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Sportsman Northwest

Your LOCAL Hunting & Fishing Resource

Volume 7 • ISSUE 9 PUBLISHER

James R. Baker ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER

Dick Openshaw EDITOR

Andy Walgamott CONTRIBUTORS

Nick Barr, Ralph Bartholdt, Jason Brooks, Tim Bush, Chris Gregersen, Peter Flohr, Jeff Holmes, Doug Huddle, Randy King, Leroy Ledeboer, Terry Otto, Buzz Ramsey, Andy Schneider, Scott Staats, Todd Switzer, Richard Thompson, Dave Workman, Mike Wright SALES MANAGER

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ON THE COVER

Daryl White hoists his 2013 Brewster Salmon Derby-winning Chinook, a nearly 27-pound fish that scored him $1,600. This year’s event runs Aug. 1-3. (BRIAN LULL) INSET: Andy Byrd bagged this Cascades black bear in 2012. (JASON BROOKS) DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Disappointingly, the lighthouse on p. 91 of the June issue was incorrectly identified. It is the North Head Lighthouse, not the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse.

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W W W. V E R L E S . C O M

CONTENTS

VOLUME 4 • ISSUE 6

VOLUME 7 • ISSUE 9

34

LET’S HEAD FOR THE HILLS!

Pack up the kids, tents, lanterns, bikes and fishing rods, Mamma, we’re heading for the coast, Cascades, Bend and Eastside hot spots with our writers’ and readers’ favorite camp-fishing getaways! (ANDY WALGAMOTT)

FEATURES 50 57 63 71 77 95 121 127 135

Northwest charter-boat fishing Oregon Coast Chinook, coho Jigging, swimbait fishing for tuna Central, North Coast halibut Lower Columbia steelhead Upper Columbia Chinook, sockeye Ross Lake rainbows, bull trout Kelly Creek, Idaho, cutthroat McNary Dam tailrace walleye, bass, steelhead, shad – MAPPED! 145 5 top South Sound bass lakes 155 Scout now for fall bears

DEPARTMENTS 13 16 23 24 28 28 91 93

The Editor’s Note Big Pic: Puget Sound steelhead Dishonor Roll; Jackass of the Month Outdoor Calendar Wright & McGill/Eagle Claw Photo Contest winner Browning Photo Contest winner Rig of the Month: Coon Shrimp, Imitations For Summer Steelhead Jig of the Month: Secret Shrimp

COLUMNS 31

STUMPTOWN Terry and many Oregon sportsmen have yet to be sold on ODFW’s license increase proposals to fill a budget shortfall – in part caused by lower revenues since the last hike.

73

BUZZ RAMSEY Too many possibilities this month, so Buzz highlights ops on the ocean, inland, and Columbia Basin.

103

BASIN BEACON The Upper Columbia’s poised to see a fine summer of salmon fishing, and Leroy previews the big Brewster Salmon Derby.

117 NORTH SOUND The San Juan Islands get sumptuous this month, and Doug MAPS where to find barbecue and Crab Louie fixin’s!

149 CHEF IN THE WILD Randy cooks us a delicious bass.

153 INLAND NORTHWEST Ralph details the Clearwater’s other B run – the surprisingly good and hush-hush fishing for smallmouth bass in Idaho’s river.

109 WESTSIDER With 23 million due back to the Fraser, Tim reports on how to catch the most mysterious Northwest salmon – saltwater sockeye.

163 CENTRAL OREGON Hunters are bristling over a plan to dramatically increase ORV trail miles in the Ochoco, home to an elk herd that managers already have enough trouble keeping out of private pastures.

113 THE KAYAK GUYS Our newest kayak fishing writer Todd Switzer is also one of the Northwest’s Tupperware vets –he details Baker Lake reds.

167 ON TARGET With an eye on good spring upland bird hatches, Dave has a new shotgun in mind for his favorite quarry – grouse.

SUBSCRIBE TODAY! Go to nwsportsmanmag.com for details.

NORTHWEST SPORTSMAN is published monthly by Media Index Publishing Group, 14240 Interurban Avenue South, Suite 190, Tukwila, WA 98168. Periodical Postage Paid at Seattle, WA and at additional mailing offices. (USPS 025-251) POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Northwest Sportsman, PO Box 24365, Seattle, WA 98124. Annual subscriptions are $29.95 (12 issues), 2-year subscription are $39.95 (24 issues). Send check or money order to Media Index Publishing Group, or call (206) 382-9220 with VISA or M/C. Back issues are available at Media Index Publishing Group offices at the cost of $5 plus tax. Display Advertising. Call Media Index Publishing Group for a current rate card. Discounts for frequency advertising. All submitted materials become the property of Media Index Publishing Group and will not be returned. Copyright © 2014 Media Index Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be copied by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording by any information storage or retrieval system, without the express written permission of the publisher. Printed in U.S.A. 10 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

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THEEDITOR’SNOTE

D

espite a winter and spring of relative quiet, wolves remain a big story in the Northwest. To be sure, there has been some news: a new pack near La Grande, pups for OR7, solid sightings north of The Dalles, and Washington researchers putting GPS collars on cows to study how they interact with wolves. And you can bet that in the coming years, wolves will remain in the headlines, especially nearing and actually reaching the established recovery goals.

And so what then? To that end, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife is trying to figure out just how to handle their management. Earlier this year, the agency commissioned a survey which found that with increasing numbers of wolves prowling the Selkirks and Eastern Cascades, strong and moderate opposition to their recovery climbed from 17 percent in 2008 to 27 percent while strong and moderate support dipped from 75 percent to 64 percent.

“Does it signal a decline? I think it does,” says Department of Fish & Wildlife game manager Dave Ware.

That first survey was done six months before the state had any confirmed wolves, Ware points out, but in the intervening six years, the species has become one of the biggest, most controversial wildlife stories in Washington, as we’ve chronicled here and on our blog. Unsurprisingly, the survey found opposition to wolves highest in regions with, relatively speaking, lots of them while support for them was highest where there were no or very few wolves.

The latest survey queried 904 adults in the state’s eastern corners, Eastern Cascades and core of Pugetropolis. It has a sampling error of 3.26 percent. Ware says it along with a hunter survey at wdfw.wa.gov that is open for comment through July 18 is meant to help inform development of the agency’s 2015-2021 game management plan.

SOMEWHERE AROUND THE end of that six-year period WDFW believes that wolves will have reached minimum population benchmarks. The latest survey showed there’s clear, widespread support for removing them from the state endangered species list at that point.

Seventy-three percent support it; only 15 percent oppose. Ware says that when polls show 70 to 80 percent support for an idea, managers tend to feel positive about moving forward on it.

It gets interesting when the question comes to what happens afterwards. Sixty-three percent of residents support a regulated season, and 28 percent oppose.

The key to acceptance may lay in how a hunt is framed – and this is key for hunters to understand. A wolf season to maintain population objectives has the highest support (69 percent for, 23 percent against), followed by to address livestock concerns (65 percent for, 25 percent against), address impacts on ungulate populations (61 percent for, 29 percent against), and finally, to provide a recreational opportunity (38 percent for, 53 percent against).

That last one is notable.

“Predator hunting has low support,” Ware acknowledges.

For the state’s residents, wolves aren’t turkeys – animals put here strictly for sport harvest. They believe that predators are a key part of ecosystems; 70 percent support maintaining sustainable numbers of toothy critters while 15 percent oppose.

Whether you and I agree with that or not, what does have support is reducing predator populations to 1) help out threatened or endangered wildlife (68 percent to 19 percent) like, say, mountain caribou, and 2) in cases where deer and elk herds are unable to rebound from low numbers (71 percent to 15 percent).

Food for thought as we close on the inevitable recovery of wolves in Washington. –Andy Walgamott

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Northwest Sportsman 13

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State fisheries biologists are trying to figure out why more Nisqually River wild steelhead don’t return from the ocean, despite strong outmigration. It’s also puzzling why so many are “passing up” the call of the marine option and staying instream instead. (JAMES LOSEE, WDFW) 16 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

MIXED BAG

About IN THEIR Those OWN Nisqually WORDS Steelhead

By Jeff Holmes

A fishery biologist talks about research on the stock, which is not responding to the end of hatchery releases – two decades back now.

OLYMPIA—Amongst the greatest fallacies underpinning far-left environmentalism is the concept of “rewildBY JEFF HOLMES ing,” a term first coined in the 1990s but one discussed much earlier in the environmental movement. Its proponents privilege large-scale habitat protections and the reintroduction and sole privileging of native species – especially predators – to achieve ecological balances lost by the progression of civilization and the resulting degradation of habitats and fish and wildlife species. Rewilders wade deeply in idealism and often become indignant or dismissive of the interests and beliefs of others, even those founded in credible science. Furthermore, they often fail to recognize the immensity of the habitat degradation and ecological imbalances present on the landscape.

Example: the almost completely paved over lower Green-Duwamish River Valley.

While nature shows immeasurable ability to heal itself, it is naïve at best to believe rewilding is the path to managing our highly altered ecosystems. EarthFirst! and even far more moderate environmental groups have long held organizational beliefs founded on the principles of rewilding, and the ideas have trickled down the bowl to progressive elitists in the angling community eager for a cause that promotes their beliefs – and interests.

With “right” on their side, enter groups like the Wild Fish Conservancy that parade a pro-science agenda while ignoring the scientific majority opinion and simultaneously bad-mouthing agency biologists or anyone with a dissenting opinion. The overzealous WFC’s agenda is allegedly all about restoring wild salmonids, but their recent settlement with Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife reveals rank bias too thick to kick off one’s shoe easily.

The WFC is comprised of mostly speycasting fly anglers whose Holy Grail of fish-

eries has been the Skagit River since the beginning of their sport. Even spey tackle is named after the big river since its genetically large winter steelhead are late returners that lend themselves perfectly to the desires of the members of the WFC: fishing over grabby wild fish in excellent water conditions of spring. But if the fitness and safety of wild fish is really the goal, why would WFC negotiate a firstgeneration broodstocking program that puts these fish on the spawning grounds at the same time as their wild cousins?

Chambers Creek early hatchery winter steelhead, which they filed suit about this past spring, exhibit extremely low rates of introgression with wild fish since they aren’t on the gravel at the same time. Further, significant peer-reviewed science supports the fitness of the stock.

Perhaps the real problem for the elitists in the WFC is that December hatchery fish are the toughest to catch and least desirable to their use group. December is a wet month with low visibility and cold water temperatures in Pugetropolis, and participation from the fly crowd is much lower than it is later in the winter and spring. Hatchery Skamania steelhead in Sound rivers are far more susceptible to attack by lawsuit than Chambers Creek fish, but WFC members love to fish for aggressive summers during beautiful weather and ideal wading conditions.

WHEN WFC FILED their latest lawsuit, launching their crusade of self-interest, it was not the elitists who populate the secularly evangelical WFC who drew the most fire from steelheaders. Predictably, ignorantly, it was WDFW and its Fish Program that many anglers leveled in their sights: “WDFW did this on purpose.”

Angry steelheada’, please.

It makes zero sense – even on a surface level – that the players with the most skin in the game would have sabotaged Puget Sound hatchery winter steelhead fishing.

It’s even more ignorant to assume WDFW biologists and scientific technicians are solely responsible for a loss of opportunity JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 17

MIXED BAG Puget Sound steelhead are in trouble because of large-scale problems – massive habitat degradation, local and ocean saltwater conditions, overabundant predators – but by looking at small things, like these otoliths from the carcass of a dead fish, should help researchers better understand age structures and contributions that many different life histories of steelhead make in the Nisqually Basin. (JAMES LOSEE, WDFW)

and harvest: lawsuits like this make their professional and personal lives difficult.

(And then there are the sweeping public disclosure requests WFC also files, making jobs even tougher.) A huge percentage of these fisheries biologists and scientific technicians are deeply committed anglers as well as fish managers. Moreover, from an organizational perspective, WDFW owns multi-million-dollar hatchery facilities and depends on a budgetary infrastructure and an outside revenue stream based on steelhead dollars.

Upon news of the Chambers Creek lawsuit, one well-known Northwest fish slayer who shall remain nameless took to social media and immediately called for the heads of anyone at WDFW who conspired to eliminate the stocking of Chambers Creek hatchery steelhead. His voice was echoed across Pugetroplois and beyond by a symphony of big talkers with undeterminable substantive knowledge about the fisheries management and political challenges facing WDFW biologists and the fish anglers love to catch. Facing down the ignorance of the WFC is tough enough without the distraction of blam18 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

ing the wrong target. Anglers who want to work toward solutions instead of being part of the problem can seek out substantive information to critically examine for themselves. The interview that follows offers one small opportunity.

STATE FISHERIES BIOLOGIST James Losee is deeply involved in extensive studies of the Nisqually River fishery, particularly steelhead. The river has been free from hatchery steelhead for two decades, and the evidence he and his colleagues are gathering helps shed some important light on the hatchery-versus-wild debate in Puget Sound rivers. Their objective research and professional approach is undoubtedly the best defense sport anglers have against the rewilding zealotry of WFC and other groups like the Native Fish Society.

Jeff Holmes Would you please tell me about what you do for WDFW, and tell me what leads you to do the work you do? I know you don’t do the work to get rich.

James Losee Sure. I serve as the area fish biologist for Thurston County/South Puget Sound. Under the supervision of the dis-

trict fish biologist, I’m responsible for data collection, stock assessment, annual forecasts and making recommendations on sport and tribal fishery regulations within the Nisqually and Deschutes Rivers and other South Sound tributaries (Perry, Kennedy, Skookum Creeks, etc.) in regards to hatchery and wild salmonids in South Puget Sound. Under supervision of the district fish biologist Larry Phillips I generate stocking plans for inland trout/kokanee fisheries and assist warmwater biologists and policy staff in setting regulations on harvest of warmwater species.

I’ve spent the last five years focused on the ecology of salmon in the Pacific Ocean. I came to Fish & Wildlife with an interest in studying salmon in the freshwater environment and implementing new findings into management. The Nisqually, with its lack of access, relatively low density of residential properties near the river and quality habitat, provides a unique opportunity to study fish in a relatively undisturbed environment. To me, it feels like the guys on the ground, whether it be scientists surveying the river each week or fishermen with their gear in the water, have

MIXED BAG one of the best perspectives of the current state of Puget Sound salmon and steelhead. Incorporating the observations of fishermen and field biologists into our management approach is the tricky part, but I think we’re getting closer.

JH I’ve heard you’re a pretty dedicated angler. Can you tell me a little about your sportfishing background?

JL I grew up in Yakima, and have fished since I was a kid. I enjoy fishing for salmon/steelhead, groundfish and trout, but I currently have been spending a lot of time in my 18-foot center console exploring “fisheries on the fringe,” including coastal cutthroat, squid, surf perch, starry flounder, and spear fishing in marine waters.

When not surfing in Grays Harbor, you may bump into my wife and I on the low tide harvesting our share of razor clams.

I’ve always been stoked on fishing, but I’m currently really interested in the people using the resource. If we improve our

communication between scientists, sport fishermen and treaty fishermen, we have the potential to do something great for the resources we depend on. I think being someone who both helps to manage the resource and participates in using the resource gives me and other WDFW staff a leg up on management. I’ve taken part in just about every fishery the state offers, but have not mastered any of them. I spend a lot of time on the banks, beaches, docks and jetties of Washington chatting with people about their fishery and ways I can catch more fish.

JH The Nisqually has been closed to steelheading for some time. How long? What was the fishery like when it closed?

JL Winter steelhead in the Nisqually experienced a dramatic decline in runsize in the early 1990s, consistent with the majority of steelhead populations on the West Coast.

However, unlike some other West Coast stocks, it appears that Nisqually steelhead

have not rebounded in recent years following improved ocean conditions. For this reason, there is no targeted effort from tribal, sport or commercial fisheries to harvest Nisqually steelhead, in hopes of rebuilding this stock to historic levels.

In addition, no steelhead hatchery program currently exists in the Nisqually, and the last release of hatchery steelhead occurred in 1994. Limited access to the mainstem and closure of tributaries to sport fishermen is thought to result in low angling mortality on steelhead juveniles and adults in freshwater.

In the late 1970s, the runsize of adult winter steelhead consistently exceeded 6,000 fish annually, with more than 3,000 fish harvested in some years. By the early 1990s, average runsize had dropped below 2,000, followed by a closure of both treaty and non-treaty fisheries in 1994. In 2005, to reduce incidental impact during treaty and non-treaty chum fisheries, Continued on page 84

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July Steelhead Cowlitz River!

July is the month to head to the Cowlitz River as the main push of summer-run steelhead make their way into the system. This year the Cowlitz will be super-charged with a plant of 577,000 smolts! That means there is no shortage of opportunity for anglers to get in on the action.

Standard techniques will work on the Cowlitz, but strong bank to bank currents combined with limited bank access means many of the most productive spots are easiest reached by sidedrifting out of a boat. Fish tend to stack up in numbers between the Blue Creek hatchery ramp to just below the Mission access ramp, so it’s important to keep moving to find fish.

Fisher girl Amanda holding a summer steelhead caught with Aaron Jordan.

Side-drifting is always a solid choice for Cowlitz limits, but if numbers of fish are located in a particular section, slowing down and pulling bait divers with coon stripe shrimp can be deadly as well. Shrimp colors in magenta and purple shades are favorites with any choice of diver color as it seems that productive colors change on a daily basis.

A friendly and fishy guide to call is Aaron Jordan of ‘Get the Net Guide Service’! Aaron operates out of his 20-foot Wooldridge Alaskan XL and is fully Coast Guard and first aid certified.

He knows the Cowlitz River intimately and can fill fish coolers with the best of them! His website is getthenetguiding.com. You can reach him by email at aaron@getthenetguiding.com or by phone at (253) 961-2475.

Current regulations for Cowlitz summer run steelhead is two fin-clipped fish per day. New rules also call for barbless hooks as well, so always check the WDFW website for changes.

Have fun and be safe out there!

22 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

MIXED BAG

North-central Oregon Game Protectors Recognized

By Andy Walgamott

T

hey’ve got some tasty poaching cases in the hopper, and for that and other work protecting Oregon’s critters and lands, the state police’s Columbia Basin fish and wildlife troopers were named “team of the year” for 2013.

Working the Heppner, Hermiston, John Day and Pendelton areas and with a combined century of law enforcement, the team includes Sgt. Tim Brown and Senior Troopers Earl Connell, Dain Gardner, Brian Jewett, Mike Mayer, Marv Ritter and Greg Sherman.

They’re the eighth OSP wildlife detachment to have been recognized; Ritter was

Of All The Doors To Knock On ...

Sometimes the game scofflaws end up finding you when you’re a warden.

Such was the case last winter when Senior Trooper Darin Bean had an unexpected visitor drop by his rural La Pine-area home. The sopping-wet man, who was also carrying a rod, told Bean that he’d been on the Little Deschutes when he got lost and couldn’t figure out where in the hell he was.

Turns out, he’d been fishing on private property – and well before the river opened, May 24.

Bean was kind enough to give the man a ride home in a warm rig and let him off with a warning about trespassing – but he did cite him for angling during a closed season.

also 2012’s trooper of the year.

“The Columbia Basin Team has a vast and diverse area to cover including the Columbia River and mountain forests to desert environments, with a wide variety of species to protect while also providing professional rural law enforcement services,” said OSP Capt. Jeff Samuels in a news release. “This team is very capable and able to tackle any investigation through a great team effort and a passion for the job. I am very impressed at their level of teamwork, dedication, service to the public, and protection of natural resources.”

They were lauded for taking on “complex criminal cases,” such as a large-scale investigation into alleged illegal hunting activities at a Northeast Oregon ranch since late 2012

Senior Troopers Mike Mayer, Marv Ritter, Greg Sherman, Brian Jewett, Earl Connell and Dain Gardner surround Sgt. Tim Brown (middle). (OSP) that could lead to over 200 – two hundred! – criminal and wildlife charges. Another notable case focuses on a serial poacher and includes the seizure of 25 trophy buck and bull antlers as well as guns, rigs and other evidence.

JACKASS OF THE MONTH JOTM takes a step outside the Northwest this issue to highlight the high-country jackass who shot a 4x6 bull underneath a crabapple tree.

In a residential area.

While on duty.

As a cop.

Then tried to cover it up with a forged tag.

Burned!

A Southwest Oregon man thought he’d smoked the warden with quick thinking.

This past winter, Senior Trooper Mike Cushman lit up a conversation with the bank angler at Agate Lake near Medford. The guy had two rods, one of which was perched in a stick, but the other was lying on the shore and in the lake in an apparent attempt to disguise that it was being fished too.

Asked for his license, Cushman discov-

And as road kill.

A jury didn’t buy former Boulder, Colo., officer Sam Carter’s argument that the elk had been wounded and needed to be dispatched. Text messages, it was reported, showed he’d planned to bag it all along.

Carter was found guilty of four felonies, including attempting to influence a public official, forgery and tampering with evidence, and could face up to six years in prison.

ered the man didn’t have the needed endorsement to fish two poles. When the officer asked him to reel in the second rod, the man took the opportunity to lean down and use his lit cigarette to burn the fishing line off. Then he claimed he wasn’t fishing it.

Only problem: a certain red-and-white object floating out there on the lake.

“The line he burnt off had a bobber attached to it,” OSP reports.

“You got me,” the Marlboro Man had to admit.

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 23

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Date

Species Pds. (-Oz.)

7-2-08 Prickly sculpin 7-5-85 Red Irish lord 7-10-96 Pumpkinseed 7-16-12 Grass carp 7-19-96 Spotted ratfish 7-25-11 * Rainbow-cutthroat * Image

.41 3.19 .6875 39.5 3.9 34-11.8

Water

Angler

Priest Rapids Pl. (WA) Jeff Frederick Midchannel Bk. (WA) Ryan Dicks L. Oswego (OR) Linda Mar Snake R. (ID) Saige Wilkerson Hein Bk. (WA) William J. Denning Snake R. (ID) Mark Adams

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 25

PHOTO CONTEST

WINNERS!

Dave Birmingham is this issue’s Wright & McGill/Eagle Claw Photo Contest winner, thanks to this pic of son Ian and Ian’s big Sun Lakes brown trout, caught on a fly he tied. It wins him a package worth $50 of Lazer Sharp hooks, pliers and a Lazer Sharp hat!

Jim Morrison is this issue’s Browning Photo Contest winner, thanks to his picture of a whopper Saskatchewan whitetail. The Post Falls, Idaho, hunter bagged it on a wintery fall day last season. It scores him a Browning hat and more!

Northwest

Sportsman Your Hunting & Fishing Resource

For your shot at winning Wright & McGill/Eagle Claw and Browning products, send your photos to andy@nwsportsmanmag.com or Northwest Sportsman, PO Box 24365, Seattle, WA 98124-0365. By sending us photos, you affirm you have the right to distribute them for our print or Internet publications.

28 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

COLUMNS

ODFW Ponders Budget Shortfall

T

he last time the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife raised the prices of hunting and fishing licenses and tags, it was not a STUMPTOWN

By Terry Otto humble one. Costs of just about everything doubled.

It did not go over well.

This time around, the agency is taking a little different approach. In its proposed budget for 2015-17, ODFW is looking at staff cuts, restructuring, and smaller, incremental increases in licenses and fees. It also requests general fund monies to help pay for programs not fishing or hunting related, but that it still promotes, such as bird watching.

INCREMENTAL INCREASES While most youth licenses would stay the same, an annual fishing license for residents would rise from the current $33 a year to $38 in 2016 and up to $41 in 2018. Resident annual hunting licenses would climb from $29.50 to $32 in 2016, $33 in 2018, and $43 in 2020.

“Yes, fees would increase,” acknowledges Rick Hargrave, the deputy administrator of ODFW’s information division, “but that will be balanced with cuts the agency is taking.”

