What’s hot is fishing with bait for triploids near the net pens. Also hot for the stout of heart is trolling on Lake Chelan for incredible numbers of eating size lakers near the Monument.
At Rufus, troll Mack’s Lures smile blade flies or Worden Lures Roostertails. Also deadly, is trolling Mack’s Double Whammy wedding rings baited with a crawler. If you can’t catch fish trolling run up to the lower net pens and fish slip sinker rigs with bait. Pautzke’s Fire Bait in rainbow would work great. If there is current working, place a Mack’s Lures smile blade in front of the hook to help attract those pigs. You can also, cast quarter ounce Worden’s Super Roostertails if you have licenses for enough rods to allow it.
On Lake Chelan troll F7 flatfish with either a Mack’s Lures smile blade or an action disk by Wiggle Fin in front of it between the Monument and Sunnybank. Smear those with Pautzke’s Krill Juice to cover unpalatable scents. That area is packed with loads of smaller fish that have bright red flesh. It is very snaggy, so you have to be on pins and needles to troll close without losing gear.
Your fishing tip of the week is to keep a couple of things in mind to be successful with bait at the lower pens. First, use enough weight to get you to the bottom in whatever the current is. It varies a lot depending on the day and even time of day. Second, lengthen your leader to about 5 feet to keep those floating baits above the weedtips. Third, reel in and cast again if you don’t get bit. Finally, try placing a smile blade either above the sinker or just in front of the hook to add additional attraction. Keep these tips in mind and you will be able to consistently catch those fat boys with bait at the pens.
Your kid’s tip of the week is to pick your battles. When you don’t have time to use your maturity to deal with a minor misbehavior, don’t make the mistake of taking it on then backing off. Ignoring, or identifying the misconduct and acknowledging that it’s wrong is OK. When you have the time then you can “go to the mat” and deal with it in detail.
Your safety tip of the week is to check your boat trailer tires for unusual wear. If you have extraordinary wear on one part of one tire it can indicate improper inflation, the need for your bearings to be repacked, or even that you have a bent axle.
Anton Jones of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service

www.darrellanddads.com or 1-866-360-1523

9/22/11 - Sandra Jones of Manson, the CFO of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service with a nice Rufus Triploid.

9/22/11 - Sandy again with our two person limit of typical Rufus triploids

9/22/11 - The Ken and Carol Kinman of San Ramon, CA with their mornings catch of Lake Chelan Mackinaw

Steelheading To Open Tomorrow on Upper Columbia and Tributaries

Many of you have been awaiting the opening of the Upper Columbia and it's tributaries to steelheading - well here it is! You'll have to make toe choice between chasing silvers on this side of the mountains or going east!

OLYMPIA – Starting Wednesday (Sept. 28), the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) will open a selective fishery for hatchery steelhead on the upper Columbia River above Rock Island Dam, and on the Wenatchee, Icicle, Entiat, Methow, and Okanogan rivers.

Salmon fishing will also reopen Wednesday from Wells Dam to Brewster, and the Similkameen River will open to hatchery steelhead retention beginning Nov 1.

The steelhead fisheries will remain open until further notice, while the salmon fishery will run through Oct. 15.

Jeff Korth, regional WDFW fish manager, said approximately 18,000 adult steelhead are expected to return to the upper Columbia River this year – enough to allow the department to open area steelhead fisheries for the eighth straight season.

However, both wild and hatchery-reared fish are expected to return in significantly lower numbers than in the past two years, requiring additional constraints on those fisheries.

“Allowable impacts on wild steelhead will be tighter this year, so we may have to close earlier than in the past two seasons,” Korth said. Three areas of the Columbia River – Vernita, Priest Rapids and Wanapum – will not open at all for steelhead fishing this fall.

Steelhead fisheries are carefully managed to protect naturally spawning steelhead listed under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). Korth said WDFW will closely monitor the fisheries and enforce fishing rules to protect wild steelhead.

