Andy “mentioned by name in a lot of communications ��” Walgamott
THIS ISSUE’S CONTRIBUTORS
Dave Anderson, Jillian Garrett, Scott Haugen, Jeff Holmes, MD Johnson, Randy King, Rob Lyon, Sara Potter, Buzz Ramsey, Dave Workman, Mark Yuasa
GENERAL MANAGER
John Rusnak
SALES MANAGER
Paul Yarnold
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES
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DESIGNERS
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PRODUCTION ASSISTANT
Emily Baker
OFFICE MANAGER/COPY EDITOR
Katie Aumann
INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGER
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WEBMASTER/DIGITAL STRATEGIST
Jon Hines
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Email letters, articles/queries, photos, etc., to awalgamott@media-inc.com.
ON THE COVER
Bob Spaur shows off a nice Chinook that he caught on the Pacific off the Columbia River mouth during 2023’s ocean salmon season. (BUZZ RAMSEY)
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61 NORTHWEST ALBACORE SEASON RETURNS
Sorry, not sorry, Charlie – it’s go time again for tuna off Oregon and Washington, and veteran bluewater angler Jeff Holmes gets us hyped for the summer season, one that promises loads of loins. What to do with all that meat? Holmes also shares a recipe that puts a certain actor’s viral tuna salad to shame!
79
FIND PACIFIC KINGS, COHO
Screeching seagulls, screaming reels, shouts of “Fish on!” – ahh, yes, the sounds of summer off the Washington Coast, where there’s a combined quota of more than 150,000 Chinook and coho this season. Mark Yuasa sets you up for success in both the shallows and depths off Neah Bay, La Push, Westport and Ilwaco!
101
ALPINE LAKES ADVENTURE
Break out your Highlands accent, fly box and hiking boots, lads and lassies – it’s time to head up to the Scottish Lakes of Washington’s well-named Alpine Lakes Wilderness! Backcountry angler Rob Lyon details the fun to be had at Julius, Eileen and nearby lakes above Highway 2 east of Stevens Pass.
113 OUTDOOR MD Smallmouth: The Spectacular Scourge
Want to hook tons of fish, help out young salmon and steelhead and enjoy eating some of your catch too? MD has just the prescription for you! Smallmouth fishing shines in summer across the Northwest, and he touches on great gear and top waters.
COLUMNS
71 BUZZ RAMSEY Trolling The Ocean For Columbia-bound Salmon
(JERRY
Snappy Chinook and coho, a bigger quota and friends with ocean-going sleds all have Buzz excited to blast off from Astoria to fish outside the mouth of the Columbia for salmon this month. He shares how and where guides Bill Monroe Jr. and David Hazen limit out their clients on the Pacific.
91 CHEF IN THE WILD Confessions Of A Wild Fish And Game Chef
It may have been illegal, but buying a Chinook off the side of a road is part of Chef Randy’s connection to one of this region’s most important cultural and economic icons. He shares memories of slinging salmon at a Riggins roadhouse – and a delicious recipe for blueberry jam glaze Chinook!
95 FOR THE LOVE OF THE TUG The Good Fight
Faced with a shutdown of the Umpqua River wild fall Chinook season, Sara, her tiny fishing community of Salmon Harbor and others in Southern Oregon fought back and now at least have a sliver of opportunity. Sara recalls all that went into last month’s tussle with state fishery managers, and the new hope it also spawned.
130 ON TARGET Harsh Reality: Your Gun Rights Got StompeD
Mess with Dave W.’s Second Amendment gun rights and you’re gonna get taken to the woodshed. He unloads on recent legislation passed in Olympia that will impact how Washington hunters acquire firearms starting in 2027. And Dave also dives into what to be doing now in preparation for fall 2025’s seasons.
137 BECOMING A BETTER HUNTER Hunt Smart, Hunt Safe, Get Home
Dave A. always has his eyes firmly on the mountains and woods, but underlying all of his hunts is a firm desire to get back home to his family in one piece. He details all the safety measures he takes to ensure he won’t become a statistic.
141 GUN DOG Gearing Up For Summer Training
Making the most out of the high season’s good weather and long days to train your gun dogs means being organized with all the gear that goes into it. Scott shares the products he uses to keep his bumpers, launchers and other equipment handy, as well as how he keeps his pups comfortable on the way to training sessions.
HAN)
THE BIG PIC: Wolf Hunting In Washington State
Jillian Garrett takes a look at what it would take to institute a state wolf hunt in Washington, arguing that the first step just may be changing hunters’ perception about wolves.
DEPARTMENTS
21 THE EDITOR’S NOTE No to public land grabbeR
35 NEWS I Witnessed WDFW’s Special Permit Draw
The editor gets a backdoor glimpse into how Washington awards tags, and what went wrong with last year’s draw.
51 READER PHOTOS
Laker takers, Chinook slammers, turkey taggers, and more!
55 THE DISHONOR ROLL
Cop implicated in thermal optics hunting bust; Kudos; Jackass Of The Month
57 OUTDOOR CALENDAR
Upcoming fishing and hunting openers, events, deadlines, more
58 DERBY WATCH
Ongoing and upcoming fishing derbies
(JILLIAN GARRETT)
THE EDITOR’S NOTE
You can see exactly what’s at stake with a proposal in Congress for a mandatory flash sale of 2 to 3 million acres of U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management ground, thanks to mapping from The Wilderness Society.
Using parameters in the bill from Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah), the org shows that lands supporting much of the summer and winter range and crucial spring stopover points of the Methow Valley mule deer herd – not to mention good hunting areas for bucks – would be eligible for sale or auction to nebulous “interested parties” should somebody nominate them for “disposal.” Similar habitat for Chelan County mule deer herds would also be in the for-sale zone. Same goes for big game elsewhere in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and across the West.
SENATOR LEE HAS long been an opponent of public land, and this time’s supposed pressing need is to “support local housing needs ... or any associated infrastructure to support local housing needs.” A supportive Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum claims it means “barren land next to highways with existing billboards that have no recreational value,” but I don’t trust any of that, especially with a fast-tracked disposal process.
And bet your bottom dollar that passing this as part of the socalled Big Beautiful Bill would open the door to more big ugly fire sales down the road. What’ll the rationale be then? And the time after that? Pretty soon McMansions are dotting what once was the OkanoganWenatchee National Forest, and that’s not even the worst of it.
I think about deer camp in the Okanogan, how it sits on a nice flat just off a decent road, and then I think about it bulldozed and with a brand-new house built on it, some outbuildings, fencing, the forest cut to create a barrier against wildfire. I see a similar place on the bluff to the west, another up in the saddle where I’ve killed bucks. Come October, I see hunters like my dad and our old work buddies turned away from our traditional deer camp and hunting grounds, told to beat it and go higher up the mountain past still more new No Trespassing signs.
Senator Lee claims sportsmen “will not lose access to the lands you love,” but it’s not just about the land, but its ability to sustain the animals we love and their seasonal rounds. I see stopover points – places of
Continued on page 22
A map from The Wilderness Society shows Forest Service (green) and Bureau of Land Management (orange) land that would be eligible for sale to meet conditions in a proposal from US Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) to dispose of 2 to 3 million acres of public land. (THE WILDERNESS SOCIETY)
early spring greenup that deer hit on their migration back to the high country – not being used by Methow mule deer because of disturbance from Lee’s “housing” and “associated infrastructure,” does having to use less productive forage areas, weaker fawns that are more susceptible to predators. I see more constricted winter range, more dogs chasing deer, more housing bringing more traffic and more roadkill to local highways.
As I wrote here in October 2023, the chopping up of migratory corridors and summer and winter range and loss of that connectivity due to development and roads, along with climatic conditions, invasive plants and more, is like a vampire slowly sucking the life out of mule deer herds. Senator Lee’s proposal would super charge that monster.
THIS REALLY IS one of the worst ideas. There already is a rationale process for disposing of public lands where it makes sense and with public buyin. Politically, public land, wildlife and conservation is a pretty purple issue. But to be clear, just as Democrats brought on the gun rights heartburn Dave Workman suffers from about 100 pages here, it’s Republicans who are giving me a public lands headache. While my two US Senators are locks against selling, it’s Republicans in other Western states and beyond who will need convincing to keep this from passing the Senate.
And it can be beaten. A similar proposal from House Republicans was killed by fellow Republicans like Montana U.S. Representative Ryan Zinke.
If you’re a hunter, you gotta ask yourself, do you one day want to see a house plopped down on your deer or elk camp? In your herd’s stopover points or migration corridors? Because that will eventually happen with Senator Lee’s proposal.
If the answer is no to any of those, call the U.S. Capitol switchboard (202-224-3121) and tell your Congressman that. –Andy Walgamott
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Wolf Hunting In Washington State
The first step to a season may be ‘creating a change in how that hunt is portrayed, and the responsibility for that falls squarely on the shoulders of the hunting community.’
Washington wolves are trapped in an endless cycle of glorification and villification when in reality they’re just another species on the landscape, neither the savior of the wild nor a demon on the loose. This young male wolf was captured early last month near author Jillian Garrett’s farm by a state wildlife biologist. (JILLIAN GARRETT)
By Jillian Garrett
No other animal inspires such extremes of love and hatred as the wolf. Say what you want about them – bloodthirsty killer or ecosystem restorer; mere animal or politicized symbol – they are part of a complex and dynamic ecosystem here in the Northwest, one that our scientists are still in the process of studying.
Recently, I had the opportunity to tag along with a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist on a wolf capture and collaring adventure. The local pack, consisting of three or four adults, had taken up residence near my farm outside Colville for the spring denning season, and the biologist was hoping to collar at least
one, if not two of the pack members. That day, we checked a series of trap sites, and at the second to last set, we found a young, 2-year-old male wolf.
As the biologist worked quickly and efficiently to sedate and examine the animal, I asked a barrage of questions about wolf behavior and the complex dynamics of human-wolf interactions. As both a farmer and hunter living in Northeast Washington, I exist in the thick of the situation, and a quick glance at WDFW’s wolf pack map will reveal an extensive overlay of pack boundaries in my region of the state.
The wolf we collared that day was a
member of a pack that had previously gotten into conflict by killing four calves owned by two different producers, resulting in three wolves being lethally removed. While the collar would at least give state biologists a general idea of the remaining pack members’ whereabouts in relation to livestock, at the end of the day, it did nothing to alleviate the social tension of a rural community caught in the crosshairs of predator conflict.
AS WOLF POPULATIONS increase, there often a marked decrease in people’s tolerance for them, particularly in areas close to those pack concentrations, where
A Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife staffer affixes a tracking collar to the trapped wolf. Collaring helps WDFW keep tabs on a pack that killed four calves last summer despite proactive nonlethal measures taken by livestock producers. In response, three wolves were lethally removed by the agency. No depredations were recorded in the eight months afterwards. (JILLIAN GARRETT)
conflict naturally tends to be highest. Compounding all of this is a maelstrom of interwoven issues that have come together to push acceptance of wolves in those areas to an all-time low, including both perceived and real decreases in ungulate populations, conflict with ranchers in a region where cattle make up a large portion of the economic industry, and further alienation of the rural populace by ever-escalating bureaucratic red tape when it comes to predator management.
With wildlife, you will often hear biologists speak about the biological carrying capacity of a landscape, which essentially means how many animals can inhabit a given area. There is a second aspect that also deserves consideration: social carrying capacity, or the tolerance of people for that particular species on the landscape. Due to myriad reasons, social tolerance can be just as fluid as the wolves themselves.
There are many reasons that might be used to justify a wolf hunt – conservation and food are at the top of any list, not to mention the most socially acceptable ones to the outside world. Yet hunting as a tool for social tolerance is also an incredibly important reason, though you will rarely hear it openly advocated for. Much of that has to do with the fact that it doesn’t fit well into the public image of hunting that the more astute members of the community are at pains to display. After all, a hunt solely for the purposes of social tolerance is rarely one that makes for good PR with the outside world.
What a social tolerance hunt does is give rural communities a tool to feel like they have finally regained control of a given situation. Otherwise, a populace at odds with an animal is very likely to take matters into their own hands, as we have seen with increased levels of wolf poaching and a rising cultural mindset of
“shoot, shovel, and shut up.”
Wolves are obviously still protected in Washington, so any sort of hunting season is philosophical in nature, but given their steadily increasing numbers and rapidly decreasing human tolerance, it got me thinking: Could we finally justify a wolf hunt in the state of Washington?
HUNTERS HAVE BEEN advocating for a wolf hunt here for years. The most common reason why was illustrated at a recent WDFW Wolf Advisory Group meeting I attended in Colville. More than one local hunter claimed that there are fewer deer and elk in the woods than there used to be as a direct result of more wolves on the landscape. With theoretically fewer ungulates available to harvest, hunters feel like they are losing their ability to feed themselves in the cultural mode they are accustomed to. For them, the wolf has morphed into a symbol of the hunter’s
own sense of powerlessness against threats to their way of life, a theme that you will hear frequently resounding across this rural landscape.
While such a perception may feel accurate to hunters, the problem is that the current science doesn’t back up that argument. A study recently published by the Washington State Predator-Prey Project showed that wolves don’t appear to prey much on elk in this region, focusing instead on deer and moose. Meanwhile, the very hunters claiming that wolves are responsible for fewer elk are in fact one of the main predators contributing to adult elk mortality (in addition to vehicle collisions). Cougars and black bears – not wolves – are responsible for most of the predation on elk calves (especially in areas such as the Blue Mountains), though they seem to receive less vitriol about it than their howling counterparts. Recent scientific studies have also shown that elk populations in Northeast Washington may in fact be increasing, and quite rapidly too, despite hunter claims to the contrary.
While wolves do predominantly prey on deer, the slight population decreases we’ve been seeing in recent years are largely due to disease outbreaks like bluetongue, a hemorrhagic fever on par with ebola in its devastating efficiency. With chronic wasting disease newly discovered in Washington, deer numbers could be in serious peril, yet instead of working with biologists to support measures such as baiting bans to help prevent further disease spread and ungulate loss, some hunters are still braying for wolf blood.
THERE’S NO GETTING around the fact that as a predator, wolves do eat ungulates. However, they do not currently have as much of an impact on ungulate numbers as hunters seem inclined to think. While a wolf hunt for the purposes of conservation could be justifiable sometime in the future, at the moment that simply isn’t the case. If the hunting community continues to advocate for “following the science” when it comes to
True, the Evergreen State isn’t like other Western states with large populations of wolves, but that doesn’t mean a wolf hunt can’t occur. Procedurally, it would require classification changes from the Fish and Wildlife Commission. A change in mindset towards the animals on the part of hunters could go a long way too. (JILLIAN
GARRETT)
ALL SEASON ALL TERRAIN
The rabbit, deer, elk, and moose are what color? Brown...Exactly! If green were such a good camo color the good lord would have made these animals green. Most camo today is designed to catch the hunter rather than to help catch the quarry.
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wildlife management, the science does not support a wolf hunt to conserve ungulate populations.
On the other end of the conservation spectrum, it’s also difficult to advocate a hunt for the purposes of keeping wolf numbers in check, as given their fecund nature and incredible adaptability, wolves are amazing colonizers of just about any landscape. According to one biologist, you would need to eliminate something approaching 50 percent of the population each year to have any sort of real impact, yet hunter success rates in states with wolf hunting tend to be extremely poor, generally only in the single digits.
In short, wolf hunting is hard, and harvest rates tend to be low. Idaho illustrated this point quite effectively when, in 2021, it passed legislation to drastically increase its wolf harvest at a time when the state was hundreds of wolves above management objectives. Even with a far more liberalized hunt, annual harvest numbers stayed roughly the same, prompting the state to propose more extreme methods of controlling the wolf population because hunting (and trapping) alone was not enough to keep them in check.
In just about every survey of hunting ever taken, outside support of hunting for the purposes of food has always ranked highest, even over hunting as a tool for conservation. This means that hunting for food is basically the most socially acceptable argument you can use to justify a hunt. The problem is that this argument falls flat when you try to apply it to wolves. Unlike black bears and cougars whose meat is culinarily prized even without wanton waste laws, I have yet to hear anyone advocating the pros of eating wolf meat. While they do say that just about any meat will make a taco, there isn’t exactly a line forming for wolf barbacoa.
This brings us back to wolf hunting as a tool for social tolerance. At the moment, this is the most realistic argument for justifying a hunt here, though one with the lowest levels of social acceptance to the outside world. What hunters have to understand
is that for many people living in urbanized areas, the wolf is something abstract that symbolizes a landscape that promises to remain forever wild as long as the wolf resides in it. For these people viewing wolves from afar, it becomes difficult, if not downright impossible, to wrap their heads around the idea of killing this symbolic animal in order to help people coexist with it. Not having to live with predators on the landscape, they fail to understand the real-world challenges associated with it. Therefore, a social tolerance hunt isn’t the type we’d likely see come into fruition without some major paradigm shifts in how all of us think about (and represent) both hunting and wolves.
