FISHING PHOTO CONTEST

Bide Time On Valley Trout Waters

While waiting for Cascades waters to melt out, there are rainbows to be caught in the lowlands.

By Randall Bonner

As a wilderness skills instructor, taking kids fishing is my favorite part of the job. Seeing a kid’s face light up when they land a fish is a beautiful thing, but so are all the lessons on adversity, patience and gratitude, and garnering an appreciation for the outdoors with or without a catch.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife hatchery trout stocking continues through the spring and into the early summer, providing a great introduction to fishing for younger or inexperienced anglers. A general Oregon Angling License is all that’s required to fish for trout for youths 12 years and older. ODFW also offers Oregon residents and visitors a weekend to fish, crab and clam without a license the first full weekend in June, and while the agency’s website (myodfw.com) says spring’s annual free fishing events have been cancelled until further notice, the free fishing weekends are still a go. This is a great opportunity to introduce new anglers to the water, young and old.

DUE TO COVID concerns centered around overcrowding, ODFW stopped posting the trout release schedules online last spring. However, as of last month they are now back (myodfw.com/fishing/ species/trout/stocking-schedule), and April and May have always been prime time for fishing stocked lakes west of the Cascades. If winter steelhead runs are dwindling, there’s no snow on Marys Peak and it’s time to plant tomatoes, check your watch because that also means ODFW has been stocking all your favorite lakes since January. Historically, most lakes

Owen Austin proudly shows off his catch from the central Willamette Valley’s EE Wilson Pond earlier this

year. (RANDALL BONNER)

A youngster packs out a very nice stringer following a wilderness skills course taught by author Randall Bonner

and Megan Serry. (RANDALL BONNER)

with scheduled angling events always get the most fish in preparation for those crowds.

By April, there’s a mix of fish fresh off the truck, along with holdovers from previous stockings. You can lean on that online schedule, or you can just get out there and do it the oldfashioned way and create your own reports. Stocking typically ends in June due to warmer water conditions.

If you were lucky enough to be at the lake for February’s Free Fishing Weekend, you probably saw some exceptional fishing with qualitysized trout. Between events, large quantities of legal-sized trout, along with a handful of trophy brooders, are stocked to keep anglers interested. When summer hits, there are still a few opportunities left to squeeze in. Some of the larger lakes – think any water with both kokanee and stockers – fish best for trout during those times, especially from a boat.

Some of my favorite lake spots in

NEW COLORS!

The Salmon & Steelhead spinners & spoons that Fishermen can rely on every time for high quality and dependability. You can find these incredible American made lures at these fine sporting goods stores, Sportco, Sportsman’s Warehouse, West Marine Fisherman’s Marine and Englund Marine or at mcomiescustomlures.com

the Willamette Valley to fish from the bank are Sunnyside Park in Sweet Home, E.E. Wilson in Adair Village, Thissel Pond just outside of Alsea, Timber Linn Park in Albany and Walter Wirth Lake in Salem. However, those mud puddles get pretty uninteresting when weeds and hot weather arrive.

The McKenzie River from Nimrod to Deerhorn, North Santiam from Downing Creek all the way to Detroit Lake, and Yellowbottom Recreation Area on Quartzville Creek down to Green Peter Lake are all great spots to catch and harvest hatchery trout from a stream. Check your regulations for bait restrictions, but it is extremely effective where allowed.

FOR STREAMS, DRIFTING a nightcrawler

under a weighted float with a splitshot above the hook is tough to beat (where it’s allowed). Eagle Claw’s clear fixed steelhead floats and baitholder hooks are exceptional for this tactic in clear water.

For lakes, a sliding weight setup from Dave’s Tangle Free with PowerBait or a floating Power Egg on an Eagle Claw Trokar hook are good morning and evening presentations. If fishing gets slow, or the water is murky, a Mice Tail worm can be fished on the same rigging with a little twitch every 10 or 15 seconds to create a little movement to visually attract fish.

“Spinners and spoons at noon” is a phrase I typically tell the kids in my wilderness skills camps. If there’s sun shining on the water, then metal will create more flash, so take advantage of it that time of day if the bait bite slows down. Metal is equally effective in lakes and streams and a 1/6-ounce Rooster Tail in rainbow trout pattern will catch anything that swims, especially rainbow trout. For murky water and chasing brooders, a heavier pink, chartreuse or green pattern will grab the attention of bigger fish.

Single eggs or worms fished just off the bottom or under a bobber are popular presentations for lakes, but when it comes to fishing with kids, I’ve found that bobbers tend to drift with the wind. That involves extra casting and, well, opportunities for tangles and decorating tree limbs. Watching a bobber dunk is always fun, but bait fished on the bottom is the ultimate teacher of patience.

