Tag Archives: cowlitz

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

Cowlitz Slow for Steelhead, Columbia Picking Up for Springers
Justin Leach at Bob’s Sporting Goods in Longview says the fishing has been really slow on the Cowlitz for steelhead. Leach says the guys that are catching fish on the Cowlitz right now are working extremely hard for them. He says most of the guides are catching just a couple of steelhead a day for four or five rods. The springer bite in the Portland area, however, has picked up quite a bit this past week. Leach said he’s heard reports of springers in the Lower Cowlitz around the Camelot area, as well.

The Year of Big Fish Continues in Forks
Bill Meyer of Anglers Guide Service in Forks said he taped three steelhead in the mid-20’s last week and he heard of several more trophy class steelhead being caught by other local guides. Meyer’s customers caught two of the big steelhead on the Sol Duc and the third one came out of the Calawah River. He said to time your fishing with the rains on the coast for the best chance at good fishing.

Blackmouther’s Still Catching Fish in the San Juans
Kevin John from Holiday Sports in Burlington is reporting decent blackmouth fishing on the banks and on the northern side of the islands around Parker Reef and Pt. Thompson. He says the fishing seems to have slowed down quite a bit in the Rosario Strait, which has been producing fish all winter. Kevin’s top choices in the Strait of Juan de Fuca would be Coyote, Hein, Eastern, and Salmon banks. He said most of the blackmouth have been falling to either cut plug or whole herring or small spoons and hoochies.

Kokanee on the Surface at Lake Stevens
Marcy Rockenbach at Gregs Custom Tackle in Lake Stevens says the kokanee fishing is starting to pick up on Lake Stevens. She says the fish have been really shallow and anglers are catching them flatlining Dick Nite spoons, Apex lures, or wedding rings tipped with shoe peg corn or Berkley artificial maggots. Marcy says the fish are averaging around 10 to 12 inches and that the numbers of fish being caught has really picked up this past week.

Trout Still Biting on American Lake
Mike Barr at Bills Boathouse on American Lake said that anglers are still catching nice rainbow trout off the boathouse dock. He said there’s been some nice trout in the 16 to 17 inch range and they’re mostly hitting Berkley Power Egg’s in yellow or lemon lime. Mike hit the lake for Kokanee yesterday and didn’t come up with anything. Barr says the kokanee bite usually starts to pick up around early April.

Yet Another Razor Dig this Weekend
State fishery managers have approved another razor clam on the Washington coast this weekend. Twin Harbors, Long Beach, Copalis, and Mocrocks beaches will be open today and tomorrow and Twin Harbors beach will remain open thru Monday. Todays low tide is at 4:50 p.m., tomorrows tide is 6:33 p.m., and Mondays tide at Twin Harbors is at 7:12 p.m..

Poachers Busted in Okanogan
Wenatchee World – State Department of Fish and Wildlife officers seized 9 trophy deer heads from a poacher in Okanogan last Friday. A 10th deer head was recovered last month. Officers say the killing was the work of a poaching ring made up of several individuals working together to poach trophy bucks. Both mule deer and whitetail deer were taken and all of them were 4 point or better. One impressive buck was a 5 by 6 with an impressive 29 inch spread. Those arrested in the case face a fine of up to $6,000 per animal.

New Product Allows Mushers to Go…on the Go
With the 2013 Iditarod dog sled race underway in Alaska this past week some of the female mushers are testing out a new product called Pee Pants. Pee Pants are described as a combination of bicycle shorts, a funnel, and a tube that pokes out next to the mushers boot. The women mushers testing the product are hoping the invention will allow them fewer pit stops along the 1,000 mile long Iditarod trail. Pee Pants were developed by a North Carolina doctor seeking to provide a more pleasurable outdoor experience for women. You can find Pee Pants online at MyPeePants.com!

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

“B” Run Steelhead Trickling into the Cowlitz
Phil Stephens from Mystical Legends Guide Service says there’s some really big three-salt hatchery steelhead cruising up the Cowlitz River right now. The “B” run on the Cowlitz just got started and while most of the guides are only picking up a few fish a day it won’t be long before the run gets into full swing. Stephens says these late steelhead hit a yarnie really well and he fishes them almost exclusively when he’s sidedrifting. He suggests using a 4 to 5 foot leader and using a little shrimp scent on the yarn sometimes helps to draw strikes. The Cowlitz “B” run starts to hit the river in earnest in early March and runs strong thru the end of April.

