by Dave Graybill, February 01, 2002
When the snow begins to pile up many anglers begin to tear down their gear and settle in for a winter’s rest. Those in the know, however, gather their cold-weather gear, sharpen their augers and eagerly await the beginning of ice fishing on Fish Lake, near Lake Wenatchee. The pace of wintertime angling at Fish Lake rivals the action of spring and summer: especially for rainbow trout and yellow perch.
There were times last season when limits of 11- to 12-inch rainbow were hitting the ice in less than 20 minutes, and perch were popping through the holes at the same rate. Action like this will get most anglers in gear, no matter what the weather, and although the ice could hardly be called crowded on a winter weekend, the lake does get it’s share of attention.
Aside from very good fishing through the ice anytime from December through March, depending on the year, the other attraction to Fish Lake is location. From Wenatchee, it’s less than an hour’s drive from the Wenatchee Valley, and less than two hours from Seattle. The roads that lead to Fish Lake are state or county highways, and are well maintained, and the resort roads that lead to the edge of the lake are plowed throughout the winter. The fact that the sun can be shining just about any winter weekend also adds to the allure of this cold-weather angling destination.
When planning a fishing trip in the winter, anglers need to make appropriate preparation in consideration for the temperatures anticipated, and when ice fishing is part of the plan there is some very specialized gear that needs to be packed. Primarily, this list would include a snow shovel, an ice auger and a spud.
A shovel comes in very handy when you need to clear soft or slushy snow away from where you want to drill your hole. It isn’t necessary to clear snow right down to the frozen surface, but when there’s slush present, it helps keep the hole clear to prevent re-freezing and it makes it easier to get your bait down to the fish. You may also find that you want to clear off an area to allow for walking around on the ice near the hole and even a place to set up a chair or two.
I know that there are still some people who prefer to cut their hole in the ice with an axe or a hatchet, but I will take an auger any day. It’s lot cleaner operation, and when the auger is sharp and kept that way they make getting through ice the least work possible. The models that are commonly available in our region are of Swedish manufacture and the 200-millimeter diameter size will drill a hole large enough to accommodate two lines. There are gas powered augers for sale at dealers in our area, and although I drool with envy at the thought of driving one of these babies, they are really designed for ice depths that isn’t encountered here (thankfully).
It is important to keep an auger sharp. They will hold an edge for a surprisingly long time if caution is taken when transporting and storing them. They usually come with a blade cover and they should be used for two reasons. The blades are sharp enough to cause damage and when stored they help blunting and rust.
Augers will also usually come with an Allen wrench and an extra setscrew or two. It’s a good idea to keep these handy, and not on the workbench at home. These can work loose after drilling a few holes and if lost renders your auger useless. It’s easy to wrap the wrench and screws with masking tape and attach them to the shaft of the auger. Then they will be there when you need them.
A spud is nothing more than a large spoon that is used to keep the slush out of the hole in the ice. You can usually pick one up where you find augers and other ice fishing gear. It looks like a soup ladle but flatter and with holes in it to let the water drain out. I found a plastic utensil at home that works fine; the real deal is actually very inexpensive. I did forget mine once and found out that they really do serve a purpose.
When you shop for gear you will probably see "jigging rods" and "tipups" in the ice fishing section. Like power augers these are typically seen on the ice of different regions than ours. Tipups are used in areas where anglers are allowed to use multiple rods. I should say "rigs" as tipups have a reel built into them, but they have no rod attached. Holes are drilled for each tipup and as you will notice, there is a flag on spring release on this rig. An angler just sits back and waits for the flag to snap up to let him know when he’s got a fish on.
A jigging rod is another piece of gear that is rarely if ever seen employed on lakes in our region. This is a short rod (less than two feet usually) with a reel built on to it that works a special way. As an angler cranks the reel the rod bobs and "jigs" the lure.
There are jigs and lures that are effective through the ice and they will be mentioned later, but 95 percent of fish taken through the ice in our region are taken on some type of bait.
There is an advantage to a short rod however. Ice fishing is typically close work. That is close to the hole in the ice where the action is, and when equipped with the usual eight-and-a-half foot rod for warm weather fishing, it’s awkward to be that distance from the hole. Dealers that carry ice fishing equipment will usually have a bin full of short, ice fishing rods that are very inexpensive, anglers may find an ultra light rod of four to four-and-a-half feet will work fine when ice fishing and have some use in the "other" season.
Some other items that are real assets to have along while ice fishing are light chairs or ground cloths or tarps. The main purpose of these items is to keep yourself and your equipment off the surface of the ice. Even if the ice or snow is solidly frozen it helps to have some separation to keep from getting easily chilled. When there is slush present, you really want to avoid sitting or standing in ice water while trying to enjoy fishing.
Footwear is obviously very important. Insulated boots, preferably water proof or resistant a must. Even a pair of inexpensive rubber packs with a felt liner would be worth the investment. There are all sorts of chemical warmers available now, and they even make toe warmers that you stick to your sock inside your boot. They can be a lifesaver. They cost less than a buck and last at least three hours. There are many different kinds of inserts that go inside a boot to give additional insulation that are worth a try, too.
