Central Washington offers some great opportunities for anglers this year including river fishing, open water fishing in big lakes or reservoirs, and ice fishing in smaller lakes. Here are five solid bets for you this winter.
LAKE CHELAN
This 50-mile-long lake in North Central Washington is known for its lake trout, the largest often caught during the winter months. One person who knows this for a fact is Wenatchee resident Phil Colyar, who hauled a 35-pound, 10-ounce Mackinaw out of this lake in 2013. It’s a state record that stands to this day.
While lake trout fishing gets a lot of attention, there are other fish that can be caught during the winter months as well. Brad Wagner, owner of Bobber Down Guide Service out of Wenatchee (www.fishwenatchee.com) reported one of his guides took a couple of clients out on a trip and they came back with not only lake trout, but several kokanee and burbot.
Wagner says the kokanee last year were averaging 14 to 15 inches long. So far post-spawn, the kokanee are running around 12-inches long and most of them are being caught up the lake.
As for the burbot, they were a common sight at the lake until about 15 years ago when a virus nearly wiped them out. Wagner says the burbot population has bounced back though and if you jig for them in rocky areas about 150-feet below the surface, there is a good chance you will tie into one.
RUFUS WOODS RESERVOIR
The record lake trout may have been taken at Lake Chelan but the record resident rainbow trout was caught out of Rufus Woods Reservoir. Norm Butler accomplished that feat on Veteran’s Day of 2002 when he reeled in a 29.6-pound triploid rainbow trout from the 51-mile-long impoundment of the Columbia River above Chief Joseph Dam at Bridgeport.
Many anglers will jig for these trout out of boats near the net pens operated by the Colville Tribe. You can fish from shore on the Colville Reservation side of the reservoir, but you will need a tribal fishing permit to do so. You can also fish from shore on Washington State land just above Chief Joseph Dam or from a federal site called Brandt’s Landing on the Douglas County (east side) of the reservoir a few miles above Chief Joseph Dam.
Many anglers will still fish for their trout here sitting by a campfire. Rick Graybill, a local expert, likes to fish a shrimp and a marshmallow just off the bottom from shore. Others fish worms and marshmallows or even powerbait. If fishing from a boat near the net pens, Graybill will cast spinners, drift Corkies, cast flies, or jig for the trout with either a small piece of worm or shrimp on the jig.
If you have an RV, you can take it to the net pens where a campground has been developed with hook-ups. There is also a boat launch there, but a day or annual pass is required. You can find out more details at https://www.colvilletribes.com/lake-rufus-woods.
ROSES LAKE
Located near Manson, this small lake was stocked heavily in early November with over 10,500 rainbow trout. There is a public access and launch at the south end of the lake and if you don’t have a boat, you can have some success fishing from there before the lake freezes. After the lake freezes, this fishery really shines as an ice-fishing destination. Not only for trout, but also for warmwater species like bass, perch, crappie and bluegill. Better yet, you are allowed to use two rods here as long as you have your two-rod endorsement.
BONAPARTE LAKE
Chris Marcolin, a pro-staffer for Mack’s Lure, told me Bonaparte Lake offers opportunities for a variety of trout, including tiger, brook and rainbow trout that can be caught under the ice. Anglers can also reel in kokanee, smallmouth bass and if they’re lucky, catch one of the lake trout there.
The Third Annual Bonaparte Lake Ice Fishing Derby will take place on January 25th, 2025 with Ground Zero being Bonaparte Lake Resort. Last year, over 400 people attended the event and close to 350 adults and youth contestants fished in it. Stay tuned for details about this through the Bonaparte Lake Resort Facebook Page at www.facebook.com/bonapartelakeresort.
RIVER WHITEFISH
Another option this winter is to head to South Central Washington for mountain whitefish. The season opened for them on December 1st and runs through the end of February on the Yakima, Naches and Klickitat Rivers.
Rob Phillips is the long-time outdoors columnist for the Yakima Herald-Republic and has spent some time wading the cold waters of these streams hunting for whitefish. While you can catch these scrappy fighters with small spinners during the summer it’s a different technique that works in the winter.
Phillips recommends fishing a small nymph close to the bottom with a maximum size hook of #14. Black, brown, and yellow are all good colors, but the important thing is to tip the hook with a live maggot because the whitefish really like that bait.
So, there you have it. You can catch everything from whitefish to lake trout to kokanee to burbot to rainbows, tiger or brook trout as well as bass and panfish. Bundle up and head to one of these destinations and go fishing this winter!
