2012 Washington Fishing Prospects: Where to Catch Fish in the Evergreen State
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2012 Washington Fishing Prospects WHERE TO CATCH FISH IN THE EVERGREEN STATE Washington Department of FISH AND WILDLIFE 600 Capitol Way N – Olympia, WA 98501-1091 http://wdfw.wa.gov 1 CONTENTS Agency’s Contact Information .............................................................................................3 WDFW Regional Office Contact Information .....................................................................4 What’s New for 2012-2013 Season? ...................................................................................5 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................6 Licensing ............................................................................................................................10 License types and fees .......................................................................................................11 Juvenile, Youth, Senior information ..................................................................................11 Military Licensing information ..........................................................................................11 Fish Consumption (Health) Advisories .............................................................................12 Accessible Fishing for Persons with Disabilities ...............................................................13 Accessible Outdoor Recreation Guild ...............................................................................14 Launch and Moorage Locations .........................................................................................14 Washington State Parks .....................................................................................................14 Sport Fish of Washington ..................................................................................................15 County-by-County Listings ...............................................................................................28 Juvenile-Only and other special fishing waters in Washington .......................................140 Fly-fishing-Only waters in Washington...........................................................................142 2011 Triploid Rainbow Trout Stocking Information .......................................................143 WDFW State Record Sport Fish Application information ..............................................143 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This publication is produced by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (WDFW) Inland Fish Program Manager, Chris Donley, using information supplied by WDFW’s field biological staff including: Eric Anderson; Charmane Ashbrook; Steve Caromile; Wolf Dammers; Mark Downen; Rick Ereth; Joe Hymer; Paul Hoffarth; Chad Jackson; Bob Jateff; Travis Maitland; Glen Mendel; Larry Phillips; Mike Scharpf; Steve Caromile; Adam Couto; John Weinheimer; Jim Byrne; Stacie Kelsey; Brad James; and no doubt other staff who were inadvertently omitted. Accessibility and Boating information is provided by the Recreation and Conservation office and the Washington State Parks web sites. The Department of Health web sites provide access to the human health advisories. AGENCIES CONTACT INFORMATION Agency Internet address — http://wdfw.wa.gov On-line license sales — http://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov Toll-free license sales — 1-866-246-9453 For fishing regulation changes, email: [email protected] For all other questions or comments, email: [email protected] Poaching Hotline – (877) 933-9847 To report derelict fishing gear – (800) 477-6224 To report fish kills, or oil or hazardous material spills, contact: Department of Emergency Management: (800) 258-4990 Toll-free WDFW shellfish rule change hotline — 1-866-880-5431 Toll-free DOH Shellfish Biotoxin hotline — 1-800-562-5632 Fishing rule change hotline — (360) 902-2500, press 2 for recreational rules Email fishing regulations questions to: [email protected] Email other fishing questions/comments to: [email protected] Fishing & Shell Fishing Rules for National Parks, certain Federal Lands, and Indian Reservations see: Olympia National Park - (360) 565-3130 Gifford Pinchot national Forest – (360) 891-5009 or www.fs.fed.us/gpnf Mt. Rainier National Park – (360) 569-2211 North Cascades National Park – (360) 854-7200 For rules that apply within the parks (State parks) – (360) 902-8500 State license and rules apply on Private, State and National Forest Lands. Before fishing on Indian reservations, contact the tribe for the necessary permits and rules. Quinault Indian Nation – (360) 276-8211 Colville Confederated Tribes - (509) 634-4711 Puyallup Tribe of Indians (253) 845-9225 Yakama Nation – (509) 865-5121 Lummi Tribe - (360)348-1489 