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Sportsman Northwest

Your LOCAL Hunting & Fishing Resource

Volume 10 • Issue 10

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ANNIVERSARY

PUBLISHER James R. Baker EDITOR Andy Walgamott LEAD CONTRIBUT0R Andy Schneider THIS ISSUE’S CONTRIBUTORS Jason Brooks, Scott Haugen, Doug Huddle, Sara Ichtertz, MD Johnson, Randy King, Brent Lawrence, Buzz Ramsey, Jared Rivera, Terry Wiest, Dave Workman, Mike Wright, Mark Yuasa EDITORIAL FIELD SUPPORT Jason Brooks GENERAL MANAGER John Rusnak SALES MANAGER Katie Higgins ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Rick D’Alessandro, Mamie Grifﬁn, Mike Smith, Paul Yarnold PRODUCTION MANAGER Sonjia Kells DESIGNERS Kayla Mehring, Jake Weipert

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ON THE COVER Jake Mandella caught this hatchery Chinook in the San Juan Islands during the 2015 summer ﬁshery. This year’s season opens this month and runs through August, when clipped and wild kings can be kept, before switching to coho only in September. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

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Northwest Sportsman 9

CONTENTS

VOLUME 10 • ISSUE 10 (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

79 CATCH SOUNDBOUND KINGS

With this year’s forecast calling for 21 percent more Chinook than usual back to Pugetropolis – and 35 percent more than just last year – Mark Yuasa has where and how to fish for ’em in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Admiralty Inlet, Hood Canal and San Juan Islands!

FEATURES 47

TOKELAND SHORE-GASBORD Bankbound? This small community on the ocean side of Willapa Bay offers a great chance to gather your own bait, catch tasty redtail surf perch and haul Dungeness crabs. Oh, and the chicken-on-a-stick at the local gas station isn’t too bad either, reports our M.D. Johnson.

7 BUOY 10 ALTERNATIVES Just because this is forecast to be a down year for fall salmon returning to the mouth of the Columbia River doesn’t mean you should hang up your rods. Andy Schneider identifies seven viable alternatives everywhere from Coos Bay to the Deschutes mouth to the 125 Line to try your luck at this summer instead.

107 OREGON SUMMER STEELHEAD The late arrival of summer-runs to her river wasn’t the only challenge Sara Ichtertz had to overcome with steelhead last season. When the fish finally showed, they came in with a vim and vigor that proved hard to tame. 129 THE RODNEY DANGERFIELD OF SPOKANE TROUT LAKES Fish Lake gets no respect, what with bucket biologists perennially dumping in pumpkinseeds, perch and even northern pike, but it still can be a productive brook, brown and tiger trout fishery. Mike Wright details this fishy little lake not far from Cheney.

SUBSCRIBE TODAY! Go to nwsportsmanmag.com for details. NORTHWEST SPORTSMAN is published monthly by Media Index Publishing Group, 14240 Interurban Avenue South, Suite 190, Tukwila, WA 98168. Periodical Postage Paid at Seattle, WA and at additional mail ofﬁces. (USPS 025-251) POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Northwest Sportsman, 14240 Interurban Ave South, Suite 190, Tukwila, WA 98168. Annual subscriptions are $29.95 (12 issues), 2-year subscription are $39.95 (24 issues). Send check or money order to Media Index Publishing Group, or call (206) 382-9220 with VISA or M/C. Back issues may be ordered at Media Index Publishing Group ofﬁces at the cost of $5 plus shipping. Display Advertising. Call Media Index Publishing Group for a current rate card. Discounts for frequency advertising. All submitted materials become the property of Media Index Publishing Group and will not be returned. Copyright © 2018 Media Index Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be copied by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording by any information storage or retrieval system, without the express written permission of the publisher. Printed in U.S.A.

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COLUMNS

65 WESTSIDER

(ALLWASHINGTONFISHING.COM)

THE KAYAK GUYS Fresh cutbait wasn’t doing anything for guest columnist Jared Rivera on Brownlee during a catfish outing there last July, but a phone call to a friend got things hopping in short order. BUZZ RAMSEY No doubt about it, this year’s Buoy 10 expectations are down, but that doesn’t mean don’t go. Buzz has smart tips for making the most out of the forecasted run of 600,000-plus salmon.

115 SOUTH SOUND With crabbing a no-go, what’s a South Sound fisherman to do this summer? There are so many more options, reports Jason, who details where and how to chase Chinook and resident coho in the salt and loads up your pack to scout bears and fish alpine lakes! 121 NORTH SOUND Whether you’re a salty dog or 12 Northwest Sportsman

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Coleman. Keizer. Klein. Girtz. Lato. These top Western Washington skippers and anglers tell Terry their favorite summer fisheries, how to work ’em, memorable catches and amusing memories from years spent on the water! a mountain man, Doug has you covered with options for big fish – where to work the San Juans for Chinook and the lowdown on Ross Lake’s rainbows and bull trout. 137 ON TARGET Call it his magnum opus – Dave goes long on all seven .300 Magnum long-range cartridges and what makes them different from one another. 143 GUN DOGS A wide-ranging sportsman and former athlete, Scott knows the importance of foot care. Same goes for your gun dog – Scott shares tips for getting and keeping your pup’s paws in the best shape for and in the field. 147 CHEF IN THE WILD Wild berries bring Chef Randy’s seasons afield together – he shares a elderberry-blackberry syrup recipe for waffles stacked with meat from a spring gobbler one of his son’s bagged!

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NNorthwest Nor orrthwest thhw th thw west esstt Sp es Sportsman port o sma sman 13 3

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BLIND AMBITION

Retired disabled vet Rick Spring wants to build more ADA-accessible hunting and birdwatching blinds across the region.

DEPARTMENTS

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THE EDITORâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S NOTE On crabbing

SOCIAL SCENE Reader reactions to recent news

READER PHOTOS FROM THE FIELD Huge halibut and catfish, and more!

PHOTO CONTEST WINNERS Browning, Yo-Zuri monthly prizes

THE DISHONOR ROLL Southwest Washington poaching ring suspects hit with still more Oregon charges; Jackass of the Month

DERBY WATCH Brewster, South King County, CCA Washington, Oregon Tuna Classic derby previews; Recent results; More ongoing, upcoming events

OUTDOOR CALENDAR Upcoming openers, events, deadlines

BIG FISH Record Northwest game fish caught this month

RIG OF THE MONTH Super-simple Brownlee Reservoir catfish topwater set-up

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THEEDITOR’SNOTE and Follow the Law It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3...

hen the boys and I go crabbing in late summer with writer Wayne Heinz and Lucie Fritz, Wayne will tell us that on mid-July’s opener it’s as easy as putt-putting a couple hundred yards out of Anacortes’ Cap Sante Marina and sending down baited pots. Indeed, the productivity and popularity of these close-in waters was in stark evidence recently. The Northwest Straits Initiative Derelict Red dots mark lost pots Fishing Gear Removal Project posted a map off Anacortes. (NORTHWEST showing 614 lost crab pots discovered by STRAITS FOUNDATION) side-scanning sonar from just outside the marina east into Padilla Bay and north towards the western tip of Samish Island. Crews have since begun hauling them up – some unfortunately still fishing with dead crabs baiting in yet more. “It’s probably about the highest density we’ve seen. It’s a quite a big number,” Jason Morgan of the Northwest Straits Foundation told KOMO reporter Michelle Esteban.

A “PERFECT STORM” of heavily trafficked waters – besides the marina, tankers deliver oil to a nearby refinery and this is the Swinomish Channel’s northern entry/exit – strong tides and nearby deep waters are to blame, according to Morgan. No doubt pot pilfering also occurs, but Esteban reported crab cages are lost “mostly due to user-error — namely not weighting the pots, using the wrong line and unfamiliarity with tide and depth.” When we go, we run way out to find plentiful Dungeness and red rocks. Before dropping pots, Wayne and Lucie watch their Lowrance to note depth and choose the right length rope. They pick weighted ones with plenty of scope to account for tide and current and thus will keep the pot on bottom while floating their oversized buoy. And then they mark a waypoint to return to. Yet as the old saying goes, stuff happens – some 12,000 pots are lost annually, the state says. And this is not to overlook the problem of derelict commercial gillnets. The Northwest Straits Initiative reports that at Point Roberts alone, “abandoned nets were destroying $437,000 worth of crab every season.” But all those lost Anacortes pots – along with the South Sound’s closure due to low Dungie numbers – show we need to be more careful how we’re fishing for them if we want to pass this tradition along. To that end, the lost pot pullers have posted videos with great tips on how to not only lose less gear but catch more crabs – for more, see nwstraitsfoundation .org/derelict-gear. And if you do lose a pot or come across somebody else’s, there are no-fault reporting hotlines to call or enter After a San Juan Islands locational information – wdfw.wa.gov/ excursion, Kiran Walgamott fishing/derelict – to make it easier to haul drew a red rock crab, which he loves to try to catch – as it out of the depths so it doesn’t go on well as eat. (ANDY WALGAMOTT) killing endlessly. –Andy Walgamott

1. The ONE place not to be is in the path of whales. Don’t position your vessel in the path of oncoming whales within 400 yards of a whale.

2. Stay at least TWO hundred yards away from any killer whale (200 yards = the distance of two football fields or about 200 meters).

3. Remember these THREE ways to Be Whale Wise: follow the guidelines for viewing all wildlife, check for local protected areas and restrictions, and always be safe.

Visit www.bewhalewise.org to learn more, download the laws, regulations, and guidelines, and to report violations. Report Violations: Enforcement 1-800-853-1964 or online at www.bewhalewise.org

nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

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SOCIAL

SCENE

Comment from the www

By Andy Walgamott

BECOMING BETTER CRABBERS After we reported more than 600 lost crab pots had been found off Anacortes and called on fellow shellfishers to pick up their game, several Facebook readers offered suggestions. “It should be a requirement to use leaded line, and have your pot weighted to at least 10 pounds,” wrote Mike Quimby. “This would greatly reduce ‘stolen’ and lost pots.” Added Ryan Storme, “Stop using the yellow nylon. If you must, you are required to clip lead weights on!”

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THAT BARNDOOR HALIBUT There’s no question Whidbey Island angler Tom Hellinger had a lot of respect for the 250-plus-pound halibut (see reader pics) he and son Caleb teamed to battle in Washington’s eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca on Memorial Day Weekend. For our story, he termed the fish “majestic” and said he was “really thankful and grateful” for it. But as with every trophy fish, not everyone agreed with keeping it. “Good to see all those eggs removed from such a prosperous habitat,” snarked Tony Limon on Facebook (the closely managed stock actually spawns on the continental shelf), while Andrew Berman added, “I wouldn’t ever keep any over 100 pounds, such a waste of a beautiful female, plus the meat isn’t near as good.” Not really, replied Ryley Fee, who should know, having landed a 226 in 2010: “The meat isn’t bad just because the fish is over 150, trust me!” Wrote Doug Moczulewski, “Awesome fish and enjoy the bounty!”

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EDITORS IN GLASS HOUSES … If WDFW deserved grief from us over its boat ramp sign warning “Lanuch at your own risk,” well, we probably invited some ourselves with a too-broad headline: “Oregon Boaters Caught Way Overlimit on Rockfish.” Said RognSue Allen Ford, “How about, ‘Oregon Poachers Cited ...’” Good point.

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Northwest Sportsman 21

Blind Ambition

Retired disabled vet Rick Spring is eager to build more ADA-accessible blinds for hunters, birdwatchers at Northwest refuges and beyond. By Brent Lawrence

ick Spring smiles even as the cold wind and rain blow across his face in the waterfowl blind at Willapa National Wildlife Refuge. The call of cackling geese overhead and the sight of wildlife relax him as he pets Max, his yellow Labrador retriever who doubles as his certified therapy dog. Being in the outdoors is where Spring

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finds peace. For many people, however, there are barriers to finding that outdoor enjoyment. A disabled Navy veteran himself, Spring knows that spending time hunting, fishing and hiking isn’t always a given for injured veterans or other people with disabilities. That’s why Spring pours his passion for accessibility to the outdoors into building hunting and birdwatching blinds on federal and state lands that are

compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines. A Spring-made blind, for example, is big enough to accommodate two wheelchairs. He does it as a volunteer, donating countless hours to the cause. “Before they were disabled, veterans were usually very active people,” says Spring, a Boeing retiree who also served as an E4 petty officer third class for three years in the U.S. Navy, running ship-

PICTURE

Rick Spring, a disabled Navy vet, Boeing retiree and member of one of Washington’s oldest most venerable ﬁsh and game clubs, the Vancouver Wildlife League, stands in front of one of several wheelchair-accessible waterfowl blinds he’s built on public lands on the Evergreen State side of the Lower Columbia. He hopes to expand across the big river, and nationally. (BRENT LAWRENCE, USFWS) to-shore teletypes and crypto aircraft identification. “Then they get injured and they feel like their time in the field isn’t available anymore. Knowing that these blinds are available, it will help veterans move on and have prosperous lives. They want and need this experience.”

SPRING IS ONE of conservation’s good neighbors, creating opportunities that open the door to nature for people who

otherwise wouldn’t get to see a flock of mallards coming in to land or even hear the wind whistle through the Douglas firs. Whether they hold a shotgun or a camera, those aiming to connect with nature need access to enjoy the outdoors, regardless of their physical abilities. That’s why Spring hopes to expand the use of his custom-designed blinds to Oregon and then to the national level so more people with disabilities can have access

to the outdoors. It’s impossible to quantify the impact ADA-compliant access has on disabled veterans, says Heath Gunns, outreach manager with Honored American Veterans Afield. The impact on an individual, however, is easy to see when you witness it first-hand. “You’re a 19-year-old kid and you go to boot camp, where they build you up to think you can do anything. Then you get hurt and the first thing doctors do is tell you the things you’ll no longer be able to do … That is wrong,” Gunns says. “Disabled veterans just have to learn to do it differently, and that’s where ADA-compliant blinds and other access opportunities come in. The outdoors can’t give them their legs back, but it can give them hope.” Spring is determined to keep that hope alive for people with disabilities. He pulls in partners such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Vancouver Wildlife League, Washington Waterfowl Association, Association of Northwest Steelheaders, and numerous businesses to make it all happen. USFWS manages the national wildlife refuges, where Spring does some of his best work. In addition to the blind at Willapa NWR, two of his custom ADA-compliant blinds can be found at Ridgefield NWR, and another is at Vancouver Lake. Spring is a member of Washington’s Fish and Wildlife Commission ADA Advisory Committee, and he’s finalizing a proposal to build ADA-compliant blinds in each of WDFW’s six regions.

THE IMPORTANCE OF Spring’s work is underscored by a surprising statistic: 60 percent of requests for Washington’s reduced-fee or special-use permits come from disabled veterans. Overall, there’s a high level of public interest in ADAcompliant facilities, according to Sam Taylor, WDFW’s liaison to the sevenmember ADA advisory committee. nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

Northwest Sportsman 23

PICTURE “This is an amazing volunteer advisory group,” Taylor says. “They’re having a real impact on hunting and fishing opportunities in the state. Rick is doing some great work, and not only with the blinds. He’s also working on a shooting range that is ADA compliant and looking at some other opportunities for fishing piers.” That access-for-all-people policy plays an important role in public lands recreation. A recent USFWS report shows the outdoors has a strong allure. In 2016, an estimated 101.6 million Americans – 40 percent of the U.S. population 16 years old and older – participated in hunting, fishing, wildlife-watching and related activities. The findings reflect a continued interest in engaging in the outdoors. These activities are drivers behind an economic powerhouse, where participants spent $156 billion in 2016. Spring reached out to Jackie Ferrier, project leader at Willapa NWR Complex, last year to discuss opportunities for adding a new blind. They had never met prior to the call, but Ferrier quickly seized the opportunity to improve recreational opportunities for the public. “We had a discussion about some of his work at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, and we had an instant rapport. I realized we had an amazing opportunity to partner with him on this,” Ferrier says. “He and his team of volunteers were amazing.” Willapa NWR plans to add another ADA-compliant blind once some habitat restoration is complete on a different part of the refuge. “Access is a priority for us, and Rick will make sure it happens. He gets things done,” Ferrier says. Spring, she notes, is a part of the refuge’s hunter working group that provides input on hunting opportunities. “He’s an incredibly dedicated, positive and inspirational person to work with.” When not helping veterans get into the field, Spring and Max bring that inspiration to the Veterans Affairs hospital in Vancouver. Two days a week 24 Northwest Sportsman

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Spring-built blinds can be found at Willapa National Wildlife Refuge, Ridgeﬁeld National Wildlife Refuge, and Vancouver Lake, prime waterfowling and birdwatching areas along the Paciﬁc Flyway. (BRENT LAWRENCE, USFWS)

“He’s an incredibly dedicated, positive and inspirational person to work with,” says Willapa NWR’s Jackie Ferrier of Spring, here with service dog Max on the ﬂoor of a blind that can accommodate two wheelchair-borne hunters. (BRENT LAWRENCE, USFWS) they spend time with veterans and their families at the hospital, often devoting hours to patients in hospice care. Just like he does in the hunting blind, Max will gently nudge his big yellow head alongside the hand of a veteran. Spring watches as they slowly rub Max’s head with their fingers, hoping it brings them the same peace, hope and memories of the outdoors. NS Editor’s note: Brent Lawrence is a public affairs specialist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Pacific Region and is based in Portland. Governmental agencies and nonprofit groups interested in connecting with Rick Spring regarding his blinds may contact the author at brent_lawrence@fws.gov.