THE REAL IRONY is that wolves and hunters have a common bond: Both share the same fight for acceptance in a world where stereotypes color most people’s perception. For hunters, it becomes the same old battle of poor public perception, exacerbated by a society now thoroughly disconnected from nature and the realities of its food sources. For wolves, it is a fight for the ability to remain a mere animal as opposed to an overly politicized symbol –
one used by both sides of the aisle but for vastly different reasons. A wolf can either be a god or a demon, depending on who you talk to and where they reside in the state. Neither symbol is accurate. In that same manner, a hunter can also be seen as a symbol of good or evil, wildlife savior or animal persecutor, depending on who is viewing them.
While hunters may not always have control over how they are perceived, they do have control in how they present themselves to the wider world, and that matters now more than ever. With hunter numbers in decline, hunting is increasingly becoming a marginalized pursuit, one that persists only at the continued pleasure of the non-hunting voter public. If the hunting community wants to garner enough outside support to finally be able to implement a wolf hunt here in Washington – even one for the purposes of social tolerance – they will need to make some major changes in how they portray their relationship with wolves, the biggest being a shift from the perception of wolf chaser to wolf champion.
Hunters can be some of the biggest allies of wildlife, through various modes of conservation funding, habitat work
WDFW’s latest wolf map continues to show plenty of packs in Northeast and Southeast Washington and on the eastern slopes of the North Cascades, but none in the Southern Cascades and Northwest Coast Recovery Zone. (WDFW)
and, quite frankly, hunter attitude towards the animals themselves. This positive presentation of hunting and its relationship to game – even predators – flies in direct contrast to the hunting community’s current association with wolves. That poor portrayal desperately needs to change, and part of that involves changing how the hunting community speaks about wolves and wolf hunting.
There needs to be an elimination of the varmint/predator bounty mentality, as well as a complete abolition of the SSS culture, both of which not only mar the overall image of hunting, but sound a death knell for any productive conversations about wolf management. Regardless of a hunter’s personal feelings about wolf the animal, when they speak of it to the outside world, they must remember that for many it becomes Wolf the symbol, and it’s generally a symbol of something cherished.
While wolf tag sales would have the potential to generate a lot of revenue for conservation funding, especially as few other states currently offer wolf hunts, any conversation about the finer details of logistics – quota system versus lottery draw, etc. – is a bit like putting the cart before the horse. The first step in implementing a wolf hunt here in Washington is creating a change in how that hunt is portrayed, and the responsibility for that falls squarely on the shoulders of the hunting community. In the ultimate irony, to manage wolves for the sake of social tolerance, hunters need to become the ultimate champions of them. NS
Editor’s note: In a future article, author Jillian Garrett will lay out a potential roadmap to a Washington wolf hunt. Garrett is a hunter, member of First Hunt Foundation, farmer and conservationist living in Northeast Washington. Along with previous articles in this magazine and its blog, nwsportsmanmag.com, her writing and photography have also appeared in Sports Afield, Backcountry Journal and Montana Trapper Magazine. She and her husband were recently featured on the Randy Newberg “Hunt Talk Radio” podcast.
The Washington Predator-Prey Project has shown that wolves in the state’s northeast corner “rely primarily on moose in summer; whitetailed deer in winter.” Evidence so far shows cougars and bears take bigger bites out of ungulate herds than the packs. (JILLIAN GARRETT)
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I Witnessed WDFW’s Special Permit Draw
A chance to see how the annual process works – and learn what went wrong last year.
By Andy Walgamott
As Washington hunters sat on pins and needles last month prodding the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s special permits website in hopes of seeing they’d been drawn, I was getting a backdoor glimpse into how the agency awards the tags.
I was one of two observers invited to witness the draws for two hunt categories and learn how WDFW licensing and
IT managers and their outside vendor validate results for the approximately 40,000 hunters who this year put in for everything from quality elk tags in the Blues to once-in-a-lifetime bull moose permits in the Selkirks, and for just seven mountain goat permits in the Cascades to plentiful antlerless blacktail tags in the islands. It was also a chance to see how they’d improved the
process since 2024’s snafu.
Being able to watch the draws remotely via Microsoft Teams did give me a better understanding of what happened last year, the nuts and bolts of how permits are annually awarded and why sometimes lucky hunters with only a few points get drawn over those with far more. And well before he even knew it, I also saw that one high-ranking WDFW staffer would
Monica Weeks smiles over a Central Washington bighorn ewe she took on a special permit during 2021’s hunting season. Ewe sheep was one of two hunt categories the editor witnessed the 2025 draw for last month. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
MIXED BAG
Nate Pamplin, WDFW director of external affairs, explains in a YouTube video out earlier this year how hunters are ranked for a given draw. It’s a function of how many points they have, squaring that number and assigning each one of those points a random number. A hunter’s lowest random number is then ranked against all other applicants to establish their order in the draw. The above results for “Allen” show how a person with few points can luck into a special permit ahead of someone like “April” or “Dave” who have far more points accrued from years of putting in for a tag. (WDFW/YOUTUBE)
shortly be joining all the other disappointed hunters in the infamous Loser’s Lounge.
The invite had come the week before from Jennifer Sepulveda, a communications manager assigned to hunting issues, among other subjects. While keeping the exact timing of the draw hazy, Sepulveda indicated WDFW was testing how to boost “awareness of and answering questions about our draw process.” (Part of that effort included posting the video “Understanding Washington’s special hunt opportunities” to the agency’s YouTube channel during this year’s application period.)
The only caveat was that I was asked not to publish anything until after all the results were officially published so as to not start a mad dash online and in the process overheat WDFW’s computer –and hunters’ patience. Even as I accepted those conditions, on the day before I was on duty, I saw online that some Evergreen State sportsmen had already noticed that the draw appeared to be under way. It turned out that that corresponded to when permits for 25 of the 27 hunt categories were being drawn and validated.e.
DRAWS OVER AT least the past 15 years have all been witnessed, including in-person before Covid, according to Sepulveda, but it’s safe to say that none have occurred with an error like what happened in 2024 lurking in the background. A predraw indexing of the system to increase its performance changed how results were subsequently read by the computer.
“It was one line of code, but it completely changed the outcome of those draws in some of the hunts,” explained Evan Yett of Brandt Information Systems of Florida, WDFW’s draw vendor.
Permits in 22 of the 27 categories were affected. As WDFW put it in a special director’s statement last July, “Some hunt applicants were assigned the wrong special hunt permit, some hunt applicants were not assigned a special hunt permit when they should have been drawn (i.e., shown as ‘not selected’), and some hunt applicants were assigned a special hunt permit (i.e., shown as ‘selected’) when they should not have been drawn.”
All totaled, 723 applicants who should
Kristin Nielsen, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife project manager for the special permit draw, prepares to kick off selection of second deer tags for 2025’s season. Instead of being held in a top-secret mountain bunker at one of its wildlife areas, WDFW performed the draw over Microsoft Teams. (WDFW/MICROSOFT TEAMS)
have been selected but initially weren’t were ultimately awarded the special permit they should have received, while 738 who were incorrectly chosen were still allowed to hunt that tag if it was “biologically feasible” for the herd or they saw their results change.
According to WDFW staffers last month, the error was actually first pointed out to them by one of their game wardens, who should have been drawn for a second deer permit because the hunt choice had gone “undersubscribed,” that is, fewer people put in for it than there were available tags, which is more typical for units with little public land.
“Oops; Houston, we have a problem,” is how Kim Pritchard, IT business analyst for WDFW’s WILD system, described that moment to Jake Weise, the other observer for last month’s draw. Weise is a member of the agency’s Game Management Advisory Council as well as a Boone and Crockett Club associate.
As WDFW double checked quality elk permit results, they saw that the first 50 were right, but well down the list
they found an incorrectly awarded tag. No errors were found in previous years’ draws, a subsequent review found.
So, part of last month’s walk-through was to demonstrate what WDFW had learned and show how it validated this year’s draw. Specifically, it involved witnessing the awarding of permits for the second deer and ewe sheep categories – maybe not the sexiest of hunts, but ones with pretty good odds of putting meat in the freezer.
AS A REFRESHER,
the special permit draw is a way for WDFW to provide quality hunting experiences by either timing a season to the rut or controlling how many riflemen, archers or muzzleloaders are on the landscape at the same time. It’s a chance to maybe bag a big old buck, bull, ram or billy, give youth, seniors or disabled sportsmen a leg up, or use hunters as a management tool or to deal with an overpopulation of animals that might get into conflict with farmers, ranchers or local residents. It also raises funds ($7.10 per application) for management.
Per WDFW, a total of 14,021 hunters purchased second deer applications this year, with 12,520 actually submitting those apps (the other 1,501 essentially went for the point saver option) for 2,272 antlerless tags spread across 79 hunt choices. Hunt choices correspond to either game management units or special deer hunt areas.
Even as the draw represented “a big day” for both hunters and WDFW – for the latter, it was the culmination of district biologists’ permit level recommendations last winter, headquarters staff review, public comment, sign-off by the director, publication in the 2025 big game hunting pamphlet, the formal hunter application period, and the app vetting process – the actual mechanics of it were “a little bit boring,” in the words of agency staffers.
“We push the button, the computer does its thing,” said one.
“I don’t have Jeopardy! wait music,” joked another after the “Execute” draw prompt had been clicked.
About a minute or two later, tentative results came back. They showed that 1,954
A closeup of 2025 second deer draw results (minus personally identifying information) showing hunters’ ranked order, selection status and hunt choices. (WDFW/MICROSOFT TEAMS)
permits had just been awarded, 1,523 of which were for the first choice unit of hunters, 262 for their second choice, 97 for third and 72 for fourth.
While the performing of the actual draw was fast, in the lead up to it WDFW had spent a lot of time double checking that applicants could actually apply for the various hunts in this and other categories – for instance, did they qualify as, say, a youth or were they really over 65 and thus eligible to put in for particular hunts under parameters in the Washington Administrative Codes?
And then afterwards, staffers started going through individual hunt results to see if it all still added up. They checked out hunt choice 1419, East Okanogan, for which five antlerless whitetail tags are available this fall.
Those were awarded to numbers 7, 8, 14, 24 and 25 in the overall ranking of all second deer applicants. All had made the beautiful Northcentral Washington unit their first hunt choice – for four, it was their only choice – and they burned 11, 5, 7, 8 and 11 points, respectively, to win their permits. The relatively high point value required to draw a doe tag here is reflective of strong demand to hunt a landscape featuring a good mix of public and private ground.
Going backwards in time for just a moment, those hunter rankings had been determined by an earlier draw. It established the order of hunters for the category and was based in part on how many points they had from putting in and not being drawn in past years. That point figure is squared, the value for which is then used to generate a corresponding set of random numbers. (So, two points are worth four ranking numbers, three are worth nine, and so on.) The lowest one of those ranking numbers for each hunter was then used to build a ranked list of all who put in for the category. Building up lots of points does give you better odds of pulling a low ranking number, but it doesn’t guarantee that someone with fewer points won’t get a lower number still.
To test that there weren’t flaws in the second deer draw, staffers also looked down the list of winners to ensure that
others who had made East Okanogan their first choice hadn’t been selected before the highest ranked quintet. A blue “Not selected” note showed up for the next person with that choice on the overall list, the hunter ranked number 69, and when the results were specifically queried for just winners of “hunt choice 1419” and “first choice,” only those first five hunters popped up, helping to validate the draw.
“So the system is doing what it is designed to do,” said Pritchard.
Congrats, JM, MS, SC, KT and DL – and good luck in East Okanogan with those second deer tags this fall!
AT THE URGING of Weise, WDFW staffers also dug into an undersubscribed second deer hunt – hunt choice 1434, Orcas. Only 80 of the 135 tags to hunt the island for its somewhat diminutive blacktail were awarded, with 55 going unfilled due to a lack of applicants. Sixty-three of the 80 lucky hunters had made it their first choice, 20 their second. Those who were awarded it as their second choice hunt had been below the cutoff point for tags for their first choice unit, and so on. Most hunters only needed one point to score the permit, but one person burned six.
Out of the blue, WDFW Licensing Division Manager Peter Vernie asked to look up a result by last name, in this case his boss. Sadly, a certain Kelly Susewind wasn’t chosen for any of his second deer applications in three Okanogan units or one in Deep South Sound.
Better luck next year with those three points now in hand, Director – maybe put in for Orcas; I know a guy with a farm …
The other draw I witnessed involved ewe bighorn sheep, for which 8,146 applications had been purchased and 7,542 were submitted for all of four permits available in two hunts. It took up to 20 points to pull one, but as few as nine.
AFTERWARDS,
WDFW STAFFERS indicated they planned to continue vetting both categories’ results, as they’d done the day before with the other 25. Any errors they discovered in the pre-published results would allow them to call a draw back before it got loose in the wild like last year.
They were also going to go over results with an outside accounting firm, Davis Farr, another step the agency added this year to validate the draw, according to Vernie.
“We try to improve the process every year,” noted Kristin Nielsen, WDFW project manager for the draw.
All in all, I appreciated the chance to see behind the green curtain, though I did find it highly amusing to be asked to keep quiet about the draw even as savvy hunters had begun to realize results were in the works.
“We don’t want the hunters to think this is a mystery, but there’s a method to our madness,” Pritchard explained.
Part of that madness – and in more ways than one – is that with tens of thousands of hunters having put in for permits, WDFW expected their mainframe to get quite the workout as results were eagerly queried, plans for time off work this fall could be firmed up and word of successful draws was relayed down the line to hunt group members.
One thing I didn’t realize beforehand is that as hunters feverishly hit refresh over and over to try and get a jump on results, it actually bogs down WDFW’s system by having to revalidate their date of birth, hunter ed certification and hunt choices each and every time. Individually, it probably doesn’t slow things down much, but collectively all at once is another matter, and it would have slowed down the draws I witnessed if I’d blabbed.
“This places an undue load on the system and causes the draws to take longer,” stated Sepulveda, the comms manager.
And you have to remember that at the same time the draws were occurring and being posted, WDFW’s Hal 9000 would also be dealing with, well, dealers, some 600 of which across Washington would be trying to sell annual freshwater fishing licenses, one-day combos, two-rod endorsements, etc., etc., etc. The system’s fast in usual times, but when so many people are using it, things slow down.
Now that the draw is all over with, permit seasons will be here before you know it. Good luck to everyone who was drawn, and better luck next year to those who weren’t.
Including the director. NS
Sea Sport Boats
Pacific Northwest-born Sea Sport Boats began building fiberglass skiffs to be sold in Sears Roebuck stores back in 1955. Now a pioneer in the fiberglass boat building industry, Sea Sport has become a trusted brand, well known for the quality and performance of their vessels.
Sea Sport offers 11 different models ranging from 22-32 feet, the flagship of the fleet being the Pacific 3200, and their only catamaran.
PACIFIC 3200
The Pacific 3200 catamaran is a full-fledged family cruiser that hasn’t forgotten how to fish. Its unique design with twin asymmetrical hulls achieves impressive cruising speeds while maintaining an extremely stable ride that bombs through chop with ease. This boat has the ability to weather a good Pacific Northwest storm, and it thrives on the challenge. The patented catamaran design greatly reduces side rolls and pitching from
wave action. The planing hulls allow you to cruise at 20+ knots, even in conditions that would keep most boats off the water. Reduced drag results in better fuel efficiency, allowing you to go further on a tank of fuel.
Sea Sport was among the first catamaran builders to incorporate a “nacelle” between the forward sections of the two hulls. The nacelle, which is shaped similar to a third hull, only extends several inches from the vessel, essentially dividing the surface between the hulls into a pair of tunnels. This allows the boat to operate at higher speeds without the infamous slamming and spraying associated with most catamarans.
The 88 square foot cockpit, equipped with a high-quality sound system, functions flawlessly as both a fishing platform and an open space for entertaining. The large builtin fish box and bait tanks, and a wide cap rail, where downriggers and rod holders can be confidently installed, will be appreciated
by anglers. Wide, flat side decks with strong stainless rails will allow for secure movement along the length of the boat, so the sportfisherman on board can battle that trophy salmon with ease.
Offered with a fully appointed flybridge helm, it becomes the preferred command station on those sunny days, with uncrowded seating for six to eight people. While a lower rear helm provides an option that keeps you dry in the elements and close to the action when the bite is on.
The interior has all the necessary features for extended family trips and with six different layouts available, your boat can be totally customized to fit your own personal needs.
The exceptional headroom and big, bright windows create a feeling of open space in the main cabin, and with almost 13 feet of beam there is a lot of room to move about freely.
With its roomy v-berth, two large quarter berths, and a over-sized dinette that converts to a bunk, the spacious catamaran comfortably sleeps up to 8 people, making it the perfect family vessel for weekend and summer adventures.
Standard amenities in the well-appointed cabin include a 5-6 person dinette, full galley with a deep, hot & cold-water sink, two-burner cooktop stove, extended counter space, microwave, two built-in refrigerator/ freezers, and ample storage throughout. Also coming standard is a substantial, fully enclosed head with a hot water, pressurized shower and sink, along with a lighted vanity and more storage.
Twin 350 outboard engines is the power platform of choice, and Sea Sport is open to any manufacturer desired, rigged right at the factory.
Customizable from power options, upholstery and aesthetics to your choice of accessories, and interior configurations, the Pacific 3200 is truly tailored to fit your boating style and meet your every need on the water.
