Print  email 

tool name

close

tool goes here

Weather has taken a toll on Washington rivers, anglers

THE OLYMPIAN | • Published November 19, 2009

• Comments (0)

Finding a river in optimal fishing condition is not going to be an easy task this week. Recipients of heavy downpours, the majority of rivers and streams west of the Cascades are running high and turbid.

Although fishing prospects are not the best, there are a couple of rivers where fishing activity is plausible.

One of those rivers is the Cowlitz. For the past few days the river has been subjected to recurrent changes in flows, but remains fishable and producing fair catches of chinook, coho and steelhead.

Other options are the Kalama, which also has been producing catches of coho and steelhead, and Lewis, where coho are being caught in fair numbers.

Snohomish County’s Wallace River which enters the Skykomish River 11/2 miles east of Sultan is running high, but has been producing some coho and the odd steelhead.

The Skykomish is reported to be fishable above Reiter Ponds. Fishing at the mouth of the Klickitat has been good, and chum are reported to be in Minter Creek.

Anglers can forget fishing on the Olympic Peninsula for the next few days, said Bob Gooding of Olympic Sporting Goods in Forks. The rivers are high, muddy and generally in very sorry condition.

Bank angling for sturgeon has been fair just below Bonneville Dam.

Saltwater fishing hasn’t been noteworthy anywhere in Puget Sound this week A few chinook were caught in Marine Area 8-2 and, a smattering of blackmouth were caught in Marine Area 11. Angler activity has been very light in Hood Canal and south of the Narrows Bridge. There have been no reports on fishing success in either area.

Lowland lake fishing has been fair most of the time between weather fronts, but angler activity has been generally light.

Beginning April 1, anglers who fish for salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River and it’s tributaries will be required to purchase a Columbia River Recreational Salmon and Steelhead Pilot Program endorsement.

The endorsement, which was authorized by Senate Bill 5421, costs $8.74 and will be required along with a fishing license for anglers 15 years of age and older to fish for salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River and its tributaries.

There also is a proposed list of rivers, lakes and other waters in the Columbia River basin where the endorsement will be required. The list is available on the state Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Web site.

Funds generated from the endorsement will support evaluation of selective fisheries in the Columbia River Basin, said John Long, WDFW’s statewide salmon and steelhead fisheries manager. Funds also will be used for other management activities, including fisheries enforcement, data collection and monitoring.

Rivers

Nisqually: Continues to be muddy with a medium flow. There have been no reports of fishing activity above and below the Mounts Road Bridge; however, there have been reports of a few chum in the river.

Puyallup and Carbon: Both are blown out, said Todd Rock of Auburn Sports and Marine

Skookumchuck: Flows are high. The coho run is over and there have been no reports of steelhead in the river.

Green (King County): Blown out.

Lewis: Coho are still being caught, but most are being released. Flows below Merwin Dam were 4,400 cubic feet per second Monday which is less than the long-term mean of 6,100 cubic feet per second for this date. Anglers are reminded that fishing from a floating device is prohibited from Johnson Creek to Colvin Creek.

Satsop: Presently blown out. Last week, fishing was pretty good for coho, said Casey Weigel of Waters West Guide Service.

Cowlitz: Last week, 4,661 coho, 236 summer steelhead, 50 winter steelhead, 289 steelhead jacks, 56 chinook, 11 chinook jacks and 121 sea-run cutthroat returned to the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery.

Also last week 200 hatchery-origin sea-run cutthroat were recycled to the boat launch at barrier dam.

Chinook, coho and steelhead continue to be caught at barrier dam and Blue Creek. A 41 pound chinook was reportedly caught at barrier dam last week.

Fishing has been fair to good at barrier dam and just about the same at Blue Creek. A variety of baits are being used which all appear to be producing results, said Karen Glaser of Barrier Dam Campground. Flows have been fluctuating between 4,800 and 8,500 cubic feet per second.

