Private Lake Report

Monday the 30Th I fished Wagner's Lake, our little pay to play fishery. Fishing again was outstanding! All through the day the fish were crushing leeches. After noon the fish decided to eat chironomids. I saw many fish rising to adult midges. Getting them to eat our imitations proved to be a challenge. Some fish were hooked on dries but not many. Dean, one of the shops customers, caught his first fly rod fish. The fish was about 6 pounds! Not a bad way to start out if you ask me. This fishery is available only through Ted's Sports Center. If your interested in fishing this lightly fished private lake you can contact me a Stephen@tedssportscenter.com or through the shop at 425-743-9505.

New 2009 Licenses Due For Renewel

Don't forget to purchase your "New" 2009 Licenses before going fishing. Licenses run April 1 - March 31. Also don't forget to send in all your Salmon, Steelhead, Sturgeon and Halibut punch cards. You can purchase your 2009 License on the Internet at http:/fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov, you can purchase them 24 hours a day from the comfort of home on your computer.

Columbia River - Spring Chinook

Chinook fishing in the Columbia continues to be a real hit or miss proposition. The water still continues to be on the cold side. One of our tackle reps said that is was 43 degrees yesterday and is more than likely one of the main reasons it has been so slow. He mentioned that he has had a good day here or there, limiting one day in short order only to get skunked for the next two or three. He has been doing best fishing with green sized plug cut herring. Keep the faith, keep fishing - it has to happen shortly.

Quail Lake - Potholes Seep Lakes

Had one of the fly fisherman come in today from a few days in Eastern Wasington fishing a number of the quality lakes. He fished Quail yesterday and did quite well with fish on the smaller end of things 12 - 14 inches. He fished an Olive Willy (A leech version) and found the fish to cooperate nicely. He did say that he got beat up wth the winds.

Lone Lake - Island County

Lone Lake has continued to put out good catches of rainbows for the fly fishermen fishing its waters. The weather has been a little unsettled and when it is windy it is almost impossible to fish. Rainbow have been averaging 14 - 18 inches and have been falling for blood worms, chrinomids and leech patterns. We heard that the WDFW planted a few more into the lake today. Did not hear what the size mix was. Catches have varied with the anglers ability, some not doing well at all and some doing well with catches in the double digits.

Dry Falls Lake - Grant County

Dry Falls Lake will open tomorrow - this is a fantastic fly lake that is a favorite of many fishermen both in the eastern portion of the state as well as this side. It is a very unique piece of water that produces well with a mixed bag of rainbows and browns. With the opening I would come prepared with blood worm imitations as well as a good assortment of Chrinomids, throw in a hand full of leech patterns in olive, black and burgundy and you should have your bases covered until late April. We'll post some more information once we hear some reports.

Columbia River - Chinook

Though still not "Red Hot" we have been hearing better reports coming from the "Big C" salmon fishermen. Fish are being caught throughout the river, however the best reports have been coming from around the I-5 stretch , PDX and 205 sections of the river. Without a doubt, green sized herring have been the best producer fished either behind an in-line flasher or just plain. Some anglers have also connected with quickfish / flatfish fished on anchor. This fishery should only get better as we get into this next month.
Mike

Cowlitz River - Steelheading

Reports have been good from most everyone that we have spoken with fishing the Cowlitz River. Good numbers of hatchery steelhead are being boated by sled fishermen in the Blue Creek stretch of the river. There have been some fair report s from the bank fishermen "Glo Balling" at night from the bank in the boat launch area. The Barrier Dam stretch has been fair for bank anglers. There has been an occasional Chinook landed by anglers targeting steelhead.
We should be seeing better Chinook catches this next month.
Mike

Lone Lake - Whidby Island

Have had "Good" reports coming from Lone Lake on Whidbey Island from a number of the fly fishermen coming in. Fish have been taking a number of patterns with Chrinomid Pupa and Blood worms being the most common element. Some angers have been doing well on small leech patterns in olive, black and maroon. Fish have been averaging around 14 - 16 inches in length.
Most anglers have been averaging 6 -8 fish per rod with some of the top rods landing as many as 20. So if your looking for a close place to go with some fishing "That's Not Too Bad", then Lone Lake is not a bad bet. Make sure that you pick a day that is not too windy as it is very susceptible to being blown off!
Mike

Lake Lenice Report 3-21 and 3-22

Lenice fished well this past weekend. Saturday was a beautiful day. No wind to speak of, overcast and fairly warm. I had 15 fish to hand and LDRrd. many more. The fish were all in great shape. Nothing under 16 inches in the Rainbow category and Tigers to about 18 inches. Many people were successful with small buggers and leeches. I only fished chironomids under an indicator. Sunday the wind blew pretty good and the fishing was harder. Only 5 fish to hand before leaving early in the afternoon. The water temp. was only 48 degrees and should continue to rise over the next few weeks. This rise in water temp. should turn on the bugs. I would suggest planing a trip in the near future. It was well worth it to me and our group.

