Hunting & Fishing Report: Pounding Nails and Reaping Wheat With the Tools of Ignorance

Posted

Golden straw and bleached grass stretch out beneath a fire marble sky until their colors mingle in between the ether particles. An acrid smoke obscures the horizon, burns the eyes and constricts the throat. It is the cremated remains of prime evergreen forest, baby birds in nests and bear cubs in the treetops.

The vanilla bean iced cream drips through soggy waffles cones like black top and manhole covers. Just like that, county fair season has arrived like 25 carnies in a stolen clown car.

Suddenly it’s time to put the final can of water on the zucchini patch while country granges host wholesome canning parties. Farmer Zuckerman’s daughter gives some pig a buttermilk sponge bath and a sultry spider spins a verbose web of silk and velvet hyperbole.

Marvelous. Supreme. Capricious. Facetious. So sad. Breaking bad.

Red blooded Americans wield hammers and work sickles to make their slice the greatest again. A grandstanding rat prances and practices purple prose as the hinges of the dairy barn threaten to burst from swollen mammaries. The grub is greasy and on a stick. The corn is shucked and on the cob. Even the elephants have no more ears left to give.

Magicians are on stage but the magic happens behind the scenes. Memories are made in line and machines you must be “this tall to ride” cost too many ducats and come to an end too quickly.

FFA kids practice flirting and animal husbandry while rocking fancy pants and hot jackets. Tired dads. Angry moms. Children wasting money on the crooked games. Tiny fish bow. Heavy milk bottle. Unbreakable balloons.

A new spun sign in the mud slung stall reads “Terrific.”

Rodeo bulls mash gates and riders. Tattered cowboys limp home broke and broken. Gasoline fumes intoxicate the crowd as flak jacket metal tears through the night toward a thousand slack jawed faces in the demolished derby crowd.

A radiant round of fireworks descends over the sweaty grounds in awe inspiring arches. They symbolize death, and war, and life, and loss and victories recounted by the agency of confirmed truths. Noble goals and a deceived proletariat. Hidden agendas and the powers that be. County burn bans and ruling class sanctioned big bangs to keep the unwashed masses entertained.

Early mornings. Late nights. Chlorine in the city water makes manure duty extra messy. A delinquent shepherd is too proud to notice a sheep gone astray and a nation of fat jowled swine clamor on cloven hooves to proclaim themselves the most humble.

A spider sucks the sanguine vino from a mummified horse fly and whispers, “Trust me, Wilbur. People are very gullible. They'll believe anything they see in print.”

FISHIN’

Anyone with hopes of hooking a salmon off of Ilwaco had better quit wishin’ and get to fishin’ if they want to accomplish their mission. On Wednesday, the WDFW announced that salmon fishing will close in marine areas 1 (Ilwaco) and 4 (Neah Bay) at the end of the day on Sunday, Aug. 12.

That action was announced after catch estimates indicated that anglers have been having better luck than expected for coho in those areas. Last week alone, 36 percent of the quota (7,639 fish) was caught. Fish officials reason that the early closure, which includes recreational Chinook, is necessary to ensure conservation requirements.

Salmon fishing will remain open in Marine Area 2 (Westport), as well as from Buoy 10 and heading up the Columbia River for the time being. A press release noted that there are also enough salmon remaining in Marine Area 3 (La Push) to keep that fishery open.

Through Sunday, anglers in Marine Area 1 will be able to keep two salmon per day, of which only one may be a Chinook. The daily limit off of Westport is two salmon, of which only one may be a Chinook. All wild coho must be released.

A new state record for largest tope shark catch has been set in Grays Harbor by a ten year old girl. In late July, Isabella Tolen of Lake Stevens caught the record-setting 41-pound, 68-inch shark with a strip of salmon belly.

“It was really hard to catch, because the shark was pulling around the boat, and my dad kept telling me to follow my fish,” said Tolen. “It seemed like it might pull me into the water, but I just kept following my fish.”

A press release noted that Tolen has been fishing with her father for most of her life.

“I like it because you can catch different types of fish, and you can see incredible things in the ocean,” said Tolen. “You just have to find out what you can catch.”

The young lady of the sea had the following advice for aspiring anglers trying to muster the guts to conquer their bone spurs and cast a line. “If you can hold a pole, you can fish,” she said.

While salmon fishing was hot off the coast and at Buoy 10 around Astoria the returns on lower Columbia River tributaries have been a mixed creel, with a smattering of summer steelhead to show. On the Elochoman River last week the WDFW found just one bank angler with no catch at all. There was action to report on the Cowlitz River though. During creel sampling last week, the WDFW sampled 26 bank rods above the I-5 Bridge with two keeper steelhead. Another 127 rods on 44 boats released one Chinook and two steelhead while keeping 53 steelhead.

Last week at the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery fish separator, 164 summer-run steelhead, 234 spring Chinook adults, 12 mini jacks, four fall Chinook adults, one jack, and three cutthroat trout were collected. Crews released 84 spring Chinook adults and one spring Chinook jack into the Cispus River near Randle, and released 40 spring Chinook adults at the Franklin Bridge release site in Packwood. Additionally, four fall Chinook adults, one fall Chinook jack and three cutthroat trout were released into the Tilton River at Gust Backstrom Park in Morton, and 46 steelhead were recycled back downstream to the I-5 Bridge, bringing the summer total up to 515 reduced, reused, and recycled fish. River flow just below Mayfield Dam was reported at 3,000 cubic feet per second on Wednesday and visibility has been hovering around 14 feet.

In trout news, last week 2,860 rainbows were released into Mayfield Lake and 1,000 half pound rainbow trout were released into Rainey Creek on July 27.