ODFW proposes cutting 34 positions, though that drew fire during a public meeting early last month when Klamath Falls residents rose up in support of their local assistant fisheries biologist, Bill Tinniswood, whose job is on the line.

“We are looking for incremental changes instead of a one-time hike,” says Hargrave Still, the increase does not sit well with many anglers and sportsmen’s groups, especially on the heels of such actions as the closing of the Youngs Bay bubble to sport fishers, recent cuts to hatchery programs, and the continued crowding of anglers on fewer and fewer miles of stream.

And then there is the Columbia River Basin Endorsement, which is a fee assessed on anglers who fish the big river for salmon, steelhead, or sturgeon. The cost is an additional $9.75, or $1 for a daily license. It is re-

Beaver State sportsmen like Garth Wyatt, here holding a Clackamas steelhead, who recently saw the imposition of a Columbia Basin endorsement, could see another such fee to fish the ocean, as well as other phased-in increases to the costs of their fishing and hunting licenses. (TERRY OTTO) quired for anyone fishing the Columbia or its tributaries, and it will be used to help transition commercial fishermen off the mainstem.

If you fish both sides of the Columbia, say, the summer-run-rich Cowlitz, you get dinged twice via a similar fee in Washington.

PAIN AT THE DOCK Loren Goddard is part owner of Dockside Charters (541-765-2545) in Depoe Bay, and one of its fleet captains.

“I have testified about this in front of the legislature,” says Goddard, “because this affects us directly.”

One part of the budget plan is a $10 endorsement to angle for all oceanic finfish besides salmon.

He has some simple advice for ODFW that would address the loss of fishermen, hunters, and their license revenues.

“Give us something to fish for,” he says, “and the revenues and license sales will take care of themselves. Heck, they could probably drop the price!”

One of the reasons for the budget shortfalls are the declining sales of licenses, and the department faces the reality of reduced involvement in outdoor sports. According to Hargrave, ODFW is working hard on outreach programs to encourage new participants. He feels the department is doing an excellent job of bringing in new participants, but it’s not enough.

“Our outreach programs are bringing

people in,” he says, “but we are losing more people than are coming in.”

“The challenge is the back end,” says Hargrave. “The baby boomer generation sticks with it, and kids can be drawn in. The tough age group is from 25 to 44. If we lose them, it’s tough to get them back.”

Goddard points to the last increases as pushing many of the public away.

“When you have to pay $16.50 for a daily license, it hurts us,” he says.

Many sportsmen are still smarting from the last increases, so these new proposals face stiff resistance.

While the license increases add to the price of fishing and hunting, Hargrave points out that in the big picture, the fees are a small part of the costs facing outdoorsmen and -women in the Beaver State.

“When you look at the cost of gas, gear, and hotels, the license fees are one of the smaller expenses,” he notes.

It remains to be seen if Oregon’s outdoor-minded sportsmen agree. NS

WHAT’S NEXT ODFW has been taking comments on the proposed budget at town hall meetings and through its website. You can file your thoughts via ODFW.Comments@state.or.us until July 17. They can also be mailed to: ODFW director’s office, 4034 Fairview Industrial Drive SE, Salem, OR 97302-1142.

The agency’s Rick Hargrave says that going forward, the budget may undergo some more tweaking in response to those.

“There will be a lot of back and forth as we go along,” he says. “We want to put forward a plan and proposal that is fair and balanced enough to manage our missions and our resources.”

The final approval for the package of fee hikes could come as early as Aug. 1’s Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting, and by Aug. 29, the budget proposal will be submitted to Governor John Kitzhaber. The final budget would then be forwarded to the legislature

by Dec. 1. –TO

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 31

From the coast to the Cascades, big bend of the Columbia to Bend, Ore., the Northwest is rich with great camp-fishing getaways, places with plenty of opportunities for the anglers in the family as well as interesting options for the nonfishers in camp. Here, a young angler fishes at dusk at Stehekin, Wash., part of the National Park Service’s Lake Chelan National Recreation Area. (DEBY DIXON, NPS)

Get Your Camp On! Readers, writers reveal their favorite Northwest family and fishing fun getaways.

By Andy Walgamott

I

was bitten by the camp-fishing bug long ago, on the banks of Icicle Creek. We used to head there back in the 1980s, sometimes in an emphysemic ’57 Mercury that had a

34 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

tough time climbing over Washington’s Stevens Pass.

In those days the Leavenwortharea stream between Eight Mile and Rock Island Campgrounds was stocked with rainbows, and my sisters and I could see them swirling around

in a side channel just below our campsite. In the clarity of summer’s low flows, I watched as the trout bit my drifted salmon eggs. Just as clear are the memories of mica glinting off leaverites from Ida Creek, Dad’s ground beef-and-

FISHING

kidney-bean dinners, and battling 7Up-crazed yellowjackets.

Growing older, there were campouts on the northern and western sides of the Olympic Peninsula, fishing for trout and salmon. Once, while trying to wade along a ledge towards sweet-looking water on the Elwha, I accidentally walked into a bees’ nest. I’m still unsure how I managed to avoid becoming river nutrients in my blind dash out of there.

In college and afterwards, friends and I made expeditions to Icicle,

Lenore, Grimes, the Ronde, Hoh, you name it, and then along came a gal, and now these days I’m attempting to pass the whole tradition along to two sons.

To borrow a line, it feels like Amy, River, Kiran and I have camp-fished everywhere, man – we’ve been to Blanco, Wallowa, Mora …

They’re all great destinations, I can attest, with lots of nearby fisheries for Daddies and his little anglers, and plenty of activities for easily bored kiddos and spouses who’d rather stroll town than troll the lake.

La Pine, Lookout, Orcas …

But rather than turn this into the Walgamott Family Camping Compendium And Fact Book, I thought I’d ask readers and writers about their favorite Northwest summer get-

aways. You’ll never guess: Turns out, we’re all camp-fishing fiends!

Flagler, Deception, Penrose, South Whidbey …

Several themes emerged: We really do head everywhere, man – the coast, the Cascades, and anywhere hot. Very hot, in some cases (forgive me, I’m a pale-skinned Westsider whose temperature tolerance maxes out around 65 degrees). We love our state parks, but everything from resorts to dusty Forest Service campgrounds rate highly as places to stay.

Playgrounds, waterparks, and entertainment are also key. But somewhat surprisingly, getaways don’t have to be half a state away. Our unscientific poll found several whose escapes were literally just up the road a ways.

WESTSIDE In fact, our very first camp-fishing getaways are hardly outside the Northwest’s other major metropolis,

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 35

FISHING Among the Northwest’s most unique destinations is Cama Beach, a “step back in time to a 1930s-era Puget Sound fishing resort,” according to Washington State Parks. For Randy Belles and family, it provides a base for fishing and crabbing, the kids can learn to build a sailboat – and the scones are pretty good too, he says. (RANDY BELLES)

near the home of our Vancouver, British Columbia-based correspondent, Todd Martin. He points towards Derby Reach Park on the Fraser, where strong runs of sockeye, kings and coho mingle with huge sturgeon.

“It’s a prime location to bank fish, and it offers riverside campsites. It’s very close to local shopping, and has walking trails to entertain the rest of the family while you fish,” says Todd.

Elsewhere in the valley, he’s partial to Sasquatch Provincial Park, near the resort town of Harrison Hot Springs, and Golden Ears Provincial Park.

On this side of the border, reader Randy Belles likes Cama Beach State Park, on Camano Island’s north end.

“It offers 24 cabins for overnight stays along the shores of Puget Sound. It also has a small café that has some of the best breakfast scones, all made fresh daily. You can fish and crab right in front of your cabin, and there are lots of activities for the kids during the summer, such as building your own sailboat, and there are plenty of trails to hike along, and some geocaching. It’s a great place to spend the weekend or just a day,” says the North Sound waterfowler.

T-town’s Kevin Bye says his family has a host of faves, including Silver Lake Resort, their base to access the Cowlitz County warmwater fishery.

“Besides great fishing, a very pop36 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

ular and well-worth-it attraction would be Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument,” he says.

Along Hood Canal, Skokomish Park is a good base for trout and kokanee anglers and as a jump-off point for Olympic National Park hikes, Kevin says, while Belfair State Park is “very clean, has a playground and large open area, and is a short drive from Lakes Mason and Devereaux.”

The Byes and others are also partial to the reservoirs southwest of Mt. Rainier. Alder Lake has a variety of fish to catch, “but its bigger selling points would have to be its nearby attractions, some of which include Mount Rainier National Park, Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad & Museum.

After a busy day, grab some food at the very popular Scale Burgers (cash only),” says Kevin.

Trains, volcanoes and burgers – reserve our spot today, Amy! Responding off of Facebook, Joe Lince says that growing up, he always enjoyed camping at Ike Kinswa State Park on Lake Mayfield. “From this base camp there are so many fishing opportunities!” he says.

Talk about so many fishing opportunities – Cape Disappointment State Park is Glen and Cami Bayer’s fave, and will see a massive, massive wave of Chinook and coho this summer.

“Both the jetty and beach offer

fishing opportunities, and the state park offers activities such as learning the history of Lewis and Clark, a tour of the North Head Lighthouse, as well as much more. If that isn’t enough excitement, pack up the family and head to the city of Long Beach, where there is shopping, go-cart riding, dining, and events galore,” say the couple known for their Team F24 videos.

Lemme just break in here to say that the date rolls at Long Beach’s Cottage Bakery are To. Die. For. They’ve got the family getaway thing down to a science on the Oregon Coast, plus, as our kayak columnist Mark Veary notes, state campground rangers often provide lessons on local plants and animals.

“Some offer narrated evening slideshows or presentations while others offer guided tours of the flora and fauna,” he says.

You just may see he and his brood at one if you’re staying at Beverly Beach State Park.

“Nestled just off Highway 101, between the charter fishing destinations of Newport and Depoe Bay, the park offers an escape to old-growth forest and undeveloped beaches just minutes from commercial amenities. If charter fishing isn’t your thing, head to Big Creek Reservoir above Newport for bass and trout, or to the rocks surrounding Depoe Bay for rockfish and lingcod,” Mark says.

He and our former fellow kayak writer Bryce Molenkamp both list Fort Stevens State Park, with its trout fishing, razor clamming, bike trails to the South Jetty’s observation deck, big ol’ World War I-era cannons, and – of course – the wreck of the Peter Iredale, as a favorite. Molenkamp adds that Cape Kiwanda RV Campground is another great place for fishing and family fun.

“While neither place is really roughing it, that’s something we look forward to when our little one, who is 1 year old, gets a little bigger,” Bryce adds.

For Portland’s Schneiders, all get-

FISHING aways focus on fishing at some level, and their home away from home just might be Barview Jetty Campground, at the mouth of Tillamook Bay. “You can camp directly under the Coast Guard Tower right on the north jetty of Tillamook Bay, where you could almost make a cast from your tent and catch any number of

jetty inhabitants,” Andy says.

Access to offshore species is nearby in Garibaldi while crabbing is good all summer too.

But Andy knows that Ayden and Missy don’t want to spend their entire vacation aboard a boat “Shopping in Rockaway or golf in Tillamook will keep the family happy if fishing is slow, or take the Three Capes Scenic Loop, stopping to see Cape Meares Lighthouse,” he tips.

“The 1½-hour ride on a historic train is a fun way to see Tillamook Bay. Nehalem Bay Winery or Pelican Pub and Brewery are good stops when camping without the kids.”

Trains, lighthouses and swill – re38 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

serve our spot today, baby!

Over in the Willamette Valley, Carl Lewallen of Springfield likes the Detroit Lake area for trips with daughter Rylee and main squeeze Jacqueline Girard.

“The small town of Detroit has a marina, camping, cabins, and there’s fishing for trout, kokanee, land-

CASCADES Just as they’re a haven for dayhikers, the Cascades provide a range of waters to fish and camp at, and one lake in particular is pretty valuable. Take it from a guy whose family has been going there for more

Scenes from various Walgamott camp-fishing expeditions last year, where the editor taught his sons about pink salmon fishing on Puget Sound, the benefits of diking on the Oregon coast, and what sort of look you’ll get from the Missus when your campstove dies and you’re forced to make coffee on the grill you’ve been burning cheeseburgers than half a century. Scott on for about a week. (ANDY WALGAMOTT)

locked Chinook and bullhead cats,” he says.

The Mr. Dustin Sharpes just might like John Neal Memorial Park a little more this year.

“It has good access to the North Santiam for chasing summer steelies, and the small ponds in the park are great for the kids to catch some small bass and sunfish,” says the Salem angler.

Take note, Dustin, the limit for adclipped rainbow trout on the Santiam was raised from two to five this year, in part to highlight a “great trout fishery,” according to the local biologist.

Haugen, the Springfield, Oregon-based outdoor writer and TV host, rates Diamond Lake his state’s best getaway.

“Great fishing, lots of stuff to do for family, bikes, swimming, hiking, paddle boats, camping, lodge, cabins, etc.,” he says.

Another sportsman who rates the South Cascades’ lake highly would be Kenny Ruffo, the Portland-area reader whose son last year only caught the biggest rainbow at Diamond since 2006’s rehabilitation – a 12-plus-pounder.

“We were down there last summer with three other families, and not everyone wanted to fish. They went

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Northwest Sportsman 39

FISHING Mt. Adams provides one of the most scenic backdrops for getaway fishermen in the Northwest. A handful of lakes on its southwestern side are stocked with trout annually and feature Forest Service campgrounds. (CHRIS GREGERSEN)

on nice walks and bike rides, swam at the public swimming area, ate ice cream down at the pizza parlor and generally took in all of the beautiful surroundings,” Ruffo recalls. “The fact that the campground had nice clean showers was also a nice selling point to some in our group.”

We hear you there, Kenny – can’t get Mrs. Walgamott to camp anywhere without showers either!

But Diamond’s cold waters aren’t too bad either.

“The lake can be trolled, ice fished, still fished, fly fished, etc.,” he adds.

A little further up the range, Carl Lewallen is fond of Crescent Lake and its resort, thanks to “sandy shoreline, great fishing for kokanee, lake trout, rainbows, browns and whitefish, and water sports with full-on sun.”

Sandy, Oregon-based writer Terry Otto says that Kinnickinick Camp40 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

ground at Laurance Lake is he and the grandkids’ summer place, for lots of reasons.

“This east-side Mt. Hood lake is great for family camping, trout fishing, huckleberry picking, and hiking.

Small boats are great for fishing, but no motors are allowed. The nearby town of Parkdale has a quality brew pub, where you can enjoy a nice meal outside with a view of Mt. Hood, some quaint restaurants, and Hood River Valley orchards offer fresh roadside produce. Tollbridge Park, about 1 mile east of Parkdale, offers a sweet picnic spot, and the kids can burn off some energy on the playground equipment.”

Terry recommends trolling spinners, spoons, and Woolly Buggers at the lake.

Just below the next volcano to the north, Chris Gregersen, a county

fisheries biologist who writes our Jig of the Month column, likes the high lakes of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest up near Washington’s second tallest peak, Mt. Adams.

“Walupt, Horseshoe, Council, Takhlakh and Olallie offer good midsummer fishing with a beautiful alpine backdrop. Ample camping locations and the close proximity of these lakes make them my top pick for a getaway,” he notes.

Another mountainous destination further north into Washington got many votes – Lake Chelan and environs. Scott Fletcher from just down in Wenatchee calls it his “favorite midsummer family camping and fishing destination. The park has great fishing, swimming, boating and camping areas, and is close to the town of Chelan, which has a lot to offer with great shopping, restaurants

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 41

FISHING Potholes Reservoir, with its big state park, resort, and boundless outdoor activities including fishing for walleye, is a favorite of many Northwest sportsmen looking for a great camp-fishing destination.

(JOHN KRUSE, NORTHWESTERN OUTDOORS)

and Slidewaters water park, making the area fun for the whole family.”

Like Fletcher, Garrett Grubbs is a local who knows that getaways can be found close by. He says it’s “hard to beat Lake Chelan,” that 50-milelong fjord lined with camping and at which the head of is the remote town of Stehekin.

At the other end, “The town of Chelan has a very unique old feel with great shops and restaurants.

Plus the growing number of worldclass wineries and vineyards, fruit stands, and a water park – what more could somebody need?” says Garrett.

Westside reader Larry Mandella says his family loves to take their 16footer over to Chelan’s Wapato Point.

“We fish for lake trout, smallmouth, rainbow trout and kokanee.

Once we have done that for a couple days we then head to Rufus Woods 42 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

to catch huge triploids,” Larry relates.

Indeed, this part of North-central Washington has such good family options that it draws the Haugen family up from the southern Willamette Valley. They like the sockeye fishing at Brewster. That’s just up the road (and around a bend or two) of Alta Lake State Park, now stocked with kokanee, and a great base for touring the scenic Methow Valley and Old West town of Winthrop, notes Jason Brooks, who grew up not far away.

And Grubbs also has a fondness for the Entiat River’s Silver Falls and Cottonwood Campgrounds, and Spectacle Lake and its resort, in the Okanogan, which “bring me back to when I was a kid and growing up. It was where my parents took me, or Dad and grandparents.”

Kinda like what got yours truly into camp-fishing back on the Icicle.

EASTERN WASHINGTON Brooks, our South Puget Soundbased writer and father of two young sons, also gets us started in the Columbia Basin with an interesting locale.

“Columbia Hills State Park, on the eastern edge of the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area, includes 90acre Horsethief Lake. The lake receives trout plants and the park offers camping, 12 miles of hiking trails, swimming beaches, boat launches on the Columbia, and is a great jumping-off point to visit Hood River, or head up the scenic Klickitat River canyon,” Jason says.

Tim and Jo Weibe of Washington’s cloudy Sky Valley call Sunbanks Lake Resort on the north end of Banks Lake their “No. 1 recommendation.”

“There’s excellent fishing for bass,

FISHING trout, walleye, perch, crappie, etc., on the lake and nearby waters, and the resort has a ton of tent sites right on the lake, plus RV sites, cabins and even condos you can rent. They have a new, improved miniature golf course that is fun for all ages, boat and jet ski rentals, and a restaurant, bar and gift shop on site, not to mention a great tackle store at Coulee Playland nearby. Plus it’s only a couple miles from Grand Coulee Dam which offers free tours and has a new laser-light show off the dam every night until September.”

That light show is “what makes it special” for Bill and Ashley Stanley of Spokane, who use nearby Spring Canyon Campground as their base to fish and play on lower Lake Roosevelt.

Their uplake headquarters is Evans Campground.

“Evans is between Colville and the Canadian border, the scenery is great and we have seen fox, moose and deer in this area,” says Bill. “It also has a big playground and swimming area.”

The summer playground for Mike Toutloff and fam falls about halfway between Evans and Spring Canyon.

They like Two Rivers RV Resort & Marina so much that they park a travel trailer there for three months!

“Lake Roosevelt is beautiful, with many miles of sandy beaches and great fishing. Two Rivers has a very nice marina and store, houseboat rentals, summer concerts in the park and playground area for the kids – and don’t forget, great walleye fishing,” Mike says.

FDR’s Spokane Arm is the landing pad when Cap’n Kelly Colliton needs a break from flying commercial airplanes.

“Fort Spokane and Porcupine Bay offer relaxation with fishing, hiking, swimming, history, barbecuing, camping and an opportunity to enjoy all the splendor that my area has to offer. It’s where I spend the majority of my time fishing for rainbows, silvers and walleye,” he says.

Two dams back downstream, the 44 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Westside’s Randy Belles calls Bridgeport City Marina and RV Park “a nice getaway” for his family.

“It has full hookups and tent sites, along with a nice play area for the kids. There is a boat ramp at the park, and after a short run, you can be fishing the famous Brewster Pool, and you are less than 10 minutes from Rufus Woods, which has some of the best trout fishing in the state. For the family the Chief Joseph Dam tour is a must-do activity. There is also a golf course right across the dam.”

Al Schultz, another South Sound writer, points to Northeast Washington’s other big lake.

“Tiffany’s Resort on Curlew Lake features fun family camping with cabins, great fishing – including the opportunity for tiger musky – and nearby Stonerose Interpretive Center and Eocene Fossil Site is a fun field trip,” he says.

Did somebody say geology? Put it on the list, Amy! Chris Donley is known for going all over Washington to get at prime fishing, but the state’s inland fishing manager keeps it local when it comes to family getaways.

“Williams Lake in Spokane County – Bunkers Resort or Klink’s Resort,” says Chris. “Lots of summer activities great restaurants and good trout fishing. On the Snake River, Lyons Ferry KOA – smallmouth, walleye and channel catfish, swimming, boating and a really fun campground and marina. You have to like ‘hot’ to stay here, but a very fun and friendly place.”

Others who like to keep it fairly local include John Kruse, host of Northwestern Outdoors Radio in Wenatchee, and Jerry Han, a dentist in Tri-Cities. They both love Potholes Reservoir as a family destination.

“You can stay at Potholes State Park or at MarDon Resort. At both you’ll find tent camping, RV sites and camper cabins,” says John, who also wrote the book Great Places Washington, a guide to the state’s top fishing,

camping, wildlife viewing and historic and photogenic locations. “MarDon has additional lodging options, and there is also a general store and restaurant on site. Bass fishing at the reservoir is outstanding in the summer, and walleye and trout fishing can be very good too. If you like panfish, head to the marina at MarDon where huge schools of perch congregate. Boating, swimming, great wildlife watching and spectacular sunsets are all part of a summer getaway here as well.”

Jerry is also partial to the kidfriendly dock at MarDon, and you can bet those fish-catching Han kiddos will have him giving the reopened fish-cleaning station at the state park a tryout this summer.

“The water is warm for swimming, wakeboarding, or pick a sand dune to just hang out on,” he adds. “If the lit-

WE LIKE THESE TOO! We asked our Facebook readers, what’s the best Northwest family camp-fishing getaway? Here are their thoughts: Spencer Davies: Sekiu salmon fishing.

Rob King: We spent a week on the Hoh every year for salmon – was always epic!

Cal Stocking: Baker Lake sockeye – fishing with Cal, of course!

Dave Anderson: Columbia River salmon is always a hoot! Lots of different options in the area – Warrenton, Astoria, Hammond, etc. Almost any boat can fish it as long as you keep your eye on the weather. Get the ocean experience without crossing a bar. Fishing can be epic!

Erin and Jeff Stein: John Day River.

Bill Word: Bonaparte Lake.

Brad Collins: Coldwater Lake, or one of the other lakes near Mt. Adams.

Roger and Sue Allen Ford: Curlew Lake – something for everyone.

Brandon Korpi: Mossyrock Campground or Taidnapam Campground on Riffe Reservoir. –NWS

FISHING tle ones get bored, there’s a water park not too far in Moses Lake that I’ve heard is pretty fun. Good golfing around Moses Lake too, but better fishing at Potholes.”

And Jerry touts his hometown’s walleye, bass, sturgeon and shad fishing, camping, boat rentals, jet boat tours of the Hanford Reach, golf courses, riverfront and splash parks.

And finally, Washington’s most northeasterly lake is another of the Stanley family’s destinations.

“Sullivan Lake has great kokanee and trout fishing. We love this place because of the scenery of the mountains with hiking,” says Bill. “It is extremely family friendly with a swimming area and playground. The only thing is, everyone loves it too, so it is best to make a reservation during midsummer.”

EASTERN OREGON He and his trademark headgear are more well-known to Northwest river towns, but what’s not so well known about Buzz Ramsey is that he, Maggie, Blake and Wade haunt local lakes too. But it’s those stillwaters well down Highway 97 from their Klickitat County home that get the tip of the cap.

“Near Bend, any of those high mountain lakes – East, Paulina, Odell are all right there. There’s plenty to do in Bend too. I think that’s the reason a lot of outdoor-oriented folks have moved to Bend,” says Buzz.

Jon Wiley would certainly qualify as an outdoor-oriented person. The Sunriver-based river guide says he has many options for taking his three daughters on camp-fishing trips, but the lakes in the Newberry National Volcanic Monument are among his best bets.

