CHAPTER 22

The Trout Family

In This Chapter

What species belong to the trout family

What characteristics the various species display

How to catch trout, char, Pacific salmon, whitefish, and grayling

In this chapter, you’ll learn about the members of the trout family. These fish are known as salmonids so some sources label the fish as members of the salmon family. Either way, salmonids are divided into three subfamilies, and the three subfamilies are generally further divided into five groups: trout, char, Pacific salmon, white fish, and American grayling. All salmonids have an adipose fin.

Trout

Names can get a little confusing when it comes to the trout grouping. For instance, the Atlantic salmon is really a trout, and some fish such as brook trout and lake trout are actually char. Anyway, here’s a look at the seven most popular species in the Salmoninae subfamily of the Salmonidae trout family: the brown trout, rainbow trout, steelhead, cutthroat trout, golden trout, Atlantic salmon, and landlocked salmon.

Fishing Vocab

An adipose fin is a fatty-tissue fin located between the dorsal fin and the tail of some species.

Brown Trout

The brown trout, Salmo trutta, is so named because of its golden-brown coloring. Other identifying features include large black spots, a scattering of reddish spots, and a square tail. Introduced to North America from Germany, this fish is often called the German brown, and the species now exists throughout the western one-third and northern one-third of the United States as well as in East Coast states to the Carolinas. Anadromous brown trout live in the Atlantic Ocean and Great Lakes.

Fishing Vocab

A redd is a spawning bed made by trout and salmon.

Brown trout prefer slower-moving and warmer streams than do rainbow and brook trout. Even though these fish can tolerate water temperatures into the low 70s, browns prefer temperatures from 55°F to 65°F. Spawning occurs in the fall when water temperatures drop into the 40s, and females make several redds in the gravel bottoms of tributaries and mainstream riffles.

Fishing Vocab

A tiger trout is a hybrid resulting from the breeding between brown trout and brook trout.

Brown trout are commonly recognized as the hardiest, wariest, smartest, and hardest to catch of all trout. This species is a somewhat finicky feeder that focuses on specific hatches and often feeds nocturnally. Favorite foods include aquatic insects, minnows, and terrestrials.

Real Fishing

Despite the challenges of wading, line tangles, and retying in the dark, night fishing on streams is a good way to catch wary brown trout, particularly large ones. Among the top-producing offerings is a surface fly that imitates a mouse.

Trolling is the technique of choice for pursuing brown trout on the Great Lakes and other lakes, particularly in the spring when fish move to the warming shallows to feed. Favorite offerings include plugs and spoons that imitate natural forage. Spin-casting and fly-fishing are popular on streams. Spin fishers use live minnows, worms, insects, spoons, or spinners, and fly-fishers cast the traditional dries, nymphs, or streamers. The best stream fishing occurs during the fall when brown trout spawn, especially in those tributaries that see runs of anadromous fish. Prime fishing periods during the summer include dawn, dusk, and after dark.

Rainbow Trout

The rainbow trout, Salmo gairdneri, is known for its beautiful coloration consisting of silver sides, pink bands along its length, and black dots on its sides and tail. Rainbows are easy to raise in hatcheries so the species has a widespread presence, including inhabiting nearly every state, the western provinces of Canada into Alaska, and parts of Mexico. Because of its preference for clean, cool, oxygenated water, the rainbow trout thrives better in western waters than in eastern ones.

Rainbow trout like swifter water than do their brown trout and brook trout cousins. Preferring water temperatures around 60°F, this species does well in temperatures from 50°F to 70°F. Rainbow trout ascend tributaries for spawning in the late winter and spring, and females create redds in areas with a clean, gravel bottom. Spawning occurs around the 55°F mark.

Rainbow trout are easier to catch than browns, and once hooked, rainbows love to jump in an attempt to shake free, a behavior that endears them to anglers. This species feeds primarily on aquatic insects; other foods include small fish, salmon eggs, and crustaceans.

