[Brian Curtis]

Thanks for posting this, Jeff. The plan is to remove fish from 10 of the 35 lakes that currently have naturally reproducing fish. They will use gillnets. If, after 5 years, the gillnets have not been effective they will use rotenone. Along with the fish plan in place in the North Cascades National Park this plan has the potential to help WDFW move plans forward to eliminated some stunted populations in their high lakes. So despite the loss of some fishing lakes I think this could be a very positive step, overall.

[Brian Curtis]

This is a great question. I sure don’t have any real answers. I could imagine a pulse of productivity getting washed into a lake after a fire. But I could imaging alternative scenarios, too.

[Brian Curtis]

You will need to get your own when you become a member and are responsible for your own lakes, but you don’t need to bring your own now.

[Brian Curtis]

[quote quote=114861]I have better luck with spoons then spinners. I like the ones that are more cupped in the front. The extra wobble action attracts more fish then the flat crocodile spoons in my opinion. I find I have better luck with spoons and spinners when there isn’t a recent bug hatch. If so, I either have my fly rod or use a casting bubble with fly.[/quote]

I don’t disagree with you. In recent years my go to lures have been the 3/16 Dardevles and Kamlooper Jrs which have a ton of action with a very slow retrieve. I go to a Krocodile when the fish aren’t cooperating and I want to try a dead slow retrieve down deep. It seems like there are times when they are sitting on the bottom and don’t want too much action. That’s where the Krocs start to shine. So they are definitely more if a niche lure for me. The Jake’s Spin-a-Lure is an odd beast because it has very little action but what it does have is sort of random and it seems to drive fish nuts. And it it the best casting lure I’ve ever used so when I go up to ¼ oz it is my go to lure.

[Brian Curtis]

I like to use 4-lb test line. You want something that will be as invisible as possible. I use regular mono, but light test braided line will work well and cast better then mono if you don’t mind fussing with it.

The best rod is one that will break down into enough pieces to fit completely inside your pack.

I almost always throw lures that are either 3/16 or ¼ oz. I prefer spoons that are brass with red and normally fish with Dardevle (3/16), Kamlooper Jr (3/16), Jakes Spin-a-Lure (¼) or Krocodile (¼) spoons. But don’t let my preference for spoons over spinners dissuade you from taking Keith’s advice because he catches more fish then I do.

If I’m trolling from a raft I will often use a size F-5 to F-7 Flatfish.

I also carry a fly and bubble setup.

[Brian Curtis]

What do you mean by setup? Are you asking about lures or the whole package including rod and reel?

[Brian Curtis]

Do you mean the Golden Lakes in Mt Rainier NP? No lakes in Mt Rainier or Olympic National Parks are stocked. There are quite a few lakes with naturally reproducing populations, but we can’t stock fish in those National Parks.

Edit: I just noticed your other post so now I know what you mean by the Golden Lakes. You should find fish in all those lakes.

There are a couple sets of Eagle Lakes. Do you mean the ones in the Okanogan? They are not stocked but contain naturally reproducing fish.

• This reply was modified 6 years, 6 months ago by Brian Curtis.

[Brian Curtis]

Hi David!

I put your contact info into our Visitor Contact Info page in Members Only where all members have access to it and I pulled it off of this page so it wouldn’t be publicly accessible.

Are you looking for a hike trip near Chelan? Or a drive to sort of lake? The best early season hike is to take the Lady of the Lake to Lucern and hike into Domke Lake. Fires swept through there a few years ago, but the trail is open again and the fishing is generally good.

[Brian Curtis]

Thinking about where I would have a cabin if I could have a cabin anywhere is interesting. It is certainly something I have thought about before. I would strongly consider the coast, if I were to get a cabin. But it would be of limited use as a hiking base camp. If you are too close to ski areas I imagine the cost goes way up. The Lake Wenatchee or Leavenworth area would be really nice. Or even something closer to Skykomish. The Salmon-La-Sac area is fantastic. Somewhere out of Granite Falls up the Mountain Loop could be cool, but probably dark and wet for much of the year. But I wonder if an even more interesting and possibly cheaper option would be something in the foothills of the Olympics. Maybe out of Quilcene or Brinnon. It would be a bit longer because of the ferry but that doesn’t count as much as driving for the equivalent time.

