|
Today is:
Introduction
Major lakes and rivers
Okanogan Valley
Methow Valley
Okanogan Highlands
Fishing the reservation
Reservation fisheries
Selective fisheries
|
|
The Chronicle OnLine > Features >
Fishrapper 2004-05
| Reservation fisheries |
By Al Camp
Chronicle staff
Apex Lake: Few anglers fish the three- to five-acre lake, which used to contain largemouth bass. Bullheads have been found in the lake, which drains into Borgeau Lake about three-quarters of a mile south.
The lake, located in Ferry County about four miles south of Inchelium, may be rehabbed in the future to remove bullheads.
Big Goose Lake: This large, shallow lake 17 miles southeast of Omak doesn’t winter kill thanks to two windmill aerators paid for by the Bonneville Power Administration.
New is a daily catch limit of 15 bass with not more than two over 14 inches. The lake may go back to a slot limit next year.
The lake, which is about 11 feet at its deepest, was planted with largemouth bass and pumpkin seed fish taken from Rebecca Lake.
Between the aerators and a warm winter the lake did not suffer a winter kill, said Marco, who said some bass were caught on the opener April 9.
Big Goose is not being planted. Marco said he wanted to see how the current production in the lake worked out before he did an additional planting. He said he thought there was a spawn last year.
Fish can get large fast in the shallow lake due to scuds. Last year anglers pulled bass out in the 10- to 12-inch range. Those fish could be a couple inches larger and weigh more this year if the food supply holds up.
Large pumpkin seed fish, perhaps even one big enough for a state record, also reside in the lake.
Water levels have yet to return to normal, but are high enough to produce good fishing and allow folks to get a boat into the lake. A concrete ramp on the east side of the lake may not reach down to the water line.
Borgeau Lake: The 22-acre lake, located 4.5 miles south of Inchelium, continues to be planted with triploids, which were around a pound when planted prior to the opener in April.
The lake was scheduled to get legal rainbows in May.
Largemouth bass range up to four pounds, though an angler did catch a six-pound bass on opening day, April 9.
There is a seldom-used boat ramp along with a picnic table and outhouse.
Buffalo Lake: Two miles in length, this 540-acre-plus lake is 7.25 miles southeast of Nespelem and holds good-sized triploid rainbows, and a few eastern brook and kokanee that have spawned naturally in the lake since the 1950s.
Though the lake is managed for trout, largemouth bass averaging less than two pounds (some reach up to five pounds) also reside in the lake.
There is a 25-bass daily catch limit. All bass caught must be kept as outlined in the general regulations for bass.
A crayfish season, where the limit is five pounds in the shell, runs July 1 through Sept. 15. The season is later and longer than in the past.
The kokanee daily catch limit is 15 fish, which could help reduce the fishes’ numbers and increase the amount of plankton available for other fish.
A winter season, which requires a special $20 license in addition to a tribal license, runs Jan. 1 to March 15.
A boat access is on the west side.
There is a resort on the northeast end of the lake. RV hookups are available at the resort.
Cook Lake: Expect spiny ray fish, like bass and pumpkin seed fish, in this tiny lake on Cameron Lake Road about a half-mile west of Little Goose Lake.
A windmill aerator was expected to get oxygen into the shallow lake to prevent summer kill.
Crawfish Lake: Crawfish lies partly on tribal land and partly on state land. Its season matches the state’s general fishing season, April 30 to Oct. 31. (See listing with Highlands waters.)
Those who fish from shore on the reservation portion of the lake must possess a reservation license. For those who fish from a boat in reservation waters, a state license will suffice.
The tribe and state co-manage lake.
Duley Lake: This shallow lake, which contains bass, is located near Okanogan about eight miles south of Little Goose Lake on upper Cameron Lake Road.
LaFleur Lake: The season at this primarily largemouth bass lake is May 7 (always first Saturday in May) to Oct. 31. Bass in the two- to three-pound range roam in the lake, with some reaching six pounds.
The lake was ice free early so it was planted the last week of March with jumbo rainbow that averaged a pound each.
There also are a few brook trout.
The 25-acre lake is nine miles north of Inchelium. There is a boat ramp. A few tribal member-only campsites are available.
