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Sportsman Northwest

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Volume 7 • ISSUE 8 PUBLISHER

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Woodinville, Wash., whiskey co-kingpin Brett Carlile shows off a Winter Harbour, BC, Chinook, caught last summer.“A long haul, but well worth it for the unbelievable fishing and scenery,” he reports. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

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CONTENTS

VOLUME 4 • ISSUE 6

VOLUME 7 • ISSUE 6

PORT OF CALL

Ocean fishing season 2014 is set to be a record beaker from Brookings to Port Hardy, BC, and if you haven’t made plans yet to fish the Pacific or its estuaries, time’s a wasting! Our Jeff Holmes runs down the best fishing harbors on the Northwest Coast. (ANDY WALGAMOT)

DEPARTMENTS 13 16

The Editor’s Note: Sound steelhead The Big Pic: Washington’s first wildlife area turns 75 19 People: Frank Moore, WWII vet, Oregon fish activist; Billy Frank Jr., one-time thorn in state’s side, longtime spokesman for salmon, dies 27 Dishonor Roll: Okanogan buck beheader sentenced 30 Reader photos from the field 32 Wright & McGill/Eagle Claw Photo Contest winner 32 Browning Photo Contest Grand Prize winner 34 Outdoor Calender 121 Rig of the Month: Bead fishing setup for summer steelhead 127 Jig of the Month: Summer’s End

111 Icicle, Wenatchee spring Chinook 117 Wynoochee River steelhead 137 3 Kokanee camping getaways: Lake Billy Chinook – MAP! – Wickiup Reservoir, Lake Merwin 149 Selkirk Mountains trout

COLUMNS 55

FEATURES 37 43 61

San Juans smallmouth – BC style Lake Washington bass 70 top freshwater fisheries in Oregon 91 Ocean Chinook, coho 101 Lower Columbia summer kings 105 Tri-Cities sockeye

CENTRAL OREGON The John Day dazzles, Scott rediscovers on a recent float down the bassy river. WIESTSIDER Terry makes it even easier to get out on Washington’s Free Fishing Weekend with an A-Z guide of good fisheries. CHEF IN THE WILD Do not pity poor Randy, for even if his cooler is not brimming back in Boise with surf perch from his coastal raid, you know our chef in the wild will find something good to cook up – in this case, bait. THE KAYAK GUYS Mark’s checked the swells, the weather, and is heading out for halibut! Read how he does it from a Tupperware boat.

BUZZ RAMSEY It’s summers’ time to shine – Buzz has tips and tricks for tackling steelhead and Chinook in the Columbia.

129 NORTH SOUND Salmon – both seagoing and landlocked – highlight June’s fishing opportunities in the North Sound, Doug details. 145 BASIN BEACON Kokanee fishing’s on the upswing in Okanogan County, and not at the lake you first think of. Leroy MAPS two rising stars! 157 INLAND NORTHWEST There are times for chest waders and times for hip waders in North Idaho – June’s runoff means the latter for trout anglers. 159 STUMPTOWN Terry’s got the itch, and it ain’t a skeeter bite – well, not yet! He takes us up the trail for trout. 169 ON TARGET Dave celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Ruger 10/22, “quite possibly the most successful semi-auto rimfire ever made.”

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 mailing offices. (USPS 025-251) POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Northwest Sportsman, PO Box 24365, Seattle, WA 98124. 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 are available at Media Index Publishing Group offices at the cost of $5 plus tax. 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 © 2014 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. 10 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

12 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

THEEDITOR’SNOTE

t will go down as a parting thumb in the eye of the Wild Fish Conservancy. Indeed, mid-May’s surreptitious release of 25,000 hatchery steelhead into the Snoqualmie drew thumbs-up and chuckles. The downvalley group sued WDFW over those and other early-returning winter smolts being reared in Pugetropolis, and in an out-of-court settlement signed in late April, 80 percent of the steelhead set to be released this spring were to go into waters like Sprague Lake instead. Only the Skykomish River was to be stocked. Then somebody had a different idea. Steelhead, they may have thought, are meant for rivers, not to swim with catfish and coots. I’ll admit that after hearing the news of the break-in at Tokul Creek Hatchery, a certain song zipped to the top of my inner playlist –“Just’a good ol’ boys, never meaning no harm ...” But that is not to condone whatsoever what was in fact burglary, vandalism and bucket biology. Breaking the law is no way to keep or garner support for a cause, and we’ve got real claim to the white hat with this one. However, the act was also symbolic of the anger the settlement and WFC’s misguided lawsuit has stirred. In fact, it’s surprising that tampering didn’t happen elsewhere too. Someone I called thought the incident might have actually occurred on the North Fork Nooksack, where local anglers have for 30plus years funded the rearing of up to 50,000 smolts. That’s quite an investment in fish and fishery. That’s Doing Something instead of filing lawsuits and claiming you’re being harmed by the mere presence of hatchery fish in a river – as if they’re girl germs or something. You want real, measurable harm? Talk to the guides and towns of the upper Skagit River, which won’t be stocked for 12 damn years. But maybe it isn’t surprising the incident occurred at Tokul. In 2008, before WDFW scrapped a plan to make the Snoqualmie the state’s first wild steelhead gene bank, Ken McLeod Jr., whose family name is among the most hallowed in Westside steelheading, bristled: “That hatchery has always been a sportsman’s hatchery.” Turns out, this wasn’t the first act of apparent civil disobedience that’s occurred at a Washington fish hatchery. In spring 1989, 20,000 Toutle smolts perished when someone drained their pond’s water but left the screen in. Who would do such a thing? Beats me, but earlier this year, the North Toutle and a tributary became the state’s second steelhead gene bank, after the Sol Duc, where a guide-run broodstock program was ended. We are right to be angry about the situation with Puget Sound hatchery steelhead: angry at WDFW leadership for failing to have the needed federal permits to run the program; at National Marine Fisheries Service brass for failing to process what WDFW had sent for review; and mostly at the Wild Fish Conservancy for their ridiculous, low-hanging-fruit lawsuit, filed in the face of major changes to hatchery and fishing operations by WDFW to protect native runs. What are their true motives anyway? State Sen. Kirk Pearson of the North Sound thinks it’s the elimination of all hatcheries. WDFW immediately hired private security to make sure no more smolts were set free at other facilities. They probably didn’t need to. The point’s been made. You reap what you sow. –Andy Walgamott

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JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 13

14 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

BIG PICTURE

A PR Success Story Seventy-five years ago, revenues from a new tax on hunting gear helped Washington buy its first wildlife area and launch a conservation drive that benefits critters, sportsmen, and locals.

THE

Skies begin to clear over Forde Lake and the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area, born in the dark years of the Great Depression as Washingtonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first wildlife area purchased with funding from the PittmanRobertson Act. This month marks the acquisitionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 75th anniversary. (JUSTIN HAUG, WDFW) 16 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

MIXED BAG

By Andy Walgamott

NIGHTHAWK, Wash.–You can thank a giant blob of magma, the sculptural skills of Canadian ice, a tax on hunters, and wildlife managers who took the long view for helping to create one of the most beautiful game preserves in the Northwest. And this month, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife will celebrate the 75th anniversary of its purchase of the building blocks of that landscape, the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area. These were the first lands the state bought back in 1939 with funds from a brand-new stream of revenue, the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, an excise tax on hunting rifles and ammunition also known as Pittman-Robertson. The next year, WDFW’s forerunner used the money to buy the first parts of the Oak Creek Wildlife Area, now key habitat for wintering elk west of Yakima, and through 2011, the act has poured $145.5 million back to Washington to conserve wildlife habitat, among other uses. “The Sinlahekin was the first of our 33 wildlife areas across the state,” said WDFW director Phil Anderson. “Each area conserves lands that are critically important for sustaining wildlife and ensuring sustainable recreational opportunities for Washington residents. The Pittman-Robertson law enables hunters to make major contributions to these efforts.” The fund, created in 1937 and named for sponsors Senator Key Pittman of Nevada and Representative Absolom Robertson of Virginia, has also disbursed $169.2 million to Oregon and $134.3 million to Idaho. While revenue sources for wildlife work have broadened, WFDW has yet to signal it’s slowing down on its acquisition of wildlife habitat from willing sellers, especially in key areas such as Central and Southeast Washington. THE SINLAHEKIN NOW totals 14,134 acres, and in case you’re unfamiliar with it, the lake-speckled, balsamroot-dazzled, ponderosa-scented wildlife area is tucked along 15 miles of narrow Sinlahekin Creek, one of only a handful of streams in the state that run north. Indeed, this valley has an almost implausible creation story too. To the west rise the Cascades, and on its other side are the remnants of eastern parts of Okanogan County. As the story goes, a few years back now, a vast plug of magma bubbled towards the surface, softening and buckling the earth east of what would be the towns of Tonasket, Omak and Okanogan. The overlying land slowly sloughed off to the west and formed the mountains and hills between today’s Okanogan River and the Sinlahekin Valley. During the Ice Ages, a glacier smoothed the valley into its present U shape, as if it were some hanging vale in the Alps instead of the incredibly rich dryland refuge that it is. Whereas the Okanogan Valley slowly filled with ranches, then orchards and now getaway homes, the Sinlahekin was only lightly settled – at least by humans. According to WDFW, not only does the wildlife area host mule deer, for which it was first bought, but a ridiculous variety of critters, including bighorns, moose, cougars, bears and 55 other mammal species; grouse, turkey, ducks, geese, swans and 210 other bird species; rainbow trout and more than 25 other fish species; over 500 types of plants; 20 kinds of reptiles and amphibians; and more than 90 different butterfly species. “Conservation and recreation stimulate economic activity in local communities across the state,” says Nate Pamplin, WDFW’s assistant director. “People who hunt, fish and watch wildlife in Washington not only have great experiences, but they also contribute significantly to the state’s economy.” To highlight the Sinlahekin’s importance, WDFW is holding a series of events that begins on Free Fishing Weekend and ends on National Hunting and Fishing Day and National Public Lands Day, Sept. 27. On June 7 there will be a barbecue lunch sponsored by the Mule Deer Foundation, dedication of a trail named after Dave Brittell, a wildlife manager who recently passed away, and fishing clinics at local lakes. In the weeks and months afterwards, experts will discuss the region’s wildlife, history and geology. For more, see “Wildlife Areas” at wdfw.wa.gov. NS JUNE 2014

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MIXED BAG

A Life Worth Celebrating Seventy years ago this month, Oregon steelheader Frank Moore hit the beaches of Normandy, and he hasn’t stopped fighting since. By Terry Otto t’s been a storied life for 91-year-old Frank Moore. His accomplishments include helping to free France from the Nazis, starting the historic Steamboat Inn on the North Umpqua, entrance into the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame, and protecting his beloved Umpqua River and its incredible summer steelhead from the ravages of logging. In 2013 he won the prestigious Gene Leo Award presented by Oregon’s Tourism Commission. And yet, what stands out in his mind as the biggest accomplishment of all? “Marrying my wife,” he says of his spouse of 71 years, Jeanne. It is a mark of many fighters that they are lovers too, and that is certainly true about Moore. He has been fighting all his life for the things he believes in, but spend just a short time with him and you realize that that spirit springs from great compassion, not from anger. Moore married his sweetheart shortly before leaving to fight his way across France and Germany with Allied forces. They are still together today.

MOORE IS ONE of the last living souls who took part in the great sacrifice of his time, “the war to end all wars,” as it was called then, and he is grateful for the experience, if not the scars. “Sometimes you have to fight for what you believe in,” says Moore of his battle ex-

Frank Moore proudly wears his Army uniform. After landing in Normandy in 1944, Moore, an Oregonian, recalls seeing a large salmon in a French river, and last spring, he went back to the stream and fished it as part of the film Mending the Line. This month marks the 70th anniversary of D-Day. (FRANK MOORE) JUNE 2014

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MIXED BAG periences. “I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, but it made me more of a leader than I would have been otherwise.” As his unit, an anti-aircraft battery, made its way off the D-Day beaches through Normandy, he was struck by the many fine fishing streams he saw. While crossing a bridge in Pontaubault, he spotted a huge salmon swimming in the Selune River below. Through the many decades that followed, he dreamed of returning to fish those waters. And last spring, 69 years later, Moore stood on that same bridge, but with a fly rod in his hand instead of a rifle. His extraordinary trip back was the result of a year-long effort to fulfill his dream of returning to fish those streams. His incredible journey is the story behind the documentary Mending the Line which was released this spring by Uncage the Soul Productions. The Portland videography company helped raise the money through crowdfunding and accompanied the veteran, recording the historic trip. Steve Engman and John Waller of Uncage the Soul traveled with Moore to Normandy. Like many other people, Engman was inspired by his story enough to take a hand in making it a reality. “Words can’t describe it,” Engman says of the trip. “To be there as he fulfilled his dream.” He says the French treated Moore with love and respect. “It was great to see the appreciation and the understanding of the people.” Moore says he too was touched by the overwhelming gratitude from locals. “They do a good job of teaching their children history and culture,” he says, adding that the scars of the war can still be seen in the countryside. “They are surrounded by the reality of it. There are reminders of history around them every day.” Moore was honored at a memorial service at Utah Beach while in Normandy. He was treated like the hero he is, although he doesn’t like that term. “We didn’t feel like heroes, we just had to do it,” he says. Horrific sights met the young man, 20 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

Billy Frank Jr., who along with former U.S. Congressman Norm Dicks (right) was one of the foremost advocates for fish and fishing in Western Washington in recent years, unexpectedly passed away May 5. (PUGET SOUND PARTNERSHIP)

STRONG VOICE FOR SALMON DIES They came from very different backgrounds and represented interests that often fought, but when Billy Frank Jr. died early last month, Phil Anderson put everything in his office on hold that morning to pen and post a statement. Anderson, the director of the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife – an agency that once sent the wardens after the man they considered a fish poacher – termed the longtime chairman of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission “one of the greatest men I have ever known,” and a leader whose presence “changed the atmosphere in the room.” In fact, Frank Jr., a Nisqually elder who was 83, changed the atmosphere of the entire western half of the state. State and tribal salmon and steelhead fishermen often clashed during the Fish Wars – Frank Jr. himself was arrested dozens of times – but after 1974’s treatyaffirming Boldt Decision came out and led to the creation of NWIFC, it forced the sides to co-manage the stocks. There are still disagreements – scheduling fisheries on the Puyallup and Skokomish last summer – but after all was said and done, Frank Jr., the tribes, WDFW and sport anglers are all on the

same general page. We want lots of hatchery and wild fish, and to improve the habitat for them, and there have been few voices louder – or more effective – than Frank Jr.’s. “What seems like forever, he continued to call for protecting the fish through its saltwater and freshwater habitat,” said Tony Floor of the Northwest Marine Trade Association, who predicted Frank Jr.’s legacy of leadership would live on. While treaty fishing rights will forever rankle some, they’re also a hammer. A couple months ago now I was talking to a state biologist about things, and they related to me a detail about their agency’s relative lack of teeth on fish habitat issues. When they needed help, the biologist turned not to Olympia, but rather to local tribes to get things done. But now, with the loss of Frank Jr. and 2012’s retirement of fellow salmon champion Norm Dicks from Congress, there’s a sudden vacuum at the top for the fish. Who will step up? Anderson says it’s up to us to continue fighting for salmon and preservation of our natural resources for the future. “For his sake, we cannot fail. He set an example for many to follow, and I was honored to know him as my friend,” he said. –NWS

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MIXED BAG Moore’s unit saw operations in France, Luxembourg – where he was photographed here – and Germany during and after World War II. (FRANK MOORE)

who arrived at the Dachau concentration camp shortly after it was freed in late April 1945. “I witnessed what the egotistical side of man was capable of,” Moore says, “man’s inhumanity to man. I couldn’t believe it.” He describes starved bodies stacked 8 feet high and 30 feet long. Emaciated and listless, the living survivors looked little better than the dead. HE HAS BALANCED the memories of those horrors against the good in his life, and if he was unfortunate to face the realities of war, he has been more than fortunate after it. Returning to Jeanne when the work was done, he helped start the historic Steamboat Inn on his beloved North Umpqua River, sharing the river’s magical scenery and majestic steelhead with the world. Shortly afterwards, he was also one of the first anglers to recognize the link between healthy watersheds and the rivers within them, and he battled to

22 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

stop excessive and damaging logging in its headwaters. One of Oregon’s most storied fly fishermen, he handles a fly rod as if he has had one in his hand his entire life, which he has. He served on the old Fish and Game Commission, and worked tirelessly to promote Oregon’s rivers and fishing. It was for this work that he was awarded the Gene Leo award. Through it all he has been accompanied by his wife, Jeanne, and he still talks of her like many men speak of their young brides. “The best day of my life was January 1, 1943, when I said two words: ‘I do.’” Moore is as happy talking of their years together as he is talking about fly fishing. “With her, every day gets better.” He still stays active, and shortly after our interview he was heading to Colorado for the Telluride Film Festival where Mending the Line would be viewed. Will he be doing anything else?

MIXED BAG “I’ll find some time to fish,” he laughs. Indeed, he’ll be taking his three-weight fly rod with him, and plying some of the local streams for trout. He hasn’t slowed down much for someone his age. “You have to stay physically fit if you want to stay mentally fit,” he tips. As one of the last of America’s greatest generation, Moore continues to inspire the people around him. He was recently visited by a couple whom he stayed with in France. They brought their 8-year-old boy, and of course, Moore took him fishing. “He hooked the first two steelhead of the day,” he recalls. It turned out to be a memorable day, with a dozen hooked in all. Every day can feel special when you survive the battles that Moore has. He mourns those who lost their lives in the fray, and he wonders why he has been blessed with so many good days. We here in Oregon have to ask how we

24 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

Frank Moore and his son fish a French river, 69 years after the Oregon angler landed at Normandy. As his unit moved forward during the D-Day invasion, he recalls seeing a salmon swimming underneath a bridge. This area of France is one of the last strongholds for Atlantics. (UNCAGE THE SOUL)

were lucky enough to be blessed with Moore, someone who we all owe a huge debt to. We have the chance to honor him, and all the men who fought so hard with

him, by following his advice: “Never stop dreaming, and never stop working to fulfill those dreams.” Frank Moore is proof it works. NS

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26 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

MIXED BAG

Okanogan Buck Beheader Gets 5 Years, $24,000 In Fines OKANOGAN, Wash.—It was 2 a.m. and from Sgt. Jim Brown’s vantage point in an unmarked car all appeared quiet at the MNB Smoke Shop just off Rodeo Trail Road outside this North-central Washington town.

By Andy Walgamott Though the building on the Colville Reservation was sometimes used for parties and several vehicles were parked there that night, Brown gave the go-ahead to begin the secret operation. This is a story that hasn’t been printed until now and was key to a severe sentence given to a local poacher. Another vehicle pulled up and state fish and wildlife officers Jason Day and Dan Christensen got out and took a look under the hood, as if they were having car problems on the way from the bar or something. Then Day had to go urinate. He sauntered towards the smoke shop to take care of business, which was not actually to go pee, rather to execute a sealed warrant to look inside a pipe there. Three weeks before, as word began to get out that someone was killing and decapitating local bucks and leaving their carcasses to waste, a customer of the shop owned by Garret Victor James Elsberg had observed several men pulling trophy-caliber heads out of the hidey hole. And just recently the blanket covering the opening had been moved again. Wardens believed it was because it now contained the head of yet another buck, this one shot in an orchard about 10 miles away one night the week before. The sealed warrant, written by Christensen, would help keep their investigation quiet, and to prevent being given away by any possible security cameras at the shop, Day made as if he were suddenly interested

in what might be under the blanket instead of just pissing away a beer or three. “‘Whoa!’He grabs the head, runs to the car, they slam the hood down and go,”says Brown. He stayed behind for five minutes but no alarm was raised. Afterwards, a DNA sample was rushed over the Cascades to a state lab in Olympia, and 48 hours later the officers were told they had a “perfect” genetic match between it and the carcass from the orchard. Before, they had Facebook posts by Elsberg and others, and several carcasses, but this was the break they needed. “Now we had a head that matched one of the bodies,” says Brown, who is now the regional Department of Fish & Wildlife head. “That’s when the case gathered momentum.” It led to a series of warrants served early the next month in which eight rotting heads were recovered from a horse trailer at one of Elsberg’s grandparents’ homes and a whole buck at the house of a friend. Officers believe they were shot between September 2012 and late January 2013 at night with a rifle, which Elsberg was not allowed to have because of a prior domestic violence conviction. They may have been just the tip of the iceberg. Officers say they were told by informants that Elsberg bragged of shooting 29 deer over the prior year; that he showed off the heads at parties and claimed they

Fish and wildlife officers seized this buck head from a hiding place at Garret V.J. Elsberg’s smoke shop, and through DNA testing, were able to link it to a decapitated mule deer killed the week before. (WDFW) had been shot on the reservation; that he had a drug-fueled fascination with shooting large bucks; and that he and others were killing the animals for their “man cards.” THE OKANOGAN’S MULEY herd is one of if not the most important in the state, and in a sign of the case’s significance, the elected Okanogan County prosecutor, Karl Sloan, an RMEF and NRA member, took it on personally. Just days after rifle buck season ended last year, he charged Elsberg with 33 wildlife and firearms violations. One of Elsberg’s lawyers, Steven Graham of Spokane, tried to challenge the validity of state jurisdiction on reservation land. But officers pointed right back to a case known as Hicks v. Nevada, which allows officers to pursue wildlife crimes comElsberg was surprisingly chatty on Facebook about the bucks he was illegally killing. He posed with one shot “400 yards out,” which meant with a rifle and illegal due to a prior domestic violence conviction barring him from owning guns. In another post, he called himself “a pro,” said he knew “wear the.monsters are” and that he “got a few this year its been a good time.” (FACEBOOK)

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mitted by tribal members – Elsberg is an enrolled Colville – off reservation, on the reservation. The deer in this case were all shot on private, state and federal land outside the Colville’s boundaries. Elsberg ultimately pled guilty to eight counts of first-degree unlawful hunting of big game – under 2011’s spree-killing law they’re straightaway felonies, no prior conviction needed – seven counts of seconddegree unlawful possession of a firearm, and one count of second-degree unlawful big game hunting. The 25-year-old was sentenced to five years in jail and, since many of the bucks had more than four points on each antler, making them trophies, over $24,000 in fines. Brown termed it a “just and well-deserved” sentence, and noting that it was settled out of court with such a severe penalty, said that spoke to the quality of the state’s case against Elsberg. “These were the most flagrant acts of poaching in my 25 years as a game warden. The penalty matches the severity of the crime.” He called the case a “team effort” that had the full focus of local wildlife officers. It involved parsing hundreds of pages of Facebook chats and many interviews. It is not over. Several of Elsberg’s associates await charges from the prosecutor’s office, including one man who allegedly shot and beheaded a 5x5 a few days before Christmas 2012. According to court papers, it was shot near an orchard with a spotlight at night, and was the largest of all the bucks that were poached during the spree. Brown says officers have “very strong evidence” against that man and others, but in the meanwhile he hopes Elsberg’s sentence sends a message. “I am hoping there is some deterrent value. The deer are dead, but what is the silver lining? The penalty.” NS

JACKASS OF THE MONTH To thejackass(es) who shot and killed the fawn between Melrose and Roseburg one late March night: You are a jackass. The $5,500 that the Oregon Hunters Association and Humane Society of the United States is offering up for your conviction will be money well spent.

28 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

Ian Birmingham’s big Sun Lakes brown bit on a fly tied by his dad, Dave. The Seattle angler caught the 7-pounder in late April.

Limits were the rule for Avery, Taylor, Sidney and Alex on Washington’s trout opener. They were using PowerBait at Wapato Lake near Chelan. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

& McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

(WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

Anchovies under a float did the job for Brian Peters, who caught this hefty spring Chinook out of the North Umpqua in April. He reports it weighed 24 pounds. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

She was trolling for browns with a kokanee-colored plug, and what should bite for Stephanie Pemble but a landlocked sock. She caught it on Wickiup Reservoir where on opening day an angler trolling for kokes hooked a 13-brown on a hoochie. “Go figure,” writes local angler Jon Wiley who took Pemble fishing. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

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Tally Petrovich put a paddlin’ on Lake Padden rainbows, limiting by 6 a.m., of opening day at the Bellingham lake. (WRIGHT

Trolling a cutplug herring dyed blue just downstream of her hometown late this past March, Kamila Williams picked up this nice springer. She was fishing aboard a North River at the head of the Multnomah Channel. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

MIXED BAG As the light began to fade on a long, cold day in his ground blind, Jim Morrison caught sight of what he was waiting for, this monster Saskatchewan whitetail. The Post Falls, Idaho, hunter says his 7x6 has a 241⁄2-inch inside spread, 165 3/8 final Boone & Crockett score, “and a special place in my game room.” (BROWNING PHOTO CONTEST)

Ethan Hodge proudly carries his spring gobbler out of the woods. He bagged it during the youth weekend northwest of Spokane. His dad, Jon, reports 20 birds came in during their hunt, but Ethan patiently waited till he had a clear, 12-yard shot on this tom. (BROWNING PHOTO CONTEST)

Even Seattle’s fish seemed to get into the Super Bowl spirit. Check out the crazy colors on the side of Gregg Fakkema’s Lake Washington cutthroat, caught in late January off the southwest tip of Mercer Island. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

Nick Holder’s a multi-faceted angler. Among the passel of pics the 14-year-old sent us, this hefty Grants Pass-area largemouth, which bit a 10-inch Havoc worm. Some of his other catches include a catfish from a California lake and a Chinook from the Coos River. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

For your shot at winning Wright & McGill/ Eagle Claw and Browning products, send your photographs to andy@nwsportsmanmag.com or Northwest Sportsman, 14240 Interurban Avenue South, Suite 190, Tukwilistan, WA 98168. By sending us photos, you affirm you have the right to distribute them for our print or Internet publications. JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 31

PHOTO CONTEST

WINNERS! Gregg Fakkema is this issue’s Wright & McGill/Eagle Claw Photo Contest winner, thanks to this pic of his dazzling Lake Washington cutthroat. It wins him a package worth $50 of Lazer Sharp hooks, pliers and a Lazer Sharp hat!

