Camping and Fishing - please help

[ejp]

Hello, I wanted to go fishing and camping overnight somewhere within 2 hours of Seattle.
Does anyone have a recommendation?javascript:insertsmiley(':-k ','/Forum/images/emoticons/eusa_think.gif')
[Think] (sometime in August)
Here is what I would like:
some sort of developed site preferably on the water
Fire-pit
Trout or Catfish is really the only thing I have ever fished for but if your recommendations comes with exact instructions and what to buy I would be down for trying something else.

I am a recent transplant here and feel like a fish out of water on the subject.
I would like to go west towards the Olympics.
I have books but nothing compares to a solid recommendation or people sharing ideas.

Thank you,

[gpc]

If you want to catch trout I have some recommendations that are pretty close. Mineral in lewis count is great, its one of my favorite lakes, but the camping is, well lets say not to die for LOL. But trout you will catch. Another good trout lake in that area is tanawax, it has better camping, but not great camping. Offut in thurston county is a good trout lake, but this time of year is kind of slow. Sylvia in grays harbor county has good camping and a whole bunch of trout plants. Cat fish thrive on the other side of the mountains but not over here in the west. But harts lake in Pierce county has a bunch of cats. Not sure if there is camping though.

[cavdad45]

Try Cranberry Lake at Deception Pass Sate Park. The lake has fair bass fishing and receives plenty of stocked rainbows and browns. There are perch and catfish too. The campground however is usually full and you may need to make reservations.

[panfisher]

some time you should spend time on the east side. mardon resort has excellent camping, firepits, boat rentals, and a fishing dock, look it up under mardon resort. lots of trout and catfish from the dock area along with everything else. <')//<

[Dave]

You might try Grayland Beach State Park located in Grayland, WA on the coast. The camp ground is right on the edge of the dunes which is just feet from the ocean. The camp ground offers full hook-up sites for around 24.00 a night. There are salmon, bottom fish and tuna charters available five miles south of Grayland in Westport, WA. You can drive from the state park to Long Beach, WA and fish the surf for perch. Good times. There are also razor clam opportunities at certain times of the year when the WDFW opens the season. Great camping at the state park and lots of fishing opportunities.

As for fresh water camping and fishing, I agree with the two other folks who posted suggestions. I fish Cranberry Lake at Deception Pass often. It is open year round and has lots of stocked rainbow and brown trout as well as spiny ray species. I find as it warms up, the fishing slows down but it’s a great place to camp and fish with the Straight of Juan De Fuca and great beach at your doorstep. Other near by lakes to fish while camping at Deception Pass State Park are Lake Erie and Heart Lake, both label as “Blue Ribbon” fisheries. Pass Lake is also right there which is fly fishing only and catch and release. Lake Campbell is also nearby and offers good trout and spiny ray fishing but is interrupted in the summer by speed boats and water skiers. I have also fished the potholes reservoir in eastern Washington located near Othello. Great fishing, all species including walleye with good camping at Mar Don Resort or Potholes State Park. Check out http://www.parks.wa.gov/alpha.asp or http://www.mardonresort.com . Lastly, Jameson Lake located in Waterville, WA is in my opinion one of the best trout fishing lakes in the state. Camping is in a gravel lot overlooking the lake unless you stay at Jameson Lake Resort or Jack’s Resort, both have hookups and I believe Jack’s has a small store. You can check out these lakes on this washingtonlakes.com site. I hope this helps. Good luck and good fishin.

[gpc]

Yes Potholes reservoir is a great lake. It will take a little longer than 2 hours to get to, but is well worth it. I have gone on a couple of day trips and many ,many one night trips over there. Not to mention this was my family vacation destination for about 15 years. This lake and the many lakes around it are full of trout. The reservoir gets some 100,000 trout every year, not to mention that the trout average 2lbs each over there. In the surrounding lakes there is brown trout, tripliods, few cutts and a few steelhead. Everything form selective gear lakes to fly fishing only to hike in lakes to april first openers to all year round lakes. The catfish in this area are plentiful as well, there are black, brown, and yellow bullheads and channel catfish, they also get planted but its been some time since they got planted. The only downside is the resort is very expensive to camp at, but there is a $5 a night camp ground at soda lake and free camping at many lakes around there. Another downside to some people is its in the desert. I like the desert just as much if not more than the woods when it comes to camping/fishing, but I understand where one wouldnt like the desert.

[ejp]

Thanks Everyone for the ideas....
I am gonna do my homework.

Quick question on the trout recommended above. Have I missed any type of season for that or is it pretty fun year round.
Also, if anyone can make some bating recommendations that would be cool.
Pretty much all I know is a slider with a shot and 3 foot leader floating power bait off the bottom.
the bummer is this now.... looks like I'm going to just drive because all the reservations seem full. (except for potholes)

[gpc]

Thanks Everyone for the ideas....
I am gonna do my homework.

Quick question on the trout recommended above. Have I missed any type of season for that or is it pretty fun year round.
Also, if anyone can make some bating recommendations that would be cool.
Pretty much all I know is a slider with a shot and 3 foot leader floating power bait off the bottom.
the bummer is this now.... looks like I'm going to just drive because all the reservations seem full. (except for potholes)

Some of the above lakes are open year round (potholes, offut) and some are only open half the year(mineral). There is nothing wrong w/ that bait set up. Make sure to get berkely powerbait, also worm and mallow will work for all species especially trout.

[Dave]

You might stop by a Fred Meyer, Walmart, or a sporting goods store and pick up the Washington fishing rules and regulations. It will tell you what lakes and rivers are open and when many close. It has been my experience (I'm 42 and been fishing since I was able to walk) that as the summer heats up, trout fishing slows down. The trout become lethargic and go into deeper water where it is cooler. I like to fish for trout around the first of April in year-round lakes, (after they are planted) and at the start of the opener which is the last Saturday in April, until it gets hot out like in mid June. When it warms up, the bass, walleye, perch, crappie, cat fish ect start biting. I've always done well using a green rooster tail spinner for bass and other spiny rays despite the fact that there are a million lures for bass and the others. In September as it cools off, the trout begin to feed again. If you get the chance to go to Jameson Lake (eastern WA) I believe it is closed now but will open for the month of October, and it's a great fishery. Lakes open for a specific season close October 31st. Again, the rules and regs will have all of that info for you. At Jameson Lake the old stand by is marshmallow and red Pautzke balls of fire eggs off the bottom with a leader about 2 1/2 feet long. Yes you can use power bait or troll just about anything with good results. I just like the above combo because I have used that bait in this lake for 35 years and have always done well. I hope this helps. Good luck.