Lake Washington Still Productive for Cutties
Todd Daniels from Tall Tails Guide Service says he’s still catching around a half a dozen nice cutthroat a day on Lake Washington. Daniels says the fish have moved a little deeper and he’s been getting most of his bites trolling 20 to 35 feet deep. His best lures have been orange label cut plug herring and fire tiger needlefish spoons trolled at least 100 feet behind the boat. Daniels said the area between the Cedar River, Mercer Island, and the Boeing plant is where most of the action is occurring.

Skwala Hatch Nearing on the Yakima
Josh Holt from Red’s Fly Shop on the Yakima River says there’s been a few Skwala’s around, but overall the fish are still in their winter feeding mode. He says most of the trout are being caught nymphing with size 16 to 20 red or black brassy’s. The guides working out of Red’s have been getting a couple of trout a day on dries and he suspects that the Skwala hatch should get into full swing in the next couple of weeks when the weather starts to warm up. The forecast is for 60 degrees in the Yakima Canyon tomorrow and if that weather pattern continues the hatches should start to come off soon.

Puget Sound Salmon Forecasts Released
The salmon forecasts for the Puget Sound and the Washington coast were just released and numbers for Puget Sound look very good for the summer of 2013. Salmon runs of note are the Nooksack with a forecast of 46,500 Chinook. The Nooksack run has increased steadily from 23,000 king salmon in 2009 to this year’s forecast of over 46,000 fish. Hood Canal will also see an increase of Chinook with a combination of wild and hatchery Chinook making up the 69,000 Chinook projected to head back to the Canal. On the coho front the Skagit is forecast for 137,200 wild coho this fall, up from just 48,300 last year and the ever-solid Snohomish system is forecast to get just over 163,000 silvers. And the pink salmon forecast for the Puget Sound is for an astonishing 6 million pink salmon to stream into Puget Sound. While it’s too early to tell what the seasons will look like many think that with the rock-solid forecasts for both Chinook and coho they should be much the same as last year on Puget Sound. A more detailed look at the salmon run forecasts is posted in the Outdoor Line forums.

Spring Chinook Seminar at Outdoor Emporium Today
Don’t miss the yearly spring Chinook seminar today from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Outdoor Emporium in downtown Seattle. The seminar features longtime Columbia River guides Eric Linde and Steve Leonard along with Outdoor Line host Tom Nelson. They’ll be covering everything from run timing, where to fish, and how to rig up for spring Chinook. Outdoor Emporium provides a free lunch and there will be a ton of tackle giveaways, as well.

Duck Dynasty Crew Runs off Singer Morissey
Grammy award winning singer Morrissey cancelled a performance on the Jimmy Kimmel show this past week after finding out that the cast of A&E’s hit show “Duck Dynasty” was also booked as a guest on the show. The former front man for the Smiths is an ardent animal rights activist and said he couldn’t take the risk of being on a show alongside people who amount to animal serial killers. The publicity didn’t hurt Duck Dynasty one bit either, as it posted the largest viewing audience in A&E’s history the night after the Morissey/Kimmel catfight with 9 million viewers.

Squirrel Cookoff World Championships Announced
Joe Wilson of Squirrel’s Unlimited just announced the 2013 World Champion Squirrel Cook Off to be held on September 7th. The event will be held in Bentonville, Arkansas and will feature hundreds of contestants from across the country that are the best of the best at whoopin’ up a mean batch of squirrel. Squirrel’s Unlimited president Joe Wilson says the event will draw an estimated 10,000 people to the area. Last years squirrel cook off will be televised on Bizarre Foods on the Cooking channel on April 1st. Interested parties should log onto squirrelcookoff.com for more information.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

Jerry Thomas Wins Oly Pen Salmon Derby

A record catch of 351 hatchery Chinook were weighed in at the Olympic Peninsula Salmon Derby last weekend setting a new record for the 40 year old derby. 820 anglers fished in the event compared to 650 last year. Mount Vernon native Jerry Thomas took first place and $10,000 with a 15.90 pound blackmouth, Lauren Selvig from Port Orchard took second with a 14.80 pound blackmouth, and Don White of Hansville took 3rd place with a 14.35 pounder. Thomas hooked the winning fish first thing in the morning on Saturday near Protection Island on an orange label herring. It’s the first time he’s fished the Olympic Peninsula Derby and he says he’ll be back next year.

Lake Roosevelt Producing Limits of Rainbows

Don Talbot at Hooked on Toys in Wenatchee says the rainbow fishing is still good on Lake Roosevelt. He recommends trolling small Apex lures in either purple or bright red with anywhere from a half ounce to an ounce of lead. Talbot says the fish are cruising in the top 20 feet of the water column and anglers should set the gear as much as 200 feet back from the boat to get strikes. Talbot also recommends using a K-Fly tipped with a nightcrawler if the Apex’s aren’t working. Talbot says to launch at Spring Canyon boat launch and fish the lower six to eight of the lake just above Grand Coulee Dam.