The daily limit on all rivers is two hatchery steelhead, marked with a clipped adipose fin and measuring at least 20 inches in length. Any steelhead with an intact adipose fin must be released unharmed and must not be removed from the water. Anglers must also release any steelhead with one or more round holes punched in their tail fin.

Like last year, anglers must retain any legal hatchery steelhead they catch until they reach their daily limit of two fish. Once they have retained two fish, they must stop fishing for steelhead.

“These selective steelhead fisheries are specifically designed to help maintain a high proportion of wild steelhead on the spawning grounds and enhance recovery of the region’s wild steelhead,” Korth said. “Anglers can play an important role in that effort by removing hatchery fish above the number needed to meet spawning goals.”

Selective gear rules apply to all areas where steelhead seasons are open, except that bait may be used on the mainstem Columbia River. All anglers are required to follow steelhead gear rules and restrictions described in WDFW’s Fishing in Washington pamphlet, available online at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/.

Anglers should also be aware that motorized vessels are not allowed on the Wenatchee or Icicle rivers under Chelan County ordinances.

In the chinook salmon fishery between Wells Dam and the Highway 173 Bridge in Brewster, anglers will have a six-fish daily limit, which can include up to three adult chinook, only one of which can be a wild fish. The salmon fishery has been closed since Aug. 31 to protect wild steelhead until managers were sure there would be sufficient numbers of steelhead to open the season.

Areas that will open to fishing for hatchery steelhead Sept. 28 include:

Mainstem Columbia River: From Rock Island Dam to 400 feet below Chief Joseph Dam. Night closure and selective gear rules apply, except bait is allowed.

Wenatchee River: From the mouth to the Icicle River Road Bridge, including the Icicle River from the mouth to 500 feet downstream of the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery Barrier Dam. Night closure and selective gear rules apply. Motorized vessels are not allowed.

Entiat River: Upstream from the Alternate Highway 97 Bridge, near the mouth of the Entiat River to 800 feet downstream of the Entiat National Fish Hatchery outfall. Night closure and selective gear rules apply.

Methow River: From the mouth to the confluence with the Chewuch River in Winthrop. Fishing from a floating device is prohibited from the second powerline crossing to the first Hwy 153 Bridge. Night closure and selective gear rules apply.

Okanogan River: From the mouth upstream to the Highway 97 Bridge in Oroville. Night closure and selective gear rules apply.
On the Similkameen River, which opens for hatchery steelhead Nov. 1, the fishery will extend from the mouth of the river to 400 below Enloe Dam. Night closure and selective gear rules apply.

All anglers must possess a valid fishing license and a Columbia River Salmon/Steelhead Endorsement to participate in these fisheries. Revenue from the endorsement supports salmon or steelhead seasons on many rivers in the Columbia River system, including enforcing fishery regulations and monitoring the upper Columbia River steelhead fisheries. The endorsement has generated more than $1 million annually for WDFW to maintain and increase fishing opportunities throughout the Columbia River Basin.

Cascade River Silvers

Spoke with Nick Petosa of Petosa's Guide Service this afternoon, he said that the Skagit has been a bit on the out of shape side the past couple of days and that he was taking a couple of days off. He is awaiting the river to come back in and with it another good push of silvers. He mentioned that the Cascade River was producing good numbers of silvers today for those fishing floats and eggs. He said that it should put out good fishing for the next few days. If you would like a good day on the Skagit fishing silvers give Nick a call.

Petosa's Guide Service (360) 854-0259

Everett Coho Derby Results

Here's the results of the Everett Coho Derby from this past weekend:

Results of the Eighteenth Everett Coho Salmon Derby:

The eighteenth annual Coho Salmon Derby was held on September 24-25 2011. This annual derby is a joint operation by the Everett Steelhead and Salmon Club, the Snohomish Sportsmen’s Club and NSIA (Northwest Sportsfishing Industry Association). There were 497 salmon weighed in on Saturday and 176 fish on Sunday for a total of 673 salmon. Some of the fish weighed on Sunday were “upgrades” for the Saturday fish.

