So you’ve put in your hours on the river, bought all the tackle, fished a float, drift fished, filled your tackle box up and now you’ve finally hooked your first fish!  That’s the moment when you see that float down, and you feel the hard tug of a big fish. Your adrenaline is pumping. You’re drag starts singing. You rod’s doubled over and you’re knee deep in the water and just holding on. Now what?

Hooking a fish is hard enough, but when you get it on you are only half way there. Lots of anglers will find that once they hook the fish, they can have a hard time getting it to shore. Let’s talk about some of the techniques that will help you get that fish on the stringer, rather than swimming around in the river 30 seconds later with a sore jaw. Nothing is more disappointing than feeling that tug and losing that fish.

Keep your Cool –

You’re first instinct when you hook a fish is to reel and reel until he gets in. You’re going to have to suppress that instinct. When you get that hook lodged deeply in the fishes jaw, yell “FISH ON!!!!” really loud. This lets the other anglers around you know to reel up and let you play out your fish. After that, take a moment before you start reeling to see what that fish is going to do. It may make a line peeling run, or it may just try to sit on the bottom, and what it does is going to dictate what you do next.

With the tackle that we’re using to hook fish, we’re probably going to be fishing with light line and a lighter rod than you’d think would be capable of bringing in such a big fish. This is when playing out the fish is going to be important, because if you just try to yank it in, you’re looking at broken leaders and bent hooks. Let the rod do the work.

Let the Drag and your Rod do the Work

It’s important that you set your drag for about half the breaking strength of your leader. This is going to keep you from breaking off. When that fish runs, your drag is your defense against a broken line. You’re going to use the flexibility if your rod as a cushion against the violent headshakes, taking the force of a powerful fish and spreading it out to your rod likes a spring. Every time the fish pulls against the rod, he’s using up a little bite more of the energy that he has, and the length and taper of the rod is going to help you tire him out. A tired fish is a docile fish and much easier to net.

Your rod is going to have the most power when it’s kept at a 45 degree angle to the water. If you hold your rod straight up, you’re putting all of the pressure of the fish on the tip of your rod rather than pulling against the entirety of the rod. The main strength of your rod is going to be in the butt or lower section of your rod. Keeping your rod at 45 is going to use all of that power to your advantage.

Directing Traffic

You’re going to look at the river and get the lay of the land. Across the way there may be some stumps in the water. You don’t want the fish to head that way. Downstream from you, you have the tail out, which includes a large riffle with swift current and large rapids that will drag that big fish downstream and spool you in seconds flat. At your feet Are some large boulders, upstream you have fellow anglers with their floats still out. You need to take control of that fish and direct him into the one place he doesn’t want to go: your net!

When that fish starts to run downstream, the first thing you want to do is bring your rod down and lay it against the water upstream. That will pull its head around and send him towards you and turn him upstream. You’re going to want to pull against the direction that the fish wants to go. When he heads back upstream, turn your rod and pull in the opposite direction. Putting pressure against the fish parallel to the surface of the water is going to encourage that fish to stay in the water, rather than jumping up and out.  

Try to avoid pulling straight up on the fish, because this is going to pull his head up and out of the water. As cool as it is to see that fish tail walk across the top of the water, there is a reason why they’re jumping. It’s the best way for them to gain slack in the line to shake that hook. Tension on the line is the most important part of the fight. If you lose the connection between you and the fish, that split second is when the fish is going to have the leverage to get the hook out of its mouth.  Jumping is the best way for it to get that leverage. A good technique for subduing a jumping fish is to lower your rod tip and pull down on the fish, sending him back down into the water.

Pump the Rod and Keep Tension

You’re going to want to bring that fish closer to you. That can be hard if you’re just reeling him in, he’s pulling too hard against the drag and you’re still losing line. The way that you’re going to gain line on the fish is by pumping him in. Raise your rod up to the 45, and as you bring is back down, reel up fast on it ensuring that you don’t lose tension on the fish. As you’re pumping him in, you’re going to continue directing the fish with your rod angle. When the fish makes a run, you’re going to have to let it run. Reeling against a running fish is going to twist your line up, and isn’t going to do much to gain any ground on it.