Max soaks up the rays at the job site on a warm spring day. (BRENT LAWRENCE, USFWS)

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READER PHOTOS Austin Rodriguez and a friend enjoyed a great May day on Drano Lake, limiting on spring Chinook to 22 pounds. They were trolling prawn spinners. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

Gobble gobble! Jeff Benson (left) and son Jack bagged their spring turkeys in Southeast Washington this past season. It was the lad’s ﬁrst longbeard, and he harvested it in Walla Walla County, while his father took his on opening weekend in nearby Columbia County.

Tom Hellinger (second from left) landed a true barndoor in the Strait of Juan de Fuca in late May, a 78¾-inch halibut estimated at between 254 and 265 pounds. After hooking it, son Caleb (second from right) played it for 40 minutes, then Tom took over for 40 more before Caleb and Luke Reid (right) gaffed it aboard as daughter Aleisha (left) recorded the triumph on video. (TOM HELLINGER)

(BROWNING PHOTO CONTEST)

Washington’s trout opener served up Paula Corcoran’s biggest rainbow yet. “Jelly” husband Kelly reports that she was dragging an old black FlatFish, which they’d dudded up with special tape, at a Thurston County lake. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

Not too bad for your first winter steelhead ever (dang!!!) – Myra Miller caught this 18.56-pounder in February, and followed it up with a 15, “making for very memorable and happy birthday.” We’ll say so! (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST) For your shot at winning great fishing and hunting products from Yo-Zuri and Browning, send your full-resolution, original images with all the pertinent details – who’s in the pic and their hometown; when and where they were; what they caught their fish on/weapon they used to bag the game; and any other details you’d like to reveal (the more, the merrier!) – to awalgamott@media-inc.com or Northwest Sportsman, PO Box 24365, Seattle, WA, 98124-0365. By sending us photos, you affirm you have the right to distribute them for use in our print and Internet publications. nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

Northwest Sportsman 27

READER PHOTOS

Mason Weinheimer is all smiles after a “great day” on the Columbia on this year’s April 14 reopener. “Started at 12:30 and back on the trailer at 3:30. Good times,” notes his dad, Josh. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

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Late spring produced some huge fish, including Ahmed Majeed’s channel catfish, which his home scale put at 45 pounds. He was fishing Seattle’s Green Lake with a carp rig when it bit. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

Another 20-plus for Forks steelhead specialist Darrel Smith. He was ﬁshing with guide Mike Z this past winter when this big buck bit. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

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Northwest Sportsman 29

READER PHOTOS

We’d say Gabriellle Lui was excited to catch her ﬁrst kokanee! The New Yorker was ﬁshing with guide Don Talbot on Lake Chelan in late May with a Brad’s Kokanee Cut Plug 50 feet down in 100 feet of water.

“The ﬁsh gods were smiling,” said Wayne Heinz after landing his largest largie ever, this 9.4-pounder from a Columbia River slough. He caught it in late April on a green Senko and it just may have been the biggest bucketmouth landed in Eastern Washington since the former state record came out of Banks Lake, Heinz’s initial research suggested.

(DONSFISHINGGUIDESERVICE.COM)

(YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

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Herring is a favorite of saltwater salmon anglers, but it also works well on Inland Northwest northern pike. Cade Larson caught this 42-incher on the bait under a bobber at his family’s dock on the Spokane River in Idaho. His dad’s friend Mike Toutloff forwarded the pic. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

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Northwest Sportsman 31

Destination Alaska

PHOTO CONTEST

VISIT US AT

WINNERS!

NWSPORTSMANMAG.COM

Destination Alaska

Marvin Holder is the winner of our monthly Yo-Zuri Photo Contest. His pic of Caden and Nathan Holder with razor clams dug last January scores him gear from the company that makes some of the world’s best fishing lures and lines!

Jon Jackman is our monthly Browning Photo Contest winner, thanks to this shot of his Washington wilderness mule deer buck, taken during last September’s High Hunt. It wins him a Browning hat!

Sportsman Northwest

Your LOCAL Hunting & Fishing Resource

For your shot at winning Browning and Yo-Zuri products, send your photos and pertinent (who, what, when, where) details to awalgamott@ media-inc.com or Northwest Sportsman, PO Box 24365, Seattle, WA 98124-0365. By sending us photos, you affirm you have the right to distribute them for our print or Internet publications.

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MIXED BAG

Still More OR Charges Filed Against SW WA Poaching Suspects

outhwest Washington poaching suspects and others now face charges in a fourth Oregon county, in addition to many more north of the Columbia as well. In May, prosecutors in The Dalles filed 122 wildlife misdemeanor charges against 11 men, women and a boy, including a combined 87 against the two men whose phones led game wardens in both states to discover a shocking amount of alleged illegal killing of wintering bucks for their antlers, as well as unlawful chasing of bears and bobcats with dogs. Those two individuals are Erik C. Martin and William J. Haynes, both 24 and from Kelso and Longview. They were hit with 42 and 45 of the charges in Wasco County, where the case began in fall 2016. According to reports, others who were charged there include: Joseph A. Dills, 31, of Longview: 12

counts; Aaron B. Hendricks, 35, of Woodland: five counts; Sierra Dills, 18, of Longview: four counts; David R. McLeskey, 59, of Woodland: four counts; Eddy A. Dills, 58, of Longview: two counts; Kimberly K. Crape, 20, hometown unknown: two counts; Wyatt Keith, 17, hometown unknown: two counts; Aubri N. McKenna, 36, hometown unknown: one count; Aaron C. Hanson, 38, hometown unknown: one count As we reported in this space last issue, Hendricks, McKlesky, Haynes and Joseph Dills also face charges in Oregon’s Clackamas County, they pled not guilty to more in Clatsop County, and McKleskey and Dills were expected to be charged in Lincoln County too. Last year, Haynes and Joseph Dills were initially charged with 64 counts each in Washington’s Skamania County. Martin and Eddy Dills were also charged there with 28 and 26. Charges against ringmembers

By Andy Walgamott

William J. Haynes and Erik C. Martin. (WDFW) have also been filed in Cowlitz, Lewis, Jefferson and Pacific Counties. It all stems from a single traffic stop during the harsh winter of 2016-17. Oregon State Police wildlife troopers investigating a string of headless bucks shot and left on winter range near Mt. Hood matched a trail cam photo of a truck with one spotted in The Dalles and pulled it over. Inside were Haynes and Martin, and a mountain of evidence was ultimately found on their phones and homes.

JACKASS OF THE MONTH

or a Texas bass angler, a recent tournament he competed in – and possibly several more – was apparently a catch, cut and release one. Brent Taylor, 30, was charged with fraud after allegedly cheating to gain more inches in a mid-April contest held near the state capitol of Austin by rigging photos of the catches he was submitting. In these types of events, you hold your fish against a measuring device, take a picture and return the fish to the water. The winner is the person with the most cumulative inches of fish at the end of the event. But where other anglers generally hold a bass on its side to measure and snap a pic, a photo circulating online and attributed to Taylor shows a hand unusually far back on the fish. It covers where you’d expect the bass’s tail to normally end – except there’s tail sticking out on the other side of the hand. Either Taylor was an ace at catching a heretofore unknown species of enormously long-tailed largie, or he was trying to give himself an unfair advantage. The latter is suspected. When game wardens inspected Taylor’s kayak during the tournament, they allegedly found the tail section of a bass in

it. Taylor first told them he’d found it in the tules and was in the process of bringing it in, but then allegedly admitted to using it to make “fish look longer on multiple occasions,” according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Taylor was previously a local kayak club’s rookie and angler of the year, and earlier this year claimed to have caught what might have been a lake-record bass … from an off-limits area. For shame, for shame.

(THE INTERWEB)

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Northwest Sportsman 37

By Andy Walgamott

How To Win SKC-PSA’s Big Salmon Shindig

ooking to win Aug. 4’s South King County Puget Sound Anglers Salmon Derby in Areas 10, 11 and 13? If you missed last issue’s tips from Terry Wiest on top spots and best baits, we found them in the recycling can and, after cleaning them up a bit (hey, who dumped coffee grounds in here?!?!), these are his most cogent points: * “So where are those fish caught? In order of the number of fish weighed in: Point Defiance, the Girl Scout Camp, Three Tree Point, Gig Harbor, Dolphin Point and the Slag Pile. Almost all were landed by anglers trolling with either a green/white or green spatterback flasher with a green/ white hoochie (with herring teaser) or a Kingfisher Lite in color 390 (Bob Marley) or 910 (super trooper).” * “To catch the derby winner, I’d suggest

Commencement Bay down by the mouth of the Puyallup River. I like fishing right in front of the buoy in the southeast corner before the entrance to the waterway. There won’t be many fish here, but the odds of finding one of the pigs that hang out there before venturing upriver to spawn are greater. To me, this is best fished with a cutplug herring down right off the bottom.” * “The Girl Scout Camp and Gig Harbor are very much like a light switch – when they’re on, they’re on! You never know when the bite will hit, so check your bait regularly, have fresh set-ups available and make sure you have your gear in the water because when it turns on, it won’t be for long and you don’t want to miss it.” * “Up north around Dolphin and Three Tree Points, look for the major drop in

Brewster Derby Coming Up

he Northwest Salmon Derby Series is making a stop this summer in Northcentral Washington, home to big kings and an even bigger event. The 13th Annual Brewster Salmon Derby, slated for Aug. 3-5, is part of this year’s

regional series and entrants have a shot later this fall at drawing the keys for the grand prize boat. That’s a KingFisher 2025 Falcon Series boat, outfitted with Honda 150- and 9.9-horse motors, EZ-loader trailer, Scotty downriggers, Raymarine

Peter Pitman Jr. won the 2017 South King County Puget Sound Anglers Salmon Derby with a 20.60-pound Chinook, for which he received a $4,000 payday. His dad fared well too, scoring $500 for his ﬁsh. (SKC PSA) depth that goes over 115 feet. Hit it at 90 feet down trolling with the tide.” * “Moochers and jiggers do well right off Point Defiance if there aren’t dogfish around. If they are, I’d suggest joining the majority of anglers and troll.” For more, see pugetsoundanglers.net. Anglers troll for salmon below the mouth of the Okanogan River during 2014’s smoky Brewster Salmon Derby. (BRIAN LULL)

2018 NORTHWEST SALMON DERBY SERIES July 13-15: Bellingham Salmon Derby July 25-29: The Big One (Lake Couer d’Alene) Salmon Derby Aug. 3-5: Brewster Salmon Derby Aug. 4: South King County PSA Salmon Derby Aug. 11: Gig Harbor PSA Salmon Derby Aug. 18-19: Vancouver (BC) Chinook Classic Sept. 8: Edmonds Coho Derby Sept. 8: Columbia River Fall Salmon Derby Sept. 22-23: Everett Coho Derby Nov. 3-4: Everett No-Coho Blackmouth Salmon Derby For more info on this year’s events, see nwsalmonderbyseries.com.

electronics, WhoDat Tower and more, a $65,000 package to be awarded in Everett. Brewster’s top prizes run up to a couple thousand dollars awarded to the biggest summer Chinook of all – the “King of the Pool” – and there are adult and kids divisions as well. Last year’s largest was a 28.76-pounder caught by Joel Grafe. Tickets are on sale through July 30. For more, see brewstersalmonderby.com and nwsalmonderbyseries.com.

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Northwest Sportsman 39

Sport boats head for the tuna grounds at the start of a past Oregon Tuna Classic. (DEL STEPHENS)

hey say the albacore are always out there, but when summer brings them closest to Northwest ports, it’s go-time for tuna-crazed anglers and one of if not the biggest saltwater tournament in these parts. The two-event Oregon Tuna Classic will again be held out of Ilwaco and Garibaldi, bringing excitement, lots of business and not to mention tons of fish back for the needy. This year’s Deep Canyon Challenge is slated for Aug. 3-4 and is

RECENT RESULTS Stanwood, Washington, Eagles 31st Annual Blackmouth Fishing Derby, April 21-22, North Sound: First place: David Cox, 14.7-pound Chinook, $3,700 9th Annual Lake Stevens, Washington, Kokanee Derby, May 19: First place: Royce Connoly, .99-pound kokanee ($1,000); second: Brian Mastro, .93-pounder ($500)

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followed by the Garibaldi OTC 2018 on Aug. 24-25. Last summer, Team Fat Cat topped all comers at the first event, scoring $6,000, while Team Rebel made the best of “sporty” conditions during the second to bring back 139.5 pounds of tuna and claim first. Organizers say that since 2005, OTC has helped donate 1 million pounds of food to the Oregon Food Bank via cash and landed tuna that fishermen have turned over to seafood processors. New this year, anglers need to fish both events to build up the points needed to potentially qualify for the Offshore World Championships. Registration is open through July 30 and entries are $450 apiece or $650 for both stops. For more, email Megan Waltosz (megan@oregontunaclassic.org) or check out oregontunaclassic.com.

May Surf Perch Fishing Derby, Humbug Mtn. to Horsfall Beach, Oregon, May 1-31: First place: Scott Carmichael, 2.71-pound surf perch ($465) 17th Annual Surf Perch Derby, Long Beach, Washington, May 19: First place (team): Taylor Delauney and friends, 33-plus pounds, $300 10th Annual Mack Derby, Odell Lake, Oregon, June 1-3: First place: Bill Braun, 20.4-pound Mackinaw; second: Robert Troy, 19.97-pounder; third: Josh Stevens, 17.81-pounder

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MORE UPCOMING EVENTS Through the end of various seasons: Westport Charterboat Association Weekly Derbies; charterwestport.com Aug. 3-4: 2018 Deep Canyon Challenge, Ilwaco – info: oregontunaclassic.org Aug. 4: Washington Tuna Classic, Westport – info: washingtontunaclassic.com Aug. 16-17 19th Annual Buoy 10 Salmon Challenge, Lower Columbia – info: nsiafishing.org Aug. 24-25: Garibaldi OTC 2018, Garibaldi – info: oregontunaclassic.org Aug. 26-29 3rd Annual Tuna/Coho Derby, Newton Cove Resort, Vancouver Island – info: nootkamarineadventures.com Sept. 8-9: 18th Annual Coos Basin Salmon Derby, Coos Bay and environs – info: facebook.com/Coos-Basin-SalmonDerby-200180133368625/ Sept. 1-3: 14th Annual Slam’n Salmon Derby, ocean off Port of Brookings Harbor – info: (541) 251-4422; captaincurry1@hotmail.com More events: wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/contests/index.html. To have your derby or results listed here, email awalgamott@ media-inc.com.

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CCA Washington Kick Off In Mid-July

oastal Conservation Association of Washington is holding three derbies this month, with two more further into the salmon season. First up is the 7th Annual Pete Flohr Memorial Salmon Derby, held July 13-14 between Rock Island and Wells Dams. It’s put on by CCA’s North-central Washington Chapter, which Flohr was a member of before his passing in an Oregon car crash, and features a $2,000 prize for largest Chinook and $1,750 for biggest boat haul. See wenatcheesalmonderby.com for more. Well downstream is the second event, the July 20-22 Lower Columbia Steelhead Challenge, put on by CCA’s Lower Columbia Chapter. For more, see ccawashington.org/SteelheadChallenge. Then some 230 miles north up I-5 and a reggie at the Skagit Valley is the third annual Baker Lake Sockeye Shootout. It’s slated for July 27-29 and is put on by the North Sound Chapter. For more, see CCAWashington.org/BakerLakeDerby. Next month is the Willapa Bay Salmon Derby (Aug. 25-26) and wrapping up the season is late October’s King of the Reach Derby, which unlike the others is a live-capture event of wild Columbia River upriver brights for broodstock needs. For more information on all the events, see ccawashington.org/derbies.