Steelhead Showing in the Cowlitz

Derek Anderson from Screamin’ Reels Guide Service reports that a few of the “B” run steelhead are starting to show up in the Cowlitz. He said a friend of his caught three the other day and there were some fish being caught by the bank anglers at Blue Creek, as well. Anderson thinks that things will pick up the first week of March when the run typically starts to show up. The majority of the hatchery steelhead planted in the Cowlitz River now show up in the river as a late “B” run that starts in late February and goes all the way thru the end of April. These fish are big too…averaging around twelve pounds and steelhead into the upper teens aren’t uncommon.

Razor Clam Dig Scheduled for this Weekend

WDFW approved another razor clam dig for this weekend at Long Beach and Twin Harbors on the Washington coast. Today’s tide is at 5:12 p.m. and tomorrows tide is at 5:47 p.m.. Clam diggers are limited to 15 razor clams per day and are required to keep the first 15 clams they dig. Check out the WDFW website for more details.

Spring Chinook Seminar at Three Rivers Marine

Northwest salmon fishing expert Josh Hughes will be doing a spring Chinook seminar at Three Rivers Marine in Woodinville on March 9th. Hughes will cover in detail where to fish on the Columbia River for springers and exactly how to rig up to catch these prized fish. Three Rivers will also be conducting mini-clinics starting at 10:00 a.m. on everything from how to rig a cut plug herring to wrapping and tuning a Kwikfish. If you’re at all interested in fishing the Columbia and its tributaries for Chinook this spring this seminar is a must. There’s bbq’d hot dogs and soda at the event and please RSVP to let them know you’re coming.

100,000 Descend on Tulsa for the Bassmaster Classic

Approximately 100,000 people are expected at both Grand Lake and in the city of Tulsa this weekend for the 43rd annual Bassmaster Classic. It’s the first time the Bassmaster Classic has ever been held in Oklahoma and the farthest west the Classic has been in more than 30 years. The angler with the best three day bass total in the Classic wins an impressive $500,000 and much, much more in endorsements. The big story at the Classic this year is the weather. There was snow on the ground for practice during the week and temperatures are supposed to drop below freezing every night.  The cold weather didn’t slow down Mike Iaconelli and Cliff Price though, who are both tied for 1st place after day one with 21 pounds, 8 ounces apiece. 4 time Classic champion Kevin VanDam is in a very close 4th place with 19 pounds 12 ounces.

Wolf Population Doubles in Washington

According to a survey just released by WDFW the number of gray wolves in Washington has nearly doubled in the past year. The survey found at least 51 wolves in 9 packs in Washington state. In 2011 there was just 27 wolves in the state. Bioligists suspect that there are two additional wolf packs in the state and think there could be as many as 100 wolves in Washington state.

Russian’s Crowned Ice Fishing Champions

From the A.P. – The Russian’s just took the gold medal in the World Ice Fishing Championships in Central Wisconsin last weekend. Eleven teams from around the world competed Saturday and Sunday on Beg Eau Pleine Reservoir near Wausau. The Finland ice fishing team took 2nd place, Lithuania took 3rd, and the the U.S. team took fourth place despite having the “home ice” advantage. Last year the ice fishing championships were held in Khazahkstan where the U.S. team took 11th place.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

New State Record Lake Trout Caught
Phil Colyar from Wenatchee just caught the new state record Mackinaw trout from Lake Chelan on Monday. The huge lake trout weighed 35 pounds, 10 ounces and beat the old state record by just 3 ounces. Colyar caught the fish in 270 feet of water in front of Kelly’s Resort on the south shore of Lake Chelan. After a 35 minute battle he and fishing buddy Jack Stagge raced to the nearby hospital in Chelan, which happened to have the only certified scale in the area. Colyar, Stagge, doctors, and nurses all watched as the scale ticked up to 35 pounds, 10 ounces. Colyar is having the fish mounted and plans to keep fishing for big Mackinaw’s in Lake Chelan, as he thinks there’s even larger Mackinaw to be caught in the lake.

American Lake Still Kicking Out Rainbows
Mike Barr from Bill’s Boathouse on American Lake says that anglers are still getting limits of nice trout fishing off the of the boathouse dock. He says a bunch of small trout in the 7 to 9 inch range just showed up, but the people that are putting in some time are going home with limits of trout in the 13 to 15 inch range. He recommends fishing yellow or lime green Power Eggs on the bottom in 12 to 35 feet of water. Barr says there’s definitely no shortage of trout in American Lake.

