Lake Stevens Kokanee Derby could draw a crowd

Published 11:50 pm Saturday, May 15, 2010

The sun’s out, the beer’s cold, barbecue time is right around the corner, and we’re just sittin’ here, plannin’ a friendly little local fishin’ contest.

Well, it will almost certainly be friendly, at least. It will be a pleasant day to be on the water, experts say the fish are biting, and the community will welcome everyone with open arms.

But maybe not such a little contest, after all. And maybe not entirely local.

“It will be really interesting to see how many tickets are sold for this thing,” said Mark Spada, president of the Snohomish Sportsmen’s Club, “because I’ve been fielding an incredible amount of interest; calls from as far away as Oregon, wanting information.”

The organizers of the first ever Lake Stevens Kokanee Derby, scheduled for Saturday, are thus scrambling to arrange additional parking within walking range of the downtown Lake Stevens launch ramp, and asking that Wyatt Park and its launch, across the lake, be opened earlier than the usual 7 a.m.

To accommodate … how many?

Who knows.

But it should be a unique and enjoyable event, and may serve as well to introduce a considerable number of local sport fishermen to the angling gem sitting in their back yard.

“Everybody” knows about Lake Stevens and its treasured population of small, landlocked sockeye salmon, and its salmon-sized triploid rainbow trout, and its lunker bass, but not everybody has actually been there, done that. Now’s the time.

The derby, sponsored by Spada’s club and the Lake Stevens Lions, will award $1,000 for the largest kokanee, $500 for second, $250 for third, and $100 for fourth. It will also hand out $500 for the largest trout, $500 for the heaviest kokanee limit (up to 10 fish), and $250 for the second heaviest. A separate kids’ division will pay $100, $75, and $50 for the three heaviest fish of any species legally caught in Lake Stevens on derby day. Weigh-in will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at North Cove Park, adjacent to the state Fish and Wildlife Department access and ramp in downtown Lake Stevens.

Tickets are $20 (anglers age 14 and under fish free), available at Greg’s Custom Rods in Lake Stevens, John’s Sporting Goods in Everett, Ted’s Sport Center in Lynnwood, 3 Rivers Marine in Woodinville, Triangle Beverage &Bait in Snohomish, and McDaniel’s Do-it Center, also in Snohomish.

Kokanee central is probably Greg’s Custom Rods, and its owners Greg and Marcy Rockenbach, at 425-335-1391. For a parking map and more info go to the shop’s Web site, www.gregscustomrods.com and click on “What’s New.” Greg Rockenbach said it will probably take a 16- or 17-inch kokanee to win the top spot, and a big triploid rainbow of 8.2 pounds was caught earlier this month, to give you some idea of the size of the trout available. The Goerg family stocked a bunch of fresh — and hefty — triploids two weeks ago, and those fish should be acclimated and on the bite by now.

Fishing kokanee in Lake Stevens is not brain surgery. If you say “out around the aerator,” or “down by the Purple Pennant,” and “Wedding Ring spinner,” you’ve got it three-quarters whipped. Greg Rockenbach said the eastern half of the lake is generally considered a little better than the west side and, at this time of year, the fish tend to be scattered and shallow — surface to about 20 feet recently. That depth could change on derby day, however, as heavy boat traffic will probably tend to push the fish deeper. Finding the schools is the critical factor (a sounder is a big help), so keep moving and changing depths, Greg Rockenbach said.

Kokanee are a pelagic (open water) fish, and popular trolling paths are weighted toward the central part of the lake. The area off the Purple Pennant — the second point south of the downtown Lake Stevens launch ramp — is always worth a shot, or on a line from the PP toward the buoy-ringed aerator device in mid-lake, or toward Wyatt Park on the west side. There are usually fish to be had south of the aerator, and Greg Rockenbach said one of his favorite spots is off the device’s southeast corner.

Another kokanee expert, retired state fish biologist Curt Kraemer, likes to swing once or twice through a spot about halfway between the aerator and the west shoreline, toward Frontier Village, which he says seems to put out larger fish on occasion.

Greg Rockenbach said the standard kokanee rig consists of a 4/0 Luhr Jensen chrome dodger (or a Sling Blade) with prism tape, followed by 15 to 20 inches of 6-pound leader and a Wedding Ring. He likes the chrome or gold spinner blades and red or pink beads, and the double whammy style with two size 4 or 6 hooks. Tip each hook with a kernel of corn, a GULP maggot, or a real maggot (Greg Rockenbach’s stocks), with or without a squirt of scent.

Greg Rockenbach, and some of his regular customers, prefer white shoe peg corn kernels, while others, including Kraemer, go with Pautzke’s Fire Corn. Take your pick.

Before the downrigger era, Lake Stevens kokanee fishermen used leaded lines and judged their depth by the “number of colors” they had out. Downriggers make the game a lot simpler, and you can enter the fishery relatively cheaply with one or two of the budget-priced, hand-crank, clip-on models. Start at about 10 feet this time of year, Greg said, and go up or down from there.

Troll very slowly, as you would for sockeye in Lake Washington and, because kokanee have soft mouths, a long, light, soft-action rod will put more fish in the boat. So will a long-handled landing net.

Kraemer likes to run a lot of line — maybe 50 feet — behind his ‘riggers, arguing that shallow fish tend to be boat-shy.

Derby participants looking for a big triploid rainbow, Greg Rockenbach said, might use the same setup described above for kokanee, but tip the hook with a nightcrawler instead of corn. A number 5 perch-pattern Rapala plug would be another good choice, then move into shallower water and troll the shoreline, particularly the west side above and below Wyatt Park.

No boat? Lean on a friend with waterfront property, or use the Wyatt Park pier ($5 to park), the Sunset Park pier (east side, directly across from Wyatt Park, or the North Cove WDFW access area pier in downtown Lake Stevens. A standard slip sinker, 2 feet of leader, and either Power Bait of a mini-mallow/nightcrawler combo should work.

Greg Rockenbach warns that boaters should have life vests, fire extinguishers, CO2 stickers, and the other boating gear required by law, because various enforcement entities have been issuing citations.

And hey, don’t waste this valuable resource. There’s no better freshwater fish on the table than a prime kokanee, not even walleye, so be prepared to treat them right. Kraemer says to barbecue the larger ones and smoke the smaller ones, and be ready for world-class tucker.