WELCOME BACK ANDERSON Lake. You’ve been missed.
Anglers across the North Olympic Peninsula have been anxiously awaiting your return.
Come Saturday morning, they will get it. They better not wait much longer to take advantage, either.
As Jefferson County Environmental Health specialist Alison Petty said during a telephone conversation Wednesday, don’t expect Anderson to stick around very long.
Recent history (starting in 2006) suggests it will close to fishing sometime around late May or early June.
Last year it didn’t even open.
That’s part of the reason why Saturday’s much-anticipated opener should be so productive.
The other: Anderson is one of the most accessible lakes on the Peninsula; one that can be fished a variety of ways.
Fishing with power bait from the bank, trolling rooster tails by boat, fly fishing with woolly buggers, all of it produces a tasty trout dinner at Anderson.
“Anything can work out there,” said Brian Menkal of Swain’s Outdoor (360-385-1313) in Port Townsend. “Because there’s a lot of rainbows, and there should be a lot of nice holdovers since they didn’t fish it [last year].”
Outside of Anderson, a number of other lakes opening to fishing Saturday should turn out trout.
Horseshoe, Ludlow, Sandy Shore, Silent and Tarboo in Jefferson County all received health trout plants during the last few weeks, as did Sutherland and Wentworth in Clallam (although those last two are open year-round).
“Early in the year when those fish are in there, just about everything you can do works,” Bob Aunspach of Swain’s General Store (360-452-2357) in Port Angeles said. “They will be pretty aggressive.”
Menkal recommends fishing the top three or four feet of water if you’re targeting the trout plants.
“They are fairly easy to catch in most cases,” he said. “You’ve just got to work through the columns.
“If they are not hitting on the top, then go toward the bottom. Some of the older fish will be down toward the bottom feeding.
“They are down there digging stuff off the bottom and feeding like a wild fish would.”
Ling fling
The sea was angry this week, my friends.
Other than brief reprieves last Friday and Sunday, lingcod anglers dealt with choppy conditions on the coast.
That made the opening week of the Marine Area 4 (Neah Bay) lingcod fishery up and down at best.
“I know I got a couple of guys today that got a limit, but this whole week has been so rough that a lot of people have been staying in,” Dean Crittenden of Big Salmon Resort (360-645-2374) in Neah Bay said.
“It was a great opener, though [last Friday]. Everyone I talked to for that opener seemed to be getting their limits.”
Seal Rock, Sail Rock and Tatoosh churned out some decent lings and a few rockfish when the weather cooperated.
Crittenden heard one tale of a 36-inch ling last weekend, but since nobody actually saw the fish, they may very well have been a bunch of hooey.
Area 3 (LaPush) anglers were tossed around quite a bit as well, according to Randy Lato of All-Ways Fishing (360-374-2052) in Forks.
As always, the Rock Pile is a decent option out that way or, if you want to make a trek, just outside the halibut/bottomfish closure area.
Shrimp opener
Shrimpers should be pulling some heavy pots come next Saturday’s season opener.
The state’s test fishery in Hood Canal produced the sort of results that point to productive pulls.
The inclusion of the Discovery Bay Shrimp District, closed since 2006 due to poor populations, should add even more excitement.
“The Hood Canal preseason test fishery yielded probably the highest catch per pot we’ve seen in at least 10 years, and Discovery Bay shrimp numbers also have improved,” state shrimp biologist Mark O’Toole said in a news release.
Here are the dates for fishers across the Peninsula:
■ Discovery Bay — Opens May 1 and 5 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
■ Areas 4 (east of Bonilla-Tatoosh), 5 and 6 — Opens on May 1 at 7 a.m. Will remain open until Sept. 15 or when the quota is reached.
■ Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet) — Opens May 1 and 5 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
■ Hood Canal — Opens May 1, 5, 8 and 12 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
In the case of Discovery Bay, Admiralty Inlet and Hood Canal, additional harvest dates will be added if sufficient quota remains.
Ocean shrimp fishing (Marine Areas 1, 2, 3 and 4 (west of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line) is open daily year-round.
For more information on shrimping, visit http://tinyurl.com/y2gou6w.
More digging
It appears razor clam harvesters will get one more crack at Kalaloch Beach.
The state announced two more harvest dates (May 1 and 2) at the Olympic National Park beach.
Additional dates are also set for Long Beach and Twin Harbors (April 27 through May 2) as well as Copalis and Mocrocks (April 30 through May 2).
Calm surf conditions made for productive digging during last Sunday’s opener at Kalaloch, while things weren’t quite so easy Saturday.
All told, Kalaloch had 1,200 digger trips, with an average of 10.3 clams per trip. The average size was 4.2 inches, according to state coastal shellfish manager Dan Ayres.