First Springer Caught on the Cowlitz
Todd Daniels from Tall Tails Guide Service knows of at least five spring Chinook being caught on the lower Cowlitz River this past week. Daniels says the springers have been caught in the Castlerock area and he knows that at least one of them hit a Kwikfish. There’s been sporadic reports of spring Chinook being caught on the Kalama River, as well. The forecast for both rivers is down this year with only 5,500 springer’s projected for the Cowlitz and just 700 spring Chinook projected for the Kalama River.

“Uncle Pete” Leading in the Roche Harbor Derby
After day one of the Roche Harbor Derby “Uncle” Pete Nelson is leading the derby board with a 16.7 pound blackmouth. Carter Whalen is in a very close second place with a 16.4 pound blackmouth and Derek Floyd and company are leading in the total weight category with 46 pounds 3 ounces. There’s still one more day to go in the two day derby and we’ll have more coverage and the final list of winners available on TheOutdoorLine.com.

Oly-Pen Salmon Derby Offers $22,000 in Cash
Tickets are on sale now for the Olympic Peninsula Salmon Derby happening February 16-18. The derby area extends from Freshwater Bay all the way to Port Ludlow and includes the banks in the Strait of Juan De Fuca and the western shore of Whidbey Island. Derby weigh stations are located at Freshwater Bay, Port Angeles, Sequim, Gardiner, and Port Townsend. Tickets are $40 apiece and derby chairman Dan Tatum expects well over 1,000 anglers to fish in the event, which boasts $22,000 in cash and prizes. John Otness from Tacoma won the event last year with a 17.60 pound blackmouth. The Outdoor Line will be fishing in the event and broadcasting live from Port Townsend next Saturday. For more information log onto GardinerSalmonDerby.org.

Hood Canal Derby Next Weekend
Tickets are on sale for the Bill Nik Memorial Derby next Saturday at Misery Point boat launch. The derby is ran by the Kitsap Poggie Club and boasts $2000 in cash and a ton of prizes. Last year’s derby was won by Shane Morrison with a 13.6 pound blackmouth he plucked from Hood Canal. Tickets are available at Kitsap Marina, Defiane Marine, Aqua Tech Marine, Brother Dons, Seabeck General Store, Papas Eats and Treats in Port Orchard, and Camp Union Saloon in Seabeck.

Maine Legislators Out to Ban Swim Baits
KeepAmericaFishing.org is reporting that legislators in Maine just introduced a bill that would prohibit the use of all “rubber” lures. The intent of the bill is to ban the soft plastic swim baits that most Maine anglers use every day. The bill would also ban the use of biodegradable swim baits, as well. Extensive tests have proven that plastic baits cause minimal problems for fish and they usually regurgitate them or pass them without problems.

REI Executive Named Secretary of the Interior
The Associated Press is reporting that President Obama just nominated REI’s Chief Executive Officer Sally Jewell as the new Interior Secretary. Jewell has helped push REI to nearly 2 billion in annual revenues and a place on Fortune Magazine’s “Best Places to Work”. The Interior Department manages more than 500 million acres in national parks and other public lands and more than 1 billion acres offshore. If confirmed by the Senate Jewell will replace current Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, who has announced he will step down in March.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

Last Clam Dig of 2012 Scheduled
The tradition of digging razor clams on New Year’s Eve continues as WDFW just tentatively scheduled the last razor clam dig of 2012 for December 28th thru the 31st on the Washington Coast. Twin Harbors Beach will open on the 28th and then Twin Harbors, Mocrocks, and Long Beach will open up on Saturday. On Sunday and Monday Twin Harbors, Long Beach, Mocrocks, and Copalis Beaches will be open to razor clam digging. As many as 20,000 people typically descend on the Washington coast for razor clam openers providing a huge economic boost to small coastal communities.

Dismal Spring Chinook Run Forecast for Columbia River
State, federal, and tribal biologists completed their forecast for Columbia River spring Chinook last week and things don’t look all that rosy for 2013. They forecast a run of just 141,000 upriver springers for the Columbia, the poorest in 6 years. While slightly down from 2012 the Willamatte forecast came in at 59,845 spring Chinook, which is down slightly from last year’s run of just over 65,000. Last year’s spring Chinook run forecast was 314,000 fish and the actual run came in well under escapement at just 203,100 fish. Anglers flock to the Columbia every year starting in early March for a chance to catch what many consider to be the best eating fish on the West Coast.

San Juan Blackmouth Still Good, Brant Numbers Looking Good
Kevin John at Holiday Sports (360-757-4361) in Burlington reports good numbers of blackmouth being caught in the islands when anglers can get out. He says high winds have kept most boats off the water, but when the wind lay’s down the fishing has been very good. Kevin said the Rosario Strait has been the most productive area and the average size has been 8 to 12 pounds. Small spoons like Coho Killers and Kingfisher Lite’s in green or purple with UV on them have been the go-to lure so far. He also reported that biologists will make another flight next week to determine whether the brant season will open in mid-January. He seems to think it will, since brant numbers appear to be up overall over last year.

