Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3901 Dec 20-Jan 3 | Page 7

VOL.39 • ISS. 1 HOW TO... Dec 20, 2019 - Jan 3, 2020 5 Mack Notes… < Mackinaw grow large, exhibit beautiful markings, are challenging to hook and provide top notch table fare. This big fish was caught during a late November trip with the Tahoe Sportfishing Team this fall. presents B Mackinaw Tactics For Lake Tahoe And Beyond rowns, rainbows, and brookies… we all love to catch trout, but what about mackinaw? Mackinaw go largely overlooked by the California trout fishing fraternity. Yet they provide the best trophy potential of any trout swimming our waters. Mackinaw or lake trout as they are sometimes known regularly range up to and beyond the 10-pound mark at several north state lakes. From a scientific perspec- tive mackinaw, like the brook trout are not true trout at all, but rather members of the char family. However, from an angler’s perspective if it looks like a trout, swims like a trout, and quacks like a trout, it’s a trout! In terms of size mackinaw are the second largest salmoniod in North America surpassed only by the chinook salmon. According to mackinaw expert, John Richardson lakers as large as 120 pounds have been taken at Lake Michili- mackinac in Canada. Here in California, the state record is 37 pounds 6 ounces and was taken out of Lake Tahoe by Robert Aronson in 1974. Over the years, mackinaw have earned the reputation of being reclusive deep water denizens that put up a substan- dard fight when hooked. This reputation is largely undeserved. The idea that mackinaw don’t fight dates back to the days before downriggers and sonar when anglers were forced to blindly work the lake bottom with heavy weights and wire lines. These days anglers equipped with sonar and downriggers typically target mackinaw in 50 to 250 feet of water using light to medium weight tackle. Tahoe mackinaw specialist Gene St. Denis of Blue Ribbon Charters employs medium action Shake- speare Ugly Stick rods teamed with Penn 209 reels and 20 pound Stren monofila- ment. I can tell you from experience that macks hooked on this gear provide plenty of adrenaline pumping excitement. To consistently boat mackinaw, whether fishing at Lake Tahoe or one of the other Golden State lakes that play host to macks, it’s important to have a basic understanding of their diet and habits. Studies reveal that small macks, those under 20 inches, feed mainly on shrimp and other small organisms. Large mackinaw, exceeding 24 inches primarily target baitfish and crawfish. In terms of lure size it’s inter- esting to note that given a pref- erence lakers prefer forage that is from one sixth to one quarter their body length. That means a laker the size of Aronson’s 44-inch state record would find a bait from 7 to 11 inches very attractive. When targeting macks the old saying, “big lures equal big fish” certainly has validity. Most of the time mackinaw hold quite near the bottom, although occasionally you’ll locate suspended fish. A quality sonar unit is one of the most important pieces of gear a mackinaw hunter can have. Unlike targeting other types of trout, it really pays to invest some time in cruising about and looking for macks before beginning to fish. In even the best mackinaw lakes only 10% of the water holds 90% of the fish so it doesn’t make sense to begin fishing until you are reason- ably certain a spot holds fish. Rocky boulder strewn ledges that drop into deep water and show signs of forage such as kokanee salmon are classic areas for mackinaw prospecting. In the spring and winter when the water is cold or during periods of low light at dawn, dusk, and during overcast stormy days it is not uncommon to find macks cruising flats, FISH SNIFFER HOW – TO by Cal Kellogg ^ If you’re goal is hooking a trophy size mackinaw, big baitfish imitating plugs like these offerings from Rapala are a great choice. These lures can be top lined during the cold months or worked off downriggers when the weather warms up. < ^ When you want small to medium size mackinaw and perhaps a chance at the occasional jumbo, Berkley and Gulp! Minnows teamed with small dodgers and slow trolled along the bottom are tough to beat. Offerings like this often work well when targeting macks holding in deep water. If trolling isn’t your bag, jigging is an effective method for rounding up mackinaw. Both traditional spoon shaped jigs and hybrid jigs like the Rapala ice fishing jigs shown here are effective. Team lures like these with braided line and you are ready to pull fish out of deep water. CONTINUED ON PG 18