Lots To Do This Sunday

This Sunday July 1st will mark the opening of a multitude of fisheries.

Marine Areas 5,6 & 7 will open for salmon fishing!  Yes kings will be open for retention.  Make sure to read your regulations as many areas will be partially open and many have restrictions on wild chinook, wild coho and chum.

Marine Areas 9 & 10 will open for coho fishing.  Kings will not open until July 16th.  Though the coho are smaller resident fish in the 1 1/2 - 4 pound range they are great sport on lighter gear as well as being outstanding table fare.

Crabing opens in Marine Areas 5,6,8-1,8-2, 9, 10, 11, 12 & 13  these areas will be open through September 3rd.  Open to crab on Thursdays through Mondays

Baker Lake Sockeye opens, though there have not been many sockeye trucked to the lake as of yet, the numbers will increase and by mid month there should be good enough numbers to provide another year of outstanding fishing.

Skykomish River Steelheading

Though the Skykomish has still been on the high side with both the rains and the snow melt there are still fish being caught for those that are putting in the time.  Overall, the middle and lower river has been putting out the better fishing with the upper (Reiter Pond) section just being OK!  It's just the opposite of what it should be.  With the highter water the fish should be shooting though the lower sections and piling up in the Ponds area but they have not.  The boat and beach anglers have been doing better in the area from the Wallace River downstream.  We have even had one of our boat anglers fishing below Monroe this week and landing two to four steelhead every day he has fished this week.

RVRFSHR Spoons & Spinners

For those of you that have been fans of RVRFSHR Spoons and Spinners we now have them back in stock after not being avaiable for a period of time. 

Fresh Sand Shrimp

We just had a delivery of fresh sand shrimp just about a half hour ago - 1:00 p.m..  Yesterday, they didn't last more than a couple hours before we were sold out.  If you will be needing some for the weekend it would not be a back idea to call and get an order in.  That way we will bag yours up when they come in and you will be sure of having them.  We will do our best to keep them is stock for the weekend.

Skagit Sockeye

The Skagit River sockeye fishery continues to be strong.  The water is still on the high side but it does not seem to effect the fishing in any way, other than making it a little more difficult to find a place to fish.  Most of the folks we have spoken with have had no problem in getting at least a fish per trip the past few days and some have managed to catch limits.  The single biggest factor is to make sure that your gear is in the current seam.  If you are in the main flow or the dead water your chances of getting fish are slim to none.  It is taking 6 - 8 ounces to hold at the present time due to the amount of water.  This fishery looks like it will continue strong through the season. (Closes July 15)

Lake Chelan Area Reports - Anton Jones - Darrell's & Dad's Family Guide Service

What continues hot is trolling for Lake Trout on Lake Chelan near Mill Bay early in the morning and late in the evening. Kokanee are available in the lower basin of Lake Chelan but are scattered and collecting more at the Narrows.


Lake Trout continue to bite trolled flatfish in the lower basin. Big fish are showing up with enough regularity to keep things exciting. Use Worden Lures T4 or U20 Flatfish in either Luminous Chartreuse or Purple Glow near the bottom in depths of 120’ to 160’ for best success in getting these big fish to bite. This is working best between 5AM and 10AM as well as from 4 PM until dusk.

This season’s nice sized Kokanee on Lake Chelan are getting more difficult to locate. These fish are moving in big schools all over the lower basin now. Anglers have been catching them off of Rocky Point and around Wapato Point, but it has been very inconsistent during the reporting period. I expect them to be concentrated in the Narrows by the 4th of July getting ready to begin their uplake migration to the Stehekin River and its tributaries. Putting Pautzke’s Fire Corn in either Natural or Yellow onto the hooks of Mack’s Lures Mini Cha Cha Squidders has been effective for us. Using Mack’s Lures Double D Dodgers in front of a 22” leader completes the formula.