Puget Sound Shrimpers Get Quota Boost in 2013
The state Fish and Wildlife Commission voted last Saturday to increase the recreational spot shrimp quota to 70% of the overall non-tribal catch in Puget Sound. The increase translates to more days on the water for prawners in 2013. Sport shrimpers in south-central Puget Sound had just two days on the water last season compared to 51 days in 2003. This year, the season will increase to five days in south-central Puget Sound. In the San Juan Islands the spot shrimp season will increase from 6 days last season to 32 days. Shrimpers should check out the WDFW website for a full rundown of the upcoming Puget Sound shrimp season.

Sky and Snoqualmie Steelhead Showing in Flurries
The fishing counter at Three Rivers Marine in Woodinville is reporting steelhead showing up at the hatchery areas on both the Skykomish and the Snoqualmie in flurries and that no big numbers of steelhead have really showed up yet. Most of the fish have been taken later in the morning and they recommend covering as much water from the bank as possible. Three Rivers Marine custom jigs have been taking a lot of fish and they also recommend using a new product called Hevi-Beads, which seems to be working well in very high pressure areas like Reiter Ponds.

Lewis and Elochoman Kicking out Steelhead
Chase Sick from Bob’s Sporting Goods (360-425-3870) in Longview is reporting good steelhead fishing on the East Fork of the Lewis River and also over on the Elochoman River near Cathlamet. Chase says the go-to rig so far this winter has been jigs in either peach or pink under a float. He says any jig with a shrimp color seems to be getting the job done. The best jigs so far have been John’s Jigs and AeroJigs. He expects good fishing to continue for hatchery fish until the wild steelhead show up in February.

Riding the Cowlitz Roller Coaster
Todd Daniels from Tall Tails Guide Service (206-437-8766) said he’s been getting close to his limit of steelhead every day on the Cowlitz River this past week and the fish have been big so far this winter. He’s been working hard to get his clients into fish though and says the bite has been far from spectacular. He said the majority of the fish are being caught very close to the Blue Creek Hatchery and that boaters should bring both yarnies and eggs along. Daniels said bank anglers have been scoring steelhead off and on with jigs under a float, but again nothing spectacular.

IGFA Certifies New World Record Yellowfin Tuna
The IGFA has officially approved the 427 pound yellowfin tuna caught by Guy Yocum on September 28th as the new all tackle world record and the 130 pound line class record. Guy was fishing aboard the El Suertudo (“The Lucky One”) about 100 miles from Cabo San Lucas, Mexico when the big tuna hooked up. It took Yocum approximately 50 minutes to land the huge yellowfin, which was hooked on a Mustad Demon circle hook. Yocum’s world record catch previously belonged to Mike Livingston, who caught a 405 pound yellowfin in 2010 fishing out of Magdalena Bay, Mexico. Since Yocum’s tuna was hooked using a Mustad hook it will qualify him for $1 million in the Mustad Hook-a-Million contest.

Chad Belding at Holiday Sports Next Week
Chad Belding of the popular and entertaining hunting show The Fowl Life on the Sportsman’s Channel will be at Holiday Sports in Burlington on December 29th from 2 to 4 p.m. to sign autographs and talk waterfowl hunting with fans of the show.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

WDFW Announces Razor Clam Dig
Clam diggers can look forward to some of the best tides of the year when Twin Harbors opens on December 11th for 6 days, followed by Mocrocks, Long Beach, and Copalis that will open up on Friday December 14th. All four beaches will remain open thru Sundays tide, which is set for 8:47 p.m..

Bogachiel Heating Up
Mike Zavadlov from Mike Z’s Guide Service (360-640-8109) in Forks reported decent fishing on the Bogachiel River on Thursday of this past week. The river had four feet of visibility and Mike said they had hooked a few fish but the river was still fairly high at the time. He felt like the Bogey should fish well over the weekend as it dropped into prime fishable shape. The Bogachiel River was the only river in the immediate Forks area to receive a steelhead plant in 2011 because of an outbreak of the IHN virus. For hatchery steelhead the Bogachiel will be the only game in town until the wild fish show up.