Lake Roosevelt: Anglers can add two kokanee to their daily limit of five trout, meaning a limit could include seven fish, two of which can be kokanee.
A kokanee program releases fingerlings each year. The fish can be caught in the 16- to 18-inch range. Wild kokanee return to the San Poil.
The lake is stocked from fish in various net pen rearing projects at Keller Marina, Hunters, Kettle Falls and Seven Bays.
Lake Roosevelt runs from Grand Coulee Dam, which lies at the junction of highways 155 and 174, and extends east and then north past Kettle Falls.
The tribe plants net pen rainbows at the mouth of Hall Creek. The program over the last few years has created fish in the three- to five-pound range.
The lake is closed to sturgeon fishing.
Lake Roosevelt, which is open all year, carries several special regulations.
Anglers must become familiar with physical landmarks where the San Poil River and Lake Roosevelt meet. (See section on San Poil River.)
Daily catch limit for trout is five fish, not more than two over 20 inches. Possession limit is two daily catch limits.
The daily walleye limit is five with no more than one over 22 inches. There is a 16-inch minimum.
The lake sports smallmouth bass and a few largemouth bass. The fish are in the one- to two-pound range, with a few pushing four pounds.
There is a bass slot limit with a daily catch limit of five fish less than 12 inches or over 17 inches. No more than one fish can be over 17 inches.
Lake Rufus Woods: The reservoir formed behind Chief Joseph Dam near Bridgeport contains some terrifically big triploid rainbow trout that benefit from fish pen operations.
Fishing should continue to be grand this year, as 700 to 800 five-pound triploids were planted in the reservoir around Christmas. An additional release of 40,000 fingerlings was made in early March.
The bigger fish came from the Columbia River Net Farm, where the tribe had some credit built up, said Marco.
“I hope they stay in the reservoir and turn into 15- to 20-pounders in a few years,” Marco said.
The state record for a rainbow (including triploid), 29.6 pounds, was landed by Norm Butler, Okanogan, on Nov. 11, 2002. At the time, the fish broke the previous record, set the same year, by nearly four pounds.
Several big fish were landed in 2004, including a 27.07-pounder by Kyle Cantlon, Omak, and a 23-pounder by Zach Austin, Winthrop.
Most rainbows are in the three- to four-pound class in the reservoir. The sterile fish benefit from feed flowing from a net pen operation near Nespelem Creek.
The lake also gets a lot of fish passing from Lake Roosevelt through Grand Coulee Dam. Some smallmouth bass and walleye live in the reservoir.
There is a bass slot limit with a daily catch limit of five fish less than 12 inches or over 17 inches. No more than one fish can be over 17 inches.
Wild kokanee, which contain special genetic material, must be released in Nespelem River Bay from July 15 to Nov. 30 to protect naturally spawning fish. (For more on the lake, see state listing with major lakes and rivers.)
For approved boat launch sites, check the back of the tribal fish pamphlet. There is a launch near Chief Joseph Dam and a ramp near Belvedere.
Little Goose: This small lake east of Okanogan should benefit from jumbo rainbows planted prior to the opener and legal rainbows to be planted in May.
Last year, the lake received a plant of triploid rainbows and a larger-than-average planting of brook trout.
Little Goose, which has a boat access, is located nine miles east of Okanogan on Cameron Lake Road.
Lost Creek: Rainbow and brook trout live in the creek, located in the north central part of the reservation and starting near the headwaters of Crawfish Lake northeast of Riverside.
The creek flows east, staying mostly in the reservation, and feeds into the west fork of the San Poil River north of the reservation’s boundary.
Though the creek has not received any plants for a couple years, it will receive some legal-sized rainbows. By fall the fish should be in the 14-inch range.
Some of the creek flows through private land, so anglers need to get permission before fishing.
The creek can be reached via Highway 155 through Lyman Lake.
McGinnis Lake: This is a brook trout-only lake, with very nice carryover brookies reaching up to 20 inches and several pounds.
Brook trout (two to three fish to the pound) were planted prior to the opener.
Larger boats can be launched at the 115-acre lake a mile south of Buffalo Lake and 9.5 miles southeast of Nespelem.
Nicholas Lake: The limited-access lake has a season for rainbows of May 1 to Oct. 31.
