Northwest Fishing Reports

I'm super stoked. My wife and I are going to visit a friend in Shelton from up here in Bellingham. Which means I have to drive through Lacey. Therefore I will be making my first stop at our (as in WA) new Cabelas store. I hope to pick up some swimbaits and Big ikas if they have em. Is there anything that I must check out or pick up? I looked at the website and the store looks huge.

Sorry for such a lame topic but I'm bored at work and I'm looking forward to paying the wife back for all the dang times she drug me to mall.

WIN!!

They have a pretty sick "aquarium"...HUGE trout and some nice bass

What kind of dropshot hooks could you be talking about,Gamakatsu makes the best:cheers: ,no one needs them fancy standout hooks if thats what you are thinking of:-k

Seconded on the aquarium. It's insane. Bring some quarters - there's always a bunch of little kids watching the fish and you can put a quarter in the machine to get some Trout Snacks for them to toss in the water. The trout wolf them down and the kids always get a kick out of it. Watching the kids' reactions is almost as good as watching those monster trout.

Yeah that's probly it Sparky,..I've decided against it anyways,..I picked up some Gama-hooks ,..funny you should bring it up,..thanks though!

Don't expect to find much as far as fishing around here:-" I go to Sportsmans for fishing tackle after I go cruise the hunting section.

My 2 cents on the store is other then the fish in the aq, the store is kinda lame and much more spendy then anywhere else right across I-5 sportsman wharehouse is much better. I couldnt even find any 7in plastic worms at the store and they have 4 rows of plastics!

You will come out better to order from bass pro shops and cheeper!

hey brownbomer, the store is less then 5 mins off the freeway but you have to circle around two traffic circles to get there. bis ass aquarium big boat selection and big prices to. but it is fun to go so you can say youve been. get a new hat and tee shirt. and try the shooting gallery up stairs.
stan

lemagoat wrote:My 2 cents on the store is other then the fish in the aq, the store is kinda lame and much more spendy then anywhere else right across I-5 sportsman wharehouse is much better. I couldnt even find any 7in plastic worms at the store and they have 4 rows of plastics!

I couldnt agree with you anymore. Sportsmans has just as good of quality lures and even a bit better variety. Plus its a shorter drive and the lures arent as expensive. Who needs the aquarium, hit the lake and bring the aquarium to you.

Thanks vacouverhandyman,..since I'll be in the area I'll give it a shot!

The store was pretty huge. I wish I had more time to browse. If I ever go again I will for sure plan to eat at the cafe upstairs. The food looked amazing. As for my shopping list....I picked up some paddle tail swimbaits, but they had absolutely no hooks for them. They appeared to be all out. No Fat Ikas either. Bummer. All in all it was a good time and I saw lots of interesting items. I got my 1 yo daughter a Cabelas rag doll that she picked up and wouldn't put down. We fed the trout. I was a good time. I wish we had a BPS near by. Next time I'm down there I'll have to stop at Sportsman's. Well, anyway, back to work. MONDAYS.........

The Cabela's store didn't impress me too much. The aquarium was awesome though. You can see the Store from the freeway, but you have to circle around all those streets to get there- LAME. The prices are definetly not that good, plus we now have to pay tax on anything ordered online. Not the greatest now is it

when you go there make sure to go to the bargain cave thats the only reason i ever go out there got an 80 dollar st croix ultra lite one time for 35 bucks just had a lil tiny chip in it

Yes I agree a B-P-S would be awesome in this area,..it would definately get alot of traffic no matter where it is in the state! Too bad!

BPS is the only way!!!:cheers: But cabelas is pretty cool too. Some nice bass boats...:compress:

lemagoat wrote:My 2 cents on the store is other then the fish in the aq, the store is kinda lame and much more spendy then anywhere else right across I-5 sportsman wharehouse is much better. I couldnt even find any 7in plastic worms at the store and they have 4 rows of plastics!

+1. Hate to burst your bubble noclothes, but it ain't as awesome as you would think. More tackle for fish we never get the chance to fish for
(more deep sea saltwater stuff then salmon stuff) and actually pretty awful prices. Good selection of reels and bass stuff if thats what your there for, but again, prices aren't great. Management can't get the correct gear in the store, I don't know if it's them not caring or what...

I've heard some folks say a BPS just blows Cabela's away...Much bigger/cooler....

They've been getting beat up pretty badly on internet forums/BB's and I know on one other board I know one of the managers created an account, replied to a thread regarding their store and mentioned they have a pretty bureaucratic system so even while the store managers are supposedly working hard to get a more local tackle selection, they have tons of stuff/people to pass through, so the process is very slow.

I will say this, if you are nearby or are driving by, it's worth stopping by, but not worth spending money. I now put almost all of my money to local tackle shops, and will continue to do so for obvious reasons. I like being able to go in, find everything I need and have great local knowledge and be assured that the sales associates are giving good info, not regurgitated second hand stuff they read on the internet or are BS'ing so they can get through the conversation. Happens all too often at the bigger (chain) stores...

Well said Sam! Or well written,...LOL

Sam Kafelafish wrote:

lemagoat wrote:My 2 cents on the store is other then the fish in the aq, the store is kinda lame and much more spendy then anywhere else right across I-5 sportsman wharehouse is much better. I couldnt even find any 7in plastic worms at the store and they have 4 rows of plastics!

+1. Hate to burst your bubble noclothes, but it ain't as awesome as you would think. More tackle for fish we never get the chance to fish for
(more deep sea saltwater stuff then salmon stuff) and actually pretty awful prices. Good selection of reels and bass stuff if thats what your there for, but again, prices aren't great. Management can't get the correct gear in the store, I don't know if it's them not caring or what...

I've heard some folks say a BPS just blows Cabela's away...Much bigger/cooler....

They've been getting beat up pretty badly on internet forums/BB's and I know on one other board I know one of the managers created an account, replied to a thread regarding their store and mentioned they have a pretty bureaucratic system so even while the store managers are supposedly working hard to get a more local tackle selection, they have tons of stuff/people to pass through, so the process is very slow.

I will say this, if you are nearby or are driving by, it's worth stopping by, but not worth spending money. I now put almost all of my money to local tackle shops, and will continue to do so for obvious reasons. I like being able to go in, find everything I need and have great local knowledge and be assured that the sales associates are giving good info, not regurgitated second hand stuff they read on the internet or are BS'ing so they can get through the conversation. Happens all too often at the bigger (chain) stores...

I thought the store was entertaining. I would have liked to look around more. I'm the ultimate window shopper I only spent $15. I just like to look at stuff, beyond fishing gear. Good point about the local tackle stores. What I like about mine is that on the shelfs they have what works. No nonsense. As for them not having the right gear, it will take time. I am familiar with process of product line reviews and buyer meetings at larger nationwide chains. They may get it right. The thing I noticed was that there was several hundred people in the store, but only 3 checkouts open, and no lines. I think more people are looking than buying.