Fishing Opens Across Stevens and Ferry Counties

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) announced that recreational fishing is scheduled to open at local lakes on April 25. 

Before heading out, WDFW said anglers should obtain a recreational fishing license, available at fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/login. 

Officials also suggested downloading the Fish Washington® mobile app, which aims to provide up-to-date fishing regulations on any mobile device. The mobile app is free to use and has up-to-the-minute regulations updates for every lake, river, stream or marine area in the state. According to WDFW, new features in the app allow anglers to manage their active license privileges, purchase license products, and enter catches or harvests. More information, including a list of opening lakes, can be found at wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/app.

Washington recreational fishing regulations can also be accessed online at eregulations.com/washington/fishing.

WDFW also announced that the annual Trout Derby will also kick off on April 25 and run until Oct. 31, with nearly 15.5 million total trout and kokanee stocked in more than 500 lowland lakes and ponds.

“Opening day is one of our biggest days for anglers to get out on the water,” said  WDFW Inland Fish Program Manager Steve Caromile. “Spring weather can be hard to predict, but we’ve had a mild winter and hopefully that will lead to plenty of success for weeks to come.”

WDFW has placed special green tags near the dorsal fin on trout stocked in more than 100 lakes statewide. Anglers who catch a tagged trout win a prize donated from a nearby business such as gift cards, fishing gear and tackle, Seattle Mariners tickets, rounds of golf, local aquarium admission, a kayak, a guided lake fishing trip for two, handheld GPS units, stays at local resorts and campgrounds, and more.  

“We’ve got hundreds of prizes for those who catch a tagged fish, and we plan to stock most of the same lakes as we have in the past,” Caromile said. “The Trout Derby has been very popular over the past 11 years. The generosity of our license vendors and donors is what makes the Trout Derby a huge success, and something many anglers look forward to.”