Grand Prize Winner! It was a tough call for the Browning Photo Contest judges to pick a grand prize winner from our excellent pool of finalists over the past year. There was Anthony Delcollo and his North Wagontire Unit pronghorn, Patrick Gottsch and his stormyday North-central Oregon muley, Chris Bell’s pooch Mojo and his wintry ringneck, and Shawn Marsall’s touching photo of father and daughter and her first gobbler. Ultimately, we chose Alex Tanner for his crisp, clean photo of his Snake River mule deer buck. Congrats, Alex, you’ve won a Browning Buckmark pistol! And now, Northwest sportsmen, let’s keep those images coming!

Northwest

Sportsman Your Hunting & Fishing Resource

For your shot at winning Wright & McGill/Eagle Claw and Browning products, send your photographs 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.

32 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

OUTDOOR

CALENDAR Sponsored by

MAY 31 Two-week marked Chinook opener from Cape Falcon, Ore., north to Neah Bay, Wash.

JUNE 1 Opening day of fishing on select Washington rivers, several quality lakes 5 Possible Marine Areas 3, 4 halibut reopener; updates: wdfw.wa.gov 5-7 Scheduled Central Oregon Coast all-depth halibut opener 7 Several free family fishing events held in ODFW’s Northwest, Southwest regions; info: dfw.state.or.us; Opening day on many Washington streams, beaver ponds; Scheduled halibut opener in Marine Areas 5-10, possible Areas 3, 4 reopener; upJune 5 12:39 First quarter dates: wdfw.wa.gov 7-8 Free Fishing Weekend in Washington, Oregon, no June 12 20:11 Full moon June 19 10:39 Last quarter license required to fish, clam, crab; Moses Lake Walleye June 27 00:09 New moon Classic; info: Ron Sawyer, Paul Lamb (509-765-6718) * Data courtesy NASA; all times PST 12-17 Series of -1 or lower daylight coastal low tides 13-14 Bonneville Pool sturgeon retention open 14 Any-Chinook, marked coho opener from Cape Falcon north to Neah Bay; Free Fishing Day in Idaho, no license required to fish; Free family fishing event at Pony Village Mall, North Bend, Ore; info: dfw.state.or.us; Oregon Outdoor Council Predator Symposium, Albany Fairgrounds; info: oregonoutdoorcouncil.com/predators 15 Final day for spring bear permit season in numerous Washington units 16 Salmon and steelhead retention opener on the Columbia from I-5 to Priest Rapids Dam 19-21 Scheduled Central Oregon Coast all-depth halibut opener 20 Date Oregon controlled hunt application results available by 20-21 Bonneville Pool sturgeon retention open 21 Free family fishing event at 5412 Pond, Umatilla, Ore; info: dfw.state.or.us 28-29 Lake Roosevelt walleye derby; info: lakerooseveltwalleyeclub.com; Cascade Musky Association tiger musky derby; info: cascademuskyassociation.com 28-29 Washington Governor’s Cup Walleye Championship, Lake Roosevelt; info: Clyde Reneman (509-732-6679)

n Phases

COLORFUL RECORD NORTHWEST GAME FISH CAUGHT THIS MONTH Ron Campbell holds his world-record 9-pound, 10.72-ounce kokanee, caught at Oregon’s Wallowa Lake on June 13, 2010. (RON CAMPBELL)

Date 6-3-00 6-5-71 6-8-03 6-10-84 6-21-88 6-21-92 34 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

Species Pds. (-Oz.) Brown bullhead Yellow perch Black crappie Bluegill White crappie Grayling

11.04 2-2 3-8.96 2.33 2.8 2-7

Water

Angler

Unnamed lake (WA) Columbia R. (OR) Brownlee Res. (ID) Tampico Pd. (WA) Burbank Sl. (WA) Nez Perce L. (ID)

Justin Andrews Ernie Affolter III Jason Monson Ron Hinote Don Benson Velma Mahaffey

36 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

FISHING

BC Bass, Man

Salt Spring Island is as relaxed as this picture taken on St. Mary Lake suggests. Located on the Canadian side of the San Juan Islands, and a getaway for Vancouver-area residents like the author, the island boasts good fishing for bass, which open in mid-June. (TODD MARTIN)

More than salmon to be had on Canadian side of the San Juan Islands. By Todd Martin

alt Spring Island is the largest of British Columbia’s CANADA Gulf Islands, and EH! is just minutes north of Washington’s San Juans. One of its many nicknames is the California of Canada for the warm, almost subtropical climate it enjoys. It’s advertised as a peaceful holiday locale close to Vancouver, but is known locally as a retreat for baby boomers, hippies, and recluse artisans who are “down with the establishment.” One of its lesser known attributes for lucky Northwest Sportsman readers is the smallmouth fishing. It’s pretty right-on, man. Taking a trip to Salt Spring Island is akin to jumping into the hot tub time-machine. You will find tie-dyed shirts back in fashion, organic, gluten-free everything in the stores, and the mantra of peace, love and harmony exuding from all its inhabitants. The pace of everything is slowed down dramatically. One of the most popular local sayings is JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 37

FISHING “Relax, this ain’t the mainland!” Hitchhiking is a popular mode of transport, and per the popular Canadian stereotype, most people here don’t lock their doors. Locals call arrival at the island from the mainland getting back “on the rock.” Now that we have focused your inner beatnik, break out your prayer beads and hum a few bars of Kumbaya while we explore the bassy aspect of this island.

BASS HAVE A longer history in BC than most people realize. They were planted into the lakes on Salt Spring back in the 1930s and have flourished ever since. The original stock is from the Bay of Quinte region on Lake Ontario. Provincial fisheries staff experimented with stocking them into several other southern region lakes in the mid-1980s, but that program was cancelled within 10 years. Other more eastern regions of BC have seen slow steady migrations of bass, both largemouth and smallmouth, coming north from connecting American waterways. However they arrived, they are not going away, and in fact, their populations are thriving. The bass on Salt Spring are all smallmouth and are reaching impressive sizes in this quiet island hideaway. American-style bass tournaments have not taken off here, and part of the reason is a ban on live wells in boats. This has been a long-standing regulation to prevent the intentional or unintentional movement of nonnative fish species. When you land one, keep it or let it go right away. The island’s bass lakes are small and have an electric-motors-only regulation, so you’ll have to leave the 200horsepower behemoths at home. Most cabin rentals at the lakeside resorts come with complementary row boats and canoes, and that is truly all you will need here. If you were to fire up a two-stroke outboard on either of these lakes, the immediate bad karma would ruin your day long be38 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

Salt Spring smallies are plentiful and scrappy. (TODD MARTIN)

fore the man could oppress you. I am still a relative newbie at bass fishing. I’ve only being experimenting with it for a couple years now, but the bass angling on Salt Spring, along with all the love being spread around, have me hooked. These little buggers fight hard! After watching Bassmasters and similar shows on U.S. television channels, I got tired of seeing fast, expensive boats maneuvered though backwater ditches in pursuit of these green devils, but now I get it. Far out, man!

SALT SPRING HAS two small lakes that provide groovy bass fishing for the cosmically aligned angler. The larger of the two is St. Mary, which is on the northern half of the island. This lake offers a flourishing smallmouth population, with red-eyes averaging between 2 and 3 pounds, but with fish to 5 pounds being caught on a regular basis. The best place to try is the rocky western shoreline. The eastern shore-

line is weedy with lily pads that can provide some fun topwater action if the bass are in the mood. In the southern half of the island, smaller Cusheon Lake provides the same opportunities for our bucketmouthed quarry. Try anywhere near the numerous small docks along the shore and in front of Cusheon Lake Resort. Both lakes are five-minute drives from the largest town on, and hub of, the island, Ganges. Even if completely lost, all roads will eventually lead you back here. These lakes fish well in spring, summer and fall, and fishing is usually hot immediately after the midJune bass opening. August’s heat pushes them into deep cover, so this is when you want to target them both early and late in the day. St. Mary and Cusheon have several private resorts that offer rental cabins, boats, and lots of quiet space to align your chakras. There is some public shore fishing access on these

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The author was hooked on bass after an experience with this specimen from Salt Spring Island. (TODD MARTIN)

lakes, but a small boat is the best option to get into the prime spots. Bass tactics that work south of the international border all work well here. Some local favorites include twitching wacky-rigged plastic worms, with the Berkley 10-inch PowerWorms being preferred. I work them around structure points, but when fish are more lethargic, I dead stick, which suits my lazy style of bass fishing nicely. Another tactic that

works well is casting 3-inch green tube baits fished on a ¼-ounce jig hook. A popular searching lure is the trusty spinnerbait. I have yet to see someone hurling an Alabama rig for bass here, but I am sure it’s only a matter of time. In BC you are never far from someone fly fishing, and best tactics include use of a full-sink line and an erratic retrieve of a large yellow Woolly Bugger or black leech pattern

FISHING along the bottom. Once hooked, these hipster smallies will do as all other bass – proceed to the nearest commune of weeds or heavy structure – so gear up accordingly.

BOTH LAKES ALSO have healthy populations of resident cutthroat and stocked rainbow trout. The rainbows are released annually by the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC. They will produce better in colder, shoulder-season temperatures and these trout take trolled lures and flies equally well. Quickly becoming a BC favorite, fly cast or trolled Bingo Bug-style lures from Lucky Bug Lures will take trout very well on these lakes. Cusheon has smaller trout, but St. Mary has produced some in excess of 5 pounds in recent years. The latter lake also has a healthy population of yellow perch, which can provide great entertainment for kids casting

small baits near shore. Bass in this region of the province are closed to angling from April 15 to June 15. When in open season, you can retain four per day. Trout are open year-round and you can keep four per day too. The daily limit on perch is 20. Access to the island is straight forward, but make sure you leave the better part of a day for traveling from Pugetropolis or elsewhere. Head north on I-5 and cross the border at Blaine. Continue north on Highway 99 and take the exit for Tsawwassen and the B.C ferries. There are a couple different route options from here; see the local visitor’s bureau’s website, saltspringtourism.com. You can also take your private boat; numerous marinas in Ganges provide transient moorage and full services. My preferred way to get here is via float plane. Salt Spring Air and Kenmore Air are two well-equipped float plane

Most stores open every day 7AM to 11PM. Prices good June 1 thru June 30, 2014. Use these cards for all purchases storewide. Items may not be available at all stores. See store for details. “All” or “Entire Stock” sales events exclude Clearance items and items marked as “Newly Reduced.”

42 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

operators that make scheduled and charter runs to Salt Spring Island from all over the Northwest. Rent a car when you arrive and you’re set. Once you arrive on the island, take in the hippie vibe. From the summer Saturday market to the spas, eateries, organic farms and wineries open to the public, there are countless options for the family to be entertained while you ply the waters for bass and trout – as you munch on those gluten-free, organic kale chips. To enjoy a much slower pace of life, and to fish for bass in a smalllake setting, book a cabin at one of the many lakeside resorts (Lava lamps optional), load up your righteous bass sticks and make the excellent adventure to Salt Spring Island. Don’t forget to channel your inner Tommy Chong before you arrive, and you’ll go a long ways towards fitting in with the locals. Power to the bassers! NS

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FISHING

Fatties like these are Nick Berto’s specialty, and he cites lakes up and down the I-5 corridor as great options for Westsiders and vacationing anglers. The bass fishing is most certainly worthy of a trip. Berto mentioned lakes like Whatcom, Samish, Sammamish, Stevens and Washington as some of his favorites, but he was tight-lipped about smaller smallmouth waters and especially largemouth lakes. Documented 9-pound bucketmouths are taken almost annually in Kitsap and Whatcom County lakes, but don’t limit your search for trophies. Puget Sound bassing is happening – now and in the future. (NICK BERTO)

Bassin’ With Berto A 70-mile-an-hour cruise around Lakes Washington, Union with a guy who catches big bags of smallies, largies. By Jeff Holmes

SEATTLE—I met Western Washington bassin’ assassin Nick Berto last December on a bitter-cold night in his hometown of Monroe after a frigid and fruitless day of Puget Sound steelheading with two of his buddies. Over

beers and good conversation with some fellow hardcore fishermen, Berto showed me pictures on his phone of scores of 5- to 9-pound bass taken from Westside waters over the last year. Two of those images depicted five-fish limits of smallies all topping 5 pounds, and others showed

largemouth to almost 9. As a native Eastern Washingtonian and a part-time bass lover, I knew very little about bass fishing on this side of the Cascades, mostly just the names of the biggest fisheries. Berto surprised me by describing amazing lakes from the Canadian border all the way down the I-5 corridor, waters that are usually good for both smallmouth and largemouth. He told me how Westside bass achieve impressive JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 45

FISHING girths by dining heavily on crayfish, sculpins, kokanee, trout, and small bass and panfish. As we sat in that bar in Monroe, conversations drifted across a wide range of fishing topics, most of them steelhead related: hatcheries, escapement, predation, poaching, netting, dams, snaggers, and abundance. Some at the table talked crazy about quitting the sport if things get much worse, and it dawned on me how glad I was that I like to catch bass and many other species and that I had met a Westside bass expert. Berto and I share a love for steelheading that consumes us for parts of the year, but we’re fishermen, not just steelhead fishermen. We won’t have to worry this spring and summer about the largemouth run coming in under prediction, nor about sea lions, cormorants, gillnetting, or holding wild fish out of the water. No one is going to sue the state Department of Fish & Wildlife for their largemouth management conflicting with any federal laws. Bass fishing is reliable and can be as intense as one wants it to be, or as relaxing.

MY WIFE AND I like to bass fish together in Eastern Washington during the typically explosive action of June, and our approach is simple: enjoy beverages, birdwatching, and bass fishing while slowing down. We’ll apply these same principles to Westside waters this year. We don’t make runs around big lakes or reservoirs searching for fish; instead, we row, paddle, or scoot along with an electric, fishing for bass when we know where they are and that they’re likely to bite. In most of Washington, June is prime time for anglers of all skill levels to do well on mature bass before they retreat to cooling depths for the heat of summer. Erika and I use only a few different bass patterns to keep things simple, and our photo collection is packed with pictures of largemouth from 19 to 23 inches and smallmouth from 18 to 21. We aren’t special or es46 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

pecially skilled; the opportunity is out there for anyone who can cast a rod and reel in a lure and who knows how to learn from experience. My bass fishing style and that of the average angler contrast starkly with the run-and-gun, hardcore ap-

proach employed by Berto, a frequent winner of Westside bass tournament. He rockets between fishing locations at over 70 mph as pro staff for Limit Out Performance Marine, G.Loomis, Shimano, Power Pro, P-Line, KGM Baits, Fisher Brothers Bait Company,

NICK’S JUNE TRICKS In June, bass will be getting ready to spawn or will already be doing so. As water temperatures increase into the high 50s and low 60s on the big lakes and even higher in the small ones, all that bass can think about is spawning, and that’s what you have to think about in your approach. Air temps are becoming steadier, and nights are staying warmer, so the fish begin making a hard press to the shallows. The males move up first and prep the area for the big females. I start by targeting shallow to see if the bigger fish are up spawning. If I end up catching a lot of males in the 1- to 3-pound range, I’ll move outside of those spawning flats and target the bigger females, as they will always be close by. You can target these fish with a variety of presentations. Here are some of my favorites that will work great for both smallmouth and largemouth. June is all about the spawn, so you need to base your presentations around it!

Drop shot: This rig is my first choice in June. It will catch both the males and females that are either staging or in the spawn. Use a short leader of 6 to 12 inches, a 1⁄8- to 3⁄8-ounce Quickdrop sinker, a No. 4 Gamakatsu Drop Shot hook, and a bait of choice, mine being a Fisher Brothers Bait Company DS Minnow or DS Fry of any color. I stick to baitfish colors like rainbow trout or kokanee, and 6-pound PLine 100% Fluorocarbon is one of my keys to a stealthy approach. You can present it shallow or on the deeper outside edge of spawning females that are staging. My setup is an Alpha Angler DSR with a Shimano Stradic Ci4+ 2500 spinning outfit.

Spinnerbaits: These lures will catch the aggressive fish, and you can cover a lot of water quickly with a steady retrieve. Spinnerbait fishing is a good technique for beginners and intermediate anglers to get on fish reacting to these gaudy baits. Like a lot of bass lures, spinnerbaits don’t mimic natural prey, but they reliably trigger a predatory response. A ½-ounce spinnerbait in white or white/chartreuse is perfect and can help you cover the 1- to 8-foot range around docks or other fish-holding structure or cover.

Swimbaits: These realistic baits have also become very popular in recent years, and my favorite is the KGM TW Swimmer with 3 ⁄8- or ½-ounce Revenge Swimbaits jig heads. The YUM Money Minnow is also an excellent choice. I typically use a similar presentation as when I’m fishing spinnerbaits, a slow- to medium-steady retrieve. This presentation will also target prespawn suspended fish. I throw these swimbaits on 12- to 15-pound P-Line 100% Fluorocarbon, and I use a G.Loomis IMX 893C with a Shimano Chronarch Ci4 casting setup.

Jerkbaits: I’ll throw these trying to target the prespawn females that are still staging in deeper water (5 to 15 feet), waiting to move up on their beds. I employ long pauses, but keeping the retrieve erratic is key. Lucky Craft Pointers or Bomber Long A’s work great. Also some crankbaits like the Bomber 8A or Fat Free Shad in crawdad patterns can provoke the same fish. For throwing jerkbaits, I use a G.Loomis CBR845C or an Alpha Angler Rebound matched with a Shimano Calais 200DC and 12-pound P-Line 100% Fluorocarbon. – Nick Berto

FISHING Spokane’s Alpha Angler Custom Performance Rods, and Morningwood Energy Drink. His boat is meticulously clean and organized with more rod and reel combos on board than 90 percent of anglers have in their entire arsenal. He puts the gear to great effect by casting and working baits effortlessly, sensing strikes and sticking fish most anglers miss. Berto puts a lot of really big bass in the boat on a regular basis, and if you don’t think being an expert bass angler translates to steelheading proficiency, think again. Nobody is more adept at detecting slight bites than a tournament bass fisherman, and those skills translate perfectly to drift-fishing techniques requiring the subtle detection of bites between rocks. Further illustrating the bass-steelhead connection, I am equally mediocre at sensing steelhead and largemouth bites.

EARLIER THIS SPRING, Berto and I met up for a day of bass fishing on Lake Washington and the even more urban Lake Union. I fished Union one time for yellow perch on my eccentric uncle’s houseboat as a kid, but I had never wet a line in Lake Washington,

one of the state’s largest and most developed natural lakes. Its reputation as a smallmouth fishery preceded it, and pictures from Berto from a week earlier of both he and his fishing partner holding 5-plus-pound largies from “somewhere north of Mercer Island” had me excited. We met early under I-90 on Mercer Island and felt the teeth of the south wind and the chop churned up in the lake’s east channel. Berto ran a short distance from the launch to an area where he does very well on large female smallmouth as they shift from winter patterns into early prespawn patterns. We drug a variety of baits on jig heads and Carolina rigs across fishy flats from 32 to 17 feet and each picked up a few bites. Berto translated one of his into a 15-inch fish, a very average Lake Washington smallmouth, but he decided that this spot wasn’t producing and told me to hold on to handles in the cockpit of the boat while he ran several miles to the Lake Union Ship Channel at over 70 mph. My knuckles whitened as soon as he hit the throttle and the boat settled on plane, skimming first 40, then 50, then 60, then 70 mph – way too fast for my

Over the course of a full day on the water, tournament-winner Nick Berto and I each boated a bunch of smallmouth by hopping from spot to spot around Lake Washington and Union. There are bass fishing opportunities literally everywhere on the lakes. (JEFF HOLMES)

48 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

This is not the temperature readout from our late April trip; it’s the speedometer from Berto’s bass boat as we rocketed across the top of Lake Washington waves. Fifty is more my speed. (JEFF HOLMES)

personal enjoyment. I managed to sneak a picture of Berto’s speedometer as he tipped over 70 for the first time and then dropped my camera, ducked my head, and held on until he slowed near the 520 Bridge construction project. We idled our way past Husky Stadium, under the Montlake Bridge, and into Lake Union. Berto instructed me to pick up rods as we neared abundant structure that surrounds nearly the entire lake. After several casts and the readying of my new Aqua-Vu 760c, Berto confirmed on his electronics what he had suspected motoring in: the water was chock-full of mature smallmouth, suspended at a variety of depths. We chucked a variety or lures and worked them on the bottom and in all parts of the water column, but were unable to connect until Berto tied on one of his KGM TW Swimmer swimbaits. He stuck a 3-pound smallie that completely swallowed his bait. Two casts later, another smallmouth engulfed his small, salmonid imitation. The bass appeared to be in a mostly negative mood until Berto established the pattern. I changed over to one of the other swimbait rods and stuck several fish alongside Berto, but my curiosity and new toy led me to abandon the rod for the Aqua-Vu. Even Berto re-

JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 49

FISHING and bass tournament anglers who spend almost as much time using cameras while prefishing as they do working baits. This summer my curiosity will have me deploying this camera in every ditch, pond, or puddle I fish, including the PaLike many Northwesterners familiar with the landmark, I had been a little cific Ocean. numb to the sight of the Space Needle until I saw it up close with a 4-pound smallmouth in my hands. Like Lake Washington, Lake Union is full of whopper Talk about the bass. (JEFF HOLMES) lazy man’s way to check a crab trap. As we slowly motored east out of tired his rod to check out the HD color the lake, I noticed a pair of nesting view of the bottom, which yielded peregrine falcons that sat silently many large smallmouth at close above us. The big female doubled the range, a TV, a shopping cart with size of her mate, and the golden eyes nearly $20 in Berto’s lures I’d snagged and talons of both birds stood out. I on it, and two traffic cones. A tool like took pictures and mental notes about an Aqua-Vu is invaluable for walleye

50 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

these once-nearly extinct falcons, but Berto wanted to motor on to the next fishing spot. Tournament bass anglers are to the angling world what neurotic bird dogs are to the dog world: usually good-natured but forever obsessed with their quarry. After leaving the no-wake zone near the 520 Bridge and rocketing uplake, he tucked his boat into a productive bay, and we began working spinnerbaits and jerkbaits in a place Berto knew there were fish holding in only 4 to 7 feet of water, both smallmouth and largemouth. There were also lots of pikeminnow, and I stuck a 24-incher that Berto laid to rest at the sacrificial alter of our national symbol. Within moments a mature bald eagle showed up and waited for us to leave. He watched the belly-up fish while we again learned the swimbait was the choice of lures for the day, although white ½-ounce spinnerbaits also took fish. We each landed several

FISHING

Western Washington’s KGM Baits makes a ton of slick plastics, including the Swimmer. This swimbait, paired with one of KGM’s specialized swimbait heads, accounted for lots of fish for us this spring and will continue to take fish through June, says Berto. This is true in all lakes but especially in those where there are lots of salmonids present, especially kokanee or, in this case, sockeye. Smallmouth tend to completely inhale slowly swum swimbaits. (JEFF HOLMES)

nice smallmouth, Berto one largemouth. When the bite slowed, I asked him to show me around the big lake on the way back to the East Channel.