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Northwest Sportsman 43

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OUTDOOR

CALENDAR

Brought to you by:

JULY 1

Leftover big game tags go on sale in Oregon and start of youth “first time” hunt application period; New Washington fishing pamphlet regulations take effect; Areas 2, 5, 6, 7 and 12 (south of Ayock Point) open for salmon fishing; Catchand-release steelhead opener on much of Idaho’s Clearwater River 5-7 Oregon Central Coast backup spring all-depth halibut weekend 7 Youth Clay Target Clinic at Mid Valley Clays in Gervais (free) and Family Fishing Event at Jubilee Lake near Elgin (free) – info: odfwcalendar.com 8 Family Fishing Event at Lhuuke Illahee Fish Hatchery near Logsden (free) – info: odfwcalendar.com 10 Family Fishing Event at Shevlin Pond in Bend (free) – info: odfwcalendar.com 14 CAST For Kids event at Foss Waterway in Tacoma – info: wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/ kids/events.html; Merwin Special Kids Fishing Derby at Merwin Fish Hatchery in Ariel – info: wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/kids/events.html 15 Deadline to purchase Washington raffle hunt tickets 16 Areas 9-10 hatchery Chinook opener 19-21 Oregon Central Coast backup all-depth halibut weekend 22 Oregon bighorn sheep and mountain goat tagholders workshop and orientation at Fort Dalles Readiness Center, The Dalles – info: oregonfnaws.org

AUGUST 1

Opening of salmon fishing at Buoy 10, daily limit one (see regs); Fall bear season begins across Oregon as well as numerous Washington units; Steelhead retention opener in lower ½ mile of Idaho’s Clearwater River 3-4 Oregon Central Coast summer all-depth opener (open every other Fri.-Sat. if quota) 6-11 International Federation of Fly Fishers’ 53rd Annual International Fly Fishing Fair, Boise – info: fedflyfishers.org 11 Opening day of numerous Oregon controlled pronghorn hunts 15 Bear hunting opens in Washington’s Northeast B, Okanogan, South Cascades Units 25 Opening day of bowhunting season for deer and elk in Oregon 30 Opening day of bowhunting season for deer and elk in numerous Idaho units

SEPTEMBER

8-9, 15-16 Pheasant Hunting Workshops at Sauvie Island and EE Wilson Wildlife Areas (registration, $) – info: odfwcalendar.com

RECORD NW GAME FISH CAUGHT THIS MONTH Date 7-1-61 7-1-17 7-5-85 7-6-02 7-10-96 7-16-12 7-16-12 7-22-16 7-23-11 7-25-11 7-29-09

Species Coastal cutthroat (res.) Pacific sanddab (pic) Red Irish lord Largemouth bass Pumpkinseed Grass carp White crappie Pacific staghorn sculpin Common carp Rainbow-cutthroat Rainbow

Lbs. (-Oz.) Water 12.00 L. Crescent (WA) 1.22 Jefferson Hd. (WA) 3.19 Midchannel Bk. 12-1.6 Ballenger Pd. (OR) .6875 L. Oswego (OR) 39.5 Snake R. (ID) 3-12.8 Crane Cr. Res. (ID) .8 Pt. No Pt. (WA) 67.65 CJ Strike Res. (ID) 34-11.8 Snake R. (ID) 20-02 Snake R. (ID)

(WDFW)

Angler W. Welsh Bob Everitt Ryan Dicks B. Adam Hastings Linda Mar Saige Wilkerson Trenten Smith Juan Valero Scott Frazier II/Brian Pokorney Mark Adams Michelle Larsen-Williams nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

Northwest Sportsman 45

FISHING

Tokeland Shore-gasbord Bankbound? This small community on the ocean side of Willapa Bay is where you can gather your own bait, catch surf perch and haul Dungies. By M.D. Johnson

ure, I’ll admit it. When it comes to surf perch, I’m partial to a day spent on the rocks of the North Jetty at Fort Canby. I know the place. I know the gear. I know what I’m doing. And nine days out of 10, I’ll come back to the parking lot with a burlap sack heavy with redtails. If I’m lucky, there will be a couple sea bass and a lingcod from the river side as well. But unfortunately, the North Jetty is closed for repairs until the fall of 2019. Yes, folks. That’s October, maybe November – of next year. Am I sad? Yes, yes, I am indeed sad. That being said, there’s always the southern half of the Long Beach Peninsula, including the waters off Beards Hollow. I’ve enjoyed good days here as well, and obviously there’s a reason why the peninsula continues to hold their traditional Surf Perch Derby each year come mid-May. However, and in recent years, my fishing off the beach on the peninsula has steadily declined; not so much in terms of numbers of perch, but in overall size. The fish are there, or so it seems, but they’re small. Eager to hit and hold up their end of the bargain? Absolutely, but two hours of 8-inch fish … well, it gets just a little repetitive. So the jetty’s closed and the surf off the peninsula, with occasional exceptions, is a nursery. What’s a guy to do if he’s not willing to hang up his perch fishing gear?

DESTINATION: TOKELAND Tokeland. Well, Tokeland is just nice. It’s small. It’s quiet. It’s out of

Located on an out-of-the-way peninsula on Washington’s South Coast, the waters near Tokeland can serve up good fun for surf perch ﬁshermen like Gordie “GW” Walling and others. (JULIA JOHNSON)

the way. I’m sure it’s a destination for some, this guy being one, but for the most part, the town of Tokeland is a stop-off for folks travelling north from Raymond and South Bend on their way to Westport. Or perhaps even out to I-5 and points yet further to the north. Tokeland is quaint. That’s the perfect word.

Quaint. And I sure don’t use that one often. Located in the northwest corner of Paciﬁc County, the community of Tokeland is, as mentioned earlier, small. Population? I found a range, thanks to Al Gore’s internet, running from 240 to 313 persons, and I’d say both of those are a bit on nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

Northwest Sportsman 47

FISHING Tokeland is less well known than famed ﬁshing harbor Westport to the north and tourist-favored Long Beach to the south, but has its own charms. While the bay is known for another type of shellﬁsh – oysters – it can produce crabs as well. Good places to toss a trap from are the piers in the marina. (JULIA JOHNSON)

the high side. The village sits at the end of what I’ll call the Tokeland Peninsula, a point of land jutting out into Willapa Bay and the estuary of the Willapa River. Businesses on the mainland are few, and include the historic Tokeland Hotel, built in 1885 and the oldest hotel in Washington; the Nelson Crab Company; the Bayshore and Willapa RV Parks; and the Port of Willapa/ Tokeland Marina. Backtracking to the intersection of Tokeland Road and State Route 105, one meets the southern edge of the Shoalwater Bay Indian Reservation. A Chevron, a bar and grill, and, for those with a hankering for cards, the Shoalwater Bay Casino are all within walking distance of the crossroads. So, why mention Tokeland in a story about summer surf perch ﬁshing? Well, and despite the fact that I’m truthfully unsure of what the community’s claim to fame is, or if they’ve ever really had a socalled claim to fame, I make the 200-mile round-trip drive from Cathlamet in Wahkiakum County to Tokeland several times each summer for precisely three reasons: Dungeness crabs, sand shrimp, and surf perch. Well, four, if you want to throw in the Chester’s Fried Chicken chickenon-a-stick at the Chevron. And take it from me, you most certainly do. 48 Northwest Sportsman

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CRABS ’N SHRIMP When I ﬁrst moved to Washington in 1993, the only place for the public to pitch a crab pot at Tokeland was off the ramshackle pier at the end of Kindred Avenue. Since then, the dock itself has been upgraded substantially, and a modern pier added to the northwest, all of which is publicly accessible and open for

folks wishing to try their hand at capturing a couple Willapa Bay crustaceans. The Dungeness can run a bit small at times, but it’s a tremendously easy place to crab, and not as popular as one might think, especially during the workweek. In the past, we’ve used a little bit of everything, gear-wise, at Tokeland – boxes and rings. However, the

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Northwest Sportsman 49

FISHING

Whether you’re looking for sturgeon or steelhead bait, you can dig your own along Tokeland’s shores. Keep them cool with seaweed or a damp –not wet, author MD Johnson cautions – paper towel. (JULIA JOHNSON)

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innovative CrabHawk crab trap seems to have caught on quite well up there, in part, I’m sure, due to the sand bottom and lower-than-normal chances of snagging up and losing a $20 bill. A true Slovak, I was skeptical about the new-fangled CrabHawk until I tried it. And I’ll agree; it not only works, but it’s enjoyable to play with, especially for the grandkids. So there’s crabbing available. It was actually my wife’s dad, Gordon, who showed us where and how to get sand shrimp years ago at Tokeland. “As you’re driving along the main drag,” he told us, the “main drag” being Kindred Avenue, “you’ll come to some big rocks – and I do mean big rocks – right alongside the road. That’s where you’ll want to go get your sand shrimp.” Technically speaking, the spot he was referring to lies between Third and Fourth Streets, obviously on the bay side of Kindred Road. We park, climb the rocks, and head onto the flats at low tide; however, any stretch of sand between there and the pilings at Toke Point would be productive. Commercial sand shrimp pumps are available. Some guys make their own pumps. Me, I use one of the 25 razor clam guns lying around the shop, and it seems to work just fine, as does a small Igloo cooler half-filled with some of the seaweed found here and there on the flats. With sand shrimp, the trick is to keep ’em cool, i.e. the fridge, out of the sun, and damp – not wet; think paper towel, if no seaweed is to be found – and they can last upwards of a week. I’ve been told that moist green moss works incredibly well as sand shrimp bedding. I’ve not tried that, but it’s on the list. Crabs and shrimp are fun, ’tis true, but after dumping a cage and sucking 30 or 40 ghost shrimp from the sand, my mind focuses on some of the best eating the Washington coast has to offer – red-tailed surf perch. Roughly 2 miles north of the Tokeland Road/SR 105 intersection

is a pull-off on the bay side. A short walk, and you’re at a spot the locals call Hidden Beach; it’s not too hidden, but a wonderful place, nonetheless. Here, perchers will find two different types of fishing – a rocky jetty reminiscent of the North Jetty, only much smaller, and on the south side, a smooth sand beach. I’ll fish both, a decision based on the weather. Rough, and it’s the beach; calm, and I’ll work the rocks. Some days, I’ll let the fish decide.

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TOKELAND TECHNIQUES For the sake of you (fishing) gearheads reading this, I wish I could come up with some über-complicated rigging and neurosurgery-esque strategy for piling up surf perch above Tokeland, but alas, I cannot. Conversely, fans of elemental fishing rejoice, for this is about as simple as it gets. Bait. The sand shrimp we dug earlier work incredibly well, not only on redtail and striped surf perch but for kelp greenling as well. Unfortunately, and as many of you already know, sandies can be a bugger to keep on the hook. And that, I believe, is why some poor sap going broke buying sand shrimp invented stretchy thread, aka Magic Thread. A few wraps certainly help; it doesn’t eliminate the problem, but it does help. But sand shrimp aren’t the only game in town. Razor clam necks work, and stay on the hook almost too well. Cocktail shrimp marinated in garlic Smelly Jelly rank right up there, as do regular ol’ nightcrawlers. Fans of plastic are partial to Berkley Gulp! sandworms in either camo, red, or natural. Of the five choices, live sand shrimp are my favorite and my go-to; however, and on any given trip, I’ll have all four with me. Nothing intricate about my terminal tackle and rigging. The outfit starts with an 8-foot-6 or 9-foot medium-action Lamiglas rod and 5000 series Ambassador

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nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

Northwest Sportsman 51

FISHING levelwind spooled with 20-pound Cabela’s RipCord braid. The mainline goes through a 1- to 3-ounce barrel sinker, the weight depending upon the surf but the lighter the better. Next, a 5mm plastic bead and a snap swivel. A 24-inch-long leader of 10- to 14-pound mono is ﬁnished with a 3- or 4mm hot orange or chartreuse bead and a size 6 Bleeding Bait Octopus hook from Daiichi. I do like the bead for a little bit of added color, especially in a rambunctious surf, and the Daiichi hooks are just stupid-sharp. This particular rig works well from either the beach or the rocks; however, if I’m having too much trouble with snags on the jetty, I’ll switch slightly. Here, my braid mainline, sans sinker and bead, is tied directly to a snap swivel, but I leave a long – 6 inch – tag end on the knot. Same leader, bead, hook

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and bait as before. For my weight, I use a 3- to 4-inch piece of hollowcore pencil lead slipped onto the long tag end, doubled over on the lead, and secured with a dental rubber band – the kind the kids use for their braces. If you’re thinking steelhead and slinky, you’re on track. Snags are dealt with with a sharp tug. The lead comes free, and I keep my gear, minus the easily replaced weight.

OFF THE BEATEN PATH I think it only fair to forewarn those who haven’t visited Tokeland that while an undeniably quaint bayside community, she really isn’t on the way to much of anywhere. And that element, if you’re like me, is in part what makes this little burg on the northern edge of Willapa Bay so incredibly attractive. That, and the redtail surf perch. Let’s not forget those. NS

Johnson favors freshly dug sand shrimp for surf perch, but brings four other kinds of bait. He notes that razor clam necks work well and really hold on the hook well, while Smelly Jelly-sauced cocktail shrimp work, as well as nightcrawlers and Gulp! sandworms. (JULIA JOHNSON)

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Northwest Sportsman 53

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COLUMN Fresh crappie cutbait wasn’t doing anything for author Jared Rivera on the Snake River’s Brownlee Reservoir during a catﬁsh outing there last July, but a phone call to a friend got things hopping in short order. (JARED RIVERA)

One Man’s Plague Is $QRWKHU·V &DWÀVK %DLW Y

ou ever have one of those days? A truly bad day where nothing goes as planned, but turns into THE KAYAK GUYS one of those that are By Jared By Jaredd RRivera iveraa iver so good that you judge every other fishing day against its memory? Baker County, Oregon, July 2017. I needed to be home by noon and planned to fish Brownlee Reservoir near Huntington for a few hours in search of channel catfish. I launched at the mouth of the Burnt River and quickly baited up with crappie that I brought as fresh cutbait. This area is usually a very reliable spot for getting into nice cats and I had

high expectations for the day. I anchored in the confluence of the rivers and cast out two rods, one with the crappie and the other with more crappie. Expectation turned to boredom then to frustration as I recast with fresh bait every 15 to 20 minutes. With no sign of life for nearly four hours and well on my way to an epic skunking, it was obvious that a change was needed.

DESPERATE, I CALLED a coworker who lived nearby for advice. Local intel had it that Mormon crickets were migrating up the Idaho side of the reservoir and anglers were hammering the cats using them as bait. I had never seen a live specimen of

this cyclical insect before and had no experience with using Mormon crickets as catfish bait, but it had to be better than what I’d been doing. Luckily, Idaho was only a quarter of a mile away, so I pulled anchor and peddled across the current towards the Gem State. As I neared shore, I noticed lots of debris in the water, with fish crashing bait on the surface. A wide-open topwater bite? The flotsam turned out to be rafts of these crickets everywhere. At 2 to 4 inches long, these were the creepiest critters I’ve ever come across while on the water. Most were still alive and actually started to board ship. In minutes my kayak gained a dozen passengers, but the constant

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Northwest Sportsman 57

COLUMN

They can be a plague on farmers’ crops when swarms invade fields, but Mormon crickets, a large flightless katydid that occur throughout the inland west, don’t do so well against water. Those that fall in impoundments and rivers provide a nutrient source for catfish and other species. (JARED RIVERA, BOTH) topwater action helped me to summon the courage to grab one of these aliens and thread it on a hook. I cast out my first angry cricket on a small jighead under a bobber and set the rod in the holder. Before I could grab my second rod to bait up, the first was doubled over and the kayak was doing a hard left turn. Was I really hooked up that quick? A short battle on light gear put a smile on my face, as well as lifted my hopes. Contestant number two was crawling on my leg, so he got a piercing and a bath. The

floater didn’t have time to settle from the cast before it shot under and it was game on again. I abandoned the thought of working two poles as the action did not let up. On shore, armies of Mormon crickets could be seen marching upriver. One particular rock jutting out over deeper water had drawn so many crickets that those in front were forced to use it as a lemming leap. Catfish surrounded the rock, picking off jumpers and even grabbing the ones that got too close to the water. This is where the bigger cats

staked out their spots at the table.

FOR THE NEXT six hours I never went more than one cast without fighting a fish. I called my wife and explained I would miss my appointment and accepted any punishment – a guy doesn’t get a chance like this very often. A 1⁄16-ounce steelhead jighead with a stout hook tied directly to the main line was all the tackle I needed for the day. I retied every five or six fish to be sure the cat’s sandpaper teeth weren’t

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BAIT & TACKLE

Rivera shows off a pair of nice-sized catﬁsh from Brownlee, on the Oregon-Idaho border. It remains to be seen how bad this year’s Mormon cricket horde will be, but following the author’s tips just might put you into lots of whiskerﬁsh action where the bugs bump up against waterways. (JARED RIVERA) compromising the 4-pound-test line on my crappie rod. I even put the floater away. It was dead simple and deadly effective. The cats would hit the cricket immediately upon splashdown or as the rig slowly sank through the top foot or two of water. An unweighted hook would also have worked, but I believe that my bait stood out from the cricket rafts by being submerged. Still, I suspect that a dry fly fisherman could have had a day for the record books. Local intel turned a fishing fail into one of those days that I’ll never forget, and one I’ll be looking to repeat should the swarms show up again. Pssst! I’ve got some local intel for you. According to recent reports from KCRA and East Idaho News, “Mormon crickets are scattered all over the village of Murphy – and these gigantic creepy crawlers arrived at an inconvenient time as the village geared up to host Outpost Days last weekend.” Inconvenient for the tourist trade in the Southwest Idaho town, but it shouldn’t be long before their march brings them to the banks of the Snake once again. NS Editor’s note: Jared Rivera hosts spring’s annual Brownlee Crappie Shootout contest in Richland, Oregon. For more, see facebook .com/BrownleeCrappieShootout.

BAIT & TACKLE

SPONSORED BY:

RIG MONTH OF THE

7RSZDWHU &DWÀVK &DWFKHU

4-plus-pound mainline

NOTES This just may be the simplest rig of the month we’ve run since this column began way back in late 2008, but you don’t always need to get crazy with a set-up for it to be highly effective. Also, we like to spotlight things that defy conventional wisdom, and a “topwater” catfish rig qualifies on that front. Jared Rivera, this month’s Kayak Guy columnist (page 57), shared this set-up he used on the Snake River's Brownlee Reservoir last July. It initially included a float, which was subsequently discarded, making the rig even simpler: a small, undressed jighead and lighter mainline – “all the tackle I needed for the day.” For bait, he plucked the plentiful Mormon crickets off the water, his kayak, his legs, etc., and skewered them on the hook. Bites came on top and as the set-up sank through the top few feet of water. Rivera also retied his 4-pound line to the jighead every five catfish or so to reduce the chances of frayed line breaking. It’s unclear if the hot fishing he experienced was dependent on some biblical-scale cricket plague or not, but of the rig he writes, “It was dead simple and deadly effective.” Fly guys who venture to the dark side – or at least can whip up a good Mormon cricket pattern – could have epic days as well, Rivera adds. –NWS

1/16-ounce jighead

Mormon cricket

* Optional: bobber (JARED RIVERA)

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Northwest Sportsman 63

BAIT & TACKLE

COLUMN

Westside Experts Share Their Faves T

he Pacific Northwest is such a fantastic place to live, especially for those who love to fish. Although the number WIESTSIDER of opportunities has diminished in recent By Terry Wiest years, there are still world-class fisheries right out our back doors. I know I find myself having to choose which to hit, but that is not a bad thing, now is it? With all the variety, I thought I’d ask a few Westside guides and captains several questions. They included: 1) What’s your favorite fishery in Washington? 2) What’s your favorite way to fish it and why? 3) What’s your best or most memorable fish? 4) What’s an amusing anecdote that not everyone has already heard about you? You’ll see some interesting answers below, and some great information on “how it used to be” from Todd Girtz.

