Bass Fishing

By Gary Lewis

If the days spent fishing do not count against our allotted time on this earth, as we have been told, then we should fish more often. Because we spend a lot of our time in towns, we should be fishing in towns. It's more efficient.

When the family wanted to go to Disneyworld, I fished. When we went to Hawaii, I dabbled a line in a king's bathing pool. I have fished off hotel balconies and out the windows of cars all over the country. 

There are a lot of great fishing towns in Oregon; Shady Cove, Maupin, and Grass Pants, to name a few. If a river runs through it, it's a fishing town. 

Portland is, of course, the ultimate fishing town, with the Willamette running right through it and salmon, sturgeon, shad, and smallmouth on tap. One of the best smallmouth of my life came from under the Sellwood Bridge.  

What I like is going to a town and catching fish right out from under the noses of the local anglers. Here are some great fishing opportunities coming up in May and June. 

SHAD FISHING AT OREGON CITY

One of the best fisheries in May and June is for shad - on the Umpqua, the Columbia, and the Willamette. American shad were introduced to the American west in 1871 when fish were released in major rivers up and down the Pacific coast. Today, millions of shad return to spawn in the spring. Plankton eaters, our American shad is the biggest of the herring species and averages three to five pounds. They bite and fight with abandon. 

One great place to catch them is below the falls on the Willamette at Oregon City. 

They take small spoons like Dick Nites and Mack's Lure Sonic Baitfish, and red, yellow, or chartreuse jigs. Fly-rodders can get them on small shad flies and darts. They are a blast to catch. 

The action starts in May, right about the time the pink dogwood blooms. A fisherman can have 50-plus fish days in June, and contrary to popular opinion, shad are good to eat. Hint: learn how to debone them. Shad roe is good to eat too. Fast fishing continues through mid-July. 

SMALLMOUTH BASS FISHING AT THE DALLES

Smallmouth bass will probably spawn a bit later this year, as the waters are running cold with snow melt, but June is always great for smallies. When the water is running fast, they are likely to be in the eddies along the rip-rapped banks of the Columbia, from Mosier up to Boardman and beyond. 

There is a lot of bank access in this section of the river. Some of it requires parking off the highway. Backwater fisheries are an overlooked resource with bass and panfish. 

When towing a boat to the Columbia for the first time, keep in mind this is big, tricky water with heavy currents. That said, the river is accessible and the best fishing is along the banks next to the riprap and around jetties in softer water.

If the wind is blowing, there are always backwaters, side channels, and turns in the river where an angler can get out of the wind. 

Another option is trout fishing. Taylor Lake, right on the edge of city limits of The Dalles, has been stocked three times already this spring. 

TROUT FISHING AT JUNCTION CITY

A few miles north of Eugene on old Highway 99, the angler has to start slowing down at the edge of city limits at Junction City. This town with a population of 6,700 people has its own eponymous body of water, the 8-acre Junction City Pond. Stocked and fishable year-round, this pond gets legals, trophies, brood stock, and sometimes surprise surplus steelhead that will rock your world. By the time this issue went to press, JC Pond, as the locals know it, had been blessed with a reported 13,450 legals. That's a lot of fish, folks. It's worth a stop along the highway to soak some bait or cast a fly or spinner this spring. 

PIKEMINNOW AT PDX

I caught my first pikeminnow across from the Portland airport. We caught a lot of them in those days, toothy critters that averaged 11 inches and ran up to 17 inches or so. 

Northern pikeminnow thrive in the tailwaters below the dams and eat tons of baby salmon and steelhead. And for this, they have a bounty on their heads. 

For a true city fishing experience, register at the check-in station early in the morning at M. James Gleason Boat Ramp on Marine Drive, then prowl upriver and downriver for northern pikeminnow - nightcrawlers are a good bait - and take your fish to the check-out station at the end of the day. Click on http://www.pikeminnow.org/ for more information. A fisherman can make $6 a fish these days. 

Think about making this one a last stop on a spring fishing swing through western Oregon. It's not a bad way to cover some fuel expenses and do something for salmon and steelhead at the same time. 

The days spent fishing don't count against your life, but the miles on the truck do go against my wallet. 

For me, PDX is a 360-mile round trip. According to my calculations, I'll need to catch 11 pikeminnow to break even on the fuel. Once I catch fish number 12, I'm making a profit!  

Are you in need of outdoor activity ideas for the days ahead? Here, you'll find seven suggestions that offer you the chance to embrace the outdoors and partake in fresh experiences this spring season.

Wildflower Hikes

The wildflowers are blooming around Eastern Washington and now is a great time to go on a hike and immerse yourself in their presence! A few of my favorite places to go include Columbia Hills State Park in Klickitat County, Hay Canyon and Nahahum Canyon near Cashmere, Ingalls Creek south of Peshastin, the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge south of Cheney, and the area around Palouse Falls State Park.

Waterfalls

Speaking of Palouse Falls, this is the best time of year to visit this state park near Starbuck in Southeast Washington. The spring runoff on the Palouse River sends a voluminous amount of water crashing into the 198-feet deep basalt basin below the falls. Other waterfalls worth checking out right now include Rainbow Falls near Stehekin, Silver Falls west of Entiat, and Periwee (also known as Peewee) Falls in Pend Oreille County, which cascades 233 feet into Boundary Lake.

