Eastern Washington Fishing Report 11.30.2017
Rat Lake
No ice yet and fishing has been really good. The bite seems to come and go with each hour. You may be on it for a while then it dies down. But, don’t leave—just wait because it will pick back up shortly. The weather has been pretty pleasant most days. With that said, make sure you bring your raincoat and dress warm. After all it is that time of year when the weather can be quite fickle. Type 3 sinking lines will do the trick on your 5 or 6-weight rods. You can find fish most active between five and 14 feet down. No need for a tapered leader—five to six feet of 3X fluorocarbon is all you need. Any of your leech or bugger patterns, tied on a #8 hook, should work, as long as they are olive in color. Booby flies are working well, too. The Woofta #10 and Chan's Las Vegas #8 in olive are definitely two that I would have with me.
Green Lake
Plenty of action going on at Green Lake, with very little competition. The competition comes from smallish eight-inch long trout grabbing your fly before it has a chance to sink down too far. Once you can get past the little buggers you have a good chance of hooking into some nice 16-inch rainbows that are full of fight. Most fish seem to be holding about eight feet down. I would bring your favorite 5-weight rod loaded with a full sinking Type 3-line. Using the countdown method with that setup should get you on the scoreboard. A 3X or 4X leader is all you need to handle these fish. For flies I would use a minnow pattern, like a #6 Tact Masked Bandit or an Epoxy Minnow. Also, remember that a #10 black/blue or olive Simi Seal Leech is always a very productive pattern in Green Lake.
McGinnis Lake
I love the colors on fall brook trout. If you are looking for some nice fat and bright-colored brookies, McGinnis, which is located on the Colville Confederated Reservation is a good location to find them. Some of the anglers have been showing me photos of some real nice, brightly colored 16-to 18-inch bookies. They report that they have been fishing between just under the surface to about 12 feet down. A 5-6-weight rod works fine. For lines, I would have one reel loaded with a clear intermediate sinking and another holding a full sinking Type 3. Medium-to small bugger patterns seem to be the fly of choice. A couple of flies to have with you would be, #8 peacock/black Flash-A-Bugger, #10-#8 black Gold Bead Crystal Bugger with and without the legs, and a #10 black Thurman’s Swimming Leech. With snow in the forecast I wouldn’t wait too long to hit the water.