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Rocky Mountain Whitefish – An Untapped Nevada Resource
Dave Rice, RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
1/28/2003
With little doubt, the Rocky Mountain whitefish is the most misunderstood, under appreciated, and underutilized of all game fish in Nevada. They possess so many outstanding qualities, yet most anglers don’t seem to care very much about them.
The whitefish are a member of the family of fish known as salmonids, which is made up of the many species of trout, char, salmon and other whitefish. They are a Nevada native, one of only a handful of original residents, and pound for pound fight harder than nearly all of their relatives. Although they are found in abundance in many Nevada rivers, they are rarely targeted by anglers, and that is difficult to understand since as table fare, they are every bit as good – some say better – than all of the other trout.
So why are they overlooked by most anglers, even shunned by others?
Their appearance may have something to do with it. Some say it’s because of their large scales, small mouth, and coloration. The overall coloration is white to silvery on the underside and sides of the fish, with light to dark brown or even olive-coloration on the back, and some say they resemble the much maligned suckers also found in Nevada rivers.
But it’s anything but a sucker.
In Nevada, they are found in the upper reaches of the Truckee, Walker and Carson river systems, as well as a number of rivers and streams in northeastern Elko County. During a recent fish survey on the Truckee by the Nevada Division of Wildlife, ample numbers of whitefish were found adjacent to Idlewild Park and upstream to at least Mayberry Park. I suspect they can be found all the way to the Nevada border.
Anglers who don’t mind putting up with a little cold weather can really have a great time on the Truckee this time of year because it seems that whitefish really come to life while the trout are somewhat dormant. Fishing success is the highest when the river is low, slow moving and cold.
They can be easily caught on fly-fishing equipment or conventional spinning gear. According to NDOW angler educator, Chris Vasey, probably the single most important piece of information to catching whitefish is knowing that they feed almost entirely on the bottom of a stream, so an angler’s bait or fly needs to be likewise. Whitefish have a small and oddly-shaped mouth that has evolved to allow them to pick food off the bottom as their body stays basically parallel to the stream bed. Their foods include fish eggs, even those of other whitefish, worms, especially in the spring, and large quantities of insect life, including caddis larvae, stonefly nymphs and midge larvae. They will even feed on small fish and crayfish along with snails. Look for them in riffle areas, deeper pools and behind big boulders where they may congregate. Find one and you should find many because they tend to school in large numbers.
Knowing this, anglers will find single or double salmon eggs on a size 12 or 14 hook will work well. I prefer natural color salmon eggs, often referred to as white eggs, over the dyed red eggs, but both seem to work. You will need to attach sufficient split shot to get and keep your bait on the bottom. I wouldn’t put the weight more than 18-inches above the bait when fishing faster moving water because the eggs will tend to float up and may miss the fish. Prepare to lose some equipment – it’s a hazard you can’t get away from when fishing for whitefish.
For those preferring to take this fish on flies, Vasey suggests, “Just about anything that’s a bead-head type fly that will drop to the bottom, or you can weight anything in a nymph pattern like a hare’s ear, prince nymph, or copper john. With their small mouth, anything larger than a 12 or 14 and the fish will be really hard to hook up.”
When the water is clear, you can actually see whitefish dart through the water when their silvery sides flash in the sun, and Vasey suggests casting to these fish. Some fly anglers suggest that a brightly-colored strike indicator attached to the fly line is helpful since whitefish hit very lightly. The slightest movement of the strike indicator signals that the angler needs to set the hook.
During the winter, whitefish seem to be most active during the maximum winter insect activity time, about 11 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Ultra-light fishing equipment and 4-pound test line adds a lot to fishing for whitefish.
As far as eating goes, whitefish are as good as any trout. They can be pan fried or barbecued in the same manner trout are prepared, but are especially good smoked. Some say that whitefish have more bones than trout, but it appears that it may only be that their body conformation, which is more round or tubular rather than oblong, like their close cousins, makes them seem more bony. Although it is not necessary, the skin of a whitefish can be easily removed before cooking. I find it easier to simply scale the fish like you would a bass or crappie. Once cooked, the skin is easily removed.
The world record angler-caught whitefish weighed 5-pounds, 8-ounces, and was caught in the Elbow River in Alberta, Canada, according to the International Game Fish Assoc.
Nevada’s record, a 2-pound, 14-ounce beauty from the East Walker River, measured 161/4 inches, however, larger fish, a few up to 19-inches, have been weighed and measured during fish surveys on the Truckee and East Walker.
Dave Rice retired in 2001 after 30 years with the Nevada Division of Wildlife, 25 years as chief conservation officer. He can be reached at thomascreek@@worldnet.att.net.
