Weekly hunting and fishing report
Fly fishing
The Fish Washington website ( wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/washington) has expanded to provide the “whens, wheres and how-tos” for fishing Washington’s high-elevation lakes. It now has fishing information for hundreds of high lakes, including 60 “getting started” lakes. Features include fish stocking data, access details and lake profiles. Many of these lakes would make excellent fall fly fishing destinations.
The North Fork of the Coeur d’Alene River has been decent late morning and evenings. Most fish will still be in summer water. Mid- and lower-river stretches have been best.
The St. Joe and the North Fork Clearwater probably offer the best fly fishing now. The lower Joe has fish below Avery and is still floatable below Marble Creek, while the mid-to-upper river is good for wading. Use small attractors.
On the Clearwater River, fly fishermen are having their best steelhead success in the riffles from Cherry Lane downstream. Throw traditional patterns such as Purple Perils, Purple Skunks and muddlers. The Grand Ronde and Snake rivers are cooling down and should get good soon, but the Methow has been severely affected by fire and rain and does not look promising.
Trout and kokanee
Loon Lake kokanee are beginning to lose scales and become long in the head, but the fish are still in excellent shape and the night bite has been frantic at times during the warm, settled weather. Most anglers are going a little deeper – 34-35 feet – with their Glo-Hooks tipped with white corn or maggots. Some fish more than 14 inches were reported.
Lake Coeur d’Alene kokes begin their spawn much later, and though small, are in excellent shape. Dworshak Reservoir kokes are in excellent shape and somewhat larger.
Deep Lake at Sun Lakes State Park also has a good kokanee fishery now for 11- to 13-inch fish. Schools are at about 50 feet. Deep Lake has Nos. 1-6 painted on the surrounding basalt walls, and most anglers are finding their fish closer to No. 6 than to No. 1. Be aware that anglers have reported the ramp is “icy-slick” with algae.
Lake Roosevelt spring plant rainbow averaging 14 inches are fairly easy to catch from Whitestone up. Use Double Whammies with nightcrawlers or flies tipped with the same.
This month is the last chance to fish several of the region’s better trout fishing lakes. Closing Sept. 30 is Fishtrap Lake in Lincoln County and Williams and West Medical lakes in southwest Spokane County. West Medical anglers have lost the right to access the lake on the north end because of a persistent littering problem, but there remains a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife site on the south end.
A number of Idaho Panhandle lakes will be stocked Monday through Sept. 19 with 9- to 11-inch rainbow trout. One of these, Fernan, will receive 2,600 fish the first time and another 3,600 fish the week of Sept. 22-26. Be aware that Fernan has a blue algae alert.
Salmon and steelhead
Anglers fishing in Marine Area 1-4 can keep up to two chinook salmon as part of their daily catch limit. They also will be allowed to retain hatchery and wild coho beginning that day. Anglers fishing east of the Bonilla-Tatoosh Line in Marine Area 4 (Neah Bay) must release all chinook. Ocean salmon fisheries are scheduled to continue through Sept. 21 in marine areas 3 and 4 and through Sept. 30 in marine areas 1 and 2.
Last week at Ilwaco, anglers averaged just more than 1.5 salmon per rod, 88 percent of which were coho. Catches have also been good off the North Jetty.
Chinook anglers at Hanford Reach are beginning to take some fish. It should heat up quickly.
Spiny ray
Bass fishing continues to improve at Diamond Lake. With the surface temperature down to 69 degrees, largemouth have returned to shallow water around the docks. Smallmouth can be found in weed beds in the shallow west end.
From now through October, area bass in all lakes will be feeding more aggressively. Silver, Eloika, Newman, Liberty, Downs, Hayden, Coeur d’Alene and Hauser are but few.
Don’t be afraid to toss a Senko around the docks of any lake, even those typically thought of as trout destinations.
Long Lake largemouth bass are becoming more aggressive and anglers are also picking up a pike now and then.
This past week, a friend and his wife fished two Grant County seep lakes – Corral and Upper Goose – reporting lots of decent largemouth caught on 4-inch wacky-rigged Senkos. The best fishing was at Corral.
On Roosevelt, the eastern end of Porcupine Bay by the narrows has produced some nice walleye on chartreuse jigs. Walleye success was also reported trolling the edge of the 50-foot shelf out from Split Rock.
Hunting
Early fall wild turkey hunting in Washington runs Sept. 20-Oct. 10 and the birds are again abundant throughout the region. In most of the region’s GMUs (101, 124-154, and 162-189) one turkey of either sex can be taken. A northeast beardless-only turkey hunting season also opens Sept. 20 in GMUs 105-142, where two beardless turkeys can be taken.
In Idaho, fall turkey hunting in the Panhandle and Clearwater regions begins on Monday. Fall controlled hunts also open in a few places in the state. The daily bag limit is one turkey (either sex) per day in the fall, except in Units, 1, 2, 3 and 5 where five turkeys (either sex) may be taken in a day during fall seasons. The most tags one hunter may possess in one year is six
A chance to hunt ring-necked pheasants in Idaho awaits young hunters who sign up for a youth pheasant clinic scheduled for Oct. 4 in Lewiston. The clinic is free and intended for first-time hunters 10 through 15 years of age who have completed a hunter education course and hold a valid 2014 Idaho hunting license. Shotgun and shells will be provided.
An adult supervisor must accompany each young hunter throughout the clinic and advance registration is required. Contact the Clearwater Region office at 799-5010 no later than Sept. 26.