Fishing report for March 22

The South Sound chapter of Puget Sound Anglers is hosting a fishing seminar April 10 at the McLane Fire Station, 125 Delphi Road NW, Olympia. The event is limited to 40 people.

The seminar runs from 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. and includes sessions on surf perch fishing, fishing with downriggers, understanding how to use sonar, gear and boat maintenance and knot tying. The $35 registration fee includes a one-year SSPSA membership, but participants must provide their own lunch. Call 360-491-0431 for more information.

SALT WATER

South Sound: The Point Defiance Boathouse Marina staff reports salmon fishing has been good when weather allows. Try trolling with artificial squid or flasher and spoon to catch blackmouth. Coho have been biting along the shoreline. Remember, coastal cutthroat must be released.

North Sound: Mike Chamberlain of Ted’s Sports Center in Lynnwood says blackmouth are still biting in marine areas 8-1 (Deception Pass, Hope Island and Skagit Bay), 8-2 (Ports Susan and Gardner) and 9 (Admiralty Inlet).

Razor clams: The Long Beach dig continues through March 31. Note that digging changes from evening tides to morning tides on Thursday. A Friday-Sunday dig is proposed for the morning tides at Mocrocks.

LAKES

American: David Anderson of Bill’s Boathouse says action is improving with some anglers catching limits off the dock using green Power Eggs. Rainbow trout have been biting most, with some perch in the mix. He says he hasn’t heard of anybody catching kokanee.

Drano: Light pressure and no action.

Island: This Kitsap County lake was stocked March 15 with 2,000 rainbow trout.

Long: This Thurston County lake was planted with 750 trout last week.

Sawyer: This King County lake was stocked with 1,500 rainbow trout last week from the Puyallup Hatchery.

Scanewa: Last week, Tacoma Power released 40 spring chinook, one spring chinook jack and one winter-run steelhead above Cowlitz Falls Dam.

Stevens: Kokanee have been biting here.

Washington: Some anglers are catching trout and action is expected to pick up in coming weeks.

Whitman: Stocked last week with 2,000 catchable rainbows.

Eastern Washington: Chamberlain said his lunch Tuesday consisted of kokanee caught by a friend during a weekend trip to Lake Chelan. Lake Roosevelt is also producing kokanee, he said.

RIVERS

Cispus: Last week, Tacoma Power released 29 winter-run steelhead adults and 28 spring chinook adults near the mouth of Yellow Jacket Creek.

Columbia: The state’s sampling last week counted 1,566 salmonid anglers (562 boats) with 59 adult and two jack spring chinook and five steelhead. “All the chinook were caught by boat anglers while bank anglers caught the steelhead,” the report said. Anglers kept 83 percent of the chinook and 40 percent of the steelhead. The mainstem closes to salmon, steelhead and shad fishing on March 29 and April 5. John Day Pool produced some legal sturgeon last week. Anglers were also catching walleye in The Dalles Pool and bass in the John Day Pool.

Cowlitz: Last week, the state’s sampling showed 101 boat anglers kept 51 steelhead plus four adult spring chinook and released one steelhead. Sixty-six bank anglers kept seven steelhead and five adult spring chinook. Reports state steelhead were caught near the trout hatchery and chinook were caught throughout the river. Last week, Tacoma Power recovered 277 winter-run steelhead and 77 spring chinook adults and one spring chinook jack.

Tilton: Last week, Tacoma power released 21 winter-run steelhead adults at Morton’s Gust Backstrom Park.

This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Fishing report for March 22."