Palming or Thumbing the Spool

There will be circumstances where that fish is going to make a run towards the sticks that you just can’t stop with the drag alone. This is when the knowledge of the breaking strength of your line and rod are going to be the key. To slow the fish you’re going to have to palm the spool, gently pushing on it to add that additional drag on the fish to slow him down. A lot of times that additional and sudden force on the fish can stop it dead in its tracks and send him in the opposite direction. The danger here is that that additional drag is going to have the ability to break your line. Knowing how much pressure you can put on a fish before the line breaks is something that you’re going to have to be able to feel out, and with a little time you’re going to have a feel for your gear and know that lines breaking strength. Of course this is going to be your last resort when trying to stop the fish, because the risk of breaking off is going to be pretty high.

Take your Time and Tire Him Out

The object is to tire that fish out so that you can bring him to shore and get him in the net. Don’t try and net the fish until its good and tired out, because as soon as it sees the net, it’s going to run again, and often that first glimpse of shore is going to summon the strength to escape that the fish didn’t even know he had. You’ll often times get the most exciting runs out of the fish the moment that he sees the gravel, and you’ll have to hold on. Take your time and tire him out so that the fish is not going to be thrashing around when that net comes for him.

Banking and Netting

When netting the fish, net it head first, and don’t net until you know you’re going to get it. Missed lunges are going to knock that leader free, and fish lost at the net are the worst type of fish. Have your netter ready with the net halfway in the water, direct the fishes head towards the net and use a fluid swift stroke to engulf the entire fish in the bag. When the fish is in the bag, you’re going to pull it straight back and up, folding the net around the fish, making sure that he can’t escape. Get the net and fish up on dry land before you unhook him, and if you’re going to keep the fish, give him a quick whack on the head to calm that flopping. When you’re looking at nets, make sure that you get one that is bigger than you think you need, because if you’ve got a bag that is too short and you have the fish only half way in, he’s going to slide right out and break your leader.

With these techniques, you’re going to be able to bring that fish to shore quick, and you’ll have more fish on the card than in the water. Playing a fish is simple: keep tension, take your time, direct its movements and pump him in.

It’s been a while since I posted an update, so I figured I better let you know where we’re at this summer. I say summer, even though we’d like it to be fall, as we wait and hope for rain, we’ve still been enjoying the heat. We’re getting great weather, but the drawback is that the fish don’t enjoy it nearly as much as we do! Even so, this is an exciting time of year, with the summer runs trailing off we have some great new opportunities on the Olympic Peninsula, the Skagit and  the Cowlitz.

As a lot of you have already experienced this summer has been tough with the arrival of the silvers coinciding with low clear water. We’ve been finding conditions on the Duwamish, Snohomish and Stilliguamish less than favorable for these finicky fish to turn aggressive. With these fish locked down and nervous, it can feel like you’re slamming your head against the brick as you see rollers on front and feel nothing on the end all day.

All is not lost however, and we have been able to find fish that are willing to come out and play, even in these dry and bright summer conditions. We’ve spent a lot of time on the water in these past few weeks and have found that a few things have helped to bring more fish to shore. Here are a few tips that have been effective for us.

As traditional logic dictates, you don’t leave fish to find fish, especially if you don’t have a guarantee that you’re going to find anything somewhere else. This hasn’t been working for us lately. The fish are starting to fill up the rivers, and as more fish come in behind, they’re pushing out those fish that would like to sit in that bigger lower water and moving them upstream. This means that there are fish collecting throughout the system, and so you can find them in a lot of different spots. When we see a big school sitting in a hole, it’s tempting to throw at them all day in the hopes that one will break down and bite. However, what we’ve found is that if they aren’t in the mood, they’re not going to be in the mood all day.

