help with lake trout

[cram]

A small back lake near my cottage apparently has natural and stocked lake trout. I have not tried (much) for lakers on or main lake because its pretty big (10 miles long, a mile wide) and they're often spread out..... but on the smaller lake assume they'll be concentrated and finding them will be easier.

 

Any recommendations for catching? Is it worthwhile to try in the summer/early fall months (jigging a hole?)....or should I wait til spring? Suggestions for bait/lures?

 

I'm mostly a bass/musky/pile fisherman. Little experience with lake trout (those i have caught are inadvertent)

[Daplumma]

I have done well catching them under docks.

[Cookslav]

I have done well catching them under docks

How did I know that would come up....LOL

 

Personaly I only fish lakers in the spring, but its more about opportunity then preference for me.

Jigging will definatly work...people do it all the time.

A finder would help you out greatly to find them...after that its all about the depth their in and rotating colors till you find what works

but I'm not exsactly a "deep summer laker" expert either so...

Hoepfully someone else who spend more time targeting Lakers in the summer will pop in and drop a few trade secrets, about finding the the thermocline etc...

 

Good luck!

[Fang]

Summer time, small back lake for lakers - sounds like fun

 

Jigging white tubes, swedish pimples or bad boyz will produce fish. What I'd do is run the lake with the fish finder looking for any 60+ water. Keep a close eye on the graph looking for marks and baitfish

 

Shoals in or around that depth of water will be a good place to start. Also look for deepest water next to shore. I love jigging off deep walls right off shore. Trout will round up minnows against these spots and usually be on the feed if they're there.

 

I use these same techniques on Temagami and it works. If your jigging a bad boy type lure don't be afraid to tip with a minnow or my secret weapon a 3" Gulp minnow.

[cram]

Summer time, small back lake for lakers - sounds like fun

 

Jigging white tubes, swedish pimples or bad boyz will produce fish. What I'd do is run the lake with the fish finder looking for any 60+ water. Keep a close eye on the graph looking for marks and baitfish

 

Shoals in or around that depth of water will be a good place to start. Also look for deepest water next to shore. I love jigging off deep walls right off shore. Trout will round up minnows against these spots and usually be on the feed if they're there.

 

I use these same techniques on Temagami and it works. If your jigging a bad boy type lure don't be afraid to tip with a minnow or my secret weapon a 3" Gulp minnow.

 

Thank you! Its a small lake. Know how to find the thermocline, and structure that intersects. Jigging -- speed? How active? Stay parked, drift.....?

[jwl]

big white twisters if the water has a green tint to it, yellow if it has a black tint...try running some big minnows/chubs on the bottom, or even try verticle jigging some Williams and stuff, the half silver/gold ones are great for lakers..I fish lakers in the Niagara since I was about 12, and just like fang said...if there is a sharp drop they will push the baitfish up against it, then keep it balled up and run through them gobbling them up

[cram]

Thank you!! Curious -- why white with green water, and yellow with tea-black water? I have never heard that...

[jwl]

Thank you!! Curious -- why white with green water, and yellow with tea-black water? I have never heard that...

 

 

it's just a pattern that works for me over the years,I have spent going on 27 years fishing lakers in the Niagara for example where the water is green, in that coloured water fish can see white the best..it works great with twisters and even streamers...the patterns with the most white always catch the most fish and it's hot when there is a baitfish bite on. And also in waters like this,when it's cooler out, and a bit stained up, you will find you catch fish that are sort of "washed-out" so to speak and take on a very pale appearance, and therefore the forage base is more on the white scale of the spectrum.

 

Over the years I have fished quite a bit of more typical "northern" type waters as well, and I find that even alot of fish..baitfish, and forage all seem to be more on the yellow spectrum, walleye, perch xare bright yellow, the yellow stripe on yellow-sided dace for example is all bright yellow, I think that this may be due to the higher tanic acid level in the water that is caused by all the leaves that typically wind up in the water in those areas in the fall/winter months, and makes for a really dark bottom...or pardon the expression ("loon$$poop") bottom lake and you can simply see yellow patterened baits xalot better in the water.

 

That's just a theory I have come up with after many hours spent fishing, taking notes, writing journals and trying to develope successful fishing patterns that work for me, all as I know is it works for me

[cram]

interesting. Kind of like silver spoons in clear water and gold in tanned....?

 

Thanks again for the help. MUCH appreciated.

[Greencoachdog]

I have done well catching them under docks.

 

 

Yup! Lakerz love to hang at the docks!!!... not yourz though... other peoplz!!!!... especially if there are swimmerz in there area, they feast on the boogerz and occasional diaper dropping of small childrenz!!!

[jwl]

Yup! Lakerz love to hang at the docks!!!... not yourz though... other peoplz!!!!... especially if there are swimmerz in there area, they feast on the boogerz and occasional diaper dropping of small childrenz!!!

 

if it's anything like musky fishin,I would just be getting the kids to dangle their toes and fingers right in the water right at the dock, the more kids the better

[cranks bait]

Sounds like our cottage lake, as to the size of it.

 

On this past long weekend we were targeting bass. Caught two big lake trouts in 30 feet of water using smoke tubes. Right at the 12:00 lunch bell within 2 minutes of each other. Decided to move because we didn't want the lakers. Caught us by surprise. They are hard enough to catch at the cottage at the best of times and then to be over 7 lbs each.