But you should keep in mind that I love spending other people’s money and I have always thought that the problem with owning a cabin is that you will be forced to go to the cabin. Typing that makes me wonder if it would be worth trying to find Air B&Bs or vacation rentals to try out different areas.

[Brian Curtis]

That’s a good one. It is about 1.5 acres, but the fishable area is obviously much smaller. You’d be surprised at how small some lakes that hold fish are. Lets see, one that comes to mind is Lennox Outlet Pot at about 0.17 acres. It has a small population of small fish. I’m sure there are smaller ones out there.

Here’s an even smaller one, Larch Outlet Pot #3 at about 0.1 acres (and several others about the same size):

• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by Brian Curtis.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by Brian Curtis.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by Brian Curtis.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by Brian Curtis.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by Brian Curtis.
• This reply was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by Brian Curtis.

[Brian Curtis]

Nudges for glorious off-trail fishing adventures. That’s a big topic! I’ll start out in the general. If you want longer overnight trips head for the larger wilderness areas: Alpine Lakes, Glacier Peak, Pasayten, or North Cascades National Park (where some fish are stocked). At the same time, don’t forget about places closer to home like the Goat Rocks. The William O. Douglas has tons of lakes and is well worth your time, but it generally isn’t as spectacular as the other wilderness areas.

From Yakima it would be a straight forward shot to head up into the Salmon-La-Sac area where the cross country adventures seem limitless. If you turn left you can head into the heart of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness where there are so many spectacular lakes like Deadhead, Vicente, Circle, Venus, Spade, Shovel, Rebecca, and Rowena. Or turn right and visit the Granite Mountain area where you might visit the French Potholes, The Granite Man Potholes, Phoebe, Shoal, Jungfrau, Swedes, the Swallow Lakes, and on and on.

Or keep going up over Blewett Pass and into the Leavenworth area. You need a permit, but the cross country backside area of the Enchantments is gorgeous. Or find the way trail into Lake Victoria and explore the smaller lakes in that area. The lakes on French Ridge are really nice and that ties you back in with the Granite Mtn. area, eventually. Or head the other way toward Sylvester or the Lady Lakes. You could try for Charles and Knox Lakes.

I’ve really just been throwing lake names out and I haven’t even gotten past the Alpine Lakes Wilderness and just on the east side! You really can’t go wrong.

[Brian Curtis]

It sounds like you are already well on your way. Finding the blue spots on the maps and getting out there is exactly the best way to go. And exploring new water is my favorite thing.

Now the rub. The most common question we get is asking where to go catch golden trout. Because the lakes are typically sensitive and can’t stand too much pressure, we tend to not come right out and tell you where to go. Social media posts can put pressure in individual locations. Besides, I think a good portion of the fun is in the exploring.

That being said, here are a few things to keep in mind. You aren’t really going to find tiger trout in high lakes. They are regularly stocked in some Skamania County high lakes, but most are drive to or very short walks. Lakes with goldens tend to be higher elevation and off trail. Just the lakes you are looking for. There are exceptions, but if you keep trying you will definitely find them. Fish are not stocked in Mt Rainier National Park, so you won’t find goldens there, though there are fish in many lakes.

What sorts of places have you been to already? How far afield do you want to drive?

[Brian Curtis]

Yes, there have been a ton of brown trout planted illegally, especially in the I-90 corridor.

[Brian Curtis]

The short answer is no, there is no advantage to keeping the larger fish. If you don’t keep them they will get even larger :-).

In reality, it is probably a bit more complicated then that. Some years plants don’t go as well as others and it isn’t always clear why. Perhaps they were stressed while being carried, or perhaps larger fish in the lake chow down on the fry. But the vast majority of the time the fry will find refuge from the larger fish and will grow just fine. When they are small they have a different diet then the larger fish in the lake so it won’t really help the smaller fish to remove the larger ones unless there are too many fish in the lake and this doesn’t sound like the scenario you encountered.

[Brian Curtis]

The guy I ran into said he goes in every year and that he’d never seen anybody there before. So it had to have been someone else.

Some guy cut a new trail?? That is insane. It would be impossible to miss the existing one. Ugh.

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