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Despite the snow on Monday night we headed out to Roosevelt for some Winter rainbows on Tuesday. It took us a little longer to get down and launched being loaded up with the camper and pulling the boat. After setting up camp at Ft. Spokane and looking at the launch (icy and weighing 10,000 pounds didn't sound like a good idea with that steep ramp) we decided to head over to Seven Bays to launch, which was a great choice. The plow had just finished and it was freshly sanded, easy launch. We had planned to start fishing right out of the marina towards Hawk Creek. The wind was blowing pretty good coming from that direction so we decided to motor down to the mouth of Hawk Creek and drift troll back. It was a good choice not fighting that wind. Had a perch Kekeda and an orange Kekeda already on the rods so out they went, 7 ft. on one and 12 ft. on the other. Not more than 5 minutes later our first fish hit on the perch. Then three more on the perch and nothing on the orange. Finally the orange got a hit and after a short fight it was in the net. Too short a fight actually. There wasn't nearly enough line on this rod. So I swapped it out for one of the backups with more line and the orange starts getting into the fish as well. Had 9 fish in the boat by the time we trolled back to the marina so we just kept on going. Hit one right in front of the marina logs and then a double not more than 50 yards after that. We kept trolling on down to the mouth of the Spokane and across towards Hunters. Didn't make it more than 1/4 mile along that stretch and we all had our limits. We ended up putting one native back along with three of the smaller ones that swam off just fine. Biggest fish was pushing 20" with several 18's and the rest the typical 16 inchers. Took us a little over three hours to get our limits. They are fat and feisty with the water temp finally below 40 degrees.

Gear for the day was a perch and an orange Kekeda. Both on downriggers with a chunk of worm. One at 7 ft. and the other between 10 and 12 feet. Speed was between 2.3 and 2.6 with the water temp between 37 and 39 degrees. We did get a lot of hits when we sped up a little so speed changes could have been a trigger for them. We were out over 80 to 120 feet of water most of the time and then we'd hit the points of the little bays along the way.

Got back to camp, lit a big fire to warm up, roasted some sausages over the fire and had a great time camping with my brother and friend. How could I not rate it a 5!

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fishindoc

12/29/2016 7:52:00 AM

Dave, nice work and report. You get extra enjoyment when you beat the elements. We delayed our trip to Tuesday after seeing the Monday weather forecast. Jim

Part-Time

12/29/2016 8:35:00 AM

Nice Dave, just really nice! Just love the whole fishing and camping thing, particularly in the winter, way to go.

hewesfisher

12/29/2016 8:50:00 AM

You got a nice smile on your face Dave, but I just know you had to be cold. Thanks for such a great report! Temps need to warm up a bit before I consider an outing. ;-)

Kekedatackleco

12/29/2016 1:47:00 PM

Jim- Probably a smart move waiting an extra day. The roads were a whole lot better on the ride home than on the way up. 35-40 on the highway most of the time if we were lucky. We had the lake to ourselves, didn't see another boat all day and only a few bank fisherman. Nice job getting those Kokes by the way. I'm sure a lot of guys felt the urge to get out there when they see those 21" Kokanee. I know I'm already trying to plan another trip.

Mark- Thanks, We have just loved doing the overnight thing. Lake to ourselves and then an empty campground. Not that we mind people, just nice to get away from the Summer crowds. Definitely going to try to get another one in before the Winter is over.

Phil- Truth be told, I took my jacket off for that picture. That shirt was given to me by the nicest woman. It was her father's shirt back in the 60's and 70's. He was a hunter and fisherman and she knew he would have wanted the shirt to go to someone with a like mindset. I was honored to be wearing her father's shirt and wanted to send her a picture. To me it is way more than just a shirt now, it's a piece of our history. Things like that are important. I want to always be thinking of and be grateful for those who went before us to provide a better future for the next generation. I can't wait until they warm up so we can reschedule our trip. Looking forward to it!

hewesfisher

12/29/2016 4:44:00 PM

You're on Dave!! Looks like next week we go back into the deep freeze. <:-o

hewesfisher

12/29/2016 4:47:00 PM

Oh, and while I'm thinking of it, the PSA is the rule change regarding redband trout (must release ALL trout with intact adipose fin, kokanee excluded) is NOW IN EFFECT. Please see WDFW website for details.

wafisherman20

12/29/2016 10:25:00 PM

fantastic report man! might have to try some of those flies...

Kekedatackleco

12/29/2016 10:51:00 PM

I've been following your reports as well wafisherman20. You've been killing it out there. I've really enjoyed reading your posts. Keep it up.

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