GENERAL SPECS:
• LOA 32’2”
• Beam 12’10”
• Cabin Headroom 6’6”
• Cabin Size (L x W) 11’2” x 9’5”
• Cockpit Size (L x W) 8' x 10’7”
• Draft (motors up) 28”
• Draft (motors down) 40”
• Approximate Dry Weight 16,000 lbs
• Holding Tank Capacity 30 US gal.
• Water Capacity 60 US gal.
• Fuel Capacity 400 US gal.
• Sleeping Capacity 8
• Deadrise 22°
KOA Campgrounds Have Something for Everyone!
IDAHO
BOISE/MERIDIAN
At KOA, our mission is to connect people to the outdoors and each other. That’s why our 500+ campgrounds across North America make it easy to enjoy the beauty of nature and share adventures with family and friends. Our wide variety of family-friendly campgrounds and amenities provide the perfect place to get away, unwind and enjoy camping in the great outdoors.
Whether you need a perfect site to pull into on your next RV road trip or a cozy spot where you and your kids can pitch your tent for the weekend, KOA is sure to have the ideal campsite for you. At KOA, we help people get outside because we know it changes them on the inside.
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If you would like to be listed, please contact Janene at (206) 382-9220 ext. 102 or email her at jmukai@media-inc.com.
Bay Center/Willapa Bay KOA Holiday
Hardin KOA Journey
Boise/Meridan Redmond/Central Oregon
Squid behind dodgers did the trick once again for Ashley and Bill Stanley at Priest Lake in far North Idaho this past spring. We’re not going to referee whose Mack was bigger, as no weights were taken because the duo release all the big ones quickly, but they will keep those in the 3- to 5-pound class for the table. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
Olympic Peninsula fish hound Darrel Smith shows off the results of another outing with guide Mike Zavadlov. Indeed, the Columbia and Snake systems aren’t the only places to find hatchery spring Chinook in the Northwest! (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
Terry Itami might be more at home fishing for fall Chinook on the beautiful Oregon Coast, but she did just fine at Drano Lake’s Toilet Bowl! She hoists one of three keeper springers she and family members hooked on a guided trip that began with the news the Yakama Nation had just netted 1,000. They ended up with seven on and four landed, including a wild fish that was released. “That was a pretty good outcome, and we brought home some beautiful fillets from the best-eating fish in the Northwest,” husband Rick reported. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
For your shot at winning a knife in our Knife Photo Contest, send your full-resolution, original images with all the pertinent details – who’s in the pic; when and where they were; what they caught their fish on/weapon they used to bag the game; and any other details you’d like to reveal (the more, the merrier!) – to awalgamott@media-inc.com or Northwest
Sportsman, 941 Powell Ave SW, Suite 120, Renton, WA 98057. By sending us photos, you affirm you have the right to distribute them for use in our print and Internet publications.
When the significant others of his two cousins needed some turkey hunting pointers, Mike Bolt was there for David and Danny. “Tough birds and very quiet, but by noon they both had their first birds. Nothing like a tom 12 yards away gobbling in your face!” Bolt states. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
Tucker Johnson put the May portion of spring turkey season to good use, bagging this Okanogan tom with his 20-gauge Mossburg autoloader. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
Tucannon Lakes split screen! Austin Han battles a rainbow not long after the Southeast Washington chain opened this past March as his dad Jerry took video. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
Cop Implicated In Thermal Hunting Bust
In late May, The Oregonian reported that a captain in a police department outside Portland had been placed on paid leave “while state prosecutors review allegations that he used a police infrared thermalimaging device during a deer-hunting trip.”
The newspaper indicated that the leave of Canby Police Department Captain Doug Kitzmiller began around when the Oregon State Police served search warrants at nine Clackamas County residences last December and arrested 13 people for allegedly using thermal optics to hunt big game.
In late March, having worked with Kitzmiller over his 25-plus years with the Canby PD, Clackamas County prosecutors passed the investigation to the state Department of Justice, per The Oregonian’s Maxine Bernstein. Just beforehand, a pair of local news articles spotlighted the issue of thermal optics for hunting.
With support from the Oregon Hunters Association, night vision, FLIR and similar devices were fully banned for hunting in Oregon starting with the 2019 season. They give users “a significant unfair, unethical advantage,” in the words of wildlife troopers, over animals hidden by brush, forest, etc.
Some might argue that the devices
help make efficient use of one’s time in the woods and that hunters ultimately would still need to get close enough for a shot, but as prices for the technology decline, their widespread use theoretically could begin to have population-level impacts, reducing opportunities overall. It also puts hunters on the wrong side of the fair-chase equation.
Last December, in press releases from both OSP and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, troopers said they’d been hearing for a couple years about increasing illicit use of infrared devices in the woods to scout or hunt for big game. When they began their investigation, they learned that some individuals involved “shared a connection.” During the warrant services, troopers seized a total of 14 infrared devices, four deer and a rifle. Additionally, three people allegedly out scouting or hunting with thermal imaging equipment were also cited criminally and then released.
The Oregonian reported Kitzmiller couldn’t be reached for comment. He retired last October but was working for his old department through a “work after retirement” program.
We’ll report here if charges are filed, or if the captain is cleared.
JACKASS OF THE MONTH
“Hey, Siri, what can I go fishing for in Washington?”
“Check the current sportfishing regulations pamphlet and emergency rule change page.”
State game wardens probably wish that was the response artificial intelligence programs gave prospective fishermen these days, but until then, they had to take to Facebook to clarify that just because Siri, Alexa, Google Overview and other AI sources say something about a fishery or shellfish season doesn’t mean it’s actually open or the supposed rules are currently in effect.
“WDFW Police has noted an increase in people fishing closed waters or beaches based on incorrect guidance from Artificial Intelligence (AI) overview/AI search results. AI aggregates information from various sources across the internet and is not the correct source for fishing season information,” they posted.
Officers advised checking the online regs or downloading the Fish Washington Mobile App instead.
By Andy Walgamott
KUDOS
Senior Trooper Dakotah Keys was named the Oregon State Police Fish and Wildlife Division’s 2024 Trooper of the Year this past spring.
“Senior Trooper Keys takes pride in his work as an Oregon State Fish and Wildlife Trooper and is a true professional. He’s been described as someone who, even in the toughest of times and/or situations, maintains a professional bearing, treats people with respect, is caring and humble,” fellow troopers stated in the division’s May newsletter.
Keys, who is based out of Baker City in far Eastern Oregon, was also lauded for being a team player, serving as a mentor and coach in the community, and for teaching a self-defense class for women at a Baker County domestic violence advocacy center. “We are proud of the work done by Senior Trooper Keys,” OSP added. “Please join us in congratulating him on a job well done!” Indeed!
(OSP)
Recently, we accepted the award from the Hewes family for being the 2024 Top Sales Dealer — an honor we don’t take lightly. I’m thankful for the support from Hewescraft and especially our sales, parts, and service teams at Tom-n-Jerry’s. Great job, team!!!
— Kelly Hawley, President.
Tom-N-Jerry’s Boat Center 11071 Josh Green Ln Mount Vernon, WA 98273 360-466-9955
Sales Hours Mon - Fri: 8:00 am - 5:00 pm Sat: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm Sun: Closed
Parts/Service Hours Mon - Fri: 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Sat - Sun: Closed
OUTDOOR CALENDAR
1 Leftover OR big game tags go on sale at 10 a.m.; Start of OR Youth First Time hunt application period; New WA sportfishing regulations pamphlet takes effect; Marine Areas 5 and 6 hatchery Chinook and hatchery coho opener; Steelhead closures begin on WA-side Columbia Gorge tributary mouths
2 Scheduled spot shrimp open day on Area 12
4 Areas 3 and 4 switch to two-salmon limit (open daily, all salmon)
12 Merwin Day of Fishing for Kids (free, for youths with disabilities, register), Merwin Fish Hatchery, Ariel – info: wdfw.wa.gov; CAST For Kids fishing event on Prineville Reservoir – info: castforkids.org; Baker Lake sockeye opener
15 Steelhead closures begin on OR-side Columbia Gorge tributary mouths; Deadline to purchase WA raffle hunt tickets
16 Ocean Chinook closure begins off OR Central and South Coasts (other salmon species remain open, daily limit two, hatchery coho only)
17-19 Areas 7, 9, 10 and 11 hatchery Chinook open dates
18-19 Scheduled spot shrimp open days on Area 6 (excluding Discovery Bay Shrimp District)
27 CAST For Kids fishing event on Yaquina Bay – info above
1 OR fall bear opener; WA fall bear opener in most black bear management units; Columbia River fall salmon opener from Buoy 10 to Highway 395 Bridge in Pasco (rules vary by location; see below entries); Hatchery steelhead retention closure begins on mainstem Columbia River from Buoy 10 to The Dalles Dam; OR Central Coast all-depth halibut summer season opens (open seven days a week)
1-6 Buoy 10 any-Chinook retention dates (hatchery coho also open)
2 2025 Washington Sanctioned Duck and Goose Calling Championship, Abrams Park, Woodland – info: washingtonwaterfowl.org
7-15 Buoy 10 hatchery-Chinook-only retention dates (hatchery coho also open)
15 Fall bear opener in WA Okanogan, Willapa Hills BBMUs
16 OR any legal weapon controlled pronghorn season begins in many units
19 ODFW Intro to Oregon Hunting ($10, register), Tualatin Cabela’s – info above
23 CAST For Kids fishing event on Clear Lake, Fairchild AFB – info above
30 ID deer and elk bow opener in many units; OR deer and elk bow opener in many units
1 WA bow deer opener; Hatchery steelhead retention closure begins on mainstem Columbia River from The Dalles Dam to Highway 395 Bridge in Pasco
1-30 Tentative OR Central Coast ocean any-coho dates (or 35,000-fish quota met)
7 WA bow elk opener; Buoy 10 season switches to hatchery coho only; CAST For Kids fishing event on Hagg Lake – info above
7-30 Salmon fishing closure dates on Lower Columbia between west Puget Island and Warrior Rock-Bachelor Island line
11-14 Portland Fall RV & Van Show, Portland Expo Center – info: otshows.com
15-25 High Buck Hunt dates in select WA Cascades and Olympics wilderness areas, Lake Chelan National Recreation Area
18-30 Salmon fishing closure dates on Columbia from Warrior Rock-Bachelor Island line to WA-OR border east of McNary Dam
PROFESSIONAL GUIDES
Our guides and captains are members of the Washington State Guides Association, demonstrate patience and professionalism and are happy to answer your questions during trips.
AMENITIES INCLUDED
Whether you’re on the salt or on the river, our trips are an average of six to ten hours and include all gear, bait, tackle, fuel and captain or guide.
27 54th Annual National Hunting & Fishing Day – info: nhfday.org
30 Last scheduled day of 2025 Northern Pikeminnow Sport-Reward Program season – info: pikeminnow.org
A DREAM WE CALL
ALASKA
With our extensive family of Alaskan lodges and wilderness adventures, you are sure to find the trip of a lifetime!
Whether you come to fish, fly, boat, view bears, or paddle, we’ll make sure you leave with memories that will last forever!
August 6-9: CAF Rogue River Salmon Derby; indiancreekhatchery.org
August 9: 29th Annual Gig Harbor Puget Sound Anglers Salmon Derby, Areas 11 and 13; gigharborpsa.org
August 9: Odell Lake kokanee derby; kokaneepoweroregon.com
August 14-16: Battle of the Bay Derby, Rogue Bay; battleofthebayderby.com
August 15-16: 19th Annual Oregon Tuna Classic, Pacific off Garibaldi; oregontunaclassic.org
August 16: Lipstick Salmon Slayers, Buoy 10 and Pacific off Astoria; lipsticksalmonslayer.com
August 16: Salmon Harbor Fishing Derby, Winchester Bay; salmonharborfishing.com
August 23-24: Columbia River Salmon Derby 2025, Lower Columbia below Tongue Point; DebTessier@aol.com
August 30-September 1: 32nd Annual GRWB STEP Salmon Derby, Umpqua River estuary; umpquastephatchery.org
Late summer: Annual Rogue Pikeminnow Roundup, Rogue River; dfw.state.or.us/fish/local_fisheries/rogue_river/fishing.asp
September 6-7: 25th Coos Basin Salmon Derby; facebook .com/profile.php?id=100063510016235
September 6-13: Nootka Sound Tuna Showdown, Pacific off Vancouver Island; nootkamarineadventures.com
September 13: Salmon for Soldiers Day of Honor, North Puget Sound; salmonforsoldiers.org
September 13-14: 3rd Annual Whidbey Island Coho Derby; whidbeypsa.com
September 15-October 31: Boat Basin Salmon Derby, Westport; westportgrayland-chamber.org
September 20: Kingston Coho Fishing Derby, Areas 9 and 10; kingstoncohoderby.com
September 20-21: Everett Coho Derby, Areas 8-10 and open nearby rivers; everettcohoderby.com
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MADRAS Madras Marine (541) 475-2476 www.madrasmarine.com
CHINOOK Chinook Marine Repair, Inc. (800) 457-9459 www.chinookmarinerepair.com
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Every able-bodied angler who calls him- or herself a dedicated Northwest angler and loves saltwater fishing should at least try albacore fishing. This July marks the beginning of the 2025 window to cross tuna fishing off the wish list and fill up your freezer with lean, delicious albacore. There is essentially no limit on tuna, and the catches can be extremely lucrative. Here, three generations of the Cheser family beam with pride as 9-year-old William poses with his first albacore, landed in July during the 2024 season aboard Mark Coleman’s flagship charter boat, Integrity, on a friends trip. Tuna are powerful athletes, and tuna fishing is not for the faint-hearted or those not physically capable of moving around the boat while hooked up, going over and under fellow anglers to avoid or fix tangles. That said, I’ve seen kids and small women who know how to fish put a whooping on tuna with a smile on their faces all day while burly men lie in seasick agony. Tuna fishing is a great option for kids with sea legs.
It’s That Time Again!
Northwest tuna season is here, providing a good chance to plug the boat with tasty albacore.
Story
and
captions by Jeff Holmes
This month marks the beginning of another exciting albacore tuna season in the Northwest. If you haven’t fished for them yet, I strongly recommend you weigh the evidence in this article about why you should, and then book a trip. Albacore are powerful, fun, delicious and abundant, and there are reliable and excellent albacore charters from Charleston, Oregon, to Neah Bay, Washington. The most accessible and reliable port for live bait fishing is Westport, my favorite Northwest tuna outpost. But whether you fish out of Westport, Ilwaco, Hammond, Garibaldi, Depoe Bay, Newport or even Winchester Bay, opportunities for big fun and
huge harvests abound in Northwest waters beginning in July. Our most populous tuna is not the giant cow yellowfin or bluefin some of us travel to catch or that we watch landed on TV, but albacore do get plenty big, with the world record under dispute but surely topping 80 pounds. Pacific Northwest albacore are teenagers, and a fish topping 40 pounds is huge. Instead, our fish average somewhere around 15 pounds when they arrive in our waters between late June and late July. Amazing travelers that span the Pacific, albacore are one of the most sustainable fish stocks and are lower in mercury and other contaminants than other tuna, especially the teenage meat rockets that patrol the continental shelf off our coast. They represent
FISHING
the most lucrative and certain harvest opportunity in the Northwest, and it’s time to get after them.
ALBACORE ARE HIGHLY migratory and numerous and are the world’s most widely distributed tuna. Pacific albacore migrate amazing distances from the Western Pacific to our coasts during summer and fall to mature by gorging on baitfish and squid. As warm, cobalt-blue, subtropical currents push against the continental shelf off the Northwest Coast during early summer, albacore arrive with the blue water. For several months they feed voraciously – mostly on Pacific sauries – and grow several pounds by the time they turn around and head back west in late autumn. Designed to swim fast and eat on the run, they sprint to over 50 miles an hour and feed on prey while swimming 15 to 30 mph. Chinook and steelhead can’t even hit 20, by comparison. Albies’ bullet-shaped bodies, long, thin fins, and muscular build propel them to these speeds.
The power of an albacore becomes immediately evident to the eye and ear after an angler wrestles one to the gaff and the fish hits the deck. Tuna keep “swimming” once out of the water, slapping out a loud, staccato rhythm until they are brain-spiked and bled. Mere bonking won’t do the trick on an albacore; they need a sharp object jammed into their skull.
They’re tough and nasty, but their flesh is some of the best around, and each fish is packed with 60 percent of their total weight as boneless loins. Whereas hot salmon harvesting stops pretty quickly due to tight limits, for all practical purposes, there are no limits on albacore (Oregon’s daily bag is 25; in 2019, the state’s best season, anglers averaged seven apiece). These tuna weigh 10 to 40 pounds in our waters, averaging 12 to 20 pounds early, getting much larger later in the feeding season. A big haul of 10 tuna averaging 18 pounds will yield about 100 pounds
Tuna are voracious predators that smash lures and live bait at speeds from 15 to 30 miles per hour and that sprint and tear drag in excess of 50 mph, propelled by their muscular bodies and warm-blooded, hot-rod circulatory systems. This beautiful-but-average-sized albacore ate a topwater plug that Captain Mitch Coleman of Anglers Edge Sportfishing (anglersedgesportfishing.com) let me toss out at the beginning of a productive bait stop about 40 miles due west of Westport. Mitch and his brother Mark, owner of All Rivers and Saltwater Charters (allriversguideservice.com) and a commercial tuna boat, are my favorite captains to fish tuna with, along with Mark’s captains Ian Winder and Nick Clayton. There are many excellent tuna captains in Westport these days, most running “express” sixpack charters. There are also several big boats chasing tuna and, while a little slower and requiring an overnighter, these trips can yield incredible catches that leave the express boats behind. (JEFF
HOLMES)
FISHING
of loins. This is way more meat than a big buck deer yields and more meat than a salmon angler can land in days of catching limits of kings.
