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Washington Lake Report
King County, WA

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Details

02/26/2012
Trolling
Cutthroat Trout
Other
Pink
Plastics
Afternoon
02/26/2012
2
2078

This was more of a break-in and shakedown outing than a fishing expedition, as I had recently purchased a new T9.9. I was putting out of the Newport Launch by 11:00am in the midst of snow flurries that persisted through the first hour and into the second of my break-in period. By the time I had finished with the initial couple of hours, the weather had cleared-up, winds died down and the sun made an appearance. Time to get down to some serious fishing! I initially targeted the fish in the 45’ to 60’ range, just south of Seward Park, with my standard array of gear, but was having no luck. I then decided to run over to the south end of Mercer and try some slow surface trolling to see if the kokes were active. No kokes today but I did pick up a nice 20” sea-run cutt that was just too nice of a fish to take home. She needed to come on board for some quick de-hooking work before I let her go, hopefully to spawn in the not so distant future. I also picked up a 14” hatchery blackmouth, that I swore was a nice sized cutt until it made its way to the boat. I still can’t grasp the concept of why we need to toss these fish back, but back into the lake it went. The water surface temps are right at the 44 degree mark over most of the lake and the south end is slightly stained, with the visibility decreasing the closer you get to the mouth of the Cedar River. So far between the weather and the flow control out of Chester Morse Lake, the Cedar has not turned into a river of Mocha colored water, spewing leaves, grass and other debris into Lake Washington.

PS – The orange mark just below the jaw on the cutt pictured is a one that I haven’t seen before. As there was matching mark on the opposite side of the fish, I know it wasn’t a healed wound. It will be interesting to see if there are any more like her caught in the system.


Comments

The Quadfather
2/26/2012 10:08:00 PM
nice shoulders on that one!
manland2010
2/27/2012 5:34:00 AM
I was there on the 24" bayliner South of Seward as well. Mother nature threw everything at me but the kitchen sink! No fish!
G-Man
2/27/2012 10:33:00 AM
Quad - Surprised me for sure, most cutts I catch this time of year are skinny kelts.
Manland - I've never regretted opting for the fully enclosed canvas cabin on my boat and I love my Buddy heater!
steelhead597
2/27/2012 10:38:00 AM
I am curios about the orange mark, I caught one at sammamish had a similar orange spot same location, the one I caught was more of circular spot, it didnt look natural to me. I released my cut, anybody know if these spots are some type of man made marking on the fish or is it a natural occurance?
MotoBoat
2/27/2012 4:50:00 PM
I noticed the yellow slit right off. But discarded the oddity as a photo light thing. Can really see the snow flakes clearly when the photo is zoomed in. Otherwise the background looks like fog!

Do you bring the fish inside the cover area to get such a dark background picture of the fish?. From previous pic's of yours. I know there is dark carpet usually under the fish. But usually, a camera flash isn't present. I like the way that creates the fish and it's details to pop.
G-Man
2/27/2012 6:29:00 PM
Motoboat - The dark background is a soft, rubberized loop mat. The loops are big enough so that barbed hooks can be easily removed it they catch and the mat is soft enough so fish that thrash won't injure themselves or lose scales and slime. The mat stays outside on the aft of the deck and keeps the "working" are clean. Only drawback is the summer sun, which heats it up something fierce. Can't drop a fish, that you want to release, on it without first cooling it down.
MotoBoat
2/27/2012 7:13:00 PM
How large a area does the loop mat cover? I also noticed what looked like a ugly stick in the picture. If it is indeed a ugly stick. How do you like it and what length and action is it?
G-Man
2/27/2012 10:42:00 PM
Motoboat - The mat is a standard 3'x5' mat and is a 3M product. There is supposed to be a grey version, but I have not been able tofind one in any local stores. As for the rod, it is an ugly stik kokanee downrigger special. It is 7' long and is a good length when fishig by yourself. As it has a good deal of power in the lower section I like to use it for fishing snap weights. It also doubles as my ultra light casting rod for summer trout and pink river fishing.
mav186
3/1/2012 6:11:00 PM
Congrats on the new T9!
KBLACKKNIGHT50
3/4/2012 3:17:00 PM
Nice fish
inthezone
4/4/2012 12:08:00 PM
"The orange mark just below the jaw on the cutt pictured is a one that I haven’t seen before" I am very curious about that as well. My last couple trips out produced 3 of these identical to yours in length and girth and the yellow marks both sides. I got them trolling 40-50 feet in between the mouth of the Cedar and Mercer Island with a Repala
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Available Guide

Available Fishing Guide:
Website: Darrell & Dads Family Guide Service

Phone: (509) 687-0709