Alan Liere’s weekly fish and game report

Wed., Dec. 28, 2016

Alan Liere

Tip of the week

I received several emails and calls this week regarding a story that appeared recently in The Spokesman Review about my tendency to get muscle cramps after a day of bird hunting in thick cover. And while most agreed I needed to drink more water, several offered remedies for a Charley horse. One reader said quinine-sulfate did the job for him. Another recommended one chewable vitamin E pill (400 I/U), and yet another said a magnesium jell or spray applied directly to the cramp would bring almost instantaneous relief. For yet another reader, dill pickles or a shot of dill pickle juice was the way to go, and a tablespoon of yellow mustard was also recommended. Many thanks to all. With so many choices, I’m hopeful of finding one that works for me.

Braggin’ rights

A friend and I went quail hunting near Creston last Friday in the new snow. At one point, my Brittany spaniel, Lucy, went on point 20 feet in front of an abandoned barn and when I walked in chiding her for thinking there were birds in the flat, barren landscape, a covey of quail erupted through the door from inside the structure. Unfortunately, Lucy’s instincts were better than my shooting at the towering quail, but it is a memory I will cherish forever.

Heads up

Before heading out in the New Year, Idaho hunters and anglers are reminded to pick up a 2017 license. Idaho trapping licenses and Federal duck stamps, though, are valid through June 30. The start of the spring steelhead season in Idaho opens Jan. 1 on parts of the Clearwater, Salmon, Little Salmon, Snake and Boise rivers. Besides the 2017 Idaho fishing license, a steelhead permit is required.
Washington State’s new recreational license sales system became operational this week, and WDFW officials say the switch from the old system went smoothly. License fees did not change with the release of the new system and most license items for the 2017-18 license year, which begins April 1, 2017, will be available for sale in the new system in mid-January, 2017.

Fly fishing

Silver Bow Fly Shop says good success can be had on the Spokane River by slowly stripping streamers through pockets of slow water running at least four feet deep. As the water level drops, more holding areas will open up.

The Snake River remains ice free, but fishing is tough this time of year for fly fishermen searching for steelhead. Try patterns such as Intruders with lots of movement in both the Snake and the Clearwater.

Ice Fishing

Fourth of July Lake ice fishermen are having fair to good trout fishing through about five inches of ice. The “small” trout are running around 16 inches, and a lot of anglers get their two fish over 14-inch limit before catching anything smaller. Fish to 21 inches are not uncommon. A good spot is in the middle of the lake where it narrows.

The access to Hog Canyon Lake has a lot of snow, but four-wheel drive vehicles shouldn’t have much trouble unless the weather turns warm and the snow turns to slop. Ice anglers are having good luck on the rainbow, but say the bites come in spurts.

Up north, Williams and Hatch lakes provide fair fishing for rainbow averaging about a foot. Bait fishermen are doing well on worms, salmon eggs and corn.

Anglers are making some nice catches of perch through almost 10 inches of ice on Moses Lake, but on some days, you can’t buy a bite. Most of the activity is centered near Blue Heron Park, just to the north of the I-90 Bridge.

Perch are biting at Eloika Lake, but there was slush under the ice on Tuesday. A friend says he was surprised by the size of the fish and that the northeast side was best. Silver Lake had a pretty good ice cover except in the bay to the right of the launch. Small perch are common, but check the ice often as you venture out.

In Okanogan County, Leader Lake and Patterson Lake both have good, solid ice covers and anglers are catching perch and rainbow trout. Green Lake also has a good layer of ice, but is better known for trout than spiny ray.

Many of the small Idaho Lakes including Fernan and Hauser have ice but Hauser hasn’t attracted much attention. Fernan, on the other hand, has four inches of ice and a lot of perch. An angler there last week caught a 25-pound northern pike.

Round Lake in north Idaho has good ice and anglers are catching some 12-14-inch trout and some decent perch. Upper and Lower Twin have about five inches of ice and the perch are biting. A pike of around 34 pounds was pulled through the ice at Upper Twin recently.

Sprit Lake had some open water around Christmas, but anglers were finding good ice in places and the trout were biting. No word on the kokanee, which are perhaps too small to attract much attention.

Gamble Lake in Idaho has good ice and has been the best Panhandle bet recently for perch which are running 9-12 inches. There are also some crappie showing. The best bite is early. Avondale Lake also has some decent-sized perch and there is a lot of action. The fish come in many sizes.

Pike anglers using tip-ups are finding northern pike to about 24 inches on Cave, Medicine and Thompson lakes. Herring and smelt are the preferred offerings.

Lake Cascade is a 30,000 acre impoundment located in Valley County about 70 miles north of Boise on the North Fork of the Payette River. It has become the perch fishing destination in Idaho and most likely the site of the next state record. Gill net samples this year indicate 3 percent of Lake Cascade perch are 15 inches and larger (trophy), 39 percent are 12-15 inches (jumbos), 19 percent are 10-12 inches, 10 percent are 8-10 inches, and 43 percent are 5-8 inches. The lake currently has 8-10 inches of good ice. Call Fish and Game’s regional office in the McCall office (208-634-8137) or the regional office in Nampa, Idaho (208-465-8465) for current information on the fishing there.

Open water fishing

Lake Roosevelt has been pumping out 15-16-inch rainbow all winter to trollers dragging flies, usually with a little to a lot of orange. Anglers trolling close to the top are also taking some big kokanee out of Keller Ferry. For the rainbow, it doesn’t seem to matter what part of the reservoir you fish, as the bite has been consistent everywhere.

The Rock Lake launch certainly hasn’t improved any with the snow, and the few that have tried have encountered an icy entry. Boats over 16 feet are nearly impossible to get into the water. Take gravel. Those that have managed to launch say the fishing for trout is very good.

The Clearwater River and the North Fork Clearwater have had some low angler hours-to-steelhead-caught ratios recently.

Other species

Effective January 1, WDFW is offering longer clam seasons for all species at Fort Flagler State Park (Jefferson County), Freeland County Park (Island County), Point Whitney Tidelands (Jefferson County), Sequim Bay State Park (Clallam County). West Penn Cove, will be closed for clam harvest through May 31, 2017, and will re-open June 1, 2017. Fort Flagler State Park Freeland County Park and Sequim Bay State Park will also have an extended oyster season beginning Jan. 1.

Hunting

It’s unusual to even see a duck now unless you’re on the big water of the Columbia River, the Snake River or Lake Roosevelt. There is still a large population of geese keeping parts of Banks Lake open, but they are feeding on land that is not very accessible to the public.

Deep snow makes upland hunting an ordeal, but I have been contemplating getting out the snowshoes and giving that a try. Cattails are popular now with pheasants, and quail are hunkering down and holding tight in brushy draws.

Contact Alan Liere at spokesmanliere @ yahoo.com