We fished Tokul for the last day of the season today. Although the day started out slow, once we found the fish, we found the fish, going 5/6 on some feisty, yet a little dark fish. Of course the chrome rocket that I hooked fought valiantly and secured its well deserved freedom.

All fish were hooked on a float and either raw shrimp or eggs, and in various places. Just had to find the ones that were willing to bite, and leave the lockjawed fish alone for a bit before they turned back on.

A few notes for this fishery for next year: these fish are egg hungry, dragging some roe behind a float will hook you 10 times the fish than a bit of yarn. With a float you can cover more water with better presentations, and will keep you hanging in the pocket for that extra split second. Yes, the fish will bite a tuft of yarn on your 12 inch leader, or a properly presented corky, but you will have a lot more success with a float.

Keep your email subscription to the WDFW alerts early in the season. Lately they've been opening the river early, and if you get to the river when it opens, you're going to have double digit hookups, this creek gets packed full of fish.

And yes, this creek is an acquired taste. It is small and fast and you're fishing little pockets. It's the hatchery creek, so there is no secrets in the stream, you will not be fishing by yourself, even on the weekdays. There is not a lot of room to play your fish, so you will end up needing to put a lot of pressure on your fish to keep him in the hole, or be spry and limber to chase him down to the next pocket. The water is very swift and fast, so don't try to do anything that you're not up to, there are plenty of safer spots to fish, and the current can be deceptively dangerous.

That being said, we've had a lot of fun on this stream, and most of the anglers out there are going to be well mannered and polite. Every year this creek will put out a ton of fish, and can be a challenging but really fun trip just a mere 45 minutes from Seattle. With the rivers closed up here, look for me down south, fishing the late running steelhead in the Chehalis system or out on the Peninsula hiking into to some of the most secluded water in the state. If you'd like to book a trip out there and take the tour, I do have some dates still available and as the month goes on the fishing is going to get very good.

Nate Treat Fishing
Official WashingtonLakes.com Sponsor

"Specializing in Fishing Instruction and Shore Guiding on Washington's Rivers."
NateTreatFishing.com

---