Long Lake walleye? When did they show up in there.

[eustace]

This morning I was fishing Long Lake (Lake Spokane) for trout and I caught my largest Walleye. I grew up on this lake and I never heard of Walleye in there. I have caught perch, crappie, largemouth and smallmouth bass, brown and rainbow trout, whitefish, a couple of silvers and a blackmouth and a small northern. What will show up in there next. I would like to here of other walleye or odd fish caught in there.

[kevinb]

This morning I was fishing Long Lake (Lake Spokane) for trout and I caught my largest Walleye. I grew up on this lake and I never heard of Walleye in there. I have caught perch, crappie, largemouth and smallmouth bass, brown and rainbow trout, whitefish, a couple of silvers and a blackmouth and a small northern. What will show up in there next. I would like to here of other walleye or odd fish caught in there.

Wow,thats a good question. I wouldn't think they would be native. Maybe someone dumped 'em. I hope this thread stays open awhile. I would also like to know if anyone else out there may help.

[A9]

Gisteppo is a regular here on the board and lives on that lake. He could probably be of some help for ya...

One quick question though: blackmouth you say you caught outta there? A king salmon? That would be almost unbelievable if taken out of an eastern Washington lake...

Perhaps terms for fish are different on the other sides of the mountains. Over here, a blackmouth is known as a resident king salmon to Puget Sound waters....

[JT26]

Gisteppo is a regular here on the board and lives on that lake. He could probably be of some help for ya...

One quick question though: blackmouth you say you caught outta there? A king salmon? That would be almost unbelievable if taken out of an eastern Washington lake...

Perhaps terms for fish are different on the other sides of the mountains. Over here, a blackmouth is known as a resident king salmon to Puget Sound waters....

thats what i was thinking about when i heard black mouth.

i googled it and found a little info.
http://www.nps.gov/laro/naturescience/fish.htm

[eustace]

There are kings in CDA lake and they come down the spokane river. Its not uncomming to see a few trying to get back up the river/lake at the dams like ninemile falls and little falls in the fall. they rearly top 30#.

[Anglinarcher]

I suspect Johnny Fish Seed planted Walleye in Long, and you may be the first to catch one. I know that some have been caught and/or netted in Silver Lake as well, but the F & W say they cannot spawn there, so they don't worry about them. Rumors have floated around that similar results have been had at Rock lake, but I have nothing in writing that confirms any Walleye catch there.

I don't know if there is adequate spawning habitat in Long for Walleye or not, but I can assure you that the F & W would not have put them in there.

[Gisteppo]

I know some of the old farts that fish Long and have been out here for 25+ years. Two words on why you caught a walleye:

BUCKET BIOLOGY

There were at least a hundred or more seeded in the lake by various people at various times. I would venture that it still happens (though Id prefer if people seeded it with largemouth, personally). They aren't likely to breed, so that explains why nobody ever catches the little 2lb hammer handles, but only hooks into big walleye when the random one gets picked up. They are in there (read some of the reports on long, I posted the abundance of fish in the lake of all different species), as well as some other randoms that you wouldn't expect.

For example, tench:



And for those who were asking about blackmouth:





That one was 5lb 8oz. They are in there, and with a remarkable abundance. The Cd'A stock is pretty healthy, and we get some good numbers flushed through. Also remember this river system had some immense salmon runs, running as far up as the St. Joe river in Idaho. There are residents in Long lake, as well as flushed fish from upriver. Trolling one evening in a bass-intensive area, we managed to catch two of those suckerfish snotrockets and that salmon trolling a white glass shad rap rapala at 1.5mph. Odd night.

E

[eustace]

Thanks, I am not suprised about the salmon with a lure but I am about the suckers. My great-grand parents settled along the river and some I have pictures of the salmon and steelhead the used to catch in the river before long lake dam. Back in the spring of 98 I cuaght a fish about 14" long, silver, looked like a slender pike minnow with teeth do you what that would be. also Gisteppo you ever fish for the largmouths between the post office at tum tum and willow on the north shore early in the spring. A copper/pumpkin colored slow dropping jig or worm always worked great for me in the past on the lake.

[gpc]

I really need to hit up long lake. Black mouth, walleye and HUGE crappie, what more could you ask for?

[A9]

No kidding on the blackmouth!

Wow, that's quite the surprise.

Gisteppo, that one looks exactly like the ones I just caught this afternoon.
Do they get targeted much over there?

[Gisteppo]

It is a truly remarkable piece of water, as it has just about anything and everything you could want to fish for.

I havent fished that particular area, esp in springtime. Will definitely have to go check it out. Usually april is spent catching PIG crappie. Follow that up with LM and SM bass during the spawn, then its basically a free-for-all on everything until the hottest part of the year, when we go after perch with a vengeance. Fall is smallie and pikeminnow season (squallies, killemall), then winter its trouts and suckers.

The salmon don't get focused on because its a catch rate even lower than fishing Lummi island in January. You will catch a straggler here and there trolling cranks, but I havent gotten the hootchie/dodger/downrigger setup out for them. Might give it a whirl this year, ya never know. Out on the far end of the lake the water is over 100ft deep, so I would estimate you could pull some randoms up out there as well, mingling with the big bows and browns.

eustace, if you want to get out and fish it sometime, let me know. Im always game to hop in and get after it.

E

[kevinb]

Is this the same long lake with pike. I'm getting conflicting reports. I figured you guy's would know much better than most.

[eustace]

Gisteppo sounds like a plan, I would love to get back on the lake I grew up on. I am back in college so my free time is slim but I would to find time in the future. the area I stated above is bucket mouth city, just flip your jigs along the dock pileings and watch your line twitch or tighten.

Kevinb, yes it is the same long lake with pike they are they used to be far and few, but, the average size is exceptional. I have an old friend that cliams he gets them almost every time he tries in march using a whole smelt about 3' below a bobber set up and he claims they vary in size. I don't know if they are reproducing in the lake or if they are just continueing to be washed in down the river.

[kevinb]

I think I might have to make a pit stop on there,while cruising to the panhandle.

[eustace]

Kevinb, there is no WDFW launch, but, there is a state park launch, a resort launch, both near ninemile falls and a DNR campground & launch at the northwest end of the lake. A far cry from what it used to be, 5 resort that used to be on that lake are gone. These waters are controlled by Avista power company. I do believe that the fish planted in there legally, Avista pays for. I would love to see the WDFW put in an acsess, becuase then there would more fishing and fish planting activity in this large lake. There is a private KOA or something like that at the old willow resort.

[kevinb]

Thanks again...I will stop by there. Hhhhmmmm,....walleye,pike...yeah,i'm stopping by.