Northwest Fishing Reports

have you looked at google maps and seen all the lakes out past granite falls? i wrote down directions to a half dozen lakes; never heard anyone say anything about em before, most are not registered on this site either. so i picked one at random, 17 mile bike ride each way from lake stevens. i left this morning at 9am got there at 11:00 the lake was desolate, no houses, dirt road, tree covered hills around it, dead calm wind and over cast. i started off with panther martins, no luck, then i switched to a clear bobber, 4 foot lead and 1 pautski green label salmon egg on a size 8 bait hook. constant bites all day. i ended up with all wild cutthroat, 2 @ 14" 1 @ 12" and 2 @ 11" by the end of my trip the sun was out, it was 2pm still dead calm as when i got there, fish surfaced on and off all day aswell. my guess is this lake hasn't been fished in over 10 years, all 5 trout were hens and had small egg pouches when i cleaned them, and to top it off, i lost what looked to be an 18" cutt just before i left. i fished from shore, although this lake would be perfect in a kayak or raft, its somewhat easy to get to, and has good access to the water. its a gem. i rate this day 5 stars hands down, it was a blast.

I fish that area a lot, will you say which lake it was? Check out Lake 22, Heather lake, Coal and Independance lakes, Goat lake. etc.

i did my research on this lake to find out that this lake is 100% wild, and has native coho, cutts and golds (i caught a gold-cutt there yesterday), and i got my info about the coho on the wdfw website... this lake is only maybe 8-10 acres, and isnt any of the ones you mentioned, isnt on this site.. i don't know if this lake will be able to handle very much pressure as it is small and shallow and easy to get to.. if you want i will send you the name and info, but i would ask that its location and name be held somewhat secret. its a gem as i mentioned before.

Jon, you piqued my curiosity and I decided to play internet detective. I was shocked to see how many different lakes show up out there that aren't on any site. I have a couple guesses, but I'm kinda glad you're keeping it a secret. Although the point of this site is to share info, there are really some lakes that can't handle much pressure (or should be Catch and Release only). I had a bad experience yesterday when I showed up to a tiny lake made famous by this site and found three guys taking dozens of fish out of the system. A lake with native only fish and actual access to fish it is a rare thing these days so enjoy what you have found.

Just be careful out there. I have a couple friends who grew up in Granite Falls and the stories they tell about the meth heads and whatnot make me scared to spend any time out there.

i fished another one today, consistent fish/hits all day 6-10"cutts and ebts, all cnr'd. fish boiled on the surface the entire time i was there; which was 4 hours. this lake is a bit larger and deeper than the others; about 15 acres is my guess. harsh hike. absolutely gorgeous scenery. i found that it was indeed stocked with cutt and ebt fry by the wdfw in the past. i believe that populations there are self sustaining, due to differences in the sizes, i seen 2"fry-10" adults i would imagine there are larger ones aswell.

got laid off recently, so lots of free time on my hands. a little company would be nice as it is kinda deep in the woods, and i get a little creeped out, especially after seeing the bear hunters there. pm me(anyone who is interested in fishing with me) and ill give you directions to the parking area, and ill meet you there. then I'll show the way to the lake. my usual fishing buddies will be busy working during the weekdays. i fish 250 days a year, so im serious about this. ill still be out there either way.

I Love fishing lakes and lake like them. When the river cool down, that's where I'll be. I ha ven't been able to devote the time to them that I used to, but I love them nevertheless. But you knew that!

WOW all of these lakes sound great.........................
but my question is are any of the above mentioned lakes able to be driven to in the winter with a snowmachine??????????
the reason im asking is i am a avid ice fisherman and would love to expand my ice fishing options......
any help,maps, and locations woud be great.

JonB would be able to answer that better than I, but if my understanding of the location of the lakes he's talking about is correct, they are probably still too low to freeze over in the winter. There are lakes higher in the mountains past Granite Falls (Lake 22, etc.), but they are in the national forest and I'm pretty sure there are no motorized vehicles allowed. I'm also not sure if they're open for ice fishing even if you hike in and most/all are definitely C&R only.

sorry i havnt been on this site in a while, the offer still is there for a fishing buddy for the spring for these lakes. as far as fishing in the winter, im not sure, i would imagine some of the lakes are frozen over, some of the lower ones probably dont freeze though. BUT, if one brought an auger, and jigging pole you may even be able to fish them if they are frozen. i didnt try this winter, but i will definitely be on these lakes this spring.

they are all open all year round, and sculpin king is probably correct, most of them are too low to freeze im pretty sure, 1 lake might freeze( its much higher than the others, again not totally sure though, because i havnt checked it out in the winter.

looking for a fishing buddy to hit these lakes with. i don't like hiking out there alone, for safety reasons, and i would like to find a responsible, and experience fisherman to enjoy these lakes with. if interested call (425)622-7971, or pm me here, and i will give you directions to the parking area, and a time to meet. im going to be fishing there today, and mostly likely sometime in the near future(next couple weeks) aswell.

Name: lake smelling. Location: granite falls
6 to 12" cutthroat, beautiful lake, beautiful fish, tons of action. not monsters by any means, but they are very bity, and fiesty little fighters for their size

Also; Julia, and Chitwood.

I just wanted to add a note about a lot of the Trails you need a special trail pass from them ranger station up there. They will ticket. Tight lines

Thanks to all for the helpful information. I live within 1/2hour of the gate. I'd like to get carts setup for our kayaks and haul them behind our bikes out to those lakes with my crew.

To get to lake julia smelling chitwoid and and hanson you must walk on foot or ride bike.. There are signs posted there that say the public is allowed access by foot or bike(it says nothing about a pass). Ive talked to workers there who said the trail pass is only required to enter with a vehicle. Also all of these lakes are in the wdfw fishing prospects. Look em up

Thanks for all the great info folks.

Also i think i should mention there is no parking anywhere near the gate.. I get to granite falls by bus then walk/ ride bike. I think if you have a vehicle use a public park and ride and take a bus to granite falls or if you kbow soneone nearby park there.. I wouldnt suggest trying to park at the gate though as signs explicitly state no parking. Also just a warning if you enter the trail with a vehicle without the trail pass the gate may be open when you get there but might not be open when you go to leave.. So its not a good idea to drive your vehicle there even if you think you can get away with it

Is this from personal experience?