In brief: Fishing lake along Tucannon River gets makeover

FISHING – Rainbow Lake, a popular fishing destination in the Wooten Wildlife Area of Columbia-Garfield counties, is closed for a makeover designed to improve both angler experience and salmon and steelhead habitat in the nearby Tucannon River.

The Washington Fish and Wildlife Department is draining the lake for the project that eventually will reshape its footprint, making it longer and more narrow to give the river more room to meander back and forth across its flood plain, the Lewiston Tribune reports

The river that is home to threatened chinook salmon and steelhead is pinned between the Tucannon River Road and the dam that created the lake.

The redesign will improve the movement of water through the lake and eliminate areas of oxygen-starved slack water where fishing is poor, said Kari Dingman, wildlife area assistant manager.

“The new lake will have better flow-through and be fishable all around instead of having these dead spots,” she said. “Our overall goal is to improve the habitat and the fishing experience.”

The road to the lake, which also provides access to Campground 3 and to Deer Lake, is closed and will remain that way for the summer. The campground is closed, but people can still fish Deer Lake if they are willing to wade the river to reach it.

Next year, the dam will be relocated and the lake will be reshaped to be more natural. The work will include the creation of new wetlands and the addition of a loop to the campground that will make it easier on people pulling camp trailers.

Wolf trapper courses scheduled in Coeur d’Alene

TRAPPING – Sign up is open for a Wolf Trapper Certification class this fall in Coeur d’Alene.

The 6 1/2-hour course is required for wolf trapping in Idaho.

Two separate courses will be held, Sept. 22 and Sept. 23, at the Idaho Fish and Game Department Panhandle Region Office.

The course costs $8 per student. Register online at the Idaho Fish and Game Department website.

Two introductory trapping classes also scheduled in Coeur d’Alene on Sept. 29 and 30.

Info: (208)769-1414.

Fin-clipped chinook OK to keep in Brewster Pool

FISHING – Starting Thursday, anglers may keep one unclipped adult chinook as part of the current salmon daily limit on the Columbia River from the Highway 173 bridge at Brewster upstream to the Highway 17 bridge at Bridgeport, the Washington fish and Wildlife Department announced on Wednesday.

Pend Oreille River Poker Paddle canceled

BOATING – What would have been the 36th Pend Oreille River Poker Paddle, scheduled for Aug. 5, has been canceled.

The Newport Area Chamber of Commerce unceremoniously noted the cancellation on the event’s Facebook page with a note that registration would be refunded. The one-day nonmotorized boating event was scheduled to end at Cusick Park.