It was a bit more chilly throughout the region this past week. That kept me from grabbing my fly rod and going down to Rocky Ford. It didn’t keep me from heading north to Rufus Woods. Keith Hiatt and I tried our luck fishing from shore at Brandts Landing.

I fished at Brandts Landing on Rufus Woods way back in November, and I thought it was about time that I gave it another try. In November my friends and I did catch some fish, but they were small. I was hoping to put more fish in the cooler on this trip, and I was also hoping to get some larger trout.

Things were different when Keith Hiatt and I fished it last Friday. We left Leavenworth at 6 that morning, and we had our baits in the water by about 8:30. I walked up to the truck and when I got back Keith told me I had a bite on one of my rods and when he set the hook and reeled in the hook was gone. We wondered what size fish had managed to snap my leader. Then, at 9:15 Keith landed a 5 pounder, and we marveled at how bright and beautiful the fish was. At 9:30 I landed a fish that looked to be at least 8 pounds. This fish had me running down the bank to clear the other rods, and Keith could hear my drag clicking as it took line. This was one of those very deep bodied lunkers that Rufus Woods is known for. My knees were shaking when I pulled onto the beach. Then I lost a fish, and we missed several bites, but by 12:30 we had four fish on the stringer. The smallest was at least 2.5 pounds.

I brought my table down to the beach, plugged in my electric knife and started filleting the fish. When I opened the 5-pounder that Keith had caught I thought it was full of sticks. When we looked closer we discovered that the sticks were actually the legs of crawdads. It had been feeding heavily on these and even had some rocks in its belly that it had inhaled while rooting in the rocks for the crawdads.

This was Keith’s first time fishing at Brandts Landing and he said he saw why I like to fish here. Anytime you can fish from the shore and catch trout like we did on Friday, it’s something special. We thought about how lucky we were to live in an area where trout fishing like this is possible.

Bank fishing at Brandts Landing isn’t complicated. I had our rods rigged with sliding egg sinkers of .5 to 1 ounce, with a fluorocarbon leader of 12 pound test. I tried my favorite shrimp and marshmallow combo, but bright green Power Bait worked the best. After this experience, I want to get back up to Brandts real soon.

If you haven’t been to Brandts Landing, it’s a Federal Park about six miles upriver from Chief Joseph Dam. There are several accesses to the water where the brush has been cleared, and some of them have picnic tables. All of them have fire boxes, so you can have a nice fire to keep warm in the winter. There are also two vault toilets at the site. This week’s photo is of Keith with one of the trout we caught.

Last week, a friend of mine wanted to get his kids out ice fishing on Fish Lake, so I lent him my auger. Although I offered my sled, rods and reels, etc., he assured me he had everything he needed. His son and daughter are ardent anglers and don’t even blink about the prospect of going out on a frozen lake to catch fish. I was very interested in how they did catching perch, and even more interested in how the ice was holding up. Fish Lake is a very popular spot in the winter, and I know some folks will push the safety of the ice, they are so eager to get a mess of perch. Turns out they had a great time fishing, and I got a good update on the thickness of the ice on Fish Lake. He reported that there was eight inches of solid ice, covered with about six inches of slush, due to the warm days we had last week. He said it looks like we’re set for good ice fishing at Fish Lake through February, as long as we continue to have sub-freezing temperatures at night. Always use caution, conditions can change.

I want to remind everyone that the annual Tri-Cities Sportsmen Show is coming up this coming weekend at the HAPO Center in Pasco. The show will open at noon on Friday and run through Sunday afternoon. As usual there will be lots of exhibitors, including fishing and hunting gear, lodges, resorts, guide services, outdoor organizations, and boats.

The special attraction at this year’s show is Tag, a thousand-pound Kodiak brown bear. Tag has appeared in feature films and commercials, and just to see a bear like this would be a thrill. The show also makes sure there are lots of things for kids to do, like Lunker Lake where kids can catch a rainbow trout. They can shoot at targets with an air rifle and pop balloons with a bow and arrow. To get the full details on the show hours and special discounts on tickets for senior and military, visit the website at www.schuylerproductions.com/tri-cities.

There is another big outdoor show coming later in the month. Starting at noon on Wednesday, February 1st, and going through Sunday, February 5th is the Washington Sportsmen’s Show presented by Leupold, at the State Fair Grounds in Puyallup. It’s the largest Sportsmen’s Show in Washington State with hundreds of fishing and hunting displays, top experts, boats, guides and outfitters from around the world and incredible buys on thousands of fishing and hunting products.

Overlapping with the opening of the Washington Sportsmen’s Show, is the 2023 Seattle Boat Show presented by Union Marine and the Port of Seattle. It is back at Lumen Field Event Center and Bell Harbor Marina, starting on February 3rd through the 11th. With nearly 300 exhibitors and more than 800 new and brokerage boats, almost 100 boating seminars, fun and exciting attractions, the latest in marine accessories and technology, and destination and service providers to speak with in-person, it’s the West Coast’s biggest boating party of the year that you don’t want to miss.