52 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

On our high-speed travels we saw common loons, Bill Gates’ compound, a palatial home with a predatory dinosaur skeleton surrounding a spiral staircase, and more cop boats than there were recreational boats on the water. The contrasts between urban and wild can be remarkable anywhere there are animals living around lots of people, but to see peregrines, loons, and many more bird species on a lake surrounded by so much humanity and inhumanity seemed remarkable at the time and still does. What also seems remarkable is the amount of luck and/or intervention it would take to return the required number of sockeye smolts to Lake Washington to open a fishery. From the Cedar River and into the salt, out-of-balance aquatic ecosystems and overabundant predators create mortality rates for outgoing sockeye that are exponentially higher than predicted historic levels

of mortality. With more fish returning and more management and upstream habitat improvements, it will be interesting to see what becomes of WDFW’s scientific examination of reducing the number of returning adults currently required to open a fishery. To their credit, many will continue to work toward a positive future for sockeye and other coldwater fish in Lake Washington, and some recent successes on the Cedar River may continue and blossom for a better future. What is certain, however, is that smallmouth, largemouth, yellow perch, and crappie are here to stay in Western Washingon lakes, including Lake Washington. Even for hardcore chrome chasers, anglers who want to be wedded to a future with fishing families, fewer frustrations, and more fish can find overlooked alternatives in backyards from Bellingham south to Vancouver. NS

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John Day Dazzles O

ne of my favorite outdoor activities is fishing the John Day River. Recently, I got to do just that – an all-day CENTRAL OREGON float trip starting at By Scott Staats Service Creek. I would actually float the North-central Oregon river for the scenery and solitude alone (we didn’t see another boat), but I’m

glad we had fishing gear along. Two of us caught 53 smallmouth bass, and very few of those were under 14 inches. Steve Brown and I joined Steve Fleming, owner of Mah-Hah Outfitters (johndayriverfishing.com) in Fossil, for a fantastic fishing trip. The weather was perfect and the fish were biting. As a matter of fact, Brown landed a plump 18-incher on his second cast. A good omen. Just before lunch I was fishing a plastic grub in a good-looking hole when I felt a nice tug on the line. The knee-jerk reaction is to set the hook instantly, but I followed Fleming’s advice to lower the tip of the rod and count to five then set the hook. I knew it was a good fish when it started taking some line. After a few frantic minutes Fleming slid the net under the fish and I could breathe easily again. It measured 20 inches and

weighed just over 4 pounds, only the third smallmouth I’ve ever caught that measured 20 inches or more. Fish 20 inches or over are considered Master Angler fish by In-Fisherman and the North American Fishing Club. According to Fleming, fish between 18 and 20 inches are classified as trophy fish. Later in the afternoon Brown hooked into a lunker. When the bass arrived in the boat it measured a whopping 22 inches. All three of us were so amazed by the size of the fish that we forgot to weigh it, but we estimated it was between 5 and 6 pounds. “The warming of the water by 2 degrees turned the afternoon reaction bite on where ¾-ounce chartreuse and white spinnerbaits and lipless cranks really shined,” noted Brown, a lifelong bass angler who lives in Bend and has won B.A.S.S. tournaments throughout the West.

The author with a 20-inch smallmouth bass from the North-central Oregon river. (SCOTT STAATS)

JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 55

COLUMNS The John Day meanders through a scenic canyon downriver of Service Creek. (SCOTT STAATS)

BESIDES LIPLESS CRANKBAITS such as Rat-L-Traps, we caught fish on Rapala X-Raps, Speed Traps, spinnerbaits, stickbaits and plastic grubs. Fleming says he’ll soon be fishing lots of soft plastics on 1⁄8-ounce Texas setups, some topwater lures and flukes. These fish are river smallmouth and are about twice as strong as any lake or reservoir smallmouth. They have to fight current all the time, so they’re powerful fish. Brown says that the John Day’s prespawn smallmouth are the hardest-pulling bass that he’s ever caught. The bigger fish are beginning to spawn and are feeding like crazy. In 1971, 80 smallmouth bass were introduced into the upper reaches of the John Day River by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. By the end of that year, juvenile bass were found throughout a 50mile stretch of river. From that original stocking, the John Day is now considered by many to be one of the best smallmouth rivers in the country. Today the fish are scattered throughout most of the system, with estimates of well

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over 1,000 fish per mile. Many believe the next state record will come from the John Day. The standing high mark is 7 pounds, 14 ounces. “The John Day has to be one of the premier smallmouth fisheries in the country,”says Brown. “I’ve never seen a fishery that puts out 2- to 5-pound smallmouth so consistently.” His top fish for the day included the lunker 22-incher, a 19-incher and two 18-inchers. Besides his passion for bass fishing, Brown stays busy with his business, Better Ways Products, which he started in 2000. His top product is RodWrap (rodwrap.com) fishing grips. Fleming has RodWrap on all of his rods, the oar handles and the net handle. For the John Day, Brown prefers using 10-pound line and a crankbait rod (baitcaster) to throw those lipless crankbaits. With treble hooks on a lipless crankbait he says you want everything to flex and stretch. When a fish makes a run you want the rod to be very flexible. I always look forward to Fleming’s famous Dutch oven lunches. The day’s meal consisted of chicken, rice, stuffing, baked beans and apple sauce. It sure beats a cold sandwich on a chilly day. Later in the afternoon Fleming usually treats anglers to desserts such as apple cobbler or strawberry shortcake. Nothing like roughing it on the river. Fleming probably knows the river better than anyone since he’s been down it over 2,000 times. He puts the boat in the position where you want to be and gets you to that spot quietly so you can maximize the amount of fish you can get out of a certain hole. “It’s rare to find a fishery as healthy and well cared for as the John Day,” Brown notes. “This is due to the stewardship and strict catch-and-release practices of Steve Fleming and his guides. They really pride themselves on taking care of each and every fish.” Fleming offers a number of reasons for liking the John Day River. “Number one, there aren’t that many people who use it. We always have a quality experience when we’re out on the water. The river offers big fish, which are catchable in numbers. For those folks who are new to fishing and come in July, August and September, they will catch 50 to 100 fish apiece per day. What other body of water offers this?” NS

60 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

FISHING

A hefty Klamath River rainbow awaits release. (TROY RODAKOWSKI)

70 Top Oregon Fisheries From the coast to Cascades to the eastern corners, there’s a hot spot near you this month. By Troy Rodakowski

here is the best fishing in June? Easy, here we have nearly six dozen top places in Oregon for June and July, and it’s likely that one of ‘em near you is worth a visit. With Free Fishing Weekend and the end of school coming up, throw ice in the coolers, pack the picnic basket, put some fresh line on those fishing rods, and let’s head out!

NORTHWEST Big Creek Reservoirs: On the north side of Newport, these two skinny lakes will have been stocked with over 30,000 trout by early June. There’s plenty of bank access on the north shore of both, and a rough ramp at the upper lake, but at the lower, you’ll have to wrestle your watercraft over the rail. Devils Lake: This Lincoln County water is a good place for float tube fishermen looking for a few adiposefin-clipped trout. Flies and small lures are the ticket. Lost Lake: A rare lake tucked away

in the Coast Range, Lost seems to be growing in popularity and is regularly stocked in spring, including 2,000 slated for the first week of June. Floating baits fished off bottom and assorted spinners should produce. South Yamhill River: Rainbow trout are released throughout spring from Gold Creek Road Bridge to Willamina. Much of the river is paralleled by roads with turnouts where anglers can park and fish, but be wary not to trespass on private lands. Vernonia Pond: Regularly stocked with rainbows in spring – 11,000 since March – this pond in a city park has nice pathways accessible to wheelchairs. Bobber fishing or casting spinners work best. There are also good numbers of bluegill, crappie and bass. Cleawox Lake: I remember fishing this Florence-area lake as a small kid and it greatly contributed to my lifelong addiction to fishing. By early June nearly 20,000 rainbows will have been stocked. Look for them in deeper water during June and July. In addition, Cleawox has good numbers of crappie, bluegill, bass and perch.

Other waters I recommend this month include Coffenbury, Hebo and Siltcoos Lakes, the Trask and Alsea Rivers, and Lobster Creek.

WILLAMETTE Willamette River: I love this river because there are so many places to access it – parks and boat launches for family outings and hikes – and some good native trout fishing. Rainbows and cutthroat are found here. While bait is restricted in many locations, lures and flies work quite well. McKenzie River: Several thousand trout are scatter-planted in the famed river’s upper and lower reaches, with best access and scenery along Highway 126 from Springfield to Blue River. Fall Creek: East of Springfield on Highway 58 near Dexter, ODFW stocks legal-sized rainbows into the creek and reservoir from April through June. Bait and spinners work well here and fly anglers seem to find better success as the season progresses. St. Louis Ponds: Located near Gervais, these seven ponds hold good JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 61

FISHING numbers of bluegill, crappie, bass, sunfish and catfish, and Pond 3 is stocked with trout, including nearly 10,000 so far this spring. There are also trails and picnic tables that are handicapped accessible. Detroit Lake: East of Salem and being stocked with over 100,000 legal rainbows through early fall, boat anglers do quite well here trolling flashers and worms or corn for trout and kokanee, but jigs and lures work well when fished deep. There are also many parks and day-use areas with good pathways to hike and fish worms from the bank. By late summer, anglers may want to focus their efforts near cooler water at the mouth of the North Santiam. Timothy Lake: Kokanee are among the attractions at this lake up near Government Camp, but plentiful numbers of rainbows are stocked (16,500 so far this year) and you may also catch good-sized brook trout and cutthroat. There are several small campgrounds too. Other top spots include the North and South Santiam Rivers, Foster and Green Peter Reservoirs, Alton Baker Canoe Canal, and Henry Hagg and the Freeway Lakes.

SOUTHWEST Diamond Lake: One of the most popular bodies of water in Southern Oregon, if not the entire state, this lake boasts fat rainbow. Boaters fair best and troll spinners and lures, or work flies off feeder streams, but some lunkers are caught from the bank. Surrounded by campgrounds, Diamond is most definitely a great place to camp, fish and spend a few days. Klamath, Williamson Rivers: These Klamath Falls bucket-list streams boast some of the world’s best native trout fishing. Trout here grow to enormous size and can be caught on flies, spinners and bait, though beware of special regulations. Emigrant Creek, Lake: This Jackson County system is open year-round for trout and is well worth visiting for ad62 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

venture and fun. Good numbers of trout are stocked – 8,500 since March – but ODFW recommends only keeping adipose-clipped fish due to high mercury warnings. Lemolo Reservoir: Great views and good numbers of stocker trout make this Cascade lake a favorite getaway. There are several campgrounds and launches nearby, along with convenient food, bait and tackle shops. Tenmile Lakes: Considered one of Oregon’s premier warmwater fisheries, these two lakes with over 2,700 acres of fishable space boast excellent numbers of perch, bluegill, crappie and bass. Lures, flies and bait are all allowed here, and in the last couple months over 12,000 trout have been stocked, but beware of special retention rules for the species. I also recommend Denman Wildlife Area Ponds, Selmac Lake, Elk River, Jenny Creek (restricted to artificial flies and lures) and the Umpqua.

HIGH DESERT Metolius, Deschutes Rivers: Two premier opportunities for experienced fly fishermen who pursue good numbers of large redside and brown trout. By June, it’s important to match the hatch: Nymphs, mayflies, blue-winged olives, midges and Wooly Buggers in different colors and patterns seem to be quite popular. East Lake: At the back end of the Newberry Crater, this lake offers premium fishing for trout, which are stocked regularly, including 10,000 in mid-May. Atlantic salmon and kokanee are also found here. Trolling from a boat or fishing dough bait or Velveeta off the bottom work best. Crooked River: Scenic views, prime fly fishing, and several campgrounds and day-use areas await on this river east of Prineville. Caddisflies, mayflies and various nymphs work best. Most fish are in deep pockets near bank edges. Expect to wade. Mann Lake: Only stocked biannually, this 200-acre lake southwest of Burns is restricted to flies and lures.

Most fish prefer scuds and nymphs, especially in summer as waters warm. North, South Twin Lakes: Unlike other Central Oregon lakes, the best thing about the Twins is that fishing is fine near shoreline. Stocked with 9- to 15-inch rainbows – 10,000 by midJune – eggs, marshmallow and dough bait fished off the bottom work best. Other good spots in this fishy region include the Chewaucan and Owyhee Rivers, Lake of the Woods and Prineville Reservoir.

NORTHEAST Wallowa Lake: Home to the worldrecord kokanee and second-to-none views of the Eagle Caps, fishing for landlocked salmon remains good through July. There are also strong numbers of rainbows – 13,000 legals and 500 trophies by the end of June – and fishing from the bank with spinners or bait works best. Camping and a resort are available on the large lake. Weaver Pond: But if you like your fish a little more concentrated, this small pond near the town of Wallowa may be for you. It is stocked from April through July; bobbers with bait and spinners are the choice here. McNary Channel Ponds: By the week of June 2, these six ponds in a wildlife area just below McNary Dam will have seen over 15,000 legal and 900 trophy trout put in this year. John Day River: Traversing several counties, the John Day provides excellent smallmouth bass, trout and steelhead fishing for fly and boat anglers side drifting or pulling plugs. Bull Prairie Reservoir: This Grant County impoundment is a very good brook trout fishery. Most folks have success with jigs and flies during the evening. Other prospects include Morgan and Jubilee Lakes, the Imnaha River and McKay Creek. No matter where you choose to fish, pack comfortable clothes and mosquito repellant, check the regs before you go, and enjoy your time outdoors with friends and family. NS

64 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

COLUMNS

An A-to-Z Guide For Free Fishin’ Weekend W

ashingt o n ’s Free Fishing Weekend is June 7-8. This is WIESTSIDER the one time By Terry Wiest each year when angling licenses are not required of anyone to fish, crab and clam. The state has such a vast array of prospects that it’s sometimes hard to choose what to do. So, I’m here to give you an A-to-Z rundown of just some of the Westside opportunities to check out.

await in local lakes, summer steelhead are returning up the Sky, and bass and other species going too.

reen Lake ain’t just for walking around! Trout, carp and catfish all cruise along its shoreline. Throw a worm out under a bobber and see what you come up with, or rent a rowboat ($18) an hour and troll up a limit. If the fishing’s slow, you can’t beat the people watching!

alibut will be open off Sekiu. While only a one-day opener, what an opportunity! Fish around Pillar Point and you have a chance at a barn door.

lwaco hosts fishing off the jetty and beach, and this South Coast town will also be a port of call for the Tall Ships this weekend.

merican Lake kokanee and rainbows should be abundant and ready to play. Troll a small dodger, Wedding Ring and Pautzke Fire Corn combo in the early hours for the landlocked sockeye, or if you arrive later in the morning at the Tacoma-area lake, still-fish for the trout.

assy Alder Lake has nice populations of largemouth and smallmouth that seem to come alive in June. If you want to experience some great fishing, give this Nisqually River reservoir a try.

arp fishing’s most popular spot in the state just might be Vancouver Lake. There are so many here there’s actually a commercial fishery for them. Anglers use worms, heck, even Cheetos.

ick Nite spoons are among the ultimate trout lures, as the editor recently reconfirmed with his boys at Green Lake (see listing below). Just tie a wee, 0 or size 1 50/50 18 inches behind

G stands for Green Lake, where the Brothers Walgamott beat up on ’bows and “totally crushed” their daddy, the boat rower, last month, and which will continue to produce this month. (ANDY WALGAMOTT) a barrel swivel and you’re in business. Early in the morning before the sun comes out will be your best opportunity. Remember to go ultra slow. This is a “wobble” spoon, not a spinner.

dmonds Public Fishing Pier provides a chance to catch a few different species. Toss out a Buzz Bomb and you might hook a Chinook – many are caught here each year. Perch and even lingcod also populate these waters.

ish! That’s right, just get out there and do it! Tons and tons of trout

ackson Lake, on the Key Peninsula, and many other waters should still offer some good numbers of stocked rainbow trout through the first week of June. Floating baits with worms off bottom becomes a better and better bet as waters warm.

ings off Westport in the early season are becoming more and more popular. Book a charter for the year’s first chance at an ocean Chinook – this should be an incredible season.

ingcod still lurk on Puget Sound’s ample collection of rocky areas, breakers and reefs (see hot spot listing below).

ountain troutin’ begins in earnest this month as highland snows melt and alpine waters thaw. Lace up and head out, er, up! JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 65

COLUMNS

orthern pikeminnow could make you some money this weekend. Check out pikeminnow.org for all the details.

ysters on the half shell sound tempting? Check out wdfw.wa.gov’s Shellfish page for open beaches, and head out!

pringers and summer steelhead can both be had at Barrier Dam on the Cowlitz. Float fishing either eggs or sandshrimp should garner most of the action. A word of caution: This is combat fishing at its best. There will be plenty of fish, but with that comes plenty of company.

ine Lake, a sweet little water perfect for those wishing to fish from a dock or maybe kick around in a float tube, is prime for trout the first week of June. Bass and perch are also available. uit after Free Fishing Weekend? Heck, no! Angling can be enjoyed yearround. This might be your only opportunity to give it a shot, but hang in there, it’s a lifetime of opportunities.

eiter Ponds will be among the best (and only spots) in Puget Sound for steelhead. Floats and jigs are good on this Skykomish terminal fishery, but side-drifting below the Wallace could net a king too.

66 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

iger musky are known as the fish of a thousand casts, but they’re also the longest freshwater specimen you could catch on Free Fishing Weekend. How long? Try 4 feet at Merwin, Tapps and Mayfield. V coating is the bomb for not only lures, but bait – as in Pautzke Balls O’ Fire with UV. Try ’em out on any of the trout fisheries mentioned here.

ashon Island could be among the best places in Puget Sound for lings. Look for rocky spots in the 60- to 90-foot range. Live bait – sand dabs or sculpins – will be your best bet, but jigs or swimbaits can work as well.

ashington, as in that lake between Shoreline and Renton, hosts monster trout, as well as perch, bass and numerous other species. Hit it early before the afternoon wind and water sports fanatics arrive.

X Y

2 Flashers and a spoon should be fishon for those early kings off Westport.

ellow perch are abundant in Westside lakes, but highest concentrations occur in Sammamish, Washington, American and Sawyer. They’re super-easy to catch too. Start out with a worm or a white crappie jig. Once you catch the first, fillet it up and use small pieces of meat to catch the rest.

ebco-style rod and reels are a great way to introduce our future generations to fishing. They’re cheap and probably have landed more first fish than any other setup. So there you go, a sampling of fisheries you can enjoy for free. If you get hooked, most of these are open the rest of the month. Just be sure to get a license. It’ll be worth it! NS

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Port Of Call

Heceta Head looks out over an ocean teeming with fishing opportunities this summer. (ANDY WALGAMOTT)

Your guide to the bounty and beauty of the Pacific from the northern tip of Vancouver Island south to the California border.

By Jeff Holmes

cean fishing season 2014 is set to be a record beaker from Brookings, Ore., to Port Hardy, British Columbia, and if you haven’t made plans yet to fish the Pacific or its estuaries, time’s a wasting! Rooms are filling up, RV spaces are being claimed, and seats are filling on American and Canadian charters. Fisheries managers from both nations are calling for epic returns of Chinook, sockeye, and coho this summer. Salmon anglers from the Columbia north will be fishing over record-breaking runs predicted for

the Fraser and Columbia. To the south, another impressive plug of Oregon and California-bound Chinook will provide similarly impressive fishing on the Oregon Coast. But don’t overlook other opportunities. Bottomfish stocks are excellent to stable up and down the coast after much needed restrictions were put in 70 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

place to conserve stocks and to provide the excellent fishing that charter operators are seeing in all ports, especially for black rockfish and lingcod. With spring seasons largely behind us in the States, most halibut opportunities during summer and fall are limited to Canadian waters. Bonus halibut, lings, and yelloweye are a major draw

for anglers who travel north to fish the Salmon Highway down the continental shelf along Vancouver Island. But anglers who stay closer to home in 2014 can expect lots of bang for their buck in America and much easier access than those looking north to the big island’s west coast. Folks thinking about a Canadian adventure would be

FISHING wise to plan well ahead, calculate costs, and make sure their trip is a success and everything they want it to be. Research is key to make sure you’re fishing with a reputable operation in one of the island’s world-class destinations.

VANCOUVER ISLAND Salmon fishing is pretty darn good down here in the States these days while the exchange rate has been less than good for the last few years. As such, fewer Americans have been showing up to Canadian lodges and sportfishing charters, but that may be changing. With an alleged uptick in our economy and an exchange rate trending in a very good direction (sorry, border-crossing BC shoppers), traveling to Vancouver Island is a cheaper alternative to a trip to Alaska or the Queen Charlottes. At a fraction of the cost and with much easier travel involved, you can experience the wildlife and grandeur of the rugged Pacific Coast and return home with unbelievable poundages of salmon, halibut, lingcod and rockfish – even tuna. To maximize your experience and stretch your travel dollar, it’s important to do the research to understand the current state of fisheries around the island before booking trips. Here’s an overview that should have you looking north. Despite the resurgence in Chinook numbers on the Columbia, our fishing can’t quite equal the riches along the Salmon Highway slicing down Vancouver Island’s rugged western shore. Panning from the central island to its northern tip, this coast is home to five major protected sounds – Barkley, Clayoquot, Nootka, Kyuquot, and Quatsino – and a handful of fishing ports and remote lodges. The island’s offshore fishing grounds play host to all five salmon species, including prolific numbers of mature Chinook bound for river systems throughout the Northwest, including the Fraser and Columbia. In fall, giant northern coho slash into the scene, and tuna feed as close to shore as 17 miles in places. Halibut, lingcod, and

rockfish angling is excellent and gets progressively better further north. Even with tightened fishing regulations over the years, Canadian possession limits are such to allow Americans to go home with gaudy poundages of fish.

Central Island: Tofino-Ucluelet; Bamfield-Nootka Barkley Sound on the island’s central coast is home to the Broken Islands Group, a confederation of small timbered islands that harbor wolves, bears, blacktails, and kayakers from around the world. While some excellent seasonal fishing opportunities exist here and inside Clayoquot and Nootka Sounds, most protected waters here are under tighter restrictions compared to nearby offshore waters, which are also home to more and larger fish. Two ports flank Barkley Sound – Bamfield on the south and Ucluelet on the north – and both offer similar access to strong offshore fishing grounds for migrating and resident salmon, halibut, albacore, and lingcod and rockfish. The same is true for the port of Tofino, which stands at the south entrance to Clayoquot Sound, another famous kayaking destination. Bottomfishing improves the further north one travels up Vancouver Island’s west coast due to rockier habitat and less fishing pressure, but a trip to Tofino, Ucluelet or Bamfield should still yield limits of rockfish and lings for anyone targeting them with a guide. Halibut are easier to come by, with plentiful specimens averaging 20 to 30 pounds. Many guides and local anglers merely troll up their halibut while salmon fishing on Canadian standard-issue Scotty Electric Downriggers, trailed by 11-inch rotating flashers and spoons, squids, hoochies, or helmeted anchovies. Salmon are the bread and butter out of both ports. Vast schools of stocks from around the Northwest swim by daily, and generous limits allow anglers to retain separate bags of Chinook and coho, and getting limits is usually the rule during summer. Coho increase in size through the season, and huge specimens show with fall. Some anglers

have learned to catch the plentiful sockeye as they move toward the Fraser; 23 million are expected this year. Salmon fishing is excellent outside of Barkley and Clayoquot, but the quality of both salmon angling and bottomfishing improves as you travel north to more remote, less pressured, and more rocky waters off of Nootka Sound. Tucked back in a deep fjord into Nootka Sound is the small port of Tahsis, which provides access to lodges around the sound. Rodger’s Fishing Lodge (rodgersfishinglodge.com) is one of the best and the closest to the fishing grounds, and it’s only a 45-minute boat ride or a short seaplane ride. Rodger’s invites guests to bring their own boats or to be picked up to fish in lodge boats with guides. Why is fishing here so good? Location, location, location. Tucked in sheltered water on the north end of Nootka Island, it’s a 5- to 10-minute run to the open ocean from the dock. Those fishing grounds receive very little pressure and are all but off-limits except during the summer calms. Several excellent fishing outposts exist between Nootka, Kyuquot, and Quatsino sounds, but do your homework if you go to a remote, all-inclusive lodge. A 5-star rating and 60-plus reviews with TripAdvisor suggests Rodger’s is a best bet on the central west coast of the island, and it’s 17 miles from the tuna grounds.

North Island: Port Hardy, Port McNeil, Winter Harbour Northern Vancouver Island offers arguably the best saltwater fishing available within a day’s very long drive and a ferry ride from Portland or Seattle. Only a handful of ports and remote lodges apply fishing pressure, and commercial traffic is light as well. Fishing for halibut, lingcod, deepwater rockfish, and all salmon species is excellent from June through fall, and exceptionally large lings, halibut, and yelloweye rockfish stand out, as do amazing numbers of Chinook and northern coho. From late spring through summer, the island is resplendent with solitude, scenery, and salmon. North of CampJUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 71

FISHING An angler looks out over Nootka Sound, on central Vancouver Island. Thick bibs like Grundens not only keep the rain off your clothes, but fishy smells. (RODGERS FISHING LODGE)

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Port Hardy Orange Tabby Bed and Breakfast, orangetabbybb.com

bell River, toothy predators outnumber people, and weather is typically the only deterrent to fantastic chartered or private fishing. Port Hardy and Port McNeil are the only outposts of any size; however, the former is closer to choice fishing grounds and has a more developed harbor and infrastructure. All-inclusive lodges, six-pack charters, and do-it-yourself options exist here, though even careful research likely won’t reveal how remote and uncrowded this part of the northern island really is. Booking with an outfitter is very wise here to get on the fish and to get a sense for safe fishing areas. The island’s notoriously dangerous waters are

ONE HOT HARBOUR Perhaps the shiniest gem of northern Vancouver Island is Winter Harbour and its surrounding offshore waters. The harbor is a safe haven from the nearby open ocean on the island’s extreme northwest coastline at the mouth of Quatsino Sound. The remoteness of the fishery and the subsequent abundance and size of fish is impressive to say the least, as is the tiny port’s little store, The Outpost, where you can mail a letter or package, eat a meal, fill your gas tanks, buy a bottle of Cana72 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

Ecoscape Cabins, ecoscapecabins.com Quatse River Campground, thesalmoncentre.org Starfishcharters.com Nobullcharters.com Serengetifishingcharters.com

Winter Harbour Qualicum Rivers Winter Harbour Fishing Lodge and Resort, qualicumrivers.com The Outpost, winterharbour.ca

dotted with 200 years of shipwrecks, and storms mostly preclude ocean fishing from late fall through late spring.