RANDY LATO, NORTH COAST OCEAN, RIVERS (Allwaysﬁshing.com) 1) My favorite fishery is targeting big kings in the salt- or freshwater. They just have incredible power and determination to get away. I am talking 40-plus-pounders. If I had to choose, it would be saltwater. 2) I have caught these big hogs trolling and mooching. 3) The boat record is a 52-pound hen hooked trolling a purple haze hoochie and white glow flasher, at 60 feet. It was Aug. 8. I only had two clients –

For Mark Coleman, albacore are where it’s at, and one of his favorite memories is unexpectedly catching them in relatively shallow water just 8 miles out of Westport one summer. (ALLWASHINGTONFISHING.COM)

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Northwest Sportsman 65

COLUMN Chinook in the swells above his boat is a favorite memory of Westport angler John Keizer. (SALTPATROL.COM)

brothers. We were fishing the west side of the rock pile out of La Push. We had a few fish in the box and then this monster hit. The line pulled loose from the downrigger and instantly line was pulling off the reel. My client, Tim, grabbed the rod and had a

66 Northwest Sportsman

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hard time getting it out of the rod holder. When he did get the rod into his hands, line was still being pulled off the reel. He said, “I got a shark.” I said, “Let’s treat it as a salmon until we see it.”

Randy Lato fondly remembers a 52-pound Chinook a client ﬁrst thought might be a shark. (ALLWAYSFISHING.COM)

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Northwest Sportsman 67

COLUMN

MY FAVES 1) To choose a single fishery is super hard since I love so many of them. But I guess I’d have to say fishing for kings in the Humptulips River. Where else can you land double-digit numbers of kings in the 20-plus-pound range? Before it was combat fishing it was one of those places in Washington you would have thought you were fishing in Alaska. 2) My favorite technique has to be float fishing eggs for them. Just downright deadly! 3) My most memorable fish was a Chinook I caught in Elliott Bay when I was 12 years old. The fog was so thick you couldn’t see the bow of the boat, let alone anything surrounding us. The foghorns were shrieking and my reel was singing with what turned out to be my largest fish to that point, 24 pounds. It also happened to be the day of the Boeing fishing derby. 4) I was fishing with my buddy Phil Stephens on the Humptulips for those kings I mentioned above. Phil was testing

out a new brand of rods and reels. We’d already hooked over 20 fish and were on the last stretch before calling it a day. My bobber went down and I set the hook. The fish began to swim directly upstream towards the boat. As it got close, Phil took a look over the side and then this behemoth of a fish turned sideways and all hell broke loose. This was the largest salmon I have ever seen in Washington, well over 50 pounds and by Phil’s estimation pushing 60. It was like a freight train heading downriver now, pulling line off the reel like the drag did not exist. Phil just kept telling me – well, maybe yelling at me, LOL – “Don’t thumb that reel! Don’t thumb that reel!” And then … Zzzzzzt, zzzzttt, zzzttt … snap! The river exploded with what sounded like a shotgun blast as the 65-pound PowerPro reached its breaking point. Phil was pissed! “I told you not to thumb it … @$#%!” I hadn’t. Not believing me, Phil grabbed the rod and reel from my hands. As he opened up

Author Terry Wiest loves steelhead, but Humptulips fall Chinook are king for him. (STEELHEADU.COM)

the side casing to the reel, parts began to fall out. The reel had seized! It was brand new too, directly from the rep. Phil never used that brand again, nor will he. Not a chance for me either. I got over it pretty quick. Phil was just glad it wasn’t a client who’d lost that fish. I’ve never hooked a Chinook that big again. I did get my 50 (52, actually), but not in Washington. I’ll just have to keep trying and having fun. –TW

When the fish slowed down Tim started working it to the surface. It came up and showed itself and, OMG, it looked prehistoric. We got so excited. I told Tim, “Stay with it; I have seen a lot of big fish swim off because people stop reeling when they see the fish and they shake the hook.” We did get her. Then the whooping and high fives started and continued for minutes. We had the dock talk for the rest of the season.

JOHN KEIZER, PUGET SOUND/WESTPORT EXPERT (Saltpatrol.com) 1) My favorite fishery is ocean salmon off of Westport. I love chasing the aggressively feeding Chinook this offshore salmon fishery provides in July and August. These summer kings provide long, powerful runs when hooked and can be caught in the mid-40-pound class at times. 2) My favorite way to fish for them is to run two Scotty downriggers with flasher-hoochie set-ups as searching tackle. These 11-inch flashers set-ups can 68 Northwest Sportsman

JULY 2018 | nwsportsmanmag.com

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COLUMN be trolled at higher speeds until I locate where the fish are holding. Once we start hooking up on fish, I switch to a Fish Flash and herring to target the bigger kings. Nothing is more enjoyable than playing a large, aggressive king on light tackle. 3) My most memorable fish of recent years was taking a combat vet fishing in less-than-great ocean weather conditions. He hooked up on a hard-fighting king on a knuckle-buster rod and reel. He played the fish for a good half an hour and even with the pain it was causing him from his injuries, he never gave up on it. We all celebrated the 43-pound king he landed along with him. That memory just sticks with you. 4) A good friend of mine, Dave, and I were out fishing the ocean and were in a large swell, maybe 8 feet. It was one of those special days: We had the water all to ourselves and hooked king after king. The fun part was, as the boat came down from each swell, our lines were going uphill and you could see the kings swimming in

(Left) Mark and Merry Coleman. (ALLWASHINGTONFISHING.COM) (Right) Kevin Klein’s done his part to feed resident killer whales. (KEVIN KLEIN) the waves above the boat. It was just one of those magic monuments that two old salts reflect on over a few beers around the campfire. If you don’t go out and try the waters, you will just never experience events like this one.

KEVIN KLEIN, SAN JUAN ISLANDS EXPERT (IPYSales.com) 1) My favorite fishery is August Chinook

in the San Juan Islands. 2) I like downrigger trolling with a flasher and spoon or hoochie. I’ve been testing for Silver Horde for years, so this gives me a great opportunity to see what the fish like. 3, 4) Most memorable fish and an amusing anecdote was when I lost a king of somewhere around 50 pounds to an orca during the 2013 Bellingham Salmon Derby.

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MARK COLEMAN, SOUTH COAST, RIVER GUIDE (Allwashingtonﬁshing.com) 1) My most favorite fishery out of any that I’ve done is, without a doubt, the albacore fishery of the Pacific Northwest. I don’t know if it’s the long run offshore, the troll and bait stop-style fishing, the sheer abundance of hard-fighting, great-eating fish, or a combination of them all. Having fished many prolific fisheries in the world I still have to say that a day of albacore is king! 2) Fishing with live anchovy is my favorite way to fish for albacore because I love freespooling a live bait and feeling a 30-pound rocket picking it up at 40 mph. Count to three, engage the drag and hang-on! 3) My most memorable fish had to have been the first bluefin tuna we caught while fishing for albacore back in 2012. That fish weighed 37 pounds and became a new Washington state record. That was cool! 4) I forget what year it was, but at some point one season we were faced with canceling a few days of albacore fishing due to weather but offering a day of salmon fishing as a back-up trip for those who were interested. Most

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of our clients opted to reschedule for albacore another day, but one group said yes to fishing for salmon, so off we went. It must have been late August or September because I remembered putting the salmon gear out before we even crossed the bar, and I kept us on a westerly troll. We immediately started catching nice coho salmon on 5-ounce banana weights and cut herring. Still on that westerly troll, it’s now about midday and we hook-up on a big fish and we all get a little more serious, clearing lines and working together to hopefully land this “king salmon.” A few minutes later, snap! the monster breaks off. But soon we’re on again with a big fish. Snap! We break this one off too. So we reset our banana weights and cut-plug herring rigs again, only maybe 20 feet behind the boat, and keep trolling. Next thing we know we’re in again with a nice fish. The angler did a great job keeping calm and making line on the fish and we’re starting to get it close to the boat. We are back in the stern, I’m ready with the net, looking down into the water and to my amazement I see a circling albacore 15 feet below the boat. I could not believe my eyes. So I threw the net aside and ran for the gaff. It wasn’t too much later we put a 25-pound green-water hog albacore on the deck. We were 8 miles out and in 170 feet of water!

TODD GIRTZ, NORTH COAST, OLYPEN RIVERS (Toddsextremeﬁshing.com) 1) It’s hard to pick just one fishery because there are so many I love – ocean halibut, offshore salmon, fall kings in the drift boat, Eastern Washington trout, tuna and others. But if I had to pick just one, I would say lingcod at Neah Bay. (Author’s note: Girtz’s nickname is Lingcod Todd). I have been fishing lingcod at Neah Bay with my dad since I was 4 years old and it definitely holds a special place in my heart. It is always good to talk with so many great people up there. 2) These days my favorite lingcod fisheries are the spring and fall, way offshore at Neah. The spring and fall are usually pretty quiet at Neah Bay, as far as people go. In the spring the crowds for halibut season

charters & Guides have not shown up yet, and in the fall most of the salmon fishermen have moved on. I enjoy spending this time exploring new rock piles, humps and ledges in hope of finding some monster lingcod. As far as gear goes, I use a lot of different things: herring, salmon bellies, shad, Norwegian jigs, Power Grubs, twin tails, lead heads, darts. But I always find myself coming back to my favorite: a plain old pipe jig. I catch more and bigger lingcod on pipe than anything else I use. The way you jig the pipe can make a big difference. Most days a very aggressive and fast jig will catch the most lingcod. 4) To say the fishery has changed for me over the years is a huge understatement. Back then, we used to fish in an old 16-foot wood boat. It was a good day if the motor started. We didn’t have a bilge pump, so a couple times a day we would have to get the boat up on plane and pull the plug to run the water out. We spent a lot of our time fishing a stone’s throw or less from the rocks. It was quite a sight seeing very large 20- and 30-pound lingcod coming up out of the rocks to take our bait. When we did head offshore, it was always an adventure. We didn’t have any GPS back then, so finding the spots was pretty tricky. We used a paper map, compass, speedometer, wristwatch and a depth finder to try to locate our spots. It was no easy task. The fog made things pretty interesting back then too. These days I’m using a boat worth 50 times that boat, all top-of-the-line gear, GPS equipment that can get me within feet of where I want to be, sonar that can tell me if the fish are there before I ever drop a line in, and electric reels to crank them in. Those early days really help me appreciate the boat, electronics and equipment I have today. I enjoy helping others catch fish, so if you see me on the dock, come up and say hi. I hope to see you on the water soon. NS Editor’s note: Terry J. Wiest is the author of Steelhead University: Your Guide to Salmon & Steelhead Success and Float-Fishing for Salmon & Steelhead, and is the owner of Steelhead University, SteelheadU.com.

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FISHING

Midchannel Bank will be among the best spots in Washington’s northern inside waters to pick up hatchery Chinook this summer. (JASON BROOKS)

Catch Sound-bound Kings With the forecast calling for more Chinook than usual, here’s where and how to ﬁsh the Straits, North Sound, Hood Canal and San Juans. By Mark Yuasa

he suspense of what summer has in store for king salmon anglers from the Strait of Juan de Fuca clear into northern Puget Sound is always a hot topic, with many planning their vacation time around these fisheries. “Chinook fishing in general will be very similar to last year, and the one change is that it might be much better in Area 9 (northern Puget Sound) and further south into Puget Sound for summer fisheries,” says Pat Pattillo, a member of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s sport salmon advisory board and retired WDFW salmon policy manager. While that is good news to savor,

one’s success in catching these migratory kings will be measured by doing some homework before you head out on the water. That includes looking at the tide tables for optimal ﬁshing periods; choosing the right lures and baits; targeting the correct depths; keeping tabs on what others are doing around you; and setting the alarm clock to ensure you’re on the water before the crack of dawn – often a prime time for targeting migratory kings.

ONE OF THE premier crossroads for kings heading south to the Columbia River or east into Puget Sound is the western Strait of Juan de Fuca at Sekiu, which opens July 1 through Aug. 15. During the past few summer

seasons here in Marine Area 5, the king fishery was inconsistent, but if schools of baitfish are holding in the area expect hungry kings to be lurking around kelp beds and drop-offs. “The Sekiu-area fisheries are influenced by Columbia River Chinook stocks and this year’s forecast is down from last year, so it could be slow again,” Pattillo speculates. “With that said, the run isn’t down too much so I’m hopefully optimistic, and there’s a boost in Puget Sound returns.” The total Columbia fall king forecast of 365,000 is about half of the 10-year average and falls below the 582,600 forecast and actual return of 475,900 last year. What could propel Sekiu catch nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

Northwest Sportsman 79

FISHING rates this summer, as well as other ﬁsheries to the east, is a projected return of 227,420 Puget Sound hatchery Chinook, which is up 21 percent from the 10-year average and a 35 percent increase from 2017. Famous king ﬁshing holes here include the Caves, a quarter-milelong stretch of steep-sided shoreline near the breakwater at Mason’s Resort in Clallam Bay; Slip Point Buoy; Mussolini Rock and Little Mussolini Rock; Eagle Point; Kydaka Point; Coal Mines; and Pillar Point, where Chet Gausta caught the staterecord 70.50-pound king way back on Sept. 6, 1964.

JUST DOWN WINDY Highway 112 is the eastern Strait (Area 6) around Port Angeles, where hatchery king ﬁshing on the July opener has been rather stellar in recent years. “The past couple years a lot of kings were stacked up around Port Angeles

and it was good during the first week, with many people catching their limits,” says Larry Bennett, WDFW’s head fish sampler in the Strait. “Then it tends to drop off a bit as we progress into July, although it remains fairly good as waves of kings move in and out of the area.” Season here opens July 3, which is a couple days later than the traditional start, and runs through Aug. 15. Look for good king fishing outside of Port Angeles Harbor off Ediz Hook; the Humps and Winter Hole in the Strait; Freshwater Bay; and Dungeness Spit to Protection Island.

THE SUMMER KING fishery takes on a totally different look when moving to the inner waterways of northern Puget Sound (Area 9), from Port Townsend south to the Edmonds area. “Based on this summer’s Chinook forecast, I think the Area 9 ﬁshery will perform even better than it did

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Northwest Sportsman 81

FISHING last year, and I can vividly remember my trip last July where we had our limit of kings by 7:30 a.m.,” says Pattillo. “The one unfortunate situation is that we didn’t get a bump up in the quota despite an increase in the forecast. This means that if I were making plans, I’d go sooner than later.” The hatchery-marked king fishery in Area 9 is open July 16 through Aug. 15. The fishery was originally modeled with a catch limit of 7,300, but was then trimmed to 5,563 during the season-setting process this past spring. The latter is a similar figure to the 2017 quota and up from 3,056 in 2016. Modeling by WDFW staff suggested this change would likely result in a shorter 2018 season given the forecast of increased hatchery Chinook in the area. “I’ll be happy if the Area 9 hatchery Chinook fishery lasts two weeks,” says Mark Baltzell, a WDFW salmon manager. “We have about the same quota as last year and thought we’d get a month, but it only lasted two weeks. It was lights-out king fishing at Midchannel Bank when it opened up, and that seems to the place to be when it opens in July.” This is where Pattillo’s sage advice of banking vacation days right from the start will guarantee you more time on the water. For a good gauge on how king fishing will fare in Area 9, keep tabs on what’s happening off the Edmonds Pier – which is open yearround for salmon – as well as down in south-central Puget Sound, in the Tacoma-Vashon Island area where fishing opened June 1. Northern Puget Sound locations to target kings are the aforementioned Midchannel Bank as well as Point Wilson off Port Townsend; Bush Point, Fort Casey, Lagoon Point and Double Bluff off the west side of Whidbey Island; Point No Point; Possession Bar; Scatchet Head; and Pilot Point.

THE SAN JUAN Islands are another 82 Northwest Sportsman

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Sekiu and Port Townsend, at either entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, attract a lot of Chinook anglers, but Port Angeles shouldn’t be overlooked. Kris Godwin caught this one off the Coast Guard station there last summer while ﬁshing with her dad, Ron Casscles of Sequim. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

major highway intersection for kings, with some going to British Columbia’s Fraser River and others south into Puget Sound. Fishing has been relatively hot and cold the past few seasons. But there are days when it will deliver some summertime fun. “We’ve seen pretty good king fishing in the islands and it has gotten a lot better the past couple of years as effort increased and folks started to find fish,” Baltzell says. Area 7 is open July 1-31 for hatchery-marked kings, and then switches to wild and hatchery kings from Aug. 1 through Sept. 3. The difficulty in fishing the island chain is the diverse geography and knowing where the migratory salmon are hanging out. (Editor’s note: See Doug Huddle’s North Sound column

for some more tips.) Also of note here, WDFW is asking anglers to voluntarily avoid a quarter-mile-wide stretch of water on the west side of San Juan Island between Mitchell Bay and Cattle Point, with a half-wide pleasedon’t-go zone around Lime Kiln Lighthouse. This along with Area 7 shutting down in nearly all of September and ﬁshing closures on the British Columbia side of part of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Gulf Islands and mouth of the Fraser are part of an effort to help orcas and Chinook stocks, though anglers have been leery (see Editor’s Note, Northwest Sportsman, June 2018). hatchery kings are abundant, and yet anglers

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FISHING still haven’t figured out how to crack the code on fishing success, is Hood Canal south of Ayock Point. It’s open July 1 through Sept. 30 with a liberal four-hatchery-Chinook daily limit. This year’s Area 12 forecast is 57,558, up from 48,300 in 2017 (more actually returned), with many kings destined for WDFW’s George Adams and Hoodsport hatcheries. “It is a mystery to me why this isn’t a better sport fishery, since there are a lot of hatchery kings moving through the area,” says Pattillo. “We’re seeing good numbers of kings in this section of the canal as early as July, and it ought to be good. Maybe it’s only a matter of time when some anglers start to figure out this fishery.” With Skokomish River access remaining closed to anglers, the impetus is on. In the southern portion of Hood Canal, WDFW will allow anglers to use the two-pole endorsement, and

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the Chinook minimum size limit is 20 inches as opposed to the standard 22 in other marine areas. Look for kings staging and milling along shoreline and drop-offs near Hoodsport, Muesqueti Point and the shelf at Annas Bay running parallel along the Great Bend off Skokomish River Delta area.

