08_2025_REELLIFE_DIGITAL - Flipbook - Page 15
gear
KOKANEE: Hmm. So what
wisdom do you now
possess after tempering
theory with experience?
DUDE: I would say the most
important thing is that I
have a lot more to learn.
KOKANEE: Then you really
have spent a lot of time
on the water. My buds
and I get a kick out of all
the experts out there who
spend fortunes on all of the
most expensive boats, the
highest-priced electronics,
sometimes all for naught.
Well, at least they get a nice
boat ride.
DUDE: I admit I don’t have
the fanciest of boats, but
it is adequate. My sonar
is color, and it is dialed
in. I do have reliable
downriggers, proper
releases, and a trolling
motor. I did spend the
dollars on getting quality
reels to match the ultralight
rods. I can measure water
temperature at depth.
Got the rubber net, so the
trailing hooks don’t break
off anymore.
KOKANEE: And what
did having the proper
equipment do for your
success?
DUDE: Well, I sure eat a lot
more kokanee than before.
Using a very short leader
behind the dodger really
helped, as did using only
minimum drag – letting my
rod and reel work together.
KOKANEE: So, did you figure
out why many kokanee
fishermen lose their fish
during the fight?
DUDE: I learned early. There
is no “try” – only “do.”
KOKANEE: OK, Yoda – explain
yourself.
DUDE: What seemed
apparent to me is that the
average fisherman, once a
kokanee is hooked, makes
several mistakes trying to
get the fish to the boat.
First, they do not take
the slack out of the line
as soon as possible. They
don’t reel fast enough to
get the tension back to
the rod. And some don’t
stop reeling fast once that
point is reached and jerk
the hooks out of the fish’s
mouth. So, lack of tension
and too much tension will
result in that dreaded longdistance release.
KOKANEE: What is the
second thing?
DUDE: Many of these longdistance release failures
seem to be caused by the
fisherman trying to pull the
fish out of the water. They
have their rods pointed to
the sky at about 11 o’clock,
and then put the tension
on the rod. I figured out
that the very last thing
you want to do is get that
attracting dodger to the
surface.
KOKANEE: Why is that?
DUDE: The surface of the
dodger interacts with
the surface of the water,
and that can become
a significant point of
resistance, allowing the
fish to escape the hooks –
something like too much
tension when you are
reeling in.
KOKANEE: So what is it you
do?
