Alan Liere’s hunting and fishing report for May 7

Fly fishing

Based off flow forecasts and snowpack levels, runoff is over on the North Fork Coeur d’Alene drainage. Silver Bow Fly Shop guides remind anglers that we are likely going to see exceptionally low flows up there come summer, and fishing will be tough.

The good news is that fishing is very good right now. With the current weather pattern, bug hatches will be prolific with plenty of variety. Salmonflies have been out but skwalas are about done. March Browns will hang in a while longer, but various Drakes are beginning to dominate the mayfly game.

The St. Joe River has dropped back into good shape after a significant flow increase last week. The fishing was still worthwhile this last week even in higher water conditions and it will only get better as prime levels arrive.

There will be probably be another bump or two in flows when high-elevation snow melts, but it shouldn’t be anything extreme. Hatches are similar to the Coeur d’ Alene River system but it’s still a bit early for the upper reaches.

Coffee Pot and Amber lakes, are both producing nice catches of trout – cutthroat at Amber and rainbow at Coffeepot. Small chironomids are enticing both browns and rainbow up to 18 inches at Liberty Lake.

Warmwater species are getting fired up. Bass and carp fishing have been great and will only get better with this warmer weather. Look for bass up shallow water around structure and carp feeding on the flats at mid-day.

Trout and kokanee

Friends who recently trolled Rapalas at Sprague Lake said fishing was phenomenal and they left the lakes with limits of 20 +-inch rainbow trout.

Fishing at put-and-take lakes around Spokane has been fair. Williams, Badger and Clear have been good some days, and Fishtrap is usually good for a couple catchables or a very big carryover. West Medical trout fishing has been slow this week, but a few big trout have been taken.

Loon Lake has been a bit of a disappointment again this year. The rainbow are small and the kokanee mostly aren’t showing, though a few very small fish have hit trolled offerings.

Deer Lake is producing some good-sized rainbow and a few mackinaw. Sacheen, Diamond and Jump-off-Joe have seen a good trout bite at times, but Waitts Lake rainbows are more reliable, though a lot of them are small. Gang trolls ahead of a Rooster Tail or crank bait work pretty well, and a trolled Muddler Minnow is always a good bet.

Conconully Lake, Pearrygin Lake, and Alta Lake in Okanogan County all provide good trout and kokanee fishing in the spring, but some of the smaller lakes like Round, Beth and Wannacut can also be good for trout.

In North Central Washington, some of the lakes that started out slow are picking up in the warmer weather. Blue Lake, Park Lake, Deep Lake, Perch Lake and Jameson Lake are now fishing quite well for hefty rainbow trout.

Spiny ray

I keep waiting for the crappie bite on Eloika Lake, but a long-time resident there tells me that until the lily pads beginning showing, the crappie will remain in deeper water. Once the pads become obvious, he said, the bite in shallow water along the shore will commence. Try a curly-tailed jig 2-to-3 feet under a bobber for steady action.

The walleye bite on Long Lake has been good, and so has the smallmouth bite, but the crappie haven’t moved in close to shore yet and the perch have been a little lethargic as they continue to recover from the spawn. The perch bite on Curlew Lake, on the other hand, has been excellent.

Both Potholes Reservoir and Moses Lake in Grant County have seen excellent fishing for both largemouth and smallmouth bass. Lake Roosevelt has also seen some great smallmouth fishing for anglers throwing tube jigs into rocky areas along the shoreline.

Walleye anglers have had good fishing on Lake Roosevelt. They say the walleye re scattered over flats in 15-20 feet of water down from Seven Bays. The Spokane Arm is producing some big spawning females as well as the smaller fish. Banks Lake has also seen some good walleye fishing.

Multiple football-shaped smallmouth over 6 pounds have been caught at Dworshak Reservoir this spring. The next two weeks should see many more big fish landed.

Other species

Opening dates for recreational halibut seasons in Marine Area 1 (Ilwaco/Chinook), Marine Area 2 (Westport), and Marine Areas 3 and 4 (Neah Bay and La Push) are from April 30–June 30 with an annual limit of six halibut. Fishery managers encourage anglers to sign up for Fishing Rule Change email notifications and to check for emergency rules on the WDFW website before fishing.

Due to low numbers, recreational spot shrimp fisheries will not open in several Puget Sound marine areas as previously announced. Some non-spot shrimp fisheries will open on June 1. Refer to WDFW’s recreational shrimp fishing webpage for the latest regulations.

Hunting

By now, most turkey hunters have filled at least one tag, but the big birds are still gobbling and displaying around my house where, to the best of my knowledge, seven birds have been taken. Oddly, three of the adult toms had no spurs whatsoever, and a couple of them had small beards but large bodies. A black bear also was seen, practically in my back yard, by two turkey hunters.

Contact Alan Liere at spokesmanliere@yahoo.com.