WHILE THE “BIBLE” on catching summer kings has some hard facts to stick by, there will be times when sheer dumb luck will prevail as that hungry king grabs your bait when you least expect it! I’m a devoted mooching angler and use nothing but a whole or cut-plug herring tied to a banana lead weight to tandem hooks. But I’ll do what it takes to catch kings, especially when the dogﬁsh are thicker than bees, which is quite the norm in many areas of Puget Sound during the summer. This includes hooking up the

downrigger to a standard 11-inch flasher of your choice attached to a hoochie, Silver Horde’s popular Coho Killer or Goldstar Kingfisher, Luhr Jensen’s Coyote Spoon or a Gibbs Delta Wonder Spoon. Adding a scent attractant to your lure doesn’t hurt. To eliminate line twisting on your gear while trolling be sure to add ball-bearing swivels on both ends of the flasher and to your lure or bait of choice. Jigs will also catch their fair share of fish, with some top choices being Point Wilson Darts, Buzz Bombs, Dungeness Stingers and Crippled Herring. Tidal influence and currents will be key to getting your jig down in front of a king’s face, so be sure to bring along a variety of weight sizes. What lures to use often depends on the type of baitfish you’re seeing in the area. A good example is that candlefish are the predominant feed at Midchannel Bank. Unlike winter Chinook, which tend to dig their noses into the bottom, summer kings are on the move and will often be found in the upper and middle parts of the water column, though as daylight builds there’s no doubt some will be lurking right off or on the bottom. Locating baitfish schools will also dictate where you need to fish. Usually at first light drop your gear down 25 to 30 feet, and another good tactic is to stagger your lines at various depths as deep as 120 to 150 feet. Tidal influence will also determine how successful you’ll be in catching kings. Looking at the tide charts, the North Sound July 16 opener should provide the maximum opportunity on a good morning outgoing tide. High tide at Port Townsend is plus 7.3 feet at 6:27 a.m., with low a minus 1.7 feet at 1:04 p.m. The morning outgoing also looks good on July 17, but then switches to a better afternoon tidal exchange on July 18, allowing anglers to fish up until sunset on a rising tide. NS

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COLUMN

Make Most Of Lower Buoy 10 Salmon Run

ith the Columbia fall Chinook return expected to be down 23 percent BUZZ from last season, RAMSEY many anglers are wondering what on earth to do. Well, despite the down forecast the party is hardly over. After all, when you combine the Chinook run with coho – a total of 650,000 salmon entering the big river’s estuary – I think the fishing might still be pretty good. So good, in fact, that I’ve already begun to mark the most productive tides on my calendar and begun gearing up for Buoy 10. I think you should too, and this article is mostly about what you need to find success there.

Buoy 10 salmon anglers will have fewer days to chase fall Chinook, like this one held by Ben Cooley while ﬁshing with author Buzz Ramsey, so it makes sense to optimize your efforts by identifying and ﬁshing around key tides. (BUZZ RAMSEY)

IN CASE YOU haven’t seen it, here’s this year’s season as prescribed by federal and state agencies: the sport fishery between the Buoy 10 channel marker upstream to Tongue Point will be open from Aug. 1 through Aug. 24 for adult Chinook retention. The daily adult limit is one salmonid during this time frame (Chinook, hatchery coho or hatchery steelhead). From Aug. 25 through Dec. 31, the daily adult limit is two salmonids, meaning fin-clipped coho and/or steelhead, but all Chinook must be released. Coho typically arrive weighing 7 to 9 pounds, while Chinook come in all sizes, with most from 15 to 25 pounds and a few dipping the scale past the 50-pound mark. Given the shorter-than-normal Chinook season, I’m not taking our travel trailer to Astoria this year but instead thinking of making a few day trips and one multiple day/night trip during the nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

Northwest Sportsman 89

COLUMN

Now is the time to make sure your reels, rods, line, ﬂashers and other gear are ready for Buoy 10. This reel became inoperable during the 2014 ﬁshery there. (ANDY WALGAMOTT)

Buoy 10 Salmon Challenge tournament scheduled for Aug. 17. Since Astoria is a four-hour drive from our home, for day trips I’m considering hitting midmorning to early afternoon tides, that is, highs between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. That way I can launch two hours before the tide and troll from then until halfway through the outgo before heading home. The days supporting this strategy include Aug. 6-10 and 20-24. The afternoon tides will likely produce the most fish for the Aug. 11-15 time period, when you might think about skipping the early morning bite and instead launching late and fishing into the evening. Since afternoon winds can make for rough conditions, you might think about launching at the East Mooring Basin or John Day boat ramp. Keep in mind that the Astoria-Megler Bridge blocks an amazing amount of west wind, at least on the north end, which might be the place to be during the afternoon/early evening high tide during this week. Morning high tides begin Aug. 16, and the first half of the outgo will likely produce the most salmon for those trolling at or above the bridge, which is where I’ll be starting my prefishing day for the Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association’s Buoy 10 tournament.

WHEN AND WHERE to plan your trips is only part of preparing for Buoy 10 – and all fall salmon trips, for that matter. This fishery marks the beginning of an autumn season that lasts through October in the tidal zones of salmon-bearing rivers up and down Oregon’s and Washington’s coasts. In addition to getting your boat motors tuned, which might include switching out your jet pump for a prop, and checking to make sure your bilge pump works, you should give your rods and reels a close look, review your terminal gear, and tie up a fresh batch of leaders. When it comes to spooling fresh line on a reel, you should make sure the line is wound tightly on; if it’s not, the line could knife into the spool, es90 Northwest Sportsman

JULY 2018 | nwsportsmanmag.com

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pecially when hooking into a big salmon with too tight a drag. Although this can happen with monofilament, it’s much more likely to occur with reels filled with super line. If knifing does occur, you will have no drag and likely break the fish off. No matter how hard I try, I cannot get the line wrapped on the reel tight enough when first filling with fresh line. To get it spooled tightly so there is no possibility of knifing, I attach the end of the line to a stationary object and walk 90 or more yards away and then reel myself back holding tension on the line with the rod as I go. Only after doing this am I ready to tackle a big salmon with a freshly filled reel.

ADDITIONALLY, MAKE SURE and check all screws on your fishing reels for tightness. This is a pretty simple procedure but necessary as screws do come loose and could fall out. Another procedure worth doing is to flush the worm drive bar on the line guide of your baitcasting reels with WD-40 or a quality gun cleaner, like Gun Scrubber, to expel all dirt and dust. Then re-oil with grease designed for fishing reels. A once-over inspection to make sure all fishing rod guide inserts, as in ceramic inserts, are tight and not coming loose is worth the effort. Having a guide insert fall out of the guide frame is something that can and does happen. You can easily repair these, providing you don’t lose the insert, by gluing them back into the guide frame with a little epoxy. And finally, check that the ball-bearing swivels on your flashers are working freely. As anal as this might sound, I rinse my flashers with freshwater after trips to Buoy 10 and oil the swivels to keep them free of corrosion. If you haven’t done this, check to make sure they are smooth spinning and oil them in advance of your Buoy 10 salmon adventure. NS Editor’s note: The author is a brand manager and part of the management team at Yakima Bait. Like Buzz on Facebook. 92 Northwest Sportsman

JULY 2018 | nwsportsmanmag.com

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FISHING

7 Alternatives To That Buoy

There’s more to this year’s midsummer ﬁsheries than the mouth of the Columbia. By Andy Schneider

ust when you wrap up your Buoy 10 season, you start planning for the next one. The fishery is addictive, fun and almost always productive. But this year, with the shorter season, smaller run forecast and mediocre fishing the last two Augusts, some anglers are definitely going to take a pass on Buoy 10 2018, this guy included. With the last day of Chinook retention on Aug. 24, that doesn’t

Consider a down year at the mouth of the Columbia to be a new dawn to your midsummer ﬁshing. Exploring new waters or overlooked options like Nehalem Bay just might be worthwhile this season. Mike Smith shows off a stout Chinook he caught on the Oregon Coast last year. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

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FISHING leave much angling opportunity for anglers who always plan on fishing the last week of the month, traditionally one of the best. So where does that leave those looking to fill the void that the Buoy 10 fishery otherwise occupies? There are always options and maybe this year, you can explore and make one a permanent part of the kids’ summer vacation.

NEHALEM BAY USUALLY gets a very healthy run of summer and fall Chinook returning as early as July, with best fishing in late August through all of September. Nehalem also sees a very healthy return of coho flood the estuary starting in early August through all of September. While we may not be able to harvest wild coho this year, there are still plenty of hatchery fish available to keep anglers happy. Fishing between the jetty tips is the most popular for the bay’s longtime anglers and guides, but fishing is productive from the jetties to well above Highway 101. Trolling plug-cut herring is the way to go below the bridge, while spinner fishing is best above it. When fishing the jetties, make sure to hug the southern one and keep your distance from the shallows of the north jetty, as multiple boats get into trouble here every year. When trolling the south jetty, make sure to keep moving and don’t hover in just one location. Since this area is so small, it’s the courteous and most productive thing to do. Softer tides and a calm ocean are almost always a recipe for good fishing here. When they are forecast to coincide, it’s definitely worth making a trip. The set-up for Nehalem salmon is no different than how you’d fish for Tillamook Bay fall Chinook. Six feet of 30-pound leader with two 5/0 hooks and an inline bead-chain swivel is the standard way to rig a blue-label cutplug herring for Nehalem. Running 96 Northwest Sportsman

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12 to 14 inches of lead dropper and 8- to 16-ounce cannonball sinkers will ensure your baits stay tight to the bottom, a must here. Don’t forget to bring your crab pots if you ﬁsh here during peak Buoy 10 season. Place your pots in any corner or cove out of the main current, but the waters around the state park to the Jetty Fishery are the best crabbing areas.

SUMMER HALIBUT’S AN often-overlooked fishery, what with anglers driving right past productive waters in search of albacore tuna. Is fishing for halibut any less productive in the summer? Nope! In fact, it can be some of the most bountiful you’ll find all year. And while you may not consider yourself much of a flattie fisherman, if you are participating in the Buoy 10 fishery, it’s likely your boat is more than capable of some nearshore fishing. Focus on finding the right drift. Oftentimes, ocean currents this time of year can be very strong, creating “rip lines.” A rip line is a change in current, temperature, color, upwelling, depth or salinity of the ocean. A rip can be identified by a line of unsettled water, boils or eddies, and they are often filled with floating seaweed and grasses. Rip lines are what saltwater coho anglers are always on the lookout for, and they are also a great place to start your drift for nearshore halibut. When approaching a rip line, look to see where the current is flowing the fastest. Oftentimes, it’s the water on the outside, but not always. Start your drift on the slower current side of the rip, making sure to keep the line close, as they will serpentine north to south. If you find that your surface water is moving faster or slower than the current on the bottom, adjust your drift either closer or farther away from the rip line. Just because you’re fishing near the shore, and thus in shallower water, doesn’t mean that you won’t need a lot of weight to keep your

May gets all the attention from halibut anglers, but this time of year offers options for ﬂatties as well. Roger Goodman caught this 49-incher out of Newport later in the season a couple years back. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

bait on the bottom. Thirty-six to 48 ounces of lead oftentimes will be needed. When a lot of weight is needed to keep your gear down, fishing is usually very productive, so make sure to bring gear heavy enough to handle the heavy weights. You can rig just as you would for the offshore halibut haunts, but for some reason using a spreader bar and a short leader tends to be more productive in the nearshore fishery. Perhaps the spreader bar acts as an attractant, announcing where dinner can be found as it bounces off the bottom and rocks. Once you hook a halibut, make sure to mark the spot on your GPS. Oftentimes, you will find multiple fish hanging in the same area. While those waypoints can always be a good starting point for your next trip, don’t rely upon them to produce results every time, as nearshore halibut are very transitory and foodsource driven. There are two potential back-

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FISHING up spring all-depth weekends this month (July 5-7, 19-21) if quota remained in that season. The summer season then opens Aug. 3-4 for ﬁshing every other Friday and Saturday until the quota of 53,866 pounds is attained, or Oct. 31.

ALBACORE ARE USUALLY all that’s on an offshore angler’s mind this time of year, and that’s because tuna fishing can be amazingly fun and productive. When albacore first show up in our Northwest waters they are ravenous and will feed on anything that resembles baitfish. But as they become more acquainted with our groceries, they become a little more finicky. While some fish will still respond to trolled clones, diving lures and cedar plugs, results begin to wane. Most anglers switch to lures mimicking our baitfish or head out with live bait. If live anchovies aren’t an option out of your port, the next

best lure is a Shimano Butterfly flatsided 140-gram jig. One of the reasons jigs can be so effective is that they target fish where things are a little darker and the fish tend to be fooled just a little easier. The closer to the surface your baits are, the easier those big eyeballs of an albacore can find the flaws in your lures, or they will take a pass on the easy pickings of a dead anchovy floating along. A jig will also trigger a bite as it darts and weaves on its retrieve to the surface, whereas tuna can lose interest chasing down a lure that’s running in a straight line. It doesn’t matter what port you run out of for albacore, you’re looking for the same water conditions. While the fish may be closer to one at different points of the season – typically, south to north through summer – what most albacore anglers are looking for are fish actively on the feed. There is no denying that at times one port will

Coos Bay is a haul for some, but the rewards can be worth it, judging by this Chinook at the end of angler Jorge Rubio’s line. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

light up and anglers start bringing in big numbers. But while there may be fish closer to the beach out of Tillamook, it may be worth another 10 miles of running out of Ilwaco to plug the boat on live bait. Not only will you save some time to stop right on a hungry school of albacore puddling and crashing on baitfish, you run fewer miles by the end of the day than you would picking off a single here and there. When heading out of port look for debris, weed lines and kelp patties in the blue water. Also pay attention to your sonar. Set your finder to a depth of 200 feet and watch for fish below you. Albacore show up very nicely on a well-tuned machine, so make sure to set your sensitivity to the point where you start marking fish.

BIG CHINOOK ARE slowly drawing more anglers to the hospitable towns of Coos Bay and North Bend to partake in good and consistent ﬁshing. If you are well versed in ﬁshing Tillamook and Nehalem Bays, you’ll have no problem adapting to this estuary. Seaweed can be a nuisance, just like Tillamook, especially on large tide swings. But if you know how to spin a plug-cut herring on an incoming tide, you should do well. Coos Bay is a long way from Astoria and the franticness of Buoy 10. It offers a much more laid-back 98 Northwest Sportsman

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FISHING

July typically marks the start of albacore ﬁshing in Northwest waters, with action improving from south to North – Charleston to Newport, Depoe Bay, Garibaldi, Ilwaco and Westport – in August and September. Frank LeFevers and Wyatt Lundquist show off a pair caught last summer. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

experience, all with good ﬁshing keeping everyone’s spirits high.

DRANO LAKE AND the mouth of the Deschutes River see peak fishing for steelhead at the exact time that Buoy 10 usually hits its stride. With this year’s prediction of Columbia summer-runs up slightly from last year, it may be worth combining camping in the Columbia Gorge with steelhead fishing at these thermal refuges. Drano is a unique summer fishery, where fish pull into the cool waters at the drowned mouth of the Little White Salmon River. When Columbia water temperatures are peaking – usually in mid- to late August – the lake’s fishing is best. Suspend cured coon shrimp under a float on the western side, paying attention to your fish finder to see what depth 100 Northwest Sportsman

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you’re marking fish at and setting your bobber stop accordingly. Just as fishing peaks at Drano, so too does it upstream and across the Columbia on the Oregon side at the mouth of the Deschutes. But the fisheries differ when it comes to technique. Trolling Wiggle Warts and smaller Mag Lips is the preferred technique at the Deschutes. Most anglers troll slowly upriver just downstream from the mouth, keeping a pace that keeps the lures wiggling at two to three beats per second. Just make sure when rigging up to go a little on the heavy side, as the occasional late summer or early fall Chinook may be hooked instead. And regardless of whether you’re fishing Drano or the Deschutes, bring lots of ice for your catch. Water temperatures on the Columbia will be in the low 70s and it’s important

to cool your catch quickly to ensure its quality.

OCEAN SALMON MAY very well be one of the most productive options available if you want to harvest a coho or Chinook. Yes, the Pacific is a mighty big piece of water and can be very daunting to try and find a fish, but as the salmon start their final migration to their spawning gravel, they start to orient to their home estuary. The Columbia, Nehalem, Tillamook, Yaquina and others up and down the coast all will have coho and Chinook starting to stage just offshore and they will be feeding aggressively to sustain them once they enter freshwater. Just as with nearshore halibut, look for rip lines. Where these occur, you will find concentrations of plankton and baitfish, and where

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there are baitfish, there are salmon. Looking for birds is another great way to locate feeding ocean salmon. Murres and puffins are usually the first on the scene and feed on the same anchovies, herring, candlefish, or saury, that coho and Chinook do. Feeding birds can be seen from a long way away and when they are actively diving and feeding, it’s worth pulling gear or trolling in that direction. Ocean salmon tend to hang in waters between 52 and 54 degrees, so as you are running west from port, pay attention to your electronics. Where they show a sharp break in water temps is usually a good place to start trolling. Fishing is almost always good right at first light, when schools of fish will run shallow for the first few hours of the day before moving deeper as the sun climbs in the sky. If there is a lot of water visibility, expect fish to move deeper quicker, and conversely, when water visibility is poor, expect fish to linger longer on the surface. Season is underway and slated to stay open through Sept. 3 for coho, so there is plenty of time to get out on waters that more than likely will be calmer than those found in the Columbia estuary.

