Alan Liere’s hunting and fishing report for Aug. 1, 2024

Tip of the week

Soft plastics that slip up the shank of the hook lose their action and are thrown in the trash before they are worn out. To prevent this slippage, put a drop of Superglue on your hook just before putting on the plastic. The bond will keep it from slipping back on the hook, even after repeated casting.

Overheard

Through mid-July, more than 925 sockeye had reached Lower Granite Dam. The run is already the seventh-highest return to Lower Granite since fish counting began there in 1975, and more fish are due to arrive. Idaho Fish and Game biologists are ensuring fish will be available for spawning by trapping them at Lower Granite and trucking them to the Eagle Hatchery near Boise.

On July 26, hundreds of dead trout were found floating in American Falls Reservoir in southeast Idaho. The likely cause of death was low dissolved oxygen levels created when high winds caused the water in the reservoir to turn over, bringing low-oxygenated water from the reservoir’s bottom to the top, according to Idaho Fish and Game. Typically, this condition occurs during hot weather, and is described by fish biologists as “a small drop in a very large bucket.”

Fly fishing

The Spokane River is a good option during the summer, and cooler weather makes it even better. The lower sections have been good in the deeper water where most of the rainbow lurk. Streamers and soft-hackled flies do well on sink-tips.

As with most waters, the key to fishing the North Fork Coeur d’Alene River is finding water with depth, whether it’s a riffle or a pool. Hopper/dropper rigs with ants are the way to go. Small chubbies and droppers are also good.

The St. Joe River has fished well. The same setups as those on the North Fork Coeur d’Alene will be effective. Water temperatures in the morning have cooled off, but when it warms up again and the afternoon temperatures hit 68 degrees, Silver Bow Fly Shop’s Sean Visintainer recommends you stop fishing for the day.

The Kootenai River is one of the best waters during the summer heat as it runs cold all year. Fish dries or dry/droppers. Chernobyl patterns, chubby Chernobyls and hoppers are all good.

Keep on top of hoot owl restrictions in Montana by going to fwp.mt.gov/news/current-closures-restrictions/waterbody-closures.

It could be beneficial to the fish even in catch-and-release situations to decrease angling pressure as the water temperatures rise. But an interesting study by Idaho Fish and Game suggests that while mortality of individual trout goes up at higher water temperatures, angler catch success goes down at the same time. Because catch rates drop as the water temperatures climb, anglers are causing as much fishing mortality at lower water temperatures as they are at higher water temperatures because they catch fewer trout.

Trout and kokanee

Badger, Williams and Waitts are three of the better options for trout. Badger has 11- to 12-inch kokanee as well as 11-inch trout, Williams has mostly 10- to 12-inch rainbow, and Waitts is producing rainbow and brown trout in many sizes, including some really hefty browns. Still fishing at night has been good, particularly at Waitts.

Rock Lake trout fishing remains fairly consistent for browns and rainbow. Trolling at about 30 feet is productive with Apex and Old Goat lures, but many anglers prefer to cast deep-diving Rapalas against the rock cliffs.

In Idaho, Lake Fernan is stocked regularly with rainbow trout and the fishing remains decent despite the hot weather. Fernan has a lot of shoreline and many docks the public can access.

Salmon and steelhead

A friend who has been fishing the Brewster Pool for sockeye the past few weeks said you can’t always count on a hot bite. He has done well most mornings, but said it sometimes takes him all day to take a four-fish limit. Most of the salmon taken recently, he said, were at 23 and 29 feet. An ultralight pink/clear glitter small squid with a small pink tiger Smiley Blade was the best lure.

The popular Buoy 10 salmon fishery for coho and chinook at the Lower Columbia River mouth begins Thursday. The term “Buoy 10” refers not just to the buoy marking the western end of a fisheries management zone, but the entire lower estuary fishing area from the buoy clear up to Tongue Point just east of Astoria. The daily adult limit is two salmon, and all wild coho must be released. Herring is the go-to bait. One of the best fishing spots is the Desdemona Sands area located in the middle of the river above and just below the Astoria-Megler Bridge.

Spiny ray

A report from an angler who fished Curlew Lake last week said he was disappointed in the size of the perch he caught. Although ice fishermen were catching many 9- to 11-inch fish last winter, he couldn’t catch a perch more than 6 inches on a trip in July. Perch run in schools of like-sized fish, so he must have been fishing over schools of the smaller fish. In five years of fishing Curlew Lake, I have never caught a perch less than 8 inches.

George Orr and a friend had success last week fishing for Newman Lake crappie. Although high winds limited their trip to less than two hours, Orr said the bite was constant and some of the fish were more than 10 inches. They were throwing small plastics without a bobber.

Another friend told me this week that fishing at Long Lake this summer has been “beyond great.” He put in a lot of time earlier this summer finding fish and experimenting with techniques, and is consistently keeping 18- to 21-inch walleye and releasing anything smaller or larger. He also said he is catching unlimited numbers of smallmouth bass, a few crappie and some jumbo perch.

Walleye anglers on Lake Roosevelt say they have been catching good numbers at Hunters. The flat across from the Spokane mouth toward Seven Bays has been productive, too, and walleye are also being found in front of Bradbury Beach, Osborne Bay and along the east bank of the mouth of the Colville River. Fishing has been fair in the Northport area.

Anglers with boats are catching some nice-sized perch from Diamond and Liberty lakes. Reports from both lakes indicated the bite was nonexistent before 7 p.m., but ramped up dramatically after that. Jumpoff Joe has been mentioned recently as a good place to find nice-sized perch in the middle of the lake.

Loon Lake can provide excellent spiny ray angling for a variety of species, including some large perch and a lot of bluegill, sunfish and bass.

Sprague Lake has a significant algae bloom, but fishing for largemouth bass has been good with some large fish boated. The trout fishing has been limited to areas with springs, such as those around the docks at Sprague Lake Resort. Most of the trout caught have been 18 inches and more.

Hunting

Idaho Fish and Game will sell primarily returned nonresident, general season big game tags starting at 9 a.m. on Aug. 8. Tags can be purchased on a first-come, first-served basis at Fish and Game offices during normal business hours, at license vendors, online at GoOutdoorsIdaho.com, or by calling (800) 554-8685. A list of available tags will be listed at 9 a.m. on Tuesday on the Idaho Nonresident License and Tag webpage. For more information, go to the Nonresident License and Tag webpage or call (208) 334-2592.

Idaho sage grouse and sandhill crane tags will be available Thursday. A total of 5,091 sage grouse tags will be offered for 12 hunting zones across parts of southern Idaho. There will be 656 sandhill crane tags available for six hunting areas in eastern Idaho. Sage grouse populations show periodic increases and decreases in abundance in roughly 10-year cycles. Idaho sage grouse are in the upward portion of that cycle. For seasons and rules for sandhill cranes, see Idaho’s Migratory Game Bird Seasons and Rules webpage.

Contact Alan Liere at spokesmanliere@yahoo.com