Bad Cast

Like other stream trout, rainbow trout are wary of predators such as people, other mammals, birds, and larger fish. To avoid putting fish in a negative mood, you should utilize quiet, stealth, and camouflage when stream fishing.

Stream rainbows provide real sport for anglers using light spinning tackle or lightweight fly rods. Spin fishers use baits such as small minnows, worms, eggs, or even small marshmallows; and lures such as flashy spoons and spinners. Because rainbow trout feed heavily on insects including those on the surface, both wet and dry flies are effective. Trolling is the standard technique when targeting rainbows in lakes, and the most popular lures are wobbling plugs and spoons. For the most part, lake rainbows are larger than stream rainbows, and the fish hold in the top 20 feet of the water column.

Steelhead

The steelhead, Salmo gairdneri, is a migratory rainbow trout. Some steelhead are anadromous and migrate into Pacific coastal streams; other steelhead are the Great Lakes type that migrate into lake tributaries. The Great Lakes steelhead was first introduced from the Pacific Coast in the late 1800s. Because steelhead commonly reach double-digit weights, the species is highly prized by anglers. Other praiseworthy traits include the fish’s power, speed, and leaping ability.

Steelhead are chrome colored, and fish develop the stripe of a rainbow during the spawn. Spawning runs vary seasonally in different areas, and fish may enter a tributary several months prior to spawning and remain in the tributary for several months after spawning. It is generally believed that spawn-run steelhead strike more out of instinct or reflex than due to a feeding behavior. Unlike Pacific salmon, steelhead may live to spawn several times.

Slip trolling in a drift boat is perhaps the most effective way to catch steelhead. Slip trolling involves the use of oars to approach a promising pool stern first. The rower maneuvers the boat so that wobbling plugs are eased into the hole and allowed to work the area. The rower is essentially holding the boat in place and sliding the boat sideways and backwards while the plug does its work. Once a hole has been adequately worked, anglers move to the next hole and repeat the process.

Shore anglers and waders work pools, too. Spin fishers cast spoons and spinners or drift eggs and spawn imitations, and fly-fishers present egg and flesh patterns. No matter what offering an angler uses, it’s critical to get the bait or lure near bottom. Obviously, the first anglers to reach a hole have the best odds of catching fish. Otherwise, early morning offers the best fishing opportunities. Even though steelhead are good eating, many anglers treat them as a sport fish and practice catch and release.

Cutthroat Trout

The cutthroat trout, Salmo clarki, has a patch of red or orange on its throat that earned the fish its name. Other identifying features include reddish orange on the gill cover, black spots on the sides and tail, and a patch of teeth at the base of the tongue. Sometimes called the native trout or cut, the cutthroat trout has a range covering the western one-third of the United States and the coastal provinces of Canada into Alaska. Cutthroats live in rivers and lakes, and there is an anadromous strain along the Pacific Coast.

Like brook trout, cutthroat trout are wilderness fish found in the cleanest, coolest headwaters and tributaries. Ideal temperatures range from the mid-50s to 60°F. Spawning gets underway when temperatures reach the upper 40s, and coastal cutthroats spawn from late winter into summer, and river and lake fish spawn in the spring. Females make redds in gravel, and the eggs and fry are left unprotected. Some cutthroat trout spawn only once, but others spawn several times.

Cutthroat trout are opportunistic feeders so they may be found anywhere in the water column. Popular prey includes freshwater shrimp, aquatic insects, terrestrials, minnows, crayfish, fish eggs, frogs, salamanders, and more. Cutthroat trout lack the wariness of other trout, so the fish are easily caught on baits, spinners, spoons, and flies. In most waters cutthroat trout weigh up to only a few pounds, but the fish are strong fighters and make for great sport on light tackle.

Fishing Vocab

A cutbow is a hybrid resulting from breeding between a cutthroat trout and a rainbow trout.

