Northwest Fishing Reports

My friend and I plan to hit up Lake Sammy for kings next week. We both dont know what we are doing. I did some online research and found that trolling flatfish or kwikfish is popular. Another option is to troll 2 4/0 red hooks behind a dodger (krill). Can anybody offer any lure patters or any other suggestions? Thanks. The articles I read also suggested using downriggers to get down to the 30 ft level.

Lots of people jig for them. Jig in front of the slough or out in front of the creek. Don't jig like a nutjob or you will snag fish. Lots of people run 0 dodgers w bare hooks similar to lk wa and lots of people just run flashers and hoochies.

Make sure to read the regs before you go! When using the bare hooks or hooks with bait you may end up catching some kokes as well. Remember, it is illegal to keep kokanee or sockeye in Lake Sammamish. Stay on the North side of the buoy at the mouth of Issaquah Creek and be sure to bring the big boy gear as these fish run big. Last year some jackwagon was snagging fish inside the bouy with buzz bombs while using a trout rod. Unfortunately enforcement never showed up after I called and he had one fish on for over an hour! Whatever you use, fish it near (within 5' of) the bottom, unless you find some that are suspended out in the middle of the lake.

returnofthefish wrote:My friend and I plan to hit up Lake Sammy for kings next week. We both dont know what we are doing. I did some online research and found that trolling flatfish or kwikfish is popular. Another option is to troll 2 4/0 red hooks behind a dodger (krill). Can anybody offer any lure patters or any other suggestions? Thanks. The articles I read also suggested using downriggers to get down to the 30 ft level.

Great topic...funny, I was just thinking of this fishery this morning. Would love to try it this year!

when does the boat launch to the lake open though?

fishin masta wrote:when does the boat launch to the lake open though?

Should be 6:30am.

Make sure you have operation of your boat down to a science.... IT IS ZOO!

Matt wrote:Make sure you have operation of your boat down to a science.... IT IS ZOO!

Matt, have you been out there this week or are you talking from previous experience?
I was supposed to take my dad out opening morning, but unfortunately he woke up sick. I've been itching to go, but now can't find the time. Haven't found anything in the way of reports on how the fishing has been. Anyone?
I hope to go sometime in the coming week.

I haven't been out this year but from previous experience the fishing doesn't start to heat up until later in the season. The down side to that is by then the fish are pretty dark and have no real table value. What irks me is that the counts for the kings and slivers at the locks isn't reported to the general public and so we have no idea what to expect. Note that the limit is 4 salmon 2 of which may be chinook so the forecast is for a large run of silvers. Another note is that when Lake Washington opens next month for silvers the limit is 4 as well. This weekend should be a good time to check out the run status as the current overcast conditions should get the fish up the slough and into the lake. If you go, go early, the salmon don't tend to be very aggressive later in the morning and afternoon. The bonus is once your done fishing for salmon give it a go for cutts, perch, bass, crappie or cats, the lake has a lot to offer.

G-Man wrote:I haven't been out this year but from previous experience the fishing doesn't start to heat up until later in the season. The down side to that is by then the fish are pretty dark and have no real table value. What irks me is that the counts for the kings and slivers at the locks isn't reported to the general public and so we have no idea what to expect. Note that the limit is 4 salmon 2 of which may be chinook so the forecast is for a large run of silvers. Another note is that when Lake Washington opens next month for silvers the limit is 4 as well. This weekend should be a good time to check out the run status as the current overcast conditions should get the fish up the slough and into the lake. If you go, go early, the salmon don't tend to be very aggressive later in the morning and afternoon. The bonus is once your done fishing for salmon give it a go for cutts, perch, bass, crappie or cats, the lake has a lot to offer.

Where i good on lake WA for silvers..?

Sickbayer, If I knew I'd broadcast it all over the place! I've caught one in the past 3 years and it was most likely a resident. Traditionally the goto place is near Hunt's point and that is where I picked up mine. I'll be out again this year and give it a go in a few more places like Arrowhead Point and Sand Point. Since there have been a surplus of coho and chinook showing up at the Issaquah hatchery the past several years, as many as possible should be harvested so they don't go to waste. We are talking about 20,000 to 30,000 fish where they only need around a 1000 of each species for spawning purposes. If you think about it the rate of return is pretty good.

I remember last year seeing a lot of boats out on a week day fishing around hunts point. I am thinking about trying for lake sam kings this weekend. As for the silvers in WA i wont be hitting it until the boat traffic dies down. What would you use for the silvers plugs...?

Why not target them right out in front? Shilshole? When they are in much better shape.....

Matt wrote:Make sure you have operation of your boat down to a science.... IT IS ZOO!

my buddy has fished the lake wa sockeye fishery before. Hopefully that gave him enough experience. I also found that the action wont heat up for another few weeks. Hopefully the slough between the two lakes is going to be cooler. If its hot, then the fish wont pass through it into lake sammy.

Blackmouth, the State closes Shilshole Bay to protect the Sockeye through the end of August. Typically the kings have already made it into Lake Washington by then. If we are lucky the run will be late and you'll find a ton of boats doing exactly what you suggested, including mine!

Sickbayer - For the silvers rattle plugs are popular and if you go back a few decades, jigging with Point Wilson Darts was the way to go. I picked up mine on a mini hoochie so I'm not sure if there is a current "money" lure for this fishery.

I have caught silvers on a couple of occassions in Lake Wa off Hunts Point and Yarrow Bay. If I remember, the fish were near the bottom in around 65 feet of water. We caught one on a small kingfisher spoon behing a mini hot spot, but had more luck with a metallic red wiggle wart style plug.

And the closure at Shilshole is actually to protect wild Cedar River Chinook. At North of Falcon this year we tried to get that back but were unsuccessful, especially due to the low expectations and returns on the Green River. We had proposed opening all of Area 10 to mark selective fishing during the Area 9/10 fishery... make the reg the same for the whole of Area10... Elliott Bay, Sinclair Inlet, etc... The Muckleshoot Tribe did not support the proposal.

Tom,

Thanks for the information and I want to add that I respect your participation in the North of Falcon program. I don't buy the explanation of closing Shilshole to protect the wild kings. Remind me again why we have a single point barbless hook requirement in the salt? I'm sure you argued the same point and that it seems to work just fine on the Columbia and the coast. I would say that the Lake Washington system has been mismanaged for quite some time and could really be a top notch fishery if someone just had the sand to implement the single point, barbless hook requirement in the entire system. Heck the system has multiple threatened and or endangered runs of fish, Cedar River Kings and Steelhead as well as the Lake Sammamish Kokanee. I can imagine the howls of anguish from the bass fishermen if this were ever to happen, welcome to our world!

G-Man wrote:I haven't been out this year but from previous experience the fishing doesn't start to heat up until later in the season.

My buddy heard the same thing G-man.

so who has been catching them?

sickbayer wrote:so who has been catching them?

I have been wondering the same thing.