BUOY 10’S RETURN of salmon this year may leave some disappointed, but concentrating on enjoying the time spent on the water with friends and family should leave everyone feeling fulfilled. Years like this are also opportunities to refine your skills as an angler. Putting the effort in and paying attention to details is the best way to be successful in lessthan-stellar seasons. Deciding not to participate in fisheries just because the run forecast isn’t what you had hoped for is only going to punish you and your friends. Guaranteed, there will be plenty of fish caught this summer, memories and friends made and plans will be set for 2019, no matter the forecast. NS

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FISHING

The Chute The late arrival of summer-runs to her river wasn’t the only challenge Sara had to overcome with steelhead last year.

Besides the challenge of landing aggressive summer-run steelhead this time of year, author Sara Ichtertz says, “Cooking them fresh and ﬁlling up the freezer this time of year is where it is at. This is what we live for.” (SARA ICHTERTZ)

By Sara Ichtertz

alling hard for something that only comes around once a year isn’t always easy. Even though there is a thrill and explicit joy found in pursuing each species of fish through the seasons, there really is only one that is the keeper of my heart. They stole it from me five runs ago, though honestly I so willingly gave it to them. The summer-run steelhead is second to none as far as what I am looking for when hunting the rivers. They fulfill all of the river thrills

I am seeking, and the place that I find them has always been home. Stepping up to the bank each run is always such a thrill as I never know if they are here. My carefully documented notes on time frames, water conditions, snowmelt, what the fish wanted – and what they didn’t – had up until that point been quite helpful. Even if the river is still peppered with springer fishermen, I so eagerly start hunting for the fiery diamonds beneath my waters.

LAST YEAR I found the river humming quite loudly with things besides

the bugs, birds and water itself. Much action had been taking place while I was still downriver and, to my surprise, was still occurring. Welcoming a friend to join me from afar I thought I had calculated her arrival perfectly. I was excited to share this piece of my heart with her and when we arrived, to my surprise, the bank had clear signs that springer ﬁshing was taking place. Those signs included the massive hooks, leader and sinkers amongst the rocks, along with the anglers themselves. I almost felt as if I was being looked at by these ﬁshers (who did not know me) nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

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FISHING as if I did not belong there, or that I was going about it wrong with my 8-12-pound rods. Knowing none of that was the truth, I pulled up my big girl britches, set up my girlfriend and I and felt the bottom of the river for the first time that run. My G.Loomis felt the ever-steady twanging of 30-pound mono as I bounced down the drift; my gut knew it didn’t love what it felt as I fished, but I wasn’t going to let it stop me. I expected to feel something else, considering the date. I was disenchanted because I like to walk upon that evening water to find myself a hottie – a fish that gives me that beautiful bite, allowing me to set my hook with conviction, followed by the fiercest of headshakes winding down to that point of true connection leading to either an eruption of power or that sexy shimmer and flash beneath the waters. There she is! I wanted to share these most radical fish with my friend, yet we ended up setting up camp that night on the creek without any grand tales of summers screaming downriver with our rigs and our hearts. Our time together flew by as I shared more than just my favorite fishing hole with her. I took her upriver to the creeks that give me peace and sooth my soul. As our friendship was relatively young I didn’t truly realize the significance of me sharing the forest and the creeks with her. Being from the country I never have taken my big backyard for granted, but I saw how much better it felt when getting to share it with someone who hadn’t ever been up a steelhead stream. In the middle of a forest, so stunningly beautiful, these creeks are untouched, wild and something one simply doesn’t forget. Gretchen swam with me in this most brisk water. Not knowing she hadn’t swam since her boy’s father’s drowning accident, I just walked to edge of my rocks and dove right in. Each year as I dive in that creek, it 108 Northwest Sportsman

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Roy Ichtertz holds his rod high as a steelie does its best to keep away from the bank. (SARA ICHTERTZ)

washes my soul like no other water I know. Allowing her to ease her way into that emerald-green water together, she overcame her fears and she came out of that creek a different woman. The only thing that didn’t change her in a beautiful way when coming to my forest was the ﬁsh – where were they? As we said our goodbyes, in a way I felt like I had failed, but as time has past I realize what I gave her was internal healing, and in knowing that I believe our skunked mission was worth it.

GIVING THE RIVER a few goes with my family, the men were abundant though the steelhead were not. The river conditions were good, and so I knew the fish just were not here yet. Doing a little high mountain camping we said goodbye to June, staying away from the river, which made my gut hurt as I had never not found the fish by this point in the year. My first run, I was oh so in love with these fish, and discovering who I am, I would not and in all reality could not stop targeting them even though there was not a bite to be

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FISHING found. Once that water warms, the only thing on the mind of the fish is getting up the creek, and that fiercest bite is gone overnight. But with the river still quite cold, and July in full swing, we went at it again. This time the only sign of fishermen was what they’d left behind. The garbage bag down by the chute was overflowing with glass bottles, cans, flip flops, broken sunglasses, burrito wrappers, fishing line masses, and God only knows what else. The bank itself was sad. She was covered in the waste of lazy humans and I thought, “Wow, those men who were semirude about my presence on the bank should get a clue!” I had never seen this stretch of river in such bad shape. We thought we might as well see if we could find a fish, and either way, I knew we would be back tomorrow to clean up the stretch of river that is so very special to us.

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No sooner than had my husband Roy bounced through the drift than there she was! The first fish of the run was all his! She put on quite the show, beautifully bursting out of the river again and again. Glistening in sun as she leaped with ease, my heart was alive. Getting close to the bank just to rip off again, she reminded me exactly why I love these fish like I do. They are so resilient and beautiful. Even though they are swimmers, they are full of fire! An incomparable fire! In that first evening we found both wild and hatchery fish. The greatest part of that night was the fact that Roy tagged out on summers for his first time! I was elated with pride and joy! Seeing him wanting it and succeeding, seeing his growth, seeing him so radically excited from the fish is all I ever wanted. We stepped away from the river with fish and all the garbage we could manage, thinking, “Heck,

yeah! They may have been late, but they are here now!”

OVER THE COURSE of the next few nights my family and I had the river pretty much all to ourselves. We cleaned that bank and the river oh so amazingly rewarded us. Devotion and respect are both needed to be a successful river fisherman, I believe. One can simply show up, fish, make a mess while doing so, and roll out. But those who do that will never know what it means to truly respect and love a river, allowing the waters to love you in return. That’s the best part of fishing to me: It places us in an environment that not only makes us better as individuals but brings us closer together as a family. In that brief little window of time my husband and I were into the fish. And while I struggle with the fishy taste that most river fish possess, not summers. They taste best to my

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FISHING

When the summer-runs ﬁnally arrived, Sara and Roy both were able to tag out. (SARA ICHTERTZ)

palate. Cooking them fresh and filling up the freezer this time of year is where it is at. This is what we live for. One night I hooked three hotties in three casts for the first time. As each screamed off downriver, I tried to stop it, but was broken-hearted by one after another as they eluded me in different ways. As the night progressed, I realized I had best not try to stop them but rather chase them. They were so full of fire that every time I tried to turn them around, the result was the same. Oh-for-four – there was just no stopping them. So I took the chance to see what I could do, even though it scared me. With perfectly set drag and strong and steady footing the chase was on. To my amazement I landed my first-ever fish at the end of the chute! Trembling beyond all reason when that hot little hatchery buck was in the net, I was freaking out! I grabbed

hold of my husband and shook him with some crazy adrenaline-driven joy! My skills were growing. After tagging the fish, bleeding him and securing him in the river, I eagerly rerigged my rod. I never like to use the same leader, especially fishing in rocks like these. It was a good thing I did because the next fish I hooked ended up being a dandy! The 34-inch-long summer steelhead took me all the way downriver, just like his comrade had. He was strong and he was erratic! As he screamed over the tailout he erupted out of the river in full force. Tail-walking with the craziest of shakes, I got to see he was a big boy. He took me all the way to the salmon hole, never once hanging up on the boulders. I kept the line tight, bringing him in for a landing, and with one perfect scoop that boy was in the net. The biggest hatchery fish I had ever landed led to my first tagged-out night of the run.

THAT MOST BEAUTIFUL bite was late. The way I envisioned the run wasn’t at all how it unfolded. Still, it showed me that it’s always best to chase the river, trust what you know, not what you see. There are those who chase fishing reports and those who create them. Through passion and devotion, we found the fish at a time we didn’t expect to. Chasing the idea of the fish makes me a better person and a better fisherwoman. I have said it before and I’m sure I will say it again, but the correlations between life and fishing the rivers are so very much alike. Parts of both are so very challenging, but as long as one gives it their best and does not give up, they are both beyond worth it. Each year these fish bring forth such a beautiful battle worth fighting, confirming once again that my heart is on the river and I couldn’t change it, even if I tried. NS

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Editor’s note: For more on Sara’s adventures, see For The Love Of The Tug on Facebook.

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COLUMN

The waters off the mouth of the Puyallup River are perennially one of the best places to ﬁsh for Chinook in the South Sound, as Point Deﬁance Marina loyalist Brian Johnson will attest. He caught this one there at dawn on a beautiful summer 2016 morning. (JASON BROOKS)

No Reason To Stay Crabby In South Sound W

ith summer crabbing closed in the South Sound, it is time to find a few other things to SOUTH SOUND do. For anglers, the By Jason Brooks Dungeness downturn is compensated by a decent forecast of Chinook and coho back to local rivers. Kings will be here shortly, with silvers arriving a little later in summer and into fall.

Meanwhile, hunters, anglers and hikers have many options, as early to midsummer is one of the best timeframes to get out and do some exploring now that the snow is finally receding from the high country. Here’s more to help you fill the void of no family crabbing south of Seattle.

THE MAIN CHINOOK tributaries in the South Sound are predicted to have decent to good returns. This means that terminal

fisheries will be the places to be. Starting with the Puyallup River with a run of 12,450 predicted to come back, the saltchuck where you can intercept hatchery Chinook can be good until well past Labor Day. With Commencement Bay closed to fishing until Aug. 1, your best bet is to fish near Three Tree, Dash and Browns Points. The salmon will be cruising along the eastern edge of Puget Sound as they come in from the Pacific. Each of these points create a rip where bait will stack up

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COLUMN and the Chinook can feed. Chambers Creek is one area that has been overlooked for a long time, but give this fishery a try this season. Aiming for the hatchery located at Steilacoom, the fish heading here will stack up just outside the railroad trestle that marks the entrance from Puget Sound. This is a shallow-water fishery for the most part, with the bottom covered in eel grass. Downriggers are not needed; you can fish with a dropper lead to a Big Al’s Fish Flash trailing a plug-cut herring or a Brad’s Super Cut Plug stuffed with canned tuna fish mixed with Pro-Cure’s Bloody Tuna bait oil. It’s a simple fishery that should not be overlooked. Fish heading further south to the Nisqually and Deschutes Rivers also pass by here, increasing your chances. The Nisqually opens July 1 and offers bank anglers a chance to catch summer Chinook without a boat. However, most serious anglers fish the delta area known as the Green Can. Troll and mooch just outside of the flats, where the water drops off. Look at your sonar for where the mouth of the river is and concentrate here, especially if you are mooching or jigging. Another option for small-boat owners who are willing to go into the river from the salt – and stay through a tide change – is to motor to the I-5 bridge and anchor up. When the tide goes out it turns back into more of a free-flowing river where you can float eggs or back-bounce them for Chinook that came in with the last high tide and are now stacked up in the currents. If you choose to do this, be aware that the lower Nisqually is full of sunken logs, so go slow. This is why it is best to enter and exit on a high tide, which will slow the water and give you a little more room.

CAPITAL LAKE CAN be a spectacle for joggers and park users when the Chinook arrive. The lake is the outfall of the Deschutes River, where a hatchery is expecting 21,529 Chinook back this summer. This run is all hatchery origin but no fishing is allowed in the river or the lake, where tribal anglers are allowed to net. The warm waters of the lake often 116 Northwest Sportsman

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With snowpack mostly melted out, it’s a good time to head up the trail for the Central Cascades’ and eastern Olympics’ alpine lakes, many of which are stocked with trout. (JASON BROOKS) means the fish turn quickly anyway, but the area in Puget Sound that leads to the Deschutes can be a good fishery. Northwest Sportsman readers Kelly and Paula Corcoran did very well here last year. Another option for salmon is to head to southern Hood Canal. While the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife tried unsuccessfully to restore the Skokomish River fishery at the North of Falcon meetings, that doesn’t mean the fish are totally off limits. Reports have it that anglers who fished near the mouth of the Skoke did well with several different techniques, each of them producing. Trolling just outside of the tide flats and

along the western edge of Hood Canal towards Hoodsport was one of the more productive ways to fish. But don’t overlook using a dropper and fish like you are at Buoy 11 with a cut-plug herring and Fish Flash. You can jig or mooch near the mouth too, but remember that the closure extends to the edge of the tide flats and channels at the low tide mark, so do not try to boat up into the channels of the river and anchor, as you will be in violation of the closure.

OCEAN-GOING COHO AS well as resident silver numbers are strong this year. In Marine Area 11 around Tacoma you can

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COLUMN retain clipped and nonclipped fish but to the south in Area 13, it’s clipped coho only. The latter is home to the Squaxin Island Tribe’s net pens, where as many as 1.8 million state-hatchery-reared coho are grown to support fisheries. Reports from last winter through spring were good for these resident coho near Point Evans and Fox Island. Fly fishing anglers often target them along the kelp lines using a Clouser Minnow pattern. For those with a boat, troll a Cripplure by Mack’s Lure but be sure to switch the hook out for a single-point Gamakatsu siwash. Also give a Coho Killer a try; rig it 36 inches behind a ½-ounce banana weight. Just about any bay, point, or shoreline in the South Sound can produce resident coho, as well as sea-run cutthroat, which must be released but are fun to catch on light rods. By late July and into August the ocean coho will be showing up and this is an exciting fishery.

WITH SNOWPACK OFF most of the slopes

in the high country, now is a great time to hike into the backcountry. With the abovenormal snows last winter huckleberries and blueberries should produce a good crop. They start to ripen later in the summer but look at the plants to see which slopes have the most berries. This is where you will want to be come midAugust for fall black bear. Several units open to hunting in Aug. 1, so be sure to keep an eye out for signs of bruins. The biggest factor will be where the food sources are. In early August, thimbleberries and blackberries ripen first, and they are often found in avalanche chutes or at lower elevations. Whether you are scouting for fall bears or just want to enjoy the backcountry, be sure to take a small fishing rod. There are several high lakes that offer great fishing. I prefer to take a few bubble bobbers and dry flies, such as size 12 mosquitos, Adams, and caddis. This is a simple and very fun way to fish. There are plenty of lakes near Packwood and White Pass that offer a high mountain angling experience

Bruin season is just around the corner, and mountain meadows and berryﬁelds, er, bear watching. (JASON BROOKS) for the South Sound hiker. Look for lakes that are stocked often by volunteer groups; they can be found at the Fish Washington tab on wdfw.wa.gov.

YES, CRABBING’S ON hold for now and maybe even for a few more years in the South Sound, but that doesn’t mean summer in the outdoors or on the water is over. Look at the other options we have and grab the family. There’s plenty to do, from sea level to mountain meadows and alpine lakes. NS

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COLUMN

Big Fish Await In Juans, Ross O

pportunities afforded by Marine Area 7 and Ross Lake are By Doug Huddle significantly far apart in the angling spectrum, not to mention geographically. But to their ardent followers both herald one thing: the start of summer fishing in Northwest Washington. The four-month season for its vaunted native rainbows opens July 1 in Seattle City Light’s 24-mile-long North Cascades reservoir, while on the same day salmon fishing begins in earnest on the parade of Chinook, coho and sockeye runs coursing through Washington’s northernmost inland sea. And it wouldn’t be a true fairweather saltwater experience hereabouts without a rousing fishing contest, in this case the annual derby of the Bellingham Chapter of Puget Sound Anglers.