Swinomish Tribal Community – (360) 466-7200 Makah Tribe - (360) 645-2201 Kalispel Tribe (509) 445-1147 An access permit is required to fish waters on a Military reservation For Joint Base Lewis-McChord information can be found at http://www.jblmmwr.com/outdoor_rec.html General inquiries about Canadian fishing regulations and licensing Phone (604) 666-0384 or FAX (604) 666-1847 Fishing in Washington Sport Fishing regulations pamphlet is available online at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/ WDFW Regional Contact Information Headquarters/Switchboard 600 N Capitol Way Olympia WA 98501-1091 (mailing address) 1111 Washington Street SE Olympia WA (physical address) Phone: (360) 902-2200 (reception desk) Phone (360) 902-2700 (Fish Program) Eastern Washington (Region 1) Southwest Washington (Region 5) 2315 N Discovery Place 2108 Grand Boulevard Spokane Valley WA 99216-1566 Vancouver WA 98661-9607 Phone: (509) 892-1001 Phone: (360) 696-6211 Columbia Basin (Region 2) Coast/Olympic/South Sound (Region 6) 1550 Alder Street NW 48 Devonshire Road Ephrata WA 98823-9699 Montesano WA 98563-9618 Phone: (509) 754-4624 Phone: (360) 249-4628 or 586-6129 South Central Washington (Region 3) Wenatchee District Office 1701 S 24th Avenue 3860 Chelan Highway North Yakima WA 98902-5720 Wenatchee WA 98801-9607 Phone: (509) 575-2740 Phone: (509) 662-0452 North Puget Sound (Region 4) Point Whitney Shellfish Laboratory 16018 Mill Creek Boulevard 1000 Point Whitney Road Mill Creek WA 98012-1296 Brinnon WA 98320-9707 Phone: (425) 775-1311 Phone: (360) 796-4601 What’s New for the 2012-2013 Season? 2012 will bring several changes to be aware of in the Washington State Fishing Regulations. These rule changes are described in the front section of 2012/2013 “Fishing in Washington” regulations pamphlet (available on or before May 1, 2012) and online at http://wdfw.wa.gov for the actual regulatory language and rules. For a complete text and a listing of the changes made by the WDFW Commission at the February, March and April 2012 meetings, please refer to http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/rule_proposals/. STATEWIDE RULE CHANGES In the past, statewide rule changes have been included in Fishing Prospects for the benefit of the anglers accessing this document. Unfortunately this will no longer occur due to the timing of the publication and regulation change/approval timelines. Currently all salmon marine water rules are negotiated under the North of Falcon committee process. The outcomes will be announced just prior to the release of the “Fishing in Washington” sport fish regulations pamphlet. Refer to this pamphlet and to the agency web site for all changed, new, and for those updated throughout the season. The web site is http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/. Please make sure that you return/report your catch record information for fishing and crabbing. The information on these cards is vital to providing accurate fish and crab harvest numbers. Remember that early crab, late crab and fish catch-record cards are three separate documents and that means there is the potential for three separate fees being imposed. If you are a Master Hunter, please be aware that failure to report these on time can result in the loss of that certification for up to five years. Again, check the web site and rules pamphlet for more information regarding this change as it will be noted in the “new rule changes” section for all to be aware of. Remember, when preparing to enjoy a day fishing on the water, it is each angler’s responsibility to know the rules for the waters they are fishing. Keep a copy of the current Fishing in Washington Sport Fishing regulations pamphlet with you at all times, and be sure to check the WDFW web site for any changes that may have occurred after the publication of the regulation pamphlet. 2012 Fishing Prospects 5 INTRODUCTION Washington State continues to provide good to excellent marine fishing and shell-fishing along more than 500 miles of Pacific coast shoreline, and over 2,000 combined miles of Puget Sound, San Juan Islands, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and Hood Canal shoreline. Sport fishing opportunities also abound in our 4,000 rivers and streams (stretching over 50,000 miles), more than 7,000 lakes (over 2,500 at alpine elevations), and 200+ reservoirs. Many lakes in the state are now open year-round, but the spring lake fishing ―opener‖ on the last Saturday in April signals the traditional start of Washington’s most intense freshwater fishing activity. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) estimates that as many as 300,000 anglers are out looking for a ―bite‖ on that weekend alone. Other waters are managed in shorter seasons, often to protect nesting waterfowl or for other biological reasons. To meet fishing demand, WDFW hatcheries stock about