Alan Liere’s hunting and fishing report for March 28, 2024

Thu., March 28, 2024

By Alan Liere The Spokesman-Review

Tip of the week

Lakes like Eloika, Newman, Banks, Moses, Potholes, Bonnie and Downs in Eastern Washington, and Coeur d’Alene, Pend Oreille and Hayden in North Idaho have good crappie populations. Knowing the water temperature is the most essential element in finding them in the spring. Crappie move into the shallows once lake water rises above 50 degrees, and they spawn when it is into the 60s. Find water temperatures between 50 and 65 degrees and your chance of success are best.

Heads up: Sponsored by Deer Lake Resort, the Deer Lake Lake Trout Fishing Tournament and a smallmouth bass raffle drawing will be held at the resort May 4 and 5. Registration will be May 3 from 3 to 7 p.m. with a late registration May 4 at 8 a.m. Participants will receive $10 for each lake trout caught and $300 for the single person with the largest lake trout. Another $300 will be awarded to the boat with the most mackinaw caught during the tournament. All catches will follow the new WDFW mackinaw lake trout limit for Deer Lake. Raffle tickets will be given out for each smallmouth bass for the raffle prize. Contact Deer Lake Resort for overnight accommodations at deerlakeresort.com (509) 233-2081. For questions, contact Kevin Santora (509) 994-4005 or Anthony Santora (509) 638-7101. Forms can be downloaded from: https://www.dlpoa.com/

Register for the Triple Fish Challenge being held on Banks Lake April 12-14. Google Real Recreation for rules and information.

The Safari Club Inland Empire Chapter banquet and fundraiser will be held April 12 at the Mirabeau Park Hotel on Sullivan Road. There will be games, raffles, door prizes and a live auction in addition to dinner. Doors open at 4 p.m. For more information, call Brian (509) 844-3005 or Ted (208) 400-1165.

Overheard: The annual Lake Pend Oreille State of the Lake meeting will be held on April 4 at the Ponderay Events Center (401 Bonner Way, Ponderay) from 6 to 8 p.m. During the meeting, fisheries staff from Idaho Fish and Game’s Panhandle Region will share updates on the Lake Pend Oreille fishery and activities planned for 2024. There will also be a question-and-answer session. No registration is required.

Dworshak Reservoir is expected to provide excellent fishing opportunities again in 2024. Kokanee anglers should see improved sizes and smallmouth bass anglers should continue to experience excellent fishing with trophy opportunities. Higher abundances of rainbow trout stocking will also continue to provide opportunities for boat and shore anglers.

Braggin’ rights: In the Quincy Chamber of Commerce Trout Derby last weekend on Burke and Quincy lakes, Julian Rubio won an Xbox in the Youth Division with a 22½-inch-trout. Ruby Prunedo won a drone for turning in 14 pounds of trout, and Holly Bogart swept the Adult Division with a 22½-inch rainbow and more than 13 pounds of fish.

Tate Webb and Hunter Wabs won the Columbia Basin Bass Club tournament last weekend with five fish weighing 26.42 pounds. They also had the big fish of the tournament, a largemouth weighing 7.12 pounds. Largemouth fishing has been good back in the dunes. Throw one-half ounce black and blue jigs, swim jigs, jerkbaits, chatter baits and Texas rigged plastics.

Fly fishing

The North Fork of the Coeur d’Alene has seen great streamer fishing of late. Silver Bow Fly Shop said the fishing is better in lower reaches. There has been some dry fly fishing with nemoura stones.

The St. Joe River has fished well lately, particularly during the warmer weather, although rain and snow melt have raised water levels. Streamer fishing has been excellent.

Amber, Medical and Coffeepot lakes have been fishing well with balanced leeches and blobs. Chironomids have been slow.

The Clark Fork has also been fishing well. It is also on the rise from warm weather and melting snow, but it should remain fishable over the next few weeks.

If you plan to fish Lake Lenore in the near future, be aware of the construction delays. During the first phase of the project, expect regular closures along SR 17, from Monday through Friday every hour at the top of the hour for 45 minutes. These closures start from 8:15 a.m. and run until 5 p.m. State Route 17 will reopen every hour on the first 15 minutes of the hour to clear traffic before closing again.

Trout and kokanee

The Quincy Chamber of Commerce Trout Derby last weekend on Burke and Quincy lakes saw more than 100 participants. Some big trout were landed, and many anglers took home prizes from the raffles. Fishing at these lakes has been good since the March 1 opener and was excellent during the derby. Quincy Lake was the most productive.

Lake Spokane trout fishing is picking up with some nice-sized rainbow smacking trolled spinners and plugs near the surface.

Salmon and steelhead

The spring chinook seasons will open April 27 in the Clearwater, Snake and Salmon river drainages. The full seasons and rules will be published prior to the season opener on the chinook fishing webpage.

Chinook fishing has been good on Lake Coeur d’Alene. The fish aren’t large, but there are many of them. Helmeted herring or deep diving Rapalas are drawing strikes in 5 to 30 feet of water. A chinook tournament will be held April 5-7 on the big lake. Registration at Fins and Feathers in Coeur d’Alene will be $50 per angler with payout dependent on the number of participants. The winter chinook salmon fishery in Marine Area 10 (Seattle/Bremerton Area) has closed for the season, but year-round piers will remain open to salmon fishing. The Agate Pass Area in Marine Area 10 remains open daily to catch-and-release fly fishing only through Sunday. Marine Area 11 (Tacoma-Vashon Island) remains open four days per week – Wednesdays through Saturdays only – through April 15 or until the guidelines are met. Marine Area 5 (Sekiu and Pillar Point) is open all April for winter chinook fishing or until the guidelines are met.

Spiny ray

Walleye fishing has been fair on Potholes Reservoir. Fish the humps in front of the sand dunes and near Perch Point. Trolling and jigging are both producing. The walleye are about to spawn, and this will push many of the fish into the channels in the dunes.

One dock at the Northrup launch on Banks Lake is in place. Good walleye fishing and fair bass fishing is reported.

A friend had outstanding walleye fishing in Porcupine Bay on Lake Roosevelt last weekend. He and a buddy took limits on blade baits, and none of the fish was under 15 inches.

Other species

Lake Coeur d’Alene water is still low, so pike fishing in the bays is not as productive as it will be when the water comes up. For now, best success is from boats trolling 20 to 30 feet below the surface,

Hunting

Turkey hunters should be scouting out areas and asking permission to hunt as the Washington general season begins April 15 and the youth season begins Monday. In Idaho, the youth season begins April 8 and the general season April 15.

Contact Alan Liere at spokesmanliere@yahoo.com