Whitefish or white trash?

[jamisonace]

I'm doing a little research today on whitefish spawning. I've heard that trout feed on their small, pale eggs this time of year and I've had a little luck hooking trout on egg patterns in the winter. After catching a couple seemingly aggressive whitefish yesterday, I was wondering if they are more aggressive than trout right now because they are spawning.

Anyway, I came across this article and it reminded me of a float I did with my 9 year old on the South Fork of the Snake in Eastern Idaho 3 years ago. I set my boy up with a nymph and he was catching whitefish like crazy. A guide passed by and told us to use a dry if we wanted to catch trout so I switched him over to a dry and he caught one rainbow. It was a great fish but he only got one. Being the idiot that I am, I figured we were there to catch trout so we fished for trout. My boy of course was having a great time roping in whitefish after whitefish and afterwards he let me know that he would have rather stuck with the nymph. I always regretted my decision to switch him to dries that day.

Point is. Whitefish are fun to catch and they smoke up well if you're so inclined to keep them. I know this because when I lived in Wyoming I had no money and I ate almost everything I caught.

I disagree with the article regarding their fight. My experience is that they fight very hard at first....how long depends on their size. After they're done fighting they roll over and you can basically just drag them to the net. They tend to school so if you find one you've probably found a few dozen and if the school is big enough you can catch fish for a long time from one spot.

 

[rogerdodger]

the cold water stream (Mill Creek) that I grew up fishing in NE Oregon had rainbows, dolly varden, and whitefish. as I recall, the whitefish (which we always kept and cooked up just like the trout) tended to fight deep and just as hard as the trout. they were not jumpers but good fighters and very tasty. cheers, roger

 

[Troutski]

Tasty fare...

Tasty fare...

Great table fare, they do put up a very nice fight.. I don't think I have ever caught a small one. Cougar Res has a great population...

Chuck

 

[jamisonace]

I have to admit, whitefish here seem to fight better than the fish I caught in Wyoming but I figured it's because they are generally bigger here. In Wyoming, I could expect about 15 seconds of hard fighting.

The 20" fish I caught yesterday didn't fight nearly as good as a 20" rainbow, not even close.

(which we always kept and cooked up just like the trout)

I'll have to keep one and fry it up this year. I do miss their oily, fatty flavor when smoked but they're so bony.

 

[Stonefish]

Sometimes they save the day when trout fishing is slow.
I think they fight pretty well.
Excellent when smoked.
SF

 

[rogerdodger]

Great table fare, they do put up a very nice fight.. I don't think I have ever caught a small one. Cougar Res has a great population...

Chuck

same here, we never caught smaller whitefish (or bull trout which everyone called dolly varden back then), 15" min and always hooked them deep in swifter water, which helped them fight.

 

[jamisonace]

Yes. I've always caught them in swifter water than trout.

But another reason I was researching it today was because both WF came from very slow water yesterday.

same here, we never caught smaller whitefish (or bull trout which everyone called dolly varden back then), 15" min and always hooked them deep in swifter water, which helped them fight.

 

[TimberTodd]

Ive only had the opportunity to catch whitefish once. This was on the Deschutes 2 years ago. I thought they put up a decent fight.

 

[Billamicasr]

Fishing below the confluence of the McKenzie & the Willamette during the early season March Brown hatch can produce both Whitefish and Rainbow. We used a sled to go downstream maybe 4 miles from Armitage. Never once saw another fisherman. Fishing the top of the run with #12 dry fly; March Brown or sometimes Adams and we caught big Whitefish, fishing the main part of a run below the riffle and caught big trout. The action usually lasted from about 9AM until noon or a little after. Haven’t fished that since the mid 80’s, but I’ll guess it is still a great destination.

For those who fly fish the lower McKenzie, the March Brown hatch usually begins around the middle of February and the biggest trout of the year seem to be the ones that come out to feed. The hatch comes off with the slightest amount of sunshine or even in a light rain.