WASHINGTON South Coast: Ilwaco, Westport From Ilwaco at the Columbia River’s mouth stretching north to Westport at the entrance to Grays Harbor, Washington’s popular southern coast is home to long, sandy beaches with abundant access to the ocean. The beaches offer the best razor clamming in the Northwest from fall through spring, but during summer, sportsmen’s attention turns to Ilwaco and Westport, the two dian whiskey, and drink it on-site. Erika and I did this with our guides from Qualicum Rivers Winter Harbour Fishing Lodge and Resort last summer after three intense days of fishing, a trip I wrote about in last August’s issue. Our load of fish was so conspicuous that we were hassled by Canadians for “poaching,” asked at the border why our truck was tilted backwards and leaking fluid, and forced to rent a trailer in order to complete the journey. If you go, FYI: several hundred pounds of rockfish, halibut, giant lings, coho, and big Chinook do not fit in a regular-cab Toyota Tacoma with

access points to the ocean. The beaches on the South Coast offer crabbing and surf perch all summer via hook and line, but the popular fishing action is on the open Pacific. Onshore are tourist attractions to keep the family entertained. From June through the end of summer, ocean salmon fishing should be excellent. With impressive catch quotas set for Chinook and coho, Westport and Ilwaco – especially easy-to-get-to Westport – will draw big numbers of anglers. Westport is home to the biggest charter fleet in the Northwest, featuring everything from new and modernized party boats to small, express-style charters. Plenty of options exist to the south in the Port of Ilwaco too. Most boats in both harbors specialize in salmon and bottomfish, and black sea bass and lingcod make up the bulk of the latter catch. Both ports enjoy short-but-extremelyproductive halibut seasons each spring. Increasingly, attention is turning to the well-established albacore fishery out of both ports. For many years, fish have come within a relatively short run of the coastline, usually within 40 miles. Tuna fishing out of Ilwaco and Westport begins to get good in late July and reaches its peak in late summer, just as most anglers turn their attention inland. Beginning in August with the opening of the Buoy 10 fishery, more anglers begin trekking to Ilwaco as more Columbia Chinook show through the month. Some anglers try to bundle tuna trips with their annual trips to Buoy 10. Those who do learn quickly to invest in giant coolers.

Summer at Winter Harbour provided for Andy Lusk of Bothell, Wash., last season. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

two adults, two dogs, and a week of gear. –JH

2014 Derby Report t Westpor he Westport Charterboat Association has been sponsoring fishing derbies for over 50 years now. In the early years they covered a weekend. Today, the derby is on every day of the season! Before and after salmon season, the derby is operated on a weekly basis. A cash prize up to $500, equivalent to half the derby ticket sales proceeds for the week, is paid out for the biggest lingcod, blackcod, or cabezon of the week. During the halibut directed season, the halibut prize is a $500 daily prize with a $10 ticket. The

Jim Lang

Chris Ivey

lingcod derby continues weekly. During the salmon season the derby is operated on a daily basis with prizes up to $500 for the largest salmon and a weekly prize of up to $500 for the largest lingcod of the week. An annual prize of $2,500 is paid out for the largest Chinook salmon, $1,500 for the largest coho salmon and lingcod, $1,000 each is paid out for the largest halibut, and albacore tuna. There is also a $1,000 prize for the largest Chinook in July and a $1,000 prize for the largest Chinook in August. Derby entry is only $5 and tickets are sold at every charter service and at the derby booth. When you check in, ask for more specific details. Derby ticket purchases are limited to people fishing on licensed charter boats. Derby proceeds are split between prizes and funding the association. Northwest Sportsman will profile all of the Westport derby winners throughout the season here in the magazine and on nwsportsmanmag.com. When you fish at Westport this summer, be sure to enter so you have a chance at prizes and seeing yourself profiled here in the magazine!

Edward Vickers

Scott Sherman

Upper right: This 33-pound, 7-ounce lingcod provided a nice payday for CHRIS IREY for the week of May 10. The Renton angler scored $500 from the Westport Charterboat Association as the winner of their weekly bottomfish derby. He was out on the Ms Magoo with Capt. Dave McGowan. Above, top to bottom: Local angler JIM LANG scored half the $500 pot in the Westport Charterboat Association’s May 11 halibut derby with this 44-pounder. He was fishing aboard the Sea Angel with Capt. Brian Mirante. Vancouver’s EDWARD VICKERS was victorious on the May 6 halibut opener. His 50-pounder was good for $500 as the Westport Charterboat Association’s top flattie of the day. Vickers was fishing on the charterboat Freedom with Capt. Chuck Custer. It’s a long haul from SCOTT SHERMAN’s home to Westport, but the Sultan angler’s 44pounder made the drive all the better — and paid for the gas too. As the May 11 Westport Charterboat Association cowinner, it scored him $250. He was fishing on the Fury, skippered by Capt. Mike Harris. (WESTPORT CHARTERBOAT ASSOCIATION, ALL)

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JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 73

FISHING saltwater fishing riches. From the ports of Astoria and Warrenton at the mouth of the Columbia to Brookings near the California border, this coast is a sportsman’s paradise with diverse fishing (and hunting) opportunities in protected bays and offshore waters. Fishing and crabbing in 2014 should be excellent

North Coast: La Push, Neah Bay Compared to ports further south, the northern Washington Coast is remote and notably lacks boardwalks, abundant saltwater taffy, and quick access from major population centers. Apologies to any business on these shores specializing in taffy or boardwalk construction, but the small North Coast ports of La Push and Neah Bay are best visited for their quaintness, impressive scenery and excellent salmon and bottomfishing. Lodging, camping, and supply options exist in the ports themselves, and nearby towns like Forks (only 15 miles to tiny La Push), Sequim, and Port Angeles offer the closest alternatives. If you decide to visit the northwesternmost extension of the Lower 48 this summer, prepare yourself for what might be the best and most overlooked ocean salmon fishing in the conterminous US. Neah Bay anglers have the opportunity to ambush salmon stocks from just about everywhere, including the Fraser, Puget Sound and Columbia Rivers. Chinook fishing is exceptionally strong in Neah and La Push, and last year saw long seasons and healthy limits of two Chinook for much of the summer. Anglers in 2014 should expect similar. Coho fishing is also very good, with fish running close to shore and offering small-boat anglers plenty of opportunity. Neah Bay is especially friendly to small boats due to wind-protected waters just out of the harbor behind Waddah Island. Both ports offer abundant black rockfish and good opportunities for lingcod all summer. The bottom here is far rockier and easier to read for anglers lacking top-of-the-line saltwater electronics. Similarly, there are more bottomfishing ops close to lands

OREGON The sandy beaches and rocky headlands of the most visited coastline in the Northwest stand out in the memories of many. The Oregon Coast attracts people from almost all walks of life, including scads of anglers seeking fresh- and 74 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

North Coast: Astoria-Warrenton, Wheeler, Garibaldi, Pacific City, Depoe Bay, Newport Waves break against Olympic National Park’s Rialto Beach, near La Push. (OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK)

WASH. CONTACTS Neah Bay Jambo’s Sportfishing, jambossportfishing.com The Cape Motel and RV Park, (360) 645-2250 Hobuck Beach Resort, hobuckbeachresort.com

La Push (and Forks) All-Ways Fishing, allwaysfishing.com Pacific Inn Motel, pacificinnmotel.com Forks Motel, forksmotel.com Dew Drop Inn, dewdropinnmotel.com

Westport Westport Charterboat Association, charterwestport.com Deep Sea Charters, deepseacharters.net Gold Rush Charters, goldrushcharters.com Ocean Charters, oceansportfishing.com All-Rivers and Saltwater Charters, allriversguideservice.com Breakers Boutique Inn, breakersboutiqueinn.com Vacations by the Sea, vacationbythesea.com Chateau Westport, chateauwestport.com The Islander Motel and Halfmoon Bay Bar and Grill, westport-islander.com Westport-Grayland Chamber, westportgrayland-chamber.org

Ilwaco Ilwaco Charter Association, ilwacofishingcharters.com Pacific Salmon Charters, pacificsalmoncharters.com

The ports of Astoria and Warrenton see most of their angling traffic during August and early September – the frenetic Buoy 10 fishery – but bottomfish charters also operate here at the mouth of the Columbia. That fishery for black rockfish and lingcod is primarily good in spring and early summer, and then attention turns to ocean salmon and also tuna fishing over the storied waters of the Astoria Canyon. The madness of Buoy 10 contrasts sharply with the next major fishery to the south, Nehalem Bay. Here anglers enjoy very productive estuary salmon and crab fishing, but the ocean bar beyond the “jaws” of the bay is one of the worst and most unpredictable in the Northwest. Private boaters and a small handful of guides ply the productive waters outside the bay when conditions allow, but salmon fishing can be hot inside beginning in midsummer, when crabbing begins to turn on. The Port of Garibaldi is undergoing a much-needed grant-funded renovation, but that work on this popular and beautiful Tillamook Bay ocean port won’t affect access nor anyone’s vacation plans this summer. With lots of accommodations in nearby Tillamook and in the port town itself, Garibaldi is one of Oregon’s best coastal fishing bets. The protected waters of the bay offer a productive and popular recreational crab fishery as well as strong clam beds. During late spring and early summer, spring Chinook enter the bay, and fall fish begin to show up during mid- to late summer. Outside, Garibaldi anglers can expect excellent bottomfishing for rockfish, lingcod, greenling, and cabezon as well as near-shore halibut opportunities

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FISHING THE FRIENDLIES The waters off Lincoln City offer excellent bottomfishing, but with no port in the popular tourist town, boaters run from the tiny-but-bustling harbor of Depoe Bay. Charters and private anglers also target halibut and salmon here, as they do 22 miles down the coast in Newport. The much larger harbor in Yaquina Bay is home to a large sport and commercial fishing fleet and a wealth of tourist destinations. Vacationers from around the world flock here, and it can get crowded during a busy summer weekend. Luckily, the ultimate escape exists nearby in the form of the open Pacific, where anglers pursue salmon, bottomfish, halibut, and tuna. Inside the bay, crabbing and salmon fishing can be excellent from late summer into fall. Newport offers great fishing close to attractions and services that can attract nonfishing family members to town too. â&#x20AC;&#x201C;JH

76 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

along with tightly regulated offshore flatsider opportunities. Tuna come within 20 miles of Garibaldi at times. Just south near the mouth of the Nestucca River sits Pacific City, home to the most unique fleet and best near shore fishery on the Oregon Coast. A small suculture of commercial and sport anglers launch ocean dories into the surf here when conditions allow, and fishing is typically excellent.

ORE. CONTACTS Astoria Astoria Fishing Charters, astoriafishing.com

Nehalem Bay Wheeler Marina, wheelermarina.net

Garibaldi/Tillamook Harborview Inn and RV Park, harborviewfun.com

Depoe Bay Dockside Charters, docksidedepoebay.com

Newport South Coast: Charleston, Brookings Increasing numbers of Northwest sportsmen chase tuna out of every port these days â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from the Queen Charlottes to California. Among all of those fisheries, the Port of Charleston at the mouth of Coos Bay leads the pack for sheer numbers caught, and for good reason. The offshore waters are favored feeding grounds, and albacore sometimes come very close to shore. Last year was an odd year, with fish running between 20 to 40 miles out, but some

Yaquina Bay Charters, yaquinabaycharters.com

Charleston Charleston Marina, charlestonmarina.com Betty Kay Charters, bettykaycharters.com

Brookings Charthousesportfish.com Wildriversfishing.com (Sept.-April) Port of Brookings Harbor: port-brookings-harbor.com Brookings Chamber: brookingsharborchamber.com

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FISHING seasons see tuna as close as 10. Most anglers here troll, but some jig metal or cast swimbaits to entice 20-mph strikes and 50-mph runs from these warmblooded fighting machines. Bottomfishing and salmon fishing are excellent as well. With protections in place from overexploitation, lingcod stocks are doing very well, and charter operators see specimens between 30 and 40 pounds every year. The dominant rockfish are blacks, but Chinas, vermillions, blues, tigers, yellowtail and other Pacific rockfish species are caught here as well. Reefs are close to shore, making for short runs to and from the grounds. The first salmon of the year is typically taken on a May rockfishing trip, signaling the return of mature Chinook to the waters off Charleston. As of this May writing, fish were already being incidentally caught. Specimens average 10 to 20 pounds, with some much larger. Chinook angling has been excel-

78 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

lent out of Charleston and is predicted to be again this year. Opportunities for coho are a little tougher, but marked fish are available in July alongside their brawnier, black-mouthed cousins. Coos

Bay itself is good for crabbing from midsummer all the way through fall, and estuary salmon fishing turns on as fall Chinook make their way into the bay beginning late in summer. CS

SUTH'N COMFORT

ings is a bustling commercial and charter port with strong sport fisheries for Dungeness, lingcod, rockfish, and kings. Throughout summer, Sacramento-bound Chinook feed heavily in front of Brookings, and fishing is typically very good to excellent for fish averaging 18 to 24 pounds. As summer progresses, fall Chinook bound for the Chetco, Winchuck, Smith and other local rivers begin to show up, but fishing over Labor Day typically marks the end of the ocean season – with one exception. The State of Oregon manages the early October “Chetco Bubble” fishery inside of a 3mile-diameter fishing area. Here, anglers target huge kings in the salt before they enter local rivers. With fish size declining seemingly everywhere, these fish legitimately average 28 to 35 pounds, and a few top 50 almost every year. –JH

Brookings is the furthest-south ocean port in Oregon and the home to the Northwest’s best coastal weather, calmest seas, and biggest Chinook. With less precipitation and more sunshine than other ports, Brookings’ mild weather allows yearround access to the ocean. Though tucked well away from most Northwest population centers, a dedicated stream of anglers venture south for what is arguably the state’s best bottomfishing and trophy salmon and steelhead fishing. The famous Chetco River enters Chetco Bay at Brookings and draws a run of the largest Chinook in the Northwest, though they don’t arrive until summer’s end. From June through August, Brook-

JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 79

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80 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

COLUMNS

When The Surf Perch Don’t Bite knew, somewhere in my mind, that I really should not be fishing right now. The wind was blowing the snow into drifts, then the drifts were IN THE WILD By Randy King being covered with sand and then snow, sand, snow, forming a mesmerizing layer-cake pattern that my hip wader boots punched holes through. Meanwhile, the slowly receding tide was freezing, the ice crunching as I walked further down the beach and cast my gear into the ocean. I do not make it to the coast often, so I needed to take advantage of this surf perch fishing opportunity. Why? Because I have never caught one. Like ever. Seriously, never. Embarrassing, right? This boney little fish of the Pacific has become my nemesis, my white whale. Frankly, I am at a loss to explain why I can’t seem to land this bluegill of the sea. I watch people fill 5-gallon buckets by merely tossing out little hunks of clam and sand shrimp that look no different from my bait. Fishing is one of my strong points as an outdoorsman; I know when to set the hook. I have fished for surf perch during low tide, high tide, slack tide, hot weather, rain storms and now snow storms. Snow storms – on the beach! I thought I’d catch a surf perch before I ever saw snow literally on the Oregon Coast. The one saving grace about my perch deficit is that it seems that I can catch everything else that swims near the shore. To date, I have caught the following species off Northern California and Central Oregon: bream, grouper, mackerel, like 10 types of rockfish, lingcod, Dungeness crab, red crab, greenling, and one ugly SOB I could not identify so I tossed it back. Almost all of these species are great eating. The only one that is questionable is mackerel, which is a fishy-fish. Some say that all mackerel is good for is cat food. I disagree; it also makes wonderful bait and exceptional sushi.

CHEF

OVER THE YEARS of not catching surf perch I have come up with a three golden rules. If I follow these rules (I nearly always compulsively do) I can almost guarantee myself a deficit of surf perch.

The author and son try their hand at catching surf perch, an abundant species up and down the Northwest Coast, but somehow elusive to the Boise-area residents. (RANDY KING)

Rule No. 1: Fish Near the Rocks Being an inland fisherman I have a habit of looking for structure when I fish. The idea of simply casting off the sand out into the surf is hard for me to swallow. I assume that fish want something to hide behind or near or whatever, just like my lake fish and river trout. But as I have learned, surf perch have no fascination with this structure. They instead live in that little trough that is formed by the waves digging a small hole in the sandy bottom. This trough stirs up all sorts of critters and sends them floating into the deep blue sea. The surf perch eat those little crabs and clams. For a fisherman, then, the goal, or so I am told, is to cast a hunk of meat into the trough and hope that a perch strikes. If you want to pretend to be perch fishing, you should fish near rock outcroppings or off jetties. What I do is cast out into the surf, simply guessing where the trough is, and with every intention that a surf perch will bite. Then I slowly retrieve my line towards the rocks. I feel more comfortable this way, even if it is totally wrong. Fishing this way will almost certainly land you something other than a perch.

Rule No. 2: Don’t Poke Pole In a fit of boredom during low tide I started dropping my bait into deep-looking holes in one of Yaquina Bay’s jetties. Craziest part – I caught a bunch of fish. Only later did I find out that this is a honest-to-goodness technique, a less refined version at least of “poke-polling.” The basics of this fishing method are simple – shove bait into the face of an otherwise unbothered fish. The real key to success is constant movement and hole selection. Basically, if something doesn’t bite in the first few seconds, switch loca-

tions. Just keep bumping down the jetty or rocks looking for a fish to bite. One morning I caught seven in under an hour. I tossed all but one back, but it was a great way to kill a little time wishing a perch would bite. For better success, only drop the bait into deep holes, specifically ones where you can’t see bottom. As far as set-up, I use the typical surf perch rig: drop shot with two hooks coming off the main line. I use clam, squid, shrimp or artificial nightcrawler. At Newport, the most common species you’ll catch poke polling will be greenling. I hear that along the coast of Northern California you catch monkey-faced eels – not a bad option when the surf perch refuse to bite.

Rule No. 3: Don’t Judge The Man Fishing A Bobber Look, bobbers and jigs work. Just not on surf perch. What I do is set up a ½-ounce head on one of those big red bobbers from Kmart, maybe about 4 feet of line between the two. Then I’ll cast along the rocks and slowly retrieve. I have nailed the heck out of some rockfish this way before. I have never heard of a surf perch caught in this fashion. JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 81

Sky Summer Kings & Steel Heat Up! The long wait is over and the Sky opens up in June! The 2014 Skykomish River season is a favorite among Puget Sound anglers for two obvious reasons: it consistently pumps out dime-bright summer steelhead and hardfighting kings! Combine warmer weather with big aggressive fish and you get an outdoor experience that’s hard to compare! Danny Cook of Capt. Cook’s Guide Service considers the Skykomish his backyard and knows the many runs and gravel bars intimately. Side-drifting cluster eggs from his Wooldridge Alaskan XL is his go-to rig most days for both steelhead and kings, but it certainly doesn’t hurt to switch up to sand shrimp, especially if targeting steelhead above where the Wallace River comes in.

Joe Barich and friend Rod with June steelhead and kings!

Orange is typically the top producing color for Corkies and Cheaters when the water carries some color, but fluorescent or rocket red is highly productive as well. Just make sure you concentrate on the slower edges when fishing high water and the deeper fast runs when the water is running low. Sidedrifting with a float is effective and fast becoming popular too! Covering water is always important in finding fish, and Sultan all the way down to the mouth can produce fish on any given day in June. Steelhead will range from 6 to 12 pounds and kings 8 to 17 pounds. Be sure to come prepared as more of these fish are hooked than landed. Possession limits are two chinook and two steelhead per person, per day. All fish must be adipose fin clipped. Handle wild fish with care and always check current WDFW regulations before heading out. Have fun!

A bobber and a sabiki rig (one of those multiple-hook jig contraptions) cast into the surf is a total and complete loss. Never ever do that – you’ll end up with a ball of string and hooks. I have caught a whole bunch of bream with a sabiki and a bobber along

Editor’s note: Hey, Randy, next time you come over to the beach, check out ODFW’s new Surfperch Fishing in Oregon PDF, available through the Fishing Resources tab at dfw.state.or.us.

HOW TO COOK YOUR BAIT Some days you win big fishing; some days you do not. This recipe is for a day when you are forced to eat what most others call bait. It’s not halibut, salmon or lingcod, but this recipe will give you crispy-skinned fish with great garlic and mustard flavors. The Bait 8 small, uncured baitfish, cleaned and descaled ¼ cup canola oil 1 cup flour 1 tablespoon mustard seed powder 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper, ground 1 tablespoon garlic powder In a medium-sized cast iron skillet (they hold heat better, but are not absolutely critical) add the oil and turn to “medium” heat. The goal is to get to about 350 degrees. Turn on the oven to “warm” or the lowest setting possible. To check the temperature of the oil on the stove simply drop small clumps of batter into the oil-filled pan. When the batter bubbles quickly and then floats, the oil is close to the correct temperature. If the small scrap of batter browns or burns quickly, the oil is too hot. Combine flour and all spices in a bowl. Wet the fish slightly and then dredge in flour. Wet again and redredge. This double batter will stick better than a single layer. Double batter all fish and reserve on a slightly flowered cookie sheet. Fry the fish for three to four minutes on each side, or until the fish turns golden brown and delicious, i.e., GB&D. Transfer the cooked fish onto paper towel-lined cookie sheet in the warmed oven. The Green Stuff To compensate for the fried food I always like

82 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

the rocks, however. NS

Dredging the baitfish twice through flour will result in a stickier covering than a single layer. (RANDY KING)

After cooking to a golden brown, remove the fish and serve with the greens over the top. (RANDY KING) a little sautéed super-food as accompaniment. Oh, and mustard greens taste great too. 1 tablespoon butter 1 pound mustard greens 4 cloves garlic, crushed 1 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon Sriracha Salt and pepper In a medium sauté pan add the butter and melt it on medium heat. Next add the mustard greens and garlic cloves. Cook two to three minutes until wilted and tender. Taste; if too bitter, add the sugar. If it has no flavor, add the Sriracha. Mustard greens vary from field to field and day to day on the spiciness level. Either way, season with salt and pepper. Serve the greens over the top of the fried fish. For more recipes, see chefrandyking.com.

JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 83

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Angler Nathaniel Olken shows off a West Coast halibut.

ockfish are a kayak fisherman’s ace in the hole. Lingcod, while requiring a bit more skill to find conTHE KAYAK GUYS sistently, are still a safe By Mark Veary bet. But halibut … ah, halibut, they require the perfect alignment of swell, wind and season just to lay your ante on the table, and given the limited range of fishing kayaks, the odds are always with the house. “So, why bother?” you ask. Though men who go to sea in small boats are often accused of being crazy, even a sane kayak fisherman can’t deny the attraction of applying full-body solutions to dynamic, multifaceted puzzles. As the playwright Moliere so eloquently stated, “The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it.” WHILE HALIBUT OCCASIONALLY venture into Oregon’s river mouths, they’re only consistently available at depths of 100 feet or more. In most places, this means that the fishing grounds are at least a mile and more likely 2 to 3 miles offshore. At these distances, wind and swell conditions have to be nearly perfect to allow fishing from a kayak. To make a serious attempt at catching halibut you’ll need to spend some time researching bathymetric data online. Look for gravel beds and coarse sand bottoms in 100 to 300 feet of water. This is where you’re most likely to encounter feeding halibut. When possible, note latitudes and longitudes for the extents of these gravel shoals so you can use your GPS to find and stay on the right structure. Some of the better known locations for catching nearshore halibut are just past the outer reef in Pacific City, between Cape Falcon and the mouth of the Nehalem River, and off the Newport lighthouse.

(CRAIG MUELLER)

Before you go, judge the swell conditions based on your experiences fishing closer to shore. As long as the swell is within your comfort level for launching and landing, it should be manageable offshore. That said, it’s much easier to deal with 200 feet of line in smaller swells. Wind is the critical factor in fishing so far out. There’s no relief from the wind on the open ocean, and quartering (paddling at an angle to compensate for the wind) into a stiff afternoon northerly can add miles to your journey. Perfect conditions would be a 5 mph east wind in the morning turning to a 5 to 10 mph west wind in the afternoon. Those conditions are rare off Oregon in summer, though, so look for days with less than a 10 mph north element to the winds. This will limit the amount of quartering necessary on your return. Detailed wind forecasts can be found at iwindsurf.com.