Among the 1700 plus adult ticket holders there were seven fish over 15 pounds and 109 over ten pounds. The winners of the adult cash prizes were:

1st place and $3000 was Mike Fure with a 16.55 pound coho caught in area 8.2 on a green flasher/green squid combination.
2nd place and $2000 went to Terry Metzger with a 15.70 pound coho caught in area 9 on a Silver Horde flasher/squid combination.
3rd place and $1500 went to Mike Brower with a 15.60 pound coho caught in area 10 also on a Silver Horde flasher/squid combination.
4th place and $1000 went to Adam Davis with a 15.53 pound coho in the Snohomish River using a Dick Nite Spoon.
5th place and $750 went to Peter Kline with a 15.20 pound coho in the Snohomish River using a Dick Nite Spoon.
6th place and $500 went to Nelson Goodsell with a 15.13 pound coho in area 8.2 using a Silver Horde Spoon.

Of the top 30 fish weighed in by adults, nine were caught in the Snohomish River, one came from the Skagit River and twenty came from the salt water.

There were 168 youth tickets (12 years and younger) given away and of those, there were 47 fish weighed in. The top five youth fish were:

1st place and $100, Hunter Steltz who caught his 13.02 pound coho in the Snohomish River.
2nd place and $75 went to Braydon Pittwood who also caught his 11.98 pound coho in the Snohomish River.
3rd place and $50 went to Kathryn Holland with a 10.49 pound coho caught in the Snohomish River.
4th place and a merchandize prize went to James Trainer with a 10.37 pound coho caught in area 9.
5th place and a merchandize prize went to Amanda Davis with a 10.34 pound coho caught in the Stillaguamish River.

The weather on Saturday was cooperative but Sunday, with the rain and strong winds, many of the boats did not make it onto the water.

Coho Fishing - Marine Areas 8-2 & 9

We have had nothing but outstanding coho reports the past five days. After a very slow fishery the first part of last week with most everyone having a hard time getting any fish. Then Friday things turned on and the fishing has been good ever since. The weather was a factor on Saturday and Sunday with the wind and most made the decision not to go out and those that did found fish but it was not great conditions to fish in and a good percentage of fish hooked managed to come free as controlling the boat was a factor. Monday with good fishing conditions showed outstanding reports and today the reports have been nothing short of outstanding. Most everyone we have spoke with this morning all had limits of nice coho in the 7 - 13 pound range and there has been an odd larger coho being landed to 17 pounds. Trolling with a Jim's Break Away Flasher in Glow White or Glow Green colors and Hot Spots in the same colors with green Grand Slam Bucktails, Ace Hi Flies in 140, 142 and 161 colors as well as Gold Star squids in the 140, 142 and 161 colors have all been quite productive. This fishery should continue for some time. The shipping lanes between Mukilteo and Possession Point, the shore line from Mukilteo to Edmonds as well as Satchet Head all produced well this morning. Most we spoke with said the 50 -60 foot level seemed where the action was.

Darrell & Dads - Chelan Area Reports

What’s hot is fishing for triploid rainbows up by the net pens on Rufus Woods Reservoir. Also hot is fishing for little lakers by the Monument on Lake Chelan. Finally, hot is throwing spinners for recently stocked rainbows on Lake Chelan.

On Rufus, troll flies with action disks by wigglefin, spinners or plugs. You can also cast Worden’s Super Roostertails for some great action. Fishing eggs cured with Pautzke’s Borx O’ Fire or simply Pautzke’s Fire Bait on a slip sinker rig up by the pens can get you some pigs.

On Lake Chelan, try the early mornings up at the Narrows for some quality fish. However, the hottest thing on Chelan has been to fish around the monument for scads of small lakers. At the Narrows, the best combo has been to put a Mack’s Lures Smile Blade in glow colors in front of a Silver Horde’s Ace Hi Fly. Tie them up with a two hook rig. Number two 00’s are about right. Bait the front hook with a piece of Northern Pikeminnow. Around the Monument, fish Worden Lures F7 Flatfish at 1 to 1.2 mph. If you can keep from hanging up, you should generate seven to ten fish per hour although they are mostly 13 to 20 inchers.

