ruffus woods info

[wing man]

I was thinking of going to ruffus woods this thursday friday for a little getaway. I have never been there just herd about it does anyone have any info or tips they would be willing to share about this place food lodging boat ramps specific areas to fish or gear to use any info would be great thanks paul

[Mooch]

I'd call Coulee Playland in Electric City. They always have the scoop on how the fishing is. Their number is 509-633-2671. They sell the reservation fishing permits and have all the gear you need.They have maps of the launches and where to fish.

Unless things have changed in the last few days,the fishing has been terrible. The water temp is barely above freezing and the fish aren't very active.

We stay at Coulee Playland in either an RV or tent. If you want a hotel there are a bunch in Grand Coulee. I've stayed at the Coulee House and Trails west. Both are decent.

If you're taking a sled or small boat you can launch at the little unimproved launch right above the net pens. Its really shallow and there isn't much parking. Its about 1/2 mile or so from the pens.

I always launch at Seatons Grove. Its a nice concrete ramp with plenty of parking. Its about 6 miles from the pens.

Trolling and baitfishing both work. Get a copy of the regs and PAY ATTENTION to them. The indian wardens are SERIOUS about the regs and write a lot of tickets. If you're using bait the first two fish you catch count as your limit whether you keep them or release them.

If you troll you can C&R as long as you aren't using scent and are using single barbless hooks.

For bait use Powerbait or nightcrawlers and mini-marshmallows. Use 4-5' of 6lb leader with a #4 or #6 egg hook. The current is usually ripping through and you need at least 1oz of lead to stay down. I always use 1 1/2oz.

I like 4-5 marshmallows and a whole nightcrawler. These fish are eating machines and like big meals.

When we troll I use steelhead plugs. Hot Shots,Wiggle Warts,work well. Flatline the plugs out behind the boat 100' or so.

You can also troll spoons,spinners,big flies or pop geer. Another fun way to fish is to cast steelhead jigs and slowly jig them across the bottom. Dark colors (black,brown,purple) work best, I use 1/4oz sizes.