AFTER LEAVING PORT with lots of ice, bait and fuel, captains run 30 to 60 miles offshore to find the bluewater where tuna are typically found. They scan for slashing tuna on the surface and birds as they run, and if they see fish activity, they’ll cut the engine for the trip’s first bait stop. If they don’t see a reason to immediately deploy bait, captains will begin trolling cedar plugs, Rapala X-Raps and other lures capable of holding up to 6- to 8-knot trolling speeds. Some boats fish handlines, some outriggers and some just use standard rodholders and heavy troll gear.
Once a fish is hooked up on the troll, the captain will cut the engine, and either a deckhand or a client will reel in the “troll fish,” being especially careful not to lose it. Albacore travel in schools, and when fish come off, they flee and take their school mates with them. As the troll fish is being reeled in, deckhands bait live bait rods with wriggling anchovies for waiting anglers. With either no weight, a small rubber-core sinker or a small chunk of pencil lead and surgical tubing, anglers drop squirming anchovies over the side and allow them to freespool into the blue.
Hooked through the collar, nose or back, the anchovies swim away from the boat at a couple miles an hour. Anglers hold their rods and watch as the line plays out. If that 2-mph pace increases suddenly to 15 to 30 mph, a tuna has grabbed the bait. Clients often get excited and struggle to allow the tuna to run for a three-count before engaging the drag and bracing themselves as the rod loads up with a lightning-fast chrome bullet. Tuna set the hook themselves.
After five to 15 minutes of fight for every fish, an albacore circles its way to the surface to be gaffed, bled and brain spiked on board. As the bite dies off, if
Bluefin tuna, yellowtail and other exotic species typically found further south have shown increasingly in the catch in recent years. I watched a fellow angler standing next to me on a charter with All Rivers and Saltwater Charters reel this one up from the depths several years ago. I could tell it was a bluefin when it was still 30 feet below the boat due to its shape, color and much shorter fins. All tuna trips these days create minor suspense as to whether an exotic or exotics will be caught. On the heels of 2023’s Orcas Island bluefin, last October saw a new Oregon record 164-pounder caught out of Garibaldi. (JEFF HOLMES)
Westport is my favorite port on the Washington and Oregon Coasts and is definitely the most anglerfriendly, with options for families and couples trips too. On this day at Merino’s Seafood Market, the town was bustling with anglers and an influx of folks attending a robust art festival on Westhaven Drive, the road that flanks the harbor and provides access to fishing boats. Merino’s offers commercial salted ice for your tuna – freshwater ruins tuna – an assortment of seafood canning options for tuna, and in recent years, popular fish and chips and chowder. There are many fine places to stay in Westport after lots of renovations over recent years, but hands down the best and most convenient is Westport Marina Cottages (westportmarinacottages.com). It’s a one-minute walk to Westhaven Drive and a minute or two longer to most fishing boats. (JEFF HOLMES)
it does, captains resume the troll and repeat the pattern of finding fish and doing bait stops. Sometimes on Mark Coleman’s All Rivers and Saltwater Charters (allriversguideservice .com) boats and on Bill Cheser’s Anglers Edge Sportfishing’s (anglersedgesportfishing.com) FV
Bone, operated by Mitch Coleman, we haven’t needed to troll at all when the fish have been especially thick. One big bait stop is living the dream for an albacore tuna angler.
ONCE THEIR BOAT is loaded up with all the iced tuna it can hold, captains
FISHING
return to the harbor, and deckhands begin loining many hundreds or even a thousand pounds of fish. There is nothing about even the typical tuna program that isn’t fun and exciting, and specialists like the Colemans bring perhaps some extra enthusiasm and excitement to the experience. Several express-style tuna outfits
run out of Westport, along with the big overnight boats that are slower but can return with much larger catches at times. Lots of people like tuna fishing on larger, slower boats because they love the experience so much that they want to maximize ocean time as well as room for storing iced tuna. Others, like me, love the
one-day experience.
Regardless of whether you choose an express-style trip like Coleman’s or a more traditional large-boat experience, you can’t go wrong with a skilled tuna skipper, and there are many available these days in the Northwest, especially in Westport. NS
a trip
my
VIRAL TUNA SALAD RECIPE IS NOT ‘ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT’
You will find no more bountiful harvest opportunity on land or on the sea than you will 40 miles off our coast from July into October. Abundant albacore is delicious raw, seared or ceviched, and there are innumerable recipes that highlight the versatility and deliciousness of this healthy and sustainable fish. It is wonderful fresh, but by far my favorite edible result from tuna trips is canning many, many pints of this delicious white meat.
If you’ve never had home-canned tuna, you simply do not understand how good a tuna sandwich can actually be, nor any tuna dishes where canned tuna is part of
the recipe. It’s special stuff. I can all the bottom loins, most of the bellies, and the trim from top loins. I carefully wrap and freeze my trimmed top loins for searing and sushi. When I have a ton of top loins, I’ll even can some of those.
A couple of years ago, I detailed in Northwest Sportsman my recipe for an ideal tuna salad sandwich. There’s more than one way to make a great tuna sandwich, but the principles behind mine and the flavors are tough to beat. Great tuna salad starts with great canned tuna, and even commercially canned tuna can be gussied up to be delicious. It just won’t beat home-canned tuna that was
swimming, bled and iced only 24 to 48 hours before going in the canner. But I won’t belabor that point. Other keys to a great tuna salad are moisture control and simple, balanced flavors and textures. I like a little crunch, a little creamy, a lot of savory, a little tart and a hint of sweet.
Recently on the 2 Bears, 1 Cave podcast with comedians Bert Kreischer and Tom Segura, guest Matthew McConaughey made the audacious and untrue claim that he is the “tuna fish salad master maker.” No, no, no, no, no. As much as I love the first season of Max’s True Detective and many of McConaughey’s other performances, his detailing of the
After
offshore,
larder was stocked for days with canned tuna for sandwiches and other tasty treats. (JEFF HOLMES)
FISHING
recipe and the way it spread virally needs to be called out. Frozen corn, frozen peas, apples, Italian dressing, red onions, lemon juice, vinegar, wasabi and much more combine to create a super-wet swamp of muddied flavors. Yes, I tried it. I apologize to the tuna whose lives were sacrificed and wasted.
Here’s some deep fat-kid knowledge about how to make a simple and nearly perfect tuna sandwich with homecanned albacore. You can also use highquality store-bought canned tuna, but harvesting your own off the Northwest coast is way more fun and will be way more delicious.
1) Prep a pint jar of home-canned tuna. Remove tuna from the jar and place in a strainer/colander that you set alongside a 32-ounce or larger bowl to enable thorough mixing without spillage. Using gloves or meticulously washed hands, grab handfuls of tuna and wring them out of their juice. Put the dried tuna in the bowl and grab another handful and repeat the process until you have a bowl of tuna rid of the excess moisture
PYRAMID LAKE, NEVADA
that comes out of the meat during the canning process. Avoiding an overly wet or juicy tuna salad is absolutely critical.
2) Add the following to the bowl of tuna: ½ cup or more finely chopped fresh kosher dill pickles (some folks prefer sweet, some prefer a combo of sweet and dill; pickles can be omitted as well); ½ teaspoon celery seed; 1 teaspoon each garlic powder and onion powder; ½ teaspoon cayenne; 1 teaspoon kosher salt or ½ teaspoon sea salt; 2 tablespoons malt vinegar (or use rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar); and 1 teaspoon sugar or your favorite sweetener to taste.
3) Aggressively stir and combine the contents of the bowl, shredding the tuna and combining flavors. Overstirring is not possible. Once combined, add 1 cup quality mayonnaise (not light) and 1 tablespoon yellow or Dijon mustard and fold into the tuna mixture until very well incorporated. Taste the salt level and correct by adding more if needed. If you follow step 6 below, do not add more salt. Add black pepper to taste.
4) Let the mixture sit at least a couple
hours or overnight if you can. Then, stir and sample. Correct seasoning if you wish. Do not add additional moisture.
5) Choose your favorite bread. I like homemade white or wheat bread or the next best thing in my neighborhood, Great Harvest white or wheat bread. Lightly toasted bread and a lettuce leaf is as exotic as I get. Usually, I eat the concoction in a Carb Balance tortilla, with cucumbers, or merely off a spoon and dream about bread.
6) If you like to include small amounts of fresh veggies like extremely finely chopped celery, red pepper, jalapeno or onions, first salt the finely minced veggies in a separate bowl. Use a teaspoon or so of sea salt and let the veggies sit for 10 minutes, which will pull moisture out of the veggies. Like you did the tuna, wring them thoroughly of their juices, and add the salted veggies to your mixture without turning it into a soup! I recommend no more than ½ total cup of salted, dried veggies. Vegetables should be sparse in a tuna salad, and for God’s sake, do not add frozen vegetables. –JH
Trolling The Ocean For Columbia-bound Salmon
BUZZ RAMSEY
Truth be told, I’m not much for chasing ocean salmon until the latter half of July. You’d be correct if you were thinking I’m just waiting for the coho to get bigger. Did you know that these salmon are adding as much as a pound per week to their size this time of year?
And while I’d be happy filling my limit with a pair of fat hatchery coho (they are so good eating), I’m always hoping one of my two salmon will be a Chinook.
After all, nothing beats the hard-fighting stubbornness of coaxing a decent-sized Chinook salmon to the boat.
All that combined with an attractive fall salmon forecast for the Columbia River (736,200 Chinook and 479,700 coho this season) is why friends and I are planning to fish the ocean out of Astoria later this month. Fishing in the ocean management zone known as Marine Area 1 off the Columbia’s mouth has become an annual event for good friends and I with fishing guide Bill Monroe Jr. of Bill Monroe Outdoors (503-702-4028). We often end up catching limits that include a mixed bag of Chinook and coho.
Monroe’s strategy, always dependent on how rough the ocean and bar crossing will be, is to leave the dock at the crack of dawn. After all, it’s during the first few morning hours that the fish are closest to the surface and bite best. The bite can last until 10 or 11 a.m. or so, especially if it’s foggy or overcast, but generally slows way down by noon.
Given that the ocean current this time of year mostly runs southward, as Columbia River water enters the ocean straight off its mouth, it is pushed to the south. Coho are divided into two groups that include early- and late-run fish. Early-returning coho are south-turning stocks, while the late-returning fish are north-turning. This
No, that’s no can of sardines – it’s what it looks like when the fish box is packed with a mixed bag of coho and Chinook caught in the Pacific off the mouth of the Columbia River. (BUZZ RAMSEY)
causes a great many of the early coho to congregate straight off the Columbia and southward along the red buoy line in 90 to 180 feet of water. The red buoys mark the south side of the Columbia River channel and extend well into the ocean. If you have a chart (ocean map) or map-enabled GPS, you should have no problem finding this area. This is where you should hit first when looking for coho.
AS FOR CHINOOK, it’s no secret that the vast majority of fall fish returning to the Columbia are north-turning stocks, and on their homeward journey many follow the coastline down from the Gulf of Alaska. Fishing guides like Monroe, David Hazen (503-410-1183) and Bob Rees (503-8129036) understand that the majority of Chinook congregate north of the Columbia River mouth this time of year, and as such, they focus much of their effort there.
Guides Bill Monroe Jr. and David Hazen both love adding a hoochie behind their Yakima Bait SpinFish, but they have different preferences for leader length. Monroe rigs his stuffer baits on a 22- to 28-inch leader, while Hazen goes with 30 to 32 inches. (BUZZ RAMSEY)
A coho leaps at the end of the line of a client of fishing guide Bob Rees as the crew trolls in the ocean north of the Columbia. Coho pack on a pound of meat a week in summer. (BUZZ RAMSEY)
COLUMN
What they and other knowledgeable anglers do is turn northward, parallel to the beach, after clearing the mouth of the Columbia and begin looking for signs of salmon based on spotting a rip line, bait, and whale or bird activity. In case you don’t know, a rip line is where two ocean currents meet; it can be identified by a line of debris floating on the surface or water color change.
Here is what Hazen had to say about chasing Chinook north of the Columbia mouth: “The ocean current is mostly running north to south, so once I find Chinook, I stay on them by trolling east to west or vice versa over 20 to 60 feet of water rather than trolling southward and possibly away from where the Chinook are concentrated. If the ocean is calm, I’ll sometimes troll southward, with the current, parallel to the beach.”
“I’ve had my best success using Pro-Troll rotating flashers in combination with 2.5 and 3.0 SpinFish stuffed with fresh anchovies,” Hazen continues. “I rig my SpinFish in combination with a hoochie squid. The Chinook seem to like the mad clown-colored SpinFish the best for me.”
“I keep my leader, from flasher to lure, in the 30- to 32-inch range,” he adds. “When fishing this area I run 8-inch Pro-Troll flashers on my front rods and the 11-inchers on my back/stern rods in combination with 10 ounces of weight. If the fish go deep, I’ll switch to bigger cannonball-style sinkers. Once I get my clients their one-Chinook limit, I’ll sometimes run just south of the Columbia River mouth and fill out our coho limit there.”
MONROE, TOO, FISHES these same waters for Chinook.
“I motor north from the Columbia River mouth until I see signs of salmon and begin trolling that same direction, usually starting in 30 to 40 feet of water. Since the ocean current is mostly running southward at about 1 mph, I’ll troll into the current with my ground speed in the 3 to 3.5 mph range,” he says.
“If I start catching Chinook pretty good and figure I’m well within the zone where they are feeding, I’ll turn and troll westward and keep going that direction as long as it’s producing. I’ll then run back towards shore and make another search
Where coho action can be best south of the Columbia mouth, for Chinook, anglers turn to the north to greet fall kings returning from oceanic pastures off Alaska and British Columbia. Monroe hoists a fresh-caught Pacific Chinook for his dad, legendary retired Portland outdoor reporter Bill Monroe Sr. (BUZZ RAMSEY)
are what
while trolling north until I’m well within the zone where the fish are and then turn and troll westerly again. Although I’m usually starting my troll in 40 feet of water, there are times I’ll be in over 100, 200 or even 300 feet of water before the Chinook bite quits,” Monroe tips.
The guide terms the Yakima Bait SpinFish lure “a real game changer” on the saltchuck for both Chinook and coho, which bite it as well as or even better than real baits.
“I rig my SpinFish in combination with a hoochie squid,” he reveals. “I like the 2.5 and 3.0 sizes best and rig them on a 22- to 28-inch leader behind my Pro-Troll flasher. My most productive SpinFish color is the silver/red herringbone rigged with a chartreuse or orange hoochie squid.”
“I usually have six clients in my boat and run the front rods out 22 feet with 20-ounce cannonball-style sinkers, the middle rods out 26 feet with 16-ounce sinkers, and the back rods out 32 feet with
16 ounces of weights,” Monroe adds.
THE FISHING RODS used for ocean salmon and within the Columbia River mouth are long, ranging in length from 8 feet to 10foot-6 for most anglers, and they feature a stout action to handle the cannonball sinkers that might weigh 16 ounces or more. Shorter rods are generally fished straight out the back of the boat, while 9-foot or 9-foot-6 rods are favored by those seated ahead of the stern, with the forward or bow rods being 10-foot-6. This setup allows for fewer line tangles and provides a wide trolling swath.
Since you really need to know what depth your gear is running and be able to return to the one producing the most salmon, levelwind baitcasting reels equipped with linecounters are what nearly every angler uses when chasing salmon in the ocean and estuaries like Buoy 10.
And when it comes to fishing line,
the majority of anglers employ high-tech braid. Most spool 50- or 65-pound-test super braid, which is way thinner than even 25-pound-test monofilament and mostly eliminates the thought of an unexpected break-off. This is something that can happen when using mono line, especially if it has been heavily used and on the reel for more than one season. However, if you prefer mono I would suggest picking a tough one like Berkley Big Game or Maxima in at least 25-pound test. NS
Editor’s note: Buzz is regarded as a sportfishing authority (as related to trout, steelhead and salmon), outdoor writer and proficient lure and fishing rod designer. Buzz built a successful 45-year career promoting gear related to Northwest and Great Lakes fisheries during his tenure with Luhr Jensen, Pure Fishing and Yakima Bait. Now retired, he writes for Northwest Sportsman and The Guide’s Forecast.
Linecounter reels
salmon anglers use when trolling for salmon. They more precisely place your gear at the depth the fish may be swimming. (BUZZ RAMSEY)
Screeching seagulls, screaming reels, shouts of “Fish on!” – all part of the sounds of summer off the Washington Coast, where there’s a combined quota of more than 150,000 Chinook and coho. While salmon season technically opened in late June, it’s July and August when fishing is really good. Hunter Higginbotham bagged this nice ocean king two years ago. (JAROD HIGGINBOTHAM)
Find Pacific Kings, Coho
With higher
quotas, salmon
fishing off Washington should be good, and here’s where and how to work ’em.
