Lake Roosevelt Kokanee Salmon Fishing

People go to Lake Roosevelt for kokanee salmon fishing to find big kokanee. These kokanee grow to look like footballs. They’re big, they’re fat, and they’re tasty. They can also be a challenge to catch. This article will tell you everything you need to know to catch kokanee at Lake Roosevelt, from the bait people are having success with, fishing spots, and just a look at all the fishing reports available on the lake combined to give you the best chances of success.

About Lake Roosevelt, WA

Lake Roosevelt reservoir is located in Washington State and is 151 miles long. The reservoir itself covers 5 different counties. The largest part being in Ferry, then Stevens, Lincoln, Okanogan, and Grant counties. It runs from Northport City and the Grand Coulee Dam The full name is actually Franklin Delano Roosevelt Reservoir. The reservoir came about with the creation of the Grand Coulee Dam in the 1930s and 40s along the Columbia River.

This eastern Washington reservoir sits at an elevation of 1290 feet above sea level and is 375 feet deep at its lowest point. It also has an extremely healthy population of kokanee salmon.

Amenities

Lake Roosevelt has a lot of amenities and resources near by. Because the lake is 151 miles long, there are a host of hotels, campgrounds, restaurants, boat ramps, and other resources. On top of that, if you can’t find it on the lake, you’re just a short drive down to Spokane, and you can find most anything else you’ll need there.

The four most popular boat ramps are Spring Canyon boat launch in Grand Coulee, French Rock boat ramp in Kettle Falls, Daisy Public boat launch in Rice, and China Bend boat launch in Northport. There is a marina in Northport named Lake Roosevelt Adventures at Seven Bays Marina.

Where is Roosevelt Lake

How to Fish for Kokanee in Lake Roosevelt, Washington

The most popular way to fish for kokanee at Lake Roosevelt is trolling with a downrigger. You’ll want to troll at 1-1.8 mph with a kokanee rig, and I list the most popular gear below for that. You can also jig for kokanee but trolling is definitely the more popular option. You need to find the kokanee, get on them, and then work that school of kokanee until they move on. Then you find them again.

Best Places to Find Kokanee at Lake Roosevelt

• The Dam
• By Spring Canyon
• Toward Sawilla

Lake Roosevelt is really big, and there are a lot more kokanee hot spots where you can find kokanee, but these are the most commonly reported areas of success in the forums, social media groups, and fishing reports. If you’ve got a fish finder, you should be able to find schools of kokanee throughout the lake in deeper water, as long as you know what kokanee look like on a fish finder. If you can check with a local or a forum, you’ll be better off as well

Most Common Depth for Finding Kokanee on Lake Roosevelt

As it gets warmer, kokanee salmon go deeper. They can be hard to find, but depending on the water temperature, you can find Kokanee salmon from 10’ to 90’ with an average being around 40’, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be able to consistently find them at 40’. Electronics are very important, and especially at Lake Roosevelt where the water is REALLY deep and kokanee depths can vary so drastically.

About Kokanee Salmon

Kokanee salmon are sockeye salmon that are landlocked in fresh water. They primarily feed on Zoo plankton and are generally found in larger lakes that can maintain a cool temperature, or have enough depth to maintain a cool temperature. Kokanee are native to many lakes in the western United States and Canada including Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California and Idaho in the United States and British Columbia and Yukon in Canada. Populations of kokanee salmon are also found in Japan and Russia. 

Additionally, kokanee have been introduced to many other lakes in the United States including in those states mentioned above as well as in Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico in the west, as well as in New England, New York and North Carolina in the east. Kokanee have also been introduced to lakes in southern Alberta and Saskatchewan in Canada.

Most Popular Kokanee Salmon Rig for Fishing Lake Roosevelt

I combed through several forums, lots of fishing reports, and social media groups to figure out what most people were reporting having success with. Your most common kokanee trolling setups will probably work, but a little refinement and knowledge from locals never hurts. This is what people are reporting success with. Orange and pink were by far the most popular colors.

