Whitefish

[puckster_guy]

 This is a fish we never talk about here. I know they're lurking in the depths here somewhere, but where? I've never fished for them but I have caught a few lakers jigging cleo's, but never got a whitey in the process. I have a buddy that fishes them in Lake Simcoe. He's coming up this summer and I'd like to show him a few if possible. He would smoke them and eat'em year round. darn I need a smoker for my place, one thing at a time...He's here for the walleye tho lol. Anyways guys, what's the scoop on these critters?
A Georgian Bay whitey I got one spring behind Beausoliel Island. At the beginning of May Lakers and whitefish would congregate on the west side of the island. Flatlining or jigging got these fish.

[Mattie]

Here in Ohio that fish is called a white bass. Our local lake is full of them which make a river run each year into it. Very fun to catch. I believe a whitefish is a different species of fish if i am not mistaking?

[T-Bone]

I'm not sure if that's a white bass or not (looks like one), but I'm confident it's not a 'whitefish'...at least the whitefish I'm thinking of...

I caught a huge whitefish once very early in the season on Lake Wabintongushi, Ontario. The fish was cruising shallow flats; I've read somewhere (may here) they are deeper in the summer. Either way, I've never seen one caught on Kipawa in 20+ trips.

This is what I see when hear "whitefish"....

[JLG]

The pic T-bone posted looks like the whitefish we have caught in Kip.  We never targeted them but have caught a few incidentally jigging eyes and jigging and trolling for lakers.  We didn't catch many but 1 or 2 every year.  We kept one to try and it was soft and not to our liking for eating.   Camp owner told me you have to keep them real fresh and then they are a little firmer but we stuck to eyes when we wanted to eat fish.

[Fort Wisers]

I agree that the picture T-bone posted looks closest to the whitefish we used to catch.

We didn't get them often (maybe once a year at best), and we were never targeting them, nor would we keep them.
We'd just occasionally catch them while jigging deeper water for lakers mid to late summer.

As you enter Baie Latour (down near Jawbone) there are two small islands (well three but the third is really just a pile of rocks).
You'll know you found the correct islands because there's a stump sticking up in the lake between the two islands.
Anyhow the island closer out to the main part of Lawbone (further from baie Latour) has a small cliff (like maybe 5-6 feet high) on the south west / west side of it.
We used to jig in there for lakers and pulled up the odd whitefish, that's the only spot on the lake I remember catching them......

Sorry Joe, I know that means a long trip from your place!

[CaptainCrappie]

That fish the fellow is holding is a white bass.  There are some big schools of them in a local lake near where I live here in Ohio. I've never targeted the whitefish in Kipawa but have caught a few trolling for walleye, and also jigging a buzz bomb fishing for lakers. They must like the cooler water just like lakers.  General Rhybak fishes for them in Lake Simco and has given me some smoked whitefish over the years.  Their bones are very fine and easily cook up.  Don't know they're there. Very tasty.

C.C.

[RHYBAK]

The picture T-Bone has posted is a whitefish.

A lot of fishermen that visit Kipawa are calling Fallfish and or Herring as whitefish.

Please, know your species before to start bragging about catching it.
It your not sure, just say you caught something silver and you don't know what it was

I was at the Blue Barrel one day watch people throwing back Fallfish and cursing that they caught a herring or another Whitefish.... WRONG

Whitefish is a very tasty edible fish where Fallfish are just an overgrown CHUB.

[puckster_guy]

OK I could be wrong with that pic, sry 'bout that. I always thought it was a Whitey. Never seen a silver bass before. anyway I just thought I'd throw this out there.

[Rico]

The fish T-Bone posted is a whitefish. I fish for them every summer in Kipawa and have caught plenty of them. You just have to know where to fish for them and what bait to use. I always bring home a few for the smoker. They are delicious.

[crackers42]

Same as jigging for lake trout 70 to 80 feet of water around 65 feet in the evening July and aug

Willams, meegs or bad boyz tipped with a tube jig, jiggin rap, verado

All will work just make sure you jig with a Fluro leader and vertical presentation

Don’t be afraid to stir up the bottom

A lot more so chess with whitefish then lake trout and in my mind 10x better to eat

[Rico]

Same as jigging for lake trout 70 to 80 feet of water around 65 feet in the evening July and aug

Willams, meegs or bad boyz tipped with a tube jig, jiggin rap, verado

All will work just make sure you jig with a Fluro leader and vertical presentation

Don’t be afraid to stir up the bottom

A lot more so chess with whitefish then lake trout and in my mind 10x better to eat

x2

[JLG]

One additional note on whitefish I have caught in Kip as well as a lake in Ontario.  Unlike the fall fish which get big in Kip the whitefish were Extremely slick to hold and scales come off real easy so can make a mess in your boat if you have carpet.

[Jow]

we use a dedicated cooler for the whities with lots of ice. they'll make your livewell reek

[crackers42]

Are we talking about whitefish or cisco all called chub in kip?

[MikeFromTheSouth]

Here is a picture of a Whitefish (it is a whitefish right?) I caught while jigging with plastic leaches.  We caught 5 on the river below ragged chute.  The first picture was not the biggest one we caught but was second largest (21" to tail fork) 3" leach so you can sort of picture measure (the largest by an inch or two was caught during the rain so no pic).  So from what I read about whitefish on the internet two of the ones we caught would be considered large as 31" is the maximum inland lake size but they typically get up to around 20".  Apparently they can get much bigger on the great lakes?  I was told in the past that they were actually very good to eat.  I have never tried one though.  Anyone have any thoughts on the taste?  In the first decade of going to Kipawa we never caught any but the last half dozen trips we have caught several each time.  The Whitefish are always caught as a bi-product of what we were doing targeting walleyes.  Something I think is neat about the whitefish is that when you hold them they are very firm strong feeling fish (even more so then the pike which just flop everywhere or walleye.



Is this also a whitefish?  it does not have the second dorsal fin.  Maybe its a juvenile so not yet developed but I am guessing it is a different fish.  Any thoughts?