By Mark Yuasa
When it comes to summer ocean salmon fishing off the Evergreen State you can’t have a one-size-fits-all approach, especially since there’s more than 200 miles of coastline separating the
northwestern tip of Washington and the mouth of the Columbia River. So narrowing it down to what suits you best as an angler – whether it’s the open ocean off Ilwaco and Westport or the rugged coastline between Neah
Bay and La Push or the more protected waters just east of Neah Bay – is key, and the good news is there’s something for everyone.
The open Pacific, especially off the northern coast, is the main intersection for salmon migrating into the Strait of Juan de Fuca/Puget Sound or heading to the Columbia River, Oregon or points even further south. In this article, I’ll focus mainly on points between Westport and Neah Bay, while Buzz Ramsey’s column offers insights for around the Ilwaco area.
But before we dive into the wheres and hows of catching Chinook and coho, let’s take a look at prospects for the 2025 ocean salmon fishing seasons, which were set in mid-April during the Pacific Fishery Management Council meetings in San Jose, California.
“I think we’re going to have a nice, long salmon fishing season this summer up and down the coast,” says Dave Johnson, a Washington sportfishing constituent on the PFMC salmon advisory subpanel.
This year’s seasons for Marine Areas 1 (Ilwaco), 2 (Westport-Ocean Shores), 3 (La Push) and 4 (Neah Bay) include a recreational Chinook quota of 53,750, up from 41,000 in 2024, and a hatchery-marked coho quota of 99,720, up from 79,800 in 2024.
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife fishery managers will monitor the number of salmon caught in-season and may close areas earlier if quotas or guidelines are met. In-season management may be used to sustain season length and keep harvest within the overall Chinook and coho total allowable catches.
SHALLOW-WATER FISHERY WHERES, HOWS
The ocean is a big place to fish for salmon, but the repeated messaging you hear from Chinook and coho anglers is to watch your fish finder closely to see where the baitfish schools are lurking and watch for birds feeding on baitfish. Don’t be afraid to drop your presentation down deep if that’s where the bait is lurking, because most
FISHING
likely a school of Chinook or coho is right in the mix.
Normally, when the season first opens at Westport, anglers can start off by trying in shallow water (25 to 100 feet) from Ocean Shores north to Point Grenville and from Twin Harbors south to the southernmost boundary of Area 2 off Leadbetter Point, weaving carefully in and around all the commercial crab pot buoys.
“These shallow-water fisheries off Westport and Ilwaco are great places to target kings, and one of the keys is to troll about 3.5 to 5.0 miles per hour,” tips John Keizer, a longtime outdoor writer and founder of saltpatrol.com.
Anglers will troll for Chinook using a Fish Flash or a similar triangle flasher to an 8- to 16-ounce dropball sinker with a herring or anchovy (a bait helmet is advised since the current tends to run hard). Mix it up
This season’s combined ocean quota of more than 150,000 Chinook and coho should mean a lot of bulging fish bags for Neah Bay, La Push, Westport and Ilwaco anglers. (KNIFE
and use a diver on one rod to see if that outfishes the sinker rod. In order to not have to deal with blown-out baits, consider using stuffers such as a Yakima Bait Spin-N-Fish or Brad’s Super Bait Cut Plug.
Just outside the treacherous Columbia River Bar at Ilwaco is a great shallow-water fishery off Long Beach in 35 to 75 feet of water where anglers during the entire summer-long ocean fishery can find Chinook and coho staging before entering the big river. When the season first gets underway many will stay away from fishing the buoy line just outside the mouth of the Columbia, where schools of coho tend to hang out, so as to avoid eating into the coho quota.
The close-to-shoreline areas off the northern coast at Neah Bay and La Push are a lot more defined and can be easier to work for a mix of Chinook
and coho. At Neah Bay, places like the green buoy off Waadah Island or the beach line areas outside of the kelp beds are hotspots for Chinook in water 25 to 100 feet deep.
You can also find fish out deep in the Strait of Juan de Fuca off Waadah Island in 200 to 325 feet of water. While this area is protected from big swells and winds, if the swell becomes northwesterly and the winds come howling out of the north, it can create some dangerous situations, so keep a weather eye out.
Heading west of Neah Bay in the far western Strait, don’t overlook the shoreline areas from Midway to Mushroom Rock and around the corner from Cape Flattery and south to Shi Shi Beach. At La Push, the areas just outside at Rialto Beach to Hole-inthe-Wall are places to look for salmon.
High slack tide around Tatoosh Island can also be a productive spot for salmon fishing. Boaters should keep in mind the narrow passage between Tatoosh Island and Cape Flattery simulates an ocean bar crossing, and the surrounding water can become quite dangerous, especially on an outgoing tide.
DEEP-WATER SPOTS, GEAR
If the salmon aren’t hugging the shoreline at any of Washington’s ocean ports, then adjusting your gear and tackle and moving out into the unmarked territory of the vast open ocean in water from 125 to 300-plus feet deep is another good bet.
Starting on the northern coast is Swiftsure Bank, but this being an oddnumbered year, you’ll likely encounter huge schools of pinks to get through to find Chinook.
Other offshore points include 72 Square and Blue Dot (lots of coho tend to hang in these areas in August and September); Umatilla Reef; and the Bread Line and Sea Lion Alley, located between Neah Bay and La Push about 12 to 17 miles from Spike Rock straight out in the ocean in 200 to 300 feet of water. Shark Fin and Compass Rose on the “Prairie” is where the commercial
PHOTO CONTEST)
FISHING
Charter operators up and down the Washington Coast provide access to salmon for anglers without boats or whose watercraft might not be big enough to fish the open ocean. Newlywed Holly Zonnefeld nailed this king out of Westport in July 2022 during a hot bite that saw most aboard that day limit out. (KNIFE
trollers congregate. The fish tend to be in much deeper water around the Prairie, but the first two weeks in August can also be lights out for upriver bright fall Chinook migrating to the Columbia River.
The commercial salmon troll fleet had been doing well in early summer for a mix of coho and Chinook and finding a good number of undersize fish (trollers’ minimum size for Chinook is 27 inches).
Further south at Westport, many will fish the buoy line and deep water just outside of the bar and south to Leadbetter Point and some will even follow the migrating salmon at the
deep-water chokepoint known as the Canyon south of the entrance to Willapa Bay.
Tactics and gear for the deep-water salmon fisheries are much different and it usually means trolling fast – 3.0 to 5.0 miles per hour and think current neutral – with downriggers attached to 18- to 20-pound downrigger balls.
For a fishing rod, look for a longer 10½-footer (15- to 30-pound, moderate action) that is sensitive enough to feel the bite but has a strong enough backing for reeling up a big Chinook. A linecounter trolling reel filled with 250 yards of 65-pound braided mainline to a top shot of 100
yards of 50-pound fluorocarbon holds up well when you hook a big salmon. In contrast, with the shallow-water salmon fisheries, a stout 9½-foot (12to 25-pound, medium action) fishing rod with a levelwind reel does the job. As for terminal tackle, match your presentation to the bait salmon are feeding on. Generally, a large-size lighted flasher with a UV glow or purple haze hoochie (plastic squid), a Silver Horde Coho Killer or any type of 2½- to 3-inch spoon, or a herring or anchovy with a bait helmet is a good bet. If you plan to fish deeper waters, don’t be afraid to go larger with a 6-inch spoon or plug.
OCEAN SALMON REGS
Marine Area 1 (Ilwaco) is open seven days per week now until a closing date of September 30 for all salmon. Daily limit is two salmon, and only one may be a Chinook. Chinook minimum size is 22 inches and hatchery-marked coho minimum size is 16 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size. Anglers must release wild coho. The Columbia River Control Zone is closed to salmon fishing, except from the North Jetty when adjacent waters north of the Control Zone are open to salmon fishing or the Buoy 10 fishery is open to salmon fishing.
The Area 1 Chinook guideline is 16,600 (12,510 in 2024) and the hatchery coho quota is 49,860 (39,000 in 2024).
Area 2 (Westport) is open seven days per week now until a closing date of September 15. Beginning June 29, the daily limit is two salmon, and only one may be a Chinook. Chinook minimum size is 22 inches and hatchery-marked coho minimum size is 16 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size. Anglers must release wild coho.
The Area 2 Chinook guideline is 22,270 (17,430 in 2024) and the hatchery coho quota is 36,900 (29,530 in 2024).
Willapa Bay, also known as Marine Area 2-1, is open under the same rules as Marine Area 2 now until July 31. Area 2-1 rules change in August,
PHOTO CONTEST)
FISHING
is split into two portions and also has specific closure areas. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
and they are detailed in the 20252026 Washington Sport Fishing Rules pamphlet. The portion of Grays Harbor west of the Buoy 13 line and the Grays Harbor Control Zone and known as Area 2-2 is open now until a closing date of September 15 under the same rules as Marine Area 2. Grays Harbor east of the Buoy 13 line is closed. The Westport Boat Basin and Ocean Shores Boat Basin open beginning August 16. Area 3 (La Push) is open seven days per week through July 3 with a daily limit of one salmon, release all coho. Chinook minimum size is 24 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size. Then it is open seven days per week beginning July 4 through July 31, and the daily limit is two salmon, release wild coho. Chinook minimum size is 24 inches and hatchery-marked coho minimum size is 16 inches. Other salmon species
have no minimum size. Beginning August 1 and running until the closing date of September 15, it is open seven days a week and the daily limit is two salmon, only one of which may be a Chinook. Chinook minimum size is 24 inches and hatchery-marked coho minimum size is 16 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size. Anglers must release chum beginning August 1 and wild coho.
The Area 3 Chinook guideline is 2,280 (1,630 in 2024) and the hatchery coho quota is 2,590 (2,070 in 2024).
And finally, Area 4 (Neah Bay) is also open seven days per week now through July 3, and the daily limit is one salmon, release all coho. Chinook minimum size is 24 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size. Then it switches to open seven days per week July 4 through July 31, and the daily limit is two salmon,
release wild coho. Chinook minimum size is 24 inches and hatchery-marked coho minimum size is 16 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size.
Area 4 is open seven days per week beginning August 1 until a closing date of September 15, and the daily limit is two salmon. Chinook minimum size is 24 inches and hatchery-marked coho minimum size is 16 inches. Other salmon species have no minimum size. Anglers must release chum beginning August 1 and wild coho.
The Area 4 Chinook guideline is 12,600 Chinook (9,430 in 2024) and the hatchery coho quota is 10,370 (8,300 in 2024).
Waters east of a north-south line through Sail Rock are closed from June 21 through July 31. No Chinook retention is allowed east of the BonillaTatoosh line beginning August 1. The Kydaka Point Area (waters south of a line from Kydaka Point westerly approximately 4 miles to Shipwreck Point) is closed to salmon fishing though August 15.
CHECK FOR UPDATES, THINK SAFETY FIRST Before making plans to go summer salmon fishing off the coast, check the WDFW regulations webpage at wdfw .wa.gov/fishing/regulations for any updates or emergency closures and what specific salmon species you can retain in open areas. The pamphlet is expected to be available in early July at statewide tackle shops and vendors.
And no matter what port you choose to fish, before setting off from the dock follow boating safety protocols and keep close tabs on when to cross the bar (usually during a slack tide), tidal fluctuations, wind direction and swell conditions, and the weather forecast. Remember, this is the ocean, so make sure your boat is in proper working order and that you’ve got all the essential safety gear, as nobody wants to be in a mayday situation. NS
Editor’s note: Mark Yuasa is a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife communications consultant, and longtime fishing and outdoor writer.
Be aware that salmon fishing regulations can vary between marine areas, even inside them. Henry Johnson shows off a Chinook he hooked last August off Neah Bay, Marine Area 4, which
FISHING
PORT OF CALL: WESTPORT
PORT OF CALL: ILWACO
Where: The city of Ilwaco is located in Pacific County, on the southwesternmost portion of the Washington coast about 169 miles from Seattle. For details, go to ilwaco-wa.gov.
Location: Port of Ilwaco, 165 Howerton Way Southeast, Ilwaco, WA 98624
Boat ramp, facilities and amenities:
There is a large two-lane boat ramp located in Ilwaco on outer Harbor Way Southeast maintained by the Port of Ilwaco, along with a large parking lot for vehicles and trailers. Moorage space (800 marina slips) is available, although it is usually filled up in August when the Buoy 10 fall salmon fishery opens. There are fuel docks, maritime museum, fishermen’s boardwalk, viewing platform and fishermen’s memorial, marine offices, showers and bathrooms, and unhitched trailer storage. There are a variety of nearby lodging, fishing charters, stores and restaurants in Long Beach, Ilwaco and also in Astoria and Seaside in Oregon. There are many nearby campgrounds and RV sites. You can also find nearby boat ramps at Fort Canby State Park, Water Street in Chinook, Lewis and
Where: The city of Westport is located in Grays Harbor County, on Washington’s central coast about 129 miles from Seattle. For details, go to ci.westport .wa.us.
Location: Port of Grays Harbor, 326 Lamb Street, Westport, WA 98595
Boat ramp, facilities and amenities: There is a three-lane concrete boat ramp with docks and parking lot managed by the Port of Grays Harbor. Moorage space (550 marina slips) is available at the Westport Marina. There are fuel docks, maritime museum, fishermen’s boardwalk, viewing platform and fishermen’s memorial, Centennial View Tower, marine offices, showers and bathrooms, and unhitched trailer storage. There are a variety of nearby lodging, fishing charters, stores and restaurants. There are also many nearby campgrounds and RV sites.
Contact: marina@portgrays.org or (360) 533-9562
Web: portofgraysharbor.com
Clark Trails Highway/Kingston Ferry Road and Oneida Road/Deep River in Wahkiakum County. Larger marinas and boat ramps are also located in Astoria,
Hammond and Warrenton. Contact: thayes@portofilwaco.org or (360) 642-3143 Web: portofilwaco.com
FISHING
Where: La Push is a small community located at the mouth of the Quillayute River and about 152 miles from Seattle.
Location: Quileute Harbor Marina, 71 Main Street, La Push, WA 98350
Boat ramp, facilities and amenities: The marina can accommodate 40 to 60 boats up to 50 feet long. Docks A and B are refurbished with new steel pilings and hookups. There is fuel, a boat launch and moorage available at the marina. The Quileute Nation Oceanside Resort, located at 330 Ocean Drive in La Push, offers accommodations (cabins and motel units), and a full-service RV and tent park with picnic tables, fire rings, and electric, sewer and water hookups. For more, email relax@quileuteoceanside .com or call (360) 374-5267. Contact: harbormaster@quileutenation .org or (360) 374-5392 Web: quileutenation.org/harbor-marina
PORT OF CALL: LA PUSH
PORT OF CALL: NEAH BAY
Where: Neah Bay, located on the Makah Reservation in Clallam County, is about 153 miles from Seattle.
Location: Port of Neah Bay, 1321 Bay View Avenue, Neah Bay, WA 98537.
Boat ramp, facilities and amenities: The marina has 200 slips (30 to 70 feet long) with permanent and temporary moorage and also offers both short- and long-term parking for vehicles and trailers and a boat launch. The facility has water and electric hookups, service and maintenance, store, can accommodate vessels over 100 feet long, and access to showers, restrooms and a fuel dock. The Big Salmon Fishing Resort, located at 1251 Bay View Avenue, offers charter fishing trips; email bigsalmon@centurytel.net or call (866) 787-1900. There are many nearby lodging, RV parks, campsites, cabins and nearby stores and restaurants. For details, go to makah.com/business.
Contact: Harbormaster Brian Svec, brian.svec@makah.com or (360) 645-3015
Web: makah.com/attractions/marina
(WASHINGTON DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY)
(WASHINGTON DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY)
Confessions Of A Salmon Chef
CHEF IN THE WILD
By Randy King
The first whole salmon I ever bought as a young man didn’t come from a grocery store or a fish monger. It came from a Nez Perce man standing beside an old Ford Ranger on the side of Highway 95 outside of Riggins. He had a cooler, a cardboard sign, a lit Camel Light and some confidence. I was young, working in kitchens and learning who the hell I was. That salmon was fresh, wild and – if I’m honest – probably not legal.
Back then, the rules in Idaho seemed to shift a fair bit. Some years, tribal
members sold fish openly, with signs and scales and prices per pound. Other times, it was more discreet – transactions behind tailgates, a lookout posted nearby. I didn’t ask questions. I just knew the fish was good, and that it mattered.
In those days, I would watch the bank, wait for a fish to be caught (gaffed usually) and hauled in, and then I would buy that fish. (It sometimes felt like a drug deal.)
One night when I was a restaurant cook in Riggins, my boss walked into the kitchen with a king salmon so fresh it still smelled like the river. We served it that night. I knew it wasn’t above board. I knew it then, and I know it now. I’m not proud of that moment, but I won’t pretend it didn’t happen. I was part of
that trade, part of that time.
Those days seem to be gone. The roadside coolers are mostly gone. Enforcement is tighter. Tribal fisheries are more structured, with seasons, quotas and conservation plans. But I know – if I looked hard enough – I could still find someone selling fish the old way. The connection hasn’t disappeared. It’s just gone quieter.