Dave Rice, RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
1/28/2003
With little doubt, the Rocky Mountain whitefish is the most misunderstood, under appreciated, and underutilized of all game fish in Nevada. They possess so many outstanding qualities, yet most anglers don’t seem to care very much about them.
The whitefish are a member of the family of fish known as salmonids, which is made up of the many species of trout, char, salmon and other whitefish. They are a Nevada native, one of only a handful of original residents, and pound for pound fight harder than nearly all of their relatives. Although they are found in abundance in many Nevada rivers, they are rarely targeted by anglers, and that is difficult to understand since as table fare, they are every bit as good – some say better – than all of the other trout.
So why are they overlooked by most anglers, even shunned by others?
Their appearance may have something to do with it. Some say it’s because of their large scales, small mouth, and coloration. The overall coloration is white to silvery on the underside and sides of the fish, with light to dark brown or even olive-coloration on the back, and some say they resemble the much maligned suckers also found in Nevada rivers.
But it’s anything but a sucker.
In Nevada, they are found in the upper reaches of the Truckee, Walker and Carson river systems, as well as a number of rivers and streams in northeastern Elko County. During a recent fish survey on the Truckee by the Nevada Division of Wildlife, ample numbers of whitefish were found adjacent to Idlewild Park and upstream to at least Mayberry Park. I suspect they can be found all the way to the Nevada border.
Anglers who don’t mind putting up with a little cold weather can really have a great time on the Truckee this time of year because it seems that whitefish really come to life while the trout are somewhat dormant. Fishing success is the highest when the river is low, slow moving and cold.
They can be easily caught on fly-fishing equipment or conventional spinning gear. According to NDOW angler educator, Chris Vasey, probably the single most important piece of information to catching whitefish is knowing that they feed almost entirely on the bottom of a stream, so an angler’s bait or fly needs to be likewise. Whitefish have a small and oddly-shaped mouth that has evolved to allow them to pick food off the bottom as their body stays basically parallel to the stream bed. Their foods include fish eggs, even those of other whitefish, worms, especially in the spring, and large quantities of insect life, including caddis larvae, stonefly nymphs and midge larvae. They will even feed on small fish and crayfish along with snails. Look for them in riffle areas, deeper pools and behind big boulders where they may congregate. Find one and you should find many because they tend to school in large numbers.
Knowing this, anglers will find single or double salmon eggs on a size 12 or 14 hook will work well. I prefer natural color salmon eggs, often referred to as white eggs, over the dyed red eggs, but both seem to work. You will need to attach sufficient split shot to get and keep your bait on the bottom. I wouldn’t put the weight more than 18-inches above the bait when fishing faster moving water because the eggs will tend to float up and may miss the fish. Prepare to lose some equipment – it’s a hazard you can’t get away from when fishing for whitefish.
For those preferring to take this fish on flies, Vasey suggests, “Just about anything that’s a bead-head type fly that will drop to the bottom, or you can weight anything in a nymph pattern like a hare’s ear, prince nymph, or copper john. With their small mouth, anything larger than a 12 or 14 and the fish will be really hard to hook up.”
When the water is clear, you can actually see whitefish dart through the water when their silvery sides flash in the sun, and Vasey suggests casting to these fish. Some fly anglers suggest that a brightly-colored strike indicator attached to the fly line is helpful since whitefish hit very lightly. The slightest movement of the strike indicator signals that the angler needs to set the hook.
During the winter, whitefish seem to be most active during the maximum winter insect activity time, about 11 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Ultra-light fishing equipment and 4-pound test line adds a lot to fishing for whitefish.
As far as eating goes, whitefish are as good as any trout. They can be pan fried or barbecued in the same manner trout are prepared, but are especially good smoked. Some say that whitefish have more bones than trout, but it appears that it may only be that their body conformation, which is more round or tubular rather than oblong, like their close cousins, makes them seem more bony. Although it is not necessary, the skin of a whitefish can be easily removed before cooking. I find it easier to simply scale the fish like you would a bass or crappie. Once cooked, the skin is easily removed.
The world record angler-caught whitefish weighed 5-pounds, 8-ounces, and was caught in the Elbow River in Alberta, Canada, according to the International Game Fish Assoc.
Nevada’s record, a 2-pound, 14-ounce beauty from the East Walker River, measured 161/4 inches, however, larger fish, a few up to 19-inches, have been weighed and measured during fish surveys on the Truckee and East Walker.
Dave Rice retired in 2001 after 30 years with the Nevada Division of Wildlife, 25 years as chief conservation officer. He can be reached at thomascreek@@worldnet.att.net.
