By Larry Dublanko
For the GH News Group
Most of the fishing attention at the time is clearly on salmon in our local rivers. However, this is not the only game in town. The Department of Fish and Wildlife have given anglers another option this fall.
There is definitely a fall trout plant going on in many of our Grays Harbor lakes. This effort certainly creates yet another opportunity for anglers to bring home a fish.
The WDFW planted 1,000 rainbow trout into Lake Sylvia, Inez and Bowers Lakes. For your information, Inez and Bowers lakes are also known as Vance Creek Ponds in Elma.
These trout will average almost one pound each and will be divided into the three lakes at 500 in Lake Sylvia, 250 in Inez and 250 in Bowers. Herein lies a great opportunity to land a lake trout this fall from either the bank or by a small watercraft.
The outdoorman’s interests are still further divided with the opening of deer hunting last weekend. This activity may keep a few folk off the rivers for a short time before they are back at it.
All the while, there are some razor clam digs scheduled for late October and early November. Again, this could translate into some busy times, particularly if one has interest in all three of these outdoor events.
Adding a fourth, such as salmon fishing, almost puts a person over the edge, especially if they are trying to hold down a full-time job and have family responsibilities.
Speaking of salmon fishing in the rivers, we are approaching the heart of this fishery. The kings have moved in and some are being caught where allowed. The silvers are beginning to make their debut in accordance with help from mother nature.
The salmon fishery is heavily dependent upon accommodating rains. Water in the rivers is what will cause these fish to move inward. In addition, the cooler outside temperature, as well as the cooler rains, bring a chill to river water, which invites these fish to move in mass.
Already, anglers have been in pursuit of salmon. It doesn’t take much. Simply the word getting out that salmon are being caught usually draws a crowd. There are very few secrets around this fishery. One merely needs to pay attention to where anglers are gathering or note well-traveled trails leading to fishable water. These are dead give-aways that fish are around. Salmon will confirm this notion by jumping, rolling and splashing. They are not too good at concealing their whereabouts.
Anglers will want to stay informed about the new agreement with the WDFW and the Quinault Indian Nation to mitigate for damage to fish population as a result of the Wynoochee Dam in Grays Harbor. Under the agreement, the WDFW will annually release 100,000 coho into the Wynoochee River, 400,000 coho into the Satsop River and 60,000 Winter Steelhead into the Wynoochee River.
This can only benefit the anglers by putting more fish in the rivers. Time will tell as this measure is applied.
