fine if you can find the one out of ten that's tuned right. I like Kwikfish."

My current favorite model for trolling is the jointed Kwikfish, in the K10J, or five-inch size. Big enough to attract large trout, it's only half as wide as a non-jointed model of the same length. This means less water resistance or 'pull' on the rod and line, allowing the use of lighter tackle. In addition, the slim profile allows me to troll at higher speeds than possible with non-jointed models. The K10J will track true at speeds upwards of three miles-per-hour when properly tuned, and this wider speed range, combined with the frenetic 'hula-dancer-on-espresso' action of the two-part, jointed body sets this lure apart from other banana plugs.

Color: Kwikfish and Flatfish are available in just about every color God intended, and a few he surely did not- Glitter Watermelon? Sherbet Rainbow? I'm not making these up, but before we come back to the snack food jokes, let me just say that if you fish lakes in the Tahoe area and you start with silver, gold, rainbow trout, and white/pearl patterns, you'll be fine.

So the next time you're out on a good trout lake and your favorite spinners, spoons, or minnow plugs fail to produce, take a deep breath, remain calm, and GO BANANAS!

Fish Facts: Fallen Leaf Lake- 'The Leaf' is an excellent, diverse fishery, with all the species of nearby Lake Tahoe. Mackinaw are the main quarry, with minnows drifted off the bottom or trolled behind flashers accounting for large numbers of one to three pound fish. Larger lake trout, to over 20 pounds, are caught almost exclusively on trolled artificial lures, including, of course, banana plugs. Brown trout to 10 pounds are also available for the dedicated angler, kokanee salmon provide good summertime action, and there is a resident strain of wild, silver-colored rainbow trout. Last year Lahontan cutthroat trout in the 9 to 12 inch range were also stocked, and if they have not all been eaten by the mackinaw, there should be some slightly larger ones caught this season. Fishing pressure is heavy in summer when all the million dollar vacation homes are occupied, and nonexistent in winter due to snowed in roads and locked access gates.

Three miles long and close to a mile wide, Fallen Leaf has a maximum depth of over 430 feet. Situated at the base of Mount Tallac, it's an incredibly scenic spot, and also very dangerous for those in small boats. Winds off the mountain are unpredictable, and can turn the water from flat calm to a raging maelstrom in minutes. The water is cold enough even in summer to induce hypothermia with prolonged exposure, so please watch the weather report, know your own limitations, and venture out with caution!

The main access is by Fallen Leaf Road, off Highway 89 (Emerald Bay Road), just past Camp Richardson on the way to Tahoe's famous Emerald Bay. The road is paved, just barely, and is hardly one lane wide in places, yet there is heavy vehicular and pedestrian traffic in summer, so go slow and be ready to pull off to the side as needed. Parking is extremely limited, with the marina parking lot just about the only option for non-residents. The marina is open from Memorial Day weekend to mid-fall, with a launch ramp available for a fee. Call (530) 544-0787 for information.

Another point to consider is that as dangerous as Fallen Leaf can be for small-craft boaters, it's even more deadly for fishing tackle. The bottom is highly irregular, with abrupt rises and drop-offs, sharp rocks and numerous submerged, snag-filled trees. I usually donate at least one lure on every trip; last time I lost three. If you'd like to learn the lake's layout before you lose half the contents of your tackle box, consider booking a guided fishing trip with captain Aaron Fox of Backwater Charters. He will be offering trips on Fallen Leaf this summer, and can be reached at (530) 544-1977.

Finally, I'd like to address some of the criticism I've heard recently concerning my habit of keeping and eating my catch. I'm the first to admit that although I release a lot of trout, I could do better, and set a better example for my readers, so that we all enjoy good fishing for wild and holdover trout in the years to come. Ironically, I probably have kept more fish since I started writing for this publication, since I often fish alone, and know people would have a hard time believing I catch all these trout from a canoe without photographic evidence to back my claims. Well, in looking at my computer photo files recently, I realized that I have plenty of shots of past trips to Fallen Leaf, so I decided that, at least for this article, I can have the best of both worlds. I've been releasing every fish caught on this magnificent lake so far this year, and to illustrate my story have provided here photos from the Wiza archives- all fish pictured except the big brown trout were caught on banana plugs.

Until next time,
Mark (The Trout Whisperer) Wiza
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