Aided by a belly full of food from the previous day's festivities, I slept in long enough to have the sunlight wake me up in the morning. A cold morning to be sure but clear as a bell and not a hint of wind. I waited until 11:00am to head to the launch which would give it time to thaw as I had not yet picked up some sand for traction this season. I was mostly curious to see the condition of the lake after the heavy rains we had a little more than a week ago and to pick up a few more sonar images for a presentation I am working on. The water at the Newport launch was clear and I made the cautious run down to the south end of the lake without have to dodge too much floating debris. The Cedar was kicking out greenish/brown water extending out to the 40+' depth line. I decided to try the area and rigged up with a 6” teardrop dodger and hoochie combo, set at 20' on the downrigger. I was dressed for cold weather and had my heater on board, but with the sun out in full force and my canvas up, there was no need for either. My IR thermometer registered low 70's for my cabin temperature and I was trying to keep from nodding off when my rod registered my first take of the day. It didn't take long for me to realize I wasn't dealing with a cutthroat, my line was paying out at a rapid pace so I took the boat out of gear and set to working the fish back to the boat. Once I had it at the boat I still wasn't sure what I had until I slipped the net under the fish and took a peak. Score one dime bright, 24”, native coho which did me the favor of removing the hook on its own and posing for a quick pick before being released. I sent my rig back down and trolled the area for another hour without a strike before changing direction and heading north toward Mercer Island. Just before I reached South Point, I had a takedown at 35', which ended up being a one run and done long distance release. I quit for the day shortly thereafter and headed for the dock with the Huskies up on the Cougars 24 to 10 at the end of the 3rd quarter. A five star day in general to be sure, just a bit lacking on the hookups.

Takeaways for the day – The water is cold, 50 degrees or less in some areas, wear your life vest at all times! The lake is very fishable, visibility is 4 or more feet in most areas. I expect the algae to do some good things with all the nutrients flushed into the lake and all these bright, sunny days. Bugs were hatching along the shoreline, so shore fishing should start to heat up. Keep your fish in the water until you have identified it, salmon are off limits and steelhead must be released starting December 1st

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