They host campgrounds, private resorts and the state-record brown as well as rainbows, kokanee, Atlantic salmon, and even a few brook trout.

“Catch them all plus one of the many chubs in the lake and you have completed the ‘East Lake Grand Slam,’ as my middle daughter Ella 46 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

The Bend area of Central Oregon rivals Washington’s Lake Chelan and North Idaho’s lakes district in terms of getaways and activities.

Among its myriad of geologic wonders, you can fish the Newberry Crater for ’bows, kokes, Atlantic salmon and brookies. Catch them all and you score the East Lake Grand Slam, like Ella Wiley has – on a fly! (JON WILEY)

has – all on a fly!” says Wiley.

This high caldera (and surrounding region) is also a geology geek’s dream.

“This area is considered an active volcano, so natural hot springs exist at both of these lakes with a nice little semi-improved place to soak on the northeast side of Paulina. Take the family on a hike to the obsidian flow or take a drive up to the top of Paulina Peak for stunning views of both lakes and the Cascade Range. On a sunny day you can see from Mt. Shasta to Mt. Rainier,” Wiley says.

If you look to the northeast, you just might see the peaks at the head of Carl Lewallen’s final choice.

“I would have to say that Wallowa Lake would be at the top of my list for great, all-around fun family places to enjoy camping, fishing, hiking, watersports, etc.,” he says.

This season, 100 tagged trout worth $50 each were released in the lake, but even just watching the gondolas go up and down Mt. Howard can wow youngsters for hours – or at least that worked on River for us.

IDAHO From the top of the tram, you look over Hells Canyon into the great state

of Idaho, and our readers and writers say there are some gems of campfishing destinations there.

When he take a breaks from the kitchen, our staff chef packs up the boys and heads for Silver Creek Plunge north of Boise.

“With numerous developed and undeveloped hot springs, great ATV trails, and decent fishing, it is hard to beat midweek,” says Randy King.

The Kings are also partial to the Bruno Sand Dunes, which offer “fishing, camping, star gazing, sandboarding and more.”

John Black flatly says, “Right here.

Lewiston, Idaho,” home to “great summer bass fishing in the Snake River, all water sports and the historic cities of Lewiston and Clarkston.”

But if you must leave the L-C Valley, there’s Dworshak Reservoir, which Grandpa John says has “camping options galore, kokanee and bass fishing, hiking trails, all kinds of water sports, boat rentals and the awe-inspiring dam itself.”

Jason Brooks points to Ponderosa State Park near McCall.

“This small town offers many attractions, including a beautiful drive down to the Salmon River in Riggins, with world-class whitewater rafting,” fly fishing, and mountain biking at

FISHING Brundage Ski Resort, he says.

He and Mike Toutloff also recommend Priest Lake. Mike likes it for its “great fishing, camping, hiking, mountain biking, huckleberry picking,” and highly recommends Indian Creek Campground, Elkins Resort and Hills Resort.

Panhandle local Ralph Bartholdt says, “Round Lake State Park is in the middle of North Idaho’s hiking, fishing and camping paradise and not far off the beaten path.” The stocked lake is also close to Sandpoint, Schweitzer and Silverwood, the father of four girls points out.

Al Schultz and Kevin Bye come from a lot further away, and both enjoy Lake Coeur d’Alene Camping Resort on Wolf Lodge Bay for its “stellar accommodations” and “excellent fishing for a variety of species from northern pike, bass and trout.”

Oh, and keep an eye out moose.

“We’ve had them walk through

48 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

The Panhandle’s big waters still hide a few big Macks –plus waterparks and more activities.

Jamie Carr of Spokane nabbed this 46-incher last month at Priest Lake. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

our campsite,” says Kevin.

One last word of advice: You’ll

need an extra-big s’more should a moose swing by the campfire. NS

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Charter skipper Loren Goddard sets lines on his boat, the Affair, as the sun rises over Depoe Bay and the Central Oregon Coast. (TERRY OTTO)

50 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

FISHING

Big Boats, Big Fun Family and friends can enjoy delightful days on the salt aboard the Northwest Coast’s many fishing cruisers.

By Terry Otto

T

he fish were biting, but that was only half the fun. There was a lot of banter back and forth between family and friends aboard the 50-foot Samson as the rockfish and lingcod came over the rails. However,

when the little guy hooked up with something solid, everyone turned to watch. He was the youngest member on board that day, and everyone was pulling for him as he cranked up the fat ling from the depths. When the fish was in the net, a collective cheer went up, and we all stopped fishing long enough to congratulate him and snap a few pictures.

When the deckhand congratulated him on his catch, the boy broke into a

priceless grin.

As one charter captain has told me, that is what fishing is all about.

Family, friends and fun are what are served up all along the Northwest Coast when the big charter boats pull out of our many ports. Yes, for a lot of people, fishing is about solitude or going with a small group of friends, but there are times when fishing is a party.

That’s when it’s fun to put everyone aboard one boat and enjoy the friendly competition of fishing side by side along the rails.

And so it was that day, as I joined about a dozen friends for a bottomfish excursion out of Depoe Bay. The little

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 51

FISHING This is what charter fun is all about. The youngster’s smile says it all! (TERRY OTTO)

harbor on Oregon’s Central Coast is popular with tourists and others who enjoy the cozy port’s quaint feel. It is also home to a couple fleets of charter boats, with the smaller six-packs, as well as the 40-foot and longer cruisers that can carry many more than six people.

BIGGER CAN BE BETTER The larger craft do have some advantages. First, they can carry more anglers. Second, since they are longer, they can handle rougher water than the smaller boats.

Third, they ride smoother than small boats, so they are a good bet for children, seniors, and disabled folks.

The Samson is captained by Lars Robison, part owner of Dockside Charters (541-765-2545) in Depoe Bay. Robison has been running charter trips out of the bay since 1977. He followed on the heels of his father, who started charter fishing from Depoe in 1957.

You might say it runs in the blood.

“My father went out and got a college education,” says Robison, “and then he decided he wanted to fish for a living.”

It takes the right mentality to run a charter boat on the Northwest Coast.

Loren Goddard, who is one of Robison’s partners in the business, says you have to think beyond just getting the 52 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

clients into fish.

“We aren’t just selling the fish on these trips,” says Goddard, “We are selling fun.”

The fish are just the happy bonus.

Take a quick look along our saltwater sides and you will see charter boats fishing Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and south along the coast through Northern California.

Good ports in the Evergreen State include La Push, Neah Bay, Ilwaco, and Westport – perhaps the most popular fishing port in Washington. The docks here are crowded with charter boats, and the port is located near dozens of good fishing holes. Just to the south and the entryway to the Columbia and its massive salmon runs, Ilwaco should not be overlooked either.

On the other side of the big river are the two ports of Astoria and Warrenton, and further south is Garibaldi, which boasts a few charter boats. Continuing down the Oregon Coast, you can also find charter services in Depoe Bay, Newport, Charleston, Winchester Bay, Gold Beach, and Brookings.

WHAT’S OUT THERE? Ocean salmon are one of the most popular game fish in the Northwest, and the prized catch is Chinook, which run up to 35 pounds or so. While coho are smaller, they are

easier to fish for, and a very popular target too. This season, fishing is expected to be the best in years pretty much everywhere along the coast, thanks to continued strong Californiabound kings feeding off of Oregon, a bumper coho return, as well as what could be a record run of Columbia Chinook.

Bottomfishing is very popular, and it’s much easier than catching salmon.

The wide variety of species caught is part of the fun, and these fish are eager biters, as that young angler aboard the Samson could tell you. These trips are perfect for youngsters and less-experienced anglers because they usually produce a lot of fish. The catch can include lingcod and a plethora of rockfish species, greenlings and sculpins.

They might also provide unusual catches – two tagged black rocks caught out of Yaquina and Depoe Bays this year actually swam around 600 miles north from Central California!

Many of these trips also offer crabbing for a few bucks more. The traps are set on the way out to the fishing grounds, and collected on the way back to the dock.

Big game fish like albacore and halibut round out the possibilities, and these trips tend to be longer and are better suited to experienced anglers.

The larger charter boats offer a smoother ride and a little more comfort on these extended fishing trips.

For the occasional angler, charters are the most economical bet, since they provide the gear and bait, which are otherwise a sizable investment.

You don’t need your own boat, and you can rely on the captain’s knowledge of the best spots and how to catch them. A helpful deckhand will help you keep your gear in the water, as well as land your fish. All you have to do is enjoy yourself.

Of course, any fishing trip is better if you catch fish. Robison recalls taking a group out for a rockfish excursion, and it was just one of those prize days.

“These guys were from Boise, Idaho,” he says, “and they were a ‘man

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 53

FISHING versus the elements’ group, and we limited on everything – crab, rockfish, lingcod – and they were a lot of fun!”

He reports that the annual trip has become a tradition, and he still takes them out every year.

And in some ports there’s money to be won: The Westport Charterboat Association runs derbies for different species, and one of this year’s early winners went back to Rawlings, Wyo., with $500 in his pocket and fillets from a 35-pound ling in his cooler.

Robison says that he has also hosted many fishing bachelor parties, which he says can be particularly fun. Wedding parties, birthday parties, family reunions and anniversaries are often celebrated with a trip on the ocean too.

Charter trips are truly a part of the Northwest fishing experience and heritage, and they create memories that last a lifetime, even for less avid anglers. It’s part of what makes living in our region so much fun. NS

54 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

GETTING THE RIGHT CHARTER A good captain makes the difference between a good time and a high-seas nightmare. Online reviews are good places to start looking, but they aren’t always reliable. A few calls to the different charters in your area can give you an idea of which captain and boat would suit you best. Do a little homework before you book a trip so your experience is rewarding.

Safety is also a major concern. Be particularly wary of captains known for pushing their luck with the weather. Also, a call to the charter the day before you fish to check the weather is advisable. Sometimes it can save you a drive to the coast when the seas are too rough.

Here are a few reputable charter services offering a mix of six-pack and big-boat trips to get you started:

La Push All-ways Fishing (360-374-2052) Westport Deep Sea Charters (360-268-9300) Ocean Sportfishing Charters (360-268-1000) Offshore Northwest (253-380-9973) All Rivers & Saltwater Charters (425-736-8920) Ilwaco Pacific Salmon Charters (360-642-3466) Coho Charters (800-339-2646)

Depoe Bay Dockside Charters (541-765-2545) Westport Yaquina Bay Charters (541-265-6800) Captain’s Reel Deep Sea Fishing (800-865-7441)

Neah Bay Jambo’s Sportfishing (425-788-5955)

Oregon Coast Team Hook Up (503-260-8285)

estport W T

2014 Derby Update

he Westport Charterboat Association has been sponsoring fishing derbies for over 50 years now. In the early years they covered a weekend. Today, the derby is on every day of the season!

Before and after salmon season, the derby is operated on a weekly basis. A cash prize up to $500, equivalent to half the derby ticket sales proceeds for the week, is paid out for the biggest lingcod, blackcod, or cabezon of the week. During the halibut directed season, the halibut prize is a $500 daily prize with a $10 ticket. The

George gh Harbau

Jerry Howard

lingcod derby continues weekly.

During the salmon season the derby is operated on a daily basis with prizes up to $500 for the largest salmon and a weekly prize of up to $500 for the largest lingcod of the week.

An annual prize of $2,500 is paid out for the largest Chinook salmon, $1,500 for the largest coho salmon and lingcod, $1,000 each is paid out for the largest halibut, and albacore tuna. There is also a $1,000 prize for the largest Chinook in July and a $1,000 prize for the largest Chinook in August.

Derby entry is only $5 and tickets are sold at every charter service and at the derby booth. When you check in, ask for more specific details. Derby ticket purchases are limited to people fishing on licensed charter boats. Derby proceeds are split between prizes and funding the association.

Northwest Sportsman will profile all of the Westport derby winners throughout the season here in the magazine and on nwsportsmanmag.com. When you fish at Westport this summer, be sure to enter so you have a chance at prizes and seeing yourself profiled here in the magazine!

Mark Grosely

Cesar Garcia

Upper right: JERRY HOWARD of Olympia won the lingcod derby for May’s last week. Caught while fishing aboard the charterboat Hula Girl, which is piloted by Capt. Steve Westrick, Howard’s 32-pound, 13-ouncer was good for $500. Above, top to bottom: GEORGE HARBAUGH of Morton, Wash., not only won $500 in mid-May as the weekly halibut derby winner, but his 68-pounder was the largest of the season, putting him in line for an additional $1,000. Harbaugh was fishing on the Tornado with Capt. Dwight Sawin. MARK GROSELY made the first mark on Westport’s midweek Chinook derby this season, catching a 17-pounder aboard the Ultimate in early June, scoring himself 360 marks, err, greenbacks. Grosely hails from Lynnwood, Wash. It’s 2,200 miles from Rawlins, Wyo., to Westport and back, but the drive home was all the sweeter for CESAR GARCIA after he won a mid-May weekly lingcod derby in Westport. His 35-pound, 10-ouncer won him $500. Garcia was fishing aboard the Advantage with Capt. Geoff Grillo. (WESTPORT CHARTERBOAT ASSOCIATION, ALL)

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FISHING

Prime Time For Coho, Kings July’s upwelling should make Oregon’s Central Coast a great place to troll for salmon.

By Andy Schneider

DEPOE BAY—Summer in the Pacific Northwest can’t get any better, and this season, saltwater salmon fishing may not be any better than right here on Oregon’s Central Coast.

With massive fall runs of Chinook and coho predicted back to the Columbia River, a lot of those salmon will be feeding just to the south of the eastern Pacific’s largest tributary. Saltwater salmon are what we compare all of our other fish to, so why not just go to the source for some flying scales and tackle-testing fights?

In July, saltwater salmon fishing is in full swing out of Newport, Depoe Bay, Pacific City and Tillamook. And hopefully by the time this article hits your mailbox, these shores will just be recovering from a weeklong blow from the north. Just as summer begins, a strong north wind starts a massive upwelling nearshore. It brings consistent water temperatures in the low 50-degree range, prime temperatures for salmon.

The upwelling also brings up lots of nutrients to feed massive amounts of anchovies, sardines, herring and candlefish. These small baitfish help coho pack on the pounds in July, and fatten Chinook up so that they more resemble the shape of a football – that would be an American football, not the Brazuca being kicked around well to the south.

TACKLE & TECHNIQUES One of the biggest advantages you have over the fish in July is that every single salmon is feeding aggressively. With Chinook and coho insatiably hungry, all you

have to do is get your gear in front of one of them and hang on.

A Delta Diver, flasher and bait, or a diver, dodger and hoochie are two

of the easiest ways to target shallowfeeding salmon. Simply clip a flasher directly to your diver and run a 5- to 6-foot leader of 30-pound leader to two 5/0 barbless hooks baited with a whole or plugcut.

Another popular way to fish for ocean salmon is to run a dodger be-

With massive numbers of coho and Chinook returning to the Columbia later this summer, Oregon’s Central Coast – including Three Arch Rocks off Garibaldi and vicinity – will host prime fishing as the salmon pack on their last pounds before their upstream journeys.

(WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 57

FISHING hind your diver. Run 36 inches of 40pound monofilament to a size “0” dodger, and from it run 24 to 30 inches of 30-pound leader to two 5/0 barbless hooks. Slide a hoochie down your leader and bait up with a piece of either “chunk” herring or anchovy on the leading hook.

Or keep it even simpler and go with a Coyote spoon. Tie a 6-foot leader of 30-pound test directly to your diver and clip on your favorite 3.5-inch spoon.

Another simple way to target saltwater salmon is with a 4- to 12ounce banana weight, 5-foot mooching rig and a cut-plug herring.

When salmon are feeding deeper than a diver or banana weight can reach, you might have to break out the downriggers. Using 12-pound cannonballs or pancake weights, set your gear 25 feet back before clipping in deep. Clip on a “0” dodger at the end of your mainline and run 36

inches of 30-pound leader to two 5/0 barbless hooks below your hoochie.

It’s easiest to utilize your main motor to keep a troll speed at the needed 2.5 to 3.5 mph. Just avoid going in a straight line as much as possible. Zigzagging, doubling back, hard turns, figure-eights and quarter-mile circles will help trigger saltwater salmon into biting.

LOCATIONS Out of Garibaldi, the 200to 250-foot-deep water due west of Twin Rocks is always a consistent producer for coho.

For Chinook start in 150 feet of water out of Manzanita and troll south to Nehalem Bay’s jetties, keeping the same depth. If that doesn’t pan out, repeat the path but at different depths. Go shallower and deeper in increments of 20 feet till you find some biters, then mark the spot on your GPS and make multiple passes through the same area.

Off the small harbor of Depoe Bay, coho have a tendency to school in the mornings and scatter in the afternoons. Heading due west to 240 feet of water and trolling south seems to be the most productive year after year. But don’t waste too much time on one depth – again, try shallower and deeper till you find some fish.

Chinook tend to hang off the mouth of the Siletz River, north near Lincoln City. Watch your sonar for any bait activity and adjust your gear to the depth of the bait.

Exiting Yaquina Bay you can always head north to the lighthouse to find coho, but for consistent Chinook fishing, head west to the Rock Pile. If you don’t have any bottomfish on board, you are free to troll over the top of what’s also known as Stonewall Bank and target Chinook, which actually have a tendency to hang on the down-current edges. NS

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FISHING

El Tuña

Warm ocean could make for fantastic season of albacore fishing.

By Andy Schneider ell, well, well, if it isn’t our old friend El Niño stopping by. So nice to see you again.

Here we thought our old warmwater friend had written us off

W

for good – or at least that’s the impression we got when he unfriended us on social media, ignored Snapchat texts, refused to retweet any fish pics, and only watched half of our hilarious talking-kitten video before moving on to another one.

Yeah, we’d pretty much written off The Neen, though it’s tough not to reminisce about the time he pushed those albacore right to the beach and took a bunch of salmon anglers by surprise – boy, was that funny!

But out of the blue, guess whose name pops up in a text from a mutual friend, Noaa – creative parents and their kid names these days, sheesh. Anyway, Noaa texted and said that he heard from his best friend’s sister’s ex-boyfriend that El

An albacore tuna explodes out of the water off Westport.

(CYNDI LANIER, DOCKSIDE ART STUDIO)

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 63

FISHING Niño – who just up and disappeared one day – was trying to hook back up with Pacific again, even after their ugly breakup in the late ’90s …

Kidding aside, it’s true that El Niño is on track to be established in the Pacific by August. While this event is now only predicted to be of moderate strength, the Climate Prediction Centre is not ruling out a “great” scale occurence. Sea-surface temperatures are already up half a degree Celsius above average this spring and are only expected to climb higher. El Niño brings warmer waters to the Pacific, which can in turn bring wetter conditions to Texas and California and even dampen hurricanes in the Caribbean. While it could bring some relief to California’s severe drought, it should also bring joy to albacore anglers up and down the West Coast.

With a slightly warmer ocean, tuna

should show up in big numbers this summer and push in closer to the beach as they seek out the bountiful stocks of close-in baitfish.

“The warm water, aka ‘Tuna Highway,’ seems to be filling in nicely from Northern California up through Oregon,” albie angler Del Stephens told Northwest Sportsman in late May. “We could be seeing a early start to the tuna season. The earliest I have caught them was June 17th when we boated 42 tuna by 1 p.m. and had to quit because we ran out of ice. We weren’t expecting to catch that many if we could find them that early in the season.”

He’s excited about this summer’s prospects because looking back over his fishing records, which began in 1996, the following two years saw strong El Niño conditions off our coast.

“The tuna catch was off the chart,

3 TOP TIPS

throw overboard. What chum you don’t use, you can refreeze and use another day.

Frozen block chum is simply that – a bunch of fish thrown together and frozen in a big bag. This chum requires hours of preparation to thaw out just so it can be thrown overboard. Whatever block chum you unthaw, you must use, since refreezing and thawing it again will turn it to mush.

DIY chum can be anything from chopped squid, herring or sardines. While always messy, it can be the most cost effective.

Friskies chum is nothing more than dry cat food. Surprisingly, it works pretty good to keep fish actively feeding below the boat.

Mixing Friskies with other chum really adds a lot of attraction for albacore to stay with the boat.

Hangin’ around: Once you’ve hooked an albacore on a jig, put that rod in a holder and deploy another jig. By leaving a fish hooked and “hanging” in the holder, you create your own tuna decoy – don’t be surprised when your second jig reaches the depth you left your first fish to hang that you hook up another.

Albacore anglers who put big numbers of fish in the boat routinely hang up to a half dozen fish and continue to drop jigs to hook more. Surprisingly, tangles don’t happen as frequently as you would expect. Always keeping a fish or two hangin’ around will keep the school under the boat much longer.

Chum: No one wants to spend money on something that will just be thrown overboard later that day, but a small investment in chum can equal a huge payoff. Just beware that not all chum is created equal.

IQF, or individually quick frozen, chum is the gold standard. Usually it’s anchovies which have been frozen individually before being bagged or boxed up. This allows you to grab a handful of still-frozen chum to 64 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Kill bags: While the 150-quart cooler was the standard for icing down albacore for many years, anglers have moved on to more portable and less bulky alternatives. Reliable, Boone and ColdZone all make great insulated bags to stow ice and your catch. They’re much easier to work with and stow when empty than rigid coolers. Getting your catch cold and keeping it cold ensures the highest quality table fare. –AS

although the fish were smaller on the average. Nice oceans with acres of tuna and in very close. The warm water was on the beach and the salmon fisherman were getting torn up by them from time to time,” recalls the chairman of this year’s Oregon Tuna Classic.

And while big numbers of albies are sure to make anglers giddy, the promise of more exotic fish following the warmer waters north should have skippers downright ecstatic.

“There were a few pelagics caught, and a striped marlin was landed in Washington,” Stephens notes of previous El Niño years.

Northwest tuna anglers haven’t been exactly slumming the last few years – 2012 set a record for Oregon sport catch – but with the promise of an El Niño this year, we could be in for a spectacular season. Here’s how to maximize your catch:

JIGGING IT While the majority of albacore anglers enjoy catching fish on the troll, those who’ve left the plugs stowed and opted for jigging rods have been putting up the biggest numbers of fish of late. The last few years albacore have not been feeding on the surface as much as they have in seasons past, making it tough for boaters trolling gear to locate the fish. But with a quality sonar unit, albacore can be easily located and effectively targeted with jigs and swimbaits.

Since albacore most likely hang off the continental shelf, your sonar may have trouble locking into the bottom 3,500 feet down. Instead, set the depth of your sonar at 300 feet and pay attention to the top 200 feet of water for any activity. Albacore more than likely won’t show up on your sonar like a standard salmon “arch.”

They’re constantly on the move and may show up more as a streaking line, moving up as they track shallower for your trolled baits or deeper to avoid the boat.

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 65

FISHING Once you’re at the desired depth, start a fast retrieve while making 1- to 11⁄2-foot strokes with the rod.

You’ve probably heard Bill Dance describe working a topwater lure back to the boat as “walking the dog.”

Well, you’ll be The author is a proponent of removing trebles from jigs as well as using a doing that same second assist hook, as shown here. He also uses metered line to keep track of technique, but verhow deep he’s fishing when not using linecounter reels. (ANDY SCHNEIDER) tically. Put the butt Once you locate fish, kill the main of your rod in your armpit, and as you motor and get ready to pump iron. make your retrieve, get a rhythm of Utilizing metered line (line that jigging and retrieving, making short changes color every 10 feet), deploy strokes while keeping constant tenyour gear to where you were marksion on the rod. If you’re getting roding suspected albacore. Pay attention tip wrap, you need to slow your to your line as your jig drops to depth jigging down a little, use a heavier jig – albacore are just as likely to pick up or a lighter rod. a jig on the drop as on the retrieve.

Using a reel with at least a 6:1 gear

66 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

ratio makes jigging much easier. It seems impossible to retrieve a jig too fast, as the faster you reel, the more action you give the jig and the more enticing it becomes. But just know that nobody said jigging would be easy – don’t be surprised if you’re sore after a day on the water.