Covering water and showing our bait to a lot of different fish has given us the opportunity to seek out those aggressive and willing players that others have passed over. We’ve also found the the higher the concentration of fish, the fewer willing players we’ve found. When we come up on a nice little pocket that may only have a couple of stragglers witting in it, these guys have been our best bet. The majority of the fish we’ve touched have not even showed themselves, not really rolling around or hitting the top of the water at all. We’ll hit one of these holes for 15 to 20 minutes, and then we’ll move on. Some of these fish want to eat, but most of them don’t, so seeking out the biters has been the key.

As some of you know, I’m a big advocate for light tackle, and that has been paying off. We’ve been using a lighter presentation, with less weight, smaller hooks and not a lot of flash. When drifting, we’ve had our best luck running 10 lbs. main with 8 lbs. fluorocarbon leader. Small beads or corkies will impress those wary fish while not giving them a reason to run when they see a big black slinky running across the rocks next to your bait. Natural colors in pink and egg orange have worked, green infertile egg bead imitations with a small tuft of purple yarn has been a favorite for these Coho.  

When float fishing, we’ve been using jigs, Dick Nites and bait under a small clear drift floats have been. With water like this, stealth is key right now. Small 1/8 ounce jigs with a healthy amount of marabou to give a sweet little tail twitch have actually been working quite well. Add a tiny bit of prawn to the tip for scent and you’ll have a good chance. When you can use bait, small sand shrimp tails have been working the best. Drift them under a float like a jig for the proper presentation. We’ve been working right on the bottom, an inch or two above. Getting that bait to bump right into their head has been our best bet. I know that we all love the hard hit of a big Coho on hardware, but we’ve found that if they don’t hit it right away, they’re not going to hit it. We follow a protocol, float bait through, jigs and drift fishing water depending, and then we hit it with a spinner. If that doesn’t work, we move on.

While the fishing has been tough, the big fish are in! We’ve had the opportunity to play with some teeners lately, so it’s totally worth the extra effort.

On the more optimistic front, we have been having spectacular luck on the trout front. Summer steelhead, Dolly Varden and sea run cutthroat have been more than willing to play, and with most of the angling pressure focused on the Coho in the lower river, it has made for a great change of pace. Stealth again is key, sneak up on your favorite hole, go light on your tackle and give a proper presentation and you’re going to be pleasantly surprised.

There is something to be excited about though. My favorite spots on the Olympic Peninsula are starting to fill up with fall Chinook! I’m booking trips out there for the first week of October, and it’s a time of year I look forward to from January. If you’re tired of fighting the crowds on the Puget Sound area rivers, these may be the trips for you. Learning the river early in the season will give you the edge when the run is in full swing later on, and you don’t want to miss these wild and scenic fish. Some of the biggest fish I’ve caught have come from these rivers, the Humptulips, Queets and Wynoochee offer relief from the shoulder to shoulder days on the Snohomish.

If you don’t mind hanging out with some fellow anglers, the Cowlitz system is probably one of the best places to learn to salmon fish with a high chance to bring in our favorite fall kings. With big numbers, both in the return of fish and pounds on the scale, the Cowlitz can quickly become your favorite river relatively close to home.

So if you’re looking to get into fish this year, now is the perfect time to get out and hone your skills. Book an early trip on the Oly Pen to get the edge when that run is in full swing! I have some openings in the next few weeks, but they’re filling up fast. Good luck on the water, and I look forward to fishing with you in the coming weeks.

This is a tale of three lakes, each originating from the same starting location. I’m speaking of recent hikes I did to Margaret Lake, Twin lakes, and Lillian Lake. Three gems in the Alpine Wilderness, located off I-90.

To get to the trailhead is an easy one hour drive from Seattle, up and over the pass and taking exit 54 to Gold Creek. The parking lot is not Gold Creek, but ¾ of a mile further on the north side of I-90, continuing east, and then up Forest Service Rd 4934 to a parking lot on the left, marked “Margaret Lake”.

