Greg K: Rufus Woods - 6/18

It had been over 2 years since my last trip to Rufus Woods.I was excited to make the day trip, and the fishing did not disappoint. I was on the water at 1030 AM. Within a half hour, I had 2 walleyes in the live well and a 3.5 pound trout for the smoker. By 1 PM, I had my limit of walleyes and my pair of trout. I continued to scout for new spots to fish for the remainder of the afternoon. The walleyes ranged from 15 inches to 23.5 inches. I saw bald eagles, deer, and a turkey. A beautiful day on the river with afternoon temps in the low 80s. The water temp was a chilly 55 degrees. The current was swift averaging 160 to 180 kcfs through the day. A swift and consistent current can produce outstanding fishing below Grand Coulee.

More info for club members: For the day, I caught 15 walleyes and several large triploids. Most of the walleyes (11 fish) were caught on blade baits in current seems and back eddies. I did catch 4 walleyes trolling 3 ounce bouncers…all walleyes caught on chartreuse number 4 Colorado blades. Trout were hooked by accident…they are stinking everywhere! A depth of 30 feet seemed to be the sweet spot.

Here’s a 21 incher caught in a back eddy. It came 2 casts after a 23.5 incher. Nice!

Travis airbrushes blade baits. I believe this one is called Arizona Sunset. Several of his colors worked well on Rufus.