which is a longstanding go-to fly on this lake. After summer peaks, there is a brief interlude. Then things pick up again when the first light frost hits this approximately 3,000-foot high basin. This is the time to break out the terrestrials and huck them along the shoreline. In September, a # 8-10 grasshopper along the shoreline works great and gets the same kind of strikes that a # 12 dry blue damsel garners in June and July.
Of course, Chopaka is managed by fly-fishing only regulations and motors aren’ t allowed, including electric motors. There is a one-fish limit of any size and fishing begins the fourth Saturday in April. It carries on strong through October.
2. BLUE LAKE
Blue Lake, or Sinlahekin Blue as it is sometimes called, offers a variety of hatches, a variety of large fish, and its idyllic setting is the bejeweled, Sinlahekin Valley.
Nestled near the top end of a chain of lakes extending the length of the valley, Blue is a stillwater stalwart for fly-fishers seeking a great nature experience. Camping lakeside is available up and down the three pools that comprise this fishery. No homes exist along its shores and wildlife abounds in the surrounding Sinlahekin Wildlife Area
Blue Lake sits at a relatively low elevation( 1,600 feet) and hosts anglers from opening day on through the season. Often Blue is the fallback destination for woeful Chopaka-bound anglers who were unable to navigate the long, narrow road to that lake. Some years, Blue can be slow to start if a plethora of cold water is still pouring in from area creeks, which raises the water level and effects visibility. When this is the case, the southern two( shallowest) pools may be probed first. Usually by May, Blue is underway and it only gets better in summer and fall.
There are some really nice fish to be found at Blue. Brown trout make an appearance in fairly significant numbers, along with the predominant rainbows. This past spring we were incredulous at one angler’ s photo of a 24-inch brown, caught while“ speed trolling” his electric motored pram. According to him, the faster he drove his boat, the more trout he caught. Odd but we bought his story.
Tiger trout are reportedly becoming a larger part of the puzzle at Blue. A hybrid of brown and brook trout, the tiger trout makes for challenging fishing due to its size and selective appetite. Going forward, it will be interesting to see how the tigers mesh with the rainbows and browns.
One fish of any size may be kept at Blue, as long as it is caught using selective gear and nonleaded lures and flies— no bait allowed. The season extends from the last weekend in April all the way through October when many anglers specifically target brown trout.
Blue’ s rainbows and browns fall for leeches and buggers all season. Chironomids are used early and late in the year, and mayfly imitations can be useful in June. Water boatmen( backswimmers) are also a key food source and should be sunken in shallow-to moderate depth water, then jerked back to the surface in erratic strips.
Our favorite hatch at Blue, however, is the flying ant hatch that drives trout mad( and anglers, too, if they don’ t have flies to match those ants). One can expect these bugs to come off by July, so if you’ re at the lake from May on, be ready with a few Hi-Vis Ants or a variety of Galloup’ s Ant-Acids # 12- # 16. If you see fish slurping something off the surface, chuck that ant out there with a bit of floatant and hang on.
3. AENEAS LAKE
Arenas kind of looks like a mud hole, but it surprises with some very healthy rainbow and brown trout.
That’ s probably why the Okanogan County Fly Fishing Club has scheduled its first outing of the year at Aeneas for as long as anyone can remember. And since the club was chartered in the 1940s, that’ s a long time. This has always been a pretty safe bet because the lake sits at a relatively low 1,300 feet elevation and covers 60 acres. Also,