I hiked Margaret Lake on Aug 6^th with my brother Chris and his fiancée Karena. On August 11 I came back and did a solo hike to Twin and Lillian Lakes.

The lakes share a common (and mundane) hike up a clear cut which has grown back to 10-20 foot tall trees. There are very nice views along the way looking back at Lake Keechelus, so that is something anyway. At 1.75 miles and 1,000 feet of elevation gain – finally! Second growth forest. From here the hike is a gem.  We started at 3,997 feet at the parking lot, and hit the second growth forest at around 5,000 feet. From there it’s decision time – go east to Margaret Lake or north to Twin and Lillian Lakes? The distance to do all three lakes in one day would be tough (at least for my 50-something body). We decided to hike down into Margaret Lake, which was about ¾ of a mile and a drop down from 5,100 feet to 4,800 feet. A word about Guide Books – they suck! I have not found one guide book that accurately measures elevation gain and distance. Try bumping whatever numbers they mention by 20% to get a better estimate. For example, my gps gave me a distance of 5.9 miles round trip for Margaret, and 1,521 feet of elevation gain. The guide book says 6 miles and 1200 feet, so I guess they got the mileage right, anyway.

As we broke the crest and descended down to the lake we began running into snow on the trail, which got more frequent and thicker the closer we got to the lake. Once we arrived, however, we found open areas and some very nice camp sites and rocks to hang out on. The lake was clear of ice – yes! I tied on a Fish Creek Spinner and began working the lake, but had no success. As we fished a half dozen very larger trout swam by. I would estimate them to have been in the 14-16” range – these were BIG trout and not at all what I have come to expect from Alpine lakes. Since the spinner was not working I tried flies (both dry and wet) behind a casting bubble. I actually had one of the trout nudge a small nymph pattern I had tied on, but he wouldn’t commit. After convincing myself that the fish were not in the feeding mood we gathered our things and hiked back to the parking lot. Margaret lake definitely would be worth visiting again, and the elevation and distance would make it a candidate for hiking in a small raft for more serious fishing efforts. I’m sure once a person figured out what those fish wanted they would be a hoot to catch!

Chris and Karena Fishing at Margaret Lake



Margaret Lake





















Lot's of snow but passable



Thursday I returned for a solo hike with my goal to reach the furthest lake along the trail system, Lillian. It was another perfect morning for hiking and there were just a couple cars in the lot, which I found out later were overnighters at Twin Lakes.

I made quick work of the clear cut, and at the fork in the trail headed north to Twin lake, first in line. The hike here follows along a wooded ridge line with spectacular rock fields and peak a boo views. A really nice walk and the kind of hike I enjoy most. At 5,000 feet plus, I was running into some patches of snow and a lot of downed trees on the trail, so this portion of the hike I was pretty cautious.





















At around 1.3 miles or so I dropped down into Twin Lakes, a very steep trail and feeling a lot more than the 250 feet descent the guide book said it was.

Twin Lake -shallow - no fish?


Twin Lakes are, as far as I could tell, barren of fish. The lakes are quite shallow and clear. I saw nothing and did make a few casts, looking for trailing fish, but didn’t see a thing. The lakes (one large and one small, but neither very big) are pretty and have several very nice camp sites. This would be a good destination if your goal was to hike and camp in a scenic setting, but not plan on catching fish. The lakes have nice rocky bluffs on several sides.

Onward I went through snow patches and fallen trees to my primary objective, Lake Lillian.  Distance traveled, about ¾ of a mile of intense ups and downs, rock fields, more fallen trees, and generally tough hiking conditions. But, well worth the effort! Lillian is one of those “take your breath away” destinations. Surrounded by rocky outcroppings and cliffs, you really get the Alpine Lakes experience. I found myself just taking in the scenery in quiet appreciation. Well, not quite quiet, as a group of seven arrived 5 minutes after I got there. But that was OK, they were cool and we had a nice visit.