NORTH SOUND

SALMON START-UP HOTSPOTS With near-mainland-shore waters of Area 7 off limits in July, salmon seekers’ first opportunity to productively wet a line comes in Bellingham Channel, Rosario Strait and the Strait of Georgia. Staying on the tidal “lee” side of Lummi Rocks, working the rip west of Point Migley or trolling the 6- or 10-fathom line off Cherry Point are all good alternatives. Further south, anglers work deeper water around Viti Rocks, off the west edge of Boulder Reef and Buoy 16, Buckeye Shoal and Cypress Reef. Depending on tide and wind direction, Cypress Island’s Eagle Bluff and Tide Point as well as Cypress Head in Bellingham Channel are trollable on either ebb or flood tides. Off Fidalgo Island’s west shore early in

A mid-July ﬁshing trip in the San Juan Islands yielded this nice big hatchery Chinook for Jake Mandella. (YO-ZURI PHOTO CONTEST)

July and later fish Fidalgo Head out of Skyline Marina and Washington Park launches for sure on floods, but don’t go south of the Bird Rocks line, since the lucrative south Rosario Strait waters are closed. Moochers of whole or plug-cut herring gravitate to conga-line drifts into Rosario Strait from Point Lawrence, while motor moochers and hardware

trollers will work an inshore loop of Kangaroo Bay at the height of the ebb when baitfish collect there. Further to the south on the west end of Obstruction Pass there is a short 12-fathom slot that is renowned for holding kings on the ebb. Many experienced anglers will confide that in their view, more salmon are

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COLUMN reported caught in and around greater President Channel than anywhere else on the north side of the San Juans. And except when fairweather northwesterlies blow, President Channel can be wonderfully hospitable to anglers, a sea of calm when many other reaches with southeasterly fetch get roiled up. From Point Doughty down to Spring Passage on Orcas and Point Disney up the Waldron east shore to the open water around Boundary Buoy in Haro Strait, tidal forces concentrate bait in the lees on either side of the rocky prominences and in the coves, especially on the Orcas shore. Island bluffs extend at the same pitch into the deeps, so trollers can work a greater range of depths for longer distances seeking out clouds of wallhugging bait. Point Disney’s near-vertical bottom helps haze bait schools, allowing a similar close-in troll that’s popular in both fair and foul weather. The well-known Hummer Hole off

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BELLINGHAM DERBY DEETS The 2018 installment of the battle for summer salmon bragging rights on Washington’s northern inland waters organized by the Bellingham Chapter of Puget Sound Anglers is set for July 13-15. This is a limited-entry (maximum 500 tickets sold) contest of angling prowess with two divisions, one for pay-to-play adults with its set of prizes and a separate no-fee derby for kids age 12 and younger with its own set of take-homes. Youth may vie for adult prizes but must have a $70 entry ticket purchased for them by a participating adult. This year’s adult prize purse of five cash prizes includes the top three fish by weight ($7,500, $2,500, $1,000) and two hidden-weight scale-tippers, plus a raft of merchandise and services. The official contest zone is a truncated expanse of Marine Area 7 waters in and around the San Juan Island archipelago from the international boundary south to the inside end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The usual July exclusions – greater Bellingham Bay and the south Rosario Strait area – of course are out. Tickets that remain are on sale up to 5 p.m. Thursday, July 12 at bellinghampsa.com/ wp/tickets, four retail outlets (Holiday Market in Burlington, Yeager’s Sporting Goods and LFS Outdoors and Marine in Bellingham, Dave’s Sports Shop in Lynden) or from derby ticket manager Roy Lentz (call 360-734-2172). Derby entrants are eligible for the Northwest Marine Trade Association’s annual fishing boat package drawing, as well as the lottery for a 2018 six-pack tuna charter. Get more details at bellinghampsa.com/wp/derby. –DH the west side of Sucia Island, a notably rough convergence of ebbing or flooding currents from several different directions,

is another high-yield area for salmon, but considerable focus and adjustment of depth and is not fishable in all tide states.

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COLUMN

A portion of 24-mile-long Ross Lake, home to very nice-sized rainbow and bull trout, unfurls below famed Desolation Peak. (NATIONAL PARK SERVICE)

ROSS LAKE TROUT No longer straining to find enough microscopic fare in their lair on which to live, the wild rainbow and char of Ross Lake are achieving the stature and girth of well-fed top predators. Schools of young redside shiners, which first appeared about 10 years ago in the upper Skagit River impoundment, have replaced clouds of tiny zooplankton as their diet staple and are growing the native salmonids to prodigious sizes. The top-end and median lengths for Ross rainbows are now 25 and 18 inches, while the landlocked bull trout, a normally sea-running strain of native char that are known variously (and, biologists will tell you, incorrectly) as Dolly Varden, are regularly tipping scales at 8 to 9 pounds. More conservative fishing rules incorporated several years back for the rainbow are boosting numbers of their largest ilk, while longer-standing federal and state protection for the native char have helped usher them into prominence on the angling stage. With this fundamental change in the 124 Northwest Sportsman

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piscatorial regime, there’s also been a shift in angling style among trout-seekers. Oldgeneration Ross fishers will still be found pulling tried-and-true combinations of gang trolls (i.e. willow leafs or Cowbells) trailing jittery or fluttery lures such as Bingo Bugs, Dick Nites or Needlefish. However, both new-age fishers as well as long-time practitioners of the science of the fly have elevated the art of presenting their creations to the forefront.

Whether trolled or presented by traditional casting, bucktail streamers and Woolly Buggers as well as rabbit-strip or Egg-sucking Leeches have become the terminal tackle of choice. It doesn’t seem to matter that the pattern imitates the shiners either, as more ambiguous, even gaudy attractors work equally as well. Streamers in blue, green and white livery with a pair of eyes tied on the head are so effective that they’re the most

EARLY CRAB OPTIONS With Thursday-through-Monday crabbing open outside of the San Juan Islands as of June 30, the western shore of Whidbey Island, specifically Admiralty Bay and its boat launch at Keystone, are well within day-trip range of North Sound shellfishers. So are waters of Marine Area 8-1 such as Similk and Cornet Bays, west Ala Spit and Kiket Island. Crabbers may also work rings and star traps in the waters south of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad bridge at the Highway 20 crossing as well, provided they observe the special crabbing hours and rules there. Marine Area 7 South (including all of the San Juan Islands, plus greater Samish and Bellingham Bays) opens July 14 for five days each week (closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays). Close to Bellingham, look inside at Chuckanut Bay, the north side of Samish Bay east of Wildcat Cove and the highly popular 10-fathom line at low slack around Hat Island in Padilla Bay, as well as the shallow Eliza Island-Point Frances shelf. –DH

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numerous pattern in many anglers’ kits. Combined with the transition to flies is the switch by Ross fishers to fly rod and reel combinations for trolling or casting. The most critical element for Ross is the fly line, with nymph-presenter types being the most versatile. Dense fast, full-sink lines (3 to 6 inches per second) or 30-foot fast-sink-tip shooting lines are preferred by experienced anglers. Both can be cast into shore or trolled. The trick for either is synchronizing boat speed with line sink rate or the rapidity of the retrieve to avoid snagging the bottom and its forest of remnant stumps logged before the reservoir filled. The bigger quarry also has forced anglers to beef up tippets, from 4- to 5-pound tapered mono now up to 7-pound fluorocarbon material. Completing the changeover in angling style at Ross is the focus on near-shore environs, where the schools of young shiners take refuge. Anglers have moved away from open-water trolling in the middle of the reservoir to locales where the bottom drops away quickly but the shoreline and submarine topography are irregular. In such habitat the tiny young shiners congregate and move in schools in a valiant effort to avoid silhouetting themselves and becoming a meal. It’s even better, though, with these sites fewer and farther between, to have some sort of floating log or wood debris flotsam acting as cover in the vicinity. Trolling flies on a sinking line is by far the more relaxing pursuit, but anglers ardently adhering to the royal traditions of fly fishing by casting will do equally well at Ross. A snappy, quick retrieve – the kind coho salmon love – is a proven strike-provoking technique with streamer patterns, but a slower ascending or pulsing retrieve that accentuates the action of leech- and marabou-style patterns also works.

GETTING THERE Defended by the rocky heights of the North Cascades, Ross Lake is linked to the outside by just two roads: State Highway 20 on its south end and the unpaved Silver-Skagit Road, an historic British Columbia logging road, on the north. 126 Northwest Sportsman

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For the latter, enter British Columbia at the Sumas or Lynden border crossings, then drive east on the TransCanada Highway (No. 1) to about 2 miles west of the community of Hope. From there it’s 40 miles to the international boundary on Silver Skagit Road and the northern shore of the lake. You’ll need a U.S. passport, Washington enhanced driver’s license or Nexus card (Canada won’t let you in if the U.S. won’t let you come back, and the U.S. requires ID for its citizens to reenter the country). Also be aware of various food, firearms, pet, equipment and other restrictions before you go. For more, see the main Canada Border Services Agency web portal, cbsa-asfc. gc.ca/menu-eng.html. From the U.S. side, there are three jumping-off points along the highway, one by boat and two on foot. If you’re bound for Ross Lake Resort, there’s Diablo Landing (for Seattle City Light’s foot ferry) or Happy Flats for the footpath down to the dam or Ross Landing for the boat excursion to the resort. The third is the East Bank Trail that traces the reservoir’s precipitous east shore north to Lightning Creek. If you bring a personal watercraft (canoe, kayak or inflatable), you must paddle it up Diablo Lake to the upper landing for a truck or trailer haul to Ross. Otherwise, daytrippers and backcountry campers accessing the lake at Happy Flats can rent boats for the day or multiple days. It is best to make reservations since the resort’s fleet is made available first to its own overnight patrons. For more about Ross Lake Resort, go to rosslakeresort.com or call (206) 386-4437. For Ross Lake National Recreation Area backcountry permits, log on to nps.gov/ noca/planyourvisit/permits.htm.

NEXT ISSUE Hot-weather black bear and high-country cougar hunting, backcountry lakes, Strait of Georgia crabbing. NS Editor’s note: Doug Huddle lives in Bellingham, is retired from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and has been writing about hunting and fishing in the Northwest for more than 35 years.

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FISHING

Anglers enjoy a day on the Spokane-area’s Fish Lake, known for its brook and tiger trout. (MIKE WRIGHT)

A Little Respect Here The Spokane area’s Fish Lake is known for its brook and tiger trout angling, but bucket biologists keep tamping down its productivity with illegal releases. By Mike Wright

f bodies of water had human characteristics and feelings, then Fish Lake could be considered the Rodney Dangerfield of Eastern Washington. It simply doesn’t receive the respect it so richly deserves. For many years, the 43-acre lake just outside Cheney was considered one of the premier brook and tiger trout fisheries in all of the Eastside. At one time it was home to the state record tiger, and brookies in the 14- to 16-inch range were quite common. Prolific insect hatches stream from Fish’s lush weed cover. Soon after the ice comes off the lake, clouds of midges begin to appear on the surface, followed closely by

large volumes of callibaetis, mayflies and damsels. This insect cornucopia kept the trout well fed, healthy and full of fight. Go there on an evening and you’d see a plethora of radiating circles created by rising fish. Unfortunately, a bucket biologist introduced a snake into this angler’s paradise, pumpkinseeds. This rapidly reproducing new arrival soon began to have a major effect on the resident trout. Those radiating circles became far less noticeable as the panfish eagerly gobbled up insect larvae before they could reach the surface “When a pie is placed between two friends and they are told to eat their fill, each friend goes away satisfied and happy,” explains state district fisheries biologist Randy Osborne.

“But if the same pie was offered to a crowd at Joe Albee Stadium, there would be a number of unsatisfied appetites among the sports fans. The same analogy can be made for Fish Lake and other fisheries facing the same dilemma: not enough food resources to satisfy the number of fish in the lake.” To combat the problem, a number of brown trout were introduced into the lake. Though they fed heavily on the pumpkinseeds, they simply were unable keep up with the reproductive abilities of these aquatic jackrabbits. Still, the browns grew rapidly and did provide some additional thrills for anglers, so they continue to be stocked from time to time. Then, in 2012 it was determined nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

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FISHING that Fish needed to be rehabilitated. After the poisoning and restocking, the lake began to return to its former glory days. Without the competition for food, the brook and tiger trout grew rapidly, providing excellent fishing for visiting anglers. Unfortunately, the good times would not last. In their inimitable wisdom, a bucket biologist decided that the addition of yellow perch would be an excellent complement to the Fish Lake ecosystem. Like pumpkinseeds, perch are prolific breeders and are rapidly reducing the available food supply. Perch were not the only problem intruder, however. According to Osborne, in 2012 a 44-inch pike was discovered, along with another smaller one, undoubtedly introduced by humans. Pike are predators at the top of the food chain and can decimate a trout fishery, as evidenced by the Pend Oreille River near Newport, so it was fortunate that the pike were killed during the rehabilitation. Another problem that has plagued the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is poaching. A regional park surrounds Fish Lake, with access at its northern end, and it opens a couple of weeks before opening day of fishing season. Although there are signs throughout the park stating this fact, many individuals simply do not read the signs or just don’t care. Whatever the reason might be, this is

Eastern brookies into the 16-inch range are common at Fish. They can be targeted with a range of wet and dry patterns, as well as bait and hardware offerings. (MIKE WRIGHT)

yet another example of the disrespect for the lake. An arsonist who set a series of ﬁres in wooded areas along Fish’s shores is still one more. has its problems, it is still a very good lake for anglers to try their luck at. Each year WDFW stocks 12,500 brook trout fry in May or June, which will grow to become catchables by opening day of the following year. In addition, around 10,000 tiger trout are planted in the fall, after the ﬁshing season has ended. To this mixture,

ALTHOUGH FISH CERTAINLY

1,000 to 1,500 broodstock brookies are also released. Since much of the lakefront across from the state park is private, by necessity the bulk of ﬁshing requires a boat, ﬂoat tube, pontoon boat or kayak. There is a shallow mound area toward the middle of the lake which has proven to be a very good spot for both brook and tiger trout. Lilies and reeds surround the edges of the lake directly across from the state park, and it is an excellent spot to cast intermediate or sink-tip line to the edges of the pads and use a

FISH FILE: TIGER TROUT Tiger trout are a sterile hybrid produced by mixing milt from a German brown and eggs from an eastern brook trout. First released into Washington lakes in 2000, they’re described as “highly piscivorous” and are meant to help control populations of less desirable fish species as they reach about 15 inches in length. WDFW was the first Northwest fisheries agency to stock tigers, and have since been followed by ODFW and IDFG. While they can’t be retained in Oregon, and thus there’s no state record, Idaho’s is a 2.65-pounder caught in June 2017, while Washington’s is an 18.48 landed in May 2015. Tigers have been stocked in more than 30 Evergreen State lakes, nearly all on the Eastside. Notable waters containing the hybrids include Roses in Chelan, Dry Falls, Dusty and Warden in Grant, Alta, Bonaparte, 130 Northwest Sportsman

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Tiger trout can be differentiated from their brown and brook trout parents by sinuous markings on their sides that almost look like bug burrows through old wood. (MIKE WRIGHT) Patterson and Spectacle in Okanogan, Sacheen in Pend Oreille, Clear, Downs, Fish, West Medical and Williams in Spokane, Loon in Stevens and Squalicum in Whatcom Counties. –NWS

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FISHING

Fish Lake sits alongside a regional park and has an area to launch hand-carried boats and other watercraft. There’s also a ﬁshing dock below where a portion of the Columbia Plateau Trail State Park cuts alongside the lake. (MIKE WRIGHT)

moderately fast retrieve. This would also be an effective strategy for lure anglers too. Most bait ﬁshing is done on the state park side using worms, PowerBait or corn. Damsel patterns, Pheasant Tails,

Hare’s Ears, Prince Nymphs, soft hackles, leeches in brown, black or olive, Crystal Buggers, Copper Johns and the venerable chironomid in black or red are all effective. For dries, a Parachute Adams, Purple Haze,

Griffith’s Gnat or Renegade during the callibaetis and midge hatches will catch fish, especially in the evenings. As temps increase, a deeper section running from the boat launch to the cliff area is a favorite of trout seeking cooler water. This is an area where heavier or weighted flies do best.

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and is reported as good fishing as things cool down that month. It’s rated excellent from the April opener through May, good in June and fair in July and August. Two-pole fishing is allowed with the endorsement, while internal combustion engines are prohibited. WDFW would like to rehabilitate the lake again, but with limited funding, it will have to wait another couple years. According to Osborne, the illegal planting of goldfish in West Medical Lake will be the first priority and smaller, less well-known lakes will need to wait their turn. Even though Fish is producing fairly well, it would be very gratifying to see it return the prepumpkinseed days. It would also be gratifying if the bucket biologists would find a new hobby so the lake could shed its Rodney Dangerfield moniker and become the well-respected, prime fishery it once was. NS

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The Seven Magnums Of Wisdom L

et’s get this straight about m a g n u m powered .30-caliber bullets: In the right gun, in the right hands, they are proven game ON TARGET By Dave Workman killers from Alaska to Africa and all points in between. The .300 Magnum is one hellacious long-range cartridge. Oops, correction: The “.300 Magnum” is a bunch of different cartridges – seven in all – that share the basic “magnum” designation, but they are all different from one another. For hunters looking to purchase a new rifle, this identity crisis can be a headache. Right now, in midsummer – months ahead of modern firearm season openers – if you are considering the purchase of a new rifle in .300 Magnum, you need to do a little homework.

STARTING WITH THE .300 Ruger Compact Magnum, a short little devil also known as the .300 RCM introduced about 10 years ago, they’re all true performers. According to Nosler Reloading Guide No. 8, the .300 RCM has the muscle to scoot a 165-grain bullet out of the muzzle at more than 2,900 feet per second, depending on the powder charge. It was preceded by: * The .300 Remington Short Action Ultra Magnum (SAUM) that is capable of launching a 165-grain bullet at more than 3,000 fps, depending upon the propellant and the charge; * The .300 H&H Magnum, with a case length of 2.850 inches, has been around for nearly 100 years (it was introduced in 1925 as the “Super Thirty,” according to Wikipedia’s history of the round) and

Several companies still offer the .300 H&H Magnum, including Nosler in its Trophy Grade ammunition line, featuring the AccuBond bullet. (NOSLER) is also capable of plus-3,000 fps muzzle velocities with a 165-grainer, but is no slouch with heavier bullets; * The .300 Winchester Short Magnum (.300 WSM), with its more tolerable recoil that belies its ability to push 165-grain bullets out of the muzzle at better than 3,100 fps using the right propellant, according to Nosler No. 8. It’s possibly the most prominent of the “short-fat magnums” that came along in that craze that began nearly 20 years ago; * The .300 Winchester Magnum,

perhaps the most popular of the lot with a 2.620-inch case length. It arrived in 1963 and has emerged as a champ among long-range deer and elk hunters. With a bullet in the 165/168-grain category – depending upon the powder charge and propellant choice, this baby can produce muzzle velocities of more than 3,200 fps, though one might extend barrel life by shooting slightly milder loads; * The .300 Weatherby Magnum, with a case length of 2.825 inches. Introduced in mid-1940s, this round can roar with the

For the sake of confusion, at left are more .300 magnum choices: (top to bottom) the .300 Remington Short Action Ultra Mag, the .300 Winchester Magnum and the .300 Remington Ultra Mag. (Yes, this is not cheap ammunition.) The image at right illustrates the difference in cartridge shapes; from left, the .300 Remington Ultra Mag, .300 Winchester Magnum and .300 Remington S.A. Ultra Mag. (DAVE WORKMAN) nwsportsmanmag.com | JULY 2018

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best of ’em, with impressive downrange ballistics using Spitzer-type bullets, and; * The .300 Remington Ultra Magnum (aka .300 Ultra Mag or .300 RUM), which can be loaded to produce a muzzle velocity of more than 3,400 fps using a 165-grain pill and the right propellant, according to Nosler No. 8.

