Judging from our results on Thursday, Sammamish has really come to life. We caught a nice mix of fish, cutties, coho and kokanee with the majority being cutties in the 15-18 inch range. Didnt get out there until late so we fished about 4 hours mid day which is usually the slower time. Think the morning bite could be smokin hot.

Set ups that worked were Old Goats 1.8" fished with flasher or no flasher and no bait/scent, small Flashyfish spoon naked no flasher, no bait/scent and a small brass spinner with slow death hook, worm chunk and flasher. I have been using slow death hooks lately and really pleased with the results. Solid hookups and if you pinch the barb easy release.

I marked a hot spot but thats just a general area, fish could be anywhere. Thats where they were Thursday anyway.

Dropped lines back 125-150 and 35 down in roughly 80-90 fow. Speed appx 1.5mph

Think we could have caught more but fish #10 on bait came to the net and we were done. Rules is what they is. Kept 4 and C&R the rest.

If you are fishing Sammamish make sure you know the difference between a cuttie, kokanee, coho and chinook and what you can keep and what you cant. Just C&R if you arent sure. C&R is always good anyway but a couple for the barby is good too.

Tight lines
Randy

FishingTenor

5/11/2019 8:29:16 AM

Thanks rmrauscher for your excellent report. There are a lot of opportunities out there right now for trout and Kokanee. I was wondering where to go as the days heat up. Sometimes that will turn off the bite. What color old goat lures did you find success with?

rmrauscher

5/11/2019 12:59:18 PM

The OG was fluorescent white/green/pink tail but I think any color will do. Cutties seem to really like the action more than the color. Where do they go when weather heats up is a good question. Down deeper I think is key. 45 feet should be the magic number pretty soon. If you can read where the warm water/cold water separation is on your fish finder thats the key depth. Where on the lake I don't know. We have caught fish literally everywhere. They could be anywhere but 80-90 fow is where I generally stay. They are always there, except when they aren't. If you aren't seeing marks in a particular area, move. Fish the water, fish the water column, swap gear. Its all about the hunt.

MoonValley

5/16/2019 2:40:25 PM

"They're always there, except when they aren't." Absolutely classic. Thanks for the chuckle.

FishingTenor

5/11/2019 8:29:18 AM

KidCutty

5/12/2019 5:56:41 PM

Excellent report and thank you for sharing. Glad you are having fun out there. I have also had a hot pole lately with my DR set to 35’. Out of curiosity, is 35’ what your down rigger is set to or is that the depth you see the DR on your fish finder? Tight lines.

rmrauscher

5/12/2019 7:30:53 PM

Guess I could have worded that sentence a little better. Should have said downriggers ABOUT 35 feet. We dropped the dr balls down to 33-38 feet reading on the downriggers. I run braid with an 8lb ball. At 1.5appx blow back is minimal. I dont pay much attention to the trail other than an occassional glance to make sure the trail and downrigger reading are close.

KidCutty

5/13/2019 7:41:13 PM

I’m interested in the slow death hook that you are using. Seems like a great idea. What size slow death hook are you having good luck with?

rmrauscher

5/14/2019 8:53:46 PM

#1 slow death. Rig it like this. Tie #7 swivel to line, small split ring, hook. Total pain in the butt but it sure puts a wicked spin on the worm. Almost identical to a walleye setup. Slide your worm all the way up the hook, then pop the hook out so about 1/2 inch worm tail runs straight back. Add a couple beads, brass Colorado blade and about 16 inches of leader. Have used this setup twice, Lk Washington and Sammamish and has really worked well. Pinch the barb for easy release. Now all you have to do is find the fish, how hard can it bee? LOL. Happy hunting.

KidCutty

5/23/2019 8:51:36 AM

I’m excited to try this rig this upcoming weekend. If I understand you correctly, you are rigging the swivel/split ring directly to the slow death hook to achieve the most effective action?

MoonValley

5/16/2019 2:39:42 PM

Thanks for the detailed report and follow-up comments. Thanks, also, for having the integrity to limit your catch when using bait. I see so many people ignore the limit, thinking they can catch as many fish as they want using bait as long as they release them.

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