Waneta Lake 11/15

Reports

Did another full day here with Mark I.  It was pretty darn cold out this AM when we met.  The lake temp is down to around 39 to 41 degrees.  The lake level is probably slightly lower than it was last week.  As is usually the case here in the late fall, we kicked up a lot of mud motoring both towards the lake and back in.  There was some ice around the perimeter of the swampy channel.  Due to the cold and harsh wind, Mark started the day casting with gear (not fly-fishing.)  He wound up having one follow from a small musky (22″ to 24″) during a figure-8 on a spoon.  The fish hung in there for a little while but didn’t grab.  That was it.  He spent about half the day fly-fishing.  I felt we did a pretty good job covering water.  We had some weather changes that I hoped might result in some fish activity but nada.  Fish might be a bit lethargic after the cold snap. I’m also sure a lot of fish were deeper than perhaps we were working effectively.   The chemical removal of weeds in this lake really hurts the fishing in my opinion.  A lot of this lake is bereft of vegetation.  Fish will use what they have, but weed growth really helps nurture fish populations.