Cowlitz Hit and Miss for Steelhead
Todd Daniels from Tall Tails Guide Service  (206-437-8766) is reporting fairly tough fishing conditions on the Cowlitz River so far this winter. He says they’ve been catching one to three steelhead a day just below the Blue Creek HatcheryHit or miss, but overall it’s been very hit or miss. Daniels says the size of the fish has been great though with most of the fish weighing from ten pounds up to the mid teens. Daniels has been drifting yarnies on a four foot leader tipped with an EZ Egg and he says with the high flows you’ve got to get tight to the bank where the steelhead are holding. The Cowlitz has been flowing at 14,000 cfs and the Northwest River Forecast Center predicts that the Cowlitz will drop down to around 11,000 cfs by mid week.

Weather Needed to get Skagit Ducks Moving
Travis Brewer from Banded Hunts (360-333-2488) in Mount Vernon says there’s a ton of ducks on Skagit Bay, but they haven’t been flying much the last couple of days. He thinks if the snow level and the barometer drops this weekend like it’s supposed to the ducks will likely hit the flooded fields in the Skagit Valley to feed. Otherwise weekend hunters should concentrate their efforts on the bay for their best chance at a good shoot. Brewer also recommends doing as much scouting as possible before heading out.

San Juan Blackmouth Fishing Off to a Good Start
Blackmouth fishing in the San Juan Islands seems to be off to a good start. Winter blackmouth into the mid-teens have been reported from the Rosario Strait and also on the west side of Orcas Island. 75 angling teams descended on Friday Harbor this weekend for the 3rd Annual Resurrection Blackmouth Derby. A 15.5 pound blackmouth is on top of the derby board right now followed by a 14.5 pounder. With one more day to go it’s anybody’s derby at this point. The Outdoor Line is broadcasting live from Friday Harbor this weekend and don’t forget to check out TheOutdoorLine.com for a full derby report.

Minnesota Twins Target Free Agents with Venison Jerky
The Minnesota Twins have come up with a unique way to entice free agents to upgrade their ailing rotation: the gift of venison jerky. Says General Manager Tim Ryan, “We know we’re not going to compete with the Yankees and Red Sox of the world as far as the money we can put up, so we have to spend smarter and add value where we can. And if you want to convince a potential free agent or another club to strike a deal, who’s going to say no to some of Glen Perkins homemade venison jerky? Probably no one.” The Twins closer and outdoors enthusiast is thrilled that his venison jerky, or “Perkins Jerkins is an integral part of the team’s attempt to improve their chances to compete in the competitive AL Central.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

Humptulips and Satsop Kicking out Coho
Patient anglers that waited until the end of the season to fill their freezers with coho were rewarded with great fishing this past week on the Humptulips and Satsop Rivers. Scott Sypher from Canyon Man’s Guide Service (206-518-4982) and Phil Stephens from Mystical Legends Guide Service (206-940-0052) both reported excellent silver fishing on both rivers. They both got quick limits on the Humptulips fishing eggs under a float two days ago and the fish have been big…running between 10 and 15 pounds. Over on the Satsop several fish in the 18 to 20 pound range have been reported the last couple of days, as well. These fish are often called the Christmas coho because the fishing usually remains good right up until Santa Claus rolls into town. The only problem is that the Northwest River Forecast Center is predicting that these rivers will be well out of fishable shape until as late as next weekend.

Cowlitz Slow for Steelhead
Outside of just a few winter steelhead being caught on the Cowlitz River fishing has been really slow there this past week. Derek Anderson from Screamin’ Reels Guide Service (206-849-2574) thinks the next high water should bring some fish into the system in the next week or so. The Northwest River Forecast Center is calling for the Cowlitz to ramp up to over 16,000 cfs by mid next week after a series of wet weather systems hits Western Washington, which is much too high to effectively fish for steelhead.

Blackmouth Still Holding off South Whidbey
When the weather allows for it Derek Floyd from Angler’s Choice Charters (425-239-5740) has been stroking the blackmouth at Possession Bar off the South end of Whidbey Island. Derek said he landed 13 legal blackmouth last Saturday on the bar and released another 5 wild fish before calling it a day. Floyd said it’s been tough to fish lately with all the wind, but when it lay’s he thinks the fishing will remain good. The Floyd fishing team will be heading to Friday Harbor the middle of this next week to compete with 70 other fishing teams and $15,000 in cash prizes in the Resurrection Salmon Derby.

Gillnet Removal on Tap for Columbia River
Sportsman may soon get their wish to have non-tribal gillnets removed entirely from the lower Columbia River. The Oregon and Washington Fish and Wildlife Commissions will meet at the Holiday Inn in Portland on December 7th and on January 11th and 12th in Olympia to vote on a plan to push gillnets off the mainstem of the lower Columbia and into designated off-channel netting areas. If the plan goes thru the sportfishing quota on runs like summer Chinook would be increase to 100% of the non-tribal catch. Sportsman would also see an increase in spring Chinook, fall Chinook, coho, and sockeye quota if the plan is approved. While the plan is very complicated many are hopeful that the gillnets will be removed and that a new era in sportfishing will dawn on the Columbia River.

