Fly Fishing in Eastern Washington
Rainbow Trout and Big Brown Trout in E. WA Small Desert Streams and Lakes
I remember the first time my late father-in-law took me to a small stream in what seemed to me at the time to be in the middle of the dry and dead Eastern Washington desert. It was early June and the stream with the Spring run-off finished was narrow enough to jump across in most places. The water was also running gin clear and I could easily see the bottom where it was narrow. My father-in-law told me it was best if I fished upstream since I was fly fishing and he was bait fishing. He said to fish the deeper holes, at the tail out for big Rainbows and the deep undercut banks for big Browns. “And stand back from the bank and keep your shadow off the water when you cast,” he called as he headed downstream and I went upstream.
I really didn’t know what to make of this stream in the desert. But when I reached the first deep hole and saw two very big Rainbows at the tailout I was convinced. I went on to hook and land three Rainbows all over 14 inches and one brown that was close to 19 inches that day.
From then on from June 1st (the season opener for most of the small creeks in E. WA) until the end of October I would spend as much free time as I had fly fishing in the ponds, lakes, streams, and rivers in the area.
I spent most of my time fly fishing various spots along Highway 17 that runs North to South. At the time my mom and stepfather lived in Coulee City, so where Highway 2 intersected Highway 17 was only a short drive away.
Along this magic strip of highway lies Banks Lake a massive body of water that has Rainbows, Browns, Large and Small Mouth Bass, Carp, Crappie, and many other species that may or may not take a fly. The south end of the lake lies just to the other side of the Highway 17/2 intersection. I mostly caught Crappie there in the Spring, but Walleye come in close to shore at times and will take flies.
Heading south along Highway 17 the next spot is Dry Falls. At the bottom of this massive remnant waterfall are a series of shallow lakes with some giant Rainbows (biggest in WA some would say). You will need a float tube or small boat to fish these lakes though. Spring is the best time.
As you drop down Highway 17 Blue Lake runs alongside for several miles. I’ve only stopped and made a few casts here, to be honest, but I do know it is one of the most popular lakes in the area on Opening Day of the season, so I imagine the fishing there can be great if you know where to go.
Lake Lenore is maybe the crown jewel along this little road of fly fishing Shangri-Las. Mainly in the Spring and Fall though when the Lahaton Cutthroats move to the Northern and Southern ends of the lake in an attempt to spawn. This is one of those places where you stop referring to the fish in inches and instead talk about them in pounds. Ten-pound fish are not unheard of here and I have caught a few that were in the four-pound range. It can get really crowded though when the fish are in the shallows. Especially on the North end of the lake.
About 40 minutes south along Highway 17 lies Rocky Ford Creek an absolutely amazing Spring Creek that has rainbows up 5–7 pounds. This is a catch and release fly fishing only 3 mile stretch of water. In the Spring as it warms up there are some huge hatches so dry flies work well at that time. White leach patterns, black and purple Wooley Buggers, and small nymph patterns in tan and black also work well at times. It can also get very crowded here on the weekends during the Springtime, but most of the West side of the stream can be easily hiked, so there is usually a place for everyone to fish.
This last one I found by accident and is the least interesting of the bunch. On one of my first outings to Rocky Ford Creek as I was leaving, I accidentally turned right and headed South on Highway 17 instead of North back towards Coulee City. I drove for several miles before I figured out I was going the wrong direction. But not before I saw a small patch of water off the side of the highway that I later learned was called Crab Creek (at least a part of it). Crab Creek is actually extremely long, about 160 miles. The small section I fished is near Potholes Reservoir.
To be honest I’ve only ever caught 10–12 inch trout here either on dry flies or streamer patterns. But I’ve seen guys bait fishing and lure fishing on either side of me catch Rainbows and Browns up to four pounds, Black Bass, Carp, and Crappie. Though I have only caught small trout here I did hook something one time using a large black Wooley Bugger that broke me off. At the time I was using a straight six-pound test leader and stripping the Wooley Bugger in fairly quickly. I’m guessing it was a really big Brown, but I never saw it, so I can’t say for sure. But it was big.
As always, if you have a chance I advise you to hire a guide at least for one day to help you learn the water. The videos below will give you an idea of what sort of days fly fishing in Eastern Washington are possible though.
This is a great video showing how to fish some of the rivers in Eastern WA. I’ve fished two out of the three shown here. As he mentions in the video, this is a chance for some very big trout. Also, a guide will be worth the money on these rivers if it is your first time.
This is a very good video showing what many of the small streams are like in Eastern Washington. Take note of the giant Rainbows the hook and land. Giant Browns are common as well. Some might complain that the locations weren’t mentioned, but you have to understand, a lot of these small streams would be fished out very quickly if their locations were widely known. Despite the lack of openness about where they were fishing, all of the flies and techniques you saw in the video for that time of year are dead-on accurate. I’ve taken both Rainbows and Browns as large as the ones they caught using similar flies.
If you would like to read about some of my other fly fishing adventures you can find them here.
