I will ask you guys the same question that I just asked the other Lake Chelan guide that posts on here and please don't take this as sarcasm because it truly isn't. But you guys seem to harvest a lot of fish from the Trench area, are there any worries of over fishing fishing this area? Fish those depths means there would be no survival of releasing a spawning female so I have to believe that every fish that comes to the boat is harvested. I know of several lakes and streams in Eastern Washington that I had fun fishing when I was younger are put and take lakes now or simply don't have any fish at all. I have seen Bottom Fishing hole that we used to fish at Neah Bay and Westport that are fished out. Twenty five years ago you could get 40 to 60 pound ling cod all day long, now you are lucky to get one 5 to 7 pound. I just hate to see another good fishery lost.

Great question hewesbob and I will try my best and explain to you... The Trench is the deep water below Wapato Point in the first 4 miles of Lake Chelan The shrimp population is very high in this area and that is why the Laketrout feed there. Lake Chelan is 55 miles long and the Deepest spot is 1486 ft deep. I have caught Laketrout at the mouth of the Stehekin River which feeds the Lake and I have caught Laketrout as deep as 500ft. The population of Laketrout in this lake is Very Very high. The limit was lifted in the year 2000 because the threat of over population of Laketrout was present. Instead of bringing in Gill nets to knock the population down WDFW want you to harvest these fish. So with that said I am doing my best to keep the population under control. Laketrout are a Very aggressive fish and will eat every other species in our lake. I personally think that all the Laketrout that us Guides take out of the Lake, We are not even making a dent. This Fishing trip that I posted for example, We boated I think 25 Laketrout and I can tell you I had another 30 hits. We fished a 1/4 mile of the Trench back and forth. I hope this will help answer a Great question.

Thanks for the answer to my question. I am planning on fishing Lake Chelan and my all time favorite lake Wapato for two or three weeks this spring. I'm thinking it may be a wise idea to book a trip with you so I can learn more about these Lake trout. It has been so many years since I have fished hat area that Wapato didn't have perch or crappie.

With an average lifespan of 10-20 years (some reaching over 70) these fish can stay in the system for a very long time and with the right population and food source they can reach impressive size. But over population from i'm assuming the lack of fisherman and larger predators in relation to the size of water brings in a lot of smaller fish limits. Just wanted to say that I agree with you and WDFW judging by your reports that they indeed need some thinning out and keep up the good work.