Bernie Keefe of “Fishing With Bernie” joined me on my radio show Saturday to talk about fishing conditions on Lake Granby. Our first topic of conversation, however, was our wives. Both of our wives had recently appeared on our social media sites; Keefe’s wife, Lisa, with a 45-inch lake trout caught on Granby and my wife, Karen, with some excellent smallmouth bass she caught at Horsetooth Reservoir.
When I asked Keefe why they seemed to be catching bigger fish than us, he replied “it’s simple; they are better anglers than us”. Keefe went on to comment that he was really just a boat driver and photographer for Lisa.
The truth is the picture of Lisa’s large lake trout had prompted my call for Bernie to join me on the show. As many of you who follow my shows and column know, Lake Granby is one of my favorite places to fish and a body of water that I feel I have fished with great success. Lisa’s catch highlighted a failing I have had on Granby. I typically will fish Lake Granby starting in the fall through the ice-fishing season and into the spring when big lake trout are shallow. My feeling has always been that the fish are deep in the summer, making them hard to find and difficult to catch. Over the last several years, Keefe has shattered that belief.
He is a master of catching big lake trout through the summer. He admitted it takes more work but the rewards are worth it. This time of the year, he relies heavily on his electronics. He looks for fish that are positioned on the sloping side of humps and points in 50-to-75 feet of water. He likes to make a vertical presentation using a Berkley Havoc or Power Tube, 3 1/2 inches in size or bigger, on a 3/4 to one ounce jig head. Using this type of approach, Keefe consistently puts fish exceeding 30 inches into the boat all summer.
Keefe says there is not only a good population of big fish in Lake Granby, there numerous fish in the 20-to-26 inch range.
Our conversation then turned to the upcoming fall season. This is my favorite time to fish Granby.
Starting in late September through October, the lake trout get into their spawning mode. The fish will stage in rocky gravel areas. While big fish can be caught, this is the time for numbers. Fifty-plus fish days are not uncommon. We also change our approach; the lake trout will be stacked up close to shore and can be fished from a boat or from shore. And we downsize our presentation to smaller tubes and Power Minnows on lighter jig heads. From shore, a Krocodile Spoon worked just above the rocks may be a better option. You won’t get snagged on the rocks as much.
Keefe feels this will be an “incredible” fall. The number of fish up to 26 inches is phenomenal. He does hope anglers will show restraint and only keep the smaller fish to eat. Lake trout can take some time to grow to size and releasing those larger fish will allow Lake Granby to continue as trophy-producing water for years to come.
Lake Granby, located approximately 86 miles from Denver on US Hwy 40, is one of the largest lakes in Colorado. On its own, it contains approximately 40 miles of shoreline. Often overlooked as a destination, it combines memorable fishing with a breathtakingly scenic backdrop and easy access to the western side of the Rocky Mountain National Park.
To get more information on Fishing With Bernie follow the link below:
http://www.fishingwithbernie.com/
To watch a video of Bernie and I fishing Granby click below:
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To listen to my complete interview with Bernie Keefe click the links below.
https://soundcloud.com/1043thefan/bernie-keefe-terry-wickstrom-outdoors-72217
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