Clear-your-head weekend fishing destination?

F

Flyin' Brian

Just Hatched
First ever post from me, so I’ll try to offer some effort at a tip before asking for your opinions.

If you’re fishing for pinks from a boat at Hoodsport, don’t goal-tend the hatchery gates or crowd the other boats. Your best bet is to hang out just up-canal from the hatchery near the pilings, and go after the nervous water and fish as they first arrive. Over the past decade, I’ve consistently seen greater success from people who do this.

On to my question.

If you need a little life reset, a clear-your-head weekend focused on fishing, where would you go? One rule is you can’t fly there; it has to be drivable in the PNW. I’m in this situation and would love some suggestions. Don't care about numbers or size of fish. Just where do you go and immediately feel better afterward?
 
Flyin' Brian said:
First ever post from me, so I’ll try to offer some effort at a tip before asking for your opinions.

If you’re fishing for pinks from a boat at Hoodsport, don’t goal-tend the hatchery gates or crowd the other boats. Your best bet is to hang out just up-canal from the hatchery near the pilings, and go after the nervous water and fish as they first arrive. Over the past decade, I’ve consistently seen greater success from people who do this.

On to my question.

If you need a little life reset, a clear-your-head weekend focused on fishing, where would you go? One rule is you can’t fly there; it has to be drivable in the PNW. I’m in this situation and would love some suggestions. Don't care about numbers or size of fish. Just where do you go and immediately feel better afterwards
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Depends on the time of year. Right now? The deschutes. The weather is perfect and the trout fishing can be non stop
 
Flyin' Brian said:
First ever post from me, so I’ll try to offer some effort at a tip before asking for your opinions.

If you’re fishing for pinks from a boat at Hoodsport, don’t goal-tend the hatchery gates or crowd the other boats. Your best bet is to hang out just up-canal from the hatchery near the pilings, and go after the nervous water and fish as they first arrive. Over the past decade, I’ve consistently seen greater success from people who do this.

On to my question.

If you need a little life reset, a clear-your-head weekend focused on fishing, where would you go? One rule is you can’t fly there; it has to be drivable in the PNW. I’m in this situation and would love some suggestions. Don't care about numbers or size of fish. Just where do you go and immediately feel better afterward?
Click to expand...
That is a proper introduction. Well done.
 
Flyin' Brian said:
If you’re fishing for pinks from a boat at Hoodsport, don’t goal-tend the hatchery gates or crowd the other boats. Your best bet is to hang out just up-canal from the hatchery near the pilings, and go after the nervous water and fish as they first arrive. Over the past decade, I’ve consistently seen greater success from people who do this.
Click to expand...
Welcome. Does the same tip apply to chum?
 
Summer time, I'm heading up into the hills. Preferably something off trail. Doesn't really matter what lake. I really like the sub alpine areas just on the east side of the cascades.
Fall, tough to beat the yakima in September/October - I like the bristol section.
Spring - somewhere out in the scablands.
Winter - I'd say OP, but it's been so busy lately it's not the same.
 
I enjoy going surf jetty fishing at the ocean. If you go the right weekend, maybe dig some razor clams as a bonus..
 
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Thank you all for these great suggestions. Gonna start researching some of them. November obviously limits the options a bit.

@Snopro I can’t speak to the chum run since I’m not out there this time of year. Worth a try, though. At the very least, you’d avoid getting plunked in the noggin’ with a lure.
 
Where aren you starting from? This would help narrow driving time, ie, suspect you want lest amount of driving time for the best amount of fishing time.

Cheers and welcome aboard
 
Flyin' Brian said:
First ever post from me, so I’ll try to offer some effort at a tip before asking for your opinions.

If you’re fishing for pinks from a boat at Hoodsport, don’t goal-tend the hatchery gates or crowd the other boats. Your best bet is to hang out just up-canal from the hatchery near the pilings, and go after the nervous water and fish as they first arrive. Over the past decade, I’ve consistently seen greater success from people who do this.

On to my question.

If you need a little life reset, a clear-your-head weekend focused on fishing, where would you go? One rule is you can’t fly there; it has to be drivable in the PNW. I’m in this situation and would love some suggestions. Don't care about numbers or size of fish. Just where do you go and immediately feel better afterward?
Click to expand...

Right now? Grand Ronde/Snake
 
THE Canyon (D) is top of the list. Tango's Run is the top of the list there....iykyk.

Outside of that, bobbing around in my Stealth Pro, going stealth mode on some tiger muskies is pretty relaxing, although a little more work than the above.

🍻
 
troutpocket said:
I like the scenery in the Columbia Basin lakes and there are year around seasons or at least options to fish in November. It’s getting into die hard temps for float tubes though! I used to make the trip from Spokane because the basin freezes later and thaws earlier than the far eastern WA area.
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Heard two very interesting Basin lake reports; one last night and another this morning. Hike in - water is still 50F (+) so the water won't be bad, it's the ice in the guides.......
 
I've hit up a hike-in basin lake a couple times in the last few weeks, one day cloudy and one day sunny. Both days I had 90% of my action and saw 90% of rises in the final 90 minutes of daylight.

Maybe this is anomalous, but anyone else have his pattern?
 
BlakeHerrington said:
I've hit up a hike-in basin lake a couple times in the last few weeks, one day cloudy and one day sunny. Both days I had 90% of my action and saw 90% of rises in the final 90 minutes of daylight.

Maybe this is anomalous, but anyone else have his pattern?
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Not me, I'm usually home in bed by that time of day (jk - I rarely fish late and into the dusk.).
 
Buzzy said:
Not me, I'm usually home in bed by that time of day (jk - I rarely fish late and into the dusk.).
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in total I probably fished for 10-11 hours over two days.

Had 1 fish to hand and maybe (3?) bites over any hours before ~4pm (pre DST switch) and had probably 30 bites and ~16 to hand combined both days between 4-5:30pm.
 
Flyin' Brian said:
First ever post from me, so I’ll try to offer some effort at a tip before asking for your opinions.

If you’re fishing for pinks from a boat at Hoodsport, don’t goal-tend the hatchery gates or crowd the other boats. Your best bet is to hang out just up-canal from the hatchery near the pilings, and go after the nervous water and fish as they first arrive. Over the past decade, I’ve consistently seen greater success from people who do this.

On to my question.

If you need a little life reset, a clear-your-head weekend focused on fishing, where would you go? One rule is you can’t fly there; it has to be drivable in the PNW. I’m in this situation and would love some suggestions. Don't care about numbers or size of fish. Just where do you go and immediately feel better afterward?
Click to expand...
Well, this is awkward. I was going to suggest the hatcheries at Hoodsport or Minter.

I go to one of the productive and little-known spots I've found through a lot of trial and error. Usually that's a beach, especially in Feb/March it may be a river, sometimes its a trib/blue line, and only occasionally it's a lake.
 
@J Watrous
That reminds me of a beach that has long been one of my go-to spots when I need to think (or not think at all). Small beach, never anyone there. It's not even that scenic as far as PS beaches go. Doesn't look fishy. Water's dead calm, maybe one bored seagull staring at me. But it's the first place I actually found cutthroat by simply exploring. Man, the confidence boost that day gave me.

Think I may need to discover someplace similar over on this side of WA.
 
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