Hunting and Fishing

Salmon and steelhead

Since the rain, the Snake has cooled to 68 degrees and the Clearwater has come up a little, reports Tim Johnson of Fishhawk Guides in Clarkston. He says the steelhead bite has slowed a lot. Idaho Fish and Game has revised their steelhead estimate down to 100,000.

The lower section of the Grand Ronde River, from the mouth at the Snake River to the county road bridge about 21/2 miles upstream, where all steelhead must be released, has shifted to selective-gear rules.

WDFW district fish biologist Bob Jateff of Omak says there are still good opportunities to fish for salmon in the Okanogan River system as new fish enter the river due to cooler water temperatures. The season runs through Sept. 19

Fall chinook and coho salmon opened Wednesday on the Yakima River from the Highway 223 Bridge at Granger to the closed water line 400 feet below Sunnyside (Parker) Dam. Non-tribal anglers interested in fishing this stretch of the Yakima River, which borders the Yakama Nation’s reservation, are required to possess both a WDFW fishing license and a Yakama tribal hunting and fishing permit. The permit is required for all non-tribal anglers, regardless of whether they fish from a boat or from either bank of the river. Also opening to salmon fishing Wednesday was the lower stretch of the Yakima River, from the Highway 240 Bridge in Richland to the Prosser Dam. A Yakama Nation fishing permit is not required on this stretch.

Fall chinook catches increased on the lower Columbia below Bonneville beginning late last week. Best catches were generally from Kalama upstream. A few more coho appeared in the catch.

Cool, wet weather is enticing coho salmon to enter coastal rivers on the Olympic Peninsula; encouraging fall chinook on their journey up the Columbia River and sending hatchery steelhead up Columbia tributaries. One thing that hasn’t cooled down is the ocean salmon-fishing scene. Off Westport, mostly-coho catches have been averaging 1.9 fish per person. Chinook are fewer, but some have been whoppers. An Ocean Shores woman reeled in a 58-pound chinook in late August — the biggest salmon weighed at Westport in 15 years.

Last week at Marine Area 1 (Ilwaco), anglers averaged 1.1 salmon per rod with 93 percent of the catch coho. Through Sunday, an estimated 64.9 percent of the coho quota had been taken. At Buoy 10, an Oregon and Washington sampling combined from Aug. 23-29 showed 5,462 anglers with 965 chinook and 1,331 coho.

Neah Bay reached its catch quota and closed at the end of Thursday. There is a possibility it may reopen if an analysis of catch data shows more salmon can be caught under the area quota. According to Pat Pattillo, WDFW salmon policy coordinator, many of the coho are now pushing toward Sekiu.

Trout and kokanee

“Just go trout fishing,” said WDFW District Fish Biologist Chris Donley of Spokane. Now that water and air temperatures have dropped, he explains, trout are biting again at many local lakes. Williams and Badger lakes in southwest Spokane County are producing nice cutthroat and rainbow trout, ranging from 8- to 9-inch fry plants to 14-inch carryover fish. Amber Lake, in the same area but restricted to selective gear, is also providing good trout action.

The St. Joe River is in excellent shape and the fish are happy. There are lots of caddis and hoppers, reports Joe Contrell Jr. of Joe Contrell Outfitting in St. Regis. He says the Clark Fork is also fishing well “with a little bit of everything,” and that big browns should soon be entering their spawn mode and schooling at the mouth of the St. Regis River.

I fished Loon Lake again early in the week with three friends, and we all took kokanee limits and a few trout on Glo Hooks and maggots between 8 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. The fish are still in beautiful shape and running mostly 10-11 inches.

Lake Coeur d’Alene kokanee angling has been good at Powderhorn, Squaw and Beauty Bays. The fish run 13 inches and are not yet darkening. Coeur d’Alene kokes “will go crazy some time this month” says Jeff Smith at Fins and Feathers.

Pend Oreille rainbow 3-15 pounds have been hitting flutter spoons at 40 feet on a fast troll. The fishing has been surprisingly good for late summer, as the best bite usually comes in October.

Water temperatures on Banks Lake have dropped into the mid-60s and trout 16-21 inches are hitting the troll early on the south end.

Spiny ray

Potholes Reservoir largemouth fishing has been good and crappie appear to be making a recovery. Walleye action on Potholes has been slow but should improve with cooler, wetter weather.

Anglers at Twin Lakes in Lincoln County are finding some largemouth bass and a few black crappie as well as trout. Downs Lake in southwest Spokane County has been great for yellow perch. The Spokane arm of Lake Roosevelt is producing good catches of walleye and smallmouth bass. Smallmouth fishing on the Snake, too, remains consistent.

Curlew Lake Resort dock anglers are still buzzing about the “huge” muskie that recently nailed a trout as it was being reeled in.

Hunting

The dove opener in Eastern Washington wasn’t productive for many hunters. Although there was never much indication of bunching up prior to a migration, many of the birds have left the area. To extend (or salvage) the short season, you might think about heading toward the Snake River, Moses Lake, or Yakima. There are still plenty of birds around Lewiston and in southern Idaho, too.

The grouse opener was generally fair. There are some good populations of both blues and ruffs north of Spokane all the way to Lake Roosevelt, but populations seem to be down some from last year.

The early archery elk hunt runs Wednesday through Sept. 21 across the state. The northeast units are open for any elk and the southeast units in the Blue Mountains are open to spike bulls only. See WDFW’s “Big Game Hunting Seasons and Rules” pamphlet for details.

The high buck deer season runs Sept. 15-25 this year in the Alpine Lakes, Glacier Peak and Henry Jackson wilderness areas (west of the Pacific Crest Trail). There is a three-point minimum.

Saturday marks the opening of black bear hunting in most units of the Blue Mountains and northeast Washington.

Eastern Washington’s early goose season is Wednesday-Thursday.