I had some more fun catching sockeye on Lake Wenatchee last week. Fishing continues to be fantastic. I also hear that the sockeye fishing on the Brewster Pool continues to be great. Now I want to get up to Banks Lake to do some walleye and smallmouth bass fishing. This is one of my favorite things to do in the summer.

What an incredible sockeye season! Over 755,000 entered the Columbia River, according to the counts at Bonneville Dam. As you know, most of these traveled up the Columbia River and on into Canada. Anglers who fish the Brewster Pool have been cashing in on the abundance of sockeye and continue to do so. I plan to make one last trip to the Brewster Pool this week, to try to get a few of these Columbia River fish. I took a look at the reader board at Tumwater Dam recently, and it had posted over 166,000 sockeye passing through on their way to Lake Wenatchee and then onto the spawning beds in the White River. According to the Chelan PUD, it was over 168,000. I will make a couple more trips and then move my boat back home. The quality of the fish has held up amazingly well this season, and I want to take advantage of this. Nothing like having a freezer full of sockeye for the table and for the smoker. I had a ton of fun fishing Lake Wenatchee this season and was able to take many members of my family out. We have some great memories from these trips.

Last year Rob Phillips, outdoor writer for the Yakima Herald-Republic, came up to Lake Wenatchee to fish with me. He had such a good time that when I invited him up again he was eager to make the trip. Last season the fishing was terrific on the day he was here, and I was a bit nervous that I would not be able to repeat such quick limits for us. It was a bit windy when we got to the lake, but nothing like some other mornings that I fished Lake Wenatchee this season. I moved up the lake a ways, put the gear out, and trolled toward the top end. I sweated as each minute passed without strike, but soon the bite came on. When it did we were busy. We got fish on the downriggers that had either three black-hook rigs or red hooks behind double dodgers. I had black and red hooks out the back on eight ounce lead balls, and these rods were bouncing, too. We ended the morning with a double and had to release one fish. I checked my watch, and it did take me 20 minutes longer than last year to get our limits. This week’s photo is of Rob with one of the sockeye he landed that morning.

Although I have been cursing the wind at Lake Wenatchee this sockeye season, it has been my experience that it actually has been a blessing. I have had much better fishing on windy days than when it was flat calm, which has been rare. On Tuesday, Rob Phillips and I were headed to the dock by seven in the morning with our limits. When Rollie saw me coming he texted me asking if we were okay. He didn’t expect me to finish so early! We had a nice breeze that morning. On Wednesday, Tom Verschuren and I arrived at the lake to find it dead calm. We spent some time at the top end of the lake and talked to several anglers that agreed that the fishing was much slower that morning. We got a few up there and I trolled down the lake and out in the middle. I switched from black hooks to bright orange and pink and that changed things for us. We lost a few fish, including a really big one right at the boat, but managed to get our eight fish by nine o’clock. You can still catch fish on a calm day, it just takes a little longer. Now I am hoping for some wind!

The Lake Wenatchee sockeye fishery is still going strong. Anglers are having good success, with many posting consistent limits. Wind has been an issue this season. Usually, we talk about the number of windy days compared to calm days on the lake, but this year has been the reverse. It has been the calm days that have been scarce. Recently though, there has been a string of clear skies and calm water, and talking to other anglers on the water they agree that the action can often be slower with these conditions. This is particularly true when the sun hits the water. About a week ago, when sockeye bites were getting to be far apart, I tried something different. Rather than the three red hook and three black hook setups that worked well in the morning, I dug out some of the brightest hooks and beads I had on hand. We limited fairly quickly after the switch. Now I am doing it every day with very good results. It reminded me that you have to be willing to experiment to have success. I am also fishing much deeper to get my sockeye now, too.

I have a very disappointed neighbor. Calder Fiske, who was planning to have a Kids Fishing Derby at Blackbird Island Pond in Leavenworth, is canceling the event. Calder told me he went down to the pond on a calm day last week, when he could take a good look for fish. He didn’t see a single trout. Rather than go ahead and have no fish caught, he is going to change his plans for a Kids Fishing Derby to next spring. The WDFW always plants a bunch of catchable size trout in Blackbird Island Pond for kids to catch through the spring and summer. He will have his derby then, when the pond is full of hungry fish. He is sorry for the delay. He had already received the medals he ordered for the winners and was about to put up the posters for the event. We both agreed that it is better to wait.