Alan Liere’s hunt-fish report for July 27
The Spokane River will continue to be a top producer all summer thanks to the cool aquifer. Silver Bow guides report mornings and the first half of the day are best, with some evening fishing. Dry/droppers will be good all summer.
Fishing continues to be good on the St. Joe. Afternoon fishing can be slow but usually picks up in the last bit of evening.
Chubbies, especially more colorful varieties like royals, pinks and Euro rigs, work well. Try running a dropper for more fish.
Hoppers, beetles and ants are all producing. If you want to match the hatch late in the day, go with some small midges. No matter where you fish, make sure you have terrestrials.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is advising anglers that portions of the Beaverhead River, Bitterroot River and the entire Jefferson River are closed to all fishing daily from 2 p.m. to midnight.
Other rivers have also begun full closures. The restrictions will stay in effect until conditions improve.
Trout and kokanee
Coeur d’Alene kokanee are small this year, averaging 8 inches. The best bite is at 15 to 25 feet trolling a flasher and hoochie with two pieces of corn.
Kokanee fishing is picking up on Dworshak Reservoir.
Although the abundance remains high this year, the fish are bigger than last year (8-9 inches).
Most anglers are fishing the lower end of the reservoir below Dent Bridge, but the adult kokanee will soon begin their upstream migration toward spawning grounds.
By the beginning of August, expect to see the largest concentrations of fish above the Grandad Bridge.
Salmon and steelhead
Sockeye fishing on the Columbia River has been great, with limit catches coming from below Wells Dam and in the Brewster Pool.
Based on current sockeye passage analysis at Tumwater Dam and mainstem Columbia River Dams, the WDFW projects a surplus of harvestable sockeye destined for Lake Wenatchee, well above the natural spawning escapement goal of 23,000 fish.
The season is open there from 4 a.m. until dusk until further notice.
Baker Lake sockeye fishermen are doing well, sometimes limiting in less than an hour. Tip your hooks with coon shrimp and troll slowly.
The retention limit in Marine Area 5 (Sekiu and Pillar Point) is two chinook salmon daily through Aug. 15.
Chinook minimum size is 22 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size, but wild chinook, wild coho and chum must be released.
Spiny ray
Local anglers are catching mixed bags of spiny ray on the Spokane Arm of Lake Roosevelt, on Long Lake and in the Kettle River.
The channel going up into Crab Creek out of Potholes Reservoir has produced everything from walleye to bass to catfish and a few perch, bluegill and crappie. Perch fishing has also been good at Loon, Deer and Diamond lakes.
Look for weeds in about 20 feet of water. Silver Lake is loaded with sunfish and bluegill. Occasionally, a big tiger muskie will come out of hiding under a dock and grab one of these.
August Snake River walleye, catfish and smallmouth bass fishing should be good, according to recent reports. Lyons Ferry is a good place to begin.
Potholes Reservoir walleye are in 5 to 20 feet of water. Fish the shallower fish in the sand dunes with trolled No. 5 Flicker Shads, jerk baits, flukes, swim baits and lipless crank baits.
Fish the deeper fish with a Slow Death Hook/Smile Blade rig with a crawler and bottom bouncer.
Fish the main channels back in the sand dunes, Crab Creek and the face of the dunes tight to the weed lines. It is an early morning bite. The fish will be moving out toward the face of the dunes soon as the water is getting low and the baitfish begin to move out.
Potholes largemouth fishing remains good. Most fish being caught are in the 2– to 4-pound range, caught on a wide variety of baits and lures. Fish 2 to 15 feet of water in the sand dunes.
Other species
The WDFW has added additional recreational halibut fishing dates for August and September.
“Responding to angler interest we opened the Puget Sound region five days per week in early April, however, sufficient quota remains to provide more opportunity to harvest halibut,” said Lorna Wargo, WDFW intergovernmental ocean policy coordinator.
The updated rules also include temporarily raising the annual halibut bag limit to six fish in all marine areas. WDFW is hosting a virtual public webinar meeting regarding the recreational Pacific halibut fishery from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
Contact Alan Liere at spokesmanliere@yahoo.com
Tip of the week
A common mistake made when fly fishing is casting too frequently. Too many false casts can scare the fish away. Fish can sense every movement in the water. If you can limit your casts, you’ll catch more. Fully load the rod on your back casts to increase the line speed when you shoot the fly line.
Overheard
The confusion between sunfish and bluegill stems from the fact that every bluegill is a sunfish, but not every sunfish is a bluegill. In other words, the term “bluegill” refers to one species, while “sunfish” refers to a family of more than 30
freshwater species that is
native to North America. Most common in area lakes are the bluegill, the pumpkinseed sunfish and the red breast sunfish.
Heads up
The 17th annual Brewster King Salmon Derby begins Aug. 4, and it should be a great one. The thermal barrier at the mouth of the Okanogan River is keeping kings and sockeye in the cooler water of the Columbia River, and more
fish are showing up every day. For more information and to register, log onto www.brewsterkingsalmonderby.com. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is inviting new applicants to join the ranks of over 1,200 certified-master hunters across the state. WDFW administers the Master Hunter Permit Program to enlist skilled volunteers who are willing to aid
department efforts to support the public and Washington wildlife. Interested individuals can submit applications through Aug. 15 and must complete all program requirements by May 15
. For information on master hunter eligibility requirements and how to apply, visit WDFW’s website.