Greg K: Snake River - 10/2

Fishing on the Snake River was very slow. My father-in-law and I made a day trip. We launched the boat around 930 AM and fished until 530 PM. We only caught 2 walleyes. I had a couple other hook ups that gave a head shake like a walleye, but didn't stay on. Even the bass bite was pretty slow. Typically, I catch dozens of smallmouth, but we boated less than 10 bass. The big walleye for the day was 27 inches long and weighed 7lbs 6oz (released). We kept a 15 inch walleye and a half dozen 12 inch bass for the frying pan.

More info for club members: We tried trolling crankbaits near the Lyons Ferry Marina with no luck. Next we moved to the mouth of the Tucannon and pulled crawlers and spinners and boated a few perch and a couple smallmouth. Trolling deep diving crankbaits near the dam produced several more bass and 2 walleyes. Walleyes came out of 28 to 30 feet which required 2 to 3 ounce snap weights to get the baits to that depth. For the last 45 minutes of the day, we trolled crankbaits near Texas Rapids campground with no bites. The water temperature was 63 degrees and there was good current. No water was coming over the spillway, but there was 1.0 to 1.5 mph of current below the dam. The weather was great with very little wind most of the day.

Fish like this 7+ pounder make a slow day on the river worth the trip.