Most Popular Colors at Lake Roosevelt

• Orange 40%
• Pink 37%
• Green and Chartreuse 12%
• Other Colors 11%

Most Popular Kokanee Lure or Hoochie at Lake Roosevelt

Squid hoochies are the most popular type of lure used on Lake Roosevelt , though wedding ring lures are pretty popular as well as well. Pink was by far the most popular lure color on the water, with green and orange as secondary choices. Any of the lures below will work well. I personally prefer the double hook kokanee lures, as kokanee strike out of aggression, and the two hooks provides twice the opportunity to hook into a kokanee.

Most Popular Dodger at Lake Roosevelt

There were several popular kokanee dodger colors according to the forums. According to the forums and groups, a pink dodger is the way to go. People also liked pink combos. Pink and silver, pink and orange, etc.

Most Popular Bait for Kokanee At Lake Roosevelt

The most popular bait to tip the hooks with at the end of your lure or hoochie is overwhelmingly shoe peg corn. Shoe peg corn is a more firm and resilient type of corn that can stay on the hook better and longer than regular sweet corn. The corn can also absorb scent and flavor, and it provides a kokanee something soft to bite into. If they aren’t hit on the first strike, they’re more likely to strike again. I’m a fan of fire corn, which is a dyed and scented corn.

Most Popular Scent at Lake Roosevelt for Kokanee Fishing

Kokanee are extremely sensitive to scents, so many anglers use a scent spray or gel to help both cover the human scent, and attract the kokanee. Gulp maggots or scented shoepeg corn can help cover that scent, but others like adding a gel as well. According to our analysis of the forums, the most popular scent is Bloody Tuna, with Anise Krill coming in second, and a variety of garlic options coming in third.

Best Time to Fish for Kokanee on Lake Roosevelt

The best time of day to fish for kokanee on Lake Roosevelt is right at first light. If you’re wondering when that is, I like to plan 30 minutes before sunrise. In the summer, that’s early. The bite us usually hot before the sun is in the sky, and the higher the sun gets, the slower the bite is.

The best time of year to fish for kokanee on Lake Roosevelt is winter and early spring. The kokanee are biting well, schooling well, and are easiest to catch. They are bigger in the summer and fall, but they’re easiest to catch in the early fishing season.

Video of Kokanee Fishing on Lake 

This video showcases a good snapshot of the sizes of kokanee on Lake Roosevelt, as well as just a view of the feel of the reservoir.

Other Fish You Can Catch Trolling for Kokanee at Lake Roosevelt

Landlocked Chinook Salmon

The Chinook salmon at Lake Roosevelt like to hang out close to the bottom usually. Even though these salmon are landlocked, these chinook still can get pretty big and are definitely good eating. They’re much harder to catch than kokanee, but its possible to hook into one when targeting kokanee. The chinook at Roosevelt come from the population at Coeur d’Alene Lake. They aren’t intentionally stocked in Lake Roosevelt.

Cutthroat Trout

There is a healthy cutthroat trout population at Lake Roosevelt. Cutthroat trout are a lot of fun to catch and will often bite on the same gear as what you’d use for kokanee. At Lake Roosevelt the cutthroat are often in more shallow water than the kokanee.

Rainbow Trout

Lake Roosevelt seems to consistently produce big fish, and the rainbows there are no exception. There are some monsters in there. If you’re looking for table fare, I personally like the taste of kokanee vs rainbow trout, but they’re both a lot of fun to catch.

• rainbow trout
• walleye
• smallmouth bass
• largemouth bass
• mountain whitefish
• pumpkinseed
• brook trout
• yellow perch
• lake whitefish
• brown trout
• burbot
• sturgeon
• cutthroat trout
• bull trout
• black crappie
• brown bullhead
• yellow bullhead
• channel catfish

Lake Roosevelt Kokanee Bag Limit:

• The current Lake Roosevelt kokanee salmon bag limit is 2 fish.

Lake Roosevelt Kokanee Fishing Specific Regulations

Fishing is open all year long. Sturgeons have limitations due to seasons and specific rules. The main fish that attract fishermen are Kokanee, sturgeons, rainbow trout, and walleye and smallmouth bass. See the latest Washington Fishing Regulations for more information, and for the latest rules and regulations you’ll need to be aware of before hitting the water.