Hunting & Fishing

Waterfowl

Most small lakes and potholes in North Idaho and Eastern Washington are capped with ice. As a result, most of the ducks are banded together in large flocks.

Thousands of geese, however, are remaining on Lake Coeur d’Alene in Idaho and on the Pend Oreille and Spokane rivers in the Spokane Region. They’ll probably stay until their food is covered by snow.

Unlike ducks, geese will land on ice-covered lakes. Some gunners will get some shooting at lakes where geese will land after feeding.

Although there may be a record number of ducks in the Columbia Basin, hunters who are not members of leasing groups have had difficulty finding places where ducks will respond to decoys.

For example, some Spokane hunters spent several days last week trying to find places to hunt. They returned to their homes with only a half-dozen ducks.

On the other hand, members of some duck clubs that control hunting rights on lakes and land where ducks have been flying have had sensational shooting.

Steve Smith of the Fins & Feathers shop at Coeur d’Alene said some waterfowl hunters have been waiting for all the lakes adjacent to the lower Coeur d’Alene River to freeze. When the lakes are ice-covered, thousands of ducks will move to Lake Coeur d’Alene and stay until their food is covered.

Hunters haven’t had good shooting at Lake Coeur d’Alene in recent weeks, primarily because of the mild weather.

Trout & spiny rays

This is a frustrating time for those who like to fish for trout and spiny rayed species at the region’s lakes. Most waters are covered with ice sheets, but the ice isn’t thick enough for safe fishing.

A few anglers will walk out on ice that’s only 2 inches thick, but most fishermen don’t want to chance dunkings in near-freezing water, so they’ll wait until the ice is 4 or more inches thick.

Usually, the lakes are dotted with ice fishermen this time of year. Temperatures haven’t been low enough, though, for the ice caps to become thick and hard enough to support anglers safely.

When the ice is safe, Hog Canyon and Fourth of July lakes in the Spokane area are almost certain to churn out lots of rainbows, many more than 14 inches long.

Williams Lake north of Colville should produce good fishing for 11- to 12-inch rainbows.

Many fishermen are hoping ice on Sprague Lake soon will be thick and hard enough for safe ice fishing. The lake holds lots of perch, many 10 to 12 inches long. Some fishermen caught crappies to 13 inches in October and November.

It’s possible there are enough walleyes in the lake for fair ice fishing. Fishermen have never had good walleye fishing at Sprague, possibly because they’ve been unable to find walleye schools during winter months.

Anglers can’t depend on Lake Roosevelt for good trout fishing. Most of the trout apparently went over Grand Coulee Dam during the high water period. Fishing has been slow lately.

Some anglers, jigging deep off Whiskey Rock at Lake Pend Oreille, have caught nice-sized mackinaw trout.

Smith said most North Idaho fishermen have been marking time until the Panhandle lakes are covered with enough ice for safe fishing. Ice on such popular lakes as Fernan, Hauser and Spirit isn’t thick enough for most fishermen.

Steelhead

The steelhead anglers are catching along the Snake and its tributaries are still in good shape despite the lateness of the season for inland rivers.

Fastest fishing during the week ended Sunday was along the Tucannon River. Anglers averaged 3.9 hours per steelhead, Jerry Dedloff of the Fish and Wildlife Department’s Snake River Laboratory reported.

Fishing was nearly as good along the Walla Walla River and Mill Creek. Average for the Walla Walla was 8.3 hours; Mill Creek, 8.9 hours.

Fishing has slowed near Snake River dams. Dedloff said fishermen averaged 29 hours per fish near Lower Monumental and 22.4 hours near Little Goose.

Checks along the Grande Ronde indicated the temperature was low enough to stop steelhead movement. Those who fished the Washington section averaged 23.8 hours, while those who fished the Oregon section averaged 3.3 hours.

Until water temperatures rise again, probably in the spring months, steelhead will remain in the Snake just below the Ronde’s mouth.

Water temperatures are in the low 40s in nearly all streams and most anglers are drifting steelhead roe and prawns near the bottom or are fishing bait under bobbers in the slow-moving areas.

Upland birds

Now that the pheasant and grouse seasons are closed, Eastern Washington hunters who don’t want to put away their guns can hunt partridges and quail until Jan. 11.

All Idaho upland bird seasons ended Dec. 31.

With the closing of the pheasant season in Washington, nearly all upland bird hunters will wait until next fall to go after upland birds. Meanwhile, partridge and quail hunters will have two weekends to hunt the birds.

Chukar populations are down considerably from the last few years, but there are enough of the birds to provide fair shooting for those who have the stamina to hunt for several hours in the steep country where they live.

Biggest chukar populations are in Asotin and south Whitman counties in the Spokane region and along the Columbia River breaks in the Columbia Basin.

Hungarian partridges are numerous enough in some parts of southeast Washington for good hunting. Best time to hunt them is after a snowfall. They can easily be seen against the snow.

Quail numbers are adequate for good hunting. Productive areas are brushy draws along the Snake and along the Palouse River in the Spokane region and the brushy draws of the Columbia River in the Basin.

Salmon

You can hook one or two chinook salmon at Lake Coeur d’Alene if you’re willing to troll for several hours, according to Smith.

The fishing hasn’t been fast, he said, but anglers who troll all day can take home chinooks ranging from 3 to 12 pounds.

The chinooks can be found at depths ranging from 50 to 120 feet, he said. Anglers who have been trolling mini-squids behind flashers have been fishing 80 or more feet deep. Those who have been towing helmeted herring have been fishing at 50 to 80 feet.

“We’ve have our best luck at mid-lake,” he said. “We’ve been trolling from Driftwood Point to Carlin Bay. A few fish have been taken lately in the Arrow Point and Bennett Bay areas.”

Snow hasn’t stopped anglers from launching their boats, he said, but the lake level is getting down to the point where boats can be launched in only a few areas. The level is about 4 feet under the summer level.

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