Fly fishing
The steelhead season on the Methow opened last weekend. Fly fishing has been good as numbers continue to climb.
Rufus Woods trout fishing has been phenomenal lately for fly fishermen dragging small brown imitations through the top six feet of water near the upper net pens. There have been reports of 100-fish days.
Idaho trout fishing is good in the Lochsa, the North Fork of the Clearwater and the Selway. Try big orange October caddis or little black midges.
The recent cold nights have probably slowed the river fishing some. The hopper fishery on area rivers is about over, but there are still October caddis, and baetis presentations should work. At Clark Fork Trout and Tackle in St Regis, Brooks Sandford noted that October fish will eat, but they don’t want to swim far to do it. If you can drift a bug over a rising fish, he said, you’ll have a good day on the Clark Fork.
The Missouri River is a good wade fishing option. Some holes are stacked with fish. Look for bigger browns to be moving up the river. Streamers and nymphs will produce all day.
Trout and kokanee
Sprague Lake rainbow are big and plentiful and the algae bloom has diminished. From a boat, try drifting bait between the island and the north shore, or anchor up over the springs near Sprague Lake Resort. A Double Whammy with a worm trolled up the center of the lake is a “can’t-miss proposition,” said John Kallas at Valley White Elephant.
Amber Lake is catch-and-release with selective gear rules, but fishing is wonderful. Flies, jigs and small spinners and plugs are working equally well at the far end of the lake.
Trout fishing on Lake Roosevelt may be picking up just a little as the weather cools. One angler trolling Roostertails on leaded line reported a good bite, but for the most part, two fish per rod is better than average.
There are reports of hefty brown trout coming from Clear Lake by anglers still-fishing with worms.
Salmon and steelhead
Steelhead counts over Lower Granite Dam are spiking with a midweek count of about 4,500. The harvest fishing season opens Wednesday on the Clearwater River above the Memorial Bridge on U.S. Highway 12 near Lewiston. Steelhead limit on the Clearwater is two fish per day, six in possession and 20 for the fall season. Elsewhere in Idaho, the limit is three per day, nine in possession and 20 for the season. Anglers must stop fishing – even catch-and-release – when those limits are reached.
The Snake River is open to retention of fall chinook in three sections: from the Southway Bridge in Lewiston upstream to the mouth of the Salmon River; from the mouth of the Salmon River upstream to Granite Creek; and from Granite Creek upstream to Hells Canyon Dam. Anglers may keep one fall chinook per day and have three in possession. Jacks count toward those limits and anglers must punch jacks on their permit cards.
The Grande Ronde was slow for steelhead early in the week but picked up on Thursday. Before the slowdown, fishing with both flies and plugs was “very, very good,” said Bill Vail at Boggan’s Oasis. He said there are a lot of fish in the river.
The fall run of Columbia River salmon near Wells Dam is trickling in. You can catch fish, but you’ll have to work hard for them. Bait wrapped Kwik-fish seem to do best. The season closes Wednesday.
Steelhead season in the same area near Wells Dam got off to a great start. Anglers fishing the upper Columbia River above Wells Dam, the Methow and Okanogan rivers reported good fishing. Those anchored near the bridge at the mouth of the Methow are finding fish with bobber and jig setups. Fishing from the Pateros docks is picking up also.
The Columbia was running low last week at Hanford Reach and fishing was mostly slow. Chinook anglers averaged 14 pole hours per adult fish, with the Vernita area being the most consistent. Quite a few of salmon are in the 30-pound range. Some steelhead are being retained at Ringold.
The Yakima River yielded several coho this week and an estimated 95 adult fall chinook. No steelhead have been reported in the catch. Anglers averaged one salmon for every 15 hours of fishing.
Spiny ray
Bass fishing is peaking everywhere. Particularly productive are lakes noted more for their trout fishing, such as Liberty, Loon, Deer, Waitts, Sacheen and Diamond, although Eloika, Newman, Hayden and Coeur d’Alene are also good. Both species are moving into shallower water in the bays and off the points and can again be found hugging the docks. Small, light-colored spinnerbaits will entice strikes.
Potholes Reservoir bass and walleye are hitting again, but Moses Lake is slow. Potholes water is coming up fast, which should stimulate the bite.
Northern pike fishing is picking up again on Coeur d’Alene Lake and the Pend Oreille River. Big bucktails and spinnerbaits are doing the damage.
Okanogan County’s Fish Lake is booting out many big perch. If you prefer bluegill, try Roses Lake near Chelan, one of the few bluegill waters around where the fish are large enough to fillet.
Reports from north of Kettle Falls indicate that walleye fishing on Roosevelt is good, but the fish are mostly small.
Other species
Catch rates varied from good to fair for sturgeon anglers in the lower Columbia River. Boat anglers in the Gorge continue to have the best success.
Hunting
The Washington waterfowl opener is Saturday. Moses Lake guide Gary Russell said there appears to be fewer local mallards this year than last, with the majority of big flocks being teal and widgeon. He noted that there are lots of geese, however, and lots of standing corn.
The Washington general deer season also opens Saturday. Hunters will likely have average to good success on small bucks. There doesn’t seem to be a shortage of whitetail does.
Early reports from Idaho archery elk hunters are not promising, said Jim Hayden of IDFG. He said he is expecting a substantial drop in the number of spikes and small raghorns through the stations this year.
The regular pheasant season opens Saturday in northern Idaho. Shooting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset. The season opens at noon Oct. 18 in Areas 2 and 3 in southern and eastern Idaho.
Idaho and Washington chukar hunters on the Snake River breaks are putting in a lot of miles for few birds. Yakima area gunners are singing the same sad song. Excellent quail hunting has taken away some of the sting.