Legal-size rainbows (4,000) were to be planted in mid- to late-April as soon as a truck could maneuver the muddy road to the lake.
Some years the lake suffers winter kill. Ice was off the lake around mid-April.
The two-acre lake is located 11.6 miles north of Inchelium.
Okanogan River: A large portion of the river, which is open all year, forms the western edge of the reservation. Tribal and state regulations close the river to the taking of trout, salmon and steelhead. (See listing with state waters.)
The river is open all year from the mouth to the Malott bridge for all game fish except trout, salmon and steelhead fishing. An emergency regulation may open the river for steelhead fishing in the fall.
From Dec. 1 to March 31 gear is restricted to a single hook, no larger than size 14.
Upstream from the Malott bridge the season runs June 1 to Aug. 31 for all game fish except trout, salmon and steelhead.
Anglers are allowed to use bait north of the Malott bridge. Selective fishery rules no longer apply since the state considers the water a warm water fishery.
Bait is prohibited from the mouth to the Malott bridge, with the stretch of water considered a selective fishery.
The daily bass limit is five bass less than 12 inches or more than 17 inches, with no more than one bass over 17 inches.
Omak Creek: This creek located east of Omak is closed to non-member fishing due to a summer steelhead program.
Omak Lake: Bigger fish are getting hard to find at this 3,000-acre lake seven miles southeast of Omak off Highway 155.
There is a three-fish limit on Lahontan cutthroat with not more than one being over 18 inches.
The lake has a year-round season. A catch-and-release season runs March 1 to May 31.
Fish can reach up to 18 pounds, which is the current state record set in 1993 at the lake.
Access on the south end of the lake is closed to non-members, but all anglers can fish the south end. There are boat launch areas at the north end of the lake.
The north embayment (next to the Mission boat ramp) is closed to boating and fishing March 1 to May 31. All islands are closed to access from March 1 to April 30 while birds are nesting.
Anglers may use artificial lures and flies with barbless hooks only; no bait fishing is allowed. Fishing time is from dawn to dark daily. Anglers are required to furnish creel census information.
Two boat accesses are available on the north end of the lake — Nicholson Beach off Columbia River Road and Mission access at the end of the road past Paschal Sherman Indian School off Highway 155.
Rebecca Lake: Water levels are plenty deep for bass and the lake does not suffer winter kill. Still, anglers this spring had to work hard for bass with some fish landed in the four- to six-pound range.
The lake was to receive some trout plants in May, though Rebecca is more of a bass lake.
There is a bass slot limit with a daily catch limit of five fish less than 12 inches or over 17 inches. No more than one fish can be over 17 inches.
Rebecca is located about eight miles south of Nespelem and 1.5 miles southwest of Buffalo Lake.
There is an unimproved boat launch facility.
San Poil River: There is a year-round season from the mouth of the San Poil River upstream to a location extending across the river from French John’s Lake/Manila Creek on the west shoreline and Dick Creek on the east shoreline.
The season upstream from this location to the free-flowing reach of the river is open to fishing from June 1 to through Dec. 31.
The short season should help rainbows that are staging in Lake Roosevelt prior to entering the river to spawn.
The free-flowing reach of the system is open to fishing from May 1 to Oct. 31.
Walleye and smallmouth bass also inhabit the river.
Triploid rainbows in the one-pound range will be planted in the river. The fish don’t compete in spawning areas with native fish.
A catch-and-release trout season May 1 to Oct. 31 covers the area from Thirty Mile bridge to the reservation boundary. Only single hook, artificial flies and lures with barbless hooks may be used. No bait fishing is allowed.
There is a wild kokanee release in effect.
There is a 25-fish daily catch limit for walleye and smallmouth bass.
There are no walleye or smallmouth bass size limits in the river section.
Regulations differ for the river and Lake Roosevelt, into which the river flows. A bay formed where the waters meet fluctuates by season, causing regulations to fluctuate as well.
With the river not reaching the high water mark, at an elevation of 1,290 feet, the definition of the flowing river can change by as much as one to three miles.
Anglers should have a tribal permit if they’re fishing for walleye and smallmouth bass in the San Poil and be aware of differences in seasons and bag limits between the San Poil and Lake Roosevelt.
