Arrive early if you want to clam at Kalaloch

Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, March 17, 2004

Razor clams are the fresh catch of the week this week, today through Saturday, as the Kalaloch beaches open to a short recreational digging season. State Fish and Wildlife Department shellfish biologist Dan Ayres in the agency’s coastal office said digging should be good, since Kalaloch hasn’t been open as often nor hit as hard as some of the other beaches last fall and this winter.

One caveat, however, if you’ve never dug at Kalaloch – no driving on the beach is allowed. And because of that, parking can be limited. Ayres said to get there early to guarantee yourself a spot.

Kalaloch is located about 45 minutes south of Forks, immediately off Highway 101.

Digging is legal during afternoon tides only. The lows for the three days are as follows: today, plus 0.1 foot at 4:52 p.m.; tomorrow, plus 0.1 foot at 5:35 p.m.; and Saturday, plus 0.3 at 6:14 p.m.

Spring chinook: The mouth of the Wind River and Drano Lake, on the Columbia above Bonneville Dam, opened to chinook fishing Tuesday to very little fishing pressure. Most of the springers are still downstream, according to WDFW biologist Joe Hymer in Vancouver, possibly due to lower than normal river temperatures in January and February.

As of March 11, only 87 adult springers had crossed Bonneville, compared to the 10-year average of over 700 for this same period, Hymer said. Below the I-5 bridge, however, catch rates doubled last week from the week before to an average of one king for every 14.6 boat rods, and one for every 50 bank fishermen. Best fishing was in the Longview area, Hymer said.

“We look for the fishery above Bonneville to pick up very quickly,” he said, “because visibility is up to 5 to 7 feet and the river is warming, and also because this run will be heavy on four-year-olds, which tend to come in a little later.”

Fair numbers of springers are being caught already in the lower Cowlitz, scattered from the barrier dam downstream.

Smelt: Strong dipping was the rule last week on the lower Cowlitz, but action slowed significantly over the weekend. Latest reports indicate it’s probably not worth the long drive down right now, Hymer said.

Sizeable crowds continue to do well jigging at the Oak Harbor Marina, according to Bob Ferber at Holiday Market Sports Center in Burlington, and off and on at La Conner. No recent reports from Cornet Bay, Ferber said, but for a scenic, uncrowded experience, it’s always worth a try.

Local trout: Mark Spada, coordinator for the coalition responsible for planting big triploid rainbow trout in Flowing and Blackman’s lakes this spring, said due to a scheduling glitch, no plant was made this week. The next batch of heavyweight ‘bows, running from 15 or 16 inches to 10-pounds-plus, is due to hit the water in both lakes early next week.

“We’re planning on a total of six plants, roughly every other week, through late May,” Spada said.

While action started fairly slowly, after the initial plant on March 1, warmer weather has both brought out larger crowds and improved the fishing. Rainbow to 12 pounds have been taken from both lakes, on spinners, spoons, and wet flies, with most successful anglers concentrating on the top 6 or 8 feet of water.

A big rainbow, but not one of the planted triploids, fell to 7-year-old William Wiegand of Edmonds on Saturday, fishing with his family on Silver Lake. The young angler nailed a 20-inch ‘bow which scaled out at just under 3 pounds, using a chartreuse Power Nugget on a number 8 hook, off the city pier on the east side of the lake.

Local blackmouth: Whether it was the full moon a couple of weeks ago or not, fishing has improved significantly for blackmouth in local waters the past few days. Guide and Marysville resident Tom Nelson (tom@fishskagit.com) said the Hat Island/Camano Head/Mission Bar area is a good bet – better, he said, than driving all the way down to the Columbia for a not-yet-very-positive spring chinook run.

Gary Krein, skipper/owner of All Star Charters in Everett agreed that action around Hat Island has definitely picked up. He has been fishing the south end of Hat early in the day, then running up to the “racetrack,” between Hat and Camano Head later. Possession Point and Point No Point also put out fish over the weekend and early this week, Krein said.

Bait has been spotty in the area, and Krein said it’s necessary to change locations two or three times a day in order to find it. His best setup has been a flasher and “green hornet” squid, although Coyote spoons in two-tone green or “cop car” have also worked, behind a flasher.

Gray whales on the racetrack Tuesday added an additional attraction to a number of boats fishing in that area, Krein said.

The latest WDFW checks include: Everett ramp on Saturday and Sunday, 218 anglers with 46 chinook; Edmonds sling on Sunday, 5 anglers with 1 chinook; Mukilteo ramp Sunday, 6 anglers with 1 chinook; and Anacortes (Washington Park) Saturday and Sunday, 36 anglers with 5 chinook.

Walleye: Some of the best walleye fishing of the year is currently underway on The Dalles Pool, according to biologist Joe Hymer (above). Anglers there averaged a fish and a half per rod there last week, Hymer said, and that’s exceptionally good fishing. He said anglers can get walleye fishing tips by going to the agency Web site, www.wdfw.wa.gov, clicking on fish and shellfish, and then on “other information.”

Most of the top walleye fishing in the pool, he said, was just below John Day Dam.

Guide and Brewster resident Rod Hammons (starr@nwi.net) said walleye action on the upper Columbia at Seaton Grove has been good for fish in the 16- to 20-inch range and a few to 5 pounds, while the Brewster area is putting out much larger, but fewer, walleye to 10 pounds.

Lake Roosevelt fishing has picked up for fish to 7 pounds, in the Two Rivers and Seven Bays area, according to Holiday Market Sports Center in Burlington (360-757-4361), Best setups include yellow/white jigs with a crawler, or slow trolling worm harness rigs off bottom walkers.

Spring is coming to Potholes Reservoir and with it, walleye. Smaller fish, but more of them, are falling at the southeast corner of the reservoir and in Lind Coulee, to 6 pounds or so, while larger but fewer fish are coming from the Crab Creek channel above the power lines.

Columbia Basin trout: And speaking of Potholes Reservoir, MarDon Resort there will host its annual kids/families trout net pen release extravaganza on April 8. On that day, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., rainbow are released from the net pen in front of the resort and everyone is invited to fish free from MarDon’s fishing pier. Kids must be supervised and wearing flotation, according to MarDon owner Mike Meseberg. For more information call 1-800-416-2736. For camping discounts and other stuff, go to the resort Web site, www.mardonresort.com.

Mushrooms: Reader Jack Wood said morel mushrooms are out in force in the low elevation spots. “We went out and picked three or four dozen last week in the Snohomish/Marysville/Lake Stevens areas,” he said.

Fly fish class: The Everett Steelhead and Salmon Club, with Everett Parks and Recreation, will hold a beginners fly fishing class on successive Wednesdays, March 24, 31, and April 7, at Floral Hall, Forest Park, 7-9 p.m. The classes are designed to take the mystery out of fly fishing and will include casting, entomology, tackle and techniques. The cost is $39 for adults and $25 for youth. Contact EvParks at 425-257-8300 for more information.