Golden Trout

The golden trout, Salmo aguabonita, has gold sides, a crimson band along its length, a spotted tail, and white tips on its dorsal, pelvic, and anal fins. Considered by some anglers to be the most beautiful of all trout, the golden trout is primarily found in mountainous lakes and streams of the West. Reaching such waters often requires hiking. Golden trout spawn in early summer to midsummer when water temperatures hit 50°F. Lake fish spawn in inlets and outlets, and stream fish spawn in tributaries or gravel areas of the main stream. Females dig several redds, and after spawning the fish return to the lake or to their home pools.

The slow-growing golden trout averages only ¼- to ½ pound, and the fish prefer water temperatures around 60°F. Primary feed consists of small crustaceans and aquatic insects such as caddis flies and midges. At times, the golden trout can be choosy about what it eats, so matching the hatch produces the best results. Generally, though, the fish will hit small spoons and spinners, baits such as worms, eggs, and insects, and flies, especially those that match native insect life.

Atlantic Salmon

The Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, is really a trout even though it is called a salmon. This fish is a highly prized game fish, and many anglers consider it the premier species of all trout and salmon. Even though the flesh is fine eating, the Atlantic salmon is valued more as a sport fish, and most anglers pursue them with a fly rod and practice total catch and release. The Atlantic salmon is a challenging fish to get on line’s end, but once there the fish displays outstanding fighting ability with its long runs and impressive leaps.

Atlantic salmon have silver to yellowish-brown sides with dark spots and a slightly forked tail. Their range extends along the Atlantic coast of Canada down to Cape Cod. These fish are anadromous and migrate to their natal tributaries in summer and early fall. Spawning occurs in the upper stretches of streams when water temperatures drop into the 40s. Like other trout, the Atlantic salmon digs redds in gravel areas and covers the eggs. Unlike their Pacific salmon cousins, Atlantics live to spawn more than once. The young generally spend two years in the stream before venturing to sea, and male Atlantics often winter in the stream after spawning.

Atlantic salmon prefer water temperatures in the upper 50s, and primary foods include crustaceans, insects, and small fish. Still, this species doesn’t feed when it enters spawning tributaries, but fish do strike out of instinct or as a reflex action. This nonfeeding behavior makes catching Atlantic salmon very challenging, and this challenge is part of the allure of pursuing Atlantics.

Stream fishing for Atlantic salmon is pretty much a fly-fishing venture, sometimes as an angler choice and other times as required by regulations. Prime holding spots include slick-water runs as well as the heads and tails of pools. Anglers familiar with a specific tributary know that the flow has favorite lies that seem to hold fish year after year. Fishing for Atlantics is quite often a sight-fishing affair that is very much a game of skillful casting and patience. An angler selects a pool or lie and casts repeatedly in hopes of enticing a strike. If there is no activity, the options are to move to another spot or to let the lie rest for fifteen minutes or so before renewing casting and mending efforts, usually with a different fly at line’s end.

Like fishing for many species, the best fishing times are early morning and in the evening. Because Atlantic salmon are powerful fish that typically weigh in the 5- to 15-pound range, 7- to 9-weight rods are the norm. Because these fish make long runs, reels should have plenty of backing. Atlantic salmon tend to take a wet fly on the swing, and Atlantic salmon anglers know that a strike may occur on the first cast or the twenty-first cast.

Landlocked Salmon

The landlocked salmon, Salmo salar, is actually the Atlantic salmon in landlocked form. Native to Maine and stocked in several other states, this fish lives in natural lakes and impoundments that have large tributaries for spawning. Most waters with landlocked salmon rely on stocking efforts to maintain populations. Smaller than Atlantic salmon, landlocked salmon may average just a couple of pounds.

Landlocked salmon feed year-round, but the best fishing occurs in spring and fall when water temperatures range from 45°F to 60°F. At these times, the fish gather in shallow water and near the surface to feed, and their favorite feeding areas are tributary mouths and outlets where smelt and alewives are present. Early morning promises the best fishing, but the evening hours can also be productive. Casting will take fish, but anglers generally troll streamers, plugs, or spoons that imitate smelt or alewives in size and color. Once surface temperatures rise into the 60s in late spring, landlocked salmon seek the thermocline in the 52°F to 58°F range until waters cool again in autumn. Summer fish can be hard to locate, and anglers rely on lead core line, downriggers, or diving planers to get their offerings to the desired depths.

