April showers??  Brings May flowers??  I hope so……..

April has been a colder month than usual, and the water temperatures are remaining low.

Seems like we’re behind a couple weeks compared to most years.  But, we are still out there. And we’re still catching fish.

Here’s your latest reports:

Kootenay Lake:

March was a slower month for fishing, but that’s to be expected with the cold water and weather, however we have seen a few warmer days in the beginning of April, and hopefully things are starting to shape up.

We finished up the month of March with a few big Bull Trout and the odd Rainbow.

The beginning of April saw our limited 3-day opening for west arm Kokanee.  The turnout was huge, as to be expected.  Probably 50 plus boats on the water.  It was nice to see some life again on the water.  Lots of familiar faces and lots of fun chatter between boats.

Day one of Kokanee fishing was very successful for most fishers.  Day 2 was a bit slower, as expected.  And day 3 was a struggle, which is pretty normal for this April fishery.  It was just fun to be on the water with everyone.

Since the opening has finished, we’re back to seeing just 1 or 2 boats on the water again.  It’s like fishing our own private lake.

The past couple weeks have had some good days of fishing and some not so good.  All depends on the weather.  Some of the snow squalls blowing through seem to shut the fish down for a while.

But, when the weather has been consistent, we have been doing quite well lately.

Our last trip managed to hook into over a dozen fish.  A couple Bull Trout up to 6Lbs and then 10 Rainbows between 2 – 4 Lbs.  That’s more like it.  Maybe the beginning of our Spring fishery.

Easter weekend saw Woodbury hold its annual Bull Trout derby.  The turnout was a good one, with almost 200 entrants.

The fishing was similar to most years.  April fishing.  Cold weather and stubborn fish.  However, this year saw some of the biggest fish weighed in years.  Top fish was over 15 Lbs, with the next 2 fish being close to 10 Lbs.  Nice to see that there’s still a few fish in the double digits.

Also had a bunch of Rainbows caught during the derby up to 6Lbs.  So, spring fishing could be a blast the next couple months.

We’ve got lots of trips planned over the next month, so stay tuned for some exciting reports coming up.

It’s spring fishing time.  Let’s go !!

Columbia River:

March is usually a good month to hit the river, and although the weather was garbage, the fishing has been pretty good.  Particularly the first couple weeks of April.  The odd Walleye is being caught right now, and the Rainbows are putting on the feed bags.

Lately there’s been a few Rainbows up to 6 Lbs and Walleye around 1-2 Lbs.

The water levels are pretty low right now, so you’ll have to explore a little bit to find the fish.  But, generally they are hanging in the riffles or tailouts.

Fly fishing has been best, but still getting a few fish on the spinning rods.

Should only get better and better as the water warms.

Stay tuned…..

What are they biting on???

Kokanee opening saw a mixed bag of tackle working for us.  Jigging with the Zak Attack worked best on day 1 and 2.  But, trolling seemed to be best on day 3.  Here’s a pic of our favourite Gibbs Kokanee gear.

On the lake, it’s been nothing consistent.  However, the last couple trips have seen the Rainbows starting to smash the bucktails and spoons on the surface.  Our favorite #210 or 226 have been producing best for the bucktails.  And the magic Gibbs croc has been starting to light up.  Brass/fire stripe or firewing have been working best.

On the downrigger, we are starting to get a few good Bull Trout.  Our favourite STS flasher with green pistachio or spatter back hoochie have been working best.  While we were catching fish down 120 – 150ft before, we are now starting to see more fish in the 50 -60ft range.  So, don’t be afraid to mix it up.  Start with riggers at 50 and slowly work down to the 120ft mark.

Mark the bait fish on the sonar and try to keep the riggers in that range.

Since the water temp is still cold, we have been having our best success at trolling speeds between 1.8 – 2.5 mph.

End of April is usually the beginning of our good fishing, and it should continue throughout May and June.

So, Let’s go fishing !!

Hope this helps with your next adventure.

Tight Lines…..

Captain Kerry