There hasn’t been much activity in the lower river because of fast flows and muddy conditions, said Jarrod Ligh of 4 Corners Store in Castle Rock.

Sampling taken last week at barrier dam counted 148 bank anglers with one chinook, 50 coho, two sea-run cutthroat and released 19 chinook and 34 coho.

Kalama: The river is fishable and catching has been pretty good in the canyon, said Barbara Orzel of Pritchard’s Western Angler. Mostly steelhead are being caught and some limits are being had. Coho also are being caught. Pink or purple spinners and jigs have been the preferred baits.

Tilton: Tacoma Power employees released 370 coho, 12 coho jacks, 47 chinook, 11 chinook jacks and eight cutthroat into the river at Gust Backstrom Park in Morton.

Skykomish: Flows are high which has curtailed fishing in the lower reaches of the river, but fishing is possible above Reiter Ponds, said Craig Holman of Sky Valley Traders.

Klickitat: Bank anglers from the Fisher Hill Bridge downstream continue to catch coho although fishing reportedly had slowed the past few days, said Joe Hymer, supervisory fish biologist for the Pacific States Marine Fishery Commission.

Anglers are still averaging over a fish per rod, but a higher percentage of the fish caught are being released.

Bonneville Pool: Boat anglers at the mouth of the Klickitat continue to average slightly less than a coho per rod; however, effort has declined with only 10 boats counted there Sunday morning.

Hanford Reach: An estimated 214 steelhead were caught last week. Of those, 147 hatchery steelhead were caught plus 26 wild fish which were released, said Paul Hoffarth, WDFW District 4 fish biologist. Effort remained high last week, but catching slowed. Bank anglers averaged 13.5 hours per steelhead and boat anglers averaged 8.5 hours per fish.

SALTWATER

Saltwater fishing hasn’t been the greatest the past few days and wasn’t much better last week; however, there was a little action had in Marine Area 8-2 (Port Susan and Port Gardner). Saturday, sampling taken at Everett counted 116 boat anglers with 45 chinook and on the same day at Camano Island public boat ramp 16 boat anglers had three chinook.

Since the weekend, fishing has been very slow and angler activity almost non-existent.

In Marine Area 11 ( Tacoma- Vashon Island), there has been a small amount of fishing activity in the clay banks area, said Skip Larson of Pont Defiance Boathouse and Marina. Last week, a 20 pound winter blackmouth was caught in the clay banks area by an angler trolling a Coyote Spoon. A few smaller blackmouth also have been caught in the same area. Overall, angler activity has been light.

In Hood Canal, chum fishing has slowed so much so in front of the Hoodsport Hatchery, tribal fishers were not fishing Tuesday.

It was also reported a Purse seiner was fishing Tuesday in front of the hatchery and Potlatch area.

Although the chum run is tapering off fishing is expected to improve by the weekend, said an employee of the Hoodsport Hatchery.

STURGEON

Sturgeon catches in the Gorge have improved with higher flows which have been between 120,000 and 140,000 cubic feet per second. Anglers in the Gorge have been averaging a legal kept per every six rods.

An estimated 16,100 angler trips in October produced 2,200 legal-size fish.

Most of the fish were caught by Washington and Oregon bank anglers fishing just below Bonneville Dam.

LAKES

American: There has been little angler activity and only light catches of trout are being had, said Dave Anderson of Bill’s Boathouse.

Offut: Not many anglers have been out and about because of conditions. Between breaks in the weather fishing hasn’t been too bad. Trout from 12 to 20 inches are being caught (mostly during mid-day hours) by anglers floating Power Bait and worm combinations.

Silver (near Castle Rock): Planted with 4,269 catchable-size rainbows last week.

Spanaway: Not much has been going on because of conditions, said Bud Herlitzka of Spanaway Park boathouse.

Outdoors correspondent Bob Brown has lived in Washington for 35 years and got serious about fishing the region’s rivers and lakes in the mid-1970s. He can be reached at robertb1285@fairpoint.net.