Two more sites to check before you go are dfw.state.or.us and wdfw.wa.gov for the latest updates on rules, restrictions and closures. Also be aware that offshore fishing takes risk to a whole new level. Along with the requisite immersion gear, safety flag and PFD, you will want to have a good, working VHF radio attached to your PFD, redundant navigation tools (GPS and compass) and a visual signaling device such as a flare gun or emergency strobe. IN COMBINED WINDS/CURRENTSbelow 5 mph, a 16- to 20-ounce jig with a glow tail and a chunk of shad, tuna belly or salmon belly bounced hard on the bottom can draw in your quarry. This is often referred to as “knocking on the door.” Once the wind kicks up or when the wind and current are moving in opposite directions, switch over to a mooching rig with a JUNE 2014

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COLUMNS blue-label herring or a large circle hook tipped with a glow hoochie and bait. Use enough weight to keep in contact with the bottom (typically 12 to 16 ounces) and limit your line scope and speed by paddling/pedaling toward your bait. When you reach the end of the shoal, paddle back to the top and repeat. When you find yourself in the enviable position of hooking one of these tasty beasts, don’t be in any great hurry to land it. Halibut are notorious for their ability to dismantle boats with their thrashing, even long after they’re dead, and our craft are not exactly big to begin with. Instead, take your time. Secure your catch to a floating buoy via a flying gaff or harpoon. This will give you time to cut the gills and restrict its movement by tying the fish nose to tail with a length of tuna cord. Only after it’s been hog-tied should a halibut be brought onboard. In the words of seasoned Oregon halibut vet Jeff Anderson, “Get ready to be exhausted!” NS

Secure your catch to a floating buoy via a flying gaff or harpoon. This will give you time to cut the gills and restrict its movement by tying the fish nose to tail with a length of tuna cord. Only after it’s been hog-tied should a halibut be brought onboard. (MARK VEARY)

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FISHING

‘Good From The Get-Go’ Optimism is high for the early starts of Chinook and coho fishing off the North Oregon, Washington coasts. By Andy Schneider

ASTORIA—Keeping the red buoys to the port side of boat is the easy part as you venture across this section of water, recognized as one of the most dangerous and challenging navigated stretches in the world. But today there is no white knuckles on the steering wheel, no waves jerking stomachs up and down, and definitely no green water across the front deck. No, today there is barely a 6-inch ripple, and only the occasional tern and pelican to dodge as you run out of the Columbia and into the Pacific for what could be great fishing. “It’s going to be uncharted territory out with such an early Chinook opener,” says Bob Rees, the Northwest Steelheader’s new executive director as well as a fishing guide (northwest-

guides.com). “There is a good history of successful commercial fishing starting in May, and with a solid summer Chinook run and amazing fall Chinook run predicted, I think it’s going to be pretty good from the get-go.” Rees is talking about the ocean salmon season from Cape Falcon north to Neah Bay that opens May 31 for clipped kings, and mid-June for unmarked Chinook and clipped coho. Historically, clipped Chinook have opened in midmonth, coho later this month and mid-July. “Starting June 14 for coho and unmarked Chinook is pretty cool and an unprecedented opportunity to get into a lot of summer Chinook and resident Chinook that stage here too,” says Rees. By now, you’ve most likely heard of the massive return of Chinook and

coho expected to start pulling into the Columbia this summer, 1.6 million kings and 964,000 silvers. Where are these 2.5 million salmon right now? Some will definitely start staging off the mouth of the Columbia, feeding on the massive amount of baitfish moving in and out of the estuary. Where once anglers and guides like Rees stayed inside to fish for sturgeon in June, with that retention season mostly closed, venturing a little farther west and pursuing some ocean salmon may be worth the effort.

RIPS AND BIRDS “When you’re on a big body of water, it’s always a challenge to find the fish. If sharing the water with buddies, it’s a good tactic to spread out and keep in contact with each other,” advises Rees. “And once you find the fish, it can be difficult to stay on them, since they move around so much. Look for actively feeding birds. These birds will direct you to bait balls just under the surface. Those birds can really pay

Ocean salmon are as close in as the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, just off the mouth of the Columbia, but can also be found north and south of there in the early season. Nancy Zimmer (left( caught her Chinook early last season. (ANDY SCHNEIDER)

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FISHING dividends! I’ve had great success catching Chinook just below large bait balls that I found from following birds.” While birds are easy to spot from a distance, a ripline may be more difficult to see, but just as productive as fishing under feeding birds. A rip is a change in the ocean current, temperature or density of chlorophyl in the water. It’s usually observed as a meandering line of unsettled water with lots of boils and eddies at its edges. A rip will also be filled with floating seaweed and debris. The waters just off the mouth of the Columbia has a bounty of riplines and no matter your direction of travel, you should have no trouble finding them. Not only do they concentrate oceanic debris, they also concentrate baitfish. Murres and puffins are often first on-scene to riplines holding schools of baitfish, and since these birds feed on the same stuff salmon do, there is a good chance of finding Chinook and coho under them. Just be advised that actively feeding murres are not boat shy, and if you decide to troll through a flock otherwise preoccupied with shiny baitfish, be prepared for them to attack the shiny baitfish at the end of your line. A murre on the end of your line spells trouble; hooking a double is as close to Ian Malcolm’s Chaos Theory as you can get, minus the Jurassic Park velociraptors. “Don’t over-run the fish,” hints Rees. “I often start fishing only a mile from the jetties in 25 to 35 feet of water. When possible, I try and troll with the current. That way I’m covering more water. Chinook seem to bite more aggressively than coho when your baits are moving fast, so be prepared for some violent strikes!”

OCEAN TACTICS While a Delta Diver is a very simple and effective way to target ocean salmon, they don’t work as well as running a standard lead dropper when fishing the shallower water off 92 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

the mouth of the Columbia. “I only use lead out of the Columbia – no divers for me,” explains Rees. “Even though I’m using lead, flashers and bait, I’m not fishing directly on the bottom. In fact, I find that fishing the bottom is relatively unproductive. I usually fish six, eight or ten pulls, putting my bait within 5 feet of the bottom.” While herring is the bait of choice for most ocean salmon anglers, Rees prefers using whole anchovies. “Without having sturgeon open in the estuary this year, it may be tough to get fresh bait. A lot of the tackle stores may not carry any, so make sure to call in advance for bait availability,” he suggests. Many anglers do use divers with their flashers. Simply clip a flasher directly to your diver, running a 5- to 6-foot leader of 30-pound leader to two 5/0 barbless hooks with a whole or plug-cut bait. Another popular way to fish for ocean salmon is to run a dodger behind your diver. Run 36 inches of 40-pound mono to a “0” dodger, and from the dodger run 24 to 30 inches of 30-pound leader to

two 5/0 barbless hooks. Slide a hoochie down your leader and either run a piece of “chunk” herring or anchovy. Since the current can be very strong off the mouth of the Columbia mooching should be more popular, but it has yet to catch on here. Start with a 4- to 12-ounce banana sinker, tie on a 5-foot, 30-pound leader to two 5/0 barbless hook rigged with either a whole herring or anchovy or a plug-cut herring. Once you mark a school of fish, deploy your bait to that depth either using a linecounter reel or pulls. You can manually mooch or motor-mooch – putting the rods into the holders and engaging and disengaging your trolling motor from gear. Motor-mooching can be extremely productive and fun, since the boat and the swells are doing all the work and moving your baits throughout the water column.

WHERE Rees prefers running north on most of his trips out of the estuary. “Many times I’ll start fishing right at the Cape Disappointment Light-

A good day on the ocean for the author’s boatmates. (ANDY SCHNEIDER)

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FISHING house, targeting 25 to 35 feet of water,” he says. Since we usually have a southerly flow this time of year, most anglers run north to the condos in Long Beach and start their troll heading south back towards the lighthouse. This stretch seems most productive early in the season. Since the gradient of the bottom is very gentle you can find relatively shallow water quite a distance from shore. Trolling east to west can be very productive in locating fish at a specific depth; once you locate a consistent bite, turn south to keep targeting fish at that depth. As season progresses pursuing coho and Chinook at the CR Buoy can be more productive. Many anglers start fishing at Buoy 2 and set a heading towards the CR Buoy. Pay attention to riplines in this stretch of water – they are usually plentiful. Chinook and coho will move great distances seemingly overnight, so

94 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

don’t be surprised if you don’t find fish where you left them the previous day. These fish are still actively feeding and not all are staging to enter the Columbia, so they will follow the groceries no matter how far their feed moves overnight. No matter if you turn north or south out of the mouth of the Columbia, make sure to check ocean forecasts. “If you can find a 3- to 5-foot swell at 9 to 10 seconds you’ll have a fishable ocean,” says Rees. “If you can find a swell at 18 to 20 seconds, you’re going to have a great ocean.” But don’t take things for granted. “This is a fishery you don’t want to take risks on,” he warns. “Watch for afternoon winds, and since fish bite best in the morning, get out early and head back before conditions deteriorate. Of course, an incoming tide is the safest tide to cross the Columbia Bar, but if ocean conditions are especially

nice, there are many times that there are no restrictions and crossing the bar can be done cautiously on any tide.” While most anglers don’t venture offshore for salmon this early in the season, they are seriously missing out. Not only are kings and silvers in peak shape, they are aggressively feeding and are nowhere near as finicky as when they’ve moved into the estuaries and tributaries. The views of the rugged Oregon and Washington coasts are second to none and demand your full attention. With the sights, sounds and even smells of the abundant sea life that flourish in the nearshore waters, the Pacific is truly a wonderland for the senses – even more so when remembered over the smell of barbecuing early-season salmon. NS Editor’s note: For charterboat services off the Columbia River, see Astoriaoregon.com and Ilwacofishingcharters.com.

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96 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

COLUMNS

It’s Summers’ Time To Shine On The Columbia T

here are more close-to-home fishing opportunities now than at any time earlier this year. While fisheries for trout, shad, sturBUZZ RAMSEY geon (mostly catch and release) and members of the warmwater clan – bass, crappie, bluegill and perch – have been going on for weeks, several major fisheries have or will soon open. For example, ocean coho and summer Chinook in the Columbia where the boundaries for summer steelheading also expand. The big river below the I-5 bridge between Portland and Vancouver opened for fin-clipped steelhead May 16, but come June 16, the Columbia from there upstream to the Washington-Oregon border will be fishing. But note that the season could open earlier if the spring Chinook run comes in at or above prediction. Either way, the forecast for summer steelhead bound for tributaries above Bonneville is 281,000.

The world’s largest return of steelhead begins this month as summer-runs bound for Idaho, Eastern Washington and Northeast Oregon enter the Columbia, where anglers like Buzz will anchor or plunk for them. (BUZZ RAMSEY)

HIGH FLOWS AND lower-than-normal water temperature could cause steelhead numbers to build in the Lower Columbia prior to crossing the first big dam. Keep in mind that these fish will generally migrate close to shore, in sometimes surprisingly shallow water – 4 to 6 feet. But if steelhead do head upstream, it will signal the beginning of action on the lower Deschutes River and other mid-Columbia tribs open to the taking of fin-clipped fish. Below the dam, keep in mind that ocean tides affect the Lower Columbia and can influence the bite. For example, when tides are running (causing current), stillfishing from shore or boat may be the most productive method. When tides cause the current to slow or stop, you should consider trolling a spinner or plug near bottom. A size 4 Spin-N-Glo tipped with sand or coon shrimp threaded on the hook is what JUNE 2014

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many bank and boat anglers rely on in the lower river. High-action plugs like a medium-size FlatFish, Kwikfish and Mag Lips are what many boat anglers employ. Most rig their midsized plugs on a 48-inch leader combined with a 24- to 30-inch weight-dropper line; try a longer dropper when currents are fast moving. IF YOU HAVEN’T tried to catch a summer king, you should. These were once the most plentiful of the Chinook clan returning to the Columbia system, but habitat loss due mostly to dams cut their numbers to such low levels that the river was closed to commercial and sport harvest for 29 years. Increased flow to move young, outmigrating fish through the Columbia’s reservoirs and increased spill over the top of federal dams rather than through the turbines is what finally allowed the stock’s numbers to strengthen enough for managers to re-open the river to sport fishing in 2002 and every year since. This year’s forecast is for 67,500 and season is currently scheduled to open June 16 and last through the end of the month with

98 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

a daily limit of two fin-clipped Chinook. As mentioned above, providing the run of spring salmon meets or exceeds the preseason forecast, the Columbia could open beforehand, allowing anglers access to late-returning springs and early summers. In past years, I’ve had excellent success between Bonneville Dam and Beacon Rock. With the water temperature in late June averaging in the mid-60-degree range we’ve had the best success anchoring in water depths ranging from 12 to 25 feet. How deep these fish might run is really dependent upon water temps; for example, if the flows are high and cold, say, in the low 60s, you might find them migrating closer to shore. Spinners have been our top producer when rigged on a 50-inch leader and 18-inch weight-dropper line. Since line twist can be an issue, we always rig a swivel halfway down our leader. The best spinner colors have been metal finishes when the sun is bright while copper, fluorescent red, fluorescent green, chartreuse and rainbow produce better early in the day or when it’s overcast. Downriver, near Portland and Longview,

where the Columbia’s current can be slower, you might rig your spinners differently than above. Weight-dropper lines for the lower river – at least when you’re fishing upstream from steep drop-offs – are generally longer and leaders shorter than near the dam or in areas where the bottom is flat and current moving faster. A typical spinner setup might include a 30-inch weightdropper line and 24-inch leader. While spinners produce best near Bonneville and work on the lower river too, many anglers employ salmon-size plugs for summer Chinook. The favorites include Mag Lips, FlatFish and Kwikfish with a fillet of sardine added to the plug belly. Most anglers rig their salmon-sized plug with a 24-inch dropper line to their weight and 50- to 60-inch leader. The dropper line to your weight should be 30 to 36 inches when rigging a Mag Lip as this plug dive deeper than other styles. Columbia summer Chinook represent a real prize when it comes to size, with many fish in the 25- to 35-pound range. Every year, some lucky angler lands a fish weighing in at 40 pounds – why not you? NS

100 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

FISHING

Overshadowed Kings

The author’s dad, Ron, poses with a nice Columbia summer Chinook. (ANDY SCHNEIDER)

A fraction of spring and fall runs, the Columbia’s midyear Chinook provide a good fishery too. By Andy Schneider

onversations stopped in the sled for a moment while the fancy yellow fiberglass boat, throwing a 30-foot-high rooster tail, skipped along the water at 70 mph. It wasn’t so much that the go-fast craft brought the crew to speechlessness, but its loud exhaust drowned out all verbal communication. Soon enough, though, its rumble faded into the distance as it turned into the Willamette heading for Downtown Portland, and the anglers’ attention returned to past fishing adventures and watching the dancing rod tips. One rod in particular had every-

one’s attention. The action of the plug at the other end suddenly stopped and the tension on the rod relaxed a little. The tip didn’t sit idle for long before it violently surged towards the water and a summer Chinook peeled line from the reel, sending the entire crew to their feet and everyone battling for the pole. Fishing for the Columbia’s middle run of kings peaks at the same time as summer vacations, camping trips and beach trips transition from theory to reality. Though June calls anglers to alpine lakes, mountain streams and busy coastal ports, fishing is just starting to pick up closer to the homes of many. In a sense, the big river’s summer Chinook are a bit of a sleeper fishery. In recent years the run has been only a quarter to half the size of the spring run, which itself has been just a tenth (2013) to half the size of the fall return. That fraction may change in the

years ahead as the Colville Tribes’ hatchery comes into full production, but other factors that limit effort include water conditions that can be unstable as smolt flushing slows down; there’s usually only a 50-percent mark rate; and the splash-and-giggle-andrip-around-the-water crowd heads to the rivers on any sunny day. But even with all these challenges, summer king fishing has great things going for it: season usually opens the day after graduation, the weather is usually great, the crowds are minimal (especially on rainy days), and these fish are great biters.

JUNE HOGS ARE what these fish used to be known as, but fewer and fewer big ones are being caught. Any aboveaverage kings are more than likely going to be an unclipped fish heading far upriver. But don’t let the thought of having to release a hog of a Chinook get you down because if you’re JUNE 2014

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FISHING on their traveling lane, it shouldn’t be long before another one comes along. Once the fish enter the Columbia, they’re on a mission to cover as many miles in the lower river as possible in a day. It’s not an uncommon sight to see sea lice clinging to ones caught directly below Bonneville Dam. As befitting their tweener selves, they can be caught in shallower water like springers and deeper waters like upriver brights. But while they may be found at all depths, they seem to also have an already-planned itinerary and will be moving together in these predetermined lanes. Find their interstate and you can be in for an epic day of catching, but don’t get your confidence up too high because the following day the river may drop 4 feet and you will need to seek out the updated route the fish are tracking now. To produce results all season, you must be flexible and versatile, and willing to pull the pick

102 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

A larger proportion of the summer run must be returned than spring or fall Chinook. Handle them with care. (ANDY SCHNEIDER)

often to find fish. Since the Columbia’s flows in midJune are so unstable, anchor fishing tends to be the most popular. Yes, trolling herring or spinners may produce, but setting out plugs and waiting for fish to come to you tends to be more productive, so why waste fuel? Look to set up near wing dams, pile dikes, abrupt river edges, inside corners or island edges. Your tackle should match the water you’re fishing. In depths from 15 to 30 feet

deep, Kwikfish, Mag Lips and FlatFish are going to productive. In deeper waters with heavy current, wobblers are going to catch more. In fast and shallow water, spinners and Spin-N-Glos with bait will produce results. As for rigging, go with 60-inch leaders and 24-inch droppers for Kwikfish and FlatFish; 60-inch leaders with 36-inch droppers for Mag Lips; and 60-inch leaders and 60-inch droppers for wobblers. Upgrading to 40- or 50-pound leader will help landing and releasing unclipped salmon without risk of losing a favorite and productive lure. Summer Chinook offer a nice opportunity for you to get family and friends out on the water during good weather conditions with a decent opportunity to catch multiple salmon in a day. While the run won’t make headlines, it sure can make some wonderful memories. NS

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FISHING

The Reach’s Other Salmon How to catch sockeye in the famed free-flowing waters of the Columbia, and below Wanapum. By Teddy Schmidt

PASCO—In the first week of June, I’ll be watching the Bonneville Dam fish counts in anticipation of the forecasted 345,000 Wenatchee- and Okanogan-bound sockeye signaling the start of the run. By the month’s third week, several thousand of the salmon per day should be passing over McNary Dam. Just upstream from there, the Hanford Reach is where I plan to escape the crowds and target the fish this summer. To increase my odds, I contacted two local anglers who are well known for their ability to bring home limits without driving for hours up- or downstream. TJ Hester, fishing department manager at Ranch and Home (509-547-5513), shared his tips primarily for anchor fishing the Hanford Reach, and local angler Don McBride relayed his tactics for trolling up sockeye in the reach and below Wanapum Dam. There are obvious differences between trolling and anchor fishing for sockeye, but much of the advice from both anglers was surprisingly similar, and both say that location is the most

Turns out that Lower Columbia plunkers and Brewster Pool trollers aren’t the only ones getting in on the big river’s burgeoning run of sockeye. Anglers like Craig Mitchell and TJ Hester and others in the Tri-Cities area are learning how to intercept them as well. (CRAIG MITCHELL)

important aspect of fishing for the species.

ANCHORMAN To find a spot to anchor, Hester runs his boat searches in an area anywhere upstream of the Ringold launch, located at the lower end of the Hanford Reach, all the way up to Priest Rapids Dam. In general, sockeye become more concentrated as they work their way up the reach, and current breaks are more defined. Hester

mentions major landmarks including the Wooden Powerlines, Ferry Landing, White Bluffs, and Coyote Rapids as strategic spots, but prime sockeye water can be found throughout the reach. He searches out spots that are 4 to 5 feet deep with boulders, points, or anything that pushes fish away from shore and concentrates sockeye into a current seam. Hester drops anchor above these spots so he can position his baits at the points of these outcroppings or the tops of submerged ridges. JUNE 2014

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FISHING “They’re traveling fish similar to steelhead in the Lower Columbia. They school up and run nose to tail upriver very close to shore,” he says. Hester, who is also a local fishing guide (hesterssportfishing.com), has also noted some other common sockeye patterns. “While on the move, they seem to be light sensitive. Early in the morning, sockeye will tend to be close to shore and move out as the sun gets brighter. Fishing areas such as the shadow cast by the White Bluffs in the morning can be very productive. The sockeye tend to move deeper when traveling triggered by a rising Columbia. Conversely, they will tuck back closer to shore and slow down their travel as the river drops,” he says. Hester likes to keep his gear simple and small. His standard rigs use a 12inch dropper to a 2- to 6-ounce cannonball. Then he connects a 4-foot leader of 12-pound mono equipped with two size 2 single hooks tied as closely together as possible. On his leaders, he uses any combination of red, pink, and chrome on a size 4 or 6 Spin-N-Glo, size 1.1 or 1.5 Smile Blade, or a size 4 Cascade blade. On leaders with either blade, Hester uses a couple beads to space the blades away from the hooks and at least one Corky to provide some flotation. Since each line has something spinning on it, thicker diameter mono such as Maxima UG or Izorline are preferred. Coon shrimp have been a popular bait addition to the top hook in these rigs, but Hester has found that small, brined salad shrimp are equally effective and more economical. Hester threads the upper hook through the salad shrimp and secures it in a bait loop. The only nuance is to make sure the shrimp doesn’t spin when deployed, he cautions. On occasion, Hester will also deploy rods with 2-foot-long droppers and a 2-foot leader attached to a 4.5-inch dodger or 4-inch inline flasher. From there, he connects his standard rigging as described above. 106 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

It’s not your bare-bones, red-hook Lake Washington sockeye rig! Tri-Cities salmon expert Don McBride dresses his setup up with a 1.1 or 1.5 Smile Blade, a pink, glow, or pink and glow hoochie, and prawn, as well as spacers. (DON McBRIDE)

After a little prodding, I was able to get Hester to share his shrimp brine recipe. He wants a soft shrimp, but with high salt content. This is achieved by adding the salad shrimp to a quart jar and filling it half full with distilled water. He then adds a quarter cup of Northwest Bait and Scent Herring brine to cure the shrimp and either Pautzke Fire Brine or Pro-Cure Bad Azz Bait Dye to stain the shrimp red. Like many other bait aficionados, Hester mixes batches of shrimp with a variety of scents. His top producers include Pro-Cure Monster Bite and variations of shrimp or krill scent, with his favorites being Graybill’s Sandshrimp or Kokanee scent. Hester prefers long, limber rods when fishing sockeye. His personal choice is Lamiglas X-11 LX 96 MCs, a 9-foot-6 rod. He will spool up 30pound braid to help handle the occasional summer Chinook. With bait prepared, rods rigged and sockeye tendencies in mind, Hester deploys his gear to maximize his chances of hooking up early. Off the center of the boat, he sets a line equipped with an inline flasher the furthest from the boat he plans to fish. His reasoning for putting the flasher so far back is to “wake up” the fish be-

fore they see the other baits. Other rods with his standard riggings are spaced as wide as possible to locate the travel lane for the given flow and time of day. At the start of the day, Hester employs his 10-foot-6 rule: If he can place a rod of that length off the side of the boat without touching shore, he has anchored too far out. To provide a different offering, Hester uses the dodger setup in his furthest forward rod holders and keeps the baits close to the boat to avoid tangling with the other lines. When a fish hits, the circus begins. Sockeye are notoriously difficult to land due to soft mouths which allow hooks to easily pull out. If anchored in heavy current, Hester will drop off anchor to land the fish. If conditions allow, Hester prefers to remain on anchor and let the fish run to clear the other gear. Then, bring the fish up alongside the boat. As soon as a rod holder is vacated, a rod is moved over to try and hook another fish in the same travel corridor. “If you hook one, they’re in that lane. They’re there right then. They won’t be all day,” he says. This tactic often leads to doubles and triples.

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FISHING TROLLING Don McBride agrees that location is crucial to putting sockeye in the boat. When in the reach, McBride searches out 10- to 20-foot-deep eddies and looks for jumping sockeye to

108 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

troll through. He also works the water below Wanapum. Directly below the dam is a popular trolling spot for sockeye due to the unique currents that concentrate the fish prior to crossing the fish ladders. That said, there’s a big un-

known about how this location will play this year due to the modified ladders, potential fish trucking, and altered water level as dam operators work to repair the 65-foot-long crack in one of Wanapum’s spillways. At the time of writing, there is no closure below the dam. Assuming the fishing there is similar to previous years, trolling in 10 to 20 feet of water will be very effective. McBride typically trolls at 1 to 1.5 mph. He usually doesn’t target sockeye until after 8 a.m. since it seems to take them longer than the Chinook to enter the swirl created by the shape of the dam and balance of spill and power generation. More water flowing through the turbines results in much calmer and more productive fishing. The arrival of sockeye will often be indicated by jumpers. If he hasn’t already, that is McBride’s cue to switch from his Chinook gear to sockeye tackle. Similar to Hester, McBride likes to use a soft rod when fishing for sockeye. One of his favorites is a Shimano Convergence CVCL106M2B. If he’s running a heavier rod, he will plan to use mono to provide a little more cushion when fighting a fish. “The rod doesn’t play a big factor in how many you hook, but it does in how many you land,” he tips. McBride runs a few different setups. “The first one is the hardest. You have to figure out what they’re really going for that day,” he says. A standard setup includes either a downrigger or 2 to 4 ounces of weight to get the bait down. Then a short piece of line connects to a 6- or 8-inch dodger. An 8- to 12-inch leader of 25to 40-pound line is connected to the dodger. The short leader is necessary so that the action of the dodger is transmitted to the bait. The stiffer the leader, the more action is imparted. In McBride’s experience, sockeye are not leader shy. Summer Chinook will also strike these sockeye setups, so the heavier leader can up the odds of

landing one. He typically uses as heavy of a leader as possible to still allow him to tie his 1/0 single front hook and size 4 to 6 trailing treble hook approximately half an inch behind the front hook. Above the hooks, McBride places a small pink, glow, or pink and glow hoochie with a few beads up to a size 1.1 or 1.5 Smile Blade. His typical setup is completed by threading the top hook through the middle of a coon shrimp. An alternate rig, which has been successful in catching both sockeye and Chinook, is a small pink cut-plug Superbait with two hooks trailing out the back. McBride loads the lure with tuna canned in oil and attaches a shrimp to the top hook. The finishing touch is to add krill scent because sockeye are very sensitive to odor. To increase the odds of landing fish on the troll, McBride reels them in quickly. After the initial strike, they will come to the boat fairly easily. He uses the longest handled net he can find to scoop up fish as early in the fight as possible. If the fish isn’t netted within the first two minutes, McBride has found that sockeye will shake, twist, jump and usually find some way to come unhooked.

LAUNCHING Now equipped with solid advice on how to target sockeye, our last concern involves how to actually get on the water. The Wanapum Dam launch is not for the faint of heart or the short of freeboard. I’ve seen the summertime flows well up into the trees at Vernita and Ringold as well. When asked about how to launch in high conditions, Hester and McBride admit it’s tough. Best advice is to wear your PFD. Sometimes you have to back the truck in as far as your doors. Have someone on the motor and drive back off of the trailer and out through the trees if you have to. The other option is to launch in Richland and run up. NS JUNE 2014

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FISHING

Chelan Chinook Springer fishing on the Icicle, Wenatchee could be good. THE ICICLE IS a stream where strange codes of propriety are obLEAVENWORTH— Icicle served – or not – Creek cuts its way and where sneering out of the Cascade and grumbling can Mountains, gentling sometimes be in flow for its final 2 heard. It’s like a miles before emptymoving version of ing into the WeDrano Lake: full of natchee River across springers, without from the fauxmuch room, and Bavarian town of requiring a level of Leavenworth. Relitolerance not posable numbers of sessed by all anspring Chinook reglers, including me. turn to it every late Its reputation was May and June, and one reason I made between 5,500 and my first trip to the 7,500 are expected stream in late May in 2014. 2013, just as good Whereas the popnumbers of fish ular tourist village were pushing in. greets newcomers to Fishing has to be town with a hearty really good for me Wilkomenn, the creek to play bumper is more curmudboats, and it wasn’t geonly. There’s a yet good, but the scant amount of fish- Guide Brad Wagner shows off a stout Icicle Creek springer from last season. Between 5,500 and spectacle and comholding water below 7,500 are expected back this season, and what’s more, the Wenatchee and its 2,300 hatchery Chinook could be available as well. (FISHWENATCHEE.COM) pany were worth the national fish the trip. Here’s the short version of hatchery, which the salmon are reshould remain intense for the Icicle’s what I saw: turning to. Almost no public access bountiful run, some of which can ocA friend and I drove up on a late exists from the bank, and what little casionally top 30 pounds. Adding alMay afternoon from Tri-Cities to fish that does is heavily sought after. most 40 miles of the Wenatchee to with guide Austin Moser (austinSince most of the best holes are closthe fishery will increase the enforcesnorthwestadventuresllc.com), who est to the Wenatchee River and the ment challenge twenty-fold, but will was test fishing before booking trips. end of the short float, competition for distribute angling pressure and proFishing had been slow, but he’d had anchor fishing spots becomes espevide better shore access than is cursome early success. On the drive over cially fierce. rently available on the 99 Blewett Pass, we saw scores of vehiThe intensity and rancor may die percent-private Icicle float. Local cles bearing morel pickers capitalizdown a bit this year. At press deadguides and anglers are fiending to fish ing on 2012’s Table Mountain fire. I line, managers were considering the 2,300 hatchery springers exmade a note to come back or to bunopening the Wenatchee for springers pected back to the Wenatchee itself, dle picking and springer fishing at for the first time since the mid-1990s. but the big numbers of Chinook and some point. We arrived in LeavenBut with a dedicated following that confined travel lanes will undoubtworth a few hours before dark in knows how to catch fish on the little edly bring hordes of anglers bearing hopes of getting a fish and met Chelan County stream, the pressure baits back to the Leavenworth creek. By Jeff Holmes

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FISHING in every possible fish-holdMoser. We headed to ing feature, and a motley the creek, launched crew of anglers who sleep in his boat, and he and I their boats for days at a time ran the short shuttle. in order to keep choice anWhen we returned, a chor spots. As we neared very intense-looking the Wenatchee at the end of bearded man with laythe float, mini-hoglines beers of grime on his face came campgrounds as men had pulled up and cooked and drank under dropped off a 12-foot Think of the Icicle as blue-tarp shelters stretched jonboat, which he had the moving-water equivalent of over a variety of small crafts. loaded with more gear Drano Lake: â&#x20AC;&#x153;full of springers, without much A small bobcat scooted of all kinds than I beroom, and requiring a level of tolerance not possessed by all anglers, including me,â&#x20AC;? warns the author. Some even camp across the road in front of us lieved possible. Having out on the creek, putting their gear out while itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still practically dark as we finished our shuttle. never been to the Iciout. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST) The next day proved to cle, I couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t imagine be tough fishing for almost how a boat with fewer all, except for three fish we heard about sulted in one driveby, but we couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t than 2 inches of freeboard and so much caught at first light. Low and extremely connect on the fish, which bit an angear could safely navigate any creek. clear water had a plug of fish held up in chovy and Spin-N-Glo. No one was Here, â&#x20AC;&#x153;safeâ&#x20AC;? is subjective, especially conthe Wenatchee, waiting for rain, but we catching much, and we passed 20 boats sidering my image of this guy disaptried hard, along with scores of plunkâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; and that was in 2 miles on a weekpearing around the bend, standing on ers on private property and maybe 30 night before the fish were really in. It top of his gear, stooped over backwards other boats. Although fishing was slow provided an inkling of what to expect operating an old electric trolling motor. during our visit, it soon picked up when the next day, which was a boat or more Our very quick evening float re-

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FISHING some rain rolled into the area a few days later. Moser’s fishing improved, but I never made it back up to capitalize. Around 3,500 kings had been expected.

IF WE HAD fished in 2014, our strategy and success likely would have been dif-

114 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

ferent. This year, if fish hold up in the Wenatchee and it is opened, anglers can go after them in the much bigger river. Brad Wagner of Bobber Down Guide Service (fishwenatchee.com) is one of the Icicle’s and the Methow’s best fish getters, and is a nice guy to boot. The

Fetha Styx prostaffer has been fishing the creek his whole life and will continue to devote time to it in 2014, despite brimming enthusiasm over prospecting the Wenatchee for springers. Wagner is concerned that inexperienced floaters will get into trouble on the Wenatchee, however, and he asked me to remind people of how cold the water is and how swift it will be when the springers show up. “I know I’m gonna see people in 10 feet of water trying to fish with 20 feet of anchor rope, and that’s a recipe for disaster in those big hydraulics,” says Wagner. “You want to have out six to seven times more rope than the depth of the water. The Wenatchee is much more dangerous than the Icicle.” That’s another reason the Icicle will see its fair share of pressure this spring and early summer: a guy in a jonboat with 2 inches of freeboard can float it. Another is the big run of springers, and Wagner reveals his favorite baits for catching fish, as well as advice for fitting in. My advice is hire a local guide the first time you go, and Wagner and Moser are good choices, as are Shane Magnuson (uppercolumbiaguide.com) and others. “I fish primarily three approaches in the Icicle: bait-wrapped Mag Lip 4.5s, spinning herring or anchovies, and eggs,” says Wagner. “I like to fish green labels, but I’ll downsize my herring or go to an anchovy sometimes when the water is very low and clear – the Icicle is almost always clear – but in general, standard salmon baits work well here. I fish all Fetha Styx rods that I match to each presentation: 8.5-foot plug rods, 10.5-foot diver rods, and 10.5-foot bobber rods.” Wagner says if you come to the Icicle without hiring a guide, either have a boat or expect the best bank access to be crowded and at the hatchery, near the put-in. If you bring a boat, observe river etiquette, be humble, and ask questions. In general the tension at the Icicle can be cut with good manners and communication – and a full cooler of springers. NS

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116 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

FISHING

’Nooch Not Just A Winter River Hosts good return of summer steelies.

By Jason Brooks

MONTESANO, Wash.—Summer in the Northwest is a time of sunshine, crabbing, family camping trips and building eagerness for fall’s salmon runs. But for some, June can be kind of like the days from Thanksgiving to Christmas, a month of anticipation between all of spring’s openers and July, when summer fishing really gets going. The rainbow bite wanes as bass go into a postspawn funk while there’s still a blanket of sloppy snow in the high country and the rivers are flowing high – except those controlled by dams, such as the Cowlitz, Lewis and Wynoochee. Of the trio, it is the Wynoochee that I favor the most. The river offers drift boaters like me a chance to get some stick time in, and the bank access it has happens to be right at very productive runs and holes. There are places to fish with jet sleds in the lower part of the river, but for the most part you will have a quiet day on the water when fishing the Wynoochee – except, of course, when a fish is tearing line off your reel. This river is on the southern end of the Olympic Peninsula and about a two-hour drive from Seattle. South Sound steelheaders can easily make this river an after-work fishery during the cool evening hours. Unlike the Cowlitz, the Wynoochee is fairly small, and though at 60,000 its smolt release is just a tenth of the Lewis County river, it can be productive in June as well as July and even August.

THE WYNOOCHEE IS where you will find JR Hall of JR’s Steelhead Adventures

Most well-known as for late-returning winter-run steelhead, the Wynoochee also boasts a strong summer fishery that opens this month and is productive in July and even August. Angler Patrick Chernut landed this double last summer drifting a Mad River egg rubbed with a Duane Inglin Pautzke krill paste concoction. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

(steelheadnwynoochee.com). It’s one of the few summer rivers he likes to target. I have known JR for almost 20 years now, but for several of those we lost touch only to find ourselves fishing with each other with a mutual friend during a late February float on the ’Nooch, as locals call it. Since that trip Hall and I have fished together and stayed in contact, giving each other advice and even a few “secrets” to increase our steelheading success. A few winters ago we put on several clinics for salmon and steelhead fishing. During the breaks he kept telling me how fantastic the Wynoochee’s summer steelheading can be. It also has a moderate run of ocean-going cutthroat. Hall likes to fly fish as much as gear or bait fish, and the Wynoochee is a great river to take the bug rod along.

“There’s lots of really nice water to fish, including nice swinging and nymphing water for the fly guys,” says Hall. When it comes to gear, he will downsize his baits or presentations. “I use very small jigs and generally dark colors – brown, blue, green, black, and dark red, to name a few,” he says. Throwing spinners works well during colder mornings when the water temperatures are cooler and the fish are on the move. Again, take Hall’s advice and stick with dark-colored spinners or spoons in black or tarnished copper. Not only does he fish smaller baits, he also downsizes all of his gear, except for his St. Croix rods. Starting with the line he will fish 6- to 8-pound mainline with fluorocarbon leaders from 3 to 6 feet in length. When drift fishing, he makes sure JUNE 2014

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FISHING to use the lightest lead possible. “You don’t want the lead to ‘tick, tick, tick’ every inch or two along the bottom. If it does, I switch to lighter lead. I keep switching until I get the lead to ‘tick’ lightly every 4 to 6 feet. It is in the free-floating stage, between the ticks, that your bait is in its most natural presentation,” he says. For summer fish this is very important as they will often be in small riffles or behind boulders from which they can see a presentation coming, and will rush out and strike it as it goes by. If the offering is approaching too slowly, it doesn’t trigger the bite instinct, and the fish will just let it go past. Bead fishing is well known by most of us, but in a different form, either drifting small yarn balls or Glo Bug patterns. But now there are beads on the market specifically for fishing. These beads are mostly made of either glass or ceramics, giving them enough

118 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

weight to get down into the fish’s face and roll along the bottom or be slightly lifted by the currents. Unlike yarn or Glo Bugs, a bead can be pinned above the hook a few inches. What this does is allow you to feel the strike, and when you set the hook, the line slides across and the hook is buried into the side of the fish’s mouth instead of deep down in it where mortality is almost certain. Hevi-Beads (hevibeads.com), a Yakima area company with several colors and sizes, utilizes a small piece of rubber band that is pulled through the bead with the line and keeps it in place yet allows you to adjust the length of leader to the hook by sliding it up and down the line. Both Hall and I like Hevi-Beads because they make so many different colors and even beads that look like a real egg that came loose from a spawning bed. The beads are versatile and can used with drift rigs, jigs, and in a “fly pattern” with marabou pulled

through. Since you want to downsize your line, weights and hooks, use a 6 or 8mm bead with some yarn pulled through the bead with the line and drift fish it alone, scenting the yarn, without worry of having to rebait. This can even be fished with a fly rod in case you wanted to get some fly casting practice in but still drift fish.

REGARDLESS OF WHAT he’s fishing, Hall concentrates on specific water types in the Wynoochee. “The water temps will climb and the oxygen level will drop. When this happens the fish will look for oxygenrich water and cover. I look for choppy water (not rapids). Choppy water provides both oxygen and cover from predators,” he says. Steelies don’t necessarily need deep water. I’ve caught fish in choppy water that is only a foot or 2 feet deep, but also down to 6 or 7 feet deep. The latter is resting water, so if you fish it

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RIG MONTH OF THE

Bead fishing setup for summer steelhead NOTES Rigging a bead is pretty simple: Use 10pound mainline, a snap swivel, three-shot slinky, 8-pound leader about 18 to 24 inches long with an 8mm bead pinned 2 to 3 inches above a size 2 Gamakatsu hook. To pin the Hevi-Bead, I use HeviBands – a small piece of rubber band pulled through the hole of the bead – but a toothpick or paper match works well. Plus, the match swells when wet and doubles for starting a shore lunch cooker. –Jason Brooks

Snap swivel

8mm bead

Size 2 or 4 octopus hook 10-pound, hi-vis mainline

Shortened line used for illustration purposes. (JASON BROOKS)

Three-shot slinky 8-pound, 18- to 24-inch leader

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for a few casts and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get a bite, either change up your offering or figure no fish are resting there at the moment and move to another location. But donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t forget to come back and fish that spot again. Summers will move in as they make their way upriver and that might be when you hit that fish. I have seen it more than once when a guy moves from one spot to another only to look up and see someone else fighting a fish from that spot they left 15 minutes ago. After small riffles of choppy water the next place to look for steelhead are long flats that are at least 4 feet deep. I was floating a river a few years ago, and as we drifted along a long flat I looked over the edge of the boat to see a steelhead finning there, resting. After going past the fish I pulled the boat over and walked back up the bank and found it still sitting midriver. My first cast put the gear about 6 feet away from the fish, and it turned,

122 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

slowly making its way over to the bait, but let it go by. The second cast put the bait right in front of the fish and it hammered it. This illustrates three things: that fish aren’t always in the riffles, that multiple casts may be needed, and a stealth approach helps. “When the water is low and clear, I work very hard to be as quiet as possible with the boat,” Hall says. “One of the things I love about my Clackacraft is how quiet it is. I concentrate on keeping the boat as close to the shore as possible. In some instances I will anchor up above a nice piece of water and get out of the boat. Once out of the water we walk the bank and stay out of the river as much as possible.” After working the area and you feel confident there are no fish in the flat move down to the next area and fish again. If you are fishing from shore try and find a high vantage point and look for fish with polarized sunglasses. Take note of any deep pockets, boulders, or slots in the flat and concentrate in those areas.

THERE ARE THREE primary launches and take-outs for drift boaters on the ’Nooch as well as some additional bank access. Starting at the top of the floatable waters is the state access area off of Wynoochee Valley Road known as White Bridge. For bank-bound anglers, White Bridge West, on the opposite side of the river, offers a long gravel bar to fish from (no launching from the gravel bar is allowed). Google Earth and other detailed aerial mapping sites can help locate bank spots upriver from here, but in the summer, flows can be too low even for drift boaters to put in at the 7400 line launch. Downstream of White Bridge is what’s known as the Crossover launch, just off Wynoochee-Wishkah Road. It too has a long gravel bar for bankies to walk along and fish the pocket water. Drift boaters can launch or take out here as well, but those in a jet sled shouldn’t even try and naviJUNE 2014

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FISHING LAST GO FOR N. TOUTLE-GREEN

As ever, beware the ledge of the diversion dam near river mile 8. The standard advice is to get out and rope your boat through on the left side. The dam diverts water to Lake Aberdeen. (JASON BROOKS)

gate this far up in the summer. Between here and the next takeout is a low head dam that boaters must be aware of. You’ll need to get to the left side of the river to go over it, and the safest way is to pull to the bank and have everyone get out, then use a lead rope and float your boat over the small dip in the dam. A bow rope as well as a stern rope will help you guide the boat through easier. But it may be trickier than usual. “The high waters of this past winter pushed a monster-size tree onto and partially across the spillway,” reports Hall. “The rootball of this tree is lying just above the concrete spillway. The rest of the tree is laying across the spillway pointing straight downriver. And here’s the kicker: the tree is on the left side of the spillway. Adding to the trouble are two trees lying in the water at the top end (downriver end below the spillway) of the downed tree. The river splits around a gravel bar just a few feet below the spillway. The left side flow slams into these trees and can be very dangerous.” The float from Crossover to Black Creek is very long, offering a full day of fishing, but don’t stay in one area for an extended period or you might find yourself having to row past great water 124 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

to make it to the take-out on time. Black Creek is a concrete launch and the one area that drift boaters and jet sledders will both be on the same water. There is really no bank fishing access here and parking can be limited, leaving you to park your truck and trailer along the shoulder of the Wynoochee Valley Road. The lower river is slower and has some deep runs that accommodate jet boaters, but watch the water levels as there are some riffles below the ramp that you might not be able to get back up if dam operators drop water levels. One strong word of caution for sledders is that the river is popular with inner tubers and rafters this time of year. The Cowlitz, which sees much larger smolt plants and higher catches of returning adults, may be a better option. Below Black Creek, the next takeout is just below WDFW regional headquarters in Montesano. The upper portion of this float can produce steelhead that came in with the last tide, but the lower float is pretty much a “highway” for the fish as it is slow water and they don’t hold here for long. It’s the least productive float, but is the easiest to row. Not too far past the take-out gravel bar you will go under De-

Seems like hatchery summer steelhead rivers are getting rarer each year, and 2014 will basically be the last one to get after clipped fish on the North Fork Toutle/Green system. It’s a result of state fishery managers’ decision earlier this year to gene bank the Lewis County rivers and no longer release smolts, which in recent years have yielded as many as 700 adults off of as few as 25,000 smolts. To hit either you’ll need a Columbia River endorsement and barbless hooks, and the Green has selectivegear rules, meaning no bait or scent. “It’s green, it’s secluded, it’s pure wilderness and you can harvest a fish there – it’s productive,” an angler from Olympia told us as he protested the gene banking. As hatchery releases end, catchand-release fishing for wild steelhead will continue, but I personally feel it’s hard to target a fish that is listed as threatened just to satisfy the need to catch one. –Jason Brooks

vonshire Road and then dump out into the Chehalis. With either the incoming tide or at high slack you can row upriver to another gravel take-out known as South Monte or South Montesano. The Wynoochee opens up on June 1 with a two-fish limit and no minimum size for clipped steelhead or trout. From the mouth of the river to the White Bridge access site bait is allowed with no hook restrictions, except from Aug. 16 to Nov. 30. you must use single-point hooks. If you find yourself looking for a place to get after steelhead, why not give the Wynoochee a try? It may not produce Cowlitz numbers, but it’s a great little piece of water where you can spend a June day fishing while waiting for summer to arrive. NS

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126 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

Summer’s End

JIG OF THE MONTH

Article and images by Chris Gregersen

hile not necessarily the summer’s end as far as the calendar goes, this jig has been the end for summer-run steelhead more often than any other jig I’ve tied. It features a red-and-black profile, which combines natural tones that key into a summer’s urge to forage throughout the season, as well as the attraction of red. Tie this pattern on a black 1⁄8-ounce jighead through early summer and a 1⁄16-ounce head during low flows later on.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

spacing it out to give the jig a “ribbed” look and tie this off at the head.

Marabou feathers, Krystal Flash, chenille, red thread, schlappen, 1⁄8- or 1⁄16ounce jighead, cement, glue

2) FLOSS WELL! Tie in a strip of fine black chenille for the ribbing, and form your body by wrapping the whole shank of the hook with red thread until you’ve got a uniform red body.

4) HACKLE, EYES Finish the jig by tying in a short piece of black schlappen. Wrap this around the neck at the jighead a few times, and tie off your jig with a good half-hitch knot. Cement the knot and glue on a couple of eyes and you’re ready to rock.

1) TYIN’ THE TAIL Using the thick vanes from the base of the marabou feathers, start the tail by laying down a large pinch of black marabou. Add a small pinch of red on top of this, followed by a few strands of red or black Krystal Flash. Top this off with black to give a dark tail with red highlights.

CONTEST

3) RIBBING, COLLAR Wrap the chenille slowly forward,

If you tie one of the jigs Chris features on this page this year and catch a steelhead with it, email awalgamott@mediainc.com a photo with the jig in the fish’s mouth and you could win a full set of his jigs featured here in 2014! JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 127

128 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

COLUMNS

Salmon – Seagoing And Landlocked – Highlight June

ith marine waters temporarily offBy Doug Huddle limits in the North Sound, June’s angling menu traditionally features several freshwater venues with spring Chinook, diminutive kokanee and now their adult kin, sockeye salmon. The upper Skagit opens Sunday, June 1 from Rockport to Marblemount for hatchery-bound kings, as does the lower Cascade, then on June 14, downstream anglers may begin taking two sockeye a day out of the reach from Memorial Bridge (Mount Vernon) to Gilligan Creek. And during June, four of the area’s renown kokanee waters will be coming into their own as well.