It is also a great time to cast one eighth ounce Worden’s Roostertails for little recently stocked rainbows in the lower basin of Lake Chelan.

Your fishing tip of the week is to start curing bait for Steelhead on the Upper Columbia and for winter triploid fishing on Rufus. Cure your skeins of eggs with Pautzke’s Bor X O’ Fire. Cure your shrimp with Pautzke’s Fire Cure. Get ready for the “bobber down” season!

Your kid’s tip of the week is to use questions to direct those teens in early rebellion. Instead of telling them what to do, ask them how they should handle a situation or dilemma. You’d be amazed at the amount of good judgment hiding in there if you can just tease it out of them without triggering the reflexive rebellion or sarcasm. Like most people, they “own” a solution more if they believe it is their idea.

Your safety tip of the week is to use a spotter when handling trailered boats, RV’s and other larger less familiar vehicles, especially when you are maneuvering in a tight or unfamiliar situation. Take your time, use a spotter to watch your blind spots and you would be amazed at what tight places you can stick that trailer into. It becomes especially important when you are putting things away for winter storage! Indian Summer is coming!

Anton Jones of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service
(http://www.darrellanddads.com/ or 1-866-360-1523)

Pictured: 9/15/11 - Bill and Sandy Hays of Yakima holding a 4 person limit on Rufus Woods. Their big fish were 7lb 8oz and 6lb 12oz. They fished with Jeff Witkowski of Chelan and Ray Rhoads III of Spangle, WA.

What’s hot is trolling for Lake Trout by the Yacht Club. Also heating up is fishing for triploid rainbows up by the net pens on Rufus Woods Reservoir. This is also a great time to throw dry flies at wild fish in the Upper Stehekin Valley. Additionally, this is a great time to catch planter rainbows in the Lower Basin of Lake Chelan.

On Lake Chelan, continue to fish Worden Lures T4 Purple Glow Flatfish off the outriggers. Off the downriggers present Silver Hordes Ace Hi Flies fronted by a Mack’s Lures glow smile blade baited with a chunk of Northern Pikeminnow. Smear the blades, and hard lure bodies with Pautzke’s Krill Juice. You don’t want those fish shying away from your lures. Fish these at 1.2 to 1.5 mph. Watch out for a difficult bottom in the Narrows.

At Rufus, troll flies behind a Mack’s Lures Smile Blade or an action disk by Wigglefin.com or even Pautzke’s Fire Bait with a blade in front. Also, you can cast quarter ounce Worden’s Super Roostertails for 2 to 5 pound triploids around the lower pump stations. Finally, if it is slow, fish bait up by the lower net pens.

This is prime time for casting stimulators and hoppers to wild rainbows and cutthroat in the Upper Stehekin Valley. At the same time, you can enjoy the greatest scenery in the world!

It is also a great time to cast small Roostertails for little rainbows in the lower basin of Lake Chelan.

Your fishing tip of the week is to make the effort to get out there. Because of shorter days, it is easy to give up on trips, but this is the most spectacular time of the year to be out in Central Washington. Perfect temperatures, eager fish and no crowds!

Your kid’s tip of the week is to tailor your young children’s activities to their interest. I’ve got grandkids all over the spectrum. Some like to catch fish. Some like to hook the fish and hand it off. Others just like to play in the guts when everybody else catches the fish… I didn’t say they were normal…

Your safety tip of the week is kind of a maintenance tip. Check with your mechanic, but most are recommending that you treat your boat gas with at least a water remover. Especially now when boats are likely to set idle for longer periods of time, it is a good idea. The lower performance that comes with the ethanol added to most gasolines has been responsible for some mechanical issues. It is an especially good idea if you are putting your boat away for the winter. Nothing quite like fall in Chelan!

Anton Jones of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service
(http://www.darrellanddads.com/ or 1-866-360-1523)

Bill and Sandy Hays of Yakima, Wa with their Lake Chelan Mackinaw.