Most trout in shallow, still-water ponds will be suspended within a foot or two of the bottom, so when you’re casting lures, it’s a good rule of thumb to allow them to sink for a few seconds before retrieving them. Try different depths to find the fish.

Along with stocking schedules, ODFW’s website has a great beginner’s guide to trout fishing and maps of all the hatchery trout release points in the state, including the Cascade lakes. One thing is for sure: You can’t catch them on the couch! NS

Custom Boat Trailers

Reliable Quality Service & Craftsmanship For Over 50 Years!

• NMMA Certifi ed • All Steel Weld Frame, Fenders & Bunks • All Steel Weld Frame, Fenders & Bunks • 2 YEAR WARRANTY

343 Thain Rd., Lewiston, Idaho • www.gateway-materials.com www.gateway-materials.com • 208-743-0720 208-743-0720

Owner BJ Cross first started working on outboard engines in a small Yamaha dealership, rebuilding carbs and installing impellers. Years later, The Boat Doc, LLC was opened and specializes in Engines and Drive systems small and large and electronics. All makes of Inboard / outboard, Inboard V-drive and direct drive, Jet drive, Outboards of all makes both prop lowers and jet pumps.

We offer a full service repair shop from a simple impeller swap to a complete repowers. We are proud and excited to announce that we now offer custom aluminum offshore conversion kits, built one-off per application, and custom towers and accessories. Also, we will be soon adding prop repair and full marine audio installations.

We have the latest versions of tech scan equipment and on-site test tank so all jobs are done right the first time. We back up our work 100% and strive for customer satisfaction.

The Boat Doc, LLC has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau and has been an accredited business for over 7 years. You can find me on Yellowbook.com and Facebook.

The Trout Setup Buzz Rarely Heads To The Lake Without

It’s interesting how one lake might be dominated by a set of angling techniques, while a water only a BUZZ RAMSEY few hours away will have totally different ones. The exception to these regional differences is the wide popularity of plunking/still-fishing PowerBait for trout. However, there are plenty of anglers – including me – who try different methods, lures, sizes and colors until they hit on what the trout respond to best.

Certainly what works on any one body of water can vary depending on the available forage that trout are targeting, which might change during the year based on what is seasonally available. “Matching the hatch” is how anglers often characterize the changes in forage and the reason you should try something different when the trout refuse to bite what normally produces. IT WAS IN 2006, while working full time for Pure Fishing, that I was introduced to a fishing method called “crawl-retrieve.” You see, I was part of a team of employees assigned to participate in California’s High Sierra trout fishery. We were there to promote PF products via angler education, product sampling and fishery participation, as well as host media fishing trips and hype the opportunity to win $10,000 by catching a trout (that we’d previously tagged) on Berkley products.

After returning home from southern California, I used the crawl-retrieve method

Blake Ramsey and Chris Sessions show off limits of fat trout caught at a Washington lake with the author. (BUZZ RAMSEY)

To rig for the crawl-retrieve method, you’ll need PowerBait Trout Worms – pictured are Buzz Ramsey’s top-producing colors – either long-shanked or octopus hooks, depending if you’re rigging single or double hooks, respectively, and very light main line and fluorocarbon leader. (BUZZ RAMSEY)

on local lakes to hammer quick limits of fat trout, and have continued to do so ever since. And while it is not the only method we employ, as other lures and bait produce better at times, we seldom head to a trout lake without a set of rods rigged for this fishing method.

Rigging is easy: Just attach a size 4 or 6 single hook to the end of your main line and crimp one No. 5 split-shot 20 to 30 inches away. And while this setup works as is, I will sometimes attach my weight above a No. 7 swivel, with my leader extending back to my hook. Employing a swivel helps relieve line twist, keeps crimped-on split-shot from sliding down the line after successive casts and facilitates the use of free-sliding sinkers.

The basic crawl-retrieve method is pretty simple. Here is how to do it: Cast your rigged outfit out and reel up any excess slack line. Then, let your outfit sink before lifting and lowering your rod tip, reeling 10 feet, and lifting and lowering your rod tip again, etc. Worked this way, nearly all fish will take your bait while it’s falling, which may require you to give the trout time to swallow your offering before you set the hook – just let the fish chomp it down for 5 to 10 seconds or so before yanking. What I sometimes do is dip my rod tip toward the fish, just before the hook set.

SINCE DISCOVERING HOW effective this

fishing method can be, I’ve tried pretty much every small, scent-infused bait shape I can find, including cricket, grub, tube, wiggler and nymph. What I’ve discovered is that it’s hard to beat Berkley’s 3-inch PowerBait Trout Worm.