If fish start boiling around the boat, don’t continue to drop your gear straight down. Instead, start casting your jigs like you would swimbaits. A sideways-retrieved jig can be just as deadly as a vertically retrieved one.

Flutter, butterfly and dart jigs are the most popular for albacore anglers here in Oregon. Eighty-five-gram (3ounce) jigs work great when there is little wind or current, but as either or both pick up, you will need to increase the weight of your jig. When you need to keep the jigs directly under the boat or the fish are running deep, 140- to 200-gram (5- to 7ounce) jigs work well.

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 67

FISHING SWIMBAITS Swimbaits and jigs go hand and hand when fishing for albacore.

While jigs fish best casting downwind since they offer a better vertical presentation, swimbaits can be fished upwind and slowly trolled as the boat is drifting.

When first setting down on albacore, cast your swimbait rods out and place them in the rod holders on the windward side of the boat while you deploy jigs on the leeward side. As you hook fish on jigs and start bringing them up from the depths, don’t be surprised if you start catching fish on the swimbait rods as the school follows hooked fish shallower.

There are many swimbait manufacturers, but FishTrap, Big Hammer, Berkley and Trigger all make quality products. Anchovy and sardine are the most popular colors for albacore and can be fished effectively with an

68 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

unpainted 2-ounce jig head.

When casting and retrieving swimbaits, do everything slowly.

Swimbaits perform best with a slow sink and slow retrieve. Cast out and allow the swimbaits to sink for a 15to 20-second count before beginning to crank back in. Albacore won’t attack a swimbait with a violent strike, so anytime you feel a heavy weight on your retrieve, set the hook.

While you may use lighter line for swimbaits, don’t play a tuna too long.

The longer you fight one, the higher the chance of the fish chewing off the bait or freeing itself from the single hook.

RIGGING UP One hundred to 150 yards of line is more than plenty when fishing jigs and swimbaits. Metered line in the 50- to 65-pound range works well with a 10-foot topshot of fluorocarbon leader. Depending on conditions

and fish wariness, match your leader strength. It’s always nice to utilize the heaviest leader possible without spooking fish, so start with 40-pound test and only start dropping down as fish become line shy.

Most jigs come with a single “assist hook” tied to a solid rig above the jig. Adding another assist hook on larger jigs really increases your hookup ratio. With smaller jigs, you can get away with a single assist hook as they are often inhaled whole.

If your jig comes stock with a treble hook on the tail, remove it and add a solid ring and assist hooks at the top of the jig. Albacore tend to attack jigs either from the side or towards the top of the jig. Not only will a treble often dampen the action of the jig, it has a tendency to snag an albacore outside the mouth, making it really challenging to land one. Twoaught assist hooks work best for albacore, no matter the sizes of jig. NS

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JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 69

FISHING

Double Your Haul Oregon’s nearshore halibut opener provides a chance to pick up salmon on same gear. rent to move you along when drifting for halibut, slowly trolling with the flow will cover more ground and get your presentation in front of more fish.

Just like salmon fishing, when a halibut starts biting, resist the urge to set the hook immediately. Instead wait until the rod is loaded up before setting the hooks. And since you’re fishing close to shore, where Chinook and coho feed too, it might be worth the risk to pinch the barbs, so that salmon you hook while fishing for halibut can be retained.

By Andy Schneider

S

tarting July 1, anglers finally get a seven-day-a-week halibut fishery inside Oregon’s 40-fathom line.

While nearshore waters were open during all-depth days, we haven’t had the greatest ocean conditions, so now when the Pacific lies down, fishermen can take to the sea in search of some of the finest-tasting, most expensive fish in it.

While heading over the horizon to popular spots is almost always more productive, many anglers are not equipped to handle a 11⁄2-hour run due west and to fish in 600 to 800 feet of water. Those sorts of conditions feel more like harvesting than fishing most of the time, and chasing halibut can lose a lot of its appeal. Fishing in waters less than 200 feet is not only more enjoyable, but can be very productive.

Just don’t expect to find nearshore fish to be stacked on top of each other, like at The Chicken Ranch and Halibut Hill. Inshore halibut tend to be more scattered and constantly on the move.

Since shallower water doesn’t have the massive upwellings bringing constant food from beyond the continental shelf, they need to cover more water to sustain their diet. That means you need to do the same – cover more water.

One of the biggest advantages of staying nearshore for halibut is just that: staying nearshore. Most popular fisheries are within 10-mile runs of popular harbors. The second advantage is that it’s much shallower water and no specialized equipment is necessary. Standard salmon gear will work just fine. A third is that you can finally harvest some bottomfish and halibut on the same day (except for all-depth days), making for great combo trips. And a fourth is that it’s actually pretty fun to

Oregon’s nearshore fishery provides hali within sight of the hemlocks – and with the late start this year, maybe a Chinook or coho or two on the same gear. Randy Johnson caught this flatsider off Cape Meares while fishing with the author.

(ANDY SCHNEIDER)

catch a halibut on lighter tackle.

FOR RIGGING, START with a heavy-action salmon rod combined with a reel that holds 100 yards of 50- to 65-pound braided line. Again, you can utilize much of the same rigging you have for kings when fishing flatties.

Start with a plastic weight sliding on your mainline, to a six-bead chain swivel or ball-bearing swivel. For leader use 5 feet of 30- to 40-pound monofilament to two 5/0 to 7/0 hooks. Blueand purple-label herring can be rigged whole or plugcut when fishing for shallow halibut. Eight to 12 ounces of lead is all that is usually needed when fishing shallower than 200 feet. A gentle cast behind the boat may be needed to keep your gear from tangling on its decent.

While there usually is wind or cur-

WHEREVER YOU BEGIN your drifts, work deeper or shallower in 50-foot increments until you can find fish. If you’re still struggling to find any halibut, look for any slight seamounts and position the boat above those. Even a slight rise of 10 feet on the seafloor may congregate the species. Also look for different bottom compositions. While most of the Pacific’s nearshore floor is sand, there are stretches of gravel, cobblestone and shale that can hold halibut.

Out of Nehalem and Tillamook, most anglers run north to Manzanita, drifting south to the mouth of the Nehalem. Out of Depoe Bay, most head north to Siletz or south to Cape Foulweather. Out of Yaquina Bay, the everpopular water around Yaquina Head produces consistent results.

Shallow-water halibut won’t provide lights-out fishing, but it’s definitely a way for smaller boats to partake in some of the finest bounty found in the ocean. Without any specialized tackle requirements, any salmon angler can take to the water and pursue these tasty flatfish. And with the season starting so late in the year, nearshore halibut should be around throughout our entire ocean salmon fishery, making for some great combo opportunties. NS JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 71

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COLUMNS Terry Mulkey with a big ocean Chinook.

(MULKEY’S GUIDE SERVICE)

Guides’ Choice

Bob Barthlow.

(RIVERS NORTHWEST GUIDE SERVICE)

W

ith so many possibilities in July, I thought I’d highlight what and how three Northwest guides will be fishing for this month, one in the ocean, another on a Westside river and the third in the upper Columbia Basin.

BUZZ RAMSEY TERRY MULKEY NORMALLY takes a little time off in July but not this year. Given the huge run of Columbia-bound salmon now foraging off the Oregon and Washington coast, the guide (503-803-1896) is planning to catch as many as possible for this clients while trolling off Garibaldi and Long Beach.

To find salmon, Mulkey runs northwest of either location looking for riplines and bird

activity. Riplines (where two currents meet) are identified by a line of surface chop, debris, and often include a water color change.

When he finds a rip, his strategy is to troll parallel to it on the smooth-water side.

He also keeps his eyes peeled for bird activity.

“If birds are few, it may mean the same for salmon. Seagulls flying in an erratic pat-

tern indicate they are seeing baitfish and/or salmon in the water below them. When sea birds are flocked together working a bait school, the direction they are flying can indicate the direction the bait and salmon are moving,” says Mulkey.

His favorite trolling pattern is to run his back (stern) lines out 30 to 50 feet on linecounter reels, and front lines out 15 to 18 JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 73

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Shane Magnuson. (UPPER COLUMBIA GUIDE SERVICE)

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feet to target the more surface-oriented coho. He will vary the amount of let-out depending on conditions. For example, he may run his lines deeper during the middle of the day when the sun is bright.

His favorite outfit is a diver rigged in combination with an 8-inch Fish Flash and 48inch leader back to a herring or anchovy. His plan this year is to run two size 4/0 barbless Owner hooks in combination with anchovy or green-label herring. For plug-cut herring, Mulkey has had a high hook-to-land ratio by employing a 6/0 single on top with his trailing hook being a 4/0 siwash hook crimped to a size 3 swivel.

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WASHINGTON Clark’s All Sports (Colville) 509-684-5069 Northwest Marine & Sport (Pasco) 509-545-5586 Tom-N-Jerry’s Boat Center (Mt. Vernon) 360-466-9955 Westside Marine (Port Townsend) 360-385-1488

74 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

WHILE JULY IS the peak month for summer steelhead on Washington’s No. 1 steelhead stream, the Cowlitz, according to guide Bob Barthlow (509-952-9694), “the very best fishing of the summer can be had during the last two weeks of July and the first week of August — that’s when I’ll be there.”

“While it can be crowded near the hatchery on weekends, the fishing pressure really slacks off during the week, and there’s hardly any fishing pressure once you get away from the hatchery. For example, on most days we have the river all to ourselves when fishing the mid and lower river. Summer-run steelhead are different than their winter cousins in that they spread out and linger in the mid and lower river for a long time before making their big move upriver,” says Barthlow.

He back-trolls the Cowlitz and uses a combination of plugs and diver-and-bait rigs. Early in the season, when the river is running at or above 4,000 cubic feet per second, he favors a pink-colored coon shrimp

rigged 60 inches behind a diving plug and says a Mag Lip 3.5 works well as a diver. Once the water drops below 4,000 cfs he switches to plugs, with metallic colors being his favorite. He says the “punch card” finish – metallic cerise/fluorescent red “tiger and tail” – was his top producer last season and he can’t wait to try it again.

IT’S LIMITS OF summer Chinook and sockeye that guide Shane Magnuson (509-6305433) will be turning clients onto during July.

His plan is to troll the Columbia River’s Brewster Pool where salmon hold for a month or more before migrating up the Okanogan River toward their spawning grounds. The fish hold in the mainstem reservoir’s cooler waters, usually 10 degrees cooler than the tributary during July. While summer rains could cool the Okanogan enough to move a few fish upriver, the pool is a consistent producer during July and early August.

This is a troll fishery where downriggers, like those made by Cannon, are used to set lines at trolling depths ranging from 15 to 45 feet. According to Magnuson, the fish can be found higher in the water column during the morning and evening, but will go deep as the light intensifies. A rotating flasher, like those made by Pro Troll, pulled in combination with a Brad’s Super Bait trailed 38 to 50 inches behind is what many anglers use. Magnuson says he and his clients have had good luck trolling a 6-inch Big Al’s Fish Flash in combination with a cut-plug herring or size 5 Toman Cascade spinner, and claims it’s what he switches to if and when the bite slows due to fishing pressure. He runs both setups 15 feet behind his downrigger release. NS

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FISHING

Pick ’Em Off In The Lower Columbia Anchor fishing with plugs, prawns rule for the big river’s summer steelhead.

By Paul Ambrose

CATHLAMET, Wash.

Each summer, hundreds of thousands of summer steelhead make their journey up the Columbia River in search of their home waters. This great run provides what I consider to be the best steelhead fishing in the Northwest. I have been fishing for steelhead since I was a kid, and the summer run on the Columbia is second to none.

To intercept these fish requires the right gear and, more importantly, fishing the right spots. This isn’t the Cowlitz, where side-drifting rules. All the fishing is done on anchor, and the name of the game while on anchor is location, location, location. The idea is to be in an area that funnels the fish under your boat and straight into your gear. Summer steelhead are very hungry and aggressive, and both bait and artificial presentations work exceptionally well.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR No matter what part of the Columbia you are fishing,

Summer steelhead fishing on the Lower Columbia River has been outlandishly good in recent summers, with record catches for plunkers fishing out of boats and off the numerous beaches between Cathlamet and Bonneville Dam. Clients of the author show off a day’s work. (GREATNWRIVERS.COM)

you always want to look for contours that will funnel fish. Typically, those funnels are ledges. Ledges going from shallow to deep and deep to shallow are both effective.

The further above the mouth of the river you fish, the more likely you’ll be fishing deeper. I like to target water in the 15- to 35-foot range in deeper sections.

Conversely, the lower river is usually shallower and I prefer 12 feet deep or less – and in some sections, as little as 2 feet deep, depending on the height of the tide.

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tremendously in charting the contours of the river bottom and determining steelhead migratory paths.

One of my favorite deep-water areas is a ledge that starts at 6 feet deep and drops about 20 feet before it flattens out. Steelhead will follow that edge where the drop meets the flattened-out area.

One of my favorite shallowwater spots is a little tabletop that is 5 to 8 feet deep and only 20 yards long. That tabletop comes out of water that is 55 feet deep, and the fish come right out of the deep water and onto the flat. If I have JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 77

FISHING

Summer-runs come in snappy, and anchoring in the right water – typically, ledges that funnel fish from deep to shallow waters, or vice versa – can produce fast fishing. (GREATNWRIVERS.COM)

steelhead, and fish certainly can be caught that early, but the peak of the season is between the second week of July and mid-August.

The best time to fish is on the outgoing tide. If you are new to reading a tide book, the outgoing tide is when the river goes from high to low. I prefer to fish medium-sized tides where the river will only rise and fall between 4 to 8 feet. The smaller and larger tides also can fish well, but from my experience, the tides I mentioned have been the most productive for me.

WHAT TO USE I usually use two differCured shrimp as well as steelhead-sized plugs are favorites of Lower Columbia anglers. With the former bait, a Spin-N-Glo or large Corky helps with flotation and attraction. (ANDY SCHNEIDER)

our rods and gear positioned right in their pathway, the next thing they see is that ol’ “wall of death,” and that is simply an offer they can’t refuse.

The Lower Columbia typically opens around mid-May for summer 78 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

ent presentations simultaneously on the boat because summer steelhead are hungry and aggressive, and both will usually entice a bite.

A cured coon shrimp or Arctic prawn, and a collection of small plugs, such as the 3.5 Mag Lips, K11s, and X4s, are my favorites and have helped me land over 5,000 summer-run steelhead on the Columbia River.

I cure all of my own baits, and although I think mine are the best, I have used every commercial prawn on the market as well, including Ray’s, Looney Coonies, and Nate’s Bait. All of these baits catch plenty of fish.

I use a variety of curing methods, but two of my favorites are a salt/sugar brine and the new ProCure Prawn Cure. To make my special Steelhead Feast Prawn Cure, you will need: A blender Quart jar Raw Arctic prawns 3 cups well water 2 cups noniodized salt 1 cup white sugar Bait dye Fill the quart jar with prawns until full. Add 3 cups of well water, 1 cup white sugar and 2 cups of noniodized salt into a blender.

I prefer my prawns to be a crimson or blood-red color, and to achieve this I add a healthy amount of Bad Azz Bait Dye. I blend this mix together for roughly a minute or so, and then add it to the prawns. I shake the jar for about a minute and place it in the fridge for two days.

Once the prawns have “cured,” I pour out the liquid and add scent. I prefer Pro Cure Krill, Squid and Anise oils, and I add a healthy amount. Then I shake up the jar again to cover all the baits, and add a cup of salt to ensure the prawns are tough and that they are ready to fish.

As for rods, I prefer 9- to 11footers with a soft tip. Lamiglas has always been my rod of choice and I use a variety of them, including the X11 and a few of the lighter Kenai Kwik models.

HOW TO FISH The area of the Columbia you are fishing will determine the presentation. For instance, if fishing deeper areas, I fish my prawns on a 2- to 3-foot dropper with a 4- to 5-foot leader. Some of my leaders will have Spin-N-Glos in

FISHING front of the prawn, while others will have a size 4 Corky and some have just the prawn.

The plug setup is also the exact same length.

You want to have a very light drag because these fish hit the baits and plugs like a freight train most times, and the light drag ensures a better hook-set with barbless hooks.

If you find yourself fishing in a shallower part of the Columbia, the tactics change a bit. In areas with rocky bottoms, I fish prawns with a Brad’s STD Diver, and I flat line most of my plugs, typically 35 to 60 feet behind the boat.

I also use droppers for plugs and baits; however, I make sure to leave the lead about one reel crank off the bottom so as not to snag up on the large rocks below. This technique works well, but I can assure you I have donated more than my share of lead to the bottom of the river.

EXPECT SUCCESS! No matter where you are fishing on the Lower Columbia, if you anchor your boat in the path of migrating summer steelhead this month and next, you can expect to have some of the best fishing days of your life.

I am not one to brag or talk numbers, but I will tell you that doubledigit hookup days are the norm and not the exception during this amazing time of the year. My personal best day saw so many take-downs and fish to the boat that you probably would not believe me if I told you the number, so we’ll leave it at that, but it really can be that good.

I hope these tips help you punch more cards this summer. NS Editor’s note: The author operates Great NW Rivers Guide Service. If you have any questions about summer steelhead fishing on the Columbia, contact him at (360) 8233525 or Pauleambrose@hotmail.com.

SHORE STYLE One of the best things about fishing for summer steelhead on the Lower Columbia River is that the fishery is not limited to just boaters. Bank-bound plunkers stand a pretty good chance of catching fish too, and they’ve participated in what have been record-breaking seasons in recent years.

To spotlight the opportunity, as well as help harvest excess hatchery fish, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife posted a Google-based map online (dfw.state.or.us) showing all of the fishable beaches on the south side of the river (don’t worry, boat guys, they love you too – ramps are also identified). It begins with Jones Beach, just off the top of Puget Island, continues around the horn at Rainier with Dibblee, Riverfront and Prescott, then marks hot spots on up just past Bonneville Dam. On the north side of the crick, popular Washington spots include County Line Park, Willow Grove, Kalama Beach and Frenchman’s Bar. –NWS

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JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 83

MIXED BAG Continued from page 20 WDFW and the Nisqually Indian Tribe agreed to manage fisheries to not exceed an incidental mortality of 10 percent of the runsize.

JH Can you overview today’s management practices and your sampling program?

JL The current mangagement approach of WDFW and the Nisqually Indian Tribe in regards to winter steelhead in the Nisqually is to protect what we have. We know that these fish are dangerously close to extinction and with abundance significantly lower than historic populations. Because steelhead exhibit significant life-history diversity we also know that the resident component (rainbow trout) may be of equal importance in preserving the genetics of the steelhead population. In the Nisqually, we have documented a high proportion of resident rainbow trout born from steelhead (anadromous) mothers. This suggests that some proportion of steelhead offspring are “passing up” the opportunity to migrate to sea, and are instead staying in the river for their entire life. The ability of Oncorhyncus mykiss to switch from one life history to another has been well documented in other systems, but considering the current state of Nisqually steelhead, these observations may have major implications for the future of this population. So while we know steelhead mothers produce rainbow trout, we are now asking the question, “Do rainbow trout mothers produce steelhead?” If so, rainbow trout in the Nisqually may represent a genetic bank (safety net) of O. mykiss in a time when adult steelhead are hard to come by.

JH Why is the Nisqually research potentially relevant to the future of Puget Sound hatchery and wild steelhead.

JL Because the majority of mortality for both hatchery and wild steelhead takes place in the marine environment, a better understanding of the processes directly effecting steelhead during the oceanphase of their life-cycle will improve our ability to manage both hatchery and wild stocks. Variability in the marine environment, such as prey quality and composition, predator abundance, habitat quality 84 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

and physical properties of the marine environment, are difficult things to control.

Many of us like to point at one cause for the low abundance we are all observing.

The truth of the matter is, overfishing, predation, degradation of habitat and largescale ecosystem variability are probably all playing a role in complicated ways.

What we are trying to do on the ground is fine-tune our stock assessment tools in-river and gain a better understanding of the current state of both the resident and anadromous component of Nisqually River O. mykiss, so that we are better prepared for managing steelhead in South Puget Sound with the best available science. It’s all about biting off little chunks of the big question to contribute in the best way possible. In the Nisqually, we are focusing on the life of Puget Sound salmon in-river. This is where salmon return to spawn, where eggs are incubated and where juveniles grow-up.

South Puget Sound fisheries rely primarily on hatchery production of Chinook salmon and coho salmon in the Nisqually and Deschutes Rivers, as well as wild runs of chum and pink salmon. Successes of these fisheries rely on many factors, but are driven in large part by the number of fish released from hatcheries and interannual variability in marine survival. In years of “high” marine survival, greater than 1 percent of Chinook salmon released from South Sound hatcheries return as adults. In contrast, in years of “low” survival, less than a quarter of a percent return as adults.

While hatchery production of coho and fall Chinook in the Nisqually continues today, chum and pink salmon abundance as well as steelhead and cutthroat trout are the result of natural production. Naturally produced salmonids in the Nisqually benefit from a large proportion of good quality habitat, both as juveniles and adults. In addition, the Nisqually Tribe and WDFW have been involved in numerous habitat restoration projects over the last decade in an effort to further improve in-river habitat. Regardless of near-pristine conditions in-river and relatively large number of outmigrating steelhead (smolts) leaving the system annually, the number of adults returning each year re-

mains low, suggesting that conditions outside of the Nisqually Basin may be less than ideal for steelhead. Current work by state, federal and private agencies focused on a better understanding of factors affecting marine survival of juvenile steelhead in Puget Sound will most likely improve our ability to manage steelhead populations in the Sound.

In conjunction with this work, we continue to monitor the number of adults returning each year and identify patterns in abundance in-river that may shed light on the status of Nisqually winter steelhead.

The last thing I would want to highlight is the low number of adult steelhead returning to spawn, despite efforts from various groups and tribes to improve the conditions for these fish. The usual culprits – in-river habitat degradation, overfishing and fish passage – do not appear to be at play currently in the Nisqually. In addition, the recent focus on the state’s hatchery steelhead programs also does not apply directly to Nisqually steelhead as no steelhead hatchery program currently exists in the Nisqually. Undestanding what’s going on in the Nisqually and other Puget Sound steelhead populations will require a large-scale effort by dedicated biologists as well as some creativity, and I’m happy to see that this is currently taking place from a variety of state, tribal, federal and private organizations.

THE NISQUALLY RIVER seems to offer the clearest and most thoroughly researched example in Washington of what happens to a Puget Sound stream when hatchery stocks are eliminated. In this case, the clipped fish have been out of the water for a full 20 years.

Not only have wild steelhead in the river declined steadily to a sharp tipping point, preliminary findings from Losee and his colleagues show that introgression with wild rainbow trout is likely the only strand of the rope still holding the Nisqually’s steelhead population from taking a final dive. The biologists have counted a far-above-average number of smolts leaving the Nisqually, but returns remain dismal and shrinking. Losee believes the tendency of Nisqually rainbow trout to contribute to the number of outgoing smolts is the main reason WDFW continues to find wild steelhead redds along the

MIXED BAG upper stretches of the river, home to some of the best remaining steelhead habitat in Puget Sound. He and his colleagues have a very limited grasp of the population dynamics once steelhead enter saltwater, but the clear implications from the Nisqually project call for more research to understand why more adults aren’t returning after strong smolt numbers hit the estuary.

Here on the Nisqually, rewilding the steelhead population in the highly altered river and marine ecosystems hasn’t done much except nearly eliminate the steelhead population. Further, there are unmanaged avian and mammalian predators everywhere in Puget Sound competing with a large human population for highly exploited marine resources. This tenet of rewilding – the enhancement and protection of predator populations in “special” status – is failing in the water and on the land. Predators need to be managed objectively, and so do the rest of our fish and wildlife resources, free from emotional, political, and aesthetic biases. NS

86 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

MY TIME IN THE BELLY OF THE BEAST I have to assume WFC will not be on many WDFW biologists’ holiday card lists in 2014, but James Losee and his colleagues are always careful not to rise to my bait. They avoid the subject of WFC, focusing instead on the issues at hand. I admire the WDFW fisheries bios. There are good people at all levels of the department, but I know Olympia bureaucrats who confirm many of the stereotypes anglers mistakenly heap on the people doing the work on the ground around the state.

I can say that having worked in WDFW’s Public Affairs shop last year. My advocacy of the interests of hunters and anglers and my insistence on accountability for our time and effort serving the people of Washington led to my “separation.” This occurred despite my documented excellent performance as the only one in Affairs with substantive knowledge of hunting and fishing, and fish and wildlife in general. My own righteous indignation and unwillingness to accept a culture

of no expectations also contributed.

I’ve spent some of my free time over the last few months researching and writing about my experiences in Olympia while ironically but honestly writing in continued support of WDFW’s work on the ground. Being bitter is a waste of time, and I still believe in their work and in most people doing it.

Believe me, I could easily get wrapped up in my self-interest and annoyance and jump on the bash-wagon, but my painful personal experiences with the department do not color my critical thinking. While the rot there is systemic and cascades down from the organizational structure (or lack thereof), the people in the six regions don’t deserve the abuse they often receive from the public, especially in the case of Puget Sound steelhead since it’s their work we steelheaders depend on to operate our fisheries and to combat with credible science the advances of the likes of WFC. More to come. –JH

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Next comes a 3mm bead, a small Corky, a Thill No. 1 Big Fish Slider balsa float, another 3mm bead, a ¼-ounce inline sinker, 20 to 30 inches of 8pound fluorocarbon leader, and finally a bait. This pink Nate’s Baits Killer Koonie (top) is followed by four of the best coon shrimp imitations on the market, tied by Clark County’s Bobber Down Jigs (bobberdownsteelheadjigs.com). –Jeff Holmes

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UV Krusty Shrimp Jigs

15-pound PowerPro Super 8 Slick braid

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(JEFF HOLMES)

20- to 30-inch, Corky 8-pound Bobber stoppers fluorocarbon 12- to 15-pound mono topshot leader

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 91

Secret Shrimp Article and images by Chris Gregersen

JIG OF THE MONTH

A

fter summer has rolled around and steelhead have settled into their river haunts, they’ve often seen just about every presentation you can buy. With the right approach, though, this can be one of the most productive times to fish. Straight out of the fly-tying world, this ultralight presentation adapts a common style of fly tying to a jig. By combining the finesse of a tied fly with the appeal of a major steelhead food source, this jig is perfect for midsummer setups and any pressured waters.

Supplies Size 1 or 2 plain jig hooks (nonlead; look in the lure-making section); large dumbbell eyes; shrimp pink schlappen; shrimp pink flash chenille; orange saddle hackle; sand shrimp-color lightning dubbing; white rubber legs

end of the shank. Follow this up by wrapping the hackle forward and anchoring it down with several wraps of thread.

4 Bring it to life 2 The guts 1 Shrimp tail Start by peeling a pinch of the fibrous vanes from the base of your pink schlappen. Tie this in towards the back of the hook, far enough back so that the tail follows the curve of the hook to give it a kink similar to a real shrimp. Note this tail is tied shorter than most other jigs.

For the back end, lay down a strip of shrimp pink flash chenille, and tie in the orange hackle by the tip. After this, wrap your way to the top and tie in two pieces of white rubber legs side by side on the top of the hook.

5 Finish the head

CONTEST If you tie one of the jigs Chris features on this page this year and catch a steelhead with it, email awalgamott@mediainc.com a photo with the jig in the fish’s mouth and you could win a full set of his jigs featured here in 2014!

Trim the hackle around the top down to the chenille, simulating the smooth casing of a shrimp’s back. Now tie in the dumbbell eyes. To do this, settle it in the inside 90-degree bend of the jig hook, then secure it with many heavy figure-eight wraps, making sure it can’t slide and that the rubber legs aren’t caught in the thread.

3 Ribbing Just like many of the past jigs, wrap the chenille slowly and evenly forward, and tie off when you get almost to the

To finish this jig, we’ll cover the dumbbell eyes with dubbing. Dubbing is basically a fibrous material that is twisted onto the thread and wrapped much like chenille. To do this, pull out the material and twist it over the thread between your finger and your thumb. Once it resembles a chenillelike material, wrap it over the collar and dumbbell eyes. To wrap it up, spin the vice around and tie a couple half hitches below the eye of the hook and glue. NS JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 93

94 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

FISHING

Salmon-Central Washington Chinook, sockeye, derbies to be had in Evergreen State’s midsection this summer.

The author (left) and friends show off a nice summer Chinook caught right off of the town of Wenatchee on a Super Bait.

(PETER FLOHR)

By Peter Flohr

WENATCHEE—When you think about fishing for Chinook, does pleasant weather come to mind? Perhaps not.

My youth was spent swaddled in Army surplus wool and Helly Hanson rain gear as we pursued blackmouth, kings and tyees, depending on which side of the border we were fishing.

On nice days it was maybe jeans, a flannel and a Cowichan sweater, but we always brought our Hellys, along with lead kidneys, an 0 dodger and herring, hoochies and strip bait. Dogfish were a pest and brand-new rodholders a luxury.

The last 10 years have been different for me. Based out

Wiley Flohr, the author’s son, with a Brewster Pool sockeye.

(PETER FLOHR)

of the Wenatchee area of Central Washington, now my concerns include staying hydrated and remembering the sunscreen. Fishfinders, downriggers and reliable motors that don’t smoke are really nice improvements. Fishing in freshwater, I haven’t had to worry about my gear rotting or being covered in salt at the end of the day. Man, I’ve become soft, eh?

(It did take me three years to take my foulies out of my gear bag, but I just don’t need them anymore.)

FISHING THE UPPER Columbia, above Rock Island Dam, for summer Chinook as well as sockeye salmon is an experience you need to have. You won’t burn half as JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 95

FISHING much fuel in the boat and you may just learn a new trick or two to go along with that fancy fish finder. Plus, the daily limits are large: you are allowed two clipped adult Chinook, two clipped or unclipped jacks, and four sockeye.

Being on the water in very pleasant conditions is very nice too. Really, you can leave the plastic coat at home – this month is the least rainy of the year in Wenatchee.

The standard question I hear is, “Aren’t they all black boots by the time they get up there?”

My answer is no. These salmon have been making the big journey back to their spawning grounds for longer than people have lived on this continent. Coastal fish start to turn when they smell freshwater; Upper Columbia fish don’t start their turn until much later. Richer in fat to carry them through the last, long leg of their life, a few you may catch certainly will qualify as smokers, but most are great on the barbecue.

Before work on opening day, July 1, we usually fish in front of Wenatchee at river mile 465 for Chinook. The standard operating procedure is downriggers in 15 to 40 feet of water with Money Maker Scent Bombs, 11-inch Pro-Trolls and Super Baits stuffed with tuna and slathered in Super Dipping Sauce. You will see all kinds of gear catch fish – inline flashers and herring, plugs, a hoochie with strip bait – but because everyone has ’riggers, long-lining

96 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

is just too much mess. The average boat catches two Chinook in two to four hours – some as many as six.

Depending on where the run is, it might be better to head upriver and fish at Chelan Falls or Brewster, but I need to be in the store weighing fish by 9 a.m. for the Opening Day Derby that Hooked On Toys (hookedontoys.com) puts on each year.

The next two and a half weeks will be spent fishing the weekday mornings in front of Wenatchee for Chinook.

Saturdays and Sundays, after figuring out where the hot salmon fishing is, we may chase the bite upriver to Chelan Falls, Wells Dam or Brewster. There are so many variables to figure out: Is it the wiggle, the scent, the color, the flasher, the slot, the flow, the temperature?

Next up is the CCA NCW Wenatchee Salmon Derby (wenatcheesalmonderby.com), which starts on July 17 with a skipper’s meeting and fishing Friday and Saturday, July 18 and 19. It features $15,000 in cash and prizes for successful and lucky anglers who land salmon between Rock Island and Wells Dams.

Afterwards, it’s time to get serious about the Brewster Pool. It too features a fishing event – the 9th Annual Brewster Salmon Derby, Aug. 1-3, with a skippers meeting July 31. I turn it up to 11 for the derby, working harder in this one than any other I fish. Winning gives you bragging

FISHING A pretty heavy Hanford haul for the Hooked On Toys crew – and with even more upriver brights expected back to the free-flowing stretch of the Columbia River, they just might need stouter stringers and sticks. (PETER FLOHR)

rights till you are dead.

The deal is, with the fish slammed up against the wall of warm water at the mouth of the Okanogan River, you have to have the gear to trigger them into biting or be there when they are snappy. As with all fisheries I’ve experienced, the water seems to make it all happen – flow, temperature, barometric pressure. Of course, it could be how you hold your mouth or whether or not someone brought a banana, but seriously, when the bite isn’t on, I go into hyperdrive. Sometimes a small pres-

98 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

entation is just the thing, or perhaps more scent or less scent is needed, or ditching the flasher, or perhaps a Mack’s Sledge Hammer and strip bait. I love my Super Baits, but never go out without some herring. Different can be good.

New this year, if you enter the Wenatchee Salmon Derby and Brewster Salmon Derby, you can also win them both because there is an individual cumulative weight for the most pounds combined from the two events.

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FISHING

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over, and working the edges and sliding out to the gut with the Digi-Trolls tracking bottom automatically and a strike.

Limiting the boat before lunch is not out of the ordinary, and with all the fishing Gypsies in camp, it is a great place to pick up new tricks. You have 20 miles of river to fish so how do you want to do it? Divers and eggs, wrapped plugs, drift in 3 feet of water with bait? Vernita and the Hanford Reach are a great place to learn new tricks because there are so many fish – with nearly 1 million upriver brights expected to enter the Columbia, this year’s return could set a record – and there is water to accommodate any style. Nothing will improve your fishing as much as doing it for consecutive days. We used to sleep in our boat or the truck; now we borrow a trailer – very luxurious, but not as stupendous as rod holders once were.

By mid-October, the season ends, we have our fish and plenty smoked salmon for Christmas parties.

Ahh, three and a half months of salmon on the Columbia, what a journey. So much beautiful country, so many new and old friends along the way. Someday I hope to cover the water and techniques between the Tri-Cities and Astoria so I can say I have fished salmon from the top of the run to the bottom.

But I may have to find my rain gear again for some of that water. NS

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AFTER BREWSTER, I take a couple of days off, but Lake Wenatchee usually is opened for sockeye right around then, and I just have to fish that. The mountain lake is beautiful and the sockeye fishing is lights out! I enjoy the frenzied bite that comes on at dawn on the lake.

Standard sockeye gear will get it done, but if you dress it up a little with some Flashabou or a Smile Blade, perhaps you will find yourself to be the hot boat. You do not need downriggers here, but like anywhere, they do make it easier to fish when you know exactly where your gear is. The predawn bite can be as shallow as 25 feet, but by 8:30 a.m., the fish are down 40 to 80 feet.

Lake Wenatchee is the place to get the kids into trolling. With fast action and lots of it, in two trips they will be running the gear and handing you the rod. Is there a better-eating fish than the sockeye? This is fishing the good life and eating like a hippie – free range and organic.

After a week of vacation at the mouth of the Columbia for Buoy 10, it’s back upriver to the Hanford Reach.

Weekends in September and the first two weeks of October are spent at fish camp in Vernita looking for elusive monsters tipping the scale at 50 pounds. The fall run is what the summer of practice is for. By this time, the crew, my kids and I, are a well-oiled machine. Our skipper, Bob, doesn’t miss a beat, putting the boat in the slot over and

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COLUMNS

Upper Columbia Again Poised For Fine Salmon Fishing

W

ith decent Chinook and huge sockeye runs expected back to the Upper Columbia, it looks like another great season for anglers just below

By Leroy Ledeboer Wells Dam and up in the ever-popular Brewster Pool. Yes, there’s definitely something to be said for targeting powerful kings that typically run from the high teens into the mid-20s with a fair number topping 30 pounds, but with a four-fish limit, those smaller sockeye will be hard to pass up too.

BASIN BEACON

Even better, a year ago most of the plentiful sockeye were returning yearlings, but this year’s run is predicted to have a majority of 3- to 4-year-olds, still not heavyweights, just nice 3- to 5-pound fish, and maybe the best tablefare anywhere.

With the fish now on their way, all that’s needed is some hot weather in the Okanogan/Okanagan Basin.

“Keep in mind that a warm mouth of the Okanogan is absolutely essential to a topnotch season, even for Chinook and more so for sockeye,” states Ron Oules at Reel-lentless Guide Service (509-449-0843). “Last season was perfect, 70 degrees or better in that mouth, the real stopper, getting those runs to mill around in the pool, just waiting for a cooler river to make their final run.”

“Right now, everything looks favorable.

On June 1, I ran some tests, and that mouth was already at 58 degrees, up two from a year ago at this time. So unless we get something totally unforeseen, it should inch up to 70 before the opener.”

Jerrod Gibbons of Okanogan Valley Guide Service (509-429-1714) agrees that 2013’s two-sockeye limit hurt participation, and that the smaller fish definitely didn’t help.

“Yeah, last year a lot of Westsiders didn’t want to make the trip over here for just two sockeye,” he notes, “but this year that’s all going to change, and fortunately this isn’t an either-or fishery. When both runs are really strong, we target Chinook early when they’re the most active and higher up in the water column, then switch over to sockeye as the day gets warmer. But if you are going to strictly target Chinook, start at about 18 feet deep in the early morning, then gradually drop down as the sun climbs, getting closer to the bottom, down maybe 30 or 35 feet.”

Oules adds, “Also remember, a good agitator-equipped flasher creates about a 5-foot

Salmon anglers work the Brewster Pool just below the mouth of the Okanogan. Summer heat in the Okanogan Highlands raises the Columbia tributary’s water temperature, forming a thermal block to their upstream migration, leading to good fishing in the cooler mainstem. (BRIAN LULL) JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 103

COLUMNS circle, so if you set one downrigger at 20, the other at 25, you’re arcing through a lot of the same water. I start in 10-foot increments, say 15 and 25, then make adjustments depending on the action. If I’m seeing fish at, say, 30 feet, though, I’ll go to 25 so I’m just above them, where I’m most likely to get them to strike.

“But the real beauty of this pool is that it’s comparatively so easy to fish – no super fast currents, no ocean tides or sudden high winds. Yeah, it gets crowded at times, but just a little common sense and courtesy make that a minor problem. Maybe the biggest danger our anglers face is sunburn.”

GIBBONS AND OULES, like most of this area’s guides and savvy freelancers, usually start the season below Wells Dam where salmon fishing opens July 1 and plenty of Chinook can be found milling around, waiting to climb the ladder. But the faster currents here take a bit more boating expertise.

“Even newcomers who have spent some time operating their craft and know their fishing gear can quickly figure it out,” Gibbons says. “But what I see every year is some of the new guys getting in trouble by crossing the boundary line, which is only marked by a small sign, then a somewhat

bigger one on the other side, and you have to be able to eyeball it, draw an imaginary line. Another sign, up closer to the dam, often confuses newcomers, but when they move up that far, they’re already a hundred yards or so over the line.

“Still, below the dam is the place to be early on, particularly when they’re running more water. That flow really determines the Chinook bite, so some days I’ll start out above the dam, then if that’s slow, I’ll quickly load up in the afternoon when they start running more water for electrical generation and relaunch below. Oh, and if the Chinook bite is still off, you can switch to your sockeye gear and fish that back eddy directly across from the launch, which some days is as good as it gets.”

Oules too often makes the species switch.

“No one seems to know why, but some days the bite is simply off in one spot and on in the other, so it just makes sense to be ready to move. Even a lot of the buddy anglers now do it, sometimes because they’re on the phone with their pals, getting updates,” he says.

ABOVE AND BELOW the dam Gibbons says his Chinook gear is the same: Brad’s Super Baits behind an 11-inch Pro-Troll with

an agitator.

“The Brad’s creates a bit of a drag, so that agitator is key, making your flasher really spin,” he adds. “And I always use Super Dipping Sauce, which comes in six varieties, including anise, herring, garlic, shrimp and now kokanee-sockeye, which last season was absolutely deadly on sockeye. Early on I’ll use a longer leader, up to 60 inches, between my flasher and bait, then make it shorter and shorter as the fish get more aggressive later in the season “Sockeye, of course, need smaller gear, like the Brad’s Mini-Bait or the Mack’s Hoochie with a Smile Blade, tandem hooks, the upper hook tipped with a small piece of brined shrimp. And because sockeye are so good at spitting hooks, especially now that we have the barbless rule, I’ve switched to a No. 6 treble upper, also barbless, of course.

Right after last year’s big salmon derby we were getting so many Chinook hook-ups on this sockeye setup, I switched to No. 4 trebles because they were absolutely destroying the smaller ones,” Gibbons says.

Oules too says that barbless rule has definitely made sockeye into better escape artists, so he’s gone to the Gamakatsu barbless, a hook he says has just a bit more curve to it, something between a circle hook and his standard octopus.

DERBY DAYS ON THE UPPER COLUMBIA Washington’s sagebrush country will host a pair of salmon derbies this summer, the first this month in Wenatchee, the second out of Brewster.

The Coastal Conservation Association’s North-central Washington Chapter will host the first, July 18-19, and it features a first prize of $2,000 and a top boat prize of $1,750. Now in its third year, open waters include the Columbia from just below Wells Dam downriver to Rock Island Dam. Sponsored by Hooked On Toys and Bob Feil Motors, both in Wenatchee, the event will also feature loot from Northwest Sportsman magazine. For more, see the website wenatcheesalmonderby.com.

Then comes the big Brewster Salmon Derby, now in its ninth year. It’s set for Aug. 1-3, and features over $20,000 in 104 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Daryl White fights then hoists his 2013 Brewster Salmon Derby-winning Chinook, a nearly 27-pound fish that won him $1,600. (BRIAN LULL, BOTH)

cash and prizes, including $1,500 for first place.

Put on by the Brewster Chamber of Commerce, last year’s event saw 102 Chinook landed, the biggest of which was caught by Daryl White and went 26 pounds, 15 ounces.

Open waters are that part of the Brewster Pool between the Highways 173, 97 and 17 bridges at Brewster and Bridgeport.

If at all possible, hit the prederby seminar where several guides will give presentations with several others on-site answer specific questions about the fishery.

The Brewster event promotes tourism and the Upper Columbia’s salmon fishery.

For more, see the derby’s website, brewstersalmonderby.com. –NWS

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“Plus I’ve backed my second hook up just a bit,” he adds. “I had them almost touching, so just a half inch further apart gave us better hookups with the barbless rigs. And don’t be afraid to experiment. If you’re using a long leader and not getting action, shorten it up. If one scent isn’t working, thoroughly clean out your Super Bait and try a different one. But don’t change up too quickly. Make at least a couple of passes with and against the current, around 2.6 mph, but at a steady rpm level. I see too many guys when they go against the current kicking up their rpm’s to maintain boat speed.

But it’s the water speed that determines your flasher action, so now it gets more erratic, something the salmon don’t like.”

After a few weeks it’s generally time to concentrate on the Brewster Pool, particularly if the Okanogan is holding at 70 degrees, and both Chinook and sockeye are stacking up.

“Last season was absolutely phenomenal,” Gibbons says. “We had an early warmup, then a solid week of 100-degree temperatures just before the opener, so it was just light’s out. Many days we were getting limits of both species on the same gear.”

For freelancers who don’t want the hassle of tying up their own rigs, Gibbons now markets his personal sockeye rig, this season only available at Hooked on Toys (hookedontoys.com) in Wenatchee.

The pool above the Highway 173 bridge at Brewster opens July 1 while the reservoir from the crossing down to Wells Dam opens July 16. NS

106 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

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Northwest Sportsman 107

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COLUMNS

Mission Possible: Catch Salty Sockeye H

ave you ever caught a sockeye in saltwater? Neither have I, even though my local fishing haunt is Shilshole Bay, which Lake WESTSIDER

By Tim Bush Washington’s run swims past.

But thinking about my lures being crushed by a flood of some 23 million bright-orange-filleted sockeye this summer has me aching to figure out how to catch the sirloin of the salmon family.

Oh, that run won’t be coming anywhere near Seattle. Rather, a certain percentage will head up the Strait of Juan de Fuca (instead of down Johnstone Strait on Vancouver Island’s other side), then turn left through the San Juans before entering the Fraser River. For this year’s bounty, Marine Areas 5, 6 and 7 feature a bonus limit of up to four sockeye a day, if you don’t keep any Chinook or coho first.

Among the anglers stoked about this opportunity is Larry Carpenter, a Washington Fish & Wildlife Commissioner who also owns Master Marine Services (mastermarine.net) in Mount Vernon. He’s caught sockeye slipping through Puget Sound using tactics perfected by Vancouver Island skippers, but not many other Washington fishermen have. That’s not for lack of trying. Back in 1995, state salmon managers tried to see if something could be made of the fishery.

Over 17 days one August they sent boats out into straits expressly to catch sockeye; they caught pink salmon instead – hordes and hordes of pinks.

That won’t be a problem this summer as the odd-year fish aren’t running.

THE ORIGINAL NAME for sockeye is “sukkegh,” a Salish word meaning red fish. Typi-

cally, their migration home is slightly earlier timed than Chinook. Around late June/early July, anglers out in the Straits will start seeing arches of schools of sockeye on their depth sounders, just before the rest of the salmon squad arrive.

Sockeye are known to eat small squids and tiny orange shrimp called krill or zooplankton, hence the color of their flesh.

However, up and down the coast of Alaska, Canada and Washington, anglers have caught sockeye using all sorts of lures like anchovies and herring as well as large squids and small spoons.

Once they start to near their river, anglers report these fish will tend to bite smaller 1- to 2-inch pink, red or orange hoochies. Sometimes suicide fish will hit a

having lost fewer fish over time because of the offset, especially when barbless.

“NUMBER ONE TECHNIQUE is to fish with lots of flash and attractors like Hot Spot flashers and dodgers,” says Carpenter, “along with smaller red/pink squids over the hook.”

Talk on online forums about sockeye in the ocean also confirm Carpenter’s point: there’s better fishing when sockeye become schooled up by using lots of attracting gear in the water.

“Find the schools and stay with them to catch fish and also fish slower,” he says.

Some online guys only use a couple orange beads and a red hook without a hoochie. Troll slower than for Chinook, about 1.5 mph and drop your downrigger

“They can be found 0 to 3 feet deep early in the day, then dropping deeper as the sun rises, sometimes down to 100 feet."

- Larry Carpenter large red/pink vibrating plug being backed down in the current.

Try using Google Images to see what krill and plankton look like, then check out sabiki rigs online or at a nearby tackle store.

If you’re lucky to find a couple larger sizes in red, pink or glow, rerig them for sockeye by carefully sliding them off their original wimpy hooks and reslide them up 1/0-3/0 octopus-style hooks painted with red, green, pink or glow nail polish. This gives more size and visual profile. Lots of guys prefer siwash-style hooks for this purpose; I personally like the bend in octopus hooks,

40 to 50 feet down, they say.

Keep an eye out for fish on the surface.

“Sockeye in Areas 5, 6 and 7 are often visible as they jump and fin a lot on the surface, near shore along the west sides of Whidbey and San Juan Islands,” tips Carpenter. “They can be found 0 to 3 feet deep early in the day, then dropping deeper as the sun rises, sometimes down to 100 feet.”

Remember, these salmon are cousins of light-lipped kokanee.

“When you hook them, don’t fight them – just get them to the boat. The longer you fight them, the more likely you’ll lose them JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 109

COLUMNS as they have very soft mouths,” he says.

Try using a longer, slower-action rod so as not to rip the hook out. Instead of a 12-

helps to stay in one general spot and on top of a school.

“They also use short leaders, around

“Number one technique is to fish with lots of flash and attractors like Hot Spot flashers and dodgers.”

- Carpenter 25-pound-rated Chinook rod, try one rated 6 to 12 pounds or 8 to 17 pounds and that is 9 to 11 feet long.

KEVIN KLEIN, ANOTHER highly regarded San Juan Islands angler, shared a couple more tips.

“Guys out of Canada use lots of flashers and dodgers, but will also troll in the opposite direction of the current, usually 30 to 90 feet down,” he says.

Trolling in the opposite direction

110 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

22 inches or less,” reports Klein.

A short leader helps to whip the hook and hoochie around, imitating small shrimp wafting helplessly in the current or sometimes scurrying around with their tail. Create some action with your lure, but not too much action.

Rumor has it sockeye can sometimes be lazy.

Sockeye anglers are anything but.

When Klein and Carpenter say to use lots of attractants, they mean it.

“Clip an extra flasher 10 feet up from your downrigger ball and release clip,” tips Klein.

Seems this is another constant with Cannuckian skippers. Use a halibutstyle clip and 10 feet of tuna cord, parachute cord or weed-whacker line. My favorite is weed-whacker line because it doesn’t twist and lies straight.

IF YOU’RE UP for trying out this fishery, there are a handful of boat ramps that offer the fastest access to the fishiest waters, the eastern Strait and San Juans.

The Cornet Bay launch, just east of Deception Pass on the north side of Whidbey Island, is an excellent launch for targeting the islands.

The Keystone Harbor launch next to Fort Casey State Park is a hole-shot for fishing the eastern Straits and the west side of Whidbey and down south through Admiralty Inlet and Puget Sound proper. (Heck, cross over to Port Townsend and fish Midchannel Bank.)

Washington Park at Anacortes is also very popular. NS

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COLUMNS The author shows off a pair of nice Baker Lake sockeye.

(TODD SWITZER)

Baker Sockeye Bite For Kayakers Too

T

he morning sky glows a faint pink as the smallest wavelets of the lake lap at the shore just feet from where THE KAYAK GUYS you lie half-awake

By Todd Switzer in your sleeping bag. The smell of fir trees fills the air, and the morning breeze off the lake is cool and light.

You’re on Baker Lake, about 120 miles north of Seattle, in July. Your fishing kayak is waiting just feet from your tent and your target species for the day is sockeye, arguably the most flavorful of all the salmon species found in the Northwest. And the lake, rimmed by glaciercapped peaks, is one of the few as well as most beautiful places to catch them in the region.

At one time sockeye reached these wa-

ters naturally. Heading inland from Puget Sound up the Skagit, they turned north at the Baker River and kept pushing upstream until they reached this subalpine lake. Then, the lower Baker dam was built during 1925 and the upper dam was finished in 1959, halting all passage of salmon through the system.

Hatcheries had been established in this area beginning in the late 1800s to augment the supply of the highly prized sockeye. These days, thousands of sockeye are trucked around the dams up to Baker Lake, where 2014’s season opens July 10. Just don’t expect to show up on that day and find an overstocked lake and lights-out fishing. You’re going to have to work to catch these fish, and on most days, the competition with other anglers is substantial.

BAKER LAKE IS shaped like a boomerang, its southern half oriented

north to south and its northern half southwest to northeast. Although the sockeye are released at the south end, fish typically gather at the opposite end, near the Baker River inlet. However, you won’t have any problems finding the prime fishing areas – just follow the crowds of powerboats that travel from the U.S. Forest Service’s and Puget Sound Energy’s ramps at the Kulshan, Horseshoe Cove, Panorama Point and Swift Creek campgrounds and congregate on the prime fishing areas.

A kayak is an ideal fishing platform for these sockeye. The lake is usually calm early in the morning when the bite peaks, and kayakers can launch at many areas along the dirt road that runs along the north side of the lake, providing easy access to the prime fishing areas.

The best method to catch these fish is to troll at speeds near 1 mph. The tackle is similar to a kokanee rig designed to entice an aggravation bite. Large dodgers from 8 JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 113

COLUMNS AS I MENTIONED, Baker Lake can be a very crowded fishery. Be respectful of other boats, troll parallel to those around you, don’t crowd each other and never cross over another boat’s stern at distances of less than 300 feet with your gear down. Observe how the vast majority of boats move in a well-orchestrated pattern and find your place in this dance. Even under the best circumstances lines will cross in these crowded conditions, but following proper trolling etiquette will show others around you that it’s not your first rodeo. If your gear is tangled with another boat, be courteous and allow the power boat to untangle the gear if they offer, or cut your line once your gear is secured and retie. Everyone is there for the same reason, and getting everyone back to fishing as soon as possible after a tangle is the top priority.

A fish finder on your kayak will greatly improve your chances of finding sockeye and reduce the amount of gear you’ll lose to snags. The salmon often gather along the edges of Baker’s many sharp dropoffs, and a

finder will allow you to troll them while reducing the chances of snagging bottom.

However, schools of sockeye can be found almost anywhere in the lake and you might stumble across one 20 feet down in 200 feet of water with no structure in the area. If you mark a good-sized school, keep making passes through the area until you hook up or you’re convinced they just won’t bite. When you do hook up, don’t expect reel-sizzling runs. These fish are head shakers with short, powerful runs when they get close to the net. They have very soft mouths, so set your drag loose and play the fish light.

When you get it close, be prepared with a big net as these fish can easily top 10 pounds. Bring the net up under the fish rather than pull the fish into the net.

It is difficult to net a big fish from a kayak alone, so expect to lose a few during this process. But take your time and do everything you can to bring the odds into your favor, and with a bit of luck you’ll have some of the best-tasting salmon the Northwest has to offer. NS

D

EA

L W ER EL IN C Q O UI M RI E! ES

to 11 inches and in chrome and 50/50 chrome brass work well, followed by a 12to 14-inch leader of 20- to 30-pound-test fluorocarbon and a few red beads and double 2/0 hooks. A Smile Blade riding on beads in front of the hooks along with a small hoochie skirt covering the front hook and red- or pink-dyed sand shrimp on the back will enhance this presentation. Start with any color you want, as long as it’s some variation of red.

Setbacks of 80 to 100 feet provide the ability to work closely around other watercraft with less chance of crossing lines.

When you mark fish on your finder adjust your depth so the presentation passes close by. Downriggers or dropper weights are the best way to accomplish this from a kayak. These fish are no longer feeding on their way to the spawning streams, but the combination of color, movement and the scent of shrimp can entice them to snap at passing tackle. Many fish are also taken on the surface, and flat-lining can be an effective presentation, especially if fish are rising.

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Northwest Sportsman 115

COLUMNS

San Juans Islands Get Sumptuous This Month NORTH SOUND

S

ummer seekers of salmon and Dungeness crab

By Doug Huddle resume their quests for that first barbecue slab and fresh salad ingredient in northern inland waters at the first of July as the San Juan Islands start reopening for the season.

These are not across-the-board resumptions, but sequenced startups that see Marine Area 7 saltwaters available to hook-and-line salmon fishers but initially closed to Crab Louie seekers.

To the south in Marine Area 8-1 and 8-2, crabbers get the nod on the third of July, but salmon anglers after Skagit-doorstep kings must wait until August.

West of Whidbey Island, it’s legal as of July 1 and 3, respectively, to both wet a line and soak a pot as long as you stay within the virtual boundaries of Marine Area 6.

And for salmon anglers possessed of skill or luck – or perhaps a marriage of both – there’s a good chance to earn a season’s worth of boat fuel and moorage money at the outset in the Bellingham Puget Sound Anglers Salmon Fishing Derby, July 11-13.

This family-oriented contest of salmon fishing prowess has both adult cash/ merchandise and kids’ prize divisions. The PSA club makes every effort to encourage families to turn out for their event, which is the first Northwest Salmon Derby Series contest of the summer season.

Adult tickets are $50 per person and only 500 will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis. There should be some chits available right up to the sales cut-off Thursday, July 10.

To buy or make a last-minute entry, log onto bellinghampsa.com/derby/tickets.htm for transaction alternatives and instructions.

Youth entries are free to any and all age 12 and under anglers who may compete for the kids’ prizes, provided they are registered and accompanied by a responsible adult ticket buyer. Kids also may fish for cash, pro-

Most kings caught in the San Juans will run into the teens, like the one local angler Kevin Klein nabbed last July, but a few as big as 40 pounds have been caught in recent summers.

(KEVIN KLEIN)

trailer and goodies package is in vided a responsible adult September. buys a $50 ticket for them.

The top adult division prize on the ladder is FOR THE LEAD-UP to the $5,000. Second and third derby, the remainder of July and place kings also garner the first half of August on maincash, as do several secretland departures from greater weight fish. Kids will vie for Bellingham Bay ports, anglers a Sony Playstation, iPod or must remember not to wet lines The crabbing in the San Juans can a bike, as well as other be phenomenal and is a favorite until they get to Bellingham activity for locals and visitors to prizes.

Channel, Rosario Strait or the The currently open wa- the islands, like Marc Drewry of big bight of Georgia. But once Seattle who has a cabin on ters of Marine Area 7, the Guemes. (WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW they get to those neighborgreater San Juan Islands PHOTO CONTEST) hoods, there are always salmon and Strait of Georgia, are to be caught at such locales as the aquatic arena for this angling contest, Lummi Rocks, staying on the tidal “lee” side and the club for the first two days operates of those outcrops. To the south, anglers work two weigh-in stations, Deer Harbor and the deeps around Viti Rocks, off the west Squalicum Harbor, so catches won’t lose too edge of Boulder Reef, and Buoy 16, Buckeye much water weight.

Shoal and Cypress Reef.

All adult purchasers of Bellingham PSA Don’t forget the venerable waters of Cytickets, as long as they fill out an online press Island’s west shore at Eagle Bluff and sourced form or stub, also automatically get Tide Point, as well as Cypress Head in Bellingone entry chit in the Northwest Marine Trade ham Channel. All three are trollable on either Association’s 2014 sportfishing boat giveebb or flood. away (northwestsalmonderbyseries.com).

Off Fidalgo Island’s west shore early in The drawing that awards this boat, motor, July and later, fish Fidalgo Head out of SkyJULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 117

but requires considerable angling concentration and is not fishable in all tide states.

Though half of the lower fringe of Marine Area 7 is closed for the summer, there’s still a section of its south porch open at season’s outset with two lucrative big water banks, Hein and Middle, to ply for salmon.

Hein is locatable under visual navigation rules as it has a racon buoy marking its shallow northern shoal. The trolls or mooches for salmon trend north and south along either side of the mount.

Middle must be sized up with a sonar instrument to locate its 60- to 120-foot depths with the added caveat that it should have a reliable geolocation function to keep you from straying too far as you’re flirting with the international boundary on its west side. The greatest troll flexibility at Middle is along its east slope.

line Marina and Washington Park launches for sure on flood tides, but don’t go south of the Bird Rocks line since the lucrative southern Rosario Strait waters are closed.

Moochers of whole or plug-cut herring gravitate to the long arcing drift into Rosario Strait from Point Lawrence on the east shore.

Motor moochers and hardware trollers will work an inshore loop of Kangaroo Bay at the height of the ebb when baitfish collect there.

Further to the south on the west end of Obstruction Pass there is a short 12-fathom slot that is renowned for holding kings on the ebb.

HAIL TO THE CHIEF If fishing contests, and for that matter, summer saltwater salmon annals, are ever written, they would probably show that more fish are reported caught in and around greater President Channel than anywhere else on the north side of the San Juans.

It stands to reason. It’s the first watery corner of the U.S. salmon coming down the inside passage between the mainland and 118 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Vancouver Island hit when homing on their Puget Sound streams. And except when fairweather northwesterlies blow, the channel also can be hospitable to anglers, a sea of calm when many other reaches with fetch get riled up by southerly trending winds.

From Point Doughty down to Spring Passage on Orcas and Point Disney up the Waldron east shore to the open water around Boundary Buoy in Haro Strait, tidal forces concentrate bait in the lees on either side of the rocky prominences and in the coves, especially on the Orcas shore. Island bluffs extend at the same pitch into the deeps, so trollers can work greater range of depths for longer distances seeking out clouds of wallhugging bait.

Point Disney’s near-vertical bottom helps haze bait schools allowing a similar close-in troll that’s popular in both fair and foul weather.

The well-known Hummer Hole, a complex piece of water formed by the quirks of bottom topography on the west side of Sucia Island, is another high-yield area for salmon,

DUNGENESS CRAB OPTIONSMarine Area 7 is closed until July 17, so Whatcom and north Skagit Counties crabbers will have to look south for their first taste of fresh-caught Dungeness from July 1.

Marine Area 6 along the west shore of Whidbey Island, specifically Admiralty Bay and its boat launch, is well within day-trip range. So are Marine Area 8-1 east Deception Pass waters such as Similk Bay, Cornet Bay, west Ala Spit and Kiket Island. Crabbers may also work rings and star traps in the waters south of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe bridge at the Highway 20 crossing as well, provided they observe the special crabbing hours and rules there.

Come the 17th, Marine Area 7 South (including the San Juan Islands plus greater Samish and Bellingham Bays) can be worked five days each week (closed Tuesdays, Wednesdays). Close to Bellingham look inside at Chuckanut Bay, also the north side of Samish Bay east of Wildcat Cove, or the highly popular 10-fathom line at low slack around Hat Island in Padilla Bay, as well as the shallow Eliza Island-Point Frances shelf.

AUGUST ISSUE Early Northwest Washington black bear and cougar season options. NS Editor’s note: The author lives in Bellingham, is retired from the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife, and has written about hunting and fishing for more than 30 years.

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120 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

FISHING

Ross Trout Getting Big Feasting on shiners, the North Cascades reservoir’s rainbows and Dollies are now ‘adding significant girth.’

By Doug Huddle

DIABLO, Wash.—As Ross Lake’s season kicks off the first of July, its angling faithful are likely to be treated to some of the biggest rainbow trout and Dolly Varden yet to come out of the 24-milelong North Cascades reservoir.

Just five years ago, Ross offered up beautiful but much more diminutive wild rainbows as the aging reservoir’s nutrient base waned. The trout were sustained by feeding on clouds of zooplankton, prey that the fish were not physiologically predisposed to live on their entire lives.

A monumental corner for the trout and char was turned when redside shiners exploded on the scene, and both the trout and char began gorging themselves on the hordes of small forage fish.

Ross Lake Resort (rosslakeresort.com) owner Tom Barnett reported back in 2012 that the top-end length had reached 25 inches for the rainbows. They’re now at a point where they are adding significant girth. Ross’s landlocked bull trout, a normally searunning strain of native char that in angler jargon are called Dolly Varden, now trapped behind the trio of Seattle City Light migration barriers, also have jumped in size.

Voracious predators, the biggest specimens of the pink-mini-polkadotted char now are verging on the 9to 11-pound range. But though they’re behemoths, they still enjoy protection of federal law and state fishing regulations that ban their retention.

WHEN THE RAINBOWS were smaller, gang trolls (i.e., willow leafs or Cowbells) held sway as the gear du jour paired

with lures such as Bingo Bugs, Dick Nites or Needlefish. They still work when rigged with stouter monofilament lines and leaders, but with the bigger fish has come a paradigm shift to a more simplified fishing technique and terminal tackle.

Fly fishing rigs are now favored either trolled or presented in a traditional casting method. Patterns emerging as fish favorites include shiner imitations as well as bucktail streamers and Woolly Buggers together with rabbit-strip or egg-sucking leeches. Even more ambiguous or gaudy attractors work too. Barnett ties his own streamer patterns, opting for blue, green and white liveries, and often includes a pair of eyes tied in to their heads.

The key for Ross is the fly line, with the most versatile being nymphing types (full-sink

lines that descend 3 to 6 inches per second) or 30-foot, fast-sink-tip shooting lines.

Two of the main presentation pitfalls are failing to hold boat speed down so as to not overcome the line’s sink rate and timing retrieves on the sink to keep from hooking up with the

The first redside shiners were found at Ross Lake in 2004, perhaps the result of an accidental release of a fisherman’s bait, and 10 years later, their population has exploded. It’s turned out to be a boon for the reservoir’s rainbows and Dolly Vardens – and anglers. (ROSS LAKE RESORT) JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 121

FISHING

lakeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s prolific stump population. A third is skimping on tippet strengths. The burgeoning trout now mandate 7-pound fluorocarbon material.

Another major transformation in the Ross trout fishery has been the move away from an open-water troll in the middle of the reservoir to nearshore

122 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Ross Lake Resort is one of two main accesses to the reservoir and has boat rentals, but private craft can also be launched at two campgrounds on the north end. (DAVID ASTUDILLO, NPS)

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 123

prospecting. Self-preservation is dictating that the tiny young shiners congregate in much shallower confines.

In such locations, typically the bottom still drops away quickly, but the shoreline bottom is irregular and cluttered. It’s even better, though these sites are scarcer, to have some sort of overhead structure in the form of floating log or wood debris in the vicinity.

Trolling flies on a sinking line is by far the more relaxing pursuit, but anglers adhering to the traditions of fly fishing by casting will do equally well at Ross.

An ultra-fast, darting retrieve, as you might use for coho, is a proven strikeprovoking technique for streamer patterns. A slower ascending or pulsing retrieve that accentuates the action of leech and marabou style patterns is also proving successful.

THERE ARE TWO approaches to the lake – Ross Lake Resort and through British Columbia. Two miles west of Hope,

124 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

B.C., on the TransCanada Highway, the 40-mile, unpaved Silver-Skagit Road takes you south back to the international boundary in the remote upper Skagit River valley. There is no immigration entry control, but there is a U.S. National Park Service ranger station.

There’s plenty of camp space on either side of the border, but do expect crowds. On the U.S. side, Winnebago Flats and Hozomeen Campgrounds are available first come, first served.

For this border-crossing route, there are several things for which to plan or prepare. Fresh vegetables, fruits and some meats are banned. Bring a U.S. passport, Washington enhanced drivers license or Nexus card for entry into and back out of Canada. Time your crossings at Sumas or Lynden for other than weekends and avoid middays. Don’t pack firearms, and if you have a child with you who is not your own or under your legal guardianship, you must have a written note from the child’s parent.

Your pet vaccination documents must

be up to date and make sure your boat is clean and pest-free.

But by far the main focal point for angling visitors is Ross’s south end, with unique floating resort with all its amazing and unexpected creature comforts.

The most direct way in is to park at Happy Flats and hike down to Ross Landing, where you can call for a boat ride to the resort or walk over the dam and up the trail. You can also access south-end fish haunts and campsites off the East Bank Trail east of Happy Flats.

The third way in, and perhaps most prosaic, is the combination boat/truck/ boat ride that starts on Diablo Lake.

Most resort patrons come in this way.

The first stage is a $10 voyage on Seattle City Light’s Diablo Lake passenger boat up through the gorge to near the Ross Dam Powerhouse. A variety of gear, including luggage, food boxes and packs, can be brought on board. For the last leg you’ll board a catamaran for the dash to the resort.

Staying overnight at the south end’s facilities involves reservations of a sort.

Ross Lake Resort, accessible only on foot or by boat, opens for overnight stays one month before the fishing season starts in July and has an array of accommodations to suit all patrons. You might get a bunkbed on a drop-in at the resort. For a private room, a reservation is strongly recommended.

The resort does not have food service of any kind (you must bring all your own food), but you can buy fishing licenses, tackle and boat gas, as well as rent motorized kickerboats, canoes and kayaks together with rod/reel/line combos.

If you fish or stay up lake but want to rent a resort boat, it’s best to reserve one since the resort’s fleet is made available first to its own overnight patrons. For more details about the resort, call (206) 386-4437.

Camping along the lakeshore in the Ross Lake National Recreation Area is restricted to developed sites only and you must have a backcountry permit naming each site and the days you’ll use them. For more, see nps.gov/noca. NS

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 125

126 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

FISHING

Cutts Of Kelly Scenic backcountry Idaho creek stellar for westslope trout fishing.

By Mike Wright

HEADQUARTERS, Idaho—In the mid1990s a friend and I drew cow permits for Idaho’s Clearwater region. Since neither of us had ever been in the backcountry here we planned a scouting trip. I also knew that one of my former students and his family had faithfully hunted this area for many years, so I sought out his advice too.

Cole was so dedicated he would gladly spend a week in a hollow log if he felt it would lead to a trophy bull.

When I talked to him he pointed out some likely spots that would be accessible by foot. As I was about to leave he mentioned, almost in passing, that it might be advisable to take

a couple fly rods. He said the North Fork Clearwater and Kelly Creek were in our hunting unit and were both outstanding fisheries. I didn’t realize it at the time, but that conversation with Cole would have a major effect on my fishing experiences for years to come. Hunting, not so much.

ON OUR FIRST day in the hills, we spent the morning checking out some prime hunting locations and found a considerable amount of fresh sign. After hiking up and down mountains it was mutually agreed that it was time to check out the fishing on Kelly Creek.

It was midafternoon by the time we made it to the water and found a major caddis hatch occuring. A large boulder near shore created a long, deep eddy.

We both tied on an Elk Hair Caddis; I chose a tan one while my partner used an olive-bodied fly.

We cast into the foam line along-

Flowing out of the Big Burn on the Idaho-Montana border, Kelly Creek picks up steam with runoff and a 23-mile descent to the North Fork of the Clearwater River. (MIKE WRIGHT) JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 127

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side the boulder, making a couple short mends to ensure a drag-free float. The fish continued to come up and feed on the caddis as they floated by, but completely ignored our patterns. We decided to downsize. Switching to a size 16, we had almost immediately success.

We took six, and missed three others.

We continued upstream, leapfrogging from hole to hole using the size 16

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tan Caddis and employing the same technique, making sure to have a dragfree presentation. By the end of the day we had landed 14 cutthroat and one very confused brook trout.

The next day it wasn’t too hard to decide that fishing would be much more enjoyable than searching for elk droppings. But with no discernible hatch coming off, we figured we had to “go deep.” I decided upon a small size 12 stonefly tied on a 3X long hook with a size 14 beadhead Prince Nymph as a dropper. My friend selected a size 10 olive Wooly Bugger trailing a size 14 flashback Pheasant Tail. We both used a strike indicator tied in about 2 feet above the lead fly. I started out simply drifting the flies through a hole, but soon learned that I needed to make short strips in order to ensure line control and a better hookset. In both setups the nymph droppers proved to be the fly of choice. I was skunked on my stonefly while my partner only took one on his Bugger, a rainbow.

The adult caddis hatch started to appear in early afternoon, but it was a long trip back home, forcing us into an early departure.

That fall we succeeded in filling one of our elk tags before an early snowstorm forced our withdrawal. The winter, though, was especially devastating for the Clearwater herd. A vast number of carcasses were discovered the next spring, in essence closing the curtain on the elk nirvana. Since then there’s also been an influx of wolves from the original reintroduction site in the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness.

The elk population has rebounded, to an extent, but the numbers are nowhere near what they were. Consequently I never hunted that part of the region again.

On the other hand, wolves aren’t too adept at chasing down trout in a stream, and the fishing I discovered has continued to be outstanding.

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IN THE 1960S the westslope cutthroat in Kelly Creek were on the brink of disappearing from those pristine, crystalclear waters.

That led to JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 129

FISHING catch-and-release regulations being placed on the stream in 1970s and the native trout population began staging a remarkable recovery.

In 1973 the results of a study on the effects of the new rules was published in the May-June issue of Idaho Wildlife Review. Before the regs went into effect, the daily limit was 15 with the average size being 8 inches, and the catch rate was one fish per one and a half hours.

Two years after, the average size had risen to over 12 inches and the catch rate was six per hour.

In 1967, Dworshak Dam was completed, blocking steelhead and Chinook salmon from entering the upper North Fork and Kelly, and limiting competition for the cutts. Today, the creek has developed into quite possibly the best westslope fishery in Idaho.

