Happy New Year!!!!
And welcome to the 2026 season. Things are looking good for this year already. Looking forward to what is to come.
Here’s your latest report:
Kootenay Lake:
December was a blast!!
We kept busy throughout the holidays and continued putting smiles on faces.
Because of the mild weather, the water remains at a pretty ideal temperature. And that has kept the fish in the feeding frenzy.
Some crazy days with well over 20 fish to the boat, and some slower days but still managing 6 – 10 fish. This is more like November fishing.
If this water temp stays, we may see consistent fishing throughout the rest of the winter.
We’ve had some great corporate trips through the holidays and some exciting family trips as well. This is a fun time of year to be out there if the weather cooperates.
Rainbows up to 10 Lbs and Bull Trout up to 12 Lbs have been caught by our guests lately. The more
consistent sizes have been 3 – 4 Lbs however. These fish are fat!! They are gorging on the shrimp in the lake and definitely packing on some weight.
And, with the water temp remaining above 40 degrees, the fish are still fairly active. Meaning some screaming lines and feisty battles.
Hopefully the weather remains mild and the fishing continues to be consistent for the next couple months.
Stay tuned……….
What are they biting on???
Stay tuned for our 2025 tackle review, but here’s the details on what’s currently catching:
Rainbows have been chomping on the Lux Flies bucktails as long as there’s a chop. Lucky numbers lately have been #203, 209, 210, 221.
And when it’s calm or even when it’s choppy, we always have a Gibbs Croc out behind the boat. The usual brass/fire stripe, or hammered brass fire stripe have been working best. Funny thing is, one day its the hammered finish only working, and the next day it’s the standard brass one that works. So, you just have to mix it up. And make sure you have both colors. In fact, some days it’s our third favourite spoon that works best. The Brass/fire wing!
I guess you just can’t have enough tackle. lol
The down riggers have been less successful, however we are still getting some Bull Trout and the odd Rainbow at depths of 75 – 150ft. Our favourite Gibbs guide series flasher, the ‘STS’ or ‘Bon Chovy’ have been working best. Followed by a green pistachio hoochie, or the ‘no bananas’ skinny G.
Although 90 percent of the fish are being caught on the surface, it’s still good to run a down rigger or two just in case. Might as well cover as much water as possible.
That should cover it for now.
Drop us a line if you want to get out this winter and we’ll make sure to make it happen. Heated boats, so weather doesn’t matter. And, if the water temp remains this mild, we should be in for plenty more excitement. Let’s go…
Hope this helps with your next adventure.
Tight lines……
Captain Kerry
