Hog Canyon / Fourth of July - How's the fishing???

[tricities-sean]

Has anyone been to either lake? is there any fish in the Fourth this year?

[Anglinarcher]

There is a post on December 2, 2011. I did not read it, but I think it was rated a 2.

[tricities-sean]

OK, thanks. I was planning on taking the kiddos out Saturday.

[TroutCowboy]

i was thinking about going out this weekend too -- by boat, since i figured there'd be too little ice to walk out on -- but according to this report (link below), the lake is at about 60% ice. i would assume that means from the edges in, which would really hamper the fishing. but they did say that there were some fish caught. think it's going to be a long wait now for thick ice.

also according to the report, it sounds like 4th of july is the better bet. about 95% open water and fish from 12-20" being caught. but like hog, enough ice to keep the boats off.

good luck this weekend!

Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife Weekender Report
http://wdfw.wa.gov/weekender/#region1

[tricities-sean]

That is exactly what I was thinking as well. I am in West Richland, and it is pretty cold here, so it must be icing up pretty good up there!

[russ2683]

went out to both lakes to frozen to fish for me at least and from weather reports if your not an ice fisherman your probably outta luck for these lakes guess its a good thing i am good luck to you all

[bazzdude]

Im goin to hog canyon tomorrow, im bringing fresh samon row with me. Ill give an update. My main question is has anyone tried to smoke fish in below 40 degree weather? Tried last night, smoked 10 trout in 8 hours didnt work! (mush) Do you have any tips/suggestions for smoking fish during the winter?

[hewesfisher]

Im goin to hog canyon tomorrow, im bringing fresh samon row with me. Ill give an update. My main question is has anyone tried to smoke fish in below 40 degree weather? Tried last night, smoked 10 trout in 8 hours didnt work! (mush) Do you have any tips/suggestions for smoking fish during the winter?

What are you using for a smoker?

[bazzdude]

I use a little chief smoker. I was thinking maybe putting a box around it to see if that would work better. I did manage to save the fish last night by finishing them in the oven and they came out the same but it sure was a long process. So todays outing at the hog was slow. Fished with two other guys for 4 hrs. I was the only one to land fish. 3 at 10 inches and one at 16. Only seen two other fish cought all the time. Heard a guy limited out in the morning but did not see them. I too got check at the top of the hill by the fish police.(game warrden) alteast a dozen ppl on the ice. I did catch 3 more fish but they were onle 6 inches so they went back. All in all not a bad outing for the first one of the season. Great weather too.

[Anglinarcher]

The Little Chief is not a high end smoker by any means. I did some fish in my unattached garage some many years ago during the winter. The cats loved the smell of fish for a couple of years. OK, I was young and dumb.

The LC just does not have any insulation and the hot plate is hot hot enough to heat high enough during the winter. In fact, the fish probably stay in the "danger zone" of temperature where bacteria can grow for far too long.

I use a far more expensive and much more high end smoker now, but that box idea might just work.

[TroutCowboy]

Fished with two other guys for 4 hrs. I was the only one to land fish. 3 at 10 inches and one at 16. Only seen two other fish cought all the time. Heard a guy limited out in the morning but did not see them. I too got check at the top of the hill by the fish police.(game warrden) alteast a dozen ppl on the ice. I did catch 3 more fish but they were onle 6 inches so they went back. All in all not a bad outing for the first one of the season. Great weather too.

curious when you were on the ice yesterday? we got on the ice around 9:30 and two guys were living with a bag o'fish, but i did not see a single fish get pulled out in the next 3-4 hours (not that it didn't happen, i just didn't see any). i left wondering if the bite came back on in the afternoon and/or at near dusk?

[hewesfisher]

I use a little chief smoker. I was thinking maybe putting a box around it to see if that would work better. I did manage to save the fish last night by finishing them in the oven and they came out the same but it sure was a long process. So todays outing at the hog was slow. Fished with two other guys for 4 hrs. I was the only one to land fish. 3 at 10 inches and one at 16. Only seen two other fish cought all the time. Heard a guy limited out in the morning but did not see them. I too got check at the top of the hill by the fish police.(game warrden) alteast a dozen ppl on the ice. I did catch 3 more fish but they were onle 6 inches so they went back. All in all not a bad outing for the first one of the season. Great weather too.

Yeah, the little chief is ok for warm weather, but if it's cold, you better find some way to insulate it from the elements. Like Anglinarcher, I use a high end smoker (Bradley) that is digitally controlled for time and temp as well as how long the smoke runs. I've used it temps as low as 20°and it still works well.

[bazzdude]

Troutcowboy, we made our first drop at 11:30, for the first 2 hrs. we all had one hit and missed them. Then we switched to a location we fished twice last year and did good. And this time was kinda similar. I landed the 4 fish and missed 4 or 5 in the next two hrs. Hope that help ya. Keep in touch. later.