Starting high in the Bitterroot Mountains, Kelly Creek flows 23 miles through a steep, heavily timbered backcountry canyon until it meets the North

130 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Fork. The banks and bed are lined with rocks and large boulders. This coupled with the steep gradient creates a fastflowing stream filled with riffles, pocket water and long, deep pools.

The cutthroat generally run between 10 and 14 inches with a fair number over 16. On rare occasions a 20-inchermay come to hand. Similar size ranges can be expected with the rainbows.

The trout inhabit water behind big rocks and near foam lines, conserving energy while picking off flies and other morsels as they float by. Wading in this fast-moving water and slippery rocks can be tricky, so a good pair of wading boots with nonslip soles and a wading stick should be considered necessities.

Kellyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fish arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t particularly leader shy, and are not bashful about taking dry flies. In most instances, 4X tippet is more than sufficient to land one.

Although cutthroat are not considered to be the Einsteins of the fish world and are very aggressive feeders, a drag-

free drift is needed to ensure success.

For this reason, fishing upstream and mending line in the slower-moving water is recommended.

Spring comes late in this high country, with the annual runoff often lasting until mid-July. The cutthroat make their annual spawning run during the high water and linger throughout the summer, making July and August an ideal time to fish the creek. Not only will you fish over a sizable number of cutthroat that spend most of their lives in Kelly, but also a considerable number of North Fork natives that have not yet made their way back to their home waters. During this period, 20- to 30fish days are fairly common. In highwater years this trend may continue into September. During the winter many of the cutthroat move out of the creek in order to find refuge in the deeper pools of the North Fork.

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FISHING sect hatches through the warmweather months, beginning with a large stonefly hatch in the spring. Unfortunately, that occurs during runoff, making fishing somewhat more difficult.

By mid-July the focus shifts to caddis and various mayflies. An Elk Hair Caddis in tan or olive, size 14 to 18, is highly effective. For mayflies, an Adams, Parachute Adams, Pale Morning Dun or Blue-winged Olive would be the most commonly used.

It may also be wise to include some emergers, Royal Wulffs, Humpies and Renegades for those periods when the cutts may be a bit pickier.

By the end of July terrestrials often begin appearing on the water, increasing in numbers throughout August and September. Various hopper patterns, beetles, black and red ants become more effective during this time.

In the fall, the October caddis hatch is the major attraction. For this fishery, a larger Elk Hair or Goddard Caddis in

size 10 to 14 would be a wise choice.

Although the dry fly fishing is what attracts anglers to these waters, there are times when nymphing is the more effective strategy. A caddis nymph imitation, gold-ribbed Hareâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Ear, Pheasant Tail, Prince Nymph, stonefly or small Woolly Bugger would be among the best approaches.

When using these nymphs you might also consider switching to 3X tippet. Although it is rare, there is a possibility of hooking a bull trout in the deeper pools. The larger cutthroat also prefer these waters.

THE BEST WAY to get here is to take US 12 out of Lewiston to the small town of Greer, 8 miles east of Orofino. Turn north on Idaho Route 11 and proceed 28 miles to Pierce, then Forest Service Road 250 16 miles to the North Fork of the Clearwater. After crossing the bridge over the North Fork, turn right and proceed 12 miles upriver to the

mouth of Kelly Creek. The road continues 7 miles along the creek until it dead ends at the edge of the Kelly Creek Roadless Area.

From here there is a trail that follows the creek upstream. There is good fishing in the lower sections, but it is a widely held belief that the fishing keeps getting better the further upstream you venture. It is a 5-mile hike upstream to the mouth of Cayuse Creek. This small creek contains a large population of 12to 14-inch cutts and is very productive.

Wherever you fish it, expect to find outstanding fishing in gin-clear, freestone waters located in beautiful backcountry. The remote location also tends to keep the number of anglers down, providing more of a wilderness experience. With 10 campgrounds and over 100 sites in close proximity, finding a spot to pitch a tent is not a problem.

One visit to this pristine region and you will be hooked for life. Kelly Creek truly is a shining jewel in the Gem State. NS

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132 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

134 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

FISHING

Gold, Silver, Bronze

Treasures Await Below McNary Walleye, steelhead, smallmouth, shad and more make the upper John Day Pool fishy in summer.

By Matt Nesbit

T

he crown jewel of the Columbia’s summer fisheries may well be the John Day Pool.

From John Day Dam near Rufus, Ore., up to McNary Dam by Plymouth, Wash., this reservoir provides incredible opportunites for almost all species of fish that swim in the big river. This article can’t do justice to the numerous exceptional fisheries that exist below the dam, but it will give you starting points, and hopefully a taste of what this part of the Columbia has to offer.

WALLEYE After months of enduring the harsh cold of winter in search of what could be the next state record, diehard walleye anglers will find their persistence handsomely rewarded come summer. Higher flows in the John Day Pool will concentrate fish along current seams and in pockets of slower water.

From the dam all the way down to Boardman, Ore., fish can be found along the edges of the channel, on shoreline breaks, along points, and even in some backwater areas with reasonable flow. There are several “community” spots below McNary, almost too many to

Dave Larson and the author show off one of the reasons the upper John Day Pool is a treasure in summer.

Walleye, along with steelhead, bass, kings and shad can be found below McNary Dam. (MATT NESBIT)

name. The channel edges, on both sides, directly below the dam can be extremely productive, although higher flows will make them more

technically difficult to fish with current surges and a fine line between fishing 15 feet of water and being pushed towards the rocky shoreline.

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 135

FISHING

Still within sight of the dam, things become easier once you get below the I-82 bridge. Plymouth Point, as well as the mouth of the Umatilla River, will both hold fish well into fall. The County Line Hole is one of the more popular spots below McNary. While extremely snaggy, it can produce a big bag of fish, if the bite is on.

Both sides of the river near the Irrigon boat launch are year-round holes, and are some of the oldest walleye spots in the pool.

Moving downriver from Irrigon, the Columbia widens, braids around islands, and transforms into a cornucopia of walleye habitat. Some of the more popular spots include Paterson Point and Glade Creek, but the possibilities are almost endless in and around the Blaylock Islands. Multiple deep channels and bends around islands create dozens of current breaks and feeding troughs for these fish to lie in wait for prey and reasonably presented offerings from anglers.

Notice I said “reasonably presented.” This is the time of year that walleye will be most suscepti136 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

ble to almost any presentation.

Gone are the February/March days of making a picture-perfect presentation and waiting for that one bite from a hog donkey of a wallhanger.

In July and August fish are biting!

Maybe not 24 hours a day, but feeding sessions will be longer and more frequent as fish will be more active with warmer water. If you bottomwalk a worm harness or make a pass blade-baiting through a school of walleye, you should expect to get bit. If you make three or four passes and don’t get bit, reevaluate, move, change tactics or tell yourself the bite is just about to turn on. In the summer it makes no sense to aimlessly pound the same water because you think you’re out of options.

Kimo Gabriel is an accomplished tournament angler and one of the best, if not the best, guide (gabrielguides.net) in the John Day Pool. He also held the Washington state record at just shy of 19 pounds. I asked him for a few pointers on the walleye fishery below McNary.

“Start with a basic setup, a worm

harness and a 2-ounce bottom walker. Work the contour edges in 18 to 20 feet of water,” Gabriel says.

He likes to gauge everything by speed.

“When I’m working a current seam, I can move the boat in and out of the current and watch my speed. If my speed drops below 1 mph, I move out into the current; if it gets above 2, I move back in.

Today, we caught most of our fish going 1.7.”

Like many tournament anglers, Mr. Gabriel seems to be married to his blade bait. I feel that many people are reluctant to try blading because it is a much more active way of fishing than they’re used to. After 15 minutes of jigging or casting a blade bait, it seems like a lot of effort and many people give up. I think a lot of this has to do with the set-up most newcomers use to blade bait.

Gabriel’s consists of: 6-foot-6 medium or medium-heavy spinning rod; spinning reel capable of holding 160 yards of 8-pound mono; 10 feet of mono backing then 10-pound Fireline in crystal or flame for visi-

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bility; a barrel swivel and 3 feet of 10-pound mono; and a cross-lock clip – not a snap swivel – attached to the blade’s front hole.

“Look for areas like the areas where people are fishing,” Gabriel advises strongly.

This could also mean look for areas like those mapped in this story.

This will require getting ahold of a Columbia River navigational map or taking a good look at one online.

Once you hit Irrigon, the river turns several times, the channel splits and the Blaylock Islands combine to make great current breaks and contours along the edges of the channels.

All of these spots are capable of holding schools of feeding walleye. Nothing is more rewarding than researching a spot, fishing it and being rewarded with piles of fish.

It’s a good idea to make a detailed game plan for a day of fishing below McNary, kind of like going on a big game hunt. Plan

138 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

The sloughs and island chains below McNary provide good fishing for bass, like this 3.5-pound smallie hefted by Mitch Gabriel. (MATT NESBIT)

where you’re going to fish, what you are going to use, have several spots, plan A, plan B, etc. For example, “First we’re going to blade here, then we’ll pull harnesses there, then we’ll jig at that one spot, then we’ll go back to that first spot and pull plugs.”

Of course, everything can change when you catch a fish or see someone land one on a different technique, but a good game plan will keep you from being the guy who launches his boat and says to his partner, “Where should we go?”

BASS There are some excellent backwater opportunities for smallmouth and largemouth in the Irrigon area.

Paterson Slough, McCormack Slough, and the Blaylock Islands can combine to make an epic day of bass fishing, from topwater and spinnerbaits in the early morning, to softbaits and cranks in the heat of the day, and back to topwater in the evening. Indeed, there’s a reason that the Columbia River is No. 14 in the 2014 Bassmaster Top 100 Bass Lakes.

There are two major backwater areas to focus on. Paterson and McCormack Sloughs are littered with the weedbeds and flats that can make for great topwater action before the sun hits the water. As the day goes

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 139

FISHING on, bigger fish will head for deeper water, 30 feet or more. Structure, rocks or weedbeds in 15 to 20 feet of water serve as a feeding area for those bigger bass seeking the refuge of cooler water. Deep-running crayfish-colored crankbaits can be deadly effective, and split-shotting or Carolina-rigging are the preferred finesse methods. Pumpkinseed and chartreuse are popular colors in this fishery. However, in September, millions upon millions of juvenile shad show up, and white and pearl are tough to beat.

Drop-shotting in up to 40 feet of water can be a great way to catch fish in the heat of the day, but if you’re going to fish deep stuff, make sure it’s adjacent to some respectable shallowwater habitat and feeding areas or it will not hold many fish.

STEELHEAD Steelhead can be the main focus of winter fisheries below Mc-

Nary when the summer run is overwintering, but there are usually fishable numbers by mid-July. The most popular way to target them is trolling plugs upstream in 15 to 25 feet of water. You’ll find these fish to be the hottest, most airborne fighters you will find – I prefer to set my drag on the light side when trolling because of the line-peeling runs and acrobatics that almost immediately follow their violent bites.

Some of the same current breaks and edges that hold walleye along the Oregon and Washington shores in the few miles below the dam will hold steelhead as well. Wiggle Warts, Hot Lips and Hawg Bosses are some of the best fish catchers, and although colors can sometimes be a matter of personal preference, there are some staples in the fishery. In bright sunlight, metallic colors really shine; metallic silver and metallic red are consistent producers, with orange

LOCAL INFO, REPORTS For all things fishing below McNary Dam, I highly recommend High Desert Marine (highdesertmarine.com), a local momand-pop store 15 minutes from the Umatilla boat launch in Hermiston. If you are lacking in plug selection or find yourself in the market for some custom colors, I advise heading here. Rod and the gang are good people and they will be able to provide you with up-to-the-minute fishing reports and words of wisdom that can only come from being in business for 45 years. If you have questions about rigging or techniques, they will no doubt get you dialed in so that you’re fishing efficiently.

I never recommend drilling locals for exact spot advice, but you might give it a shot because many of the spots below McNary are large general areas that are well known or “community” holes. –MN

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While the Columbia warms up in summer, steelhead are still moving upstream. Below McNary they can be caught in similar areas to walleye, and a good tactic for both species is trolling metallic plugs. (MATT NESBIT)

142 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

and fire tiger close behind.

The Oregon side, from well below the mouth of the Umatilla to the Umatilla boat launch, is both popular and productive. Walleye and steelhead are both heavily targeted in this stretch, and they should be willing plug biters. I have caught those two species, as well as salmon, bass, suckers and shad, all in the same day, all on the same plug.

SHAD The traditionally enormous shad run usually hits the stretch below McNary in late June and will congregate there through July and into August. As of press deadline, June 16, 1.8 million, had been counted at Bonneville Dam downstream. The popular stretches are on the Washington side below I-82 and the Oregon side above the bridge.

While Shad Darts are always an option, Dick Nite spoons dominate this fishery. Removing a hook and running a leader off the back of a Wiggle Wart or other plug as a diver is an extremely effective method for catching shad below McNary, especially in the faster waters where they will be concentrated.

No need to worry about a combative fishery here. There are plenty of shad to go around and participants in this “catchery” are just there to have fun.

STURGEON To prepare for the summer sturgeon fishery, keep in mind that you’ll be anchored up with the sun beating down on you all day – and prepare to be pounded by some oversized fish. Especially during and towards the tail end of the shad run, many sturgeon fishermen will first hit up the old shad hole to catch their bait for the day. Whether heads, cutbait or whole, shad is some of the best oversized sturgeon bait you can find.

And whether your treasure wears a gold, silver or bronze coat, the waters below McNary Dam are where to make your haul this summer. NS JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 143

FISHING Jon Werner (left) is a prominent South Sound basser with definite ideas on what the top local lakes are. (JON WERNER)

TOP 5 South Sound Bass Lakes

Local largie, smallie anglers like these Tacoma, Olympia waters for trophies, numbers.

By Nick Barr

TACOMA—With well over 50 different lakes in the South Sound it is hard to pare the list down to five top bass fisheries. Pierce and Thurston Counties are packed with great fishing for largemouth and burgeoning smallmouth waters, and these five waters are a must visit this year for any bass angler in the region. With the help of prominent local fishermen Jon Werner of Lakewood and Shane Storie of Olympia, here’s a look at the top lakes in the area.

AMERICAN LAKE This year-round 1,200-acre lake wedged between I-5 and Joint Base

Lewis-McChord provides anglers a multitude of opportunities, including some premier smallmouth fishing.

Giant largemouth are also found here, but are generally harder to come by.

Brimming with kokanee and yellow perch, fish over the 5-pound mark are easily attainable, and last year at least three smallmouth weighed in at over 7 pounds.

“The food base is absolutely enormous, so it may be tough to locate fish consistently based on a spot because the fish move with the bait.

But when found, they can provide amazing fishing,” says Werner. “Keep up with where the perch are moving to and you’ll find the bass.”

The state launch at Camp Murray

is accessible via Berkeley St. (Exit 122) off of I-5.

LONG LAKE Three hundred acres in size and surrounded by houses and docks, this shallow Lacey lake is filled with vegetation that provides prime habitat for both quality and quantity of largemouth. Redesignated as a yearround lake a couple seasons ago, Long is stocked with trout which along with a natural population of rock bass and bluegill allow these fish to grow to immense proportions.

Largemouth tipping the scales at 9 pounds have been reported.

“Skipping Senkos underneath docks with an ample amount of shade can produce big largemouth JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 145

FISHING Largemouth and smallmouth inhabit this mountainous lake that features 500 acres full of docks, weedlines and rock ledges.

“Throwing crawfish-imitating lures in the summertime, I’ve had up to 100-fish days with the smallmouth. For intense action also try using topwater lures over weedlines,” says Storie.

bass all summer long,” tips Storie.

Hicks and Pattison Lakes, right across the street, can be just as good as well. All three are easy to get to off of I-5 via Exit 109 and Carpenter Road SE.

LAKE STEILACOOM This 60-acre reservoir tucked into the neighborhoods of Lakewood is straight out of the South. With creeks, channels, stump flats, shoals and more, you’d think you were fishing in Alabama.

The lake hosts trophy bass thanks to a sufficient forage base of kokanee and crawdads. Even though this reservoir is small, it is extremely diverse and every angler will find something they like.

“I enjoy the lake because I can fish almost every technique under the sun and yield trophy largemouth or smallmouth,” says Werner. “A person can go fish a frog in a foot of

146 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

OHOP LAKE Shane Storie says big numbers of and big bass can be caught in the summer on South Sound lakes.

(SHANE STORIE)

water with 65-pound test or dropshot with 6-pound line all in the same day and be successful.”

SUMMIT LAKE A gorgeous natural lake nestled in the hills between McCleary and Olympia, Summit’s gin-clear water and fine views match the fishing.

Anglers who visit this overlooked gem, nestled in the hills near the small town of Eatonville, have some fun days in store. Ohop has a ton of cover, docks and largemouth. The numbers are great, but these bass have the capability of tipping the scales above 8 pounds.

“In the summertime, make sure to bring your topwater frogs and square-bill crankbaits,” Storie says.

“Be prepared to power fish for some big largemouth.” NS

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COLUMNS

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can vividly remember my exgirlfriend’s house.

Not for any of the reasons you might be thinking, but rather, because her dad was a semi-pro IN THE WILD

By Randy King bass fisherman.

The basement was a trove of lures, plastics, rods, reels and nets, and the man had one of those low-slung, ridiculously fast boats that looked like it was painted with sparkly red nail polish, plus the big truck to pull it. The house was like being a sporting goods store, except organized by a crazed and over-protective lumberjack.

He was also a catch-and-release purist; I, however, am all about catching and eating fish. A good fish fry has always had my name on it.

We did not see eye to eye; the fact that I was dating his daughter probably did not help either. All he spoke about was the last and/or next tournament, how he had bounced the jig off this rock or how he wacky hooked a chartreuse (what color is that anyway?) worm over the lily pads. His boat was fast, he would pre-fish before tournaments – it was all rather intimidating.

I took verbal lessons on how to fish from these conversations, but I always kept a secret weapon in my arsenal: worms.

That’s right, a good ol’ Lumbricus terrestris – the earthworm. Believe it or not, these garden dwellers are not native to the Americas.

They are, technically speaking, an invasive species. During the last Ice Age the weight and cold of the glaciers that topped most of the northern United States killed off ground worms. They came back in force with European settlement. In fact, sections of the country are still “earthworm free” zones, and to protect localized ecosystems, worms are banned as bait.

CHEF

FAST FORWARD 20 years and I am in possession of a cheap-ass aluminum boat that is mostly good for duck hunting and lake cruises. Not being a semi-pro basser I feel no

Bite your tongue – bass are only for catching and releasing! Not so fast, says our heretical, nightcrawler-fishing chef, though he does encourage only eating the young ones.

(RANDY KING)

need to have a fiberglass ride that is more expensive than my rig. And I still fish with worms, one of the single-best options for catching a bass.

Being a carnivore bass will eat just about anything that swims by, keeping lure manufactures in business. (Seriously, what the hell are some of those topwater lures supposed to be? I saw one the other day that was just a white floating tube with hooks on it.) A little worm wiggling around on the hook is the real deal, not a fake “I wonder what the hell that is, I need to eat it” hunk of soft plastic.

I have used this knowledge to set up multiple riggings for my pole. Most center around the drop-shot technique. Drop-shotting is when the weight is at the end of the terminal tackle and the hook (or hooks) is located up the line a few feet. I have, with great success, used a regular old bait hook with a worm and a soft plastic combination. When tossing that setup into cover, more than half the time the worm is bit before the plastic.

The one-two punch catches a variety of

fish. It is a helluva good time to catch a big ol’ catfish on a bass rod. Chances for that go up exponentially with a little meat on the hook bobbing around.

Another added bonus of worm fishing is the pure lazy factor. The movement and the smell coming off the little hunk of protein attract the bite, so you don’t always have to be reeling. This allows time for more beer drinking and conversation.

Lastly, I worm fish for bass simply to watch purists squirm. I vividly remember catching a dozen-plus fish without moving off a single rock in the Snake River. The flat boulder formed a back eddy, and all I had to do was drop my line into the hole and the fish would hammer my worm.

I watched as my girlfriend’s dad changed color after color, pattern after pattern, topwater to crayfish plastics, all without landing a single fish.

I smiled a lot and could not keep my little mouth shut.

My worm fishing made me a heretic and JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 149

COOK ANYTHING ANYWHERE, ANYTIME

unfit for his daughter to be near.

That or something about a late-night drop-off and a big black Ford, but I digress.

Worms catch fish, and if catching fish is

the goal, there is no good reason not to use them. Screw the purists. To paraphrase Bill Heavy, the author and humorist, “Never let skill get in the way of enthusiasm.” NS

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It is OK to say that “scaling fish sucks” (RANDY KING) in my world. Never have I been a fan of the process, nor my wife. As well as I think I clean up the kitchen there is almost always a scale or 10 scattered and glued to the appliances.

That said, I started cooking fish in a much lazier way. The “half shell” method is quick and painless, for the most part. Simply cut off the “side” of fish and leave the scales on it. Make your first cut directly behind the gills and past the pectoral fins. Then slide the about the time bass start hitting the line. Reblade along the backbone, removing the member: if it grows together, it goes toside. gether.

During cooking, the scales form a block and protect the soft white flesh of the bass, Two “keeper” bass keeping it moist and tender. On several ocSalt and pepper casions I have tested the theory to skeptical 1 preserved or regular lemon, cut in half friends. Every time the fish with the scales left 1 cup sugar snap peas, cut in half attached was moister and more flavorful.

1 cup pea shoots Also, with bass, eat the ones that are 1 roasted red pepper, julienned barely legal. Why? The big ones tend to be 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar the spawners and keep the population mov1 tablespoon olive oil ing forward. Also, many of the rivers and ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese ponds that bass reside in are “working systems.” Basically that means farms are dumpHeat grill to medium. Place the fish, scale ing right into them. Dairies too; sewer plants side down on the hot grill. Season with salt even. As predatory fish, bass accumulate the and pepper. Smear half the preserved lemon nasty bits and chemicals – think mercury – in large chunks on the sides of bass. This will over time. Eating the smallish ones means impart a lemony flavor as they cook. Cover that they are not chock-full of junk, typically. the fish or close the lid of the barbecue. Cook Same story with catfish. Abide by the “only for about five minutes or until the fish is eat one per week” and the “not for pregnant cooked – time will depend on the thickness women and children” signs too. Maybe just of the bass. catch and release in that location.

In a small mixing bowl add the peas, pea The following recipe calls for “preserved shoots, red peppers, balsamic vinegar, oil and lemon” – if you have it. This is a classic North cheese. Cut and remove the flesh – leaving African salted lemon. It is tart, but not overly the pith and rind – of the remaining half preso. High-end groceries sell them, and honestserved lemon. Cut the rind into very thin food.net has a great recipe for them. Prestrips. (The zest from a fresh lemon works served lemons work great in all places that a great too!) Toss all together and season with normal lemon would, but they are just more salt and pepper. interesting.

Serve each side of bass with a small pea Snap peas are also featured. Why? Beshoot and preserved lemon salad. cause they are abundant in most gardens For more recipes, see chefrandyking.com.

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COLUMNS

The Clearwater’s Other B Run

J

ack Worle grew up fishing the Clearwater River for bass.

As a kid in the 1950s he defied the INLAND NORTHWEST stereotype of an Idaho

By Ralph Bartholdt river fisherman who pursued salmonids when he hooked a worm and plopped it into the mouth of the Potlatch River to hook mostly 1- to 2-pound smallmouth.

“When I was a kid, it was one of the best places to fish,” says Worle, who is one of the masthead members of the local Clearwater Bass Anglers.

“We’re talking a long time ago,” he adds.

THE CLEARWATER, FABLED for its salmon and steelhead runs, is dwarfed by the nearby Snake River for the size of its smallmouth, but the river has long been a hushhush hole for anglers, many of them bank fishermen, looking for a good-fighting bronzeback.

