May salmon and lake trout
 

How's the fishing been so far this season? I'm planning to fish for salmon and lake trout this weekend (in the cold wind and rain). The water temperature seems unseasonably cold - is this keeping fish closer to the surface?

Any tips on what has been successful would be appreciated. Similarly, if you've been out there and not having any luck, it's always good to know what isn't working!

This time of year is tough to target fish as the water temp is pretty much the same top to bottom. With no thermocline setup, bait fish are scattered throughout the entire water column.

With that said...if I was targeting salmon I would be fishing / trolling 15-20 feet down. You will pickup an occasional laker and or rainbow at that depth as well.

If I was targeting lake trout, I would be dragging shiners right on the bottom. Look for long flat sandy bottom areas. You will get sick of catching them after a while as the lake is currently inundated with lake trout! Please keep whatever you catch of these or give them to the eagles that will be flying overhead!;)

On calm mornings at sunrise, don't be afraid to troll a fly right on the top of the water as the rainbows love to feed on the hatches occurring. Don't bother doing this an hour after sunrise...

If your trolling lures, anything with orange in it is a good go to color on the lake. Lures like the DB Smelt or similar.

For fly's, I prefer any of the single hook streamer patterns in a size 4. My favorite pattern currently is the "Tiki Bar Fly"...;)

Use light (6 lb test) as leader and and a lot of it 80' or so and preferably Flurocarbon as Winni water is extremely clear and trolling heavy thick mono will certainly decrease your catch ratio.

Good luck and tight lines!

Dan

Any suggestions on cooking lake trout. We tried it a few years ago and found it tasteless compared to salmon. My wife thought it tasted oily.

Rock Recipe
 

Find a large rock preferably from the lake...Put it in a large pot with the lake trout, 1 stick of butter, salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 1/2 hour at 350 degrees. Take out rock and lake trout...Eat rock and throw out fish!:D:D

Lakers are nasty!!

Dan

Right on. We once accepted a "gift" of a just caught lake trout. Beware of fisherman bearing gifts of lake trout. It might have been a neighbor:D

Alan

That must have been a while ago as I don’t remember that…then again I can barely remember what I had for lunch but I know it wasn’t lake trout!:D

Dan

No it was the fisherman between us. Good intentions.

Alan

Aaah! OK as I only give salmon and rainbows away… Lake Trout I wouldn’t give to my worst enemy!:laugh:

Dan

All kidding aside, there has to be some way to make it palatable.

Apex fish full of all the bad stuff in the Lake. Poor fish to eat. Catch and release. Can't cook out the bad in that fish.

Here’s what AI says…as an fyi…I have pretty much tried this and MANY other supposed “great” Lake trout recipes to no avail for my taste buds….

Good yuck, I mean luck! :D:D

Dan

How to Make Lake Trout Taste Great

If you have a lake trout on your hands and want to ensure a clean, enjoyable meal, try these preparation tips:

Bleed and Ice: Bonk, bleed, and gut the fish immediately after catching it.

Pack it in ice right away.

Trim the Fat: Before cooking, use a sharp knife to carefully remove the skin, as well as all the reddish-grey dark meat along the center of the fillet.

Soak the Fillet: Soak the fillets overnight in a bowl of milk or salt water in the fridge to help pull out the muddy, earthy flavors.

Season Heavily: Because lake trout are oily, they hold up well to robust seasonings like garlic, lemon, butter, and pepper. They are also excellent when smoked.

Target Smaller Fish: Larger, older lake trout accumulate more oils and environmental toxins over time. Aim to keep smaller "eating-sized" fish for the dinner table.

Food for thought
 

Lake trout make the best fish chowder, just use Joy of Cooking recipe. As for salmon they are the worst fighters in the lake, just reel them in, Nothing compares to a lake trout , same with small mouth bass. A perch puts up a better fight than the salmon. Don't bother to comment unless you were born here !

Lake trout are very good smoked. Cheese, crackers, smoked laker and cold beer! Good stuff.

There are a lot of them in the lake, often incredibly skinny looking.