Char

Like the trout group, the char group is a Salmoninae subfamily of the Salmonidae trout family. Also, like the trout group, names can be misleading because the Arctic char is the only member of the char group that has char in its name. Other members of the char subfamily are the brook trout, lake trout, Dolly Varden, and bull trout. While the true trout have dark spots on a light background, the char are distinguished by red or pale spots on a dark background. Char have only a few teeth at the front of the bone in the center of the mouth, whereas trout have teeth along the length of that bone.

Brook Trout

The brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, is a beautiful fish with light spots, blue spots, and red dots on dark sides. Other features include white-edged lower fins, a nearly square tail, and dark vermiculations (wavy, wormlike marks) on the fish’s upper body. Breeding males are particularly colorful. The brook trout’s range includes the eastern Canadian provinces, the western one-third of the United States, the Great Lakes region, and the northeast states extending down to Tennessee. Some anadromous brook trout exist on the Atlantic Coast and in Lake Superior.

Also called brookies and speckled trout, this species is a wilderness fish found in mountain streams, ponds, and lakes. Brook trout prefer water temperatures in the mid-50s, and their favorite holding places include the uppermost reaches of streams and the cold-water springs in lakes and ponds. Whenever brook trout thrive in waters, it is a sure sign of a healthy environment. Unfortunately, human development and pollution have eliminated brook trout from many of their native waters.

Brook trout spawn in the fall when water temperatures are in the 40s, and females make redds in gravelly, riffled sections of streams. This species can also spawn in shallow, gravelly areas of lakes where moving water aerates fertilized eggs. Primary prey includes aquatic insects, terrestrials, crustaceans, and baitfish.

Brook trout are a favorite of anglers because the fish are easy to catch, feisty fighters, and first-rate eating. Also, this species bites throughout the day, although late afternoon and early evening provide better action. Stream brook trout run smaller in size than their lake counterparts. By anyone’s standards, though, a 12-inch fish is a nice one, a 2-pound fish is a great catch, and anything over 4 pounds is of trophy quality.

Brook trout readily strike a variety of offerings, and spin fishermen on both streams and lakes have good luck with worms, minnows, leeches, spinners, spoons, and jigs. Since these fish are primarily subsurface feeders, fly-fishermen rely on wet rather than dry flies. Trolling a spinner and worm combination is a traditional technique on lakes where favorite hangouts include inlets, outlets, cold-water springs, and woody cover.

Lake Trout

The lake trout, Salvelinus namaycush, is the most popular char. It has white spots on a dark-green to black body, white-edged lower fins, and a forked tail. The lake trout has a range extending from Alaska across Canada to the New England states, the Great Lakes, and the Finger Lakes in New York. Populations also exist in cold-water western lakes. Also called laker, togue, mackinaw, and gray trout, lake trout favor colder and deeper water than other game fish. This species prefers temperatures around 50°F and comfortably handles depths of more than 100 feet.

Like the brook trout, this char spawns in the fall, but instead of spawning in tributaries, the lake trout spawns in gravely rocky areas of the main lake. Spawning typically occurs in depths of 10 to 20 feet where the fish have cleared an area, and the female ejects her eggs. Males reach sexual maturity around age five, whereas females reach maturity several years later.

Fishing Vocab

A splake is a hybrid resulting from breeding between the male brook trout and female lake trout.

After ice-out, lake trout move shallower for warmer water and food. During the summer, the fish relate to deep-water structures before returning to the shallow structures for spawning in the fall. Comfortable water temperatures of winter allow lake trout to patrol the shallows and upper reaches of the water column in pursuit of baitfish. No matter what the time of year, lake trout like structures such as points, humps, rocky shoals, and drop-offs.

Lake trout rely primarily on their strong vision for finding prey, but the fish also use their lateral line and sense of smell. Favorite baitfish species include ciscoes, smelt, alewives, and sculpin. Lake trout are hunters, and although not a schooling fish, groups are often found in the same area because of structures, comfortable water temperatures, and available baitfish. A slow-growing fish, lake trout of 10 to 20 pounds are common in prime waters.

