Thousands of catchable-size rainbow trout are planted in local lakes

LAKES

American: The state stocked the lake with 4,210 rainbow trout Tuesday. There were 2.5 fish per pound.

Black: The lake was planted Tuesday with 8,000 catchable-size rainbow trout.

Lawrence: People are hooking rainbows by trolling with a Wedding Ring tipped with a nightcrawler and a small weight.

Long: The state put 4,250 trout in the lake Wednesday.

Pattison: The lake was stocked Wednesday with 4,900 catchable-size rainbow trout.

Potholes: The action for largemouth bass has been very good in the sand dunes. Look for large fish, some weighing more than 7 pounds, amid heavy cover in water 1-4 feet deep. Flipping jigs and Punch baits have been effective for bass. Smallmouth bass anglers are cast blade baits along the face of the dam. Look for smallmouth close to underwater rock piles 14-22 feet deep. Perch Point has been the hot spot for walleye.

Spanaway: The lake was stocked again Wednesday as the state put in 4,000 rainbows.

RIVERS

Columbia: The spring chinook catch rate remains drastically low, mainly because the river flow has reached record levels. Average flows Monday at Bonneville Dam were 445,300 cubic feet per second. Flows on that date haven’t been above 400,000 cfs since at least 1950. As of Monday, only 22 adult spring chinook have been counted at the dam.

Cowlitz: Steelhead fishing has been fair. The state reports that as of Thursday afternoon, only 67 adult spring chinook have returned to the Cowlitz hatchery. Last year at this time, the count was almost 2,000 fish.

Elwha: In case you missed the announcement, the recreational and commercial fishing closure on the river has been extended until June 1, 2019. The moratorium is in place to protect fish that are returning to spawn in the river and its tributaries since the removal of the two dams that blocked upstream passage.

Yakima: It’s a case of wait and see for this weekend. Heavy rain Thursday raised the river level significantly. Visibility was about 1 foot early Friday. If no more rain falls in the area, the river should be fishable, certainly by Sunday. Prior to the rain, the dry fly fishing, with skwala patterns, was improving.

SALTWATER

Clams: A razor clam dig at Twin Harbors continues through Sunday. The low tide times are: Saturday, 5:46 p.m., 0.4 feet; Sunday, 6:25 a.m., 0.5 feet. Pending results of marine toxin tests, the state plans to reopen Twin Harbors from Wednesday through April 16, Copalis on Thursday and April 15, and Mocrocks on April 14 and April 16.

Fly fishing: Look for sea-run cutthroat trout keying in on chum fry in shallow water with some current.

North Sound: Fishing for chinook salmon has been fair to good around the San Juan Islands. More fish are being found among the outer banks, while larger fish are being hooked closer to the islands. In the waters north of Seattle, look for blackmouth keying in on candlefish.

South Sound: The salmon fishing has been fair at best.

This story was originally published April 7, 2017 at 10:16 AM with the headline "Thousands of catchable-size rainbow trout are planted in local lakes."