Fishin' Magician: Dave Graybill

I have been dedicating a lot of trips to walleye fishing this spring.

No wonder. The fishing has been fantastic.

Turns out I have missed some great trout fishing. I am getting reports of really great fishing on many of our area lakes. I reported earlier that I did get to Buffalo Lake in mid April. My wife, her sister and I had amazing fishing there.

I had received a note and a short video from a kayak angler that follows my reports and he went to Omak Lake. He had such a good time he went back.

He reported to me that he and a friend had landed close to 50 cutthroat from their kayaks, including one that was 28 inches. They then went to Buffalo Lake and terrific fishing there before getting blown off.

They got lots of the recently planted 15- and 16-inchers, some larger carryovers and even some of the triploids. I really hope to find time to get to Omak Lake this year.

It sounds like it is having one of its best seasons in a while, and it is usually outstanding. These lakes are on the Colville Reservation, and I have done Fishing TV Shows on both of them. Check the archives on the Fishing TV Page to view these informative shows.

Walleye fishing in Moses Lake

I had heard that the walleye bite had really taken off at Moses Lake, so I called my buddy Brian Nielson at BJ's Guide Service and arranged to meet him on one of his free days to give it a try.

We met at Connelly Park and our fishing buddy James LeBow was able to come along, too. We first fished the flat just north of the park and put a few fish in the live well and then moved further north on the lake.

This was my idea and it was a bust. Nielson suggested that we try a point back toward the launch, and assured us it would be worth a try.

Boy, was it ever. We found a bunch of fish in the shallows here and put fish after fish in the live well.

We were using a two ounce bottom walker with a three foot leader. On the business end was a Slow Death Hook with a green Smile Blade.

This has been a favorite on Potholes this spring and it is hot on Moses Lake, too. Most of the fish were over the 12-inch minimum and we got one that was a 20-incher. We had our limits before 1 o'clock.

Memorial Day arrives

Memorial is often the busiest Holiday weekend of the summer.

Thousands of people have come to Central Washington to take advantage of the good weather and great fishing. I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable time.

There are two events coming up the soon that people will want to know about.

The first is the annual Kids Fish-In Day at the National Fish Hatchery in Leavenworth. Youngsters age 4 to 12 and their families are invited to come to the hatchery for some learning and safety activities and then catch two trout in the raceway.

The fish are even cleaned and iced for the trip home. To learn all about it and register for the time you want to fish just to my web site, at FishingMagician.com and click on the Friends of NW Hatcheries logo.

Also on the 7th is the Costal Conservation Association Banquet. The CCA does great work on salmon and steelhead in our region and beyond.

The banquet is a good time and the funds raised go to a great cause. To learn more and even get your tickets log onto wenatcheesalmonderby.com, or stop by Hooked on Toys.

Fishing seminar

Town Ford is offering another seminar in the series of free fishing presentations at their dealership in East Wenatchee.

The focus of the seminar on Wednesday, June 18th will be summer-run salmon fishing and sockeye fishing on the upper Columbia River.

Providing the presentation on how to successfully fish for summer-run salmon will be Stuart Hurd, Hurd's Guide Service.

Hurd is a very experienced angler and guide on the upper Columbia, and was the winner of the first Wenatchee River Salmon Derby.

Also appearing on Wednesday night will be Ron Oules, Reel Lent Less Guide Service.

Oules resides in Brewster and has put an amazing number of sockeye in his boat in the past, and he will share how he does it with those who attend. The seminar will take place at the Town Ford Dealership, located at 700 3rd St. SE, East Wenatchee, across from Costco.

The seminar will begin at 6 p.m. Also, on June 7th is the Coastal Conservation Association Banquet.

This is an important fund raising event for our local chapter, and in addition to being a great time helps them with their projects and Wenatchee Salmon Derby.

You can learn more about the banquet and get your tickets by going to www.wenatcheesalmonderby.com or stop by Hooked on Toys in Wenatchee.