NORTH SOUND

WITH RETURNS OF clipped spring Chinook expected to top 2,750 fish, upper Skagit anglers will be working on a bag limit over this 45-day opening of four hatchery kings (no more than two adults longer than 24 inches). Coming just after the peak of the spring snowmelt, fishing afloat is going to offer the best opportunity. Two powerboat launches serve the reach, including the U.S. Forest Service’s ramp at Marblemount’s Cascade River Road Bridge, just above the open waters. The lower launch is located immediately below the Highway 530 bridge closure line at Skagit County’s Howard Miller Steelhead Park. Make sure when you use these ramps to remember when to wet or retrieve your gear since neither are in waters open to salmon. A halfway point launch that is sometimes inhospitable (rough and shallow) to larger jetsleds also is available at Barr Creek near Route 20’s milepost 100. Though not impossible, it is hard to find your way to the bank between Rockport and Marblemount. Private ownership

predominates here and you need permission to venture onto such lands. The Highway 20 side of the Skagit offers the most places to get to the river, including the 101 Hole (milepost 101 on the highway), Clark’s Cabins and Pressentin County Park. When the flow is down, the lower Cascade permits boot anglers to the most fishable water with approach trails coming in off the Cascade River Road on federal lands. In addition, anglers are allowed to park their vehicles at the state hatchery and walk through the facility down Clark Creek to the river. Be sure not to block any work areas. Studious anglers also can find other potential accesses via recently acquired Seattle City Light lands by logging A client of guide Nick Petosa (right) shows off an upper Skagit River onto the Skagit County Asses- spring Chinook, which bit a Mag Lip. (PETOSAFISHING.COM) sor’s Web site and investigatlures such as the old Wells spoons or No. 6 ing property ownerships along the upper versions in the Mepps or Steelie lines. river’s banks. Whether you’re casting from a boat or Not governed by selective-gear rules, the bank bring a reel with lots of backing springer anglers can use cluster eggs and line and be prepared for these big, strong sand shrimp to tempt the fish. Single trehook-stung fish to make multiple long ble hooks are fine as well and barbs need runs. not be pinched. This year’s Baker Lake sockeye run, at The two aforementioned soft and 35,000-plus fish, is deemed strong enough scented baits when drifted or plunked to permit both an inriver fishery as well as with Corkies or wing bobbers are highly the now-popular opportunity in the upper effective. Boat-borne fishers say they have Baker reservoir. great success pulling plug-type lures such For reds in the lower Skagit, most teras larger Hot Shots and Tadpollys through minal tackle that provokes humpies to the deepest pools. bite also will draw the attention of sockBank anglers on the edge of a deep eye. But for good measure, add rocket red pool should not overlook large spinning JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 129

color equivalents to your collection of winged bobbers, and if you can find them, your mylar hoochies as well. I also like red and orange Kwikfish and the 035 version of Hot Shots in crimson. Note that from June 14 to 29 selectivegear rules are waived in the Mount Vernon-to-Gilligan reach, which means you won’t have to modify these lures. WHILE KOKANEE CALL home a variety of Whatcom and Skagit County lakes, four larger, deeper waters – all to some extent reservoirs – are where they hold sway by dint of their numbers. Lakes Whatcom, Samish, Shannon and Baker all boast significant “silver” populations. Whatever you call these not-alwayslandlocked sockeye, from an angler’s standpoint, they can be an especially mysterious and frustrating quarry. Modern electronics help somewhat in their game of hide and seek. But their unique relationship with their home waters, including seeking to hover in thermoclines (layers of

water at a given temperature), a physiological predilection (all the fine rakers on their gill arches) to filter feeding for plankton and their tendency to move quickly in large schools, all make them a hard mark. One sure kokanee rule of thumb for savvy anglers who don’t rely on sonar detection is that when you catch one kokanee, circle around quickly and repeat exactly (depth and spot) what you did. One June at Samish we made six straight passes several hundred yards off a specific residence, wind-mooching Ford Fenders and shrimp flies, and hooked six fish each in ten minutes. That’s just how dialed in you can get with these fish. Lake Whatcom’s native kokanee are unique in that they are the most isolated. Several natural Chuckanut sandstone sills bar entry to the lake by any sea-run salmonid species, so there is no reinfusion of anadromous genes. But with the help of a small state fish-production facility at its south end, Whatcom’s silvers have a sustained aggregate population (in four

JUNE DERBIES ON TAP Four free youth/trout tussles are scheduled in June for Whatcom and Skagit Counties. The Puget Sound Anglers Fidalgo Chapter and Anacortes Parks Department host a derby for kid’s age 13 and younger Saturday, June 7 at Heart Lake south of Anacortes. The contest runs from 7 to 11:30 a.m. for all ages Also that day, American Legion Post 212 of Sumas will hold the Howard Bowen Memorial Kid’s Fishing Derby for youth age 4 to 13 on a stretch of Johnson Creek in the border town’s city park. There are two age categories for this derby, 4 to 8 and 9 to 13. Fishtrap Creek just above Depot Road on Lynden City Park will be the scene of a June 14 tilt between area kids and a hatchery school of visiting rainbows. Young anglers will compete in three age groups, plus there will be special fishing time for those under age 5. Saturday, June 21 a bluegill battle is set for Fazon Lake in Whatcom County. Sponsored annually by the Borderline Bassin’ Contenders club, kids age 14 and under are eligible to fish this event. A boat is needed to effectively fish the lake. Contestants are encouraged to arrive before start times and register (check-in) with organizers. For more kids’ events, look up wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/kids/events. html. –DH

age classes) roughly estimated to be around 10 to 12 million. The most numerous are the age-one group, which numbers at least 4.5 million due to the brood release sizes from South Lake Whatcom Hatchery. There is also some natural production in several tributaries. For decades Lake Whatcom’s silvers, because they were not naturally exposed to deadly viral agents, were the source for 130 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

kokanee plants in many lakes around Washington. In fact, this certified disease-free kokanee stock has supplied many Western states’ fish programs, from Montana and Wyoming to California and Texas. Of course, the 3- and 4-year olds are the ones of greatest interest to anglers and because they are plankton feeders, that congregate in large schools, they’re locatable either by fish finder or the old-fashioned way, by hooking one. Even when chumming was permitted – it’s not now to safeguard water quality – trolling not still-fishing was the order of the angling day, principally because of the roving nature of the feeder schools and the 5,000-acre lake’s staggered plankton blooms. Early-season silvers are found most often in the first basin of the lake, out of BloedelDonovan Park above the 20-foot line, and also over in Agate Bay. As the summer and lake warm, the kokanee move south, and by the end of September, the best trolling is down in South Bay at dawn or dusk, again close to the surface as the fish stage for running Brannian Creek to the hatchery. Anglers of old returning to these waters should know that because Bellingham public works managers are concerned about the introduction of exotic shellfish such as zebra or quagga mussels that could foul the city’s water supply system, boat access to Whatcom is highly controlled. All watercraft prior to launch must be inspected, certified pest free and marked with a sticker. The pace of kokanee fishing at Baker Lake, the upper of the two Baker River reservoirs operated by Puget Sound Energy, has slowed somewhat with more adult sockeye going into the lake in June and July. The large flotillas that once anchored at Anderson Creek’s cove downlake and off Noisy Creek or Red Rocks uplake throughout the spring and summer have given over to fewer boats trolling at a relatively shallow depth. Chumming is allowed, but beware that there’s a slot limit for kokanee: fish caught outside the dedicated sockeye fishery must be between 6 and 18 inches long. There are six fee campgrounds on Baker, and anglers may stay at any of a number of traditionally used, so-called dispersed campsites up and down its west side, as

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long as it’s not below the high water line. Lake Shannon, once known for its prodigious kokanee production, has fallen on slow times, piscatorially speaking. Its steeper shoreline offers less on the way of spawning streams and a substantial drawdown regime makes lake-bottom seep spawning less of a possible alternative as well. Much of the fry component from the upper reservoir that contributed to Shannon’s residual sockeye contingent is now ushered out of Baker via a more efficient trap-and-haul system, bypassing Shannon. However, what it may lack in angling frenzy these days, it still makes up for in the glorious sense of remoteness and relatively low density of anglers. There’s only one public boat launch on the lower east shore and there’s very limited access now on the old limestone quarry and down by the dam. Shannon silver fishers are also allowed to chum, and the log-boom barrier is still a pleasant and productive place to tie up and fish from on a sunny June day. Another favorite still-fishing haunt for boat-borne fishers on the eastern shore is at Three-mile

(also known as “Bridge” for its old log stringer span just above full pool) Creek. Trollers, especially with lake-scale downriggers, also do well, but a thorough understanding of the contours of the lake bottom as well as the twists and turns of the old river channel are necessary to reduce downrigger ball and terminal tackle loss. In fact, it’s best if you use pop gear or a small dodger to stay below Thunder Creek. Chumming’s allowed, and the slot limit also applies. Once stocked every year with up to a million kokanee fry, Lake Samish was a June mecca for kokanee still-fishers, with up to 70 boats often anchored 100 feet off the east side ramp. The waters off the county park fishing dock in the western lobe were also popular. The take then were silvers from 9 to 12 inches. When supply problems stopped the hatchery inputs, Samish’s kokanee fell back on less prodigious natural output from Barnes, Finney and Mud Creeks. With far fewer mouths for Samish’s plankton blooms to sustain, the average size shot

up to 16-inch, pound-apiece kokes. And the angling style changed from anchor and chum to pull-some-glitz troll prospecting, which now works almost as well for those persistent souls who were able to solve the time-of-day/terminal tackle/depth multivariable equation for these fish. Slopping the silvers with chum is banned here because the lake is a water source for shore residents (you’ll also need the county invasive-species sticker), but there’s no size limit even if the odd sea-run sockeye does show up. Samish yields some nice kokanee in May through June and later in October. NEXT ISSUE July saltwater salmon, Bellingham PSA derby, Ross Lake rainbows preview, get ready for bear. NS Editor’s note: Doug Huddle lives in Bellingham, is retired from the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife, and has written about hunting and fishing in the Northwest for more than 30 years.

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Northwest e s a c w o Boats Sh Mike Blocker

North River Boats Northwest Sportsman We all have interesting stories about how we got into our lines of work. What’s the Twitterverse/140character version of yours? Mike Blocker North River Boats came to be because the Umpqua River is mainly immovable bedrock instead of gravel. The river required a build strength far beyond other systems.

includes drive and fishing qualities, comfort, ergonomics, fit and finish, and longevity. We began a guide program in 2001. Now 13 years later, most of the initial guides who came on board are still in the same boats. The reason is that every aspect of the hulls continue to perform at the highest level. NS What Northwest fishery are you most excited about this year? MB If the numbers of fall Chinook and coho predicted for the Columbia River this year materialize, it will be nothing short of phenomenal for Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Have to say that fishery is the big one for 2014.

NS What would you say is your company’s proudest accomplishment in hull engineering? MB That even boaters with limited experience can immediately recognize the exceptional comfort and ride quality inherent to all North River hulls. For 40 years now, North River hulls continue to exemplify superior performance, strength and finish quality. NS How many people do you employ? Have you been able to add staff since the recession? MB We currently have 105 employees. When North River was purchased in August 2012 there were 68 employees and every employee was “hired” by the new company. We have added 37 employees and consolidated all of our manufacturing into one location for the first time in North River Boats’ history. This has enabled us to improve efficiencies and increase production and capacity. NS What are some of your new products or new features for 2014? MB We have continued to improve product efficiencies within our very popular Seahawk series of boats. We upgraded suspension seats, improved access through

134 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

the walk-through windshield when the top is up, improved SS top fittings, and more. For the Seahawk Hard Top and Cuddy HT series we raised the interior cabin height and added color-matched zolatone paint on the cabin top. One of the biggest achievements this year was the ability to offer our Seahawk OS series again. The continued growing demand of our commercial product reduced production capacity for the Seahawk OS product for several years. With the increase in production staff and capacity, you can now purchase a Seahawk OS from our dealers again. NS How is boat-manufacturing technology changing and where do you see it headed in the future? MB We see thinner, lighter weight and sparsely appointed boats as the industry’s direction to combat rising costs. At North River, we’re strictly adhering to our founding principles of premium design, materials and construction techniques. We use technology to create efficiency and deliver value.

NS Who is your company’s typical boat buyer? MB Our typical buyer is the friend of a North River owner, or a previous North River owner. Our customers are very loyal and tend to be our best salespeople. The North River buyer has generally already decided they are purchasing a North River before they ever show up or call the dealer.

NS What sets your craft apart from the competition? MB Performance, with an all encompassing definition that

NS Where can prospective buyers see your boats or learn more about them? MB Check out one of our 10 independent dealers listed on our website at www.northriverboats.com.

NS What’s the most notable catch out of one of your company’s boats? MB I think this is probably typical for most boat owners or parents, but my most notable catch was watching my son catch his first oversize sturgeon out of a North River Commander. That kid is hooked for life!

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FISHING

Koke Camp A trio of Cascades reservoirs offer great fishing and camping facilities for the kokanee crowd.

Kokanee fishing and camping go hand in hand, and Wickiup Reservoir, where the author’s son Ayden scored these two, is among the best in the Northwest for both family activities. (ANDY SCHNEIDER)

By Andy Schneider

he last day of school was marked on the calendar hanging on the fridge two months ago, and the kids have been X-ing out the days till summer vacation ever since. Just about the time that our littler learners clean out their lockers and desks for the year, the Northwest’s higher reservoirs begin to produce some serious numbers of kokanee, giving us parents a homework problem of our own to work on: Which lake should we head to first?!? Camping and kokanee fishing go together like s’mores and campfires. The Northwest has some real jewels too, lakes that produce either big fish,

big catches, or both. While finding one that offers good fishing and good camping can be a challenge – oftentimes, one suffers while the other excels – there are a few reservoirs that offer great camping spots and great fishing. So hitch up the boat, throw the tent in the bed of the truck, and head for these great combo getaways.

LAKE MERWIN DRAWS kokanee fans from miles away to fish its 4,000 acres. The landlocked sockeye are available year-round, but as spring transitions into summer, action picks up and the fish start growing fast on the ample groceries available in the North Fork Lewis River reservoir. Merwin kokanee average 11 to 12 inches in winter and 13 to 15 inches

come summer. Most anglers launch out of Speelyai Bay, on the eastern half of the lake, and start trolling west. Hugging either the north or south shores is more productive than trolling the middle of the lake. Pay attention to your electronics and locate what depth kokanee are holding. Merwin develops some very distinguishable thermoclines due to heavy flows down the North Fork. The fish tend to feed either above the thermocline or below it, depending on the season. Drop one of your downriggers to the middle of the thermocline and the other either above or below till you consistently start catching fish, then match your depths. But as the day wears on, be prepared to search out JUNE 2014

Northwest Sportsman 137

FISHING

more productive ones as fish may move deeper. Some of the best lures at Merwin include Apexes, the new mini-Simons and simple kokanee hoochies, but picking a particular color can be a challenge. It’s best to bring many different options instead of not having the very specific color the fish want that day. Sling Blades, Alvin’s, Clancy’s and full-sized Simons make great kokanee dodgers. Run your lure 6 to 10 inches behind one; one and a half to two times the length of the dodger is a good rule to follow to get the right action. Don’t forget a piece of shoepeg corn on your trailing hook. A drop of pure anise won’t hurt either. Camping can’t get much better than PacifiCorp’s Cresap Bay Campground, at Merwin’s eastern end 138 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

(Pacificorp.com). Not only does it feature great camping sites and a nice swimming beach, but also a 23-slip marina, so you don’t have to pull your boat out every night.

WICKIUP RESERVOIR IS one of the most scenic places in the Northwest to chase kokanee. Snow-covered peaks – North Sister, South Sister, Broken Top, Mt. Bachelor and Diamond Peak, just to name a few – surround this lake in the headwaters of Oregon’s Deschutes River. Though not on average as deep as other kokanee lakes in the region, the fish still thrive here, as do rainbows and brown trout. The Davis and Deschutes Arms are the most popular places, and you’ll know quickly if you’ve strayed from the channels, as the bottom will jump up from 45 feet to 4 feet in a very short distance. If

you’ve never trolled Wickiup before, take the family on a “tour” of the lake, marking the channels on your GPS. Once you get a handful of waypoints on your chart plotter, you’ll be able to troll in confidence, without losing gear in a shallow stump field. That said, kokanee tend to locate at the edges of these shallows in the early season, making it a gamble between snagging up or not catching anything in the depths. Downriggers are not a necessity. Many anglers flat-line troll gang trolls or a banana weight, dodger and hoochie combo. Yellow- and flamecolored Needlefish, Wiggle Hoochies and watermelon-colored Apexes are some of Wickiup’s top lures. Upgrading to ultraviolet dodgers and lures can be very productive, and Berkley Gulp Maggots and Pautzke Fire Corn are great for tipping your lures here.

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Northwest Sportsman 139

FISHING

CAMPER HELPER One way to make camping even more enjoyable is to prepare some of your meals at home. Here are three recipes that you’re sure to find in the Schneiders’ cooler as we head for the campground.

Boiled Omelets Packing list: Quart-sized freezer bags; eggs; shredded cheddar cheese; crumbled bacon; chopped sweet peppers; chopped mushrooms; 1⁄2 gallon water; 1 large pot Prep work: At home, shred the cheese, chop the peppers, and cook and crumble the bacon, storing separately. Crack your eggs and place into a thermos, scrambling now or at camp. Once at camp, place all ingredients in a quart-sized locking freezer bag. Bring pot of water to boil, add the bag and boil for approximately 20 minutes. Once cooked, sprinkle your omelette

140 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

with a little more shredded cheese and serve without any messy pans, extra butters or non-stick sprays.

A happy camper displays his s’more. (ANDY WALGAMOTT)

Chili Dogs

Packing list: Hoagie buns; beef hot dogs; shredded cheddar; chili; chopped onions; 1 quart sauce pan; 1 tablespoon of margarine Prep work:At home, chop onions, shred cheese and butter the buns. At camp, place your hoagies butter side down onto your camp grill, heat chili and cook your hot dogs. Everything is usually ready at the same time, so assemble your chili dog and serve right next to the camp fire. The only dish should be a spoon for serving the chili and your sauce pan. S’mores

Packing list: Graham crackers; marshmallows; Hershey’s chocolate; a “forked” hot dog skewer Prep work: At home, use a knife to cut your graham crackers along the perforated

line, which is totally bogus anyway – if you try to break the cracker along the line at camp, the cracker will always bust close to your fingers. Cutting at home prevents this frustration. At camp, place your graham crackers, with a piece of chocolate on top, on a clean and warm campfire rock to allow the chocolate to soften. Toast your marshmallow using a forked hot dog skewer to keep your marshmallow from spinning or dripping off. Place toasted marshmallow on top of chocolate and cracker, and use the other half of the cracker to sandwich everything together while pulling out the skewer. You should be left with a slightly toasted cracker, well-melted chocolate and an awesome family dessert. –AS

Camping on Wickiup is made especially nice by another new campground, Gull Point. Located on the north side of the reservoir, the Forest Service facility offers an awesome boat ramp, fish-cleaning station and campsites where you can beach your boat right below your tent.

CANYON WALLS INSTEAD of volcanic peaks tower over you at Lake Billy Chinook. Some soar 400 feet above the water and plunge equally as far underneath the surface. Billy Chinook is the convergence of three rivers â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the Deschutes, Metolius and Crooked â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and its trio of arms stretches 6 to 12 miles up from Round Butte Dam. The most popular for kokanee anglers is the Metolius Arm, which requires a permit from the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs (tribalpermit.com), and fishing around Chinook Island can be es-

142 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

pecially good early in the morning. As the day wears on, kokanee start scattering and pleasure boats start coming out in force. Look towards the upper ends of the three arms for some relief from boat traffic and to find fish. Downriggers are almost a necessity, though tossing jigs to jumpers can produce decent results. Casting or vertical jigging a pearl pink or orange Gibbs produces well. Wedding Ring spinners, Needlefish, mini-Simons, Apexes, or just plain hoochies behind a dodger all work for trollers. With fish passage into Billy Chinook now possible, the kokanee limit has been dropped to five and all over 16 inches have to be released, as they are now considered sockeye. Hopefully soon, the lake will support a sockeye fishery – that will make fishing here very interesting. Camping is available at Cove Palisades State Park’s two campgrounds, Crooked River and Deschutes. The latter offers a fishcleaning station and 21 boat moorage spaces, and a short hike to some pretty neat petroglyphs.

THERE’S SOMETHING ADDICTIVE about kokanee fishing at Billy Chinook, Wickiup, Merwin and elsewhere. While albacore have been the fastest growing fishery in the Northwest, kokes are a close second. If you are just getting into the sport, look to local sporting goods stores for seminars. Kokanee can be finicky at times, but nowhere near as moody as any salmon or steelhead running up the Columbia. Indeed, once these fish get under your skin, you’ll be thinking twice about a day of springer fishing. A multi-day trip really allows you to dial in a lake, and your success should rise the longer you spend on the water. Plan a trip with a couple buddies or the entire family. Either way, a kokanee campout is a wonderful way to celebrate all that life in the Northwest has to offer. NS

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COLUMNS Palmer Lake is Okanogan County's most well-known kokanee lake, but the twin Conconullys – seen here – are beginning to attract attention, and the state now puts landlocked sockeye into Alta Lake near Pateros. (BOULDERNAVIGATOR, WIKIMEDIA)

More Kokanee Options In The Okanogan

or generations now, Okanogan County has been known for its great recreational opportunities – deer, bear and even some upland bird hunting in the fall, rainBy Leroy Ledeboer bow trout and bass fishing throughout the warmer months. Fortunately, none of this has significantly changed, but now we can add solid catches of kokanee to that list, not only on vast Palmer Lake, where natural production has been supplemented for at least several decades, but also three other waters. “Enough kokanee spawn in Chopaka Creek coming out of Palmer Lake for us to set up a fish trap, get the broodstock we need, then raise plenty of fingerlings in our Omak hatchery – not only to supply that lake but also Conconully Lake, Conconully Reservoir and Alta Lake,” states Linda Oules, a Department of Fish & Wildlife scientific tech. “We first put kokanee in the Conconullys in 2008 and last year saw some really nice catches, 15- to 16-inchers in the upper lake, slightly smaller

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in the lower reservoir. On Alta we didn’t get started as early, but the fingerlings had very little competition, so even by last summer they were 15 inches and very fleshy.” Alta, not far southwest of Pateros, is a beautiful lake, has several resorts, a big state park with 91 tent sites and 32 RV spaces, as well as plenty of nearby accommodations for anglers. Better yet, it may be an even better kokanee fishery this season, when a whole new juvenile class is out there and the holdovers should have put on at least a couple of inches. THE TWIN CONCONULLIES were a little stingy on the late April opener for kokanee, even for the guys with all the right gear and years of koke expertise, but should improve. “These waters are always productive, so once again the trout fishing was very good, both for boaters and shore anglers. But that first day we didn’t contact a single angler with a kokanee on either lake. On Sunday, at least a couple of trollers on the reservoir (also called Lower Conconully) did get into them, had limits, but the upper lake still wasn’t producing,” says Oules.

“For me that wasn’t all that surprising because ever since ice-out, both the reservoir and our lake are rising fast, a situation that always seems to turn off kokanee, not only here but on Lake Roosevelt, on the rivers, anywhere you have real fluctuations,” Kevin Messer, owner-operator of Conconully Lake Resort (509-826-0813) told me in early May. “Give it another two weeks, the water will be all the way up, and we’ll be right back into them. By the first of June they should be in full swing. Traditionally, my buddies and I went up to Palmer Lake on Father’s Day because by then we were sure the kokanee would be active. Now we’re seeing the same pattern play out here.” Messer says any trolling gear that works on other kokanee waters will work on the Conconullys, anything from Kokanee Killers, Wedding Rings, some small spoons, the use of pop gear. “We’ve got it all on our lures’ wall now because so many guys have different preferences,” he says. “They’ve found something that works for them, so they stick to it. Personally, my son and I like to use Double Whammies in chartreuse or nickle, JUNE 2014

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COLUMNS though I rerig them with larger blades, and run these 24 inches behind a 3-inch herring dodger. I like that dodger better than pop gear because it’s not as heavy and goes flat on the surface so there’s almost no drag. And we soak our corn in anise oil overnight because it really makes for a better bite.” In lakes everywhere those soft-lipped, super-active kokanee are champs at shedding a hook, so Messer says a light, very flexible rod is another real asset. “Some guys use rubber snubbers and there’s nothing wrong with that approach, but I prefer to use a leader with a bit of stretch and a good fiberglass rod with plenty of bend, kind of a noodle rod, and I don’t set the hook hard. I let the fish hook itself. Even then, though, there are going to be days when we hook into 20 or more before we put a limit in the boat. That’s just part of kokanee fishing.”

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The Han family – Jerry, Corbin, Britt, Lexi and Austin – of Tri-Cities enjoyed a memorable Memorial Day Weekend camping/fishing trip last May in North-central Washington that included “spectacular” kokanee fishing with Rocky Mountain Tackle 4.25-inch dodgers and mini hoochies tipped with corn soaked in assorted Pro-Cure flavors. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

Now six years since the landlocked sockeye began to be stocked, they’re reaching sizes that are better than some other waters. “Yeah, once again we’re going to get a lot in the 16- to 17-inch range, a few even a little bigger, up to 2 maybe 21⁄2 pounds. But we

don’t have the kind of food production to get those 5- to 6-pounders like you might see in Roosevelt. Tastewise, though, these are the best, absolutely delicious, and we never have to fish those super depths to get to them. In June we’ll be down around 14 to 16 feet, then as the weather warms and the lake temperatures go up a few degrees we’ll go deeper, but never more than 35 feet or so.” WDFW has no way of knowing how much natural production accounts for kokanee catches in either Conconully’s lower lake, where they run up Salmon Creek to spawn, or Palmer, where you can still rely on solid kokanee catches of 15- to 17-inchers. But a “good run” is now annually making their way out of both to produce the next generation. “It’s really enjoyable to hike along Salmon Creek in the fall when all those kokanee are moving upstream,” says Oules. “The spawners literally turn sections of that creek red.” NS

148 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

FISHING

Selkirks Secrets Four close-together lakes provide good midseason fishing for cutts, ’bows.