BY NOW YOU’LL have noticed that I talk about 165-grain bullets when much heavier projectiles are available. Against deer, a 165-grain bullet is capable of massive tissue damage at long range when it comes out of a magnum. For elk, I suggest the 180-grainers for deeper penetration, and I know some guys who like even heavier bullets. There is no hard, fast rule. Use the bullet weight that you like best. One finds a pantry full of bullet choices from Nosler, Hornady, Speer, Sierra, Barnes and others with available weights ranging from 125 grains up to 220 grains.

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bullet weight available. That said, any or all of the .300 magnums will be plenty of gun for deer or elk. And if one lives in moose country, where there might be grizzly/brown bears around, you’ve got a rifle that will bring down a large bull and also put the hurt on a bruin, using bullets in the 200- to 220-grain category. All of these rounds are also adequate for sheep, mountain goats, caribou and black bears. For long-range big game hunting, my recommendation is for the boattail bullet, no matter who makes it. This bullet design typically offers the highest ballistic coefficient; that is, the ability to go through the air with the least amount of drag, which improves trajectory. As explained in Speer Reloading Manual No. 14, “The higher the BC, the easier the bullet slips through air, resulting in higher retained velocity and less drop.” You needn’t be an advanced math major to sort it all out; you just need to know how to shoot. However, there’s quite a bit more to it. You need to do a little research on trajectory. Say you launch a 180-grain projectile at 3,000 fps muzzle velocity. It’s got a ballistic coefficient of 0.50. If you’re zeroed at 100 yards, that bullet will drop 2.9 inches at 200 yards, and 10.9 inches at 300 yards, according to Speer’s longrange tables. If you launch a 180-grain bullet with a ballistic coefficient of 0.30, and you’re

zeroed at 100 yards, that bullet – again according to Speer’s tables – will drop 3.4 inches at 200 yards and 12.8 inches at 300 yards. So, if you know that you will be taking shots of at least 300 yards, you will want to go high at 100, from 3½ to perhaps 4½ inches, depending upon the bullet and the muzzle velocity. Good loading manuals have ballistic tables in the rear of the book, and I think those found in the Speer manuals are the user-friendliest, though I’m sure to get a lot of disagreement.

MANY PEOPLE THINK the .300 Win. Magnum is perfect for North American big game. For Eastern Washington, Central and Eastern Oregon, and Southwest and Southeast Idaho – where one often hunts very wide-open spaces or pretty open timber country – the .300 Magnum in any of its identities is a winner. There are tamer calibers around. The .270 Winchester comes to mind, though I think the late Jack O’Connor might have overhyped it a bit. There’s the .30-06, which I suggested in this space a year ago might be the best all-around North American hunting caliber, and then, again, maybe not. It has a recoil issue, and if you think the ’06 has a punch, the .300 Magnum in any flavor is going to rock your world. And there’s the .308 Winchester, with which I conked one of the biggest bucks I’ve ever shot at just over 200 yards with a 165-grain Nosler Ballistic Tip. There is an abundance of good propellants that work in the .300 Magnum family. One needs only to snoop through a current reloading manual to find many choices and load your ammunition to meet the needs you anticipate in the field. A good recoil pad (we talked about them in the last installment) is going to help considerably, but just remember, they don’t call these .300s “magnums” for laughs. You’re going to know when they go off! If you go for the .300 Magnum of one name or another, you’ve got a cartridge that will deliver. Combined with the right scope and rifle, it will definitely meet the

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SIG SAUER ANNOUNCES RELOADING COMPONENTS

And then there’s the .300 Weatherby Magnum, which is among the rounds loaded by Hornady in its Precision Hunter series. (HORNADY) standard set by the late Robert Ruark: “Use enough gun.”

BY NOW, OR at least very soon, we’ll know if the latest anti-rights gun control initiative has qualified for the Washington ballot. A measure in Oregon to outright ban so-called “assault weapons” is also looming for Beaver State gun owners. Let’s be honest. The people behind these political efforts aren’t interested in public safety. Their goal is to ban an entire

Sig Sauer, Inc. recently announced a new line of reloading components for rifle and handgun cartridge reloaders. These components are produced at the company’s manufacturing facility in Jacksonville, Arkansas. Dubbed the Elite Performance line, they are delivered primed or unprimed for pistol calibers or unprimed in rifle calibers. They come out of the package sparkling clean and ready for the press. For rifle shooters, Sig Sauer is offering 50-count packages in the following calibers: .223 Rem., .22-250 Rem., .243 Win., .300 Blackout, .300 Win. Magnum, .308 Win., and 6.5 Creedmoor. Sig also revealed that there will also be class of firearms. The Washington measure takes the incremental approach by first banning anyone under age 21 from buying one. Later on, if history is any indicator, anti-

Sig Sauer is now offering components for handloaders. (SIG SAUER) brass for the .270 Win. and .30-06 soon. For handgunners, brass is initially offered in 100-count packages in .380 ACP, 9mm, .357 SIG, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .40 S&W, 10mm and .45 ACP. Find out more at sigsauer.com/ ammunition. –DW gunners will come back for a full ban. The Oregon crowd is at least more up front. They want to ban the guns now, and one can anticipate plenty of inflammatory rhetoric about “killing machines” between now and November. Don’t sit this one out. If you’re not registered to vote at your present address, get with it. Don’t procrastinate. Don’t tell someone else to “keep up the good work” while you sit around a campfire somewhere and allow others to cast your vote.

SPEAKING OF CAMPFIRES, summer allows time for vacation camping trips, and they ought to be combined with some early preseason scouting. Drive the gravel roads early or late in the day and watch for grouse hens with their broods along the road shoulders. Keep an eye peeled for deer and elk, and don’t spook them. The less disturbed they are now, the better. July and August are dry months in the West typically, and September can be pretty bad too, so just use these early scouts for reference. But seeing game animals now gives at least a hint of what might be waiting in the fall. Take a map, mark your sightings, and if you’ve got a good trail camera, start collecting images. NS 140 Northwest Sportsman

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COLUMN

Proper Paw Care W

hen I first star ted training my versatile gun dog, I had a lot to learn. I relied on many knowledgeable people for guidance, GUN DOGGIN’ 101 and still do. One piece By Scott Haugen of wisdom I picked up early on was “take care of your dog’s feet.” Being a former athlete and now a fulltime outdoorsman, I know the importance of healthy feet. If your feet aren’t healthy and in good shape, you can’t perform. I recently asked over a dozen experienced upland bird hunters what they do to take care of their dogs’ feet when chasing chukar, pheasant and grouse in rugged, rocky terrain. With midsummer training sessions in full swing, now’s the time to get your dog in shape, and its feet ready to handle upcoming hunts.

FOOT PREP Every person I talked with agreed the number one goal is to have your dog’s feet in shape prior to the hunt. Keep the toenails short and get the pads rough. Jess Spradley of Cabin Creek Gun Dogs (cabincreekgundogs.com) in Lakeview, Oregon, likes training his dogs on gravel. If your dog doesn’t like gravel, start with brief conditioning sessions where they’re either running along with you or next to you as you ride a bike. As their feet toughen, transition to bumper training on gravel, where intense bursts of speed will quickly harden pads. Starting on concrete is also an option, and this will toughen a dog’s feet and wear down their toenails. But just be sure and do it early or late in the day this time of year, when the surface is not hot from the sun. If opting for dog boots, get them ahead of time and practice wearing them. Let your dog walk around, getting used to the feel, then incorporate them into training sessions.

Training on concrete or, better yet, gravel will get your dog’s pads in shape and keep their toenails short. (SCOTT HAUGEN)

HOMEMADE BOOT Only one of the 12 hunters I spoke with uses dog boots. Reasoning varied from being tired of having the boots thrown off and lost during a hunt, to not wanting to limit the dog’s dexterity when walking on sharp rocks, logs and small surfaces. One hunter pointed out that his dog does well wearing boots while chukar hunting, but that he does not like the opentoed boots, as dirt and rocks can get in. The same is true if the tops don’t fit snug.

Howard Meyer, a well-known Corvallis breeder who has been training dogs for over 40 years (chippewa-gsp.com), conditions his dogs’ feet on gravel year-round, but if they do split a nail or pad on a hunt, he makes a customized boot in the field. Using a self-adhering bandage, Meyer covers the wound in ointment then wraps it over the toes and up the leg of the dog’s injured foot, lengthwise. He then wraps five or six layers of duct tape around the bandage, to within an inch of the top, then

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COLUMN

When on the hunt in rough, dry terrain, regularly monitor your dog’s feet for grass seeds and splits in the pads and toenails. Catching them early is key to keeping your dog hunting. (SCOTT HAUGEN)

folds the bandage over the top of the duct tape. The duct tape never touches the fur and creates a customized boot with good dexterity, and it’s cheap. When removing it, cut down the back of the leg, from the top, until it slips off. This allows it to be used the following day.

AFTER THE HUNT

Creating your own dog boot is inexpensive and you’re assured of a custom ﬁt that optimizes dexterity. (SCOTT HAUGEN)

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After each day’s hunt – and even throughout the day – inspect your dog’s feet. Take the time to pick out grass seeds that might travel between the toes and lead to open wounds and infection. And look for split toenails and pads. The earlier you can remove potentially problematic seeds and catch minor injuries, the greater the chances of keeping your dog hunting. A vet I spoke with has several hunters who use Pad Tough, a protective coating that can be applied to a dog’s pads. He warned not to solely rely on this, reiterating there’s no substitute for tough pads. This means now is the time to be working with your dog, toughening up those feet. Should your dog receive cuts while in training or on the hunt, apply ointment to help the healing process. My vet suggests using a systemic antibiotic for a week, so infection doesn’t enter through the wounds.

GET TO WORK NOW! Over the course of the next two months is the time to get your dog’s feet in shape and ready for hunting season. If boots are the way you want to go, start getting your dog used to them now. If making a customized boot for your dog sounds like the right choice, practice that. Combining bumper training and searching drills with your dog on gravel and in rocky terrain is a great way to get their feet in shape this time of year. Take care not to overheat your dog, making sure to have water or train near water so they can drink and get cooled off. Now is the time to start getting your dog ready, as hunting season will soon be here. NS Editor’s note: Scott Haugen is host of The Hunt on Netflix. To watch some of his basic puppy training videos, visit scotthaugen. com. Follow Scott on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

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Berrying Ties Finding Own Outdoors Food Together I don’t really have four seasons in my life. Instead, I have duck, turkey, mushroom, fishing, CHEF IN THE WILD berry and big By Randy King game seasons. The Northwest’s abundance is very rare. It is one of the only places in the world rich enough in forageable food to support a sedentary society. Think about that – tribes here didn’t need agriculture to be self-supporting, nor did they need to move with the herds. They could forage, hunt and fish all that they needed from a single location. I like to think of myself as a total outdoorsman, a woodsman even, and want to live as much as I can like the tribes around me. I’ve learned about the trees, I know what the bugs are, the edible plants. But a huge part was missing – the berry front. I ignored them for years, except to snack on them along the trail. This year, however, I’ve made it a goal to search out all the berries I can and enjoy them. I am going to have jams, jellies, pies, pemmican and booze from the berries I find. Plus, they’re just a great excuse to be outside. Below is a rough guide to berries in the Northwest. Some are native, some are definitely not, but they all offer unique opportunities for the forager.

Whether you’re foraging in Idaho mountain meadows or underneath busy Portland city bridges – author Randy King’s done both – berries and other native and nonnative fruit can be made into jams, jellies, pies, pemmican and, as this issue’s recipe shows, delicious syrup. (RANDY KING)

MULBERRY “Round and round the mulberry tree” goes the nursery rhyme. But these little purple berries can be a great early spring addition to salads. That and you don’t have to go very far to find them. Mulberry trees are often suburban decorations. I have yet to see another person gathering mulberries off the tree in my neighborhood. Free food that is sweet and great in pies? Sign me up.

STRAWBERRIES If you ever find a patch of strawberries that has fruit on them in the spring, just sit down and enjoy. If you can make a haul of the patch, prepare for the best strawberry jam of your life. These are not the flavorless berries at the store. They are packed full of flavor.

BLACKBERRIES Everywhere.

Covering

everything.

Often ignored. When I lived in Portland as a younger man, I picked a bucket of them at Cathedral Park, under the St. Johns Bridge, and was so proud. I made a pie and fed it to my girlfriend. She had seriously never eaten a blackberry and the patch was right by her house. Avoid freeway berries due to toxins, but these berries are free and great.

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WAFFLES A HUNTER-GATHERER WILL LOVE The forager and the hunter are two sides of the same coin. Combining the foraged and the hunted is the oldest culinary combination in history. For this recipe I am using a wild turkey my son shot in North Idaho, blackberries foraged from a local creek and elderberries from my busted huckleberry location. Basically, this recipe combines three events in my life, making it all the more delicious.

Fried Wild Turkey 1 cup flour 1 tablespoon sesame seeds 1 teaspoon red chili flakes 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper ¼ cup milk 1 pound wild turkey breast, sliced ¼ inch thick Heat deep fryer to 350 degrees or a skillet with 1 inch of oil until hot (pro tip: you are ready to fry in a skillet when a wooden spoon bubbles when you stick it into the oil). Mix the flour, sesame seeds, red chili flakes, salt and pepper in a mediumsized mixing bowl. Place sliced turkey in milk. Then roll the wet turkey in the flour mix until well covered. Place slices on a flat surface that is lightly dusted with flour. When you are done breading all the slices fry about half of them at a time until GB&D – golden brown and delicious. (They should be 165 degrees on the inside.)

Banana Coconut Wafﬂe 1 banana ½ cup shredded coconut 1 cup whole wheat waffle mix 1⁄3 cup canola oil 1 cup water Pan spray Preheat the waffle iron you prefer using. Place banana, coconut, waffle mix, canola oil and water in a blender. Puree until smooth. Spray the waffle iron with oil. Add the waffle mix and cook for four to 148 Northwest Sportsman

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Fried wild turkey with whole wheat, banana and coconut wafﬂe and elderberry and blackberry syrup. (RANDY KING) five minutes. (Note: This is not a light and fluffy waffle recipe – this is a dense waffle with some awesome flavor.)

the mix has broken down the blackberries and the syrup is a dark purple. This is a great recipe for canning. Follow canning instructions per manufacturing directions.

Elderberry and Blackberry Syrup 1 cup sugar 1 tablespoon lemon juice ½ cup water 3 cups elderberries 1 cup blackberries Bring sugar, lemon juice and water to a boil. Add the elderberries and blackberries to the mix. Simmer for 10 minutes until

Bringing It All Together Time the waffles and the chicken to get done about the same time. Instead of butter I use peanut butter on the waffles. Stack two waffles and garnish them with ¼ cup elderberry/blackberry syrup. Stack the fried turkey on top and enjoy! For more wild game recipes, see chefrandyking.com. –RK

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COLUMN HUCKLEBERRIES If you know a good spot, keep it to yourself. These little purple gold nuggets are the berrying equivalent of a morel mushroom spot. Indeed, the first rule of huckleberries is to not talk about them. It’s also the second, third, fourth ...

SALAL BERRIES Edible and plentiful in western portions of Oregon and Washington, the fruit of salal bushes is also overlooked. I found a bunch in the parking lot of a hugely popular animal viewing location on the Oregon Coast. Initially, I thought that they were blueberries and ate a bunch of them. And that brings up a great point: Know what you are eating. Just as with mushrooms, look to foraging websites and materials from reputable online sources for proper berry identification.

From Down Under show. Eat them as you find them, or gather what you can and eat raw and quick. Cooking salmonberries can ruin the texture and does not do much for the flavor.

CURRANTS Probably the most overlooked on the list is the wild currant. They come in red, orange and purple colors. They can be the size of marbles or the size of BBs, depending on the subspecies. They have the most unique possibilities of all the wild berries. Try making currant and apricot jam with jalapeńos, then smother that on chicken and grill.

CHERRIES I have lucked out and found a few wild cherries over the years. They are often at old homestead sites and produce fruit later than the normal cherries found “in town.”

SALMONBERRIES

ELDERBERRIES

While these look like raspberries, they are as fragile as the male ego at a Thunder

The only thing I can think of when I hear the word elderberries is Monty Python and the

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Holy Grail, when the French castle guards taunt the English crusaders by yelling “… and your mother smells of elderberries!” Only when I was an adult did I learn what an elderberry even was. Now that I do, I understand that eating them raw is bad and the stems can be toxic, but you can harvest them by the trash bag full! Some buddies wait until a good freeze to do so, while I pick them when they are dark purple. (Brush off the white coating on them and check the color.) Then I’ll freeze them for jelly or pancake syrup.

SASKATOONS These berries are not just a Canadian city. They are often a windfall for the local game population, and in good years you can fill a bucket with these berries in no time at all. The berries are slightly grainy – think overripe blueberry – but make the best pemmican ever. They are naturally a little dry, so dehydrating them is perfect. What these berries lack in flavor they make up for in quantity. NS

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