Hard to believe it’s August already. Time flies when you’re having fun, and I am having a lot of fun fishing for sockeye on Lake Wenatchee. I am not alone. There’s a good-sized fleet of boats out on the lake most days. If the forecast is for wind, many anglers are taking the day off and waiting for better conditions to chase sockeye. As I mentioned in my last column, I took my brother Rick, cousin Greg Preston, and his son Tim sockeye fishing on opening day. We got 16 sockeye!

The wind on Lake Wenatchee blew so hard last Monday evening that there was a real concern about the dock I was on. One boat got loose but was retrieved before it got away. While inspecting the dock and adjusting how the boats were tied up, we spotted a boat drifting our way. It had come from a dock up lake and was on a collision course with our dock. We caught it before it did any damage, and the boat was driven to Crescent Beach and loaded on a trailer. Whew. It was a nervous evening. On Tuesday morning Dennis Beich and I hopped on my boat and drove up to the top of the lake, where I had started on opening day. The wind wasn’t as bad as it was on Monday, but keeping the right trolling speed was still a challenge. The bite didn’t happen immediately, and we tried a variety of different hook colors and rigs. Finally, the bite came later in the morning, and we started getting fish. Dennis had the hot rod and the downrigger on his side of the boat went off repeatedly. His three red-hook rig was deadly, and we got enough fish on other rods to get our limits. Something that happened to us last year occurred again. We needed just one fish, and we got a double, and released one to end our day.

When we reached the dock Tuesday, with two limits of sockeye, my fishing partner Dennis Beich mentioned that he was staying another night at State Park campground. He asked if I would take him out again the next day. You can imagine how hard it is to talk me into going fishing, and I immediately said yes. Dennis is a pleasure to have on the boat, as he has his own boat and knows how to run a downrigger and put out gear and he can net fish. The wind wasn’t as bad on Wednesday as it had been the prior two days. So, for the first time, I headed down lake toward West Point. Nothing was happening and I turned the boat around and we started trolling up lake out in the middle. Finally, I hooked and landed a fish. There was a long interval until we got another one, but we were back at the top end of the lake where I have had good luck. Then we started putting fish in the cooler. When we were down to needing just one fish we got two doubles. We lost a couple of fish and released one to finish our limits.

Last Thursday was another family day of fishing for sockeye on Lake Wenatchee. My daughter Whitney was over for a visit, and my brother Lane was able to come along. I was surprised how calm the lake was when we arrived, but that wasn’t to last. We headed to the top of the lake where I had been having good luck, and I saw nets out all around us. I put out the gear and soon one of the rods went off. I passed the rod to Whitney, and she was having difficulty getting any line in. I increased the drag a touch and she made progress. We finally got the fish in the net, and I was amazed at the size. It had to be the biggest sockeye I have ever put in the boat. We measured it later and it was 25 inches and had to weigh 5 or 6 pounds. Next, Lane hooked a fish that gave him quite a tussle. Twice it ran across the surface, tearing line from the reel. It was a great start and we landed four more fish before the wind just got to be too much and we headed for the dock. That evening, after dinner in Leavenworth, we stopped by The Little Kitchen Shop to find some fish bone tweezers, and my wife Eileen had the idea of putting the photo of Whitney and me holding her big fish on a mug. I sent the photo to an e-mail address, and we had the mug done in a very short time. Amazing! The photo we put on the mug is the photo for this week’s column.

As many of you know, I always support efforts to get kids fishing. I think that fishing is a great activity for young people. My neighbor, Calder Fiske, is my number one fan, and probably the most enthusiastic angler I know. Although just 12 years old, Calder has come up with a plan to help get kids out to experience the fun of fishing. He has planned a free “Just for Kids Fishing Fun Day Derby” at Blackbird Island Pond in Leavenworth on Saturday, August 17th. Blackbird Island Pond is open to Juveniles only and only kids under the age of 15 can fish here. Calder has medals to award anglers who turn in their biggest fish in several age categories, age four up to age 14. He also has a medal to give the angler that clearly had no help from their parent. Kids need to bring their own fishing gear. Families can register their kids for the free event when they arrive at the pond. The event starts at 7 a.m. and you can turn in fish until noon. If you have any questions or would like to volunteer to help at the event, you can contact Calder at Calder.fiske@icloud.com.

The Brewster King Salmon Derby kicks off on Friday this week, so I hope you have your registration in. Derby participants always turn in lots of big kings during this event. The sockeye return has overshadowed the king fishing this year, and the derby is a great measure of how anglers who want to catch Chinook salmon can do. Congrats in advance to Mike Mauk who organizes this very popular derby.