Alan Liere’s hunting and fishing report for Jan. 29

Jan. 28, 2026 Updated Wed., Jan. 28, 2026 at 4:19 p.m.

By Alan Liere The Spokesman-Review

Hunting and Fishing for Jan. 29

Tip of the week: Tiger Slough is an underutilized ice fishing destination just off the Pend Oreille River and Highway 20 in Pend Oreille County. It is east of Colville and north of Metaline Falls. Ice anglers there are catching a lot of perch now.

Overheard: The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and Tri-State Steelheaders have distributed more than 1,500 hatchery carcasses from adult salmon previously used for hatchery spawning in southeast Washington’s Tucannon River. “Historically, salmon and steelhead provided important nutrients by returning in large numbers to the rivers to spawn, die, and decay,” said WDFW fish biologist Michael Gallinat. “In recent years though, too few salmon and steelhead have returned to the Tucannon River to provide the necessary nutrients to maintain a productive food web. This work will help to do just that.”

Heads up: This weekend at Bonaparte Lake there will be an Operation Hardwater veterans, active-duty, first responders, family and friends ice fishing event. On Feb. 7, North Idaho’s Lake Cocolalla will host a fishing tournament.

Braggin’ rights: At last weekend’s Bonaparte Lake 4th Annual Ice Derby sponsored by Bonaparte Lake Resort, 242 adults and nearly 50 youth anglers participated for a chance at cash and prizes, and there was a lot of both. For his big tiger trout, Austin Earley of Omak won $1,815 and an Otter Pro Thermal Lodge, while in the youth category, Joshua Willis of Oroville won $367.50 and a Clam Kenai Pro flip-over ice fishing shelter for his 4-pound, 3-ounce rainbow trout. Coming in second in the adult category was Chris Teusher of Spokane with a 9-pound, 14-ounce lake trout that went 32 inches, good for an AquaVue Fishfinder and $907.50. Matt Mitchell put together quite the mixed bag – a 2-pound, 7-ounce kokanee, 2-pound, 3-ounce tiger trout and 9-ounce bass to win a Vexlar Genz Pack Fish Flasher, Work Sharp knife sharpener and $1,402.50.

Fly fishing

Rocky Ford is still fishing decent. Blobs seem to be the fly of the year there.

The Spokane River is finally settling into more “normal” winter conditions. Flows have kept dropping this week, and clarity looks good on all stretches. Nymph rigs, says Silver Bow Fly Shop, have been most effective.

Ice fishing

In Idaho this week, Dawson Lake had 3½ to 4 inches of clear hard ice and a lot of ice skaters. Perch and crappie there are pretty small and rather finicky most days. Kelso and Granite lakes have 4-plus inches of ice. Avondale is completely capped but ice was not safe last weekend. Smith Lake in Boundary County has 4 inches of hard ice. Gamlin has about 4 inches total. The lake is noted for its large but finicky perch. There was only 1 inch of ice by the docks at Fernan and Hauser on Tuesday.

Also in Idaho, Freeman Lake has almost 6 inches of ice. Anglers there say the perch are pretty small but bigger than the last couple of years and there is a strong bite. Some good-sized crappie are being caught.

A friend who fished Curlew Lake this week warns ice anglers to not go without cleats unless you plan on crawling. He and his buddy started out in the big bay and immediately caught three fish, then nothing. They moved to the left, drilling holes as they went but taking only a fish or two from each. Eventually, they went back to the original hole where they caught 60 and kept 40, all between 8½ and 10 inches.

Gillette, Thomas and Tiger Slough have provided some good perch fishing. Judging by a partial list of tournament results from Bonaparte Lake, the lake has a variety of species including some really big tiger trout.

Sacheen Lake has been the most popular ice fishing destination this past week, with hundreds of holes visible in the ice and anglers spread out from the big bay at the launch and both left and right of there. Perch are the target species, but anglers are also catching sunfish and some decent crappie. Most of the perch are the smaller 7-9 inchers, but a friend’s recent catch of 22 also included two fish of almost a foot in length. He said he had his best luck by dead-sticking. Another friend on the same day, however, said he couldn’t buy a bite. Most anglers indicated they weren’t running into big schools but rather taking one or two fish from a hole and then moving on. The bite petty much dies off by noon. Use ice cleats at Sacheen and at most area lakes as the ice this week has been almost impossible to walk on without them. A dusting of snow would make walking easier.

Diamond Lake still hadn’t formed safe ice by last weekend, and neither had Eloika which is capped with thin ice. Jump-Off Joe anglers weren’t having much luck, but a few trout have been taken there.

Silver Lake has ice in the big bay at the launch, but there was open water to the right where the best fishing usually is. The perch caught in the bay have been small.

Trout and Kokanee

Nate Stull, of Sully’s Guide Service on Lake Chelan says most of the kokanee he is catching are only 10-11 inches, but there are a lot of them and he is also catching a few mackinaw.

Roses Lake received a plant of 20,000 triploid rainbow trout in November and anglers have been enjoying very good fishing this fall and early winter for trout. The lake was ice-free earlier this week, and hard water fishermen who are more interested in targeting the perch are disappointed.

Good catches of big triploid rainbow are being made from shore at the various launches on Rufus Woods Reservoir. Hair jigs with Power Bait or worms added will do the trick.

A friend and his wife fished from shore at Keller this week. While they usually catch their fish on worm and marshmallow “sandwiches,” they found the fish weren’t interested in the combination this time. But when his wife put a small single salmon egg on with the marshmallow, it changed everything.

Salmon and steelhead

On Lake Coeur d’Alene, the chinook are hanging at 80-110 feet with the best fishing at the north end at places like Arrow Point. The fish are on the small size at 18-26 inches with a 24-inch minimum required for retention.

From now through March, the Grande Ronde River is open for steelhead and should be excellent if ice does not become a problem. For more information or to book a float, contact kyrie@reeltimefishing.com or call 208-790-2128.

Spiny ray

Potholes Reservoir launches are all in pretty good shape and walleye anglers are taking a few walleye with blade baits and jigs.

Long Lake is still giving up a variety of spiny ray. One angler said he had caught a couple large crappie, a couple bass and “a bunch” of 8-10-inch perch, including one that stretched an honest 15½ inches.

Other species

The WDFW shellfish managers have confirmed razor clam digging opportunities at Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis, and Mocrocks beaches from Thursday to Wednesday. Bryce Blumenthal, a WDFW coastal shellfish biologist, said, “Hopefully the weather will be ideal like it was during the past low tide series, and we’ll have another productive week of winter digging.” 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.

Hunting

Idaho turkey hunters looking to apply for 2026 spring controlled turkey hunts can apply from Sunday to March 1. The updated seasons and rules booklets will be posted in early February.

With the exception of three white goose seasons which open in February in GMAs 1, 2 and 4, and the youth, veterans and active military one-day season on Saturday, waterfowl hunting is now over in Washington state.

Contact Alan Liere at spokesmanliere@yahoo.com