I am leaving Tuesday night through Saturday to lake Chelan. Taking the boat, typically fish the salt area 9-11, Snow Creek etc...

Where should I fish?
What fish?
How?
Gear?

All help much appreciated. Chuck

Don't focus on just the big lake. Lake Wapato held fantastic trout when I brought my family over in June.

I don't know the big lake to well so I'll let other weigh in on that.

If you are looking to get the kiddos into some fish, you might have a better time and better action going up to Roses or Wapato lakes.

We went to Wapato lake, rented a rowboat, I rowed out 500 yards along the north shorline, and fished crawlers 3-6' under a float for some really nice Rainbows to 18-20", Crappie, Sunfish, and Perch. Caught a mess of fish in two hours.....One of the best family fishing days we ever had.

You could launch your big boat at the little resort on Wapato lake as well for a small fee.

Have fun!

I was just there last week (on the big lake), and it was on fire for smallies. We fished mainly around Wapato Point (since that's where we were staying) early in the am. As in before sunrise. The bite dies quickly once it starts getting hot. It does pick back up at night time though - we caught lots of fish after the sun went down. We got most of our fish on topwaters and dropshotting, with a few jerk bait fish too. Topwaters used were spooks and poppers, and basically any type of green plastic was the ticket for dropshotting. The wacky rigged 5 inch cut tail senko was the top dropshot producer, but like i said, anything green worked. Fished depths from the shoreline out to 30 feet and caught fish all over the point. Lots of fish in the 2 pound range with the biggest going 3.5.

Nothing like fish blowing up on a topwater in 20 feet of water.

Like Sky-Guy mentioned, Lake Wapato and Roses are great lakes too. If you're looking for largies, they both have monsters. Wapato is much clearer than Roses, so you have to be a little more stealthy in boat positioning. The bottom there in most places is firm and doesn't have many weeds, wich is very conducive to jig fishing. It also drops off pretty good in a lot of spots so spinnerbaits slow rolled/fished deep can entice a fish or two. Roses has pretty stained water surrounded with reeds and mucky bottom, so you can get in pretty close and pitch weightless plastics as deep as you can get em. Brushhogs are a good plastic to throw there. Frogs and buzzbaits can get you into some nice fish on both lakes too if you get there early enough.

We were over at the State Park last week. The boyz didn't have much luck off the dock but saw a small mouth. I talked to a fisherman that said he marked fish (kokane) across the lake, just up the lake from Wapato Pt., in 100 - 150 ft of water. He was rigged up with downriggers and said he used spoons.

Lost my Olympus Stylus waterproof camera as I packed it in a tub with a bottle of Hornito's tequilla but must have left the tub at our site as we were packing out last Wednesday from site 51. Didn't notice until we unpacked at home. Called the park but nobody turned it in. My wife dropped her camera in the water while taking pics of us on the Waverunner.

I appreciate all the help...you guys rock!

Wells dam is fishing good right now also for kings as well as Brewster thats not to far from Chelan and similar fishing to the sound downrigger and flasher with choice of tackle

Its been a while since I've fished it, but trolling for trout is easy with good action most of the time. A wedding ring with corn or a worm trolled a long ways behind the boat caught many fish. its shallower towards town and it seemed the trout were at that end back then.

Kokanee hit several different things, even herring while I was after the land locked Kings, just deeper than trout and further towards Wapato point.

Lakers are on the bottom, I never did catch any back then, so I can't say what worked.

Bass were already covered.

Do search here on "Lake Chelan" and you should find a great deal of info.

I was there a month ago and the lake trout action was good. we fished south of wapito point early in the morning. We fished within 10 feet of the bottom with U-20 flatfish in chartruse luminous glow. we fished 3 mornings in a row and caught 21 lake trout for the 3 days averaging about 4 lbs. the largest laker was about 7lbs. They smoked up nice. The down side is they fight like a wet rag.

lol, that's what I've always thought of Lakers. I've watched some TV shows on Great Lakes fishing, they always reel them up while they are trolling, no fight...