Smelt - Oak Harbour

If you are looking for a few smelt, then you might want to try the Oak Harbour Marina. Customers have been going up and jigging smelt at this popular spot using either a #4 or #5 Gamakatsu Sabiki Rig with white fish skin and silver hooks. Use just enough weigth to be able to cast it out and get it to settle in the water column. If you are looking for herring then try Cornet Bay.
Mike

Cowlitz River - Blue Creek

Steelhead fishing has picked up in the Blue Creek section of the Cowlitz. Had a couple of the customers in today that spent the last few days fishing that section on the river. They had good numbers of steelhead and reported that they saw good numbers of fish being caught around them. They were free - drifting with corkies with eggs. Said there were fish in the flats in front of the ramp as well as downriver in the clay banks section and as high as Mary-Ellen's. They said they thought that the fish were passing trough on their way to Barrier as they would hit a batch of fish then it would die out. Then after a period of time another batch of fish would past through.
Good Luck
Mike

Barrier Dam - Cowlitz River

Had one of the die hard steelhead customers in that had just returned from the Cowlits. Jim had a limit of nice fish to 14 pounds. He said that he saw around a dozen fish landed while he was there. The word must have gotten out a bit that the fishing had improved as there were about 30 anglers on the launch side and perhaps another dozen on the opposite bank. He took a detour by blue creek and said there were a fair number of sleds fishing that section of the river but no bank anglers. Visibility has improved to around 2 feet. He did not see any springers caught.

Sauk River Report

While fishing hasn't been steller guides that fish it often are finding fish. Shawn on Wednesday had an oportunity to fish with Nick Petosa of Petosa's Guide Service. While fishing wasn't hot they did manage to find a really nice fish. 4" Mad River Worms fished under a float seemed to be what the fish wanted. Thursday fishing seemed to pick up and Nick found a few more fish. Here's some pics.

Halibut Seasons Set

Halibut seasons have finally been set for the year - quotas have been decreased and the amount of time given to fish has likewise been cut down. Stop by the shop to get a full breakdown of the season or take a look at the WDFW website for the concise rundown.

Columbia River (Ilwaco): Marine Area 1 will open May 1, three daysa week. Thursday through Saturday until 70 percent of the quota is reached, or until July 18. The fishery fishery will then reopen on Aug 7 and continue three days a week (Friday through Sunday) until the remaining quota is reached, or Sept 30, whichever occurs first. The 2009 quota is 15,735 pounds.

South Coast (Westport/Ocean Shores): Marine Area 2 will open on May 3, two days a week, Sundays and Tuesdays, through May 12. Starting May 17, the fishery will be open on Sundays only until the quota is reached. The northern nearshore area will be open on Fridays and Saturdays in addition to the days the offshore area is open, until the quota is reached. The 2009 catch quota is 42,739 pounds.

North Coast (La Push/Neah Bay): Marine areas 3 and 4 will open May 14th, two days a week, Thursdays and Saturdays, through May23. If sufficient quota remains, the fishery will reopen June 4 and 6. If sufficient quota remains after the opener, the fishery will reopen starting June 18. The fishery will continue to be open as a priority in the offshore area. However, if there is sufficient quota to open the fishery one more day in the offshore area, the fishery will be open in the nearshore area only (Area 4B and shoreward of a line approximating 30 fathoms from the Bonilla-Tatoosh line south to the Queets River). The 2009 catch quota is 108,030pounds.

Straight of Juan de Fuca/Puget Sound: Marine Area 5 (Sekiu) will be open May 21 through July 3, Marine areas 6-11 and 13 (Port Angeles and Puget Sound) will open April 23 through June 5. These fisheries will be open five days a week, closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The 2009 combined catch quota for these areas is 57,393 pounds.

Make sure to look at he formal WDFW regulations as there are more subtile restrictions associated with this fishery.

Lake Lenice 3/13 & 3/14

A report from one of our customers was good. The fish were eating blood worm type patterns and ice cream cone chironomid's. One person fishing the ice cream cone's was reported to catch about 25 fish on Friday the 13th. The weather was cold! So cold that they had to break ice on Friday morning! Saturday the ice was gone and the fishing was good with olive buggers. Fish seemed to be about 12 to 13 feet deep. On Friday our customers were fishing all around the lake. No one spot was that much better than another. On Saturday they fished around the boat launch area trolling back and forth. Look for the weather and fishing to heat up soon! Tight lines.

