Bass Fishing at Chief Timothy State Park on the Snake River

For my husband and me, Saturday afternoons are for fishing when weather and commitments permit us. Today we launched Pisca-Dory at Chief Timothy State Park on the Snake River. Bass thrive here, and the warmer weather has activated them significantly.

We caught three Smallmouth bass between us–Vic caught one and I caught two. The scenery and the pelicans added beauty and enjoyment to our excursion.

Pisca-Dory is comfortable and the scenery is refreshing.

 

We go under a railroad bridge and into a lagoon, but catch nothing there. It’s quiet and lovely, but we head back to the broader River.

 

Pelicans are so marvelous!

 

Our catch. I caught the largest and the smallest Smallmouth, and Vic caught the mid-size model. We had two more nibblers who got away–a good thing, because they were so small.

Vic took all the photos.

 

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Our 4th of July Fishing at Soldiers Meadow Lake

We enjoyed fishing at Soldiers Meadow Lake so much on the Fourth of July last year that we decided unequivocally to return. We caught five fish between us–my three trout and Vic’s Kokanee salmon and one trout. The Kokanee has beautiful silver and pink bands, and, like all salmon, pink meat.

I’m holding our 1,300-pound dory while Vic parks the truck and boat trailer.

Vic dubbed this as “Picnic Bay” because we anchored there to eat our lunch.

I’m reeling in one of my three trout.

Our five fish: At the top is Vic’s Kokanee, then my small trout and two large ones, and then  Vic’s trout. The day withheld its rain and we enjoyed a lovely day of fishing on this beautiful lake.

The active river: Fishing the Snake River from Couse Creek westward

My husband and I took our beautiful dory, Pisca-Dory, out fishing on the Snake River today. We had a very fine day simply being out on the river in the excellent boat my husband built, combined with the pleasant motive of fishing.

              Pisca Dory at Couse Creek Launch

The magnificent scenery along the Snake River, upriver from Couse Creek

Huh? No tourists? Really?

I caught no fish this time, and my husband caught this beauty, an 11-1/2″ Smallmouth Bass.

Fishing at Nisqually John

Our usual acronym is WRBF, which stands for “We’d rather be fishing.” That was our plan for Memorial Day today, and that is what we did. We went fishing. It happened, as it sometimes does, that we enjoyed three hours of fishing on the Snake River without catching a single fish. That happens sometimes, just as it happens sometimes that we catch the legal limit of trout (5 per person) in less than an hour at our favorite pond.

We took our beautiful wooden boat Pisca Dory that my husband Vic built from scratch to Nisqually John launch with some hope of catching bass. Contrary to our anticipation, there was no line for the boat ramp–no wait at all. The river was quiet. The scenery at Nisqually John is superb, surrounded by basalt hills. And, just to keep us interested, bass were jumping and generally active; they simply preferred not to come home with us. And that was okay.

My husband Vic at the helm, steering with a tiller that is part of the motor.

The motor’s foam is a visual narrative of Pisca’s speed, about 12 mph.

Basalt hills on all sides provide a wonderful narrative of nature.

 

 

Trout fishing with pelicans

The pelicans are a beautiful sight on the pond. We don’t consider them competitors, and I suspect they don’t think of us at all. My husband took this photo.

My husband and I headed for the pond immediately after dinner last night to fish for trout. Rain was falling, but trout were leaping, and six came home in our ice chest. I caught five, the legal limit, 9-1/2″ – 11-1/2″, and my husband caught one. I was able to fish more continually because he unhooked the fish I caught and did the gutting and bagging, enabling me to keep casting, and, miraculously, catching and landing. We caught our six trout in just over an hour, and returned home wet, chilled, and triumphant.

Back to the pond

Ha! I caught my limit–five trout, 9-1/2″ to 11-1/2″. My husband and I headed for the pond just after 6 PM and stayed 2-1/2 hours fishing. As evening pressed on, the fish were jumping and biting and skipping toward the shore. I just love fish who want to come home with us. If it weren’t for the State’s legal limit, I’d have wanted to fish longer. I was hooked; what can I say?

Vic took these pictures. He would have been fishing but his reel broke.

The first bite to hang on. . .

 

Closer. . .

 

And closer. . .

 

The trout has landed!

 

And it’s time to go home, Number 5.

Caught: Trout at last

Sunshine, wind, and fishy aspirations. . .

My catch

My husband and I accepted the sunshine’s offer (the wind was thrown in with the deal) and we returned this morning to our favorite pond to fish for trout. I caught two trout, 8-1/2″ and 10-1/2″. Vic is cooking one of them now for his lunch. (I am very allergic to fish.)