I was able to tow the "tin tipi' over to the east side for a few days last week in search of grouse, quail, and trout. First stop was in the Winthrop area for a couple days and covered a lot of wooded ground without seeing any birds. I hit Big Twin for a few hours but only had one fish to hand so I headed farther east to try my luck. Hunted some great looking area but still no birds to be found so I decided to go down into the valley and hit Aneas to see if I could find some pigs. Got there in the early evening, set up the trailer and figured I'd hit the lake for little bit. Fished some of the spots that had produced fish in the past but didn't even get a hit. I think the turtles have taken over that lake. The wind picked up and it had been dark for about an hour so I headed back to the launch area. I had the rod in the holder with my big black sculpin on it as I rowed back into the wind. The rod went down a couple times but I wasn't able to get a hook up. About 20 yds from the ramp I stow the oars and start to kick in and wham, fish on. It fought well and I thought it would be bigger as it only measured 17 inches. So, the plan was to hit the lake early the next morning if the wind had stopped. Woke up early and was glad to see nice calm water. Hit the lake and fished in front of the ramp for a while picking up a couple about the same size as the night before then headed across to the other end in search of larger fish. After an hour and a half of nothing, the wind started blowing hard so I headed back in to assess my next move. To add insult to injury, as I drive up to the trailer, there is a covey of at least 30 quail pecking in the gravel right where I was camped. I could have thrown a rock at the darn things and hit them. From there I headed south in search of a little FF only, catch & release lake I had found on the map called Rat Lake. I hunted a wildlife area for quail for a little while the next morning and then headed to the lake. It is a nice little isolated piece of water and I had it all to myself. Caught several fish right away by the launch but all were in the 8"-10" range, so I switched over to my "blonde bunny" in size 4. Had lots of strikes but when I did hook up the fish were better size, going 15" to 17". The lake had lots of signs of poaching along the shore. It would be almost impossible to fly fish with the brush and steep rock shore line, but there were tackle wrappers, trash and such in several little openings. My suspicions were confirmed when I pulled in a nice rainbow that had a bait hook in it's jaw with a short piece of heavy line and two large split shot attached. I removed the gear and took a picture. You can see the red spot in the lower jaw where the poor guy had been dragging that thing around. Ended up netting around 15 fish so it was the highlight of the trip except for the poor fish with the gear snag. Headed home on Sunday just as the weather started to turn to rain. All in all a nice outing. Although I didn't get any birds I hunted (hiked) some beautiful areas in the Okanogan and caught some nice fish. It was a much needed get away after a long year with a lot of BS and not enough fishing.
Congratulations Steve, it must have felt good to get out and stretch your legs. Sorry you didn't get into any birds. It's been few and far between for me too. I'm thinking of heading over to the ranch around the 12th and 13th weekend. Gonna hit the valley with Sasha now that pheasant is open.
omfg u just posted my favorite secert fishing whole of the world to see... great... naw just playin. sounds like a great trip you really made the rounds this time. rat lake sounds fun.
Roper-I will be at my place from the 11th-13. Will probably hunt down around Bridgeport. If you are over maybe we can meet for a hunt somewhere! Rick
Steve: Nice write up. Too bad about the lack of birds, Roper has had the same problem. Sounds like the fishing was decent. Darn pretty country over there. MB
Hey Scott, the only reason I was able to get fish was that I couldn't find the Twisp Bakery. I drove through town a few times but never saw it, so I had lot's of extra time on my hands. rfyall, there are some pheasant release sites on Whidbey, but I have never been to them. I've heard it can be quite a zoo. I keep threatening to plant quail in the woods behind the house, but my wife wouldn't let me shoot them. She would most likely just name each one and make them pets. Lot's of deer, not much open land though.
Steve-bummer you didn't score a Cinnamon Twisp! It is one road over from Hwy 20, next to (almost) the Antler's Tavern-can't miss it! In a pinch, the fresh baked cinnamon rolls at the ice cream shop in Winthrop are also very edible! Rick
Rick, it looks like I'll be heading over the 11th in the wee hours of the morning...let me know what might work for getting together.
