Local Lakes With Great Winter Action 5

With most of the local rivers shut down to steelheading, blackmouth being spotty at best, how do I get my fishing fix this weekend if I want to stay local?  Simple, head to Lakes Washington or Sammamish to get in on some of the great cutthroat fishing that's been going on. Both of these lakes offer some of the hottest winter action that often gets overlooked this time of year. Make no mistake either, these fish aren't your little 14 inch rainbows that half the state will be chasing later this spring, these are meaty fish that can tip the scales at up to 8lbs. These fish are great fighters as well, often leaving the water and exciting everyone on the boat.

My son Mason with a nice cutthroat caught just south of Mercer Island.

Although there are quite a few techniques to use when targeting these fish, trolling a firecracker sized herring or a wedding ring tipped with nightcrawler seems to work the best. Some guys, such as Todd Daniels with Tall Tails Guide Service, use their own twist when fishing these techniques. For more on that watch this short video on rigging a wedding ring spinner with a night crawler. I have also had some success trolling a jointed Rapala or nightcrawler using a Mustad Slow Death Hook.

For your rod and reel setup think kokanee. No Nelly, I'm not talking about the beer. I like to use an 8 foot Fetha Styx Fresh Water Series lite action rod rated for 4-10 lb line. If you haven't fished Fetha Styx new line of rods that are hitting the market now then get your hands on one. If you have, then you already know about the quality of their new blends and no doubt you also know that they put their money where their mouth is with their line of True Hero and CCA rods. For each one they sell, money goes directly to benefit police, firefighers, or CCA.

If you are fishing Lake Washington, location is key as this is one big lake. I like to target the south end of the lake near the mouth of the Cedar River. The trolling pattern most guys use here is a circular pattern from the southern tip of Mercer Island to the mouth of the Cedar river and then back around by Coulon Park. Many times I will see guys zig-zagging the entire area as well.

Other great spots to target are the floating bridges. If you are going to fish the bridges just remember that fishing is not allowed within 100 yds of the bridges. You probably wouldn't want to be too close anyway because you can get caught up on some of the cables that run from the bridge. Don't ask me how I know this but I did needed to go buy a new downrigger ball after one trip fishing the south end of the I-90 bridge. 

Here are the best trolling lanes along the 520 bridge on Lake Washington. 

No matter what you use in your troll pattern, there are two things to remember. Number one is to troll slow, I like to troll as fast as I can while still keeping my downrigger cable straight up and down.  Number two is get your line anywhere from 50-100 yards back. These fish can be very boat shy at times and it is neccessary to get your gear way back. 

My business partner, Paul Dent, with a fish caught off the mouth of the Cedar.

Just remember, the Northwest offers us great opportunity no matter what time of the year it is. Get out and enjoy it, just as some of Todd Daniels clients did recently on Lake Sammamish. Check out some recent TROUT FISHING VIDEO from Todd's boat.