Curlew Lake and surrounding area

[Dingus McFisher]

I'm heading to Curlew Lake for a 9 day fishing excursion and would love to hear others techniques, tips, stories and more. Camping at the state park. Planning side trips to Ferry, Swan, Long, Fish, Beth Lakes and more. Might even jump over to Okanagan County as well. Will be there April 23 -30.

[RiverRock]

Not much to go on... Selective fisherman, fly, bait, boat... However Curlew always produces decent trout fishing, no secret lures, bait or locations. All the typical trout gear will produce nice chunky fish. Bait wise worms/plain white marshmellows seems to out fish power baits... Good lures would include small flatfish or frog pattern needlefish.
As far as other lakes you mentioned Swan has been a good producer in the past and the "bite" always seemed to be better at Swan than surrounding lakes. As far as Beth, Beaver lakes, although beautiful, the fishing is tough to say the least! I've fished both many times and yet to catch a fish. An alternative to Beth, Beaver would be Lost Lake up the road, but a small boat and a bug rod is needed, however fishing is good for large Brookies.... Bonapart Lake is another option but mostly a boat show, with limited shore access at the resort. However decent fishing for small Macks, bows, brookies and kokes...
Without knowing your preferred fishing methods and water craft approach, that's the best info I can give you as a starting point... Hope this helps... Feel free to add more info on your techniques and approach and will be glad to further assist... Good luck on your fishing trip!! A full report and pictures would be greatly appreciated of your adventure!

[Dingus McFisher]

Thanks RiverRock! I should have been more specific. We will be fishing from our brand-spanking-new Lund 1400 Fury boat. For the smaller lakes we will be trolling with an electric motor. I'm bringing everything I own to throw at the fish...having never been to that part of the state, I'm not leaving anything to chance. We will mainly be trolling with wedding rings and other lures. Also throwing in the fly rods and even a steelhead rod for a crazy attempt at a tiger muskie. I spoke with the fish biologist for the area and got a few other tips as well. I'll have to stock up on marshmellows since the ones I have are designated for S'mores. Any other info on the area (day hikes, historical interests, cow tipping, etc.) would be appreciated as well. I was born and raised in Washington and never made it to this area. And I will definitely be posting detailed reports complete with photos.

[Mike Carey]

Good luck, you'll have fun. Beautiful area, just wish it wasn't so far. Course, that helps keep it special.

[RiverRock]

Thanks RiverRock! I should have been more specific. We will be fishing from our brand-spanking-new Lund 1400 Fury boat. For the smaller lakes we will be trolling with an electric motor. I'm bringing everything I own to throw at the fish...having never been to that part of the state, I'm not leaving anything to chance. We will mainly be trolling with wedding rings and other lures. Also throwing in the fly rods and even a steelhead rod for a crazy attempt at a tiger muskie. I spoke with the fish biologist for the area and got a few other tips as well. I'll have to stock up on marshmellows since the ones I have are designated for S'mores. Any other info on the area (day hikes, historical interests, cow tipping, etc.) would be appreciated as well. I was born and raised in Washington and never made it to this area. And I will definitely be posting detailed reports complete with photos.

Your boat will be perfect for Curlew and will allow you to fish and explore the whole lake. Wedding rings are a solid go to lure, just be sure to tip with a chunk of night crawler. Pop gear or dodgers are not needed, fished alone with a little weight will be fine, Curlew although a large lake has plenty of trout in it! I've never fished for tigers and I always regret not doing so! Swan, Beaver and Beth lakes are small lakes with plenty of bank access and only suitable for cartoppers. Also they are a fair distance from Curlew and Republic, 30-45 min. drive. As far as other things to do around Republic, there's not much. Republic is a long ways from anything in either direction... The Stonerose enterperative center located at the edge of town offers fossil digging and their website can easily be found online for more details. Swan lake would be your best bet to visit as it still gets heavy fry plants and has decent carryovers. Beaver and Beth lakes do not get much in the way of plants anymore and fishing is very tough. Hiking wise, it's a make your own trail kinda place with plenty of hillsides to walk about. Wildlife will be readily seen, with deer and wild turkeys roaming around. Historical interests may include the entire Republic area, as not much has changed over there since I first started going there in 1981. Republic is a sleepy little western themed town that doesn't change much! Once you get to Republic you'll understand that there's just not a lot to do, except relax, take in the tranquil beauty and enjoy the fishing. You'll have a great time!

[Dingus McFisher]

Thanks RiverRock! Picking up the boat in the morning! Watch for posts starting early May (unless I can find an internet connection there).

[Dingus McFisher]

Sorry for the overdue post. We fished Curlew Lake April 23-28 with great success. Limited 6 days in a row with ease. The rainbows averaged 16" and 2 lbs. The meat was bright and firm. Trolling was our method with either a green wedding or hoochie about 8" behind a rainbow dodger. We trolled about as slow as possible and used night crawlers on double snelled rigs.

[PokeyPrasch]

Some nice looking trout. Curlew is one of my favorite lakes in the state, I've never been there that early in the spring- I bet there is a lot less boat traffic.

[Rosann G]

Glad to hear you two had a good time and good fishing.