IN THE NORTHWEST, salmon isn’t just food. It’s identity. It’s a ceremony. It’s law. It’s fights. It’s treaty access. It’s agriculture. Across Idaho, Oregon and Washington, tribal nations continue to fish under treaty rights that predate statehood. These rights aren’t just legal; they’re ancestral. They’re rooted in rivers and
Tribal fishing scaffolds on the Columbia River at Giles French Park just below John Day Dam. (ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS, FLICKR, CC BY 2.0)
stories, in obligation and stewardship.
The Nez Perce Tribe, here in Idaho, manages its own seasons. Their priorities are ceremonial and subsistence first. They fish when the salmon run. They balance hatchery programs with wild stocks, tradition with sustainability. It’s not just about catching fish – it’s about honoring them.
In Oregon, tribes like the Siletz now work with the state to manage fisheries. They tag their catch. They report their harvests. They follow rules that reflect both cultural values and ecological realities. They also have “cultural fishing sites,” where they use dip nets, spears and other traditional methods to catch fish.
In Washington, the Boldt Decision of 1974 changed everything. It reaffirmed tribal rights to half the harvestable salmon and steelhead and made tribes comanagers of these fish. Today, tribal and state biologists work side by side. They write joint plans. They close fisheries when runs are weak. They protect what they can, together.
In the great 2023 PBS documentary Covenant of the Salmon People, a tribal member is discussing the harvest numbers the tribe will get. “That is onetenth a fish per tribal member – we gotta take one fish and split it 10 ways …” How can you sustain a culture on one-tenth a fish per person? I have no idea.
As a hunter and fisherman, I walk on the shoulders of those who came before me. We must honor our traditions, but my heart is split. I don’t have a solution. Just a memory of a fish, a truck and a handshake. I just hope that maybe, somehow, we can still have both.
And yet here I am in 2025, standing at a crossroads. I want the salmon to survive. I want the rivers to run cold and clear. I want the tribes to fish, and the fish to return. But I also know what the dams provide –irrigation, electricity, food security. I know what’s at stake on both sides.
When I see tribal members fishing, especially those from beyond my local Nez Perce – I feel something stir. A kind of cautious hope. A belief that the story isn’t over yet. That the rivers still have more to give. NS
Tasparagus. (RANDY KING)
MAKE IT YOUR JAM
he Country Mercantile outside of Pasco, Washington, has a jar of just about any jam or jelly you could ever ask for. So, when I stopped by this past spring, I picked up a jar of “local” jam from the store. I didn’t have a plan but knew it would be good. I loved the ingredient label – blueberries, sugar, lemon.
I had a filet of spring Chinook in the fridge – a gift from a buddy on the Clearwater in Idaho – and a cedar plank soaking in the sink. The idea came together like most good meals do: slowly, then all at once.
There’s something about salmon and berries that just makes sense. They grow in the same places. They show up in the same seasons. They’ve fed the same people for generations. I cooked at a Northwest-style fish house for several years. This combo has been a classic for a long time. But the pairing isn’t just culinary; it’s cultural. I want rivers full of fish, and land full of berries.
The jam brings sweetness and acidity. The cedar plank adds smoke and memory. The salmon does the rest.
1 large salmon filet (skin-on, about 1½ to 2 pounds)
1 cedar plank (soaked in water for at least one hour – otherwise it will just burn)
1/3 cup blueberry jam
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon fresh thyme (or ½ teaspoon dried)
Salt and black pepper to taste
Optional: a handful of fresh huckleberries/ blueberries for garnish
Start by soaking your cedar plank. Put it in water for at least an hour, longer if you can. This isn’t just about fire prevention; it’s about letting the wood breathe, letting it hold water so it can release smoke, letting it do what it was meant to do.
To make the glaze, in a small bowl, stir together the blueberry jam, mustard, soy sauce, lemon zest, lemon juice and thyme. Taste it. Adjust if needed. This is more art than science. You want the combo to be a bit strong, to flavor the whole fish.
Speaking of, pat the salmon dry. Place it skin-side down on the soaked plank. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon half the glaze over the top.
Place the plank on a medium grill (about 375 degrees), over indirect heat. Close the lid. Let the salmon cook for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on thickness. You’re looking for the fish to flake easily and the glaze to caramelize just a bit. An oven will work, too, but it’s just not as fun.
Brush on the remaining glaze in the last few minutes of cooking. If you’ve got fresh blueberries, scatter a few on top just before serving. They’ll soften in the heat and add a little burst of flavor. –RK
Blueberry jam salmon grilled on a cedar plank and served with rice and
The Good Fight
FOR THE LOVE OF TUG
By Sara Potter
It’s interesting how each fishery has its own characteristics, making each and every one unique. In the beginning of my pursuits, I would have to say it was, in many ways, quite isolated. It was very personal between myself and the river’s edge, between myself and the fish. Sure, I met a fellow bank fisher here and there, and a handful of them did add to the joy I felt when chasing the salmon and
steelhead of Southern Oregon. But I was undoubtedly a self-absorbed steelhead fisherman who really only desired to possibly inspire people from afar through my writing. At the same time, I wanted to keep my little world – my children, my gear, my river, my big backyard – to myself. Back then, I had no idea about the community that was waiting for me some years down the road. A community that would turn isolated Sara into someone who actually found joy in inspiring and teaching in a hands-on way that not only is very
fulfilling, but also pays the bills.
I started out fishing on one of the most iconic rivers out there in the Northwest, learning so very much. I found passion that could never die! I came into my own upriver, and I believe that rugged section of the river was intended to find me and mold me into this woman I am today, one who would eventually find her way to the mouth of the river and find a community that tugs on my heart strings maybe even more than the fish.
TINY FISHING TOWNS are just that. They are indeed small and at certain times of the year, they almost resemble ghost towns. The tiny fishing town I have grown to love over the past decade lays dormant much of the year waiting for the summertime flourish of activity it most definitely relies on.
As the winter’s ocean decides to lay down and embrace spring, hints of life begin to pop up throughout Winchester Bay. People return to the harbor in search of offshore lingcod and rockfish.
The small businesses of Salmon Harbor are ready and waiting. You need gear and bait? We have you covered. You need something yummy for breakfast and a hot cup of coffee? You bet, it’s our pleasure. You want to gather ’round after a day of chasing the fish for a cold one? Cheers – we again have what you need. How about a place to rest your head? Whether it be a hotel room, RV site or a traditional campground, Salmon Harbor is willing and ready to give you what you need.
True, windows of fishing opportunity can be somewhat unpredictable. Mother Nature runs the show in spring and the bar of the Umpqua River is nothing to take lightly. You can either cross the bar, or you can’t. Regardless of what Mother Nature has in store, the people of Salmon Harbor are there in hopes that the fishing to come will be plentiful.
But there is one creature that truly brings Salmon Harbor to life, making it stand out from the rest, and that creature is undoubtedly salmon! So many people from so many different walks of life save and plan for their summer salmon season in the harbor. Some work all year to come play the months away in Winchester Bay.
Umpqua River fall Chinook anglers like Lexy and her grandfather will have a very limited opportunity – but one nonetheless – to fish for the coveted salmon stock this season, thanks to advocacy from local leaders and businesses. After initially proposing a full closure on wild Chinook, state managers used “adaptive management” to come up with a 500-fish quota, a novel approach for the Oregon Coast. (SARA POTTER)
COLUMN
Meanwhile, local businesses are ready to dive in and work, with some stacking 80 percent of their revenue away to keep them afloat once the fall rains come and Mother Nature calls the fish home.
RUNNING A SMALL tackle shop on the water has been so good for me. It has allowed me to see that fishing doesn’t have to be so isolated. In running this shop for the past two seasons, I have gained an entirely new perspective on what all can come from fishing. You gain friends you didn’t see coming. You become part of a cause that is not only rewarding, but needed.
The harbor is host to two incredible salmon derbies each summer. Both are
passionately put on and produce vital funds, with 100 percent of the proceeds given back to the salmon. The pioneer of derbies in Winchester Bay rests in the hands of Gardiner Reedsport Winchester Bay Salmon Trout Enhancement Program. Founded in 1982, this is a community-sponsored program and event. It was designed to enhance local salmon fishing opportunities, but the derby brings in so much more than funds that are much needed. This program is run by a devoted group of volunteers whom I have a lot of respect for. It takes place each Labor Day Weekend and has been a local tradition for my entire life.
The Salmon Harbor Fishing Derby was conceived and is deeply cared for and put
on by my good friend Cari Standifer and her event partner, the amazing go-getter Karlee Williams. These ladies work hard and produce a derby that not only brings the fishermen and community together, it provides real money to important programs in Southern Oregon such as the Gardiner Reedsport Winchester Bay STEP program and the Oregon Angler Alliance. We are quickly approaching the fourth year of this derby here in Salmon Harbor and seeing how much it has grown and is continuing to grow helps me hold onto hope. Plus it brings so very many fishermen and our families together to fish, to raise money, and to celebrate the fishery that we all love!
ONE THING I’VE come to realize the past few weeks is that when you’re facing the strong odds of a fishery closure, it’s so much better to have an entire fishing community, or an entire fishing family, behind you. It wasn’t just me trying to save a river from being shut down; it was an entire community! I feel like when I did everything within my power to try and save my most beloved summer steelhead program, I was basically alone. Even though it wasn’t just me, it did feel like it. It was simply my heart being broken by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission’s 4-3 vote to terminate that 70-year-old program on the North Umpqua. But this time, it was different. I have been building these relationships with my customers and truly care about them. I care about this harbor, and these small businesses. So when it was time to rally the troops to try and save our opportunity to target fall Chinook on the Umpqua, I wasn’t alone. I have this Salmon Harbor family who showed up and shared their truth with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Though I wasn’t all over Facebook, I was busy, busy behind the scenes silently working, writing the pitch to KEZI channel 9 news for my friends to help get our story out. I sent hundreds of links to everyone making it easier for their truth to make it to the commission before it was too late. After hearing countless negative outlooks on the closure of the Umpqua, I still wasn’t willing to accept their perspective. I was still holding onto hope as I registered myself and my boss’s wife, Elizabeth Elam, who runs Salmon Harbor Cafe and
Author Sara Potter, Kathy Clemens and Potter’s daughter Ava volunteer as the announcement and raffle teams during last season’s Gardiner Reedsport Winchester Bay Salmon Trout Enhancement Program Derby, held every Labor Day Weekend and an important community function focused on the fish. (SARA POTTER)
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COLUMN
Mercantile, to testify for the upcoming commission meeting. I hardly slept the night before, having wild and restless dreams of the fish, and when the day was upon us, I woke feeling butterflies in my stomach and knew it was now or never.
Though I went into the commission meeting with fear and some anger stewing deep within my gut, I have to say that for the first time ever, I believe the commission saw a side of humanity that they may not have seen before when making such huge decisions for this state’s fish and game. I too saw them as human beings, and despite me not necessarily seeing eye to eye with them, I ultimately feel like this could be the beginning of us coming together for the first time since I have been watching this commission work.
In hearing us, the six members unanimously voted to not close the Umpqua River to fall Chinook fishing. There
was room for adaptive management, it turned out, and because of our voices, they decided to adopt a proposal that was better than just shutting the fishery down, as was initially recommended by ODFW staff.
I know a lot of people feel like the quota of 500 wild Chinook (the limit is one for the year, wild or hatchery, though hatchery harvest does not count towards the quota) in the river is nothing, but to me it is everything for these small businesses. What may be even bigger than that in some ways is this could possibly be the beginning of a working relationship with ODFW and our commission. We are the people who support them. We are the people who truly care about the survival of these fish. And not only their survival, but we want to see them thrive in the Umpqua Basin once more.
Constant division is not the answer, as these types of closure proposals and
quotas are going to be knocking on the doors of both the commission and coastal anglers more often than any of us would like to admit. Matter of fact, the opportunity – or lack thereof this year – to target wild coho of the Umpqua is already knocking on our doors and we should all be ready to help the commission see sportfishermen’s point of view.
Our point of view is a good one; we have merit behind our words, and we need to continue to show up and speak our truths.
At the end of the day, I’m just a fisherlady with a passionate heart and brain to back it. I know I can’t change the world, but, by golly, I will never give up! Being surrounded by such a community here in Winchester Bay has added purpose into my world in an entirely new way and with that, I believe we can make a difference. My heart is on the river and I couldn’t change it, even if I tried. NS
Bank anglers fish Halfmoon Bay near the mouth of the Umpqua. Locals came together to push back against state managers’ proposal that would have limited Chinook fishing to only off the bank below Highway 101 and only for hatchery kings. (SARA POTTER)
Bonnie Fishing In The Heights
The Scottish Lakes of Washington’s Alpine Lakes Wilderness serve up good angling, high adventure in summer.
By Rob Lyon
Iwas feeling winded from the hike and helped Steve set up his raft.
While he put on his dry suit, I unrolled his 3-pound boat. Open completely on one end like a very large bag, I had only to hold the open mouth of it into the teeth of the wind to start filling it with air. Quickly rolling up the open end, I topped it off via the mouth tube and Steve was on the water minutes later, paddling for all he was worth to make any kind of headway and hugging the shore where there was a bit of a lee. Meanwhile, I retreated to the lee of a stump and grazed on low-growing bushes full of fat blueberries.
We were fishing Lake Julius,
in the northeastern corner of the sprawling Alpine Lakes Wilderness, which covers 400,000 some odd acres of Washington’s Cascade Range and features over 700 glacier-scoured lakes, most connected via hundreds of miles of well-maintained trails.
The Scottish Lakes are a trio of trout-filled waters – Julius, Eileen and Donald – book-ended by the Chiwaukum Mountains and close enough together to make fishing them all over a few days’ time a reasonable proposition.
It was pretty sweet being up in the high country again. Most of my fishing in recent years has been in river canyons or on coastal salt. September and October are far and away my favorite time to be afield
and the high country puts on quite a show of its own. Larch leaves were beginning to color up at a mile in altitude and there was a crispness to the night air.
We were a crew of six from the San Juan Islands, and it was midSeptember. Fishing high lakes is a tough call without a boat of some kind. One well-traveled alpine lake fisherman I had read about concluded that 95 percent of the lakes require a boat to fish properly, mirroring my own, smaller sample experience. We’d packed float tubes into Julius years back, then packrafts for this venture. The tradeoff between watercraft is utility for weight. Packrafts are lightest, not requiring fins or waders. I’d brought along disc
A packraft-borne angler casts towards shore for trout in the Scottish Lakes Basin of Washington’s Central Cascades. The three lakes in the basin – Julius, Eileen and Donald – are reachable by two trails. (STEVE THOMSEN)
FISHING
golf discs to use as hand paddles. But sitting in the packrafts and trying to maneuver the boat and handle the rod, it quickly became obvious why the float tube was invented.
TO GET A jump on the 3,000-foot vertical gain and the hike in, we’d booked three nights at Alpine Lakes High Camp, located up a private road off of Highway 2 between Stevens Pass and Coles Corner, allowing a relatively easy 6-mile round trip from our hut to the lakes each day. I had caught some cutthroat pushing the 1-pound mark in years past. We were hoping to find some of their descendants.
While I laid low and grazed on blueberries, Steve bucked the wind
to reach the far end of Lake Julius, stayed close to shore and trolled a short line with his fave high lake attractor, a Woolly Bugger. Eventually he blew back ashore with five pansize fish in the creel.
We decided to make the short hike up to Loch Eileen to see if we could find some bigger fish, as well as hoping maybe wind conditions would be different. I was feeling better and ready to fish.
It was dead calm at Eileen, so I blew up my boat, rigged up and paddled out. I fished a tenkara rod that weighed just over 2 ounces and traveled in a 14-inch tube, just what the doctor ordered for hiking. Tenkara rods are sublime for small stream use like on Oregon’s upper
Owyhee River. I had hoped to make it over McCue Ridge and down to Chiwaukum Lake to fish the outlet stream there, where it would have been right at home.
The majority of fish we caught (80 percent) had pink flesh, meaning they were feeding on crustaceans, likely copepods or scuds. We fished wet flies and trolled most of the time, running either a soft hackle like a Carey Special, or a Woolly Bugger at the end of a sink tip, all while keeping an opportunistic eye out for a hatch. I like to cruise just off structure, especially reed beds, while casting right to the edge. If I ever happen to be here during a damsel hatch, I’d look for nearby shallows and settle in for some fun.
The Scottish Lakes sit in a fold of the Chiwaukum Mountains below McCue Ridge, which looks down upon Chiwaukum and Honour Lakes. The area is part of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, home to 700-plus lakes, ponds, tarns and potholes, many of which are stocked with or have naturally reproducing trout populations. (STEVE THOMSEN)
FISHING
Several of us took turns in the boat, a first for one of the younger bucks. It was a wonderfully warm and sunny afternoon in the mountains and by day’s end we had done well enough at Eileen to ensure that night’s meal. We bundled our catch in wet ferns and packed them to camp while keeping an eye out for king bolete mushrooms along the way. I was feeling my age and the young guys – Galen, a semi-pro soccer player, and Quinn, a budding sound engineer – put on their sherpa hats and packed out my raft!
We gathered in the High Camp’s community room/kitchen, where Scott and Steven did their cooking bit just as they had done on the Owyhee not long ago. A big wood stove warmed the room. The camp was well off grid and head lamps augmented several propane lamps. We ate our catch, pan-fried to perfection, drank wine and played poker, then hit the sauna – until Scott dumped an entire bucket of water on the rocks and emptied the room in a heartbeat!