This scent-filled worm always seems to produce as well as or better than all other shapes and sizes tried. There is just something about a worm shape/image that the fish really key in on. It must be a genetic thing that inspires them; after all, how many worms have hatchery trout actually seen during their short life? Keep in mind, however, that what critter shape works best on the lake(s) you frequent might be different than what it is on mine.

And while I’ve caught trout on every worm color that Berkley offers, I’ve settled on three. Fluorescent orange is my go-to color on most days, as it seems to produce under all conditions and especially well during the low light of early morning or evening. Not surprising, the second best producing color for us has been the naturalcolored worm. Somewhat surprising, though, is how the pumpkinseed color will sometimes outperform natural as it looks nearly the same, but I’ve experienced how one can outproduce the other similar color more times than I can count.

When rigging, it’s important that your worm hangs straight, like a pencil. What I do is thread as much of my trout worm up, onto and over my hook so that the hook eye is imbedded in the head end of the worm. When threading, it helps to keep the point of your hook centered in the worm.

There are two ways to attach a weight to the setup: either a free-sliding bullet between the end of your main line and a swivel, or a split-shot pinched onto the leader. With the speed at which the crawl-retrieve is employed, line twist may not really be a big issue, but using a swivel will help minimize it. (BUZZ RAMSEY)

Another way to attach your 3-inch trout worm is via a two-hook setup, where two single hooks are snelled in tandem – usually about 4 inches apart. I’ve found the twohook setup to be a worthy option when trout are short striking. If you chase trout during the late fall or winter season, the two-hook method is really the only way to go, as the trout are not as aggressive, won’t choke your bait down and you’ll need to yank right away when feeling a bite.

And what does it look like when it all comes together? Tasty! Here’s a rainbow that fell for a Trout Worm in orange. (BUZZ RAMSEY)

Here’s a closeup of the author’s single- and double-hook riggings. “I normally run just one hook in the spring and summer, as it’s quicker to rig up and remove the hook from fish. However, in the winter months or when fish are short striking, I go with a double-hook rig,” Ramsey explains. (BUZZ RAMSEY)

THE CRAWL-RETRIEVE METHOD is one that

can be enhanced by using light line. You see, spooling up with thin-diameter line facilitates longer casts, meaning you can cover a lot more water when retrieving. In addition, thin line provides a more natural, lifelike presentation. For example, I use nothing heavier than 4-pound-test monofilament, and if the water is clear, I employ an invisible fluorocarbon leader.

A long fishing rod can make a big difference in how far you can cast too. Sure, any 5- to 6-foot trout rod will work for this method, but you can greatly increase your casting distance by stepping up to a 7- or 71/2-foot rod – it’s what I use.

Keep in mind that while a long rod will provide more casting leverage, it’s important to choose one in a “light” (L)

or “ultralight” (UL) action, as these rod actions better cushion the acrobatic jumps, thrashing head-shakes and long runs associated with the catching of a really big trout.

This method will work when casting from shore or a boat. Keep in mind that you can greatly increase your success by constantly covering new water. If fishing from shore, try casting in different directions (fan cast), and covering new water by working your way along the shoreline. What we do when fishing from a boat is to change casting direction and locations often when searching for fish.

Keep in mind that fish will often be found near the surface or cruising shallow water when the light is low. And while targeting these areas will likely produce best early or late in the day, or when skies are overcast, it’s pretty normal for fish to move to deeper water as the sun brightens. To successfully target fish holding in deeper water might require you to add an extra split-shot or larger free-sliding sinker to your crawl-retrieve outfit and allow it to sink near bottom before beginning your lift-drop-retrieve sequence.

Using light line, especially when the possibility of hooking a trophy-size trout is real, could mean investing in a spinning reel with ultrasmooth drag. I’d hate to guess how many trophy-size fish have been lost due to a sticky or stuck drag system. You should realize that pretty much all high-end reels have drag systems engineered with a combination of metal and carbon (graphite) drag washers – a feature you should look for when considering a new reel purchase.

Because trout can be finicky about what they do and don’t like on any given day or water body, I go prepared with a set of rods rigged for a variety of trolling, casting and still-fishing methods. However, I always head to the lake with a set of rods prerigged for the crawl-retrieve method, and you should too. NS

Editor’s note: Buzz Ramsey is regarded as a trout, steelhead and salmon sport fishing authority and proficient lure and fishing rod designer. He has been honored into the Hall of Fame for The Association of Northwest Steelheaders and The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame.