Alan Liere’s hunting and fishing report for April 16, 2026

April 16, 2026 Updated Wed., April 29, 2026 at 4:23 p.m.

By Alan Liere The Spokesman-Review

Tip of the week

Tip of the week: With just a two trout limit on Rufus Woods, there is a temptation for anglers using lures to practice catch and release. Legally, this is okay as long as no bait or scent is added, but a trout hooked with a barbed hook will nevertheless be traumatized, and its chance of survival is reduced significantly even when released with no apparent injury. At the very least, barbs should be clipped and treble hooks should be avoided. When possible, refrain from using a net, as a hook tangled in the material prolongs the release.

Heads up: Lake Roosevelt water levels are 1,252 feet above sea level and holding steady. Major launches are usable.

Idaho Fish and Game will host its annual Lake Pend Oreille “State of the Lake” open house on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the University of Idaho Sandpoint Organic Agriculture Center (10881 N. Boyer Road). Fisheries staff will be available to answer questions and visit one-on-one with attendees.

The popular Clear Lake Kid’s Fishing Event at the Fairchild Recreation Area will be May 9. Registration is open until April 24. Go to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife website and type in “youth fishing” for informational links and a registration form. The $10 registration fee includes a fishing rod and T-shirt for each child. Sign up for a two-hour fishing slot between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Overheard: The Quincy Valley Pikeminnow Fishing Derby will run May 15-17 this year. Friday, May 15, is on-site registration from 4 to 6 p.m. with fishing beginning at 6 p.m. On Saturday, May 16, on-site registration begins at 8 a.m. and the final weigh-in is Sunday from 10 a.m. until noon. Registration and the weigh-in tent will be located at Crescent Bar Riverbend Beach and Picnic Area. This fishing derby is located on the mainstream of the Columbia River in Washington state and extends from Wanapum Dam to the Rock Island Dam. Once contestants are registered, they will be able to launch their boat at Crescent Bar, Sunland Estates, Vantage and Frenchman Coulee. For more information go to www.quincyvalley.org.

Idaho Fish and Game is encouraging anglers to consider using e-tagging for salmon and steelhead this season. This digital option makes harvest reporting easier and provides more accurate data for fisheries management. Anglers with a current paper permit will not be eligible to switch to an e-tag for the 2026 season, but will be able to choose an e-tag in 2027.

In preparation for opening day on April 25, WDFW staff are stocking 2.1 million catchable-size trout in lakes statewide. Anglers can find detailed hatchery trout and kokanee stocking plans on the WDFW fish stocking webpage.

Braggin’ rights: I haven’t had much luck at Rufus Woods the last few years, but last Thursday, fishing with two friends, near the second set of net pens, I caught a 5-pound, 7-ounce walleye and a 6-pound, 7-ounce triploid rainbow, both on a purple blade bait in 38 feet of water.

Fly fishing

Silver Bow Fly Shop reported good overall fishing this week on the North Fork Coeur d’Alene. Fish were found on March Brown dries, skwala dries, streamers and nymph rigs. Most tactics will work now, but subsurface is best in the morning. Switch over to dry fly or dry-dropper rigs once surface activity picks up.

The St. Joe remains good. March brown activity is consistent, along with a few skwalas. A big foam bug will draw strikes. Like the CDA system, mornings will be a little slow for dry flies, so plan on subsurface tactics until things warm up a bit.

Most lakes have been fishing well lately. Chironomids are beginning to dominate the game. Leeches will always find fish. Pair them with a chironomid pattern for best results. Damsel patterns should start getting more attention now as well. Coffeepot Lake was very good last week – quality trout rather than big numbers.

Trout and kokanee

Mackinaw fishermen at Deer Lake haven’t had much luck lately, but trout anglers are doing well on smaller fish. One angler reported large rainbow following his lures under the surface but not striking. Water was 48 to 50 degrees and the launch is good for the time being.

Thanks to the annual plants of triploid rainbow by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, there is always a good supply of fish growing in the Rufus Wood Reservoir. These plants average more than 40,000 and are made up of fish of 1 to 2 pounds. There was a release of more than 20,000 fish last month, and fishing near the net pens has been fast. The fish have been on the bottom.

Steelhead and salmon

Anglers in Washington can expect similar recreational salmon fisheries in 2026-27 compared to last season, with some additional opportunities and some shorter Puget Sound summer chinook seasons. You can find additional 2026-27 salmon season information by going to the WDFW’s Salmon Fishing Current blog: North of Falcon 2026 edition. For the recreational fishery proposals, refer to the WDFW webpage.

WDFW has announced that the April salmon fishery in Marine Area 11 (Tacoma-Vashon Island) is closed and will not reopen as previously scheduled. Estimates of chinook catch indicate anglers have reached management criteria agreed to in the 2025-26 List of Agreed Fisheries. It is necessary to close the Marine Area 11 April salmon fishery to meet agreed to conservation and management objectives.

Spiny ray

Moses Lake is filling rapidly now, and the docks will be going in at the many boating accesses on the lake. Walleye fishing is picking up.

Following a poor week of walleye fishing on Lake Roosevelt, some good reports are again coming in from Porcupine Bay upriver.

Other species

WDFW shellfish managers have confirmed razor clam digging opportunities at Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis, and Mocrocks beaches from Friday through April 23. “With two tide series remaining in our spring season, these upcoming digs will have the lowest tides and should provide a great opportunity for successful harvest,” said Bryce Blumenthal, a WDFW coastal shellfish biologist. Copalis and Mocrocks beaches are not open every day during each series of digs, so be sure to check which beach is open before heading out.

Good catch-and-release sturgeon fishing will be on the menu below Rock Island Dam in late April and May. The big, oversized sturgeon move into this area in the spring for spawning and anglers can often hook fish that are 8 to 10 feet long.

Hunting

Washington special hunt permit applications are for sale now. Beginning Monday, hunters may submit special hunt permit applications for 2026 deer, elk, mountain goat, moose, bighorn sheep, and fall turkey seasons. The submission period is open through May 20.

Washington’s 2026 Big Game Hunting Seasons and Regulations pamphlet outlines rules and regulations for big game hunters in Washington including seasons, equipment, licensing, access, and more. It is now available on WDFW’s website. An electronic version of the regulations (eRegulations) will be available on the vendor’s website soon, with print copies available at dealer locations across the state in May.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many turkeys around my home north of Spokane. Winter survival was evidently excellent. The wind and rain almost convinced me I should stay in bed Wednesday morning, but I got up, dressed and went to a spot that had produced a bird every opening morning for 10 years. From 5 a.m. until 6:30 a.m., I sat there and shivered without hearing a single gobble, and I was five minutes from calling it a morning when a lone tom flew in from an unexpected direction. Ten minutes later, he went for a ride in the back of my truck – a heavy two- or three-year-old with a 9-inch beard.

Contact Alan Liere at spokesmanliere@yahoo.com

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Alan Liere’s hunting and fishing report for April 16, 2026

Fly fishing

Trout and kokanee

Steelhead and salmon

Spiny ray

Other species

Hunting

Jesse Tinsley

Jim Meehan

Molly Quinn

Rob Curley

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Alan Liere's hunting and fishing report for May 14