There have been some good reports from the rivers and streams that opened Friday. Among them are the Skykomish and Cascade rivers. Reports from area lakes also indicate that action is picking up for trout and kokanee. The details:
RIVERS
Cascade: There was some decent chinook fishing when the river opened Friday, said Mike Chamberlain at Ted’s Sports Center. The fish were on the small side, weighing 5-10 pounds. Most people are using eggs.
Cispus: Last week, Tacoma Power employees released 170 spring chinook adults, 30 jacks and one winter-run steelhead into the river.
Columbia: Salmon and steelhead fishing has been slow in the lower river, said a state report. Sturgeon fishing from the mouth to Marker 82 has been fair, with 15 legal-size fish kept among 107 anglers checked by the state. The shad fishing has not been red hot, but there are plenty of fish being caught. Bank anglers just below Bonneville Dam averaged 10 shad per rod, said a state report. The 22,613 shad counted Monday at Bonneville Dam was the season high.
Cowlitz: Fishing has been fair in recent days. Good numbers of spring chinook are being caught, mostly at Barrier Dam, said Marshall Borsom at Fish Country. Eggs and sand shrimp seem to be the best bait for bank anglers. Boaters are back-bouncing eggs and pulling plugs with herring, sardines or tuna bellies. More summer-run steelhead are being caught at the hatchery.
Klickitat: Bank anglers in the lower river are still catching some spring chinook and summer-run steelhead, said a state report. There have been few people fishing in the upper river.
Skykomish: Although river flows were high for the opener, the steelhead fishing has been fair to good in the Reiter Ponds area. The fish have been chrome-bright.
Tilton: The fishing has been good, although the water has been high. Try using small brown or black streamers and stonefly nymphs.
Yakima: The flows that started to jump Friday never stopped rising until Monday, leaving the river unfishable for now, said a staffer at Red’s Fly Shop.
LAKES
Clear (Pierce): There are reports of some limits of kokanee, although the fish are on the small side. The fish seem to be holding in water 15-25 feet deep.
Deep: The lake is producing some good catches of rainbow trout, and the panfish are starting to get active, according to one angler’s online report.
Mayfield: Trout fishing is picking up, finally. Boat anglers are using pop gear with Wedding Rings tipped with nightcrawlers.
Offut: The lake has been producing plenty of limits in the last few days. People in boats are having the best success, trolling with Wedding Rings tipped with worms. Shore anglers are using dough baits.
Riffe: The lake is still producing silvers. Most of the fish are being caught in the east end of the lake near the fishing bridge. People are using corn, cocktail shrimp and worms, or casting spinners, Borsom said.
SALT WATER
Fly fishing: Searun cutthroat trout fishing has been very good, said Anil Srivastava at Puget Sound Fly Co. They are feeding on chum fry and sand lances. The trout must be caught and released.
South Sound: The salmon fishing in Tacoma-area waters has been slow, in part because of the weather and big tidal changes, said Art Tachell at Point Defiance Boathouse.
Point Dalco and the flats off the clay banks have produced some fish weighing 8-15 pounds. There were 76 anglers checked at the ramp Sunday, and they had three chinook and six lingcod. In the Olympia area, few people have been fishing.
jeff.mayor@thenewstribune.com 253-597-8640 blog.thenewstribune.com/adventure
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