Bass Fishing

The bass are in the shallows and getting ready to spawn. This is arguably the easiest time of year to sight fish for bass. Casting finesse rigs like senkos, jigs or Texas rigged worms and lizards can readily draw strikes. Look for these bass in thick cover and be prepared to scratch up the boat a bit to get at them.

Trout Fishing

Most of those trout planted prior to the lowland lakes opener are still there, and this is a great time to go fishing for them. If you are looking for places to go, check out the WDFW derby lakes where trout with blue tags have been planted. If you catch one of these trout, they are worth a prize, which could be anything from a gift card to a canoe!

Catfish Fishing

Another option for anglers right now is to go after catfish. You can find them in the lower John Day River between the mouth and the falls as well as the mouth of the Palouse River near Lyons Ferry State Park. Channel catfish are also plentiful in the Snake River.

Desert Hikes

As the weather warms, desert hikes become a lot less enjoyable, but if you go now, you can still take advantage of the great scenery and some of the lakes found in these regions. Some of my favorite desert hikes are the lower route to the Ancient Lakes, Dusty Lake, (1.5 and 3 mike one-way hikes respectively), and near Frenchman or Winchester Wasteway in the Desert Wildlife Area in Grant County. If you go, check yourself for ticks at the conclusion of your excursion.

The Washington lowland lakes opener is in the history books, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still catch fish from them. Here’s a report on some favorites and how angler did: 

Steve Caromile, the Inland Fish Program Manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife said, “The lowland lake trout season, Washington’s single biggest fishing season, opened April 22nd with decent weather and catch rates. It is still one of the best bargains in local family recreation. The 22nd was also the first day of our annual trout derby, and we are already seeing catches of tagged trout!”

Caromile continued saying, “With typical springtime weather, angler catch and effort at our lakes was comparable to prior seasons, with catch averaging just about three fish per angler. The air temperatures weren’t bad, but water temperatures are still on the cool side. But with better weather in the forecast, the catch will be heating up as well.”

If you are wondering how Central and Eastern Washington lakes fished on opening day, here are reports from WDFW staff who visited various waters in the region:

Klickitat County

Horsethief Lake was fishing pretty slow on the opener. Individuals averaged two trout each. However, things were very different at Rowland Lake. 29 anglers were checked, and although there were not many people fishing, creel checkers noted they harvested lot of fish. Eight trout were caught per angler, and on average they kept 3.24 fish. The largest trout seen? A 21-incher!

Chelan County

Clear Lake was frozen over and Beehive Reservoir was not accessible to vehicular traffic due to snow at this lake located near the Mission Ridge Ski Area, south of Wenatchee. However, Wapato Lake, near Manson, was open for fishing, and anglers caught and kept around 3.5 trout apiece.

Douglas County

The crowds were out at Jameson Lake on opening morning. Creel checkers counted 234 anglers fishing for trout at 8 AM. Just under 3 trout per angler were caught here, the average fish measuring 11-inches long. The largest fish seen by WDFW staff was a 16-inch rainbow.

Grant County

The crowds were also out for the opener at Blue Lake, with nearly 300 individuals counted, and a lot of these anglers were kids. The average catch was only 1.5 trout each, but the size of the trout was a healthy 14 inches. Park Lake, south of Coulee City, was also crowded, and the catching was about the same as Blue Lake. There was far better fishing at nearby Deep Lake, in Sun Lakes State Park. Anglers there were catching five fish limits of rainbow trout averaging 13 inches.

Okanogan Country

Okanogan County is a popular destination for the lowland lakes opener and for good reason: the fishing can be very good here and the scenery is nice. Creel checkers did not make it out to any of the lakes here for the opener but I called Gene Bussell at Liars Cove Resort, who said anglers did pretty good for both bass and trout. However, the lake is really low right now, and according to Bussell, “it’s not easy to launch boats at the moment.” The good news is the lake is starting to fill and boat access is getting better. Check with Bussell for exactly where to launch so you don’t get stuck in the mud.

Pend Oreille Country

At Diamond Lake, the crowds were low and the fishing was slow, due primarily to cold water temperatures. Of the anglers checked, on average they only harvested a rainbow apiece, though most of them were 13-inches long, and the largest checked was a respectable 19-inch trout.

Stevens County

Waitts Lake had more anglers than any other body of water in Stevens County on opening day. Creel checkers noted the fishing was best in the morning before the winds kicked up. The anglers checked averaged 2.4 trout apiece, but the fish were large, with the rainbows going nearly 14 inches and the brown trout 16. There were not many anglers seen at the other Stevens County lakes. At Starvation Lake, anglers were indeed starving for trout and the fishing was slow. The same scenario played out at Rocky and Mudgett Lake. The few trout checked averaged 12 inches in length.

Last but not least, if you catch a trout with a blue tag on it, don’t throw it back. That’s a WDFW trout derby fish and it’s worth a prize. Go to https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/contests/trout-derby for details about where these fish have been stocked and how to claim your prize if you catch one.

John Kruse – www.northwesternoutdoors.com and www.americaoutdoorsradio.com