“It was just miserable [Saturday],” said Menkal, who dug both days at Kalaloch. “We only got three calms between the three of us.
“We had four limits in an hour on Sunday. The trick was getting down there a little earlier.”
Ayres said next weekend’s openers will probably be the last of the season at Kalaloch. The other beaches should get a few more openers in May.
As far as tides go, Thursday’s date at Long Beach and Twin Harbors (-1.6 feet at 7:50 a.m.) will be the best of the six days.
Here are the tides for the weekend harvest dates at Kalaloch:
■ May 1: -1.0 feet at 9:15 a.m.
■ May 2: -0.7 feet at 9:58 a.m.
For more information on coastal razor clamming, visit http://tinyurl.com/oyekj.
Stream story
Steelhead continue to stroll into West End rivers.
With one week to go in the season — the Bogachiel, Calawah and Dickey close after April 30 — the steelies simply refuse to go quietly.
Anglers are still running into chrome bright native fish in the Quillayute System (which also includes the Sol Duc), according to Randy Lato of All Ways Fishing (360-374-2052) in Forks. Spring chinook are present as well, although not quite in the same numbers.
“They should be just flowing in,” Lato said of the springers. “[Thursday] was the first day I really targeted them. We went down to the Quillayute first, and didn’t see a fish.
“I was really thinking with that 7:30 high tide, [and] the water up, [that chinook would be on the move]. I talked to the game warden today. He said he talked to two other boats that did the Quillayute today, too, and not a bump.”
Also . . .
■ Dungeness River Audubon Center Director Bob Boekelheide will lead a birding trip through Railroad Bridge Park and Dungeness Landing Park on May 1.
Birders will encounter breeding songbirds, shorebirds, gulls and waterfowl during the excursion, scheduled for 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
For more information, contact the River Center at 360-681-4076.
■ Sequim Gazette bird columnist Dave Jackson will teach a six-week introductory birding course at Dungeness River Audubon Center beginning May 4.
The class will meet each Tuesday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. for six straight weeks. The focus will be on bird identification and where to go to view them.
To register for the class, contact the River Center at 360-681-4076.
■ The Olympic Peninsula chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation will hold its annual benefit and auction dinner in Port Angeles on May 1.
The event, which has raised more than $500,000 in its 20 years, will begin at 4 p.m. in the Vern Burton Community Center, 308 W. 4th St.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is a nonprofit group committed to ensuring the future of elk, other wildlife and their habitat.
For more information about the event, or for membership inquiries, contact Cliff Smith at 360-457-6950.
■ Don Rice of Dungeness Kayaking will hold an introduction to sea kayaking class this Saturday through Sunday.
The cost of the class is $135, with Olympic Peninsula Paddlers Club members receiving a 25 percent discount.
For more information, visit www.dungenesskayaking.com, or contact Rice at 360-681-4190.
■ The Sequim Irrigation Festival will bring back its bicycle poker run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 1.
Riders will take a 38-mile circuit along eight local farms and shops to get a five-card poker hand. First prize is 50 percent of the pot.
Registration will begin at 9 a.m. at the Sequim Dog Park Pals tent at the festival. The cost is $20.
For more information, contact Dave Neidhardt at 360-683-5373.
■ Puget Sound Anglers-North Olympic Peninsula Chapter will holds its annual Kids Fishing Day at the Sequim reclamation ponds on May 15.
The free fishing event will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the ponds, located just north of Carrie Blake Park. It is open to children 14 years old and younger.
■ Hurricane Ridge Winter Sports Club will host an end-of-season fundraiser at Wine on the Waterfront, 115 E. Railroad Ave., in Port Angeles next Thursday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Guests receive a complementary wine glass and a smattering of appetizers from Oven Spoonful. There will also be live music by local band B.B. and R.
Tickets cost $25 at the door.
■ Washington Trails Association will gather a two-day work party on the Lower Dungeness Trail the weekend of May 8-9.
Volunteers must pre-register 48 hours in advance. To pre-register, contact Washington Trails at 206-625-1367 or visit www.wta.org.
Camping will be available at the trailhead campsites. Volunteers should bring their own camping gear.
Send photos, stories
Want your event listed in the outdoors column?
Have a fishing or hunting report, an anecdote about an outdoors experience or a tip on gear or technique, why not share it with our readers?
Send it to me, Matt Schubert, Sports Department, Peninsula Daily News, P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles, WA 98362; phone, 360-417-3526; fax, 360-417-3521; e-mail matt.schubert
@peninsuladailynews.com.
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Matt Schubert is the outdoors columnist for the Peninsula Daily News. His column appears on Thursdays and Fridays.
