Northwest Fishing Reports

What do you guys think of a reduced limit say 2 fish for lake washington and lake samamish. cutts and rainbows.

I don't think it is necessary. What is your argument for or against the implementation of such a limit?

I like that question at least, Sickbayer.. Matt asked for what reason would you maybe want to see a limit?
I have been thinking for awhile that the state will prob. jump on lake WA. for a reduced cutt. limit. My thoughts are just this.. Yes, they are huge lakes, and there appears to be quite a population of these native fish. Yes also, you could argue that the fish aren't caught by the "Masses" bank anglers/power bait etc. All this of course helps reduce the #'s of fish taken out.

But I myself would not at all be opposed to a 2 fish limit, or some version of 1 over 18" etc. I feel like it is such a great native fishery right under our thumb, why wait until it is in trouble one day to try and help it. Makes me think of the Puget Sound rockfish and cod population when I was a kid, mid '70's.--- and then I look at rockfish and bottom fish in P.S today.
I guess the bottom line for me is that Yeah of course the idea of seeing 5 sweet cutts. in the boat sounds great, but I really only need to eat 1 or 2. My .02

From my point of view I think the limit on lakes that aren't stocked should be 2 fish. Take as an example the Lake WA and Lake Samm. Before they started getting talked up here and and pesky torial persuits forums It was a slam dunk to go bang a couple 2 to 4 pound (or bigger) fish for sunday dinner. After the exposure it's a lot tougher to find and pick a couple fish. With the advent of guides taking 6 people per boat out on the lakes, securing a limit for everyone, the lakes seem to be taking a hard hit in the last couple years. Before El Rico started fishing the lakes you would never see guide boats on the water. Now you see them at the haul out with 20 to 30 native trout each.

So I'm all over fishing the crap out of stocked lakes. But the natives need a little tlc if they're going to take the pressure. I don't think we really want to go through the same problems we've had on the rivers. Lets learn from our mistakes.

I have been fishing both lakes for 40 years..........

Last few years ive noticed a drop in fish i see and a rise in the number of boaters fishing out there. 3 years ago i would never hardly see anyone out on the lake in the middle of winter now it is 10-12 boats. That is a lot of fish not to mention the koke hook ups that can happen accidently. I personally would like to see 2 fish limit on unstocked lakes.

sickbayer wrote:3 years ago i would never hardly see anyone out on the lake in the middle of winter now it is 10-12 boats. That is a lot of fish not to mention the koke hook ups that can happen accidently. I personally would like to see 2 fish limit on unstocked lakes.

3 weekends ago there were between 25-30 trailers at the launch on Sammamish at 12:30 pm.

The Quadfather wrote:

sickbayer wrote:3 years ago i would never hardly see anyone out on the lake in the middle of winter now it is 10-12 boats. That is a lot of fish not to mention the koke hook ups that can happen accidently. I personally would like to see 2 fish limit on unstocked lakes.

3 weekends ago there were between 25-30 trailers at the launch on Sammamish at 12:30 pm.

I drove by there this past Sunday at 11am and there were easily that many trailers in the parking lot. Surprised me.

I support the decreased limit size on these lakes also. I am happy that they further regulated Beaver Lake in King county to daily limit 5 with only 2 over 15". Seeing hoards of people pulling out 5 trips after the stock truck came was sickening. I am less concerned about the stocked species than the native ones though, so I'd be very happy to see a "two fish" limit on Sammy weather it would be specific to over 15" or not. Due to stocking and species differences I think rules could vary for each body of water.

Somethin like 2 native fish only one over 18" and a limit of 5 for all trout.

It is refreshing to see people wanting to take a proactive approach. I could never wrap my head around why fisheries are typically (mis)managed using a reactionary method. To be honest, I wouldn't mind seeing more restrictions on either Lake Sammamish or Lake Washington. The State really needs to sit down and decide what they want out of these lakes in the way of fish production and work up a plan to accomplish these goals. Personally, I would require that all rainbow trout be released. They have become so scarce, I can count on one hand the number I have caught in the past year. That would also help out any Steelhead that are left in the system, smolts and adults. As for limits on cutts, I'm sort of on the fence on this one. I do think that the resident fish need to be kept in check as they really have taken over, it's the searun fish that need the protection. Just look what is going on at Sammamish right now, most of the fish being caught look like chromers fresh out of the salt. Perhaps a seasonal limit would be best, such as a 2 fish limit during the winter months when the searuns are in the lakes gearing up for the spawn. I'd also change the size and retention limits on Kokanee in Lake Washington. I understand the reasoning behind the size limits, but I'd up the max to something like 16" to 18". I've had to throw back kokanee that were deemed Sockeye by their length while fishing in the winter and early spring months, that's just wrong. I'd also impose a minimum size limit of 9" and remove them from the trout daily limit. As much as I love kokanee, they compete for food with their sea going brethren and I'd really rather have a yearly sockeye fishery in the lake.
Also, it hasn't been much of an issue the past 2 years, but I'd open up the lakes to keeping any marked coho or chinook over 9" long during the non spawning months. Having to toss back fin clipped salmon while fishing the lake in the winter makes absolutely no sense to me.

I've been on my soap box long enough, next.

