I drove through a rainstorm near sunset, but when I arrived at this north central WA lake the rain fortunately lightened up and I happened to see this double rainbow coinciding with the setting sun lighting up the landscape with a golden glow. I'm sure you'll recognize this lake from this photo if you've been there.
Here's a different view of this scenic lake the next morning; the marl shoal I'm on gives the water an amazing color:
The water temperature was in the 65 to 67 degree range and the water clarity was pretty good with about 12 feet of visibility. On a previous outing a couple of years ago I saw lots of fish swimming over this marl shoal, but on this outing I saw none. I hoped to find some fish in the thermocline in the deeper water, but only spotted 4 fish in the thermocline all day.
In a full day of fishing, I wasn't able to find many fish, essentially only landing a couple of decently-sized fish:
Here's a photo of one of the larger fish:
I camped out a couple of nights at this lake, and the wildlife and wildflowers were quite amazing:
Wildlife sightings: On the drive I saw or heard 4 Deer, 2 Bald Eagles, lots of Osprey, 2 Northern Harriers, 4 Red-tailed Hawks, 2 Raptors, 2 Turkey Vultures, Ravens, Crows, Canada Geese, Mallards, Goldeneyes, Pied-billed Grebes, a Caspian Tern, Gulls, Mourning Doves, California Quail, Killdeer, Starlings, Brewer’s Blackbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Eastern Kingbirds, Western Kingbirds, Northern Yellow Warbler, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Western Wood Pewees, Golden-crowned Kinglets, Mountain Chickadees, Robins, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Black-billed Magpies, Tree Swallows, Violet-green Swallows, Barn Swallows, Pigeons, Northern Flickers, Song Sparrows and House Sparrows. Merlin also identified by sound (but I was not able to confirm): Vesper Sparrow, Rock Wren, House Finch, Western Tanager, Townsend’s Warbler, Cassin’s Vireo, Hermit Warbler, American Goldfinch, Common Yellowthroat, Lazuli Bunting, Red Crossbill, Marsh Wren, Pine Siskin.
At the lake I saw or heard 3 Deer, lots of Turtles (more than anywhere else I’ve fished, and it could be that the fish I was spotting in the SideFinder View were actually turtles), lots of Spotted Sandpipers, 3 Bald Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, an Osprey, Mallards, a Great Horned Owl, Canada Geese, Barrow’s Goldeneyes, Ravens, Crows, Gray Catbirds, Killdeer, Mourning Doves, California Quail, Northern Flickers, Red-breasted Nuthatches, American Goldfinches, Lazuli Buntings, Common Nighthawks, Common Poorwill, Violet-green Swallows, Cedar Waxwings, Black-billed Magpies, Western Bluebirds, an Anna’s Hummingbird, Black-capped Chickadees, Mountain Chickadees, Northern House Wrens, a Canyon Wren, Western Wood-Pewees, Spotted Towhees, Eastern Kingbirds, Brown-headed Cowbirds, American Robins and Chipping Sparrows. Also saw lots of Turtles, more than I’ve ever seen at a lake. Merlin also identified by sound (but I was not able to confirm): Black-headed Grosbeak, Western Tanager, Chukar, Green-tailed Towhee (?), Grasshopper Sparrow, Western Meadowlark, American Pipit, Red-eyed Vireo, Clay-colored Sparrow, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Cassin’s Finch, Short-eared Owl and Pine Siskin.
Wildflower sightings: On the drive I saw Fireweed, Daisies, Hawkweed, Spirea, Trefoil, Foxgloves, Himalayan Blackberries, Morning Glories, Field Bindweed, Ragwort, Queen Anne’s Lace, Goat’s Beard, Ocean Spray, Evening Primroses, Buttercups, California Poppies, White Sweet Clover, Yellow Sweet Clover, Mullein, Great White Hellebores, Toadflax, Chicory, Mountain Ash, Lupines, Mock Orange, Vetch, Showy Milkweed, Western White Clematis, wild Roses, Cow Parsnip, Parsley-flowered Buckwheat, Canada Thistles, Yarrow, Alfalfa, Wavyleaf Thistles, Horsebrush, Heart-leaved Arnicas, Paintbrush, Columbia Tiger Lilies, Pipsissewa, Twin Flowers, Common Snowberries, Shiny-leaved Meadowsweet, Aspen Fleabane, Slender Cinquefoil, Orange Agoseris, Yellow Beard Tongue, Tall Woolly Wild Buckwheat, Goldenrod and Blazing Stars (it is admittedly difficult to properly identify wildflowers at 65 to 70 mph, so I may have made some errors, although I also stop for rest breaks which allows for more accurate identifications).
At the lake I saw Yarrow, Canada Thistles, Great Blanketflower, Mullein, Common Silverweed, False London Rocket (looks like Mustard), Ragwort, Yellow Salsify, Wayleaf Thistle, Common Snowberries, Hawkweed, Catnip (escapee?), Shaggy Fleabane, White Sweet Clover, Western White Clematis, Fireweed and Bird’s Foot Trefoil.
On the drive back, just south of the small town of Malott, I keep seeing a road sign for Soap Lake Road (not to be confused with the Soap Lake near Ephrata), and curiosity got the best of me, and I thought I'd check out this Soap Lake. It is 6 miles up the hill on a rough gravel/dirt road, but the colorful view kind of shocked me (I know the water color looks artificial, but I have not altered the photo coloration at all):
This Soap Lake is about a mile long and as far as I know does not have any fish due to the alkalinity (from sodium sulfates). Little Soap Lake is just south of Soap Lake and the water is not the same color:
I saw an Osprey hunting over Little Soap Lake, so it may have some type of fish in it. I'll have to ask Ryan Fortier (the fisheries biologist in charge of this district) about these lakes, although they may be reservation lakes. Anyway, it was an interesting diversion.
Rex