Resurrection and Roche Harbor Derby Tickets on Sale
Tickets are still on sale for the Resurrection Blackmouth Derby in Friday Harbor next weekend. The Outdoor Line crew will be fishing in this derby and broadcasting live from the derby on Saturday. The derby is December 7th and 8th and boasts $15,000 in cash with $10,000 for 1st place. Log on to www.resurrectionderby.com for more information about this event. The next  big derby in the series is the Roche Harbor Derby held February 7th thru the 9th at Roche Harbor on San Juan Island. The Roche boasts $25,000 in guaranteed cash prizes and this year the resort will kick in an additional $30,000 for a winning blackmouth over 30 pounds. Tickets are $700 per boat for the Roche and registration forms can be found at www.rocheharbor.com.

Arizona Fish and Game Corrects False Press Release
Television, radio, newspaper and online news outlets carried a story this past week that elk hunters who hadn’t filled their bull elk tag at the end of the season would get a weeklong extension to their season. The Associated Press released the article without checking credentials and now Arizona Fish and Game officials are scurrying to clarify the situation. Officials aren’t quite sure where the press release came from, but suspect that an elk hunter with media access is behind the hoax.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

Posted on by
Reply

Pending World Record Silver Salmon
Angler Thomas Olivo from Bozeman, Montana might have just broken the All-Tackle world record for coho salmon with a whopping 34 pounder. Ironically, the huge silver was taken on New York’s aptly –named Salmon River near Pulaski. Thomas was flyfishing with a black streamer back on September 19th when he hooked the fish. It took him 20 minutes to land the big silver before it was safely released to swim another day. The record is currently pending while the IGFA works with biologists to determine if the fish was a pure coho or a coho-Chinook hybrid. If approved Olivo’s silver salmon will be the new All-Tackle world record and the new 16 pound line class record.

South Sound Kicking Out Blackmouth
Tom Pollock from Sportco (253-922-2222) in Fife confirmed reports of good blackmouth fishing at Point Defiance this past week. He said that despite an abundance of shakers anglers are still using smaller presentations like Coho Killers and Ace Hi Flies to catch blackmouth at the point. He said the most productive trolling area has been from Owens Beach down to the Slag Pile. Pollock also mentioned that some blackmouth were being caught at Green Point on Fox Island, which is also a great spot for crabbing.

Steelhead Showing at Blue Creek
Phil Stephens of Mystical Legends Guide Service (206-940-0052) is reporting that there’s a few winter steelhead showing up near Blue Creek on the Cowlitz River just in time for Thanksgiving. He said the river is flowing high right now and anglers should concentrate on fishing close to the bank for a shot at some early winter chrome. Stephens though the best chance of catching an early winter steelhead would be just downstream of the outlet pipe from the hatchery. The Cowlitz River got a smolt plant of 684,000 winter steelhead back in 2011, which should produce some excellent steelhead fishing from Thanksgiving all the way thru the month of April.

Razor Clam Dig This Weekend
Long Beach, Twin Harbors, Copalis, and Mocrocks Beaches are all open for razor clam digging tonight. The low tide is at 9:09 p.m. and digging usually starts about two hours before the low tide. Razor clammers are advised to place a light beacon in their vehicles before they had down to the beach to make it easier to find them afterwards. And don’t forget to bring a bright headlamp or lantern to spot the clams in the dark.

Alaskan Grizzly Bear Attack
An encounter with a grizzly bear is something that every outdoorsman’s fears the most. That fear became reality for two trappers near the Kenai River this past Tuesday when they ran into a large sow grizzly bear. The bear viciously attacked the first trapper she encountered and when his friend went to help him she knocked him to the ground before going back to work on her first victim. One of the trappers, whose name is yet to be released, was flown in critical condition to a hospital in Anchorage. The victims were not carrying a gun or bear spray. Despite being attacked by the grizzly bear they urged authorities to not go out and try to trap the bear as it was obvious they invaded its space.

Hostess to Shut Down, Anglers in Shock!
Hostess announced yesterday that it was going to close its doors for good. The maker of Twinkies, Ho Ho’s, Cream Pies, and Hostess Cupcakes said in a press release yesterday that bankruptcy and a labor dispute are making it impossible to carry on. Hostess product’s has known been as the “Breakfast of Fisherman” for over seven decades and many anglers were in shock when they heard the news yesterday.  Nick Kester of All Star Charters, who’s started his day off with a Hostess cherry pie and old fashioned doughnuts for the last two decades was dejected and solemn when he was contacted by the Outdoor Line news staff. Kester said he would probably skip breakfast altogether if he couldn’t have his old fashioned doughnuts. Some anglers were paying up to $100 for Twinkies on Ebay yesterday afternoon and someone had posted a “Buy” for $500, but no one had bid on that Twinkie yet.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

“Went Springer Fishing”, just couldn’t keep the Trout off.