I will support any regulations designed to make sure there are fish around for my kids and eventually grand kids. I think it is a great point about having regulations have some science and strategy behind them rather than reactionary. I would also favor stricter but simpler regulations for our beloved state. I am reasonably smart guy and the fishing regs confuse the heck out of me - especially on the rivers.

Draft up a request and submit it.

I'm not sure how the limit got put on American Lake, but I like it.

TROUT Year-round No min. size. Daily limit 5. Up to 2 over 14" except no size restriction
for KOKANEE. Chumming permitted.

That doesn't fit Samm/Wash as well, and I thinik Daily Limit 2, minimum size 14" or even bigger would be nice.

BUT, how do increased populations of cutts affect the threatened sockeye run in Lake Washington?

I dont fish either of those lakes due to where i live but the decreased limit is a good idea by all means. I would hate to see another fishery in this state being closed because someone wanted 3 more fish. If you really feel like you need 5 fish go hit up some other lakes.

bionic_one wrote:BUT, how do increased populations of cutts affect the threatened sockeye run in Lake Washington?

Include the chinook, coho and steelhead that are trying to make a comeback and you understand why I wrestle with limiting cutthroat retention on Lake Washington. Again, maybe seasonal limits so that one can keep more of the resident fish that really put a dent in the smolt population. On a side note: I'd also like to see more smallies being kept, it's only a matter of time before they get completely out of control in the Lake Washington/Sammamish system.

G-Man wrote:

bionic_one wrote:BUT, how do increased populations of cutts affect the threatened sockeye run in Lake Washington?

Include the chinook, coho and steelhead that are trying to make a comeback and you understand why I wrestle with limiting cutthroat retention on Lake Washington. Again, maybe seasonal limits so that one can keep more of the resident fish that really put a dent in the smolt population. On a side note: I'd also like to see more smallies being kept, it's only a matter of time before they get completely out of control in the Lake Washington/Sammamish system.

That kind of goes back to the numbers game. Since all the species are native the proper balance needs to be established. It's nothing but pure numbers. If the Cutts are threatening the other runs then we need to beef up the number of Kings amd Socs that enter the system. Along with that goes the net moratorium. It's worked on the Kings returning to the Sacamento river. It could work here as well.

The whole fisheries problem in WA State doesn't take a bunch of PHD's or hiring consultants to do outside studies. We've already determined that a certain percentage of fish make it back to spawn. That's how a run recovers, numbers of fish spawning. pure and simple. To get the numbers back, you need to put the numbers in. Sorry for the side track but it all kind of goes together. If you think the Cutts are eating too many smolts? That's not really the problem. The problem is not enough smolts to eat. The Cutts are supposed to be there too, eating smolts.

Two fish is OK with me. I get enuff salmon that I usually have a full freezer. The cutts are just for fun. I'm fairly new at the winter Cutt deal. First time I went was two years ago. I hate to see it get hammered hard.

I have to agree with G-man that the Kokanee limits and hatchery Chinook/coho regs should be changed a bit too. I really see no reason to be returning resident hatchery chinook that are essentially just gorging themselves on Sockeye smolt this time of year. Also, if you can't tell the difference between a jack Sockeye and a Kokanee chances are you aren't out there kokanee fishing in the first place. I think the size limit on kokanee is a real bummer because Lake Washington could be the #1 trophy kokanee lake in Western Washington if they didn't have a 15" size restriction, I have caught many fish 18" and up that I am sure were kokanee and NOT sockeye.

I don't see a problem with a 2 fish limit since I only keep the big ones when I am out there anyhow but I am not yet convinced that it is necessary without further biological research and scientific foundation for the argument. Without adequate justification it is all just speculation open to interpretation by the individual.

As for Limits I honestly could careless as I will obey the laws as is or changes if made I like to fish for some on this site they been through a lot of changes over the time. I never been to a state to fish where you almost need a lawyer to tell you how what and when you can fish. every state I fished in you could fish at night no issues limits always I lived by them. the main difference is most places I fished didn't have the Fisheries that are avail here Nevada northand south carolina Cali utah az and also oklahoma and Tx. I still everytime the night before I head out to fish I read the regs and look at the wdfw site to make sure I am still able to fish. that next morning as I do trust most folks word on the site I hate to get a ticket for not reading something that some said it was ok to fish. I do not fish from a Boat but when I do decide to I will still obey the regs as they may seem strange but they are there for a reason. limits on fish ok sure but reading what most put and if I am correct Sockeye has been closed since last year? so to me if that is the case and other fish are eating the Smolt well I say target the others and give sockeye a chance to make a rebound. but target with in reason AKA limits!

sorry for the rambling!

It would be interesting to hear from WDFW just what they estimate the biomass of cutts to be. If they don't have one then they need to get one in order to manage the fishery intelligently.

Lakes Washington and Sammamish are great fisheries and they do need to be protected and managed correctly. Having mutliple members from this site contacting them and asking these questions wouldn't hurt.

Fisheries Management Web Page

WDFW Fish Program - General Information E-mail address: fishpgm@dfw.wa.gov

Phone Number - Fish Management 360 902-2700

If you do get a response post here so we know what WDFW is thinking on this subject. Thanks

Mike is right. Contact the bio and share your ideas/thoughts and I bet you will be surprised by what you hear (in a good way!). A lot of thought does go into setting limits on lakes with stocked and native fish.

Keep in mind, most stocked hatchery trout aren't not clipped.

stace