I'm back from a week at lake Roosevelt and the fishing was pretty good. I had never been there before and went on alot of advice from locals, friends, and this board. The #1 tip I recieved was to forget about trout and concentrate on smallmouths and walleye. I was also told to fish at night. Well there was a bunch of walleye fisherman there and they hardly caught anything compared to us. We fished for trout in the heat of the day after being unsuccesful for bass or walleye, and we did pretty darn good. The main thing we caught was rainbows. A few small ones but most were 18" +, and very fat and fiesty. We caught one German Brown that was about 3lbs. and one 20" walleye. The big fish of the trip was a 4 1/2 lb. Chinook. A lot of fun but if you go bring protection from the sun.

How did you catch a chinook clear up in Lk Roosevelt.

As for Trout there they are fiesty critters in the lake at the right time of day.

I don't know if there is a ladder at the dam, or if they are plants, but it was definately a Chinook. In a pamphlet I got at the boat launch it said trout and SALMON like to swim along the the high cliffs at Kettle ferry.

Weird

There is no ladder at Grand Coulee nor at the dam below it(Cheif Joesph Dam) last one with a ladder is Wells Dam.

And the only salmon I knew of anywhere over there were atlantic salmon. And I don't know if they planted any land locks in there.

They look a little bit like chinook I will make a call and find out.

If they did put chinook in there that could be a lot of fun.

Kokanee are salmon, and Lake Roosevelt has some of the largest kokanee in the state. I just got back from a reunion near Hunters. Those relatives that fished took walleyes to 7 1/2 pounds, and rainbows to 16 inches. Water level was HIGH. Had a moose walk in front of the car, one morning.

The fish I thought was a brown may have been an atlantic salmon if they are in there. Big spots that covered most of the body, and a few on the gill plates. The one that I,m calling a Chinook I am pretty positive it was. I did do a little searching for kokanee but never found any. I wish I woud have though,(good eating!)

Cedar I totally forgot they put kokanee in there that is probaly what it was them when they are small they look like chinook a bit and i think they did put atlantics in there as well.

Chinook salmon are known to swim down the Spokane river from lake Coeur D'alene where they were planted....over the last couple years we've caught a 6# and an 8# chinook while trollin for trout and Kokanee..in Roosevelt...and lost other big fish after hooked...

Soft Hackle--

Sounds like you had a great trip.

Having fished Roosevelt extensively when I lived in Spokane, I can say that you probably did hook a chinook. There are two sources for these: one is the flow of downstream migrants from Coeur d'Alene and the other is from the run of landlocked fish in the lake. There are not many of them, but they're there. There are also chinook in Long Lake between C d'A and Roosevelt. They make a spawning run, I've been told, into the Little Spokane as well as to the dam just above Long Lake.

I hadn't heard about the Atlantics, but I know some of the tributaries of Roosevelt have browns in them. My guess is that the fish was a brown, as the state is pretty cautious about planting Atlantics where they could get to the ocean.

The kokanee in Roosevelt are unbelievable. The largest I've caught was about five pounds, but there are or were bigger fish than that. These fish are really footballs-- a fillet comes off almost square the fish are so deep.

The kokanee this time of the year are fairly deep, and the best place I know to catch them is at Keller's Ferry down by the dam.

Keith

Thanks for the info guys. I was beginning to think I didn't know a spotless Kokanee from a Chinook.