Keeping dry is imperative in the winter. Even if the sun is shining, and it often is on the East Side of the mountains, that doesn’t mean that temperatures aren’t dangerously low. Even if it isn’t cold enough to actually freeze your wet clothing, you can be losing heat at an alarming rate.
Layer your clothing in the winter. This is an old axiom, but it’s still true. You can always take it off when the sun shines and put it back on when the sunny day turns to clouds or snowfall. A hat of some kind is very important to avoid heat loss, and it is also a good idea to wear one of new polypropylene neck warmers or head and ear protectors. The neck warmers are amazingly effective and can be pulled up over the nose and ears if necessary.
Okay, okay. You’re all layered up and got your hole drilled. How do you go about catching a mess of rainbow at Fish Lake? It’s pretty simple really. Much like fishing in the summer time, but with a couple of adjustments.
Rather than use a slip sinker rig, it’s best to put weight at the end of your line. There are a couple of reasons for setting up this way at Fish Lake. One is that there is a certain amount of weed growth on the bottom here so you want your bait to be a certain distance above this. A slip sinker rig is fine when casting, but you’re just lowering bait through a hole here. The other reason is that Fish Lake is full of scuplins or bullheads. If you place your bait on the bottom you’ll just wind up feeding and catching these guys all day and not catching what you’re after.
You want to find bottom though, so one or two #9 split shot will get you there. Two to three feet above that you want to attach your first hook. A size eight or ten bait- hook is fine, depending on what you settle on for bait. You may want to add an additional hook a distance above that so you can experiment with a variety of baits.
The bait most often found on hooks at Fish Lake is Power Bait. Take a variety of colors along and try a different one on each hook until you discover exactly what they want on that particular day. You’ll want to lower your bait to the bottom and then raise it a bit, and if nothing happens soon adjust the depth. One thing to note is that when the sun is out visibility under the ice is very good. Sunlight gets through the ice very well and trout can see color down there. Another popular bait is good ‘ol crawlers. Sometimes this is just the ticket for trout, and for perch this is it.
There are some effective jigs, spoons and other lures that also work well through the ice. The Swedish Pimple is a good example of a lure that was developed almost specifically for ice fishing. I have found some great mini-spoons, complete with tiny flasher blades that will work especially well for perch. One person had good luck last season using a Mister Twister style grub. He used this type of lure for the purpose of avoiding the use of bait. Remember if you use bait every fish you catch must be kept. Without bait you can release until you limit is retained.
Whether fishing with bait or a lure, scents are effective. They can be messy, but make a difference. If you plan to avoid using bait though, you can’t use scents and still release fish.
Exactly where to fish here is another thing. Often there will be a number of anglers fishing with success over a school of perch, and this would be a good place to start. It seems that most of the perch anglers tend to gather on the eastside or Cove Resort side of the lake. Trout fishing is notably good on the west side or Cascade Hideaway side of the lake, and fish can be found anywhere from 25 to 50 yards from shore. One good hint is to look for previously drilled holes. It’s easy to re-drill the hole and probably indicates a good fishing spot.
All right, you’ve got everything you need for a good day’s fishing on Fish Lake. You may need to drill a few holes and try some different spots on the lake, but all the essentials are covered. Now you just need to know how to get there and what to expect when you do.
Fish Lake is a 500-acre lake, surrounded by timber and offering mountain vistas. Fish Lake is one of the most consistently productive fisheries in North Central Washington, and keeps the two resorts that serve it very busy in the spring and summer. Fishing remains very good well into the fall, and anglers only stop launching boats here when ice and snow prevent it.
Consistent good fishing is the result of a very ambitious planting program that has been in place for many years. This last year Fish Lake was planted with 60,000 catchable rainbow. This rainbow plant was supplemented with an additional 165,000 three-inchers. In addition to the rainbow, brown trout are also planted in very good numbers. Last year 57,000 sub-catchable and 69,000 brown trout were planted in Fish Lake.
The result is lots of hungry trout just about any time you try it. Rainbows don’t get to be especially large here. A 15-inch fish is a good one. This is primarily because they are removed at a pretty fair clip. Fish Lake a very good example of the ideal put-and-take fishery. The planting program that is place pretty much assures that everyone catches plenty of 10- to 12-inch trout all year long.
The brown trout here are a different story. Hanging on the wall at the Cove Resort is a pair of browns that weigh over eight pounds. Big browns of several pounds are taken every year, but in small numbers. The reasons being few people adjust their techniques specifically to catch these larger fish.
So, there’s plenty of fish waiting in this scenic lake, and it’s easy to find your way there. From the West Side take highway 2 and Stevens Pass. At Cole’s Corner, where highway 207 meets highway 2, take a left. Take this road north passing Lake Wenatchee State Park and cross the bridge over the Wenatchee River. Keep right and the road will lead you to the access road to the Cove Resort. The Cove isn’t open in the winter, but does keep the road plowed.
If you stay on the main highway and follow it for about two miles further you will see the sign to Cascade Hideaway. Cascade Hideaway is open through the winter. It offers rustic cabins for rent and snowmobile rentals as well. There is also a small store where some bait, tackle and food is available. The phone number for Cascade Hideaway is (509)763-5104.