I would think Jamisonace could be able to give much more info on the lower river; below Leaburg Lake to Armitage Park. I’ve floated it, but there may be some great bank access in that big stretch of water.
P.s. I did not look it up… are those areas open to fishing in February?

 

[sapo]

Imo white fish are trash fish...almost all of my friends fly fish 99% of the time (me too) and whitefish are fun to catch for the first few you catch but after that they really suck. They're ugly and fight a lot like carp. One of my friends will actually snap off a whitefish if he hooks one cuz he hates them so much

 

[Troutski]

Native Species...

Native Species...

Imo white fish are trash fish...almost all of my friends fly fish 99% of the time (me too) and whitefish are fun to catch for the first few you catch but after that they really suck. They're ugly and fight a lot like carp. One of my friends will actually snap off a whitefish if he hooks one cuz he hates them so much

Still, they are a Native Species and should be treated as such, not only because it is the law but it is the right thing to do....

Chuck

 

[Stonefish]

Still, they are a Native Species and should be treated as such, not only because it is the law but it is the right thing to do....

Chuck

+1

Up this way, I've encountered numerous bull trout tossed up on the banks on the Skagit and Sauk rivers.
Some folks say they eat to many salmon and steelhead eggs and smolts, so they waste them.
Damn shame if you ask me. They are native and a indicator species that has co-existed with salmon and steelhead for years.
Never understood why folks do that. The way salmon and steelhead fishing is going, a bull trout may be a prize catch in the future.
SF

 

[jamisonace]

I don't go as far as saying they suck to catch but I much prefer hooking into trout. I had a day once when I caught about 20 in a hole on dries when I couldn't buy a trout bite. I was grateful since I had 4-wheeled in 1.5 hours to fish a favorite stream in WY.

Imo white fish are trash fish...almost all of my friends fly fish 99% of the time (me too) and whitefish are fun to catch for the first few you catch but after that they really suck. They're ugly and fight a lot like carp. One of my friends will actually snap off a whitefish if he hooks one cuz he hates them so much

 

[Aervax]

Chiming in here after the discussion is really over, but the question intrigues me. I have caught many whitefish while fly fishing over the years. My anecdotal conclusion was that whitefish are more active in winter cold water than trout, say under 50F. When water was below 40 on some days my catch ratio was 5/1, others it was 10/1 for whitefish over trout. And the whitefish were definitely far more agressive fighters than trout at that temperature. When I catch them in the summer, they do roll over and come in way more quickly than the trout. That could be that trout tolerate the higher temperature better than whitefish. Optimal temp for trout is just over 60F. For whitefish it is just over 50F. When caught at their respective preferred temperature pound for pound my experience is that they fight with similar ferocity. I think they get a bad wrap because of their ugly carp like lips. They taste good and they fight hard at optimal water temp. Like cosmetic surgery, just put a trout jaw on them and all of you guys would love to catch them. Stop hating on those whitefish! You are just prejudice against carp lips!!!

 

[jamisonace]

I've had similar experiences at varying temps. I agree with everything except the pound for pound analysis. My observations have been that trout fight harder and longer at their optimal temps but I seem to be in the minority about that. Maybe it's those ugly lips that biased my opinion.

Chiming in here after the discussion is really over, but the question intrigues me. I have caught many whitefish while fly fishing over the years. My anecdotal conclusion was that whitefish are more active in winter cold water than trout, say under 50F. When water was below 40 on some days my catch ratio was 5/1, others it was 10/1 for whitefish over trout. And the whitefish were definitely far more agressive fighters than trout at that temperature. When I catch them in the summer, they do roll over and come in way more quickly than the trout. That could be that trout tolerate the higher temperature better than whitefish. Optimal temp for trout is just over 60F. For whitefish it is just over 50F. When caught at their respective preferred temperature pound for pound my experience is that they fight with similar ferocity. I think they get a bad wrap because of their ugly carp like lips. They taste good and they fight hard at optimal water temp. Like cosmetic surgery, just put a trout jaw on them and all of you guys would love to catch them. Stop hating on those whitefish! You are just prejudice against carp lips!!!