I had just such an exchange with Brad Tangen, who wrote to ask me about kokanee salmon in Tahoe. I gave him some good information, then he wrote back to ask about fishing for mackinaw. I gave another informative answer, and he wrote yet again, asking about the lake's rainbow and brown trout. After providing some more good tips, I jokingly told him- "This concludes your allotment of free fishing advice for the year."

Figuring this hint would send him on his way, I was surprised when he then proposed that I accompany him on his boat to guide him on The Big Lake. "Yes, I offer that service." I told him, shooting from the hip. This was the genesis of my 'on-the-water-seminar', and we had a great trip, where I put Brad and a friend onto kokanee and mackinaw. Working with these guys was a pleasure since they were both decent fishermen and the boat had the right equipment for big-water trolling. Brad comes from his home near Sacramento each summer to vacation in the Tahoe Keys, and although most clients hire me once to help them climb up the learning curve, Brad and I just enjoyed our third annual trip together! He wisely books me for the beginning of his stay here, figuring that even though he's learned a lot about Tahoe, the bite always changes, and it could take his entire week of vacation to find the correct area and presentation.

That first year the kokanee fishing was good, but last year, it was terrible, and at the time of our trip, the deep fishing for mackinaw was in a slump as well. Against conventional wisdom, we found success at the end of June by catching some good macks while shallow trolling plugs along the shoreline. This year, we could only catch 'dinker' macks in the shallows, so we resorted to extreme deep-trolling (180 to 220 feet) off his electric downriggers. This produced larger mackinaw, and Brad was able to duplicate this success the next day on a solo trip. Thanks buddy, for another great day on the water!

Since that first trip on Brad's boat, I've worked with many clients, on many different types of vessels. Last summer I fished Tahoe from a boat so big that it had its own bathroom, yet my client managed to catch rainbow trout trolling shallow along the shoreline in mid-summer. If that was a highlight, then the low point was a trip to Stampede Reservoir in a small aluminum boat last fall. My client's 1970's era outboard motor died, the wind came up and blew us way back into the Sagehen Creek arm before we could beach safely with his small electric motor, and I walked a few miles back to the launch ramp parking lot to retrieve his truck and trailer, since he didn't know the route down unmarked dirt roads to get to his boat. No, it was not fun, but yes, we still managed to catch two brown trout and a rainbow before all hell broke loose.

Sure, I take on nearly all comers, but I've turned down potential clients who expected fast action yet had boats that were not equipped for fishing. I've also advised several anglers on adding equipment to turn ski-configuration vessels into fishing machines. Here are some of the subjects I cover when screening anglers for my seminar:

Boat Speed: It's not the top-end I'm concerned with, but your boat's lowest possible speed while underway. How slow can you go? Many boats with large inboard or outboard motors have an idle speed of two to three miles per hour, perfect for trolling large minnow plugs at dawn, but way too fast for the slow-troll techniques that put fish in the boat all day on Tahoe and other high Sierra trout lakes.

For boats that go too fast, there are three main options: trolling plates, electric trolling motors, and small gas 'kicker' motors. Whichever method you choose, make sure it really gives you slow-troll capability, which means moving at one mile-per-hour or less. Low speed movement also aids greatly in boat positioning when trying to stay over fish and structure for vertical spoon-jigging techniques.

Fish Finder: What fish? What structure? Dude, you need a fish-finder! Also called depth finders and sonar units, these electronic devices are essential for fishing from a boat on large, deep lakes. You'll get a lot more out of high-end models, but even a basic version that simply shows the bottom contour, depth, and an occasional fish will allow a much more precise presentation and greatly reduce the number of lures lost in the rocks.

Downriggers: While not as important as slow speed and fish-finding electronics, downriggers are an excellent tool for deep-trolling, allowing greater precision and depth control than lead core line or trolling sinkers. I've worked with quite a few brands and models of downriggers, and I can help you select the right one for your boat or get the most out of the rigger you already have.

Rods, Reels, Line, Lures: Here's the easy part- I have it all, and bring any needed equipment, from ultra light kokanee gear to reels spooled with non-stretch superline for fishing 200 feet down. See what works for me before you go out and buy a bunch of equipment you may not need.

By now you may have noticed that this 'article' is just a thinly-veiled advertisement for my guide service, so why not take it even further with a 'fishing report' that allows me to further describe my on-the-water seminar. Here's what happened when I accompanied clients on their boats this summer-

Fallen Leaf Lake: I worked with Chuck Sholtz and his eleven-year-old son Alex for a morning on this beautiful lake, where I showed them how to trap and fish minnows, jig for mackinaw, then troll for both mackinaw and kokanee salmon. Chuck's boat is equipped for fishing with two hand-crank downriggers, but with a 115 horsepower outboard and no trolling plate or kicker motor, I told him before the trip that he was missing out on slow-troll opportunities. His solution was a drift-sock, a sort-of underwater parachute, which he deployed behind the boat to slow us down.

