Alan Liere’s weekly fish and game report for June 16

Wed., June 15, 2016

Tip of the week

You don’t need a downrigger to catch Lake Roosevelt kokanee and trout as they are not terribly deep. A one-ounce weight ahead of the flasher will get you to the proper depth as long as the trolling speed is maintained at about 1.5 mph.

Braggin’ rights

Spokane resident Heidi Wallace hadn’t done much fishing and had never caught but a few very small fish. But last week at Porcupine Bay on Lake Roosevelt’s Spokane Arm, she dropped a jig into 50 feet of water and became immediately snagged. After several moments, the “snag” began to move, and Heidi eventually landed a 26-inch walleye that weighed over 6 pounds. She says she plans to do a lot more fishing in the future.

Overheard

The Kenai River in Alaska, which has been closed to chinook fishing for several years, recently opened for catch-and-release fishing. A source from the area who went out on the opener said the river was loaded with chinook and he was the only one fishing. He estimated the weight of one of his fish at over 50 pounds.

Heads up

The boat boundary on the Columbia River from Beacon Rock upstream to Bonneville Dam has been lifted. This will allow both boat and bank angling for salmon and steelhead in this area.
To enhance youth hunting opportunity and experience, holders of an Idaho controlled hunt tag for big game or a turkey permit may transfer their tag or permit to their child or grandchild under the age of 18. For more information, or to receive a copy of the tag transfer form, contact a Fish and Game regional office or visit the licensing page on Fish and Game’s website at idfg.idaho.gov/license/controlled-hunt-tag-transfer.

Fly fishing

Grand Ronde River smallmouth are providing a lot of action for fly fishermen on a scenic, uncrowded float. You can do it yourself or contact Reel Time Fishing in Clarkston, which is offering a 12-mile drift boat float, a trip that generally yields a lot of action and some trophy-size fish. Info: (208) 790-2128.

The Spokane River has seen good dry/dropper action, and streamer fishing has also been good. Caddis fishing is reported to be productive on the Kootenai River.

The St. Joe is fishable both high and low with salmon flies and golden stones. The North Fork Coeur d’Alene River has also been fishing well. Golden stone activity has been very good. Silver Bow Fly Shop recommends running a Chubby Chernobyl or similar pattern for surface feeders. Double dry rigs or dry/dropper rigs are solid choices. To book a guided trip on any of these rivers, call Silver Bow at (208) 924-9998.

The Clark Fork River in Montana is said to be “red hot” from Regis down to Ferry Landing. Nymphs are still the name of the game with some dry fly action in the afternoon.

Trout and kokanee

Most of the lakes south of Spokane – such as Badger, Clear, Amber, Williams and Fishtrap – are fishing well for trout. Sprague Lake has also been good.

A friend managed to sneak out between storms this week for Loon Lake kokanee. He started early and had a limit by 9:30 a.m. The fish he didn’t intentionally shake off were 10-11 inches. Night fishing has pretty much shut down due to the cold windy weather, but when things stabilize it should be good in about 30 feet of water.

Regional fish program manager Chris Donley says that with the kokanee fishing so good at Roosevelt, trout are being neglected. On a recent trip, however, he said he “caught and released a whole bunch of trout pushing 18 inches” after getting his kokes.

Spring Canyon kokanee anglers are finding fish close to the boat launch, but better fishing has been in Swawilla Basin. Anglers launching at Keller are doing well also when not fighting the wind. The kokes, some of which are approaching 5 pounds, are a little deeper at around 40 feet.

Trolling out of Lakeside Park on Lake Chelan, kokanee anglers are finding success on 12-inch fish about 30 feet down over relatively shallow water. Fish of a similar size are spread out all over the lake and trolling has been good.

Conconully fishing for kokanee has been best between the rope swing and the last house. Dodgers and hootchies are taking a lot of 11- to 13-inch fish.

Pearrygin Lake in Okanogan County is experiencing good rainbow trout fishing from both boat and docks. Most of the fish are around 12 inches long.

Dworshak Reservoir kokanee, while not large, are already bigger than last year, with most around 9 inches. With typical growth, by July these fish should average 10 inches, with some as big as 11. Trolling at 20-30 feet has been excellent.

Kokanee anglers at Hayden Lake report catching a lot of really small kokanee in addition to the 10- to 11-inch keepers. Action is steady. Lake Coeur d’Alene is just getting started with some small kokanee showing at the south end. A better bet is Pend Oreille, where the bite is fast and the fish bigger.

All the small lakes around Coeur d’Alene – such as Fernan, Hauser, Kelso and Granite – are regularly stocked with trout and the fishing is good. These fish are particularly fond of any bait with a garlic scent.

Salmon and steelhead

Thursday is the opener for salmon and steelhead on the Columbia River from the Astoria Bridge to the 395 Bridge at Pasco. Call (380) 696-6211 for information. Summer steelhead are now open on several West Side rivers.

Spiny ray

Potholes Reservoir is high, so many of the dunes at the mouth of Crab Creek are under water. Nevertheless, walleye anglers are finding enough fish to keep things interesting. Orange has been the preferred color lately for the popular Wally-Pops and Smile Blades. There have been a lot of complaints from anglers about the masses of annoying insects in the dunes that seem impervious to DEET.

Moses Lake is still good for both smallmouth and walleye. Curly tailed grubs and tube jigs have worked for both. The smallmouth population seems to have exploded.

Most Lake Roosevelt walleye have been caught at an average depth of 30 feet. Don’t be afraid to go shallower or deeper though. Bottom bouncing with nightcrawlers has been most effective.

You can still catch a lot of trout at Rock Lake, but bass fishermen seem to be having the most fun lately throwing Wacky Worms. There was also a report of a 9-inch bluegill “dinner plate” caught on a Bagley’s Bream Crankbait.

Smallmouth are more prevalent than largemouth at Banks Lake. One-pound smallies are the norm. Banks Lake walleye are scattered. The flats north of the Million Dollar Mile have been productive in about 20 feet of water.

Idaho’s Dworshak Reservoir has yielded smallmouth bass this spring as large as 6 pounds. Most of the really big ones have finished spawning and have moved to deeper water, but there are still a lot of 12-14 inchers close to shore.

My pike fishing friend had a good day at Coeur d’Alene this week, landing eight northerns and three large bass by throwing spoons and plastic frogs in 5-8 feet of water. He said the week beds in the Chain Lakes are in very good shape and those in the main lake are a little behind.

There are still some nice walleye being caught from Moses Lake, but they are more spread out now than two weeks ago. Slow Death rigs and Berkley Flicker Shad continue to produce.

Hunting

The WDFW Commission has reduced the number of hunting days for antlerless deer in northeastern Washington units 101-121. The muzzleloader season for antlerless whitetail in the region has been eliminated and the archery hunt for antlerless whitetail has been reduced to six days.

The number of hunting days for antlerless deer for youth, seniors and hunters with disabilities has already been reduced to four days this year. These restrictions reflect concerns about deer herds affected last year by an outbreak of blue tongue disease.

Contact Alan Liere via email at spokesmanliere@yahoo.com