The Western Washington steelhead fisherman is a wretched creature indeed. One morning he’s standing out there with icicles hanging from his rod, his reel, and his nose, in a very cold, very clear, very low river, trying to convince half-frozen, ultra-spooky fish that his black jig is lunch. The next morning it’s 50 degrees and most of Stevens Pass is coming down the river, along with a million board feet of standing timber and boulders the size of rottweilers.
You can’t win if you’re a steelheader, nor if you’re a duck hunter for that matter. Huge numbers of assorted waterfowl from Skagit, Samish and Padilla bays provided excellent hunting during the unusually cold weather recently, as birds left the big water early, forced to forage farther and longer for the increased calories needed to survive the cold temps.
Bob Ferber at Holiday Sports in Burlington reported excellent hunting over much of the Skagit delta, and particularly in the Edison area, for a week or so. Widgeon made up the bulk of the bag, Ferber said, but scattergunners also took mallards and pintail.
But the jet stream and torrents of warm rain whacked that scenario, and now we’re just hangin’ out, waitin’ for the band.
The Cowlitz is probably still an option under current flood and near-flood conditions on most westside streams. And while many (including your ‘umble servant) were ready to write the big southwest river off, a late jump in the winter steelhead success rate there has again made it a viable opportunity. Hatchery personnel on the Cowlitz say returns to the facilities are now about double those of last year and that boat anglers working the Blue Creek area have been checked with anywhere from one-third fish per rod the first week of January, to two-thirds of a fish per rod last week.
Looking for a Cowlitz guide? Avid angler and Lake Stevens resident Tom Nelson said one of the best fishermen on the river, Lee Barkie (360-304-0771), is back on the Cowlitz after a five-year hiatus, and has a few good dates left. Barkie is also an ace on springers, Nelson said.
The Kalama and Lewis were also providing good steelheading before the monsoon hit, and should still have fish available when they drop into shape. Ditto the Forks-area streams for a mix of hatchery and wild-stock steelhead when they clear. A Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife check just before the storm front showed 91 anglers on the Bogachiel Uillayute system with 82 fish, 13 of which were wild. On the Hoh it was 61 anglers below Hwy 101 with 49 fish, 16 of which were wild.
Fishing for wild-stock steelhead on the Peninsula should get progressively better and remember you’re allowed to keep one wild fish per season on many of those rivers. That means one per season, per person, period. Not one per river per person. Be sure to check the far-right column on your steelhead report card with a “U” for “unmarked” when you decide to keep your one wild fish.
There’s probably no more quintessential a fishing experience in Washington than sitting in a drift boat on the Sol Duc or Hoh or Bogachiel, in pouring, 34-degree rain, knowing that a gorgeous, olive-and-rose, slab-sided, 16-pound buck is hanging in that hole, just making up his mind to slam your Hot Shot. If you need a guide recommendation, call Bob Gooding at Olympic Sporting Goods in Forks, 360-374-6330.
There are apparently so many wild-stock and late hatchery fish returning to the Chehalis (Wynoochee; Satsop) and Humptulips systems that the WDFW and Quinault tribal personnel have worked out a commercial netting schedule for the first time for wild fish on the two systems. Recreational anglers will also get expanded opportunity, for both catch and keep, and catch and release options. Check the WDFW Web site for more.
“So why don’t we have numbers like that coming back to rivers in this region?” asked guide and Arlington resident Sam Ingram (360-435-9311), recently appointed to the WDFW’s Steelhead Policy Advisory Group. “Do our smolt migrate to a different ocean?”
Ingram is available to take salmon and steelhead concerns to the WDFW. Current issues, he said: A Skagit chinook season above the mouth of the Sauk; getting the Skykomish summer chinook season back to a full two months; and WDFW discussions with Tulalip tribal netters about a commercial Snohomish system net season on kings that sportsmen “have not been able to catch.”
Columbia Basin waterfowl: “Dismal” populations of both ducks and geese in most of the basin (the term used by one WDFW biologist) make a hunting trip over the hump a less than attractive prospect. Quail and partridge, on the other hand, remain fair game through this weekend and hunting could be some of the best of the season if enough snow is left on the ground to hold birds.
Brant: Those who have their licenses and who applied for written WDFW authorization before the Nov. 8 deadline last year will be able to participate in a short brant hunt, Jan. 22-23, 26, and 29-30, in Skagit County only. A strong return of more than 11,000 of the small, dark, saltwater geese this winter – well above the minimum requirement of 6,000 birds – allows the hunt to take place.
Brant hunting is a rather sophisticated pursuit, with limited public access to the eel-grass beds which draw the birds to north Puget Sound, and it requires a degree of research. WDFW biologist Mike Davison, 360-466-4345, Ext. 280, is a place to start. The Migratory Waterfowl and Upland Game Seasons pamphlet, available at all license outlets, has more information, along with the agency’s Web site, http://wdfw.wa.gov.
Smelt: The Oak Harbor Marina and Cornet Bay had started putting out reasonably good smelt jigging during the cold weather but if, as many suspect, an influx of fresh water from flooding rivers is a major factor in recreational success, then things might be iffy for this weekend. A check at Cornet Bay before the rain started showed two anglers, who hadn’t been there very long, with five herring and five smelt, as an example.
Nothing showing on the Cowlitz yet, probably because the Columbia is showing a chilly 37 degrees.
Columbia Basin activities: Larger rainbow are hitting the bank now along the Columbia River above Chief Joseph Dam, with several over 10 pounds taken recently and one pushing 20 pounds. Guide and Brewster resident Rod Hammons (509-689-2849) said the surplus net-pen-raised broodstock ‘bows are fished both from the bank (a tribal permit required) and from boats, much like steelhead.
There is no road access to much of the river between Chief Joe and Grand Coulee dams, Hammons said, and bird watching in that area feels like a pristine, pioneer activity. Recent snow and cold temps have pushed a lot of wildlife down to the river, he said, along with the raptors which follow.
If the ice stays thick enough, there are several lakes in the upper Basin offering good ice fishing for either trout or yellow perch, and if temps warm, steelheading and walleye fishing in the Columbia should boom.
For information on any or all of the above, give Hammons a call.
Pier open again: Edmonds pier reopened at mid-day Wednesday, after repairs were made to a sinkhole which appeared in the approach to the popular facility last week.
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