Trolling ranks as the most popular technique for catching lake trout, and productive lures include diving plugs, flashy spoons, and wobbling lures or cut bait behind attractors such as cowbells. To reach desired depths, anglers use in-line weights, wire line on a roller-tipped rod, or downriggers. Jigging with heavy spoons is another effective technique for taking lake trout. Whether trolling or jigging, keys to success include getting the lure near bottom, using a slow presentation, and working areas with structures.

The best fishing times for lake trout are spring and fall when the fish migrate to structures around the 20-foot depths. At these times, lake trout are available to shore anglers, especially where deep water is adjacent to the shoreline structure. Bottom fishing with dead or cut bait is popular in the spring and fall, but casting jigs or spoons and trolling spoons or plugs are also effective techniques.

Arctic Char

The arctic char, Salvelinus alpinus, has light spots (red, pink, or cream) on a dark background that lightens in color from the back to the belly. Like other members of the char family, this species has a forked tail and white-edged fins. The arctic char has slightly larger spots than the Dolly Varden, but the fish look so similar that in some locations the two species are simply called char and are not distinguished.

With a northerly distribution, the arctic char is found in Alaska and across northern Canada. This anadromous species uses rivers that empty into the Bering Sea, the Arctic Ocean, and inland lakes in the Arctic, but there are landlocked populations in southwest Alaska, northern New England, and southern Quebec. Landlocked arctic char prefer habitats similar to lake trout, and landlocked fish are smaller than sea-run fish, with the former weighing a pound or so and sea-run fish commonly reaching weights of several pounds.

Arctic char spawn in the fall in water temperatures around 40°F. Spawning occurs over rocky areas, and fish remain in pools or lakes through the winter. Preferring water temperatures in the 45°F to 50°F range, arctic char are not fussy eaters, feeding on plankton, eels, crustaceans, insects, and small fish. The arctic char is considered an easy-to-catch species that offers good fighting and good eating. Effective lures include colorful streamers and flashy spoons.

Dolly Varden

The Dolly Varden, Salvelinus malma, has silvery to greenish sides with pink-colored spots, and the fish looks very similar to the brook trout, arctic char, and bull trout. According to legend, this fish earned its nickname from a Charles Dickens’ character, Miss Dolly Varden, who wore a green dress with pink spots. The Dolly Varden is primarily anadromous, and the fish’s range extends along the Pacific Coast from Washington to Alaska. Also, the more colorful landlocked Dolly Varden inhabits some cold-water streams and lakes in a number of western states.

This species spawns in the fall when water temperatures drop into the mid- to upper 40s, and spawning generally occurs in home streams. Like other char, the female digs redds in gravel areas. Females live to spawn several times, but males commonly die after spawning due to the stress caused by competing with other males. Dolly Varden in lakes spawn in tributaries or in shallow, gravelly areas of the lake.

Preferring water temperatures in the 50 to 55°F range, Dolly Varden are sometimes looked down upon because of their preference for eating salmon eggs and fry. Overall though, anglers consider the Dolly to be a good-eating, easy-to-catch fish that hits a variety of offerings such as eggs, spinners, spoons, and streamers. The key is to get the offering near bottom.

Bull Trout

The bull trout, Salvelinus confluentus, is a lesser-known char with a range limited to some northwestern states and western provinces, although some anadromous bull trout live in Alaska. Often confused with the Dolly Varden, the bull trout has greenish sides with pink or orange spots, white-edged lower fins, and a forked tail. A distinguishing feature, though, is the bull trout’s somewhat wider and flatter head.

Protected by regulations in some waters, the bull trout is a wilderness fish that does best in deep, cold, infertile lakes and in the deep pools of large undeveloped flows. Bull trout begin migrating to spawning tributaries in late spring or early summer even though spawning does not occur until fall when water temperatures drop into the upper 40s.