All recreational fishing will now be closed on Sundays on the Nisqually River. That one day a week closure will run through the end of September between the military tank crossing bridge upstream of the mouth of Muck Creek down to the mouth. According to a WDFW press release, “This rule is necessary to comply with fisheries agreements made with co-managers during North of Falcon proceedings. It is needed to avoid gear conflicts between tribal and recreational fishers.”



River flow on the Nisqually below LaGrande Dam was reported at 999 cubic feet per second on Wednesday.

Anglers are free to fish for salmon on most parts of the Chehalis River these days but there have been limited reports of angler efforts, and even fewer tales of success so far. Even anglers targeting fish on typically dependable tributaries like the Wynoochee River have been mostly skunked. Flow on the Wynoochee on Wednesday was reported at just 159 cubic feet per second above Black Creek and 209 cubic feet per second at Grisdale. It seems a big burst of rain will be needed before the run arrives in numbers large enough to rationalize a day on the water.

However, anglers are still having some success in the early mornings targeting bass in cool hideaway holes along the Chehalis. (For the scuttlebutt on bass fishing check out the full story on Sports Page 7.)

BURNIN’

Lewis County has implemented a complete burn ban that will remain in effect until tinder dry conditions recede.

That ban includes all areas of unincorporated Lewis county and went into effect on Aug. 3. Going forward all outdoor burning, including recreational fires, are prohibited. Additionally, charcoal grills are also banned and only grills that use liquid gas or utilize other on/off controls are allowed for use.

“This decision was made due to the continued, and in some parts of unincorporated Lewis County, worsening dry season conditions,” read a press release.

The Lewis County Fire Marshal and local fire chiefs are all urging local residents and property owners to be extra attentive to the condition of their properties and to take fire prevention measures promptly.

“While the Board of County Commissioners and the Fire Marshal recognize that this decision may alter recreational plans, the decision to expand the burn restriction to a total burn ban reflects the county’s priority of public safety and the protection of personnel, as well as property,” read the release.

Additional information can be obtained by calling Doyle Sanford, Lewis County Fire Marshal, at 360-740-2696, or by going online to https://lewiscountywa.gov/communitydevelopment.

HUNTIN’

Last Wednesday was the day that the first round of hunters were legally allowed to begin waltzing through the woods in order to upset a Teddy bear picnic. That opening applied to the Coastal and Puget Sound zones, as well as the East Cascades, and on Aug. 15 the South Cascades area will also open up to black bear hunting.

However, a growing list of access and activity restrictions continues to make life difficult for hunters who are eager to beat the bushes. So far various restrictions have been announced on lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service, WDFW, and Dept. of Natural Resources, among other entities. Private timberlands had already been shuttered to Sierra Pacific lands and now Port Blakely has added their holdings in Washington and Oregon to those closed to public access.

“Prolonged dry weather conditions have raised the risk of forest fires in the region. Until further notice, Port Blakely's forestlands in Washington and Oregon are closed to all public access. This closure applies to foot, horse, motorized and any other form of access,” read a press release. “While we regret any inconvenience this may cause to recreational users, our decision to prohibit access reflects our priorities: public safety and the protection of our forests. Port Blakely employees and security officials are monitoring the weather conditions and unauthorized access.”

Regular access should be restored once the danger of wildfire has subsided.

Hunters who plan on heading to GMUs 418 and 426 in the North Cascades Zone should take note that there is a possibility of encountering protected grizzly bears. This is the first year that hunters are required to complete an online bear identification program in order to hunt bears in those northern units, and other eastern Washington areas.

Hunters are allowed to kill two black bears during the general season, of which only one may be from Eastern Washington. As always, hunters are encouraged to avoid shooting sows with cubs.

Deer hunters have just a few more days to submit their application for a special deer hunt in the Charles and Mary Elder unit. That 6,000 acre unit is located within the Scotch Creek Wildlife Area in Northeastern Okanogan County near Oroville. The 18 access and harvest permits for the special hunt will be divided up evenly between bowhunters, muzzleloader toters, and hunters using modern weapons. Those hunts will take place within GMU 204 during the general seasons, which are set for Sept. 1-28 for bowmen, Sept. 29 through Oct. 7 for musketmen, and Oct. 13-23 for riflemen. Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 13.

Beginning Sept. 1, a myriad of hunting options will open one after the other until the full frenzy of fall hunting is upon us. The first openings with the turn of the calendar page will be deer archery, cougar, forest grouse, crow, wild turkey, bobcat, fox, raccoon, rabbit, hare, and mourning dove.

As per usual, the mischievous coyote is being punished by the WDFW with a neverending open season on their heads.

MEETIN’

The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission will hold a series of meetings in Olympia between Thursday and saturday in order to review budget and policy proposals for the 2019 legislative session.

The public will be allowed to provide feedback on budget and legislative proposals on Thursday at an undisclosed time. That meeting is set to begin at 12:30 p.m. Friday’s session is set to begin at 8:30 a.m. and Saturday’s meeting is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m.

The WDFW has estimated that there will be a $30 million shortfall in funding for the 2019-21 funding cycle and the department has already been trying to prepare the public for a possible fishing and hunting license fee increase.

Other topics slated for discussion include an annual update on the wolf conservation management plan, an overview of seals and sea lions in Washington and possibilities for protecting salmon from marine mammal predators. The meeting will also feature a short presentation by Kelly Susewind, who became Director of the WFW on Aug. 1. A comprehensive agenda of the meeting can be seen online at https://wdfw.wa.gov/commission/meetings/2018/.

Those meetings will take place in the Capitol Room of the Doubletree Hotel located at 415 Capitol Way, Olympia.