Tactics

Mountain Whitefish have very small mouths, and they typically feed on small insects and crustaceans. Although they do key in on emerging and adult insects when such morsels are plentiful, they feed most often beneath the surface on scuds and aquatic insect larvae. This is one of the reasons "dry-fly trout purists" eschew nymph fishing - nymph fishermen catch more whitefish, and some dry-fly fishers are too squeamish to be able to land and unhook accidentally caught whitefish. When they do take to the surface to munch on dries, the whitefish is something of a clumsy surface feeder, often missing the target on the first pass. However, its sharp vision, sense of smell, and innate wariness makes it a tough catch where food is plentiful. Mountain Whitefish can be maddeningly selective at times, refusing to eat anything that doesn't match some natural form that is not readily apparent. In addition to flies, whitefish can be caught on small spinners, jigs, and live bait in the form of small worms, larvae, or maggots. Maggots are a popular winter bait for whitefish, and would probably work just as well in the summertime. Such baits are usually drifted along the bottom with the current or suspended under a float. In both cases, light line and a sensitive bite detection system is in order.