Author: Jason Brooks

Posted: 6/2/2019

Slowly trolling along on a flat calm sea it was one of those rare perfect days with no breeze or clouds. It was almost too nice out and the fish apparently agreed as the fishing was slow. Looking to the west I saw what I thought were raindrops hitting the water but there wasn’t a raincloud in sight. Then the tiny flash showed it was a school of baitfish being forced up to the surface. Knowing that...

Author: Rick Lawrence

Posted: 5/5/2019

Whether you’re fishing for Smallies, Largemouth, Trout, Stripers, Muskie or Pike, they can all be caught on suspending jerkbaits, especially in colder water. Jerkbaiting really shines from late fall, all winter long in some areas, and into late spring. The most important part of any jerkbait is one that truly suspends dead flat. That means it doesn’t sink or float up and after you jerk it, and it...

Author: Mike Carey

Posted: 5/5/2019

We had motored out to our fishing hole and set up our rods - three anglers, six kokanee rods. I felt the confidence that comes at the start of the day, fishing a favorite water, knowing that we could have a day of epic fishing ahead of us. Joining me were my friends Robbie, and a figure from my distant past, back when I had first started up the Washington Lakes web site. Our guest was Bruce Pearso...

Author: Hannah Pennebaker

Posted: 5/5/2019

The bottom of Washington State's Puget Sound is swimming with all sorts of interesting fish, from the tasty striped perch to the venomous buffalo sculpin. You never quite know what you're going to reel in when you drop a line off your boat, or cast from a dock. All it takes to tempt one to strike your line is a simple high-low rig (a leader tied with two hooks on dropper loops), a sinker, and bait...

Author: Jason Brooks

Posted: 5/5/2019

Once the Lowland Lakes Trout Opener has passed in Washington State it seems that most anglers put the rods away and start getting out the barbecue or shift to other summertime activities. With hundreds of thousands of trout recently planted in lakes all over the region I am always baffled at how quickly the lakes turn back to solitude for the few weeks before jet skiers and recreational boaters ta...

Author: Gary Gordon

Posted: 5/5/2019

It is the single most important thing to grasp: kokanee are kokanee and have the same whims, growth, hormone and feeding issues - wherever kokanee are found. So these kokanee issues are the same in Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, California, North Carolina, New Mexico and British Columbia. It turns out that before getting to the point of deciding what colors are t...

Author: Mike Carey

Posted: 4/6/2019

Announcing An Awesome Give-away! To celebrate the launch of the new updated NWFR website, we are going to hold a DRAWING WORTH OVER $300 IN FISHING GEAR!!!! ***RULES OF THE DRAWING*** Post a fishing report on NorthwestFishingReports.com. Share the link to your report on this thread. Enter as many times as you go fishing, each new report gives you an additional chance to win! Must be a mem...

Author: Rick Lawrence

Posted: 4/6/2019

One of the major problems I’ve had over the years fishing tubes is how often they get hung up using a standard tube jig. Whether you’re fishing in the rocks, or wood cover they just seem to catch on everything. To solve this, I’ve gone out of the box so to speak. The Jika Rig (pronounced Zee-ka), offers a new way of presenting snag proof soft plastic baits to bass, and one of my favorite baits ...

Author: Gary Gordon

Posted: 4/6/2019

Sometimes you need to know more about stuff than rod, hooks, bait, corn, net and the smaller words we kokanee dudes know about. Let me introduce a couple of words that could make the difference between a fantastic day on the water and just a boat ride. The first word is “Daphnia.” Kokanee love Daphnia. Daphnia make up to 90% of a kokanee’s protein diet. Yes, your favorite kokanee lake has D...

Author: Hannah Pennebaker

Posted: 4/6/2019

Far on the western side of Washington State lies Westport, a fishing hub directly across Greys Harbor from Ocean Shores. It's difficult to experience all the wonders it has to offer for the avid fishermen in just one day. Luckily, there are several options for overnight stays, and it is worth it even if you do not plan to charter fish. Over the course of three days, my friends and I shared the Wes...

Author: Jason Brooks

Posted: 4/6/2019

April means so many things to the angler and for once I am not writing about the lowland lakes trout opener in Washington state. This is because WDFW announced a few extra weekends of razor clam digging along the coast and let’s face it, there is a ton of information already out there on how to catch planter rainbows. So, this month instead of going on a traditional fishing trip, let’s go clamming...

Author: Mike Carey and John Kruse

Posted: 3/9/2019

March 1st is a special date for anglers in Washington State. Those that are ready to brave still cold temperatures will make their way to central Washington to fish the early season opener trout lakes found in Grant County. There are also some early season lakes in the Spokane area, but for this article we’ll be focusing on Central Washington. This year we’ve had a snowy, cold winter and it...