Thinking Of Warm Summer Days, Hard-fighting Kokanee
The following appears in the January issue of California Sportsman:

By Mark Fong
I must confess that as I listen to the wind howling and see the rain coming down, I have a bad case of cabin fever.
If you are an outdoors lover, I am sure you know what I am talking about; it happens to most of us every winter. This time of year can feel like it may never end. There are only so many times that I can reorganize my fishing tackle. The only solution, if even for a minute, is a summer flashback.
BEATING THE HEAT
Last August, smack dab in the middle of a typical Sacramento-area heat wave, I arranged to meet up with fishing guide Dakota Townley for a morning of kokanee fishing at Whiskeytown Lake. I had never been to Whiskeytown before, but I knew about its reputation as perhaps the premier kokanee fishery in Northern California. In speaking with Townley, he told me the kokanee were on a great bite. The fish were big and he promised we would be limited out before the temperature got too hot.

WELCOME TO WHISKEYTOWN
Whiskeytown is located just a short drive west of Redding on State Route 299. Accompanying me on this fishing adventure was my buddy Paul Boudreau, and also joining us was Dakota’s uncle Rob. When we arrived at the Whiskey Creek Boat Launch there were a number of other boats already in the parking lot. This was not surprising to me, as the fishing had been really good throughout the summer.
After launching Dakota’s Willie jet boat, we made our way downlake towards the highway bridge. As I helped Dakota ready our gear, Paul and Uncle Rob were in the middle of a deep conversation regarding their mutual fascination for hot rod cars.
After a brief idle, Dakota shut down the big motor and started the troll. Dakota handed me an 8-foot kokanee trolling rod paired with a linecounter reel. On the business end of the line he attached a Wonder Bread-colored Kevin Brock Koko Krush Kokanee Flasher and a pink Koko Spin Lure.
After tipping the hooks of the KoKo Spin with corn, I dropped my rig back behind the boat until the linecounter read 30 feet. Dakota then clipped the line into the downrigger release and set the depth of the downrigger ball at 55 feet. Soon we had all our rods in the water and were ready for action.

FISH ON!
As I enjoyed the cool of the morning, I was caught off guard by the shouts of “Fish on!” Paul was first up and the grin on his face confirmed that he was hooked up with a nice kokanee. After the fish popped off the downrigger release it headed for the surface, where it thrashed about in an attempt to get away. Paul worked the kokanee carefully to the side of the boat, where it made several spirited surges before Dakota put the fish in the net.
When I saw the fish, the first thing I noticed was how big it was and how thick it was across its back. This fish was no dink and it was a perfect example of the quality of kokanee that Whiskeytown has become known for.
NONSTOP ACTION
Our morning was off to a quick start, as we had our first fish in the boat after fishing for less than 10 minutes. As we made our way under the bridge and into the main body of the lake, the action really picked up. It was chaos as Uncle Rob and I were both hooked up at the same time, making Dakota scramble to net our fish. This was the first of many double hookups. It seemed like as fast as we could get our rods rebaited and back in the water, we were hooked
up again. If the bite slowed, Dakota would troll back through the area where we were getting bit and, like clockwork, the action would resume.

True to his word, Dakota had us limited out in just a few hours. Most of our kokanee were in the 15- to 16-inch range with a few just north of 17. This was truly an awesome day of nonstop action that produced a bunch of great- eating kokanee fillets for the smoker.
Whiskeytown had definitely lived up to its reputation. Sadly, if summer could only last a bit longer, as I remain in the winter doldrums. CS
Editor’s note: To book a trip with Townley or to learn more, you can follow him on Facebook at Dakota Townley or contact him directly at (530) 680-3717.