We headed out again the next day, climbing high up onto McCue Ridge and hiking the hogback with an eyepopping view to the north and south. We were done fishing – Eileen and Julius had provided just enough –so this day was all about the higher surroundings, pure mountain hiking, no boats or bother, just the essentials for the trail.
AFTER RETURNING HOME
I got a hold of Brian Curtis, a longtime member of the Washington State Trail Blazers, who gave me the dope on the legendary volunteer club that does stork-work with the high lake trout.
“Trail Blazers’ primary mission is to volunteer for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife carrying fry into high lakes,” Curtis told me. “High lakes are defined as lakes over 2,500 feet west of the Cascades and lakes over 3,500 feet on the east side of the Cascades. The club typically stocks around 125 lakes a year, but that total can
vary fairly widely either up or down depending on the year. In the past 20 years we’ve stocked a high of 158 lakes and a low of 97 lakes.”
“The normal species/subspecies that we stock are rainbow trout, coastal cutthroat trout, westslope cutthroat trout and golden trout. Lakes stocked range from easy, short trail hikes to the most difficult to reach off-trail lakes in the state,” Curtis added.
The history of fish appearing in these mountain lakes was originally an effort by people working in the area – loggers, miners and trappers who had brought the first fish in as a source of food and sport. Then the old Washington Department of Game bought in.
“The earliest known stocking record for Loch Eileen is 1937,” Curtis told me. “The fish were brought in by horseback. The earliest known stocking record for Julius was 1941, again with horse. It stands to reason that Julius either already had fish or would have been stocked when they brought the fish for Eileen in ’37, but we don’t have any records of it.”
“The lakes were overstocked via horse through the 1940s. In those days, lakes were typically stocked way too heavily and it would have been difficult to tell if the fish were stunted from overstocking or from natural reproduction. By the 1950s, the Game Department started using aircraft to stock those lakes. As they started to realize there was natural
Have a wee pram. Author Rob Lyon finishes off inflating a 3-pound Rapid Raft for a buddy to take out fishing on one of the Scottish Lakes. The unique packrafts feature an open end that you gather air with and then roll shut, then top up via a mouth tube. Given alpine lakes’ generally bushy shorelines, a watercraft will help expand fishing opportunities greatly. (STEVE THOMSEN)
FISHING
reproduction in the lakes, stocking was curtailed. Julius was last stocked in 1967. Loch Eileen was last stocked in 1979.”
The future of some high lakes fisheries in Washington remains in doubt. National park managers do not allow stocking of lakes in their jurisdictions. The stocking of wilderness lakes managed by the U.S. Forest Service is also being continually evaluated with the best available science.
“When fish are able to reproduce on their own in high lakes, it almost always leads to overpopulation problems,” Curtis noted. “There are too many fish for the food supply and once they reach sexual maturity (normally age 3), energy they consume goes toward producing gametes and spawning before it goes to growth, and the lake ends up with a stunted population. This is not only bad for the fish, but it is bad for the lake’s ecosystem. With periodic stocking that can’t reproduce in low densities, the fish can grow better and they don’t threaten native species in the lakes.”
“The majority of naturally reproducing fish are cutts and eastern brookies, but there are some rainbow and golden trout in lakes with reproduction too,” he added. “The likelihood of rainbow reproducing depends on the stock being used. They tried Kamloops ’bows back in the ’50s and they were often able to reproduce. The hatchery stock WDFW uses for high lakes is not prone to reproducing naturally. But we are taking things one step further and are stocking a lot of lakes with triploid rainbows, which have done well with good returns to creel, so that program has been steadily expanding. Where we do stock other species (coastal cutts, westslope cutts, golden trout, for the most part), it is in lakes where they have a history of not being able to reproduce.”
So, what about anglers looking to avoid a lake with a stunted fishery and find one instead with mature fish? Is there some kind of algorithm
A Scottish Lakes cutthroat glistens in the sun. Washington’s high lakes feature cutts of two varieties – coastal and westslope – as well as golden, rainbow, brook, brown and lake trout. Managers are stocking more and more triploids, and seeing a good return to creel. (STEVE THOMSEN)
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to help him or her achieve that? Curtis told me there are links on WDFW’s website (see sidebar, next page) to intel for overpopulated lakes that need serious thinning, as well as details on other data.
BACK IN THE mountains on our last day, we were packed up and waiting for our shuttle driver to make it up the epic 6-mile track leading down to our rigs along Highway 2. We broke out our paddles-cum-discs and played as we headed down the road. One guy volunteered to hustle ahead to help spot errant throws and mitigate lost discs as dense forest crowded the narrow dirt grade. A fun time was had before the yeoman Rover appeared and we climbed in to leave the high country behind.
The Trail Blazers date back to 1933 with a generational membership. I can well imagine the camaraderie from humping in a kettle of tiny trout
Lyon and his fishing and hiking partners based their mountain troutin’ adventure out of Alpine Lakes High Camp, located just outside the wilderness area. With a history dating back to 1978 and once known as Scottish Lakes High Camp, the getaway featuring nine rentable huts was acquired by new owners last December. (STEVE THOMSEN)
Dinner is served. Alpine waters aren’t as productive as lowland ones for trout growth and numbers, but thinning the school can help against the stunting that overpopulation brings. (STEVE THOMSEN)
FISHING
into the alpine with your buddies, spilling the little fish into their new home and watching them swim off into the lake, maybe sitting around a little fire later that night and enjoying a mess of tasty trout, like someone’s father and his father’s father had done before that. I asked Curtis just what it meant to him.
“There is so much! I enjoy the camaraderie, the challenges, both mental and physical, the scenery, the education, the fishing, and the feeling I get when I think about the long history of people I am joining who have given so much to this activity,” he said.
“But what I enjoy most of all is hearing from someone who is excited about catching fish that I stocked,” Curtis added. “Even better if they caught a big one. I get way more pleasure from that than catching one myself.” NS
RESOURCES
High lakes information: For more on starter alpine waters, overabundant lakes and stocking schedules, see wdfw.wa.gov/ fishing/locations/high-lakes.
When: Lakes above 5,000 feet are typically snow-free by August 1, if not sooner (this year’s snowpack is well below median and waters will be open earlier if not already). Season typically runs from mid-July to mid-September. Larches begin to turn shortly thereafter, and people and bugs are few and far between.
Where: The Alpine Lakes Wilderness’s Scottish Lakes Basin, in the Central Cascades of Chelan County, Washington.
Lodging: Alpine Lakes High Camp, alpinelakeshighcamp.com.
Access: The public Scottish Lakes Trailhead is off of US Highway 2 near Winton 15 miles east of Stevens Pass and 5.2 miles west of Coles Corner. Turn on Forest Road 6490, signed Gill Creek,
Merritt, Lake Ethel Trailhead, and after crossing Nason Creek, turn left and continue 1.4 miles to the trailhead. Parking for the private Alpine Lakes High Camp shuttle is just off Highway 2 across from the rest area.
Gear: Light- to medium-weight tackle. On our trek, we went as light as we could get, including a 3-pound Rapid Raft (unchartedsupplyco.com/products/rapidraft), 2.1-ounce tenkara rod (tenkararodco .com) and 34.2-ounce Mariposa backpack (gossamergear.com).
Tackle: With fly gear or a casting bubble, soft hackle patterns are popular, as are Woolly Buggers. Try spinners and spoons. Fly shops/guides/outfitters: Emerald Waters, emeraldwaters.com.
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Smallmouth: The Spectacular Scourge
I’ll be honest. I’m not a bass fisherman, per se, but I do dearly love me some smallmouth. Largemouth? Nah, I won’t go so far as to call them “green carp,” and that for any number of reasons. One, I’m not big on the derogatory nicknames, e.g., the aforementioned green carp, sky carp, trash pandas, blah, blah, blah, for the fish and game species we should respect. That’s just me. And two, you ever catch an 8-pound carp on a light spinning outfit?
OUTDOORS MD
By MD Johnson
If you haven’t, try it. If you have, then you know it’s a tussle to best damn near any North American species we’ve got swimming around. Just sayin’.
But smallmouth. I like smallmouth. They’re ruggedly handsome, often aggressive, and give a darn good showing of themselves. And, though for some a bone of contention, they’re widespread and often quite abundant. Yes, I know all about smallmouth being a nonnative species here in the Pacific Northwest. And I know of the eradication efforts underway in many Western waters, e.g., last month’s blog by the editor of Northwest Sportsman telling of the recent continuation in perpetuity, for lack of a better phrase, of the use of bait and spearfishing – spearfishing smallmouth? – on the Oregon Coast’s Coquille River due to the river’s population of smallies “thriving and outcompeting salmon.” No, I don’t agree with bucket biology; however, smallmouth, like walleye, are not only here, but are very likely here to stay. So, as for me, I’ll fish for them, catch them, and, heavens to Betsy, occasionally eat one. Or more. They’re good.
But enough with ruffling feathers and back to the multitudinous positives of smallmouth bass.
THE WHERE
If you’re not familiar with smallmouth, also known as smallies or bronzebacks, it’s important to note some habitat differences between them and their larger-jawed brethren, the largemouth.
Smallmouth fishing shines in summer across the Northwest, and the bass can be found in waters from the Columbia Basin to the Oregon Coast and east to Hells Canyon. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
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Smallmouth are creatures of clear, cool water – not unlike salmon and steelhead – typically with some current and a rocky or “clean” bottom structure, where there’s little vegetative material, e.g. coontail or lily pads. Smallies, too, are more partial to deeper water at times, preferring to actively pursue nutrition in the form of crayfish, shad, baby bluegills and smaller pikeminnow. Largemouth, on the other hand, are often thought of as inhabiting shallow, warmer water, not as clear, and with ample cover from which they ambush similar prey, along with ducklings and swimmers. OK, so some liberties were taken with that last one, but swimbaits for sure.
Where, then, in the Tri-State area might one find smallmouth in number? In Washington, Lakes Washington and Sammamish are tops in terms of still-water smallies, along with Potholes, Moses and Banks in the Columbia Basin. Speaking of, the big river itself is a premier smallmouth stream; so, too, the Yakima and Snake, while more and more of the fish are also turning up in the Westside’s Chehalis River.
Beaver State bassers will find plenty of fish in the John Day, Umpqua, Deschutes and the aforementioned Coquille. Don’t wanna leave the shade of the city of Portland? The Willamette heralds as a blue-ribbon smallmouth stream. And finally, Idaho. There, the Boise, Payette, Snake and Clearwater Rivers all offer good to ridiculously good smallmouth fishing; so, too, do Dworshak and C.J. Strike Reservoirs, and Lake Cascade, though the latter is on my bucket list for its through-the-ice yellow perch fishery. More on that in another edition.
THE WHATS AND HOWS
Now we get into the how portion of smallmouth fishing, which can be as simple or as complex as you wish. Fly fishing fanatic? There’s a place for you among smallmouth anglers. Spinning gear works just fine; so does a good baitcaster. Poppers, streamers, spinners, spoons, jigs, all sorts of plastics, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, chatter baits, and swimbaits; they’re all in the box. Old-school aficionado? How about a
Heddon Tiny Torpedo, Arbogast Jitterbug or Rapala Floating Minnow? Live bait enthusiast? Crayfish/crawdads can be an excellent choice, but you do need to be certain you’re using a native species such as Washington’s signal crayfish and not a non-native variety, e.g., the red swamp crayfish or rusty crayfish. Don’t know the difference? Go artificial.
Rods? Reels? Line? Again, $20 or $300; it just depends on your wallet and, maybe
less significantly, your preferred method of smallmouth fishing. Speaking for myself, I’m partial to topwater bassing. And to dig a little deeper into the topwater realm, I’d have to say fly fishing specifically. Not that I’m any River Runs Through It surgically skillful flyrodder; I’m not, but I can hold my own with a 5-weight.
Years ago, Julie and I had the pleasure of spending the day on Oregon’s fabulous John Day River with master guide/outfitter
Guide Steve Fleming works the oars of his drift boat during a past smallie season. His beloved John Day River can serve up 100-fish days for bassers. (JULIE JOHNSON)
CONNECTICUT
Connor’s and O’Brien Marina Pawcatuck, CT connorsandobrien.com
Defender Industries Inc. Waterford, CT defender.com
O’Hara’s Landing Salisbury, CT oharaslanding.com
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Steve Fleming, owner of Mah-Hah Outfitters (johndayriverfishing.com), based out of the booming metropolis of Fossil, Oregon. Fleming knows the upper reaches of the John Day like no other human being does. In fact, I’d be safe in saying Fleming knows most of the smallmouth in the river on a first-name basis.
That morning, with Fleming on the oars, Julie shooting digitals, and me whipping a fly rod around, looking for all the world like a man who’d just discovered an electric fence whilst peeing in the bushes, I managed an incredible 20.5-inch smallmouth, which, as are all the guide’s fish, was quickly photographed and released. The fly? Fleming’s go-to, a size 4 Sneaky Pete popper
Unlike some species around this joint, with bronzebacks, “catching them doesn’t require a PhD in astrophysics,” writes author MD Johnson, who might count fly fishing with a popper as his favorite way to catch the bass. (The editor caught his largest on a crawfish pattern on Washington’s Ronde). Plugs, be they crankbaits, topwaters, stickbaits; plastics, especially grubs; bait bait –it all works, though some are better at different parts of the day. (KNIFE PHOTO CONTEST)
action rod matched with a 2000-series reel spooled either with 10-pound braid or 8-pound monofilament. Or it might be a 7-foot rod, medium light or medium action, again paired with the same 2000-series reel. Maybe it’s a Piscifun Carbon XII, a little skeletonized reel that I’ve recently grown to like. Or a Pfleuger President 20; maybe a 25. Whatever it is, I want it to be quick, so I can burn a spinnerbait across the top with some speed.
in chartreuse. And now I’m not bragging, mind you, but Julie and I each had 100-plusfish days that day with Fleming – and a hell of a chicken ’n rice shore lunch.
If you think you’d like to try flicking a fly for smallies, I’d suggest a 9-foot 5- or 6-weight rod, floating weight-forward line, 9-foot 2x or 3x monofilament leader, and a selection of poppers and streamers, certainly to include the Sneaky Pete, Clouser Minnow and the venerable Woolly Bugger.
Now don’t get me wrong here. Baitcasting tackle, if that’s what you’re comfortable with, is absolutely perfect for smallmouth. I prefer simple spinning gear. This might be a 6-foot-6 medium-
ASK THE M.D.
APerhaps one of the nicest things about smallies, though it could be said for a multitude of game fish species, is the variety with which one is presented in terms of, well, presentation. Break of day, and it’s buzzbaits or Torpedos on the surface. Midmorning but still not a high blue sky, and I’m throwing a crawdad or fire tiger crankbait – Storm, Rebel, Berkley, Bomber – along the rocks. Sun’s up, lunchtime, and I’ve switched to a leadhead/4-inch twist-tail grub combination, and I’m working it in a little deeper water, e.g. stream channels, drops, rock piles, humps, any sort of bottom deviation – note: concentrate on the immediate downstream side of any flow diversion or change, if there’s current –where a smallie can cruise and hunt.
Professional tournament anglers from Lake Erie to California’s Lake Almanor make smallmouth fishing look like rocket science. And I’m sure, day to day, it might just be; however, the Pacific Northwest is blessed with a long list of smallie waters where catching them doesn’t require a PhD in astrophysics. So while summer steelhead may be home and dry and the third week of August and time for silvers still a ways off, do not despair, good people, for there are always, and always will be, plenty of hard-fighting smallmouth out there.
And did I mention they can be awful damn good to eat? NS
dmittedly, the MD in MD Johnson’s name doesn’t exactly stand for “medical doctor,” but as you’ve seen in these pages over the years, he’s a pretty thoughtful guy on a wide range of fishing- and hunting-related topics – heck, even garage sale deals on outdoor gear.
So we’re offering you a chance to pick MD’s brain on anything from clam digging to crappie fishing, muzzleloader hunting to duck decoying, and more. Got a question for him? Hit me at awalgamott@media-inc.com and I’ll get him on it for a future issue. –The Editor
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Harsh Reality: Your Gun Rights Got StompeD
This is the Washington state capitol in Olympia where earlier this year, the Democrat majority pushed through the most onerous and restrictive gun control bill of all time, in author Dave Workman’s long recollection, requiring people to get a permit-to-purchase from the State Patrol before you can exercise your fundamental right to buy a firearm. (NILS HUENERFUERST, WIKIMEDIA, CC BY 4.0)
ON TARGET
By Dave Workman
Democrats – and only Democrats –in the Washington Legislature, and Governor Bob Ferguson have decided your right to bear arms is a government-regulated privilege, and they’re going to regulate it until you choke, leave the state or a judge steps in and tells them to knock it off. Ferguson signed House Bill 1163, a nasty measure that will require every gun buyer in this state to first ask permission from the police before he or she can purchase a new firearm.
Before you can ask, you will first have to take an approved firearms safety course, which will include a live-fire component to show your competence, and then pass a background check.
Quick: Name another constitutionally enumerated fundamental right that you must first get police permission before you exercise it. Nothing? No? That’s because there aren’t any.
