I had a great weekend last week. Starting on Saturday, I fished with my buddy James Lebow and his son, and we had an epic day fishing for walleye on Rufus Woods. On Sunday morning, I spent a short time on Lake Roosevelt at Keller and caught a nice rainbow from the shore. Also, on Sunday afternoon I attended the final weigh in and awards ceremony at the Triple Fish Challenge on Banks Lake.

There was a great atmosphere at Coulee Playland where everyone was gathered for the final weigh in and awards for the Triple Fish Challenge, that was organized by Reel Recreation for the first time. This fledgling group hit it out of the park with this year’s event. On Friday they set up a “trout pond” on the docks and invited kids to come down and catch a trout. They had 200 kids show up, and they all got their fish. They also all received a life jacket, to keep, provided by the State Park.

Fishing was pretty good on Saturday, and although the weather turned to rain on Sunday, there were lots of fish turned in. Most everyone had walleye, smallmouth and this year there were a lot of rainbow trout brought into the weigh station. There were lots of kids participating this year, thanks to their fishing parents, and they were very proud of the trophies and tackle they won. Even though there was a pretty good drizzle coming down during the awards ceremony the crowd didn’t thin as the prizes for the adult and youth were passed out. There were prizes for biggest smallmouth, trout, walleye, and whitefish for each day, and what was really great was that Adam Florenzen caught all three of the qualifying species on Saturday and Sunday and won the Grand Prize—a Prowler boat with an electric motor. All the results of this year’s Triple Fish Challenge can be found on the Reel Recreation Facebook Page.

On Sunday morning, before I went to the Triple Fish Challenge weigh in, I decided to make a quick trip to Keller on Lake Roosevelt to see if I could catch a trout. When I arrived, there were two anglers on the shore I liked to fish, and while I was setting up they each landed a fish. I thought my timing was pretty good. They told me that they were getting limits this winter, until the water dropped to its present extremely low level. They told me to bait up with green Power Bait and a nightcrawler, which I happened to have, and I got an 18-inch rainbow, just before the rain started and I packed it in.

To backtrack, on Saturday morning I met James Lebow for a trip to Rufus Woods, and this time he brought along his son Michael. We launched his boat at the middle net pens and ran up to the upper pens and spent some time fishing for trout. Not having any luck, we switched to bottom bouncers and spinners and started trolling downstream for walleye. We didn’t get a bite but agreed that it was worth another pass. This time we had better luck and Michael landed a nice walleye. I had put on a mirrored orange Smile Blade and the fish loved it, and we got two more on the following pass. We did the same thing on the next pass and lost a big one. The next time we made this run we got another fish and Michael wrestled with a really big fish. James coached him through the process and got a whopper walleye into the net. The fish measured 31 inches and the big female, which we released, must have weighed between 10 and 12 pounds. When the wind came up and we headed for the dock we had five big walleye in the live well and had lost at least three, one right at the boat. What a day! This week’s photo is of Michael and James with Michael’s first walleye.

The lakes are stocked. The fish are tagged. And, on Saturday, April 22, anglers can enjoy the thrill of catching trout when hundreds of lakes open across Washington, and the 2023 statewide trout derby officially kicks off. To participate in the opener and the derby, Washington anglers must have an annual freshwater, combination, or Fish Washington fishing license valid through March 31, 2024. “Opening day is the result of a huge annual effort to provide fishing at lakes throughout the state, for people of all ages and backgrounds,” said Steve Caromile, Inland Fish Program manager with WDFW. “Our fish and hatchery staff work tirelessly throughout the year to offer accessible fishing in diverse settings across Washington, and the trout derby means you might even win a prize while doing it.” This year, the annual statewide trout derby boasts more than 800 prizes worth more than $40,000, which anglers can claim by catching tagged trout in lakes across Washington. More than 100 lakes will feature prize fish in 2023. The derby runs through October 31st.

I was at Hooked on Toys in Wenatchee recently and heard a familiar voice. It was Shawn Short, and he was back behind the gun counter at the store. It was great to see him back at work. The first thing he talked about was the upcoming spring salmon season on the Icicle River. Shawn has been a big fan of this salmon season and has fished it for years. He mentioned that the forecast was for a good run, and he was excited about that. It reminded me of a springer season years ago. I was in Shane Magnuson’s boat, and we swore we could smell bacon cooking. When we drifted on down around the corner we could see a boat with flames leaping from the front end. Shawn Short was at the oars and his fishing partner was cooking breakfast in the bow and managed to catch the bacon grease on fire! The flames were doused by throwing the frying pan into the river. We all got a laugh and I have teased Shawn about this for years. Shawn is known for his great sense of humor and his knowledge of guns and fishing. Be sure to stop by and welcome him “home”. The photo I took of Shawn and posted on my Facebook page had an amazing response.