This would be the time to begin preparation for the Summer Salmon season in the Brewster pool. A supply of rotating flashers with Super Baits and oil based tuna to stuff in them is a beginning for the Chinook. For the expected run of Sockeye, cure some shrimp with Pautzke’s Fire Cure and lay up some 0 chrome and chrome scale dodgers as well as Mack’s Lures Mini Cha Cha Squidders. Now everybody, keep your fingers and toes crossed that we get a thermal barrier built up at the mouth of the Okanogan.

Your fishing tip of the week is to remember to keep those setbacks short in the Brewster Pool. That’s the best way to keep you from tangling with others in that dense fishery.

The kid’s tip of the week is to anticipate when they are done and time the end of the fishing trip to just before that. It will be more enjoyable for everyone.

The safety tip of the week is to use extra caution for floating debris. As Lake Chelan gets its last foot of water, loads of woody debris enters the lake.

Anton Jones of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service

1-866-360-1523 or http://www.darrellanddads.com/

Visit our Facebook page for daily pictures and timely specials

Edmonds Pier

The Edmonds pier has been putting out a number of king slamon the past couple of weeks.  It is not putting them out on a daily basis, but there have been enough caught to bring out a number of pier regulars.  This past Saturday there was a 13 and a 19 pound Chinook taken.  The past couple of days however have been a blank.  The typical pier jigs such as a Point Wilson Dart, Crippled Herrring, Gibb's Minnows and Dungeness Stingers in the 2 to 2 1/2 ounce range have been the key to success.  As far as colors go white, green pearl, glow green or pearl with a black top have all been good.  Make sure that you change your hook to a single barbless hook to conform to the WDFW regulations.  This fishery is just getting started.  The last two weeks in July and the first two weeks in August are typically the most productive.

If you would like a little additional information on this fishery, stop by and we'll be glad to fill you in.

Fresh Sand Shrimp

We have just received a fresh batch of sand shrimp this afternoon for those of you that have been needing them sockeye on the Skagit or steelhead on the Skykomish.

Skagit River Sockeye

Though the Skagit blew out with the rains on Sunday and was darn near flood stage on Monday by yesterday afternoon folks were fishing and catching.  The river is still very high and flowing in the willows and the places that one can fish are extremely limited.  It's taking the better part of 8 ounces to stay on the bottom with the flow.  Make sure that you are keeping your gear in the current seam as it is a very narrow corridor that the fish are moving though.  If you do not have your gear in the zone then you won't be getting any fish.  I spoke with a number of folks that had fish yesterday afternoon and this morning was not bad either.

Lake Chelan - Fishing Reports

What’s hot is trolling for big Lake Trout on Lake Chelan near Mill Bay early in the morning and late in the evening. Also hot, but changing, is trolling for kokanee in the lower basin of Lake Chelan.


Lake Chelan’s Lake Trout bite continues to be the model of consistency. The spice is that big fish are showing up with some regularity. Troll in the Mill Bay neighborhood with Worden Lures T4 Flatfish in either Luminous Chartreuse or Purple Glow near the bottom in depths of 120’ to 160’ for best success in getting these big fish to bite. When the bite slows, later in the morning, move into the trench and look for piles of eating size lakers. Silver Horde’s Ace Hi Flies baited with a strip of Northern Pikeminnow is the ticket here.

This season’s nice sized Kokanee on Lake Chelan are continuing to bite. These fish are moving in big schools all over the lower basin now. There are still some fish being caught off the Blue Roof Condos, but you are going to have to “hunt and peck” to stay on them now. Putting Pautzke’s Fire Corn in either Natural or Yellow onto the hooks of Mack’s Lures Mini Cha Cha Squidders has been effective for us. Using Mack’s Lures Double D Dodgers in front of a 22” leader completes the formula. Look for those schools on your sonar and with your eyes. We have been seeing them concentrated from the surface down to 120 feet. Don’t be afraid to vary your speed considerably. We have caught these fish pulling that gear anywhere from 1 to 2.2 mph.