Tribal regulations are an effort to rebuild the wild rainbow population in the San Poil River by putting pressure on San Poil walleye.
The river produces best in the fall for rainbows up to five pounds.
Highway 21 parallels the San Poil River for 58 miles from Republic to the Columbia River.
Stranger Creek: The creek is closed from Inchelium/Gifford Road downstream to the mouth.
Best success lies in beaver ponds. Anglers should get permission before fishing on private property that borders the creek, which runs out of Twin Lakes near Inchelium.
The creek, which is planted in June when water levels recede, contains naturally spawning brook trout and plants of sterilized rainbows 13 to 14 inches.
Summit Lake: This lake, which is open all year, may have benefited from a mild winter with a few carryovers.
No brook trout were planted prior to the opener, as normally occurs. the lake will be planted in early May.
Once planted, anglers who manage to reach the lake over a steep hill can expect nine- to 11-inch brook trout at the lake, located six miles east of Disautel and 11.5 miles northwest of Nespelem at about 3,500 feet elevation.
Carryover rainbows planted in the past can reach up to four pounds.
Twin Lakes: This lake sports a general season during the summer and a winter season that requires an additional license.
A special $20 winter season license allows for ice fishing Jan. 1 to March 15. Anglers must possess a tribal fishing permit along with the special winter license to ice fish.
The summer season is April 9 to Oct. 31.
Bass range in the 10- to 16-inch range. There is a 15-fish limit with not more than two over 14 inches.
Each lake received 5,000 jumbo rainbows prior to the opener. Each lake also was scheduled to receive 10,000 to 15,000 legal rainbows in May. The jumbo rainbows can reach several pounds by the fall.
The lakes also contain brook trout.
It is lawful to fish to the base of the Stranger Creek outlet structure.
Twin Lakes covers about 2,000 acres and is located eight miles west of Inchelium. There are two resorts and a public access at North Rocky Point.
Washburn Island Pond: The season at this 13-acre pond, managed for bass, and lying partly on the reservation and partly on state land, runs April 1 to Sept. 30.
There is a bass slot limit with a daily catch limit of five fish less than 12 inches or over 17 inches. No more than one fish can be over 17 inches.
Largemouth bass run up to a couple pounds at the pond, located four miles east of Brewster off Highway 17.
The lake also contains bluegill.
Anglers must possess a state and Colville tribal fishing license if fishing from shore. A state license is required for fishing from a boat. The use of internal combustion engines is prohibited.
The boat launch area includes toilets and parking.
Wells Reservoir: Often called Lake Pateros, the pool is formed behind Wells Dam up to Chief Joseph Dam. The reservoir is open all year.
The reservoir is closed to salmon and steelhead fishing, though emergency measures may open limited seasons in the fall for summer Chinook salmon and steelhead.
A trout season runs June 1 to Aug. 31, with a daily catch limit of two fish. Only fish 12 to 20 inches can be kept. Artificial lures and flies with barbless hooks are required. There’s no bait fishing allowed.
Possession limit is one daily catch limit.
The reservoir, which is managed by the state, is closed to shoreline fishing from the base of Chief Joseph Dam downstream to the Highway 17 bridge on the reservation side (Okanogan County side).
Closed waters are at Chief Joseph Dam between the west end of the tail race deck downstream 400 feet to the boundary marker.
Bass and walleye also live in the reservoir.
There is a bass slot limit with a daily catch limit of five fish less than 12 inches or over 17 inches. No more than one fish can be over 17 inches.
Of note, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will be working on a project in the river near Chief Joseph Dam to limit gas released into the river.
Wilmont Creek:
The creek, located 20 miles south of Inchelium, receives plants of rainbows and contains a few naturally spawning brook trout. This year the creek was to receive 1,000 eight-inch rainbows once high water goes down.
The bigger fish, which start at 13 inches, can be found in backed-up water behind beaver dams. The lower two-thirds of the creek borders private land, so anglers should seek landowner permission before fishing.
|
The Chronicle respects your right to privacy. Please read our privacy policy
for details concerning our use of customer information.
All contents copyright © 2000, The Chronicle, Inc., Omak, WA 98841, a division of Eagle Newspapers, Inc.,
unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.
|
|
 
|
