For hardy anglers, Potholes offers ice fishing

LAKES

Potholes: Anglers looking to do some ice fishing might want to head here.

RIVERS

Olympic Coast: Creel checks by the state over the past week showed few people were on the water and few steelhead were being caught. The Bogachiel drew the most anglers, with 32 people being contacted by the state. They had released two wild steelhead and kept four hatchery fish.

Yakima: Lots of ice in the lower river.

SALTWATER

Coast: The state has closed bottom fishing in Marine Areas 1-3 and Marine Area 4 (west of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line). The closure will remain in effect until March 10. The winter closure does not include surfperch when fishing from the beach. The rule changes the coastal recreational bottomfish season from a year-round season to one running from the second Saturday in March through the third Saturday in October.

North Sound: A reminder that Marine Area 9 will not open as scheduled on Monday. The state says run estimates and catch projections indicate the fishery would have to close earlier than April 15. Delaying the opening until mid-February or March will give the state more time to review data and set an opening that will allow fishing later into the spring.

South Sound: A few legal-size chinook are being caught in Marine Area 13, south of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. Look for fish in water 120-150 feet deep, and about 10 feet off the bottom, at locations such as Point Gibson, Green Point and the mouth of Wollochet Bay, said Art Tachell at Point Defiance Boathouse. Point Gibson was producing squid for anglers on a boat.

This story was originally published January 13, 2017 at 4:19 PM with the headline "For hardy anglers, Potholes offers ice fishing."