Snohomish River - Pinks and Coho

We have still been getting good reports out of the lower Snohomish River on the pink salmon the past couple of days, seems there are still a good number pushing into the river though the numbers which we are seeing in the salt have wained considerably the past few days. It's time for the pinks to decline in numbers and the silvers to increase. I spoke with a number of folks the past couple of days that had no problem in getting their pink limits out of the lower Snohomish the past few days fishing pink Marabou or pink squid jigs tipped with a small piece of shrimp. Some of the guys have been switching from the pinks to the coho and doing fairly well this week. Though not exactly hot yet many are managing in land up to 5 or 6 coho for a good days fishing. Most have been fishing Dick Nite Spoons.

Coho Fishing Marine Area 9 & 8.2

Today we have had good reports from most everyone that have been fishing coho in Marine Areas 9 & 8.2. The past few days we have had relatively poor reports on coho, perhaps the full moon and poor tides has something to do with it. However today things have changes. We had good reports coming from the Possession Bar as well as the Mukilteo to Edmonds shoreline areas. With the good reports today one should get themselves out there. If we get any amount of rain this weekend they may just push into the rivers.

Edmonds Coho Derby

This is the last day to purchase Edmonds Coho Derby Tickets. They have been flying out the door this morning! We will have tickets until we close this evening.

To all those fishing the Derby - Good Luck! Have a "Great" day on the water!

Coho Fishing - Possession - Picnic Point

We have had a number of our regulars in this AM with nothing but outstanding coho reports out of Area 9. Most of the fish have been in the 7 -13 pound range. Very nice average ocean coho! There however are a few really nice coho caught every day in the 15 - 17 pound range. There has not been any one spot that has been better than another, you just have to make a choice of where to fish and hope that the fish are there! These fish are definitely moving through the area and not stopping. We should see good fishing through the month!

Picnic Point Coho

There have been nice coho being caught all over Marine Area 9, there has not been any one area that has been hotter than another as it appears that the fish are migrating though the area and not even stopping. Here's Shawn with a nice Picnic Point coho that was taken on an Army Truck colored Hot Spot Flasher and one of the "New" Super Squids.

Whidbey Beach Fishing

The beach fishing for pinks has slowed a fair amount the past couple of days. Though it has slowed we should still see some good numbers for the next ten days or so. We have been hearing of some fair coho fishing off the beaches the past few days. We are in that transitional period where the pinks will wain and the coho will become more common is the catches. One of our customers landed a nice 12 pound fish off the beach at Casey yesterday on a herring under a float.

If you need any information on this fishery, stop by! We'll be glad to fill you in!

Edmonds Coho Derby - Last Chance to Buy Tickets

The ticket sales for the Edmonds Coho Derby have been quite brisk the past couple of days. Just about every other person in the shop has been buying them. We will have them for sale up until closing tomorrow evening, that is unless we run out! Don't be left out in the cold, get yours now before they are sold out!

With the number of coho that we are seeing we should have outstanding results!

Good Coho Reports - Possession and Edmonds

We had a number of guys in this morning that had done well on coho, with many limiting out. There were two sizes of fish, those that were resident coho in the 3 - 5 pound range and then ocean coho in the 7 - 13 pound range with a nice 17 pound fish thrown into the mix. There was no "Hot" spot as the fish came from many areas. Remember, coho are where you find them; they can just as easily be on the beach or out in the shipping lanes. Everyone found the fish from the surface down to 60 feet this AM. The fish were caught on a variety of things but Green Grand Slam Coho Flies in the Herring model seemed to be mentioned more often than not. This fly has been flying off the shelves the past few days. We should see nothing but better fishing in the next couple of weeks.

Edmonds Coho Derby - Saturday, September 10th

Don't forget to pick up your Edmond's Coho Derby Tickets! It is coming up fast, as it is this Saturday, September 10th! Tickets are $30.00 per person! With the purchase of a ticket is a $15.00 dollar Anthony's Home Port Restaurant Dinner Gift Certificate. The top prize for this derby is $5,00.00!

