T
he last couple weeks, as I stood
outside watching the first glimmer
of light to the east, I’ve been
greeted to sounds that signal the start
of springtime—these are sounds that
quicken the pulse of any turkey hunter.
What I’ve been hearing is the loud
gobbles of some of our local wild
turkeys. In the month of April, for
those of us here in Omak and the
North Central area, springtime brings
2 two things: the low land lakes open
and turkey hunting season kicks off.
A few area lakes open on April 1st.
Cougar, Campbell, Davis and Rat Lakes
switch to catch and release under the
selective gear rules. Spectacle Lake
opens under general rules. Depending
on which lake you choose you will find
rainbow, cutthroat and brown trout
along with some spiny rays. Though
none of these lakes are fly fishing
only, they offer some great fishing
opportunities for trout from 18” to
20”. This time of year stick with your
leech patterns, chironomids, damsel
nymphs and some of the smaller
streamer patterns.
The 4th Saturday is the general opener
for lowland lakes. Chopaka and Aeneas
are fly fishing only waters, but this does
not mean that you should not consider
any of the other local lakes. Some of
the best fly fishing I’ve experienced
have been on lakes that are open for
general use fishing.
The lakes that are open year round
have an abundance of species in
them. One of these lakes that is under
fished is Patterson Lake, southwest of
Winthrop. You can find rainbows, tiger
trout, kokanee, small and largemouth
bass, perch and crappy. Small mouth
can run up to 7 lb. and some of the
tigers can be up to 24”+.
Depending on where you might be,
you can plan on hunting turkeys in the
morning, and fishing one of the lakes
close by in the afternoon.
Have fun out there.
–
KEITH
Omak Fly Shop Manager