Anglers prepare to launch at Browns Lake. While it is fly fishing only, three other nearby waters are open for conventional-gear fishing. (JON HUSSMAN)

By Mike Wright

astern Washington provides a cornucopia of opportunity for stillwater anglers. Pockmarked with a vast variety of lakes, each possesses its own character and fishing conditions. And the Department of Fish & Wildlife has done a masterful job of maintaining them for a wide spectrum of the angling community, everyone from fly fishermen in pontoons to those reclining in lawn chairs and plunking bait off their shores. Some lakes are managed as warmwater fisheries while others are reserved for various strains of trout. A sizeable portion, primarily lower ele-

vation lakes, provide a mix of bass, bluegill, perch, rainbows and kokanee. True, some of that has been the work of what is referred to, with disdain, as bucket biologists, but the vast majority has been by design. The Eastside’s lakes can generally be divided into categories, roughly based on their opener. Those in the lowlands, such as Amber, Medical, Coffeepot and Liberty, all open March 1. Those to the north and east – Waitts, Bayley and Diamond – tend to open on the fourth Saturday in April. There are some exceptions, of course, but higher elevation lakes fall into the late-April category. The early-opening lakes provide excellent fishing for an-

glers anxious to get started after the winter layoff, yet as season progresses and temperatures increase, fishing success decreases and higher waters become a more desirable destination. By June the latter waters are just reaching their prime potential.

THE WESTERN SLOPES of the Selkirk Mountains have a number of small lakes that can meet the needs of those anglers whose lower lakes have turned off. One such set of waters lies northwest of Newport. A little over 10 miles out of town, along Highway 20, is the small hamlet of Usk. Turning right off the state route and crossing the bridge over the Pend Oreille River, JUNE 2014

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FISHING Browns Lake is capable of putting out some stout rainbows. The lake also holds westslope cutthroat. (MIKE WRIGHT)

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you will come to the intersection of LeClerc Creek and Kings Lake Roads. Proceeding straight, or east, takes you to four very good stillwater fisheries, though the roadâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s namesake is not one of them (a broodstock lake for westslope cutthroat, Kings is closed to fishing). And a clearly marked road to the left, just before you pass Kings, leads to the most productive of the quartet, Browns Lake. An 88-acre body of water, Browns is located in a steep mountain canyon near the crest of the Selkirks. It contains westslope cutthroat with some rainbows, but they are considerably fewer in number. A small feeder stream that enters the lake at the easternmost end provides for some natural reproduction and accounts for the occasional cutt-bow hybrid. However, the vast majority of the fish population is a result of an annual plant of cutthroat fry. There is a large Forest Service campground with 18 sites at the southwest corner of the lake. A steep

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but well-maintained road leads down to the water and launching area. From here water depths increase rapidly, reaching 15 to 20 feet just a few yards from the ramp. Browns is regulated as fly fishing only, and since the steep terrain limits backcasts, most fishing is done by boat, float tube or pontoon. All motors are prohibited, whether gas or electric. The best early fishing is toward the shallower, weedier east end. Browns contains some scuds, or freshwater shrimp, but not in the concentration of the regionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lower lakes. As a result, trout grow somewhat slower than elsewhere. However, there is a sizeable number of holdover cutts in the 12- to 14-inch range. Some of the longer-lived rainbow can reach 18 to 20 inches. There are very healthy midge hatches that occur throughout the year, along with callibaetis mayfly

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hatches later in the season. Chironomids, Pheasant Tails, soft hackle Peacocks and gold-ribbed Hare’s Ears are all good choices. These flies are best fished with intermediate or sink-tip lines employing a moderately slow retrieve. Using these flies as a dropper with a black olive or brown leech as the lead fly is also very effective. Floating line with a strike indicator and a chironomid 4 to 6 feet under the surface will also produce fish. The lake can also be an outstanding dry fly fishery. A Griffith’s Gnat, Renegade, Parachute Adams or small stimulator are excellent choices during these times. Although the trout are not particularly leader shy, the water is very clear, making fluorocarbon tippet advisable. There are times when Browns’ fish can be very picky eaters. This is especially true during periods of strong winds, which happens fairly frequently. The wind is usually more intense during the middle of the day and tapers off as evening approaches. You can either ride out the waves or take a break and wait for things to calm down.

THERE’S A THIRD option: move to another lake. Fortunately, in this part of the Selkirks that is not an overly time-consuming proposition. On the way to Browns, Kings Lake Road passes Half Moon Lake, a 14-acre, long, narrow body of water situated in a heavily timbered canyon. There is a small parking and launching area at the shallower, weedy north end. Just past this section the lake drops off rapidly to as much as 30 feet. Half Moon is populated with both cutthroat and brook trout. The lake is stocked annually with cutthroat fry, but they often end up as food for the voracious brookies. Still, there’s a fair number of catchable-size cutts available, plus very little fishing pressure and less wind. Travelling past the Browns Lake turn-off on the Kings Lake Road, about a mile up the road are North and South Skookum Lakes. Residing JUNE 2014

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at 3,500 feet, these lakes take on many of the characteristics of the Selkirks’ high mountain fisheries. Feed is less plentiful and therefore there is a slower growth rate. This is particularly true in North Skookum, which can also suffer from a heavy algae bloom later in the summer. Even though the fish are smaller, they are plentiful. An annual stocking of several thousand triploid rainbow fry and a fairly high survival rate makes the lakes popular in late spring and summer. Expect to find carryovers in the 10- to 12-inch range. In addition, North Skookum also contains a healthy population of brookies. Since there are no special gear restrictions and it receives more fishing pressure, there is not the same depredation problem that occur in Half Moon. There are unimproved boat launches on both lakes, and a Forest Service campground (25 sites) and picnic area available on South Skookum. Both are also a little more sheltered, so wind is less of a problem than it is on Browns. The same fly patterns that work in Browns will also work in Half Moon and North and South Skookum. There are more tadpoles in both, so a Peakaboo Nymph will also produce fish. For the lure fisherman, Wedding Rings, Mepps and Panther Martins will all work well while PowerBait, worms and corn all seem to attract trout to plunkers’ setups. When summer’s heat starts to take its toll on lower lakes, a trip into the Selkirk Mountains might be in order. Not only do Browns, Half Moon and the Skookums provide good fishing, but the area also features camping, picnicking and hiking plus an abundance of wildlife. It all combines to make the area a very good choice for a weekend or vacation getaway. NS Editor’s note: For local info, try Pend Oreille Valley Sportsman (208-437-3636) in Oldtown, Idaho, across from Newport.

154 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

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156 Northwest Sportsman JUNE 2014

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Finding Fish At Runoff

INLAND NORTHWEST By Ralph Bartholdt

ou can hear the river sometimes before you get there. It’s like a slow push that comes on a breeze that blows through firs and smells of the snow that’s left in the mountains.

It’s different for everyone. Some may not hear the sound, or catch the whiff of mountains in the scent of fir, or be aware of anything but a reel left back-lashed in the gear bag. It’s June in North Idaho and priorities vary, but for river anglers, they are winnowed to two: the Coeur d’Alene and its tributaries, or the Joe. Pat Way of Orvis Northwest Outfitters (nwoutfitters.com) likes to stay close to his Coeur d’Alene office for a couple of reasons. Because the Coeur d’Alene River flows closer to his shop, it’s a shorter hop to wet a line. In addition, he says, the St. Joe River, which rivals the Coeur d’Alene for its wild cutthroat trout fishery, may still be too rocking wild. “Traditionally, the Joe is really not ready yet,” Way says.

happened on this engineered stream since the early 1900s. So, when Way talks about dropping golden stones and caddisflies onto the shimmery surface of the Coeur d’Alene in June, he is remembering a stretch of the North Fork typically from across the road of the iconic Snake Pit tavern and eatery – an an-

THE COUER D’ALENE, which winds out of the mountains of the same name, is a glistening sinew of silver that flows more than 100 miles from its origins in the high country to Lake Coeur d’Alene. When locals talk about it, they usually don’t say North Fork, although it’s a given. Coldwater cutthroat fishing here is done mostly on it and its smaller cousin, the Little North Fork. The two join and become the Coeur d’Alene River after meeting the South Fork, which winds along I-90 through the Silver Valley. A few decades ago the South Fork was so polluted from lead and silver mine tailings that fish, planted in wire cages, could not survive 24 hours in the emerald-green ditch. The place has been cleaned up with money from the Environmental Protection Agency and is becoming fishable – something that hasn’t

gler’s pit stop – 30 miles north to around Shoshone Creek. Way and fellow guides often scoot the high spring water with driftboats that scurry and plunge through the river’s chutes and idle along its pocket water. Spring anglers will travel the river road, which follows the North Fork, in search of coveted slow-moving currents where they can float a fly. “It’s all weather dependent,” Way says. “It can be tough to find that soft water. That’s what you’re after.” Most Panhandle’s streams are open yearround, but anglers are advised to check regulations before they go.

then, goes through St. Maries, a dusty logging town that sports a good outdoor shop called the Blue Goose, and several excellent fly tiers, including St. Maries Flies. Tim Trainor, a Pendleton, Ore., angler who returns to the Joe each year in June, remembers a day when he caught fish after fish, all cutthroat and all cold and bright as a spinner blade, without stepping from the bank. “Once you find reliable soft water, you have found the fish,” Trainor says. He uses a Parachute Adams fished close to the bank, which is often riprap because the road hugs the river so closely for almost 80 miles so much of the time, making it some of the most accessible trout water in the state. Although Trainor and Way have both par-

June can see gnarly flows on North Idaho rivers. (RALPH BARTHOLDT)

THE ST. JOE takes twice as long for Way to get to because shortcuts over mountain passes may still be snow covered. The route,

ticipated in an aptly named practice they call “suicide wading,” in June, neither takes North Idaho’s rivers lightly. “We caution people that in no way is wading a good idea at this point,” Way says. The weather, hot sun, a full-bodied river, seem to call anglers to don their rubber pants. “Everybody thinks because the weather is nice, they can jump in,” Trainor said. He usually wears hip boots in spring. If the water threatens them, he’s in too deep, he says. Watching river flows is a good indicator of fishing conditions, and both men watch the data before they trip to the water. “It’s all weather dependent,” Way reminds. “And it depends on how all that (snow) still comes off the mountains.” NS JUNE 2014

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Trout Above The Clouds

Over 400 lakes in Oregon’s Cascades are stocked every other year with brook, rainbow and cutthroat trout. Fly fishing with sink-tip lines, and casting small spoons and spinners can all pay off with fish that may reach 20 inches in the most productive waters. (ODFW)

he last of the snow is receding quickly in the Cascades above Portland, and that means it’s time to fish our alpine lakes. STUMPTOWN By Terry Otto The Mt. Hood National Forest is peppered with high-elevation waters filled with hungry trout. Almost all of these lakes were fishless before releases began decades ago, and some now have self-sustaining populations. Others are stocked periodically. The fact is, Oregon’s entire Cascade ridge offers excellent trout angling with incredible scenery, and more importantly, solitude. All you need is a little fishing gear, and some good hiking boots. Solitude. Now that’s something today’s modern angler sees little of. Imagine hiking to crystalline waters below rugged, majestic peaks, camping without the noise of generators, and catching gullible trout. While some lakes draw good numbers of anglers, it’s still nothing compared to the drive-to waters, and many of these gems rarely see a fisherman. We are talking about the chance for a true wilderness experience, and great fishing too.

“WE STOCK ABOUT 450 of these lakes in the state,” says Jeff Ziller, a district fisheries biologist for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, “and all but about 20 are in the Cascades.” Helicopters do most of the heavy lifting, but a few are stocked by backpackers and horseback riders. You’ll find rainbows, brook trout, and cutthroats prowling these lakes. While most will be 8 to 12 inches, the more productive waters, and those with strong self-sustaining populations, can produce trout to 20 inches. “The shallow ones have better growth rates,” Ziller says. “The lakes with weed beds are also good.” Those weeds grow a lot of bugs – food for trout. If you’re a fly fisherman, bring a sink-tip line. “The trout that survive learn not to hang around the surface,” says Ziller. Eagles and ospreys pick off the foolish ones. “About the last two hours of daylight is the only time they come up to the surface,” he tips Conventional anglers do just fine too. “You can cover a lot of water with a small spinner,” says Ziller.

A bobber and worms is also effective. Many waters are great for bank fishing, and others for float tubing. ODFW’s website, dfw.state.or.us, has resources for anglers interested in these lakes, including coordinates, GPS points, and stocking schedules. District bios can also help narrow down your search, and forest rangers can tell you which lakes have fish, which trails are difficult hikes, and which are not. They can also offer fresh reports from these areas concerning snow levels and other hazards, as well as tell you about camping options. Let’s take a look at some. FOR A FIRST try, you could hit close-toStumptown hike-in waters such as Mirror Lake. Just off Highway 26, this lake can be reached via a short, moderate hike from the trailhead near Government Camp. It can be busy, though, especially on weekends. Another choice is Burnt Lake, on the north side of Highway 26, and it holds cutthroats and brook trout. This trail is more rugged than Mirror’s; it’s about 4.5 miles, and climbs almost 1,500 feet. South toward Mt. Jefferson are the Olallie Lakes, a string scattered west of the main Olallie Lake. From this starting point, take FS Trail 719, the Red Lake Trail, west. It links several of JUNE 2014

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the largest lakes in the area. There are spur trails that can take you to less-beaten paths and smaller lakes. Working west you will pass Sheep, Wall, and then Averill and Red Lakes, all of which get strong stockings. Other stocked lakes in the area include Lower, Double Peaks, Gifford and Nekbobets Lakes. These range from 4,500 to 5,500 feet in elevation. Early June may find snow still lingering in pockets and northern exposures, but this has been a low snowpack year. By July all the trails and lakes should be open. Remember, there are dozens of small, trout-bearing lakes in this string, far more than can be mentioned. These are good lakes to start with, and most of them offer some rustic campsites. But if backpack camping is not your thing, there is the Olallie Lake Campground, which offers tent and RV camping, and Olallie Lake Resort, which offers rustic cabins by email reservation. The resort has no phones. This central location is perfect for making day excursions to higher lakes nearby. For more info, contact the Clackamas River Ranger District (503-630-6861)

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Continuing south, Amos Lake in the Willamette National Forest of Lane County lies at 6,000 feet, and has plenty of 8- to 12inch brook trout. Benson Lake is a popular and easy-toreach hike-in water within the Mt. Washington Wilderness. It offers 8- to 12-inch rainbows and cutthroats. Lightly fished 8-acre Turpentine Lake has rainbows and brookies to 16 inches. Why so big? There’s no trail up. Indeed, one sure rule is that, the further you hike in, the better your chance of finding competition-free water, and oftentimes bigger fish. If you want the true wilderness experience, you’ll need to get in shape. However, it’s worth it when you think about what is waiting at the end of the trail. CS

HELP STOCK A LAKE THIS SUMMER Ever wonder how ODFW stocks all those high-country lakes? Every other year helicopters hit hundreds of Cascade lakes. But what about A young volunteer releases the off years? young trout fingerlings into “We do a Cascades lake. (ODFW) have a program to stock some lakes in the non-helicopter years,” says ODFW biologist Shannon Richardson. “We stock some with volunteers. How many we stock depends on how many volunteers we get.” This is one of those off years, and on July 19, folks can volunteer to backpack trout into high mountain lakes. Volunteers are loaded up with a pound of fish, 4 gallons of water, and some oxygen and ice. The total weight is about 35 pounds. In 2012, 140 volunteers stocked just fewer than 60 lakes. Volunteers and staff will meet at the Leaburg and Willamette Hatcheries, and groups will head out to different lakes from there. Interested? Call Richardson at (541) 7263515, ext. 28. –TO JUNE 2014

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PRODUCT FEATURE

: s d r o w n w o r i e h In t Iconic Northwest sportfishing companies BRADLEY SMOKERS bradleysmoker.com Bradley Smoker really got started when my dad did a deal with a master food smoker back in the Seventies. The story goes that this master smoker knew nothing about catching salmon and asked my dad for some advice. Dad said if he wanted to learn how to catch fish, he was going to have to teach my dad how to smoke salmon. It was a hell of a lot easier to catch salmon back then. If this agreement happened today, I doubt Bradley Smoker would have gotten very far. Anyway this master smoker learned how to catch salmon. My Dad basically told him the cardinal rule of fishing: Do not fish where there are no fish, period. So the guy kept his promise, gave my Dad some smoker recipes, keeping it simple with very common ingredients and told my Dad the secret to food smoking. He said you must control the smoke, plain and simple. Back then that meant constantly attending to the sawdust, never letting the heat being generated by the burning sawdust get too high, and, most important, never letting the wood burn down to an ash. Watch the wood being burned; when it starts to have glowing ambers, and there are flecks of white ash appearing, get rid of it. Replace it immediately with new sawdust and continue smoking as the recipe requires. That’s it; simple huh? I just gave it away. Not quite yet, I am afraid. There is a lot to food smoking that I am still learning about every day. I am reminded by all the food smokers out there that we still have many things to uncover, never been tried before, soon to be the latest and greatest recipe you have got to try. We will try to keep you posted. —Wade Bradley CATCHERCRAFT BOATS catchercraft.com Catchercraft Boats is committed to providing you the best available products to suit your fishing and boating needs. We don’t want to sell thousands of boats. We want to sell you a boat that you can enjoy for years, decades or even a lifetime. We promise to listen and respect you and we won’t try and sell you something you don’t want or need. We are not the biggest inflatable boat dealer on the market. Frankly, we don’t want to be. What we do want is to provide the best customer service in the inflatable boat business. When you contact us you will be communicating directly with one of the owners. We know fishing, we know inflatable boats, and we know frame building. And we promise to share our knowledge with you, our customers, to help you select the best boat for you. Hi, my name is Ken Rambow and I have been welding for over 40 years and fishing for over the past five decades. I estimate to have built over a thousand pontoon boat frames over the past 15 years for many guides and outfitters who needed custom work for their guiding operations that was not commercially available. I also built the “Steelheader” series frames for Skookum Products until recently when I decided to go into business for myself to ensure that the level of quality and customer service I have worked so hard to achieve over the years remained the same or even improved. —Ken Rambow KATMAI LODGE katmai.com Katmai Lodge has the hardest working guides in the industry with the most comprehensive knowledge of the Alagnak River system. Licensed by the state of Alaska and the U.S Coast Guard, and certified in first aid and CPR, they spend their entire day at your shoulder teaching you techniques to ensure that your experience is the best it can be. Our guides are experts in every aspect of gear and fly fishing. Whether trolling, drifting, casting or wading, they are prepared to guide you to the most effective fishing methods at any given time for any species using the best equipment available in the industry. I am the chief guide and lodge manager and have been with Katmai for 28 seasons, and many senior guides return year after year. Their knowledge of the Alagnak is unmatched. In addition, Katmai’s guest services/on-site manager has been part of the team for 18 seasons, and many of our support staff anywhere from three to12 seasons. — Tom Haugen, Lodge Manager

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Semi-auto .22 Marks Silver Anniversary The Ruger 10/22 is a great little plinker that feeds .22 Long Rifle ammunition without a jam. (DAVE WORKMAN)

his year marks the 50th anniversary of a .22-caliber legend, the Ruger 10/22, and it is quite possibly the most successful semi-auto By Dave Workman rimfire ever made. To commemorate the occasion, Ruger sponsored a contest to provide the design for its 50th anniversary model, announced at the National Rifle Association’s April convention in Indianapolis. The winner was Gary McBain of Michigan. His design combined the modular features of the American Rimfire composite stock, a Picatinny rail on top of the receiver, low-profile rear aperture sight, a winged-post front sight and flash suppressor on the 18.5-inch stainless barrel. This rifle is now in production and if it is like any other 10/22, it will be accu-

ON TARGET

rate, reliable and tough enough to handle the Western environment. My own 10/22 has a Bushnell scope on top and I have used it to shoot the heads off wooden kitchen matches as part of a story about plinking a few years ago. I acquired a Butler Creek folding stock for it, and three 25round magazines. The Ruger 10/22 has been modified, tricked out, enhanced and customized more than any other rimfire self-loader on the map. Over the past half-century, a veritable cottage industry has sprung up, producing everything from radical replacement stocks to bull barrels that turn the basic model into a tack-driving wondergun. Not that the standard 10/22 isn’t a superbly accurate rifle right out of the box, because it is. If I one day retire to the wilds during September grouse season, the 10/22 will go along to head-shoot fool hens, thus saving my shotgun shells.

My longtime pal Dick Burnett once observed that his 10/22 was something of a “lead hose,” and that was not a derogatory assessment. Whatever else the 10/22 happens to be, it is first and foremost a delight to shoot. It’s a fun gun for plinking; nay, it is addictive, especially when fitted with a 25round magazine. Not long after I got my rifle, Burnett and I were banging around on a high ridge in eastcentral Washington and we probably burned up a couple of hundred rounds shooting at some old tin cans some litterbug had left for us (we picked them up). That was when Dick proved his point because those two 100round boxes were gone surprisingly fast. Over the years, the basic design has been tweaked here and there. For example, I really like the new magazine release, which feels just a hair more reliable than the original flush release that one can press, and then press some more at times, to make the little JUNE 2014

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COLUMNS rotary magazine pop out. Adding stainless steel was a bright idea, especially for people who live in wet environments. It should be no surprise to discover that you’ve just shot up 250 rounds of ammunition, perforating pop cans or breaking clay targets. Here’s a challenge: Shoot the clay targets and then shoot the broken pieces of those targets. Hang a tin can from a tree or target stand by a string and shoot the string. I not only have the three extended magazines for my own 10/22, but also a pair of 10rounders. One of those is the black one that came with the rifle and the other is a clear model that Ruger produced a few years ago. If you live in rabbit country, load up one in the rifle and have the spare in your pocket. FEEDS EVERYTHING One thing about the 10/22 is that it digests every kind of .22 Long Rifle ammunition I’ve ever tried, and that means a lot of different loads. I’ve shot lead 40-grainers, the 32-grain hollowpoint warpspeed rounds, and everything in between –

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The author shows that the 10/22 is no slouch on small game, even when it wears a folding Ramline stock! (DAVE WORKMAN) Mini-Mags, Subsonics, super sonics, target loads; Remington, Winchester, CCI, Federal, Eley, and some stuff I can’t even remember. I cannot recall having ever experienced a jam or failure to feed. I have hit just about everything I ever shot at with the 10/22. I’ve shot grouse out of trees, empty shotgun shell hulls off of stumps, bottle caps, playing cards, the aforementioned wooden kitchen matches, a rabbit or two and never once did I worry about a malfunction. Cleaning the 10/22 is simple, thanks to today’s aerosol cleaning solutions and oils.

I’ve never felt the need to do more than spray the gunk out of the action – some of today’s powders burn dirty and leave a lot of residue after a long shooting session – and run a bronze bristle brush down the bore, followed by a couple of dry patches and then an oily one. A drop or two of oil around the bolt and you’re good to go. The 10/22 is also lightweight and durable. Even with my scope on top, this is one of the lightest and easy-to-handle rimfire rifles available; great for emergency survival or predator and varmint control. Recall a couple of months ago, this column reported the introduction of a special NRA edition of the takedown 10/22 with a camo stock and backpack carry case. That particular model would be a superb choice for emergency use because the pack allows the owner to stock additional supplies such as a skinning knife, matches, nylon cord, additional ammunition and even a lightweight shelter or space blanket. ANNIVERSARY MODEL McBain’s contest-

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COLUMNS Ruger’s 50th Anniversary model of its popular 10/22 includes a Picatinny rail, low-profile rear aperture sight, winged-post front sight and flash suppressor on an 18.5-inch stainless barrel. (RUGER)

winning version of the 10/22 fascinates me because of several features. It is obvious he thought this one through. Having tested Ruger’s bolt-action American .22 caliber rifle last fall, taking the very first live game with a production rifle, I became a fan of that rifle’s modular, adjustable synthetic stock. It’s one of the best ideas Ruger ever had for a rimfire, and it really does make the already versatile 10/22 even more versatile, because it allows the rifle to be used by a youth and it grows along with the shooter! The threaded flash suppressor is a nifty add-on, and the barrel is thus threaded for the addition of a sound suppressor – or “can” as they’re called – if one wants to go

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through the paperwork to get one. I think the choice of metallic sights is a good one, and having the Picatinny rail on top allows for the use of a wide choice of scope rings. Gun models come and go, and only a few of the genuine classics remain for the long term. That short list includes the Model 1911 pistol, Model 70 and Model ’94 Winchesters, the Mossberg 500 and Remington 870 shotgun and Model 700 rifle, Marlin’s Model 336 and Ruger’s Blackhawk, Mark I, II and III pistols and the 10/22. At a suggested MSRP of $379, the 50th Anniversary 10/22 is a winner, and it is not a show horse, but a workhorse. Indeed, every 10/22 ever made has been essentially a knock-around little rimfire that gets

the job done. For the person who simply needs to keep his or her trigger finger tuned up, the Ruger 10/22 provides quite possibly the ideal tool for that task. I have occasionally satisfied my guilty pleasure on a wood cutting foray or some other jaunt by taking along my 10/22 “just in case” I find some challenging target. And of course, during hunting season, the little Ruger is never far away if I’m in rabbit or grouse country where the opportunity might present itself to pick up some pot meat. At a mere 5 pounds, the 50th Anniversary model is likely to see plenty of use. Like all Ruger 10/22 models, this one is a keeper! NS

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