This is the time of the year to lay up your bait supply of Northern Pikeminnow. We use pieces of Lake Trout to catch our Northern Pikeminnow. We fillet them and cut them into strips and freeze a dozen or so little strips in a zip loc snack bag for later use.

Your fishing tip of the week is to scatter your Kokanee presentations throughout the water column until you find a depth that works best.

The kids tip of the week is to get them out on the docks on Lake Chelan to catch those Pikeminnow for you. The grandkids love it when they see those fish bite!

The safety tip of the week is more of etiquette advice. When you arrive at the boat launch, park in a parking spot, not the actual launch if you need to prep your boat before launching,. Don’t plug things up and force people to maneuver in tight quarters around you. It’s starting to get very busy on the Lake Chelan boat ramps. Good manners will make it more relaxed and safer for everyone.

Anton Jones of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service

1-866-360-1523 or http://www.darrellanddads.com/

Visit our Facebook Page for Daily Pictures and timely Specials

Skagit Sockeye Reports - Saturday June 16th

Overall the reports that we had in today on the Skagit Sockeye opener was quite mixed.  It seemed that if you happened to be in the right spot when the schools came through that you did just fine.  If you weren't then you were one of the many that complained that you didn't have a bite or see anything around you.  We had guys in that did manage to limit out today in short order and many around them caught fish also.  The fish are definitely schooled up when they come through as many who caught fish today mentioned that guys below them first had fish on and as the fish advanced upstream the rods went down just below them until they advanced to where they were fishing and rods went off around them and progressed upstream.  The river was flowing quite high today with very little bar area showing, and with that the fish were quite close to the bank right on the current seam!  It took upwards of 8 ounces of lead to stay in place, with many anglers having to double up on their sinkers to stay in place.  The fish I saw today were dime bright and in fantastic shape. Key to success was plunking a Spin N Glo and sand shrimp or coon stripe shrimp combination.  You also had to be in the right spot!

Skagit Sockeye Fishery

We have had a good number of guys gearing up this week for tomorrow's Skagit River Sockeye opener.  The stretch of river from the Memorial Hwy Bridge in Mount Vernon to the mouth of Gilligan Creek  (above Sedro Wooley) will open with a 3 sockeye limit (minimum of 12 inches).  This is the fist time this stretch of the river has been open for sockeye and will be quite interesting to see how folks do.  Most have been gearing up with plunking gear and Spin N Glo's in size 4 - 6 - 8 in pink colors have been the choice for most as well as sand shrimp of dyed coon stripe shrimp to bait there hooks.  Some are also including a small pink mini hoochie over their hooks.  With the warmer weather I am sure we will see some snow melt the next few days and a decrease in the visibility and and increase in water height.  More when it opens!

Lake Steven's Kokanee

For those of you that have been wondering how the Lake Stevens Kokanee fishing has been, here's a report from yesterday from one of our better Stevens fishermen.  The fishing was very good yesterday with a nice 10 fish limit by 7:30 am.  The fish were in the 55 -70 foot range and and you have to make an effort to find them as they are schooled up.  Fish that were caught were in the 14 - 16 1/2 inch range and nice and fat.  There were a few other boats on the lake and did see a few others landing a few.

What’s hot is kokanee fishing on Lake Chelan for quality kokanee. Also hot is trolling for Lake Trout on Lake Chelan at the Yacht Club, the Bar and off of Minneapolis Beach. Finally, it is continuing pretty hot fishing along the shoreline of Lake Chelan now for a pot pourri of species.