Posted on by
Reply

“Went Springer Fishing”, just couldn’t keep the Trout off…

Sometimes you just have to say the heck with the boat dealio and revert back to a much less involved, relaxing kind of day. I love these kinds of spring days.  The ones where you call up a fishing buddy and say, “hey, let’s go bank fish for some Springer’s”.
Now let’s face it, there are a couple of rivers I make it a point to steer clear of.  The Cowlitz is one on my list, however of the few on my list that I avoid, MothA’ Cow is one that I will spend just a few days on per year.

So here we go, heading south to go bank fish the Cowlitz for Springer’s. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s not that hanging out at the Cowlitz is such a bad thing, I just really enjoy fisheries on a bit of a smaller scale. I also enjoy fisheries where I spend an entire day in my drift boat. There are the periodic summer trips I will take down the Cowlitz, in my RivTech. I will spend a ten hour day, pulling bait divers with Coon-Shrimp and having good success. The water level is also at 4500 cfs, or lower and I actually enjoy that.
This however is not that time and the Cow is at 11,000 to 12,000 cfs; give or take, every few days. I have done it and it is doable, but lets get back to my original statement. My intent was to simply “revert back to a much less involved and relaxing kind of day.  Truth be told, I was feeling lazy and didn’t want to row. So, bank fishing seemed like a pretty good plan.

Started the morning off with the go to set up for the stretch we were fishing. Egg and Shrimp cocktails suspended under a float would be the ticket. This produced a couple take-downs, unfortunately nothing stuck.  We continued to offer-up our Pautzke Fire Cure eggs and sand shrimp for a few hours with no success. Finally a guy way up river hooked a fish, the first one of the morning, “awe yes, there is a chance”. About a half hour later, still nothing. OK, time for a change. I re-rigged, got rid of the suspended rig and went to my old stand-by, stick lead and float drifting presentation.

The stick lead and float drifting, did in fact within the first five minutes produce a take down, some head shakes and then off, “Doh, friggin Springer’s”. After presenting good bait through the drift repeatedly for a better part of the morning I needed a change. So back to the tuck I went, dug into the Ol’ cooler and pulled out a jar of my Coon-Shrimp.
Back at the drift, still rigged to Float Drift, I loaded up a Coon Shrimp and let it fly. As it worked its way through the drift, float down, come back, nothing there, bait gone…   OK re-bait, flip it into the seam, fifteen feet into the drift, and float down. Chrome bright, lots’a power and taking off. Of course I’m thinking Springer.  After a great fight, I work the fish back up river and yes sir, that there is a nice bright hen.

Yep, sure-nuph, Steelhead when your Springer fishing.

That’s ok, the Springer bite seemed a little slow this morning, so for now this will do.  Now the guys with me are changing up and all three of us are fishing Coon-Shrimp. A few more hook ups and a few more lost.  Then I’m able to land another, kind of a dark buck so back he goes.

The bite basically shut off and now even the Steelies didn’t want bait, so time for a change. I figure, let’s try some jigs.  Well, jigs for the next couple hours seemed to be the ticket. We proceeded to hook a few, land a few and lose a few.

This of course didn’t go unnoticed. With no fish action, pretty much up and down the river a few more guys started migrating our way. Why not, it’s the Cowlitz right?
Our morning basically started out like this. Just me, Steve and Mark (aka the Kokanee Dominator).

After a few more of these brought to hand……

Our day started to look more like this.

You don’t even want to know how crowed it got after a few more fish.

Then the questions started, what are ya using? How deep are your fishing? Mind if I step in? All the while I’m thinking Cowlitz, Cowlitz, Cowlitz, why is it I keep this on my low list of priorities to fish?

Actually it wasn’t that bad, All the guys where very nice, only one guy brought a net, so we used his services repeatedly.  Everyone got along great and believe it or not cast in order.  It was a great afternoon, we ended up going six for eleven, as once they get to the fast water, they be hard to turn, Ha..

As we were cleaning our fish a few guys came over to ask some particulars. I helped them with a few minor details to improve their chances. A few guys actually hooked up while we were still there.  Driving home, I thought, should I have told them about the home-made Krill Paste I was putting on my jig-head. Awe what the heck, they can read all about it on the Pautzke’s web page and make some to have for next time.

Duane Inglin
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com