When I testified against this bill in Olympia a few months ago, I reminded lawmakers that where this sort of thing happens, it’s called a “police state.” Suffice to say, it didn’t go down well with some members of the legislative committee, nor anti-gunners in the audience.
Passage of the bill will require some other things as well: money to pay for the course, since it won’t be free, and facilities to do all of this teaching and shooting, which –according to various sources – currently do not exist, especially the ranges. Presumably, classes can be held at school buildings, which can legally host such events with permission from school officials.
BEFORE ANYBODY TAKES the “noble high road” here and says we have to take a driver’s ed course before we can get a license to drive, here’s a quick refresher in high school civics – what we used to call American Government, when I graduated. Driving is a privilege, but
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the keeping and bearing of arms – for whatever purpose – is a constitutionally protected, fundamental right. Rights enumerated in the Constitution don’t require anybody’s permission to exercise. Rights are special that way, whether applied to rights protected by the First, Fourth, Fifth or other amendments in the Bill of Rights. See, the Bill of Rights is designed to put limits on government, not the people. To suggest differently would reveal a personal ignorance that just might pull an “F” from the civics teacher.
Washington’s new law does not take effect until May 1, 2027. I know people who are planning to leave the state because of this. Others have already moved to Texas, Oklahoma, Idaho, Montana or some other rights-friendly state. At least one county sheriff has announced he won’t enforce the statute, and the expectation of federal civil rights lawsuits is growing.
It won’t matter if you’re a deer or duck hunter just wanting to buy a new or even used rifle or shotgun for your young son or daughter. The requirement will be the same. A few other states have similar mandates, but only a few. North Carolina
repealed its permit requirement to buy a handgun two years ago.
There so far has not been a case challenging permit requirements in other states that has reached the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court demonstrated its timidity toward Second Amendment cases last month when it declined to hear cases challenging a ban on so-called “assault weapons” in Maryland and “largecapacity magazines” in Rhode Island.
But Washington’s law might provide a reason for the court to change its mind about taking another gun case.
There will not likely be a lawsuit until after the law takes effect. Indeed, to file a legal challenge right now might be a waste of time and money because nobody can show they’ve been harmed by the law.
After the law becomes effective, there could be more than one legal action, at the state and federal levels. This new law also can be challenged under Article I, Section 24 of the Washington state constitution, which says the right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself or the state shall not be impaired. Requiring a gun safety course and background check, and a permit-to-
purchase should easily be determined to be impairments.
State and federal civil rights lawsuits will take time and money, and in the meantime, unless a court issues a restraining order or injunction, the law will be enforced.
EARLIER
THIS YEAR, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the creation of a Second Amendment Task Force at the federal Justice Department. Its job is to look at state laws that may violate the Second Amendment, and take appropriate action. This is one possibility, and the Bellevue-based Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms has already recommended that the Evergreen State get the task force’s attention.
Likewise, Republican lawmakers in Colorado – where Democrats also this year passed a similar permit-to-purchase requirement – have asked Bondi to unleash the task force on their state.
Colorado’s law is to take effect in August 2026.
Meanwhile, CCRKBA’s litigious sister organization, the Second Amendment Foundation (also based in Bellevue) is hardly asleep at the wheel. SAF, at this writing, has somewhere north of 55 state and federal lawsuits in progress challenging gun laws in Washington, Oregon, California and elsewhere, and they have lots of time to consider how best to approach this new dilemma.
Beyond the courts, there is another avenue for Washington sportsmen and -women: Vote enough anti-gunners out of office in November 2026 and this law could be in trouble come January 2027. Ferguson, in office through 2028, would almost certainly veto a complete repeal, but politics creates interesting situations. All gun owners have to do is vote against any candidate with a “D” next to his or her name, up and down the ballot.
This applies especially to the people who sponsored HB 1163. Here’s a roster: Liz Berry, April Berg, Lisa Callan, Julio Cortes, Lauren Davis, Beth Doglio, Davina Duerr, Darya Farivar, Jake Fey, Joe Fitzgibbon, Mary Fosse, Roger Goodman, Mia Gregerson,
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Natasha Hill, Nicole Macri, Sharlett Mena, Edwin Obras, Lisa Parshley, Strom Peterson, Alex Ramel, Julia Reed, Cindy Ryu, Osman Salahuddin, Jamila Taylor, Tarra Simmons, Chipalo Street, Steve Tharinger, Amy Walen and Sharon Wylie.
These people think outdoorsmen and -women wanting to buy a firearm – for which there is already a 10-day waiting period – still cannot be trusted.
One of my state representatives is on this list, and I’m going to do whatever it takes to see her driven from office next year, because of this.
None of these people deserves a single vote from sportsmen or -women. They will argue this is about public safety, and about the misuse of guns. But this isn’t about guns. This is about rights, and Democrat state lawmakers just spit on yours.
WITH THAT OFF my chest, let’s talk hunting. Now is the time of year to be testing new loads for elk, deer, bear and other game. Perhaps you scored a rare goat or sheep permit. Know where these rounds will hit at
100, 200, 300 or even 400 yards because you may get only one shot, so make it good.
When I’m asked about what the “best” bullet is for big game, my first response is to ask where this hunt will occur. Round nose softpoints will suffice in Westside heavy-brush country where shots aren’t likely to be beyond 200 yards. Out in open country, along the east slope of the Cascades from the Okanogan down to Klickitat County and through Central Oregon, I would much prefer a boattail with a spire point, such as the polymertipped specimens from Nosler and Hornady. They have the highest ballistic coefficients, and over the years I’ve managed to anchor some dandy bucks with Nosler Ballistic Tips or AccuBonds, fired from such superb buck busters as the .257 Roberts, .308 Winchester, .30-06 Springfield and .350 Remington Magnum, the latter of which I used to conk a big Montana muley over southeast of Terry, almost to the South Dakota line.
I’ve also bonked bucks in Western Washington using a .32 Special, and there are three notched tags I credited to
two different .41 Magnums.
You might also get the jump on fall black bear hunting, which opens August 1 in most units (see page 68 of the regulations for details) and August 15 in select units in the Okanogan and Willapa Hills. Scout now for a season that runs through November 15, and be sure to check the regulations carefully, as there have been some changes made by the Fish and Wildlife Commission. Most units allow two bears to be taken, but in the two regions above, the bag limit is a single bear. Hunters are now required to take online bear identification tests in 21 game management units, up from 12 last year, and also new this year, it’s illegal to shoot a cub or a sow with cubs. Previously, it was only strongly recommended against.
Summer’s also a good time to scout your other big game fall hunting areas. Keep score of deer, elk, grouse and even rabbits you see. And if you didn’t buy your hunting license during the special permit application process for deer and elk, do so now so you can legally shoot any coyotes you encounter while afield. NS
Now is a good time to be working on your firearms, getting them prepped for 2025’s fall big game hunting seasons, which start as early as August 1 for black bears in most of Washington and all of Oregon. Zeroing your rifle now means you won’t have to do it at the last minute at a crowded range. (DAVE WORKMAN)
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Hunt Smart, Hunt Safe, Get Home
hunt alone, make sure someone knows your schedule – where you’re going and when to expect you back. It is also wise to communicate how much time should pass before they start to worry if you don’t return home according to schedule.
Many things can happen in the field; perhaps you’ve shot an animal that died in a hell hole, requiring you to work overnight to retrieve it. This is one reason I always carry a Garmin InReach for text messaging and location sharing, plus it has an SOS feature if I were to ever get into a really dire situation. Additionally, iPhones can now send satellite messages, but both the sender and receiver need devices with this capability. I have been field testing this new iPhone feature for the past few months and it has proven to be quite handy.
I prefer to hunt with a partner, either my wife or a friend. While I enjoy solo adventures, it’s generally safer to have someone with you. The style of hunting can also dictate the need for partners; for example, when archery hunting for elk, having another person for calling and assistance is highly beneficial. Having someone with you is especially valuable if you experience an injury while in the field or find yourself in a precarious situation. A hunting partner can also help if you harvest an animal, making the process much more manageable.
WHEN DRIVING TO the mountains, woods or what have you, reliable transportation is essential. Before setting off into the wilderness, check that your vehicle has good tires, a charged battery and all the proper maintenance is complete.
BECOMING A BETTER HUNTER
By Dave Anderson
As I introduce my two boys, Ryland and Barrett, to the mountains, firearms and the various dangers we face outdoors, I’m often amazed at how much more knowledge they have about staying safe and getting home than many adults do. Granted, not everyone has the privilege of learning about the outdoors from a family member deeply rooted in outdoor experiences. But
below are several key lessons I emphasize with my children. The advice is borne from mistakes I’ve observed during my time as a hunting guide and hunting with friends.
YOU’VE PASSED YOUR hunter safety course, obtained your tags and gathered your gear – rifle, pack, binoculars – so you are ready to head into the field, right? Wrong! While it’s awesome that you have taken these steps, there are important considerations to think about before venturing out into the mountains.
First and foremost, if you plan to
In addition to ensuring I have reliable transportation, I usually pack certain items with me. These include jumper cables, tire chains, tow cables, tire iron, hydraulic jack, fire extinguisher, jump box, small air compressor, tire repair kit, chainsaw, Pulaski axe, shovel and a 5-gallon bucket. Although these may not relate directly to hunting, they are crucial for safety, and I have used nearly every one of them to help myself or others while on a hunting or scouting trip.
Once you have arrived in the mountains, there are several items
Author Dave Anderson’s eyes are firmly on the mountains and woods while he’s hunting, but underlying everything is a firm desire to get back home safely to his family. (DAVE ANDERSON)
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that can help ensure your safety even if you get into trouble. Quality boots, layered clothing and extra clothes are fundamental for comfort. I always pack Kuiu rain gear, both pants and a jacket, even if there is just a hint of rain in the forecast. Depending on the season, I also carry Kuiu Super Down pants and a jacket to stay warm in varying weather conditions. I also always have a good pair of gloves and a beanie. In addition to clothing, I also have a rain fly and parachute cord. With all the proper gear, I can stay warm no matter how unpredictable the weather could be.
ALWAYS HAVE A way to start a fire, such as lighters or fire starters. I prefer carrying lightweight fire starters and two Bic lighters in a waterproof bag. While expensive windproof and waterproof lighters are available, I find that the inexpensive Bic lightweight lighters work just as well and have never failed me. Additionally, MK Lighters offer mini windproof torch lighters that work exceptionally well.
A reliable battery pack for charging devices is crucial for keeping your phone, which contains all your mapping information and maybe your hunting license and tag, operational. Having a battery pack is essential to make sure you have a way to charge an inReach, headlamps and other electronics as well.
Depending on your trip duration, a small solar charger could be beneficial; Dark Energy offers excellent products.
On the flip side of fire, a quality water filter or treatment system is important in case you find yourself stranded in the mountains. You can survive several days without food, but clean drinking water is essential. I have found Sawyer filters to be a great lightweight option that don’t take up much space and provide reliable water purification.
Having spent an unexpected night in the mountains before, I can assure you it was manageable because I was well prepared. However, I have heard stories of people quickly getting into trouble due to lack of proper equipment and preparation when venturing into the mountains.
BEING
PREPARED ALSO means knowing how to respond in emergencies, which is why first aid is an essential skill for everyone, especially hunters. Accidents can happen quickly and knowing how to administer first aid can make the difference between life and death.
Basic first aid knowledge, including how to treat cuts, burns and fractures, can help relieve injuries until professional help arrives. Carrying a well-stocked first aid kit is necessary and should include bandages, antiseptics, gauze, a splint and any personal medications. There are several lightweight first aid kits and trauma kits that fit well in hunting packs
and don’t add much to the overall weight of your pack. Understanding first aid not only protects you, but also helps you care for fellow hunters or anyone you might encounter in need while enjoying the great outdoors.
One of the greatest challenges most people face is staying calm in emergencies. A guide school instructor once told me, “Whatever is lurking in the dark is there during the day.” That’s an important thing to remember if you ever get stuck in the mountains overnight. Again, my number one advice for any hunter or outdoor enthusiast who spends any amount of time off grid or in the mountains with no cell service is to have an inReach or other reliable means of communication. You may consider it an expensive accessory, but ask yourself: What is your life worth? I, for one, cherish every moment I can spend with my beautiful wife and two amazing boys, so prioritizing my own safety is a must.
HUNTING SMART AND safe is about preparation, awareness and respect for nature and fellow hunters – and your family and other loved ones back home. By utilizing some of the recommendations above and maintaining a positive attitude, you can ensure a successful hunting trip that ends with a safe return home. Just remember to keep safety at the forefront of your adventures and enjoy the rich experiences hunting has to offer. NS
WALGAMOTT)
Most hunters depend on vehicles to get to and from their destination, and that means that their trucks, trailers, ATVs, bicycles, etc., need to be in good working order so as to avoid an unexpected breakdown in the boonies. (ANDY
Goosetown Goldens
Gearing Up For Summer Training
By Scott Haugen
Hot days and busy summer schedules.
That’s what gun dog owners are up against this time of year. But the training must go on.
Over the last few years I’ve detailed summer training tips. In this column I’d like to share experiences I’ve had with important gear, stuff that not only works great now, but year-round.
LET’S START WITH Orvis. I know what many of you are thinking: “Aren’t they the company that makes high-end flyfishing gear?” You’re right, they do. But they also make quality dog gear.
A year ago I picked up an Orvis Deluxe
Dog Bed. My dogs use it every day, and it still looks new. Its quality is what spurred me to look at other Orvis dog gear.
We started with their Grip-Tight Quilted Throw. After six months of daily use, this non-slip throw has not only protected furniture and couch cushions, but looks like it just came out of the box. It’s durable, stiff enough to where it won’t slide, but not so stiff that it’s uncomfortable or won’t conform to the surface it’s on. The chain of events continued.
Impressed with the throw, I decided to try their Grip-Tight Hose-off Quilted Backseat Protector. I started using it last summer, when dirt, dust and seeds were tracked into the truck after seemingly every training session. Dry debris was easy to brush out. Then came the water test. The throw is marketed as one you can hose
off to clean. After many training sessions in water and mud, I’ve hosed it off, hung it to air dry, reinstalled it and done it all over again. During duck season I often loaded the dogs wet, and the water-resistant coating on both sides worked perfectly to protect leather seats. I’ve owned lots of back seat covers over the years. This one has lasted the longest, and it’s tough enough my dogs’ toenails don’t begin to fray it.
A few years ago I traded in my Ford F-250 for a new F-150. The back seat of the F-150 was narrower and my 65-pound male dog couldn’t sprawl out and sleep; he tried and kept falling off. That’s when I got the Orvis Dog Seat Extender. Before I even got out of the driveway Kona laid down, rested his front paws and big head on it and relaxed. It’s the perfect fit for my truck and dogs.
GUN DOG
Gear organization allows easy access to needed dog training tools, optimizing your time and efficiency. Here, the long Pelican case and Camino tote hold the gear, while the Orvis seat extender offers comfort for your dog. (SCOTT HAUGEN)
Finding a seat cover that withstands the daily demands of gun dogs isn’t easy. This Orvis seat protector offers a non-slip surface on the underside and a quilted top, making it secure and tough. (ORVIS)
ONE THING I carry year-round in my truck is a variety of clothes. It might be layers and rain gear during hunting season, while it’s usually lightweight clothing, hoodies, gloves and towels in the summer. I used to pile them into the truck’s back seat, but they always got mixed up, dirty from my dogs and were inconvenient to deal with. I tried stuffing them into duffel bags, but that wasn’t efficient either. Then I discovered Yeti’s Camino 50 Carryall Tote Bag. I loved it but wanted something smaller for the summer that I could stow less bulky clothes in, saving space, so I got the Camino 20. Whether I’m shedding layers in the morning or adding layers in the evening, the Camino 20 is great. It’s durable, stiff enough to stand alone, and the inside zipper pockets, deployable internal dividers and outer hitch points are well thought out.
If you’re the owner of versatile gun dogs like I am, you likely have a lot of training gear. And this time of year it can be challenging to keep track of it all. I used to have a bin filled with equipment in the back of my truck. Then one bin became two, and two, three. Early in the spring I converted to one large case and am glad I did. I initially got Pelican’s 1740 Protector Long Case with foam layers for my photography gear on road trips. But it didn’t take long for me to remove the foam and start using it for other purposes, like storing all my summer dog training gear. It fits a variety of bumpers –even large geese – collars, leashes, leads, a dummy launcher, bird launcher, bird bags, shed antlers and more.
It’s nice having all my training gear in one, stable container. I love the tough latches and wheels, and the sides don’t
bulge, no matter how much weight and bulky gear I’ve put in there. It’s 100 percent dustproof, waterproof and easy to swap out with seasonal gear as needed, be it for hunting, fishing, camping or photo shoots.
While summer days are hot and long, dogs have to be worked and kept in hunting shape. Train and condition them early in the morning and in the evening, when it’s cool. Keep sessions short and fun. By having the quality gear you need, the training sessions as well as your dog’s daily life will be more efficient and manageable. Hunting season will be here before you know it. NS
Editor’s note: Scott Haugen is a full-time writer. See his puppy training videos and learn more about his many books at scotthaugen.com and follow him on Instagram and Facebook.