For additional information and a complete prize list go to http://www.edmondscohoderby.com/ .

We have "Lots" of tickets on hand!

With the number and size of the coho we have been seeing this past week it will make for a very interesting derby!

Don't be left out - as tickets are limited!

Chelan Report - Anton Jones

What rebounded as hot is trolling on Lake Chelan’s Mack Bar for Lake Trout early in the morning. Later in the day pound little fish on the face of Manson Bay. The Bar was in a lull during part of the reporting period, but it rebounded nicely on Labor Day. Later in the week we pounded out good numbers of little Lakers along the face of Manson Bay.

On Lake Chelan, fish Worden Lures T4 Purple Glow Flatfish off the outriggers. Off the downriggers present Silver Hordes Ace Hi Flies fronted by a Mack’s Lures glow smile blade baited with a chunk of Northern Pikeminnow. Fish these at 1.2 to 1.5 mph and work depths all the way out to the 200 foot marker.

On the face of Manson Bay hit depths of 170 to 215 feet with Worden’s little F7 flatfish fronted with a little action disk by WiggleFin.com or a Mack’s Lures mini cha cha squidder in a glow color. You should be able to produce 5 fish an hour from 12 to 20 inches each.

Your fishing tip of the week is to pay attention to depth and speed control to be consistently successful on Chelan. I had a number of recreational angler’s remark that they thought they were doing exactly what I was doing and not getting bit while I was knocking them dead. Invariably, they were foggy on how far off the bottom they were as well as being pretty hazy about the speed they were going. Also, the Smile Blade or Action disk in front of the Ace Hi’s and squid rigs was omitted. These fish find their food by vibration at the depths we fish. Subtle attractors are the order of the day.

Your kid’s tip of the week is to chronicle your kids successes in the outdoors. My wife and adult daughters are scrap bookers. We have pictures of everything. The kids are steeped in the family traditions from stories told by the men and pictures organized by the women. If our job is to provide roots and wings for our kids, this stuff is growing the roots. It helps them be more secure and confident. Telling the story of getting or losing that big fish in front of other family members is almost as valuable as doing things together. Don’t omit it.

Your safety tip of the week is go through your lifejackets, fire extinguisher and first aid kid to make sure they are in good repair before you go into the fall shutdown. It will save you headaches in the spring.

Anton Jones of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service
(http://www.darrellanddads.com/ or 1-866-360-1523)

Pictured: 8/29/11 - The MacPherson gang from Western Washington with their Lake Chelan Mackinaw
Also Pictured: 9/5/11 - Pete Fochesato with son Conner of Arlington, WA with their mornings catch of Chelan Lakers.

Humpy Mania Has Hit

Here in the rivers of north Puget Sound Humpy Mania has hit in full force the past past week. The rivers are full of pinks and I wonder if the number of fisherman is greater than the number of fish in them! Virtually any spot that has a place to stand has at least a fisherman standing in it. Everyone is having a "Great" time fishing pinks and having a good time at it. We should see good fishing at least for the next couple of weeks then it will decline as the fish go into the spawn. The Skagit, Stillagumish and Snohomish Rivers have all been doing quite well and virtually all the normal pink techniques have been working well.

We have run out of a few things already but still have good inventory of all the basics. We will continue to try our best to keep up with things.

Saltwater Silver Fishing

Though many are still chasing pinks in the saltwater the numbers of silver that we are seeing is fantastic. Many of our regulars hung up the pink gear a week ago and have switched to fishing coho. Many have been consistantly catching them and in fact getting limits a fair amount of the time. This is an outstanding sign to see the numbers of coho that we have been seeing the past couple of weeks. The nice thing about the early returning coho is that they are still actively feeding and are good biters. As the season progresses the fish become less apt to bite as they have the river more on their mind than their belly. We should see the coho fishing getting better with every passing day. There have been some really nice sized coho landed the past couple of days as you can see by the one Brock is holding in the photo above. Many of these ealy returing fish have been very surface oriented and many are being caught by utilizing a basic mooching sinker and plug cut herring fished in the prop wash.