On July 11, 2023, I fished there in the special summer opening of Lake Towada.
The opening schedule of Lake Towada is irregular and varies depending on the species of fish, but is roughly as follows.
Special Open Period in Lake Towada, Aomori, Japan
Fishing Season for “Himemasu”, a Japanese Landlock Salmon
- October 1 to December 31
- January 1 to June 20 of the following year, and July 11 to July 20 of the same year
Fishing Season for “Sakuramasu”, Cherry Salmon
- December 1 to the end of February the following year
- June 1 to June 20, and July 11 through July 20 of the same year
The special opening period from July 11 to 20, which I participated this time, is a particular 10-day period during which both “Himemasu” – a Japanese Landlock Salmon and “Sakuramasu” – Cherry Salmon can be targeted from the shore.
As far as I have heard in advance, the fishing from the shore was not so good during the period from June 1 to June 20, and the size of the “Himemasu” were mainly small. However, it does not seem that there are no chances at all, as there were some pictures of good-sized cherry salmon on social media.
Testing a Prototype Hook
One of my objectives this time is to test the tandem hooks to be released by VANFOOK.
Having said that, I had been carefully testing them for some time, so this was just a final check for me personally. Yuta Taguchi, who is in charge of development, wrapped the assist hooks and brought them into the field.
“Himemasu,” a Japanese landlocked salmon has a soft mouth and fights hard, so it is easy for the mouth to crack and the fish tends to get off. In addition, the bite is delicate, so a hook that is not too thick in wire diameter and has a good bite is preferable. In addition, Cherry Salmon are often caught in Lake Towada, so a hook that can handle them is required. Therefore, the LSP-41-based tandem hook is expected to be the most appropriate item for Lake Towada.
Session 1
Started fishing at sunrise, I searched the upper range with a Sublime Spoon 15g, but did not get any bites. I lifted and fell to a deeper range than the middle range, about count 40, and got an unexpected bite during the fall. I quickly gave the hook on it, and it seemed to be a good size trout, and it was moving up and down violently.
I netted a 36-cm male “Himemasu” the Japanese landlock salmon. He was spitting out “Wakasagi” (Smelt) during the fight, which indicated that he had switched from being a plankton eater to a fish eater. In years when Wakasagi-eating trout are often caught, the size of the fish is often comparatively large, so I thought this was a promising sign for the day.
Picture (1): (2) 36 cm “Himemasu”, the Japanese Landlock Salmon / Sublime Spoon 15g #S10 Delicious Pink,
using a proto tandem hook.
After that, we had constant bites and caught a few more trout, but all of them were good size. My fishing friend Mr. Tatematsu, who accompanied me, also caught a good size “Himemasu” – the landlock salmon and a “Sakuramasu” – Cherry Salmon in good condition, and just when we were getting excited, a thunderstorm forced us to retreat. It was very disappointing because the conditions were good, but we decided to come back later.
Picture (3): “Himemasu” caught by Tatematsu, Sublime Spoon 12g #S01 red gold,
Hook: Ringed Twin Dancer [RT-31B] size #3L
Picture (4): Cherry Salmon with good-size!, using Sublime Spoon 12g #S01 Red Gold,
Hook: Ringed Twin Dancer [RT-31B] size #3L
Session 2
Later that day, I went to Lake Towada again with Mr. Yokota from Kanagawa Prefecture.
It was raining like a waterfall, but there was nothing we couldn’t do, so we entered the lake early in the evening for the first chance.
Since we had not yet made contact with any Cherry Salmon during this season’s special opening, we fished with an eye on the Cherry Salmon.
To describe the difference between fishing for Cherry Salmon and “Himemasu”, roughly speaking, the former focuses on reeling while the latter focuses on falling.
While Yokota, who focused more on the fall, caught a good-sized “Himemasu”, I hooked up one precious bite and was able to catch a Cherry Salmon, although a small one. I was hoping for a bigger one, but nothing happened after that, and we finished at sunset and headed back to the inn.
Picture (5): Yokota caught 35 cm, using a Sublime Spoon 12g #S09 “Glow Cotton Candy”,
Hook: Twin Dancer [TD-31B] size #LL
The next day, Tatematsu joined us early in the morning, and the three of us entered the lake. We set our conscious to catch one of the best trout.
The point where we entered this time was a point where has a drop off from the front of the lake, it took more than 80 counts to reach the bottom when a 15g spoon is dropped. It was therefore difficult to narrow down the range, but we could expect fish to migrate to this point, and the terrain was very varied.
Tatematsu used a 12g Sublime Spoon and fished carefully along the drop off from in front to the off. Yokota used Sublime Spoon 15g the color “Glow Cotton Candy”, which worked well on the previous day, to lift and fall from about count 40. I dropped the spoon firmly to the bottom and then reeled it in. Each angler tried their own approach to fishing.
Tatematsu was the first person to catch one. His careful approach must have paid off.
A 38 cm fish is quite a big one in Lake Towada!
Picture (6) Tatematsu caught 38cm, Sublime Spoon 12g #S01 Red&Gold,
Hook: Ringed Twin Dancer [RT-31B] size #3L
After a short delay, I also got a hit. It was like a snagging bite while reeling up, so I thought it must have been a Cherry Salmon.
I was careful not to break the line by rubbing against and fought carefully. Although it was not as good as Tatematsu’s Cherry Salmon on the first day, it was good enough. I was very happy to have caught it on the reeling.
Photo (7): Cherry Salmon, Sublime Spoon 15g #S10 Delicious Pink,
Hook: using proto tandem hook
Yokota also caught a good size “Himemasu” – the landlock salmon by hooking on the falling bite.
Since all the anglers were able to catch trout, we finished the day earlier than planned.
Picture (8): Yokota’s “Himemasu” using Sublime Spoon 12g #S09 “Glow Cotton Candy”,
Hook: Twin Dancer [TD-31B] size #LL
Summary
As for this year’s special opening of the Lake Towada, fishing was not the same as in previous years like catching numbers of “Himemasu” the landlock salmon, but when they were caught, it seemed to be with good-size. According to the fishing reports and information from my friends, there were several anglers who caught trout over 40 cm in size, so I think it was a very dreamy special opening this year.
The fact it was not the situation like we could catch several fish in a row when the schools of trout came to the area, it tells that the number of populations forming a school was not large. In order to catch small schools of fish or single migratory fish, it is important not only to find the range of the fish, but also to make the right decision to take your time at the migratory point or to give up quickly and move. When the angler stays in a spot and fishes persistently or does not get many bites, it is easy to lose concentration and miss an unexpected bite.
I was able to get good results on this fishing trip because the proto tandem hooks worked well and helped me respond to unexpected bites. Fishing in lakes is a zero or one gamble, and your success depends greatly on whether or not you can catch that one precious bite. In such a situation, the proto tandem hook was able to produce solid results. This time we fished for “Himemasu” the landlock salmon and “Sakuramasu” Cherry Salmon, and I am sure that this hook will be an effective weapon in many different fields.
I look forward to the release of the new product, and would like to end my report here.
The author’s largest “Himemasu” of the season, 37cm, Sublime spoon 15g, custom color,
Hook: using proto tandem hook
Lake Towada