Some anglers look down upon the bull trout because of its preference for eating eggs and fry, but the species also preys upon aquatic insects, crayfish, clams, and snails. Because of the bull trout’s preference for deep water, the fish is not popular among fly-fishermen. The most productive angling methods include trolling spoons or plugs and jigging, and the average weight of a caught fish runs a couple of pounds.

Pacific Salmon

Like the trout and char, Pacific salmon belong to the Salmoninae subfamily of the Salmonidae trout family. Pacific salmon are highly valued for both food and recreation. These species have a range extending along the Pacific Coast from Alaska to California, and the fish have also been introduced into the Great Lakes. Pacific salmon populations can be harmed by such stresses as commercial overfishing, industrial pollution, and manmade developments, most notably dams that block the fish’s migratory runs.

Pacific salmon are anadromous, returning to their native streams to spawn and subsequently die. Prior to entering spawning tributaries, salmon stage in large numbers near tributary mouths. Fish sport a silver color when leaving the sea or lake, but they turn black during their migratory run. Upon their deaths, Pacific salmon become the primary source of food and nutrients in their spawning tributaries.

Off-shore trolling is the primary technique for salmon in the open waters of the sea or the Great Lakes, and trolling, casting, and drifting are effective techniques once salmon enter spawning tributaries. North America’s five members of the Pacific salmon grouping are the chinook salmon, coho salmon, sockeye salmon, pink salmon, and chum salmon.

Chinook Salmon

The chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, is the largest and fastest-growing of the Pacific salmon. The chinook, sometimes called the king salmon, ranks as the most popular salmon among sport fish anglers. The runs of this powerful and hard-fighting fish can be measured in football field lengths, and battles commonly last twenty to thirty minutes or even longer. An average fish weighs 18 pounds or so, and fish in the 30- to 40-pound range are an everyday occurrence where salmon are congregated.

Chinook salmon have silvery sides, small dark spots on the back and tail, and black gums that earned the fish the nickname of black-mouth salmon. This species has a range extending along the Pacific Coast from California to Alaska and in the Great Lakes. The fish treat the Great Lakes as though it were the ocean and make spawning runs into a lake’s tributaries. Chinooks feed primarily on small fish, but they also eat shrimp and crustaceans.

Depending on their location, chinook salmon spawn between June and November, and fish are referred to as spring, summer, or fall chinooks. Most chinooks have a four-year life span, but some may live up to eight years before spawning. Fish locate their native streams by scent, and spawning takes place over large gravel areas where the female digs her redds. The female guards her nest for a short period prior to her expiration. Spawning in the Great Lakes is usually not too fruitful, so populations are commonly maintained by hatchery operations.

Fishing Vocab

Parr are young salmon or trout that have dark vertical bars on their sides called parr marks. Parr is generally used to identify salmon up to the age of two years prior to the fish moving to sea.

It is estimated that nearly 90 percent of chinook salmon are caught by trolling herring, plugs, spoons, or flies. Since an erratic action produces the best results, anglers commonly use dodgers in conjunction with their lure or bait. Trolling works for open-water and tributary-run salmon, whereas drifting spinner and salmon-egg combinations and casting spoons, spinners, eggs, or flies work for stream-run fish. Chinook salmon don’t feed upon entering their spawning tributaries, but the fish readily strike offerings, especially herring, wobbling plugs, and salmon eggs.

Coho Salmon

The coho salmon, Oncorhynchus kisutch, ranks as the second most popular of the Pacific salmon. Commonly called the silver salmon, the reddish flesh of this fish offers fine eating, and its fighting and leaping abilities provide plenty of sport. The coho has silvery sides, blue-green back, dark spots on its sides, back, and upper portion of the tail, and grayish gums. Like the chinook, the coho has a range along the Pacific Coast of the United States and Canada and in the Great Lakes, where hatchery operations sustain fish populations.

Coho salmon begin entering rivers in the summer, but the species spawns in fall and early winter, a bit later than the other Pacific salmon. Once water temperatures reach the upper 40s to low 50s, females dig redds in shallow gravel areas with moving water. Females guard the nests for a brief period before they die, and parr remain in the stream for a year or two. With a typical life span of three years, coho salmon average 6 or so pounds in weight.

