by Seth Kolshinski
In case you missed it last week; Ian Carter is stepping away from the weekly report and Seth Kolshinski is coming on board to help fill the gap. We’ve appreciated Ian’s reporting and dedication to the work and look forward to his occasional return. On to the report…
With Spring Chinook and Steelhead closed on the Columbia and the season winding down on the tributaries, people have shifted focus while awaiting the Columbia opener this Friday 6/16/23. Shad numbers over the dam have spiked massively and catch reports have skyrocketed. Pikeminnow fishing has been excellent, and many have been using the pikeminnow program to their benefit.
REMINDER, please verify the regulations before fishing any body of water. AND wear a life jacket.
Lewis Report
Flows have remained steady since last week’s report at 2900 cfs and the gage height steady at 2.7 feet which has been ideal for sleds and fishing keeping the fish holding in holes.
Angling pressure was slow Wednesday afternoon with a handful of people fishing from cedar creek boat launch down to the rv park.
Creel reports show 36 bank rods had no catch. 11 boats/19 rods kept two Chinook, one jack and released one Chinook.
Kalama Report
I have no reporter on the Kalama for this week but without change in weather I expect the water to be low and clear like last week. Escapement was decent but we are definitely winding down on Spring Chinook.
Creel reports show 51 bank rods kept one Chinook, one steelhead, and released one steelhead. 11 boats/25 rods kept 12 Chinook, four jacks, and released one Chinook.
Cowlitz Report
Last week, Tacoma Power employees recovered 380 spring Chinook adults, 95 spring Chinook jacks, four winter-run Steelhead adults, and 62 summer-run Steelhead adults over five days of operations at the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery separator.
During the past week, Tacoma Power employees released 220 spring Chinook adults, fifteen spring Chinook jacks, and four winter-run steelhead adults into Lake Scanewa in Randle and they released 75 spring Chinook adults and five spring Chinook jacks at Franklin Bridge in Packwood.
Washougal Report
Water levels are still low on the Washougal but there are reports of fish being caught by locals down river near the police station.
Columbia River
No report on salmon or Steelhead this week as fishing and retention of salmon and Steelhead is closed. Pikeminnow fishing has been very good though you can find locations at https://www.pikeminnow.org/fishing-maps. Shad have been running strong as well with plenty of reports of 20-30 fish in only a few hours of fishing.
Drano Lake and Wind River
Fishing has been nothing but terrible here with reports saying everyone is getting skunked and creel reports showing no fish being caught or released. This doesn’t mean they aren’t there, as they stop in to cool off, but they don’t seem to want to bite.
Warm Water Lakes and Ponds
Trusted reporter Beckham Schil has said the trout bite has completely died off whereas bass have his full attention. Crawdad fishing is getting better by the day as the water warms and they become more active. Shad make a great bait for these and are super easy to catch currently.
There is A LOT more for SW Washington Members here. And SW Washington members can find our complete Columbia River reports here.
Read this week’s Oregon fishing report.