Kokanee salmon: Kokanee fishing can start to pick up as soon as the ice comes off the reservoir, which can happen anytime between mid-March and mid-May depending on the weather. During the early part of the ice-off season, the kokanee can be located in different areas than they are found later in the summer, and they can be very concentrated in a small area. Search around widely or look for congregations of boats that have already found the schools. Kokanee will often be closer to the surface in the colder spring weather, so look for fish anywhere from the surface down to 40 feet and troll different poles at varying depths to find where the most action is. Typical kokanee gear such as small brightly colored squids, small brightly colored lures and other kokanee gear — often behind flashers — are the best options. Mix up your tackle with varying types and colors to find the ones that work the best. Try varying your boat speed between 1.5 and 2.5 mph to find what they like. Once you start catching fish, stay in that area as more fish are likely nearby. 

Cutthroat and rainbow trout:Cutthroat fishing can be really good right as the ice starts pulling away from the shorelines. When the ice first starts to pull away from the shoreline, the exposed shallow water will start to warm, and bugs will start to emerge and become more active in the warmer, shallow water. This phenomenon is best when the weather is warm and sunny. The cutthroat will key in on this available food, and will be cruising this shallow, open water between the bank and the ice sheet looking for food. However, the timeframe for this can be very short (2-3 days) or up to two weeks depending on the weather. So timing is critical to catch this fishing bonanza at just the right time. During this period try fishing medium-to-large black leech patterns, dark woolly buggers, darker jigs, and even spinners and lures. Cast out to the edge of the ice and retrieve back to shore. If you have a float tube or small watercraft that can be launched in these open areas, fish parallel to shore along the edge of the ice. When the ice has come off and the water mixes, fishing for cutthroat trout typically slows down. The fish will scatter throughout the reservoir, with many of the adult cutthroat starting their spawning activity and running up the tributaries (which are closed starting May 15). Trolling lures and minnow imitations in the open water can still produce fish, and bait fishing in many of the bays can also pick up cutthroat in fair numbers.Rainbows are exhibiting the same behaviors as the cutthroat as soon as the ice starts pulling away from the shore, and fishing the same dark-colored patterns can also produce numerous rainbows. Once the ice has come off, and the water column has mixed, rainbows can still be caught along the shorelines with bait (dough baits and worms are typical). Try targeting rocky shoreline areas off points where the water drops off a little. Trolling lures in the open water (typically closer to the surface) can also produce good numbers of rainbows.