[TroutCowboy]

we had a good day Sunday. we decided to get there earlier than last time, and got there about 8. within 20 minutes I had a super-fat 14" one on the ice. we had dead spots in the action for anywhere from 30-90 minutes. in fact the joke was, there was just a single group of fish lapping the lake and it took 90 minutes to complete a lap. at one point i said "any minute now..." and hooked into a fish that would have been a personal best rainbow -- in summer or winter. i feathered him in real gentle and had him 2/3 out of the hole when he spit the hook and slowly slid backwards into the hole. i dropped to my knees and shot my arm into the hole but missed grabbing him bare-handed. my buddy has been relentlessly reminding me how comical the whole scene was.

the ice creaked, popped and pinged just about the whole time. very creepy. but rock-solid.

i need to file a report, think i'll just copy/paste this. ;-)

[FishTank]

With as much pressure from fish eaters that small lake sees, it would not surprise me if there was only one school in there...

[fullybuilt2.0]

Anyone have a general idea where to fish at these two lakes? I have never been to either. This will be my first time ice fishing in WA due to the fact I just move to spokane last summer. I been doing some homework and seems like hog lake isn't that big? From what it looks like, starting from thethe parking lot the deepest part and where the fish would be is walking to the the middle of the lake but go on the far left and right. That's what im guessing from looking at the depth maps on here? I could be wrong? And im not even sure where to begin at fourth of july? Im not asking for anyone to show me their hot spot but just trying to get a generally idea. Any help would be great. Thanks

[TroutCowboy]

Anyone have a general idea where to fish at these two lakes? I have never been to either. This will be my first time ice fishing in WA due to the fact I just move to spokane last summer. I been doing some homework and seems like hog lake isn't that big? From what it looks like, starting from thethe parking lot the deepest part and where the fish would be is walking to the the middle of the lake but go on the far left and right. That's what im guessing from looking at the depth maps on here? I could be wrong? And im not even sure where to begin at fourth of july? Im not asking for anyone to show me their hot spot but just trying to get a generally idea. Any help would be great. Thanks

hey sorry you haven't gotten any responses yet. i'm no expert on hog, but have been there many times in the past and had success both times out this year. i haven't fished 4th of july, so can't offer any info on that.

hog is not that big, you are right, but it's a nice lake nonetheless. it was killed off and rehabbed last year (i think). you used to catch a lot of bullhead in there, but this year only big fat trout. i have equal luck fishing within 20' of shore as i have out in the "neck" of the lake. i haven't had to walk to the furthest and deepest part of the lake to find fish. i probably fish the middle 1/3 of the lake (if you divided the lake into thirds from the parking lot out).

my weapon of choice has been a white glow jig with a white body, tipped with a single salmon egg. i've caught fish both jigging and left still. it seems as if they are going to bite, they're going to bite on whatever style is in front of them at that particular moment.

the last time i fished there was 2 weeks ago and the ice was approaching 6" thick, i couldn't guess what it is now after all of this warm weather and no snow blanket on it to insulate it. maybe somebody who has been out recently will see this report and speak up.

good luck!

[sobrien]

Hey all. Went to Hog this morning. Caught 7 in four hours. All over 17 inches. Caught 4 on a craw fish shaped trout magnet tipped with a white grub. Caught three on a white trout magnet tipped the same way.

Whats up with everyone trying to give away fish there ? If you have caught your limit on big fish... practice catch and release right ?

Word life.

--Sean O.

[hewesfisher]

Hey all. Went to Hog this morning. Caught 7 in four hours. All over 17 inches. Caught 4 on a craw fish shaped trout magnet tipped with a white grub. Caught three on a white trout magnet tipped the same way.

Whats up with everyone trying to give away fish there ? If you have caught your limit on big fish... practice catch and release right ?

Word life.

--Sean O.

Well, Sean, here's a tip for you, not if you are fishing with bait. As defined in the 2011/2012 WA Sportfishing regs, bait is "Anything that attracts fish or shellfish by scent and/or flavor. This includes any device made of feathers, hair, fiber, wood, metal, glass, cork, leather, rubber, or plastic, which uses scent and/or flavoring to attract fish or wildlife." Your grubs are bait, so no, you cannot practice C&R after catching and/or releasing the legal daily limit of trout when fishing with bait.

Also from the WA 2011/2012 Sportsfishing Regs, "In lakes, ponds, and reservoirs: No min. size. Daily limit 5. When fishing with bait, all TROUT (except STEELHEAD) equal to or greater than the minimum size are counted as part of the daily limit whether kept or released." If you fish for trout with bait, you are finished after catching 5 trout no matter what.

And lastly, Hog Canyon has a size restriction on trout, again from the Sportfishing Regs, "No min. size. Daily limit 5. Up to 2 over 14" may be retained." That means you may only keep 2 over 14" in length, the rest of your daily limit must be 14" or smaller.

I hope this info saves you a citation and a hefty fine.

Word is read the regs!!

[sobrien]

Holy moly !I have been through the regs multiple times over the last few months and some how I never caught that if using bait every fish caught, where kept or not, counts towards your daily limit. I always let every fish go, unless it is mal-hooked, and fish all day if the action is hot... looks like i'll be shelving those grubs; and returning to Hogs those were some beautiful fish.

Thanks for the info Hewesfisher.

Word life.