Northwest Fishing Reports

Going to pick up a pontoon boat tomorrow, and am itching to get out on the water and try for some bass. I know Long Lake in Thurston county is supposedly decent for bass, are there any other lakes within lets say... an hour and a half drive of Kitsap county? Thanks for any tips!

(Just realized I left Thurston off the title, whoops! )

I see Thurston on there.

Pick one and go fishing, haha. All those counties have several good lakes that I have personally done well at (save jefferson). If your unsure where to start, send me a dm or private message and I can point you in the right direction.

Just got home from Long Lake down in thurston county, I think it's in Lacey. I believe the water is still too cold for panfish and bass, 2 hours spent on the water didnt' yield any bites. The new boat held up great though, I can't wait to put a battery and trolling motor on, I may make that my project for tomorrow (After I get home from fishing of course!) Still looking for a handful of local lakes that are known to yield good bass numbers, if anyone knows of a few off the top of their heads, let me know! I tried to PM you 253Caster, but got a strange error, not sure what happened.

Amx wrote:I see Thurston on there.

Thanks to whoever fixed that for me

Check your inbox. Good luck!

Bass fishing is hit and miss these days in Western WA. There are a few better lakes that I fish but again one day may be great and the next not so good - but that's fishing. I do pretty well in Black Lk (Thurston) in the spring but I know this lake very well. Another lake that I like for Bass is Nahwatzel (Mason) - gotta work alittle harder but have caught some really nice bass. One of my favorite lakes I used to fish for bass is Kapowsin (Pierce). I don't fish it anymore mainly because of the common vehicle break-ins. Really kinda sucks though because WDFW put in a great launch/docks a few years back. This lake is really good for bass and fun to fish - beware of the below surface stumps. I do have one lake that even this year have caught numerous bass over 5 lbs but would have to know you better before I share this info - sorry. Good luck in your bass fishing adventures.

Isabella (a bit S. of Shelton) would be a good lake for a 'toon. I've been there twice. Caught a 4 lb 6 oz LM the first time. Did good off the high bank opposite the boat launch. Right now, water temp will be around 50 F., so if you catch a fish it might just be a dandy! It's a small lake, so Catch & Release is critical. Steve

St. Clair offers a bunch of places to launch. This is handy because there is a lot of shoreline to cover. Its mostly a numbers lake for me with fewer quality fish and lots of 10 to 13 inchers. The lake is surprisingly deep so it doesn't weed up as bad as the shallower lakes nearby.

Thank you all for the lake suggestions, this topic will keep me busy all summer! I tried Long Lake in Port Orchard today for about an hour and a half. Threw a white jig, a perch colored Rapala, and a white skirted mini strike king spinner bate with no luck.

i mainly fish kitsap county, long lake is the best for quality fish. was there on sunday and hooked up with 6 in a little over 3 hours. 4 over 2lbs, and 2 jokers. but, kitsap and panther are decent. horsehoe and crescent are smaller lakes where you can catch numbers and on occasion will boat a 3+ pounder. wye, square, nels are ok as well.