Hunting+Fishing

Trout

Liberty Lake is still an excellent bet for rainbow and brown trout, said Wade Lawson at Sportsman’s Warehouse. He has fished the lake several times since the March 1 opener, and though the size of brown trout caught is diminishing, he is catching many around 17 inches. When the lake first opened March 1, numerous browns were taken to 8 pounds

Downs Lake is ice-free and should be producing catches of rainbow trout approaching a foot in length. Downs also has big perch and crappie and lots of largemouth.

Two lakes that opened on March 1 – Amber and Coffeepot – still have a little ice but are becoming more fishable. Both are selective-gear lakes and Amber is catch-and-release only at this time. Coffeepot has a minimum size of 18 inches and daily catch limit of one trout.

Medical Lake (not West Medical) is still iced up, but is expected to provide open water fishing soon. Anglers following Medical’s selective-gear rules should catch large brown, rainbow and tiger trout.

Fourth of July and Hog Canyon close March 31. Lenny Hahn, WDFW enforcement officer, reported shore fishermen are catching limits at Hog Canyon.

The seven Tucannon River impoundments that opened March 1 continue to provide limits of rainbow trout. Big Four Lake will be stocked this week.

The Quincy and George area lakes are providing good action for trout anglers. Fly fishermen are having success on the quality lakes near Beverly. Lenore is finally ice-free and the big Lahontan cutthroat are cruising.

April 1 marks the opening of many more Columbia Basin fishing waters and prospects are fair to good. Lakes opening include the Hamptons, the Pillar-Widgeon chain and Dry Falls. Spectacle Lake in the Okanogan will also open April 1.

Banks Lake rainbow averaging more than 2 pounds are hitting fast-trolled Flatfish and Rapalas in the top 10 feet of water. These fish will begin to turn dark in a couple of weeks, but they are prime now.

Rufus Woods angler Dale Moffat fished Wednesday across from the first net pens. He said drifting a 3-inch white hootchie behind a slinky was the ticket. Moffat puts an orange float inside the hootchie to keep it just off the bottom. He said his party had no trouble finding limits of 6- to 8-pound triploids.

Fly fishermen are also having fun at Rufus using full sinking lines and Wooly Buggers. The system has been good all the way to Bridgeport.

The Coeur d’Alene River is rising but fishable. The Clark Fork is still fine for fly fishermen, particularly in the afternoon. The Yakima is maintaining clarity and fishing has been fair for trout and good for whitefish.

Steelhead and salmon

Hatchery steelhead fisheries will close on the Okanogan and Similkameen rivers an hour after sunset on March 31 to protect wild steelhead, the WDFW announced Thursday.

The rivers have been open since last fall under special regulations with federal limits on the incidental catch of wild fish.

The Similkameen River whitefish fishery also will close March 31, while the Okanogan River from the mouth to the highway bridge at Malott will remain open to game fish other than trout and steelhead.

Steelhead fishing has picked up on the Okanogan and Similkameen rivers within the last few weeks. Selective-gear rules prohibiting bait are in effect for the steelhead areas on both rivers.

The Grande Ronde was running at 4,960 cfs on Thursday and dropping. Temperature was 40 degrees, visibility 1 foot.

The Middle Fork to North Fork of the Salmon River has seen some of the best steelheading of late, with the catch average being one fish per every 11 angler hours. The Clearwater, upstream from Orofino to Clear Creek, is about the same. The North Fork Clearwater average is a fish every 13 hours.

There was a good turnout for the above I-5 opener on the lower Columbia, but results were less than spectacular, as the run is just getting started. Beginning Monday, Hayden Island west power lines to Bonneville Dam will be closed to fishing for all species from one hour after official sunset Mondays to one hour before official sunrise Wednesdays.

Spiny ray

Lake Roosevelt anglers are catching lots of small walleye all over the system. Reports this week came from Blue Creek, near the cemetery, and near the mouth of the Spokane arm. The most recent reports are that the Spokane Arm has muddied up.

Banks Lake is clear of ice and anglers trolling spinners in 27-40 feet are beginning to pick up walleye on the north end. The flats across from Coulee Playland Resort have been good. A few smallmouth are also showing.

Bonneville Pool anglers are catching a few walleye and a few smallmouth. Walleye are also beginning to show on The Dalles and John Day Pools.

Other species

Two razor clam digs are tentatively scheduled on morning tides April 6-9 and April 19-23.

Sturgeon anglers on the John Day pool are catching some legals. The harvest has accumulated there quickly over the last couple of weeks.