A few miles downstream from the mouth of the Potlatch, the cool Clearwater mingles with the much warmer flow of the Snake River at the twin cities of Lewiston, Idaho, and Clarkston, Wash. The Snake is bass ground galore, where anglers hook smallmouth in the 6- to 7-pound range with seeming regularity.

Because of water temperatures that can get stifling in the Snake in summer, bass often move into the cooler Clearwater at Lewiston come midsummer, often beginning in July.

“Even in the summer, water temperatures drop pretty fast,” Worle says.

For anglers who are looking for a respite from the summer heat of the lower LewistonClarkston Valley, where temperatures can kick into the upper 90s and then some, heading upriver can be a cool remove.

“Usually when people talk about bass fishing in the Clearwater, they are talking about between the confluence of the North

Fork and Kamiah,” says Idaho Department of Fish and Game fishery biologist Robert Hand.

Anglers keep away from the North Fork below Dworshak Reservoir to the river’s mainstem, because water from the dam that pushes into the river on that small stretch is icy cold.

“Generally, there’s not much bass fishing there,” Hand, an Alabama native, says.

The prolific smallies can be found in the North Fork above the dam as well, he says.

“They are all over the place in the North Fork,” he says.

Bank fishing is common in easily accessible areas, and many anglers who want a mixed bag of trout and bass float the river knocking spinners and curl-tailed grub tube jigs at the banks, eyeing the usual feeding areas for the hard-fighting smallies.

Areas of slow current, eddies and the slow-water side of rocky points are popular areas to plop a jerkbait, jig or spinner.

If the fishing slows down in many warmwater areas in July, the cooler Clearwater around Orofino offers a window.

“People catch bass up there yearround,” Hand says.

AS A KID in southern Alabama, Hand was accustomed to the bigmouth version of the fish. To catch a smallmouth often required a bit of travel to the state’s upper reaches. He went there for the fight.

“They are a lot more energetic than largemouth,” he says.

When he moved from the Deep South to Lewiston his love of hooking a feisty smallmouth returned. And although he tends to stick to the warmer water and bigger fish of the Snake, he still find himself on occasion up the Clearwater, beneath the cool, pine-scented angles of mountains watching smallmouth smash his lures and crash to the surface.

Most anglers on the mainstem float the river, often in drift boats. Jet boats, kick boats and other well-worn craft are common on the river as they hunt for spots

Lewiston is well-known for its metalheads, but is also a great place for bronzebacks. The Snake, where Jamison Meeks caught this 14-incher on a crawdad imitation, and Clearwater hold good populations of hard-fishing smallmouth bass.

(WRIGHT & McGILL/EAGLE CLAW PHOTO CONTEST)

where the non-native fish hunt too.

“Key in on the slack water, and where the current comes by natural obstructions, that’s a good place to cast,” he says. “That’s where the bass hunt for food.”

Up here, the food is often small trout and salmonids.

“They didn’t evolve on the river system here, so they are just another predator on top of everything else,” Hand notes.

If the Clearwater is shunned by many warmwater enthusiasts who stick to the Snake, Worle has a bit of advice.

“At Orofino,” the native angler says, “they catch some pretty nice fish.”

He’s listened to a few tales that can whet the appetite of smallmouth fishers looking for new grounds.

“I’ve heard stories of people diving in the river up there,” he says. “They come back telling of some real big fish in the river.” NS JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 153

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HUNTING

Scout Now For Fall Bears Guys who kill big bruins know July’s when to locate their feeding areas.

By Jason Brooks

O

ne July morning I was fly fishing the deep, green pools of a river on the eastern slopes of the Cascades. As the sun rose over the canyon walls, forcing the rising fish into the shadows of overhanging trees, I headed back to my truck. Walking along a popular trail I stumbled upon a cinnamoncolored black bear tearing apart a stump. So engrossed in its search for grubs was it that it didn’t notice that I was watching from just 10 yards away. I slowly backed away and circled around to my truck. Several years later now I still keep thinking of the bruin, and with each passing July I start to get excited about hunting them.

The bear I encountered in the river was doing what bears always do, eat. With July’s heat, the comfort of the deep canyon and the cool river made it an ideal location for the bear to get a jump start building up its winter fat reserves. Ron Ellis, a Southwest Washington hunter who I met a few years ago, is successful at killing big bears by looking in those same deep, dark, cool places where bears will be feeding. In fact, he killed a 215⁄16-inch black bear that is listed in Northwest Big Game Records as the fourth largest taken in the Evergreen State, and also qualifies for the Boone & Crockett all-time records.

“We knew bears were working this hillside as we saw seven different bears in the area over several days,” says Ellis. “The year before I had seen a big bear in the same area as well, so I decided to hunt the hillside, and as

Ron Ellis, who killed a 215⁄16-inch black bear listed in Northwest Big Game Records as the fourth largest taken in Washington, preaches scouting food sources for your best shot at a bruin. (RON ELLIS)

I made my way down, the wind switched so I worked up and over into another draw. I heard three shots and later learned someone else had killed one of the bears. As I neared the timber I saw this bear tearing up a log, and when it looked up at me I knew it was a big bear.”

He was able to take the bruin on Aug. 4 around 7:30 a.m.

ELLIS BEGINS SCOUTING for bears in the spring usually, hiking old logging roads covered in grass. Once the grass starts to turn from the bright vibrant green to a darker color, bears switch over to peeling trees and chewing on the high-in-sugar cambium layer. He focuses on replanted clearcuts, but instead of just glassing for bears or

looking for scat or tracks, which can be almost impossible from a distance, he looks at the trees themselves.

“You can’t tell if a tree has been recently peeled as it will still be green, but a tree that was peeled last year will be turned red, and a tree that was peeled the year before that will be grey as all the needles will have fallen off,” he says.

Knowing where a food source is means you know where the bears will be. Once Ellis locates a likely area, he spends hours glassing until he finds “a stump that moves.”

Another point that I’ve stressed to fellow hunters who really want to harvest a bear is to look for their quarry, not other game. While out one day with another buddy, a guy JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 155

HUNTING who’s lived his entire life in Western Washington, he told me that he had never seen a bear in the wild. I asked if he had ever looked for one, and then explained that while a lot of bears are killed by deer hunters who stumble upon them during deer season, a bear hunter hunts bear, not deer. Prey animals like deer and elk usually seek cover or stay close to it.

They will feed in the open and bed in the timber and use travel routes like saddles between mountains. Bears only want to eat and stay cool, so if you look for bears in the same places you look for deer and elk, you probably won’t see too many of them.

One September day while on Washington’s High Hunt, I was looking over a basin, glassing likely buck bedding spots at high vantage points and open meadows. That’s when one of my hunting partners said they saw a bear. I continued glassing but couldn’t find the bruin until finally it was pointed out to me to look far down into the bottom of the basin for a mountain ash tree. It was shaking violently as the bear was almost climbing into it to get at the highhanging fruit. I didn’t even think about looking at those berry-rich trees until I was told to do so.

Most berries won’t be ripe in July, but by heading out and looking for patches or reprod stands with telltale peeled trees, you are locating food sources for when bear seasons open later this summer. You will also know if the berry crop will be a good one or not by looking at the plants.

This gives you a major advantage for opening day as you will know where to go. Then set up and glass, as Ellis does, and locate bears. South-facing slopes open up first from melting snows, and a lot of the berry fields will be on these slopes, but if you can get above the tree line in late July you will find that berries can be plentiful just about everywhere.

So how do you find bears in a land full of food sources? You simply find bear sign and see what they 156 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

A favorite food of alpine ursine is mountain ash berries. (JASON BROOKS)

are eating.

As I hiked into a high mountain basin I noticed several piles of bear scat on the trail. The sign showed the bears were eating mountain ash, again, a food source that ripens early and stays on late. The thimbleberries were also ripe but the huckleberries were still green. We glassed large avalanche chutes thick with thimbleberries and the hillsides with mountain ash but we didn’t waste our time looking at the open slopes covered with huckleberry bushes as we knew the bears wouldn’t be there. It didn’t take long before we spotted a jet-black boar gorging on mountain ash.

You don’t have to go into the alpine to find bears, especially in July when the lowlands offer a lot of food.

Ellis notes that after the spring grasses green-up, bears will look for swampy areas and eat skunk cabbage shoots. If you find a swamp with cabbage and have the ability to place a trail camera, you can find out how many bears are in the area. Back when we could bait bears in the coastal Northwest states – which was also before trail cameras were popular – we would look for their tracks

HAIR CHECK New this year, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife is requesting that hunters submit hair and tissue samples from any bears they kill in King, Snohomish and Chelan Counties, and that they contact a regional office within 24 hours about their harvest.

on main trails to the bait. The first year we did this we killed three different bears over a week period on one bait stand. Of course can’t use bait any longer, but what I learned is that when a food source is available, there can be multiple bears in the area, just like when Ellis found a hillside with seven different bears. He knew he just had to put his time in glassing and he would fill his tag.

BLACK BEARS ARE found throughout Washington, with the exception of the Columbia Plateau and Palouse (Oregon’s bruins are similarly mainly in forested, mountainous country), with a very healthy population in Western Washington where you are

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Northwest Sportsman 157

HUNTING allowed to harvest two bears a year.

Mild winters and very abundant food sources along the coast provide great living conditions for bruins, but due to the thick cover and steep terrain, harvesting one can be difficult. The most productive coastal unit was Unit 660, Minot Peak, with a total fall harvest last year of 19 bears. Compare that to Unit 101, Sherman, in Northeast Washington where 56 bears were killed last fall. In fact, the second best unit in the state was just next door to the west, Unit 204, Okanogan East, with 42, making this remote part of the state the place to be for a fall black bear hunt.

That said, hunting doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t open here until Sept. 1, so if you hunt there, you have some extra time to scout. It is unknown how many of the bears were killed incidental to deer (and, shhhhh, elk) hunting, but both the Okanogan East and Sherman have great berry crops as well as less cover

158 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Andy Byrd bagged this nice bruin a couple seasons back in the high country. (JASON BROOKS)

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Northwest Sportsman 159

HUNTING Okanogan County, district biologist Scott Fitkin noted in last fall’s hunting prospects report that 2012 saw a 57 percent hunter success rate increase over 2011. He also suggested hunters find berry fields, and as season progresses, to continue higher into the Cascades where the crop ripens into the fall. Most of the units here open up Aug. 15. The area is also home to the Tripod Fire, which opened up a lot of cover and propagated berry plants and other food sources, along with improved vistas for glassing. Personally, I favor the area around the Tiffany Lakes, where I have ran into bears while fishing in early September.

Across the Cascade Crest from the Okanogan are the North Cascades near Mt. Baker, offering high mountain huckleberry fields popular with early season bear hunters, but also lots of hikers, so make sure of your target. Nooksack, Unit 418, gave up

160 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

41 bears, but Sauk, Unit 437, only yielded eight. The Stillaguamish, Unit 448, had a harvest of 33 bears last year, and with Highway 2 and Stevens Pass being the southern boundary, you can drive up to the alpine and head out from an elevation where the bears are active and feeding throughout the entire summer with good berry fields on the open slopes.

A few years ago I talked to state wildlife biologist Jeff Bernatowicz about the Central Cascades near Chinook and White Passes. He stressed that the area is not really known for its bear hunting as elk are the primary focus. However, those who do want to find bears should concentrate on the berry fields along the Cascade Crest. Looking at last year’s harvest statistics, the Teanaway, Unit 335, gave up 23 bears.

West Klickitat, on the southern slopes of Mt. Adams, yielded 22.

In the Blue Mountains, only two units offer any real chance for bears.

The first is Unit 154, Blue Creek, with 33 bears taken last year and Unit 162, Dayton, with 25. Most of the other units either have higher concentrations of private lands or roll into the wheatlands and don’t offer the food, water and cover bears need.

So, just because it’s July doesn’t mean hunting season is too far off to start scouting. In fact, we are only a few weeks away from fall’s first big game opportunities, and by getting out and scouting now, you will be ready for when bear season opens.

Take the advice from Ron Ellis and look for feeding areas from past years and you will eventually find bears this year. Bear hunting isn’t impossible, it just takes a lot of patience and glassing. Eventually you will find a bear out doing what bears like to do, eating. NS

JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 161

162 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

COLUMNS

Hunters, ODFW Object To Ochoco ORV Trail Proposal

I

t’s taken years of work, and now the Ochoco National Forest has come out with its final environmental impact statement for the Ochoco Summit CENTRAL OREGON

By Scott Staats ORV Trail System project. The result is 129 miles of off-road vehicle trails across the top of the Big Summit Prairie area of the forest, including about 61 miles of motorcycle trails, 48 miles for ATVs and about 20 miles for Jeeps. The forest added the Jeep trails into the modified alternative in response to comments.

Although the ORV community wished for more miles (169), the Oregon Hunters Association, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Sierra Club and dozens of other agencies, organizations and individuals are against the entire project. Reasons include destruction of wildlife habitat, harassment of wildlife, degradation of fish habitat, resource damage and exacerbation of conflict between motorized and nonmotorized recreationists, just to name a few.

There are also currently almost 1,000 miles of designated ORV system trails across Central Oregon already (East Fort Rock: 318 miles; Millican: 256 miles; Three Trails: 222 miles; Cline Buttes: 91 miles; Santiam Pass: 53; Edison: 25 miles, Henderson Flat: 18 miles; and Green Mountain: 8 miles). Many believe that this is more than enough trails for riders.

The Bend, Redmond and Prineville Chapters of OHA supported the No Action alternative. They believe that the forest would not be able to adequately administer, maintain or enforce a developed ORV system, resulting in fish and wildlife impacts and loss of recreational opportunity. Members have contributed many thousands of dollars and many thousands of volunteer hours to preserve and improve wildlife habitat and they say this project will only degrade it.

Total cost of construction for the project is estimated to be $535,047. According to the Forest Service’s own data, off-road vehicle use represents only 0.2 percent of all forest users and OHA doesn’t feel that spending a half-million dollars to benefit only 0.2 percent of the users is justified. There’s a fear that this project will be a “foot in the door” to contin-

Part of the proposed 129-mile-long Ochoco Summit ORV trail system will pass north of Big Summit Prairie, largely private ground and seen here below Mount Pisgah, part of the Ochoco National Forest. Hunters and wildlife managers worry that vehicle disturbance will push elk out of the forest and onto private land. (SCOTT STAATS)

ued expansion.

In a letter to the forest, OHA states, “The soils in the proposed project have demonstrated degradation of this type; increased use will have a negative effect. Water quality will be affected.”

The letter went on to state that “OHV users have never demonstrated the willingness or the ability to prevent habitat damage and negative impacts to wildlife.”

ODFW is concerned that the project will negatively impact native Crooked River redband trout. They are also concerned that national forest managers did not adequately address impacts to elk, and that the best available science was not used on the project to analyze those impacts. The agency feels that disturbance to elk and deer in the project area will send these animals off the forest and onto private land, a sore spot for locals, hunters and the agency.

The Forest Service’s own data show that deer and elk herds are decreasing already, and ODFW blames part of the problem on the number and densities of roads, and say this trail system can only have negative impacts on herds. They say it will also affect JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 163

hunting opportunities and the local economy during the hunting seasons.

The project area already has high road densities (3.2 to 5.0 miles of roads per square mile). Total disturbance to wildlife will be huge. These new trails will dissect a large amount of land and will impact movements of deer and elk as well as have impacts on calving and fawning. The state has been trying for years to get what elk and deer are left on the forest to stay on the forest and this trail system does not support their efforts.

They feel that this project will further displace elk onto private lands, thereby increasing damage by elk. Extensive research at the Starkey Experimental Forest near LaGrande on road densities and wildlife indicates that most big game animals avoid areas of high road densities if possible.

During the scoping process, the service received responses from 70 individuals, agencies and organizations. For the draft EIS there were 235 separate comments. According to the Ochoco forest’s environmental coordinator, most were against the project.

Many public land managers, and the ORV industry, assume that designating additional ORV routes will lead directly to greater compliance, less cross-country travel, less resource damage and fewer conflicts among incompatible uses. Some believe that off-road vehicle riders will quit creating renegade routes once more routes are designated “open” and riders are educated as to where they are and are not allowed to ride.

In contrast, the research (see sidebar) shatters the myth that damage and conflicts are being caused by an insignificant percentage of ORV riders. The findings of these studies suggest that even if the “demand” for more ORV-riding opportunities is met, riders will continue to fulfill their preferences by riding off legal routes.

They also conclude, or at least strongly suggest, that education and information alone are not effective strategies for changing off-road behavior. For example, more law enforcement, with stiffer consequences, is needed.

After the final EIS came out in May, there were 23 objections filed. A meeting between these objectors and the deputy regional forester was scheduled to take place June 17 in Prineville, too late to report on this issue, but stay tuned for follow-up. NS 164 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Illegal ATV use occurred over Memorial Day Weekend near Big Summit Prairie. (SCOTT STAATS)

OH, THEY’RE OFF-ROAD VEHICLES, ALL RIGHT Study after study show that ORV riders do not stay on trails. Here are just a few of them: Colorado: Monaghan and Associates, a marketing research firm, conducted a 2001 study at the behest of the Colorado Coalition for Responsible OHV Riding, a coalition of offroad vehicle representatives, environmentalists and public officials.

They found that the majority of off-roaders understand that staying on designated routes is“fundamental trail etiquette”and that going off trail is not “correct” off-road vehicle behavior. The survey revealed, however, that “as many as two-thirds of adult users go off the trail occasionally.” About 15 to 20 percent admitted to frequently breaking the rules and riding off of legal routes often. Survey participants also stated that “others” ride off-route and cause most of the damage.

Montana: In 2006, Fish, Wildlife and Parks received survey responses from 446 owners of registered ORVs. Among the full sample of respondents, 23 percent “always or sometimes” ride off trails. Over 28 percent “sometimes or never” avoid riparian areas and wetlands, in violation of rules for federal and state public lands in Montana.

Utah: The Division of Parks & Recreation, through Utah State University, conducted a survey of 335 riders from a random sample of the 50,676 people who registered off-road vehicles with the state in 2000.

Of the ATV riders surveyed, 49.4 percent prefer to ride off established trails, while 39 percent did so on their most recent excursion. Of the dirt bike riders surveyed, 38.1 percent prefer to ride off established trails, while 50 percent rode off established trails on their most recent excursion. One-third of the respondents said there should be more law enforcement presence in ORV areas. –SS JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 165

166 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

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COLUMNS

Browning Just Loves That Citori, And So Do Shotgunners

S

hotguns for some people can become addictive; I know guys who own several and it’s never enough.

And in the shotgun world, there are lots of different models from which to choose, almost as in the car world. I’m happy to report that I own, uh, more than one shotgun, and they range all the way from my workBy Dave Workman horse/brush-beater Mossberg 500 pump gun that has done double duty as a bird buster and home defender (I merely swap out the barrels), all the way up to my fancy Beretta side-by-side 12-gauge double and my most recent acquisition, a Franchi Instinct “L” over-and-under 20-gauge.

Years ago, I hunted with longtime pal Mike Krei, who at the time was a local field rep for the National Rifle Association. We were shooting pheasants in eastern Klickitat County on farmland overlooking Umatilla. I had my trusty 12 and he brought along a 20-gauge Browning Citori, as pretty a shotgun as one would care to look at.

Over the years, the Citori has earned a sterling reputation for being a superb smoothbore, regardless of the model variation. Now Browning has added a couple of new models to its 725 series, both in 20 gauge. There are both Field and Sporting models, and as soon as I can get my hands on one – which should be presently – I’ll be down at the local gun range putting it to work. Maybe Browning will let me hang onto it long enough to conk a couple of grouse on the Sept. 1 opener too.

I always used to be a 12-gauge fan, because it really put the hurt on anything I ever shot at. Blue grouse, those great big Cornish game hen-sized, statue-stupid “hooters” that I really enjoy were never a match for a load of No. 6s, and over the past few years I’ve managed to whack several with a 20-gauge Stoeger S/S double-trigger gun I acquired.

This sold me on the 20 as a sweet alternative to the 12, and presumably if I live to retirement, I’ll have a 20 out there in those lazy autumns, bringing law and order to the winged beasties.

ON TARGET

WHEN IT COMESto O/U shotguns, Browning’s Citori turns shotgunning into something of an art form. According to the recent announcement of these guns, the Citori 725 “comes standard with all the features of other 725 models including the Fire Lite Mechanical Trigger System and full-width hinge pin and tapered locking bolt receiver design.”

The Field model, which I will have on consignment, has a silver nitride finish on the receiver, with high-res engraving of game bird scenes. That comes as no surprise, since shotguns have been wear-

ing that sort of fancy engraving for as long as I can remember.

It also has a Grade II/III walnut stock with a gloss-oil finish – and from Browning, I’d expect nothing less. It will be offered with 26- or 28-inch barrels (I asked for a 26-inch model, though my own O/U has 28-inch tubes, and I’m anxious to compare) and something new, the Invector-DS choke tube (DAVE WORKMAN) system.

The downside to all of this high quality is the MSRP, which pings in at $2,469.99.

Ah, there’s more.

The Sporting Model is a dandy in its own right, with the silver nitride finish on the receiver, deeply blued vent rib barrels, gold-accented target engraving and a Grade III/IV walnut stock that has a gloss-oil finish. The stock features a close-radius pistol grip and palm swell. Barrels for this model are available in 28-, 30- or 32-inch versions, with fiber optic front sights.

Both models feature back-bored barrels and Vector Pro lengthened forcing cones, a combination I’m eager to sample just to see how it might improve my less-than-stellar performance against clay targets and – hopefully – live game.

Just to show those guys who spend all their time at the Sporting Clays range that their sport ain’t cheap, Browning’s MSRP on this model is $3,139.99.

Having had the chance to shoot a few Browning Citoris over the years, I can attest that they are fine shotguns. There is, of course, nothing more rewarding than putting a good shotgun to work, filling the bag.

AND THAT BRINGS us around to one of my favorite subjects: upland bird hunting, namely grouse. Recently I started a thread on the Hunting Washington forum, reminding people that now’s the time of JULY 2014

Northwest Sportsman 167

COLUMNS Browning’s new pair of 20-gauge shotguns, the Citori 725 Sporting and Field Models, are more expensive, but, says the author, “turns shotgunning into something of an art form.”

(BROWNING)

year to be scouting for grouse broods.

That stretch of warmer weather we enjoyed in early June should pay off with a good hatch, and by mid- to late-July we should be seeing fool hens with their youngsters sneaking along the road edges.

This is the time of year when it is really important to be paying attention to this because it can pay off in great action, and superb table fare in about two months.

July usually finds me roaming some of my favorite grouse haunts in East-central Washington, either up toward Salmon La

168 Northwest Sportsman JULY 2014

Sac or in the other direction, along South Cle Elum and Taneum Ridges, up around Quartz Mountain and maybe an overnighter up the Little Naches to include a little drive up toward Raven Roost.

Don’t overlook Government Meadow, and the upper reaches of the Cispus River down in eastern Lewis County.

Up in Okanogan County, over the years I have found grouse up toward Black Pine Lake, and along the ridgeline that separates Okanogan and Chelan Counties.

I have also shot grouse, and actually not shot them at times I was in the middle of what seemed like a herd of them over on the Little Pend Oreille game range, and

up behind Browns Lake in Pend Oreille County.

Fact is, you could find grouse in a lot of places just by looking hard. But right now is when you should make darn certain of that by doing a mid- to late-summer camping trek to your hunting spots. Take along a good map and actually mark some of these spots for later reference. I’ve done that in the past, and almost invariably it paid off with birds in the bag.

There’s something else too. Be sure and take along a camera with good telephoto capabilities. Send some images over to Northwest Sportsman and be prepared to share some of your success stories this fall.

Editor Andy Walgamott would certainly appreciate it, and your fellow readers would be delighted to see how you’ve done. NS

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