What we found was that when he turned the boat, the sock swung the other way, turning what should have been small 'S' curves into crazy zig-zags when the morning breeze picked up. This made it hard to stay on the trolling path we intended, and even with the drift-sock his boat was not quite down to an ideal slow-troll speed. We still managed to catch one mackinaw while jigging spoons, lose a big one while mooching a live minnow, then catch three more as well as one kokanee while trolling. Not the best day I've seen on The Leaf, but not bad considering the limitations we faced. Chuck and Alex were fun to fish with, and they learned a lot about techniques for mackinaw in a deep lake, information that will stand them in good stead on other lakes such as Tahoe and Donner. Chuck also vowed to install a trolling plate to better aid in slow-speed maneuvers.

Silver Lake: Here I fished with Don Swank, who told me in an email prior to our trip that he was "sick of getting skunked all the time." In this case it didn't seem that the boat was the problem, as he described a 14 foot aluminum V-hull with a 15 horse-motor and trolling plate, an additional electric trolling motor, a fish finder and one downrigger. I figured that once we were on the water, I'd discover something I could help him with to put him onto fish, and sure enough, as we traveled around the lake, I found two small but critical mistakes that were keeping him from catching trout.

The first problem became apparent when I said we'd start by letting out a fairly short trolling line, fifty yards or so. My definition of 'short' surprised him, and he explained that he often trolled with as little as fifty FEET of line out, and never more than a hundred. I told him such a short line meant that many trout would be spooked by his boat, and it also kept lures from running at their optimal trolling depth.

Next, as we talked about using his fish finder, he admitted that he didn't look at the display screen very often, and in fact usually turned it away from himself, so his wife in the front seat could look at it and "have something to do". We soon remedied this as I had Don multitask by constantly checking his depth finder and using the information to run lures within a few feet of the bottom. While we didn't catch any of the large brown trout or mackinaw that Silver Lake is known for, we ended up with nine decent rainbows, caught on worms behind ultra-light flashers in the shallows. My client also came away with plenty of new tricks to try on his favorite lakes, a better understanding of precision trolling, and a spring in his step as I watched him get in his truck, wave happily and drive off. Great fishing with you Don; keep a long line!

Lake Tahoe: When Rick Curry and his sons Justin and Jason took me out on their boat on July seventeenth, they learned a lot of little things, but mainly, they found that sometimes Tahoe fishing is just plain hot! Maybe my favorite lake was rewarding me because it was my birthday, but there were presents enough for everyone as we caught eight kokanee salmon and lost nearly as many at sunrise off the deepwater drop in front of the Tahoe Keys. For the first hour, all of our fish came on a red and white Fred's Magic spoon, then their preference changed to a chartreuse spinner from Crystal Basin Tackle. When the kokanee bite slowed, we tried shallow downrigger trolling near Emerald Bay, and hooked a five-pound rainbow! This trout was caught at fifty feet, on a dodger and minnow fished on six-pound test line! We also caught two mackinaw with the same presentation, then finished up by using up all two-hundred feet of cable on Rick's manual downriggers to troll with heavier gear for another five-pound mackinaw. A three species day is an achievement on any lake, but it's even more satisfying when you consider the breathtaking scenery and unique challenge of fishing such a huge, deep body of water.

Although we trolled for all our fish that day, we used three different techniques to catch them. Here are some Guide Tips to help you on Lake Tahoe.

Kokanee Salmon: It's another weird year for kokes here, with hot action one day, and only a fish or two the next. The schools are spread through the water column, with some salmon only thirty feet down while others at the same time are in the hundred-foot zone. Our magic depth on the trip described was fifty-seven feet on the downriggers, and all our lures were tipped with kernels of corn dusted with Pro-Cure's Kokanee Killer Korn Magic.

Rainbow Trout: We lucked out, as rainbow trout fishing is not consistent in summer on Tahoe, but we put the odds in our favor by trolling our minnows over rocky bottoms and steep drops, and by risking heartbreak with light line. Unlike kokanee salmon, rainbows here do not generally suspend over deep water; you need to fish close to the bottom to hook up. When trolling shallow with downriggers, try setting your lures back one-hundred feet or more behind the boat before putting the line in the downrigger release clip. This stealth technique helps catch big, boat-shy fish.

Mackinaw: Are they deep in summer? Yes, but they're also shallow. In fact, when fishing for rainbows as I just described, expect most hits to come from mackinaw. If you can't get a bite shallow though, consider super-deep techniques such as jigging heavy spoons or trolling minnows and large dodgers in the two-hundred foot zone.

I hope these tips help put you onto fish; if you're interested in a seminar on your boat, or a spin or fly fishing adventure in the Tahoe area, email me or call Tahoe Fly Fishing Outfitters at (530) 541-8208. And if you're wondering how I came to be such an expert on 1700 foot deep, 12 by 22 mile Lake Tahoe, well... I fish it from a canoe. Go figure!

Until Next Time!
Mark (Never Stand In A Canoe) Wiza
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