Itching to fish? WA is stocking 65,000+ rainbow trout in these lakes for Black Friday
Washington’s lakes are getting a fish infusion ahead of Black Friday: more than 65,000 extra rainbow trout, to be exact.
The trout haul — split across two dozen bodies of water — is part of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s push to get folks to spend time outdoors during the post-Thanksgiving commercial holiday.
“WDFW has offered Black Friday fishing for more than a decade, and it’s been a big hit for anglers statewide,” Steve Caromile, WDFW inland trout manager, said in a news release. “If you’ve never participated before, this is a great year to start a new tradition spending time outside with friends and family the day after Thanksgiving.”
Thousands of jumbo trout, referred to as “holiday special” by WDFW, are included in this year’s batch. Those can measure up to 17 inches and weigh as much as 3 pounds.
Lakes and counties getting trout include:
Adams and Lincoln counties — Fourth of July Lake
Chelan County — Roses Lake
Clark County — Klineline Pond, Battle Ground Lake
Cowlitz County — Kress Lake
Island County — Cranberry Lake
King County — Beaver and Green lakes
Klickitat County — Rowland Lake
Lewis County — South Lewis County Park and Fort Borst Park ponds
Pacific County — Cases Pond
Pierce County — American and Tanwax lakes
Snohomish County — Gissburg Ponds, Lake Tye, Ballinger and Silver lakes
Spokane County — Hog Canyon Lake
Stevens County — Hatch Lake
Thurston — Black, Long and Offutt lakes
Yakima County — Elton Pond North
Earlier this fall, additional Western Washington lakes were stocked with trout, such as Thurston County’s Munn, St. Clair, and Ward lakes and Pierce County’s Harts and Bonney lakes.
The WDFW Black Friday program has aimed to “raise thousands of rainbow trout for a late season fishery in select year-round lakes,” as noted on the department’s blog. It’s become popular among anglers hankering to cast a line when pickings are slim.
Get trout-fishing tips from the department’s blog and current information on trout stocking on its website.