Kokanee on Lake Chelan are biting now and are continuing to AVERAGE 14 inches. We seem to be seeing three size classes that probably correspond to the three common year classes. They are twelve inches, fourteen inches and fifteen and a half inches. Those are probably three, four and five year old fish. The thing that seemed to matter the most was the attractor. Hands down, dodgers in the 0000 size were the most productive. Mack’s Double D dodger, Worden’s 0000 dodger and Silver Horde’s number one size kokanee dodger all generated numerous bites. A leader of sixteen to twenty two inches to a Mack’s Lures mini-cha cha squidder is the next piece of the puzzle. We caught a lot of fish on hot pink and watermelon glow. The icing on the cake was baiting everything with Pautzke’s Fire Corn in natural and yellow. Trolling at 80 and 100 feet deep in the lower basin at 1.4 mph was very productive.
Lake Chelan’s Lake Trout bite continues to be consistent. Fish the Bar with Worden Lures Flatfish in T4 sizes. Use Mack’s Lure’s Cha Cha’s off of Minneapolis and Silver Horde’s Ace Hi Flies at the Yacht Club. Fish the docks on Chelan for Rainbows and Northern Pikeminnow. We use Pautzke’s Firebait in Mallow Balls ‘O Fire for Rainbows and pieces of fish entrails for Northern Pikeminnow.
Your fishing tip of the week is to make an ice slurry to keep the delicate flesh of those delicious kokanee firm. I cringed last weekend when I saw anglers dragging those fish around in the water on stringers. It will turn their meat to mush in just a few hours. Fill a cooler one quarter full of ice, float all the ice with water and immerse those fish in the slurry as you catch them. Yum!
The kids tip of the week is to use distraction instead of corrections to redirect those 4 to 7 year old kids when they engage in annoying behaviors. Unless it is a safety issue, distraction will be much more effective and keep your blood pressure lower…
The safety tip of the week is to take your time trailering at the end of the day. Fatigue from a long day on the water can help you make expensive mistakes. Stop and think your way through the process before proceeding.

Anton Jones of Darrell & Dad's Family Guide Service

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

Visit us on our Facebook page for up to date pictures, tips and specials

Lake Washington Trout Derby - Saturday June 16

Puget Sound Anglers of Lake Washington will be hosting a Lake Washington Trout Derby on Saturday June 16, 2012.  Tickets are $20.00 per angler.  For additional information and ticket sales go to www.psalakewashington.org.
Cash Prizes
1st prize  $300.00
2nd prize  $200.00
3rd prize  $100.00
Mystery Weight $100.00

There will also be a free picnic lunch from noon to 2:00p.m.

Cascade River

The Cascade river opened today for Chinook.  There were perhaps 40 - 50 guys fishing the hatchery hole below the bridge this morning.  In talking with one of the customers there were a good number of Chinook hooked with the greatest number of them coming loose with the high water conditions that were contended with.  Most of the fish landed were smallish 5 - 10 pounders with many showing a fair amount of color.  There were also a few late winter run  native steelhead hooked.  Most of the guys were fishing with eggs.

Bonneville Shad

Though the shad numbers through Bonneville have been very limited there has been some fairly good shad fishing below the dam.  We had a customer in today replenishing his shad dart selection that had landed over 60 the past two days that he had fished.  Not "Red Hot" by any means but enough fish to have a lot of fun.  We should see the shad numbers building over the next few weeks.  The preseason forecast on the shad was for less than a million fish this season.

Skykomish River Steelhead Report

With the Skykomish River opening today, including the popular Reiter Pond Hatchery section there was a mass of folks fishing it this morning.  With the number of folks that were on the river it's hard to believe that anyone works.  We heard from a number of our customers that there was around 20 sled trailers at the Sultan launch and around a dozen guys that launched their drift boats at the High Bridge /Big Eddy area.  Rieter Ponds had around 70 folks fishing on both sides of the river and another batch at the cable hole, Hogerty Creek and Proctor Creek. Overall, we had some good reports come in from Reither with customers saying they saw 30-35 fish landed this morning alone with many more lost with the high water.
The water is extremely high with the river at around 9500 this morning and is presently at 12,400 and comtinuing to go up.  At 12,400 it is extremely high, but those who have stropped by said the color is still good.  We'll have to wait and we if it drops to a reasonable height.  As one would expect the summer fish caught today were dime bright.

We presently have fresh sand shrimp on hand.