There has been a sharp increase in the number of boats out on the water here in Central Washington. There are bass tournaments going on, plus seminars and events planned for the month of April. It all culminates with the general trout season opener at the end of the month, but there are lots of things to do before then.

I wanted to give you a heads up on some seminars and events that are coming up later this month. I have been invited to join Brian Nielson, of BJs Guide Service, to do a presentation on walleye fishing to the Columbia Basin Walleye Club. It will be at Bob’s Café in Moses Lake, on Tuesday, April 12th starting at 7 p.m. Brian and I have fished Moses Lake, Potholes Reservoir, Banks Lake and other locations together since 2010. It will be great to share our experiences and techniques with the club. This week’s photo is of Brian and I on Banks Lake with our first walleye of the season.

Something that the whole family would enjoy is the Banks Lake Triple Fish Challenge Derby. Big Prizes and cash will be handed out at the event that takes place on April 9th and 10th. Learn all about it by clicking on the Triple Fish Challenge logo on the Home Page of my website at www.fishingmagician.com. This will be the 10th year that the Triple Fish Challenge has been held with the derby headquarters at Coulee Playland at Electric City. Families keep coming back year after year and the number of participants has grown.

If kokanee fishing is more your style you could register for the Something Catchy Kokanee Derby on Lake Chelan. It is also being held on April 9th and 10th, and you can register by going to the website at www.Somethingfishy.org.
Bob Feil Boats and Motors is back providing free seminars, and the first one will be on walleye fishing with Austin Moser, of Austin’s Northwest Adventures Guide Service. Austin is known for his very thorough presentations on fishing for a variety of species and this one on walleye shouldn’t be missed. Gary Feil will also be there talking about fishing electronics. Gary is the go-to guy with questions on which model of fish finder people should purchase and answers hundreds of questions every year on their operation. The seminar will be at the Bob Feil Boats and Motors dealership in East Wenatchee on Thursday, April 21st, starting at 6 p.m.
For over 20 years the City of Rock Island has hosted a Free Kids Fishing Day at the Pit Pond, which is a Juvenile Pond, open only for kids age 15 and under only. Big crowds of families gather around the shores of the pond, which receives a special plant of trout just prior to the event. There are usually free snacks, hot dogs and soft drinks provided by local volunteers from the city, and the Wenatchee Sportsman’s Association is on hand to provide fishing tackle for use during the day.

I had heard some good reports on fishing on Banks Lake, so I talked my two long-time fishing buddies, Brian Nielson and James Lebow, into giving it a try last Tuesday. We put the Smoker Craft in the water at Northrup, where the docks are already installed. We fired over to the big rock island just past Steamboat and tried our luck fishing in 50 feet and even deeper water. We did mark some fish but had no takers. We gave up on the deep idea and ran over to Barker Flats and trolled our bottom bouncers with a variety of attractors in 30 feet of water. We were marking a bunch of fish and finally landed a 16-incher—just right for the pan. We pounded this area with a few more passes before fishing the far side, without success. The water temperature is hovering just over 40 degrees and we know fishing will get much better when the water warms. I learned that the water was warm enough for some anglers to have success on Moses Lake at a recent bass tournament. It took 18 pounds of bass to take first place. Sounds like it’s game on for bass fishing on Moses Lake!
My wife enjoyed being out in the boat so much last week that she wanted to go again as soon as possible. On Monday we traveled to Potholes Reservoir. This is one of my favorite places to fish, and although I usually am targeting walleye, I know that there are big rainbow in the reservoir. Way back when I was the photo editor at Fishing and Hunting News I would get photos of big rainbow every spring, and I wanted to see if I could catch some. We found the docks in place at the State Park, which is right next to where the Frenchman Wasteway enters Potholes. I pointed the boat toward the dunes, and when I had the rods out, made a turn back toward the State Park. Very soon the rod with a jointed, floating Rapala hooked up. The fish was all over the place, jumping at least five times, and we managed to get it in the boat. It was a fat 20-inch fish—just what I was looking for. We continued to troll down to Mar Don, but that was the only one we landed. It sure was great to be out on the water!

I checked the website for the Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District to see when anglers can access Connelly Park. It will open on April 13th this year, and although It is closed on Monday and Tuesday through April, the gates will be opened to access the park and boat ramp from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.

I got a card in the mail the other day reminding me to send in my Catch Record Card from last year’s season. If you didn’t get the notice you will want to send in your punch card by the end of the month send it to: WDFW, CRC Unit, P.O. Box 43142, Olympia, WA 98504-3142.

I am putting the finishing touches on my free E-Letter for Spring. I am dedicating this one to all of those anglers who fish for trout from the shore. It is full of tips and tricks that I have learned over the years to improve my catches of trout from the bank. Go to my website at www.fishingmagician.com and click on the E-Letter button to get a copy.