Fishing Vocab

A smolt is a young salmon at that stage of life (usually one or two years) when the fish leaves fresh water and heads to the ocean.

Schools of coho salmon seek out water with temperatures around 55°F and abundant baitfish such as herring, smelt, or alewives, so that is where open-water anglers concentrate their trolling efforts. Considered an upper–water column fish, the coho favors the top 30 feet where anglers utilize the same trolling techniques employed when pursuing chinook salmon, although trolling speed is increased for coho salmon. Tributary-run coho salmon do not actively feed, but they do strike baits and lures. Common offerings include herring, salmon eggs, colorful streamers, wobbling plugs, spoons, and spinners.

Sockeye Salmon

The sockeye salmon, Oncorhynchus nerka, is best known for its food value especially among commercial anglers because the fish’s red flesh offers fine eating. The sockeye has silvery sides and a bluish-green back, but the fish lacks the small black spots of the chinook and coho salmon. The species’ range extends along the Pacific Coast from California to Alaska; however, no Great Lakes population exists.

Sockeye salmon spawn in rivers in late summer and early fall when water temperatures drop to 50°F or so. Females dig redds, and both sexes protect the nest prior to dying. During the spawn, the sockeye’s head turns green, and the sides turn red. Noteworthy of sockeye spawning is the large number of fish that congregate in a small area. Sockeye have a four-year life span, but some fish may live up to eight years.

Fishing Vocab

The kokanee salmon is a small landlocked version of the sockeye salmon. Although stocked in some eastern states, the kokanee is really a fish of deep, cold western lakes. Trolling streamers is the standard technique for pursuing this nonmigratory salmon.

Sockeye salmon primarily feed on plankton, but they also eat small crustaceans. This species does not readily hit bait and lures, so they are harder to catch than chinook and coho salmon. Despite the challenge, sockeyes can be taken on small spinners and spoons, flies, and small hooks with eggs or colored yarn. Sockeye salmon average 5 pounds or so, and once hooked, the fish put up a strong fight and display their leaping ability.

Pink Salmon

The pink salmon, Oncorhynchus gorbuscha, is the smallest of the Pacific salmon, averaging around 4 pounds, and the species has more value for commercial fishermen than it does for recreational anglers. The pink salmon has silver sides and black spots on its back, upper sides, and tail. This species earned its name from its pink flesh, which offers good eating but is less preferred than the flesh of chinook, coho, and sockeye salmon. Like the other salmon, pinks have a range extending along the Pacific Coast from California to Alaska and have been introduced into Lake Superior.

With a life span of two years, pink salmon appear in heavier runs during alternate years in many waters. Spawning takes place in early to late fall when water temperatures reach the mid-40s. During the spawning run, males develop a large hump just ahead of the dorsal fin, and that feature has earned the fish its nickname of humpback salmon or humpy. Females dig redds in gravelly riffles, and males compete to fertilize the eggs.

Because pink salmon do not feed during spawning runs and because the species feeds on small foods such as plankton and crustaceans, pinks can be hard to catch. Still, the fish can be taken on yarn flies, small spinners, and small wobbling spoons.

Chum Salmon

The chum salmon, Oncorhynchus keta, has more of a commercial value than a recreational value. Even though this species is good eating and hard fighting, sport fishermen rank it behind the chinook, coho, and sockeye salmon. Since natives sometimes fed this salmon to their dogs, the fish is often called the dog salmon. For the most part, chum salmon occur as incidental catches by anglers pursuing other species of Pacific salmon. With a four-year life span, chum salmon average 8 to 10 pounds.

Real Fishing

Despite the nickname of dog salmon, the chum salmon is a good eating fish. When trolling wobbling plugs for chinook salmon on Alaska’s Nushagak River, we would occasionally hook into a chum salmon, and those fish found their way back to camp to be smoked, grilled, or made into salmon spread for sandwiches.

