Lake Wenatchee sockeye fishery still open; closes Aug. 31

There are still sockeye to be caught on Lake Wenatchee, according to Fish and Wildlife, but the season is scheduled to close Aug. 31 at one hour after sunset.

Fish and Wildlife expects most of the sockeye currently in the lake to have migrated to the White and Little Wenatchee rivers and will be unavailable to anglers. Continuing the fishery would also increase bull trout impacts.

Trout and other game fish seasons will continue as described in the 2010/2011 “Fishing in Washington” rules pamphlet.

From Rod Hammons of R&R Guide Service in Brewster:   

The fishing at Brewster is all but over. Now it is time to start looking toward Bridgeport and below Wells dam. The numbers counted at Bonneville Dam are starting to increase and it takes a couple weeks for the fish to get here. I’m expect beginning around mid Sept till the close of the season we will see better fishing.

Contact Rod at 509-689-2849.

From Anton Jones of Darrel & Dad’s Family Guide Service:

Salmon fishing off the mouth of the Okanogan River has picked up as those Chinook ripen preparing for their last upstream push to spawn.  We are really starting to get wound up about Steelhead season. It’s less than six weeks to the opener. Our guys are already curing eggs and shrimp with Pautzke’s Fire Cure to prepare for another banner run of metal heads in the Upper Columbia.

Fish for the Chinook with Plug Cut Super Baits in Lemon Lime behind a big Hot Spot Flasher. Also, there are still Sockeye to be caught by fishing shrimp baited hooks behind a big Chrome Dodger. Don’t forget to put a stack bead and Smile Blade by Mack’s Lures out in front of the lead hook.

Continue to fish for Lake Trout on Lake Chelan with Kingfisher Lite Spoons off the downriggers and little purple glow F7 flatfish off the outriggers. You can fish a plain Super Bait to catch lakers too. No need for a big flasher for our Macks.  For a super slow presentation, nothing is better than those Rushin’ Salmon Wobblers. The new purple glow color is a killer.

We are still fishing the Bar, first thing in the morning. Once that sun is a fist above the horizon move over to Sunnybank. By 9:00 you should be pounding those fish in the trench.  It is really nice to see that “banker’s bite” light up.

Contact Anton at 866-360-1523.

Fish and wildlife roundtable Sept. 8 in Brewster

North-central Washington residents can discuss fish and wildlife issues with Washington Fish and Wildlife Director Phil Anderson and regional WDFW staff in a roundtable meeting Sept. 8 in Brewster.

The meeting is scheduled from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Columbia Cove recreation building, 508 W. Cliff Ave., in Brewster.

Similar sessions are being planned for other areas of the state in coming months.

“I enjoy visiting communities and talking with our stakeholders to get perspectives from as many people as possible about their fish and wildlife interests,” Anderson said.

 The roundtable in Brewster will include discussion of a variety of topics, including Upper Columbia River salmon and steelhead selective-fishing management.

The roundtable is a good way for citizens to informally discuss issues and get acquainted with department personnel.

Walla Walla man charged with killing four deer

A Walla Walla man was charged last week with poaching four deer, based on evidence gathered earlier this month by Fish and Wildlife enforcement officers.

Kyle O’Brien, 18, was charged with four gross misdemeanor counts each of hunting deer during closed season and wastage, one gross misdemeanor count of spotlighting big game, and one misdemeanor count each of shooting from a road and having a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle.

Fish and Wildlife enforcement officers received a tip Aug. 2 about two mule deer bucks being shot and killed off Nelms Road, just north of Woodward Canyon Road in western Walla Walla County.  When the officers found the two carcasses with velvet-covered antlers still attached, they set up watch in the area to see if the shooter returned to remove the antlers.

Before 11 p.m. that night, O’Brien was observed by the officers shining a spotlight from a car and shooting a rifle seven times within a few minutes. The officers stopped and questioned O’Brien and said O’Brien admitted to shooting two deer that night and two the night before.

Officers recovered the two other mule deer nearby and seized O’Brien’s rifle.

A gross misdemeanor is punishable by up to one year in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. A misdemeanor is punishable by up to 90 days in jail and/or a $1,000 fine. In addition, criminal wildlife penalties can be assessed up to $6,000.

Sept. 25 is National Public Lands Day

We reported on this last week, but promised to check with Olympia about approval for these projects to count toward the accumulation of Master Hunter hours.

Tracy Loveless, the person in Olympia who approves such projects sent along this note: “Those sound like great projects. It has our approval for Master Hunter conservation hours.”

In addition to the planned work on Sept. 25, individual sportsmen are encouraged to develop their own National Public Lands Day volunteer project. By contacting the manager of their favorite recreational area, sportsmen can design a volunteer project that benefits the public land and the experiences of hunters and anglers. Ideas for projects include, building wood duck boxes, removing trash from recreational areas and planting native shrubs for bird habitat.  

We understand there is a push to have Washington State Parks take part in some sort of Public Lands Day volunteer project. Potholes State Park is the closest and we will contact them to see if they are interested.

Also, we will be contacting Fish and Wildlife and the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge for possible projects.

So, all of you Master Hunters who are looking for volunteer hours contact me and we will put our heads together to search for worthwhile projects.

For information about the originally designed project, read on.

On Sept. 25 more than 170,000 Americans will grab shovels, pruning sheers and gloves to help improve the nation’s public lands as part of National Public Lands Day, an annual event held at local, state and federal sites throughout the country.  

In line with the special focus on recreation, National Public Lands Day is reaching out to the sportsmen community as an important source of volunteers for this year’s event. Hunters and anglers spend much of their time outdoors, particularly on public lands. They are often the first to notice the effects of trash, invasive species, habitat loss and misuse of land on the local wildlife.  

It is recognized that sportsmen and women have a long, distinguished record of volunteering for projects that restore and sustain fish and wildlife populations and their habitats on public lands. This is an opportunity to continue in that proud tradition.”

This year, National Public Lands Day is anticipating volunteer projects on over 2,300 sites.  Many of the projects are directed towards sportsmen and improving access to public lands.

The closest project for the Columbia Basin is in the Yakima River Canyon. The plan is to remove litter, plant trees, landscaping projects, trail work, remove weeds, install benches and campground maintenance.

The contact for the project is Steve Smith at 509-536-1219.