Columbia River - Springers

Had one of the customers call from the Columbia last evening with a Spring Chinnook Report. Fishing the Columbia between Troutdale and the 205 Bridge yesterday they managed to land a 25 pound chinook , unfortunately having to release it as it was wild! They managed to get one other fish on but came unbuttoned before they were able to see if it was hatchery or wild. They were trolling with green sized herring. They said the pressure was very slight with only perhaps half a dozen boats fishing in that section of river. The other anglers they spoke with did not have anything. Though not a report to set the world on fire at least it is encouraging to see that there are some fish starting to show.

Hopefully we will get another report from them later today.
Mike

New!!! Intro to Fly Fishing Class

It's time to get ready for spring Fly Fishing!!! With the popularity of the Chironomid class we have decided to do another. The next on tap is an Intro to Fly fishing Class. If you have ever wanted to learn how to fly fish or your not satisfied with your present skill level this may be the class for you. All the class info is available in the provided link. Intro Fly Fishing Class

Chironomid tying and fishing class on water day

While the weather was not the best, we did manage to miss the snow storm and the fish didn't seem to mind the wind and cold. Everyone in the class caught many big fish. Overall the whole class was great. Topped off by a fantastic day on the water. The participants had some great fishing with the flies they learned in class. Fish size ranged from 3lbs. to over 10lbs. A thank you must go to the people in the class. Special thanks goes out to Tom Thorsvig for all his help in teaching this great class. Look in the future for other great Ted's Sports Center classes.

If anyone is interested in an oppertunity to fish this little gem of a lake, give me a call or email at Stephen@tedssportscenter.com or (425) 743-9505

Cowlitz Report

Shawn went down Saturday (3-7-09) and fished the Cowlitz below Barrier Dam and found good fishing even though conditions were not the best. Rags with Egg Clusters seem to be the ticket with visibility only about 6 inches. They ended the day with 4 nice fish. Not only was the fishing good but the pressure was extremely light. Another group of customers had 12 fish for 3 guys over a 2 day period. Included in the catch was a small 8# Springer. This is traditionally the kickoff of the late season steelhead run. Though it has been a difficult season thus far with not many fish we can only hope that this later run of hatchery fish will provide better fishing.

Good Luck

Double Bluff - Area 9 - Puget Sound

One of the customers stopped by and had a good day at Double Bluff Friday. Ended up with three blackmouth 8 - 10 pounds. The ticket was a frog racer coyote spoon behind a hotsot flasher.
Overall fishing is becoming a little tougher as many of the larger blackmouth are out migrating into the Straits out of our area. The Port Angeles and Sekiu areas have been produring better.

Picnic Point - Saltwter Fly Fishing

Though the weather was great for a little beach fishing this morning at Picnic Point for sea -runs and resident coho,the results only yeilded just one small resident coho for three hours of fishing. We should be seeing better fishing conditions as well as better results as Spring is just around the corner. By the end of the month we should be seeing the sea-runs and dollies feeding on the downstream salmon fry. Will keep you posted!

Lake Lenice Report

As of today, Friday the 6th of March the fishing has been good. Our source said the fishing has improved since the March 1st opener. The water temp has come up from 41 degrees on the opener to 45 degrees as of this morning. Fish are ranging from 15 inches to over 20 inches. Most fish have been very healthy and fat. Rainbows and browns have been eating olive leeches and blood worms pretty consistanly. Fish have just started to show in the upper water coloum with a few slurpping in the top film. Cruising fish have also been seen on the flats. Don't be afraid to spread out on the lake, fish are everywhere. Look for the Chironomid action to pick up daily as the water gets warmer.

March 1st Seep Lake Opening Grant County

Martha Lake (Grant County)- Had great reports from a customer who fished Sunday March 1st. Said he had easy limits with rainbows averaging 13". Pressure was high but virtually everyone had good catches. There are also lots of anglers fishing Caliche Lake though we have no reports from there. Moses lake is starting to break up and we figure that it will be free of ice by the end of the week. Lake Lenore known for it's Lahontan Cutthroat is just barely free of ice at the south end. Rocky Ford is putting out fair fishing for the C&R fly guys.

Private Lake Fly Fishing

Stephen fished a local private lake today (Monday) and found willing trout up to 8-10lbs. The fish were on the bite from the get go and couldn't resist the Chironomids that he was fishing. This is a great place for the beginning fly fisherman to learn to cast and also have the opportunity to catch some really nice trout. If you are interested in a trip to this lake you can contact Stephen via email at stephen@tedssportscenter.com or through the shop at 425-743-9505.