Fishing Vocab

A kype is an obvious upward projection on the lower jaw of male salmon or male trout that develops during the spawning run.

Chum salmon have silvery sides, but the fish are easily identified by the series of vertical bands along its length. In addition to the standard range of Pacific salmon, chum salmon are found in the Yukon and Northwest Territories. Chum salmon spawn in the fall when water temperatures range from 45°F to 55°F, although some rivers see a run of summer-spawning fish. Like the other Pacific salmon, the female chum digs redds in gravelly riffles. After guarding the nest for a few days, the female dies. During the spawning run, males develop a hooked upper jaw and a kype.

Whitefish

Whitefish belong to the Coregoninae subfamily of the Salmonidae trout family. Members of this grouping include whitefish, ciscoes, and inconnus, and the two family members most pursued by anglers are the lake whitefish and the mountain whitefish.

Lake Whitefish

The lake whitefish, Coregonus clupeaformis, is often called the common whitefish. This species has silver-colored sides, large scales, a small head, and an underslung mouth, and its range includes the Great Lakes region, all of Canada, and Alaska. As the name suggests, lake whitefish live in lakes, and the fish spawn on shoals when water temperatures are in the low 40s. Unlike their trout, char, and salmon cousins, lake whitefish do not make nests or redds for spawning. Lake whitefish have both commercial and sport fishing value. Anglers cast jigs or bottom fish with bait during the open-water season, and the same presentations are used for ice fishing. Chumming with canned corn, cooked rice, or chopped minnows effectively lures whitefish into an area. Since lake whitefish rise to the surface to feed on insect hatches, fly-fishing will take fish, too. The average size for angler-caught lake whitefish is 1 to 2 pounds.

Mountain Whitefish

The mountain whitefish, Prosopium williamsoni, has a significantly smaller range than the lake whitefish. That range primarily includes the northwestern states and British Columbia. Sometimes called the Rocky Mountain whitefish, this species favors streams along the western slopes of the Rocky Mountains, although these fish also live in lakes. Similar in appearance to the lake whitefish, the mountain whitefish has silvery sides, large scales, a small head, and an underslung mouth.

Mountain whitefish spawn in streams from late fall to early winter when water temperatures are in the low 40s. Like lake whitefish, mountain whitefish do not build redds nor do they protect their young. Because mountain whitefish compete with trout, some anglers look down upon the species even though it puts up a feisty fight. Favorite hangouts include pools and slow-water stretches, where anglers present flies or small baits to fish that average ½ pound or so. Unlike many of their trout, char, and salmon cousins, mountain whitefish offer winter fishing opportunities.

Grayling

Grayling belong to the Thymallinae subfamily of the Salmonidae trout family, and the single North American species belonging to this group is the American grayling. The most distinguishing feature of the grayling is its large sail-like dorsal fin.

American Grayling

The American grayling, Thymallus arcticus, has a bluish-gray and silver body with small black spots in the front portion, a small sucker-like mouth, and the unique sail-like dorsal fin. Referred to as the Arctic grayling in some sources, the American grayling has a range extending across Alaska, Yukon, Northwest Territories, and the northern portion of the western provinces. This grayling is also present in some western states.

The American grayling inhabits the cold, clear water of both lakes and rivers, and the fish spawns in tributaries and rivers after ice-out when water temperatures reach the mid- to upper 40s. Like the whitefish, grayling do not make nests or redds. Instead, the eggs are released and fertilized over gravel bottoms.

The American grayling makes for great sport fishing because these fish congregate in schools and they are not fussy eaters. Since their diet is comprised of insect larvae, aquatic and terrestrial insects, and fish eggs, grayling are a perfect quarry of fly-fishers because these fish readily hit a variety of dry and wet flies as well as egg patterns. The grayling has a small mouth so spin fishermen have their best luck with tiny spinners or baits placed on small hooks.

Grayling size varies in different waters. In the western states, grayling may weigh less than ½ pound, whereas prime waters of the north may see fish averaging 2 or more pounds. Without a doubt, the best American grayling fishing exists in Alaska.