Now, regarding fishing at Lillian. The lake was clear of ice except for the west shore where I was. It is possible to work up over some rocky cliffs on the south side of the lake, which would give you a chance to hit more spots, but I wasn’t willing to try this day. One false step and you ARE going in! The water is deep right up to the shore, crystal clear. I did not see any fish dimpling the surface. That said, I have no doubt there are fish in this lake. It is listed as having rainbow trout and the lake is 17 acres. So for me the fishing will have to be for another time.

Laura Lake





There is one more lake which is just west of Lillian and about 400 feet lower, Laura Lake. This lake is listed as having rainbow also and is 3 acres. It would require a scramble down a rocky hillside and some dead-reckoning. I’ll leave that to someone younger and more energetic than I.

I shot video and will post it at a later date.

Totals from my GPS:

Margaret – 5.9 miles round trip, 1,521 feet of elevation gain.

Twin and Lillian – 11 miles round trip, 3,020 feet of elevation gain (yes, I feel it!)

Margaret - hiked Aug 6, 2011
Twin and Lillian - hiked Aug 11, 2011

Today’s Alpine Lakes hike took me today a near-by gem of a hike and a so-so lake. My destination was Mason Lake, located on the Ira Springs trail, off exit 45 along I-90 highway. It’s a quick and easy 48 mile drive from my house to the trailhead. There was some lumbering taking place on the road to the trailhead which was interesting, but soon enough I was there and putting on my boots for the hike.

The guide books and the Forest Service rate this hike as “more difficult” and I would have to concur. Although only a 3 mile or so hike to the lake, the elevation gain is almost 2,000 feet so it’s a steep ascent. After a nice warm-up on the old logging road the hike gets serious and I definitely got that “why am I doing this” thought working in my brain. So far in my hiking trips I have been able to push that thought to the back of my mind. It was a little harder this time but I managed it. There were several rest stops that had me gulping for breath – feel the burn baby! It was all worth it as about halfway into the hike the trail opens up to open rock fields and amazing views of the I-90 corridor below and Mt Rainer in the distance. I personally love these types of hikes, getting above tree level, walking high Alpine meadows or cliff walls are my favorite types of trails.

As I crested the ridge and came up to the sign announcing I was entering the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the trail descended on the back side and back into lush second growth timber, strewn with large moss-covered boulder fields, like a scene out of Lord of the Rings. Wow, an amazing hike with so much variety for three miles! A short bit of hiking and I came to a creek and BAMM! The lake was right in front of me, totally unexpected.

Mason Lake is a moderate sized lake, listed at 33 acres and holding rainbow trout. The shoreline is boulder-strewn making it tricky to easily work around the entire lake. You definitely need to watch your step! There were several nice looking campsites on the west side of the lake. As to the scenery, this lake is surrounded by forested hills and while nice enough doesn’t really have anything that makes it stands out. Fishing was dead slow with no surface activity. The one fish I caught had some very strange markings. I’ll post the picture and you can come to your conclusions. The fishing was poor, and I was surprised because I figured a nice October day would find these fish on a feeding frenzy before winter comes.

I hiked into this lake in total solitude and thought maybe on a week day I might actually do the impossible – not see anyone on the trail. But that I guess would be asking a lot considering how close this hike is to the Puget Sound area. I had about a half dozen hiking parties coming up as I went down. But, at least I had the lake to myself while I was up there!

Hiked on October 12, 2010. Total distance hiked: 8.9 miles, elevation gain 2,337 feet, maximum elevation 4,285 feet.




View from ridge trail looking back over I-90 toward Seattle

 Mason Lake looking south.



Mystery Fish

After a month of dealing with torn apart bathrooms I finally got to get out into the wilderness again! Taking my son James for our end-of-the-summer overnight camping trip, I picked Summit lake in the shadow of Mt Rainer. The past two hikes had been into the Alpine lakes area and I thought it would be fun to get James close to Mt Rainer.

We couldn't have picked a better day to go. The day came clear and sunny, temps in the upper 70s to low eighties. We made good time down to the trailhead and were ready to hike by 9:30 AM. A word of warning to small vehicle owners - the forest service road is pretty rough, six miles of washboard travel and a couple big ruts designed to take out an oil pan. Not to mention one spot where the road looks ready to fall off the side of the hill. I was glad to have my truck!

The hike itself is pretty easy, although I was glad I hadn't picked a more strenous hike since it had been over a month since our last hike. Under three miles gets you to the lake and around 1,000 ft of elevation gain. It took us about 1.5 hrs of easy-going pace. The hike has a few switch-backs and a couple long steady climbs. Not too many rocks. The flowers are blooming and the blueberries are just starting to show.

The lake is gorgeous, crystal clear blue, with three-quarters of the shoreline available for walking/fishing. Most spots the lake is shallow and drops off gradually. The far shore is steep and cliff-faced and not accessable by walking. This would be a good lake to hike in a float tube for day fishing. The campsites are in good shape and offer views of Mt Rainer, depending on which spots you pick. And NOT to be missed is the add on hike to the far cliffs over-looking the lake. An easy quarter mile and 300 ft elevation gain gives you a birds-eye view of the lake and Mt Rainer. We felt like we were on top of the earth! James really enjoyed the view from the top. If you go this lake DO NOT skip this part of the hike!

OK, fishing. In a word - wow! I noted immediately that there were fish rising everywhere, and pretty quickly determined that they were quite picky. The wooleybuggers gave zero interest, and the Fish Creek Spinners, while catching a few fish, were not the ticket. But dry flies - man, these fish jumped all over them! It didn't even matter that I only had one with me and that it was eventually torn to shreads. If the fly floated, the fish would aggresively attack it. If the fly sunk under the water even an inch, theer was no interest. Heck, I had as many hits on my clear casting bobber as I did the fly! I must have caught a couple dozen brook trout in the afternoon (when I least expected to catch fish). They were everywhere along the shoreline and cruising lazily by me. The only downside was this lake seemingly is overrun with tiny fish. Everything I caught was in the 5-8" range, and a lot of skinny fish. Nothing of any great size could I find. The other thing that was of great interest to me was that later, after dinner, I went out and fished and had zero luck. The fish were pretty much done rising and nothing seemed to interest them, including spinners. And it was the same way in the morning. No hatch on the water and no fish biting. So lesson learned - I will add MORE dry flies to my tackle box for Alpine lake fishing, and I will be less worried about time of day fishing.

James and I hiked out the next morning under cloudy skies as a new front came in, beating the rain by a half hour - good timing. We had a great final overnight before school starts. James says this was his favorite of our three hikes this year. I would recommend Summit lake as an easy hike and destination. It's actually outside Mt Rainer park, so you only need your forest service parking permit. Also, expect to share the lake. We had it all to ourselves until 3pm when a group of six teens arrived for what must have been their end of the summer trip. They were kinda loud but thankfully quieted down in the evening. Come up early in the day to get the best camping sites, in my opinion the far side of the lake which has the Mt Rainer view. And be prepared to catch a LOT of little trout!

Final hiking stats: Hiked on Wednesday/Thursday Aug 25-26, 2010, distance hiked: 8.17 miles, elevation gain 1355 feet (includes distance to overview), maximum elevation 5,733 ft. 

From Enumclaw drive west on State Route 410 (Chinook Pass Highway) to SR 165. Proceed on SR 165 to the Carbon River Road/Mowich Lake Highway junction. Turn left onto Carbon River Road and follow it to Cayada Creek Road (Forest Road 7810), just before the national park entrance. Turn left (north) and drive about 6.8 miles to the trailhead at the end of FS road 7810.

Our campsite view:



Views from ridge overlooking the lake:





A typical brook trout: