Riffe lk Bass??

[corkyking]

I was told by the park director at Riffe Lake that there is a burgeoning Smallmouth fishery at the upper end of the lake.

Can anyone add to that bit of info??

Thanks

[Wannabe]

I've heard some good stories up by where the rivers fork...but thats all I have.
<)))><

[bassfishingnw]

I grew up in the little town of MORTON which is a couple miles from the East end of Riffe. There used to be a small town at the east end called KOSMOS which had several stores, sawmill and train depot repair. My grandparents used to run a gas station/general store their. ANYWAYS...the smallmouth have done really good in this lake. I think they game department put them in there around 1984. You can still pick up some Largemouth from time to time if you know where to look.

Lewis County BASS club is having their open tournament on this lake Saturday April 24th.

There has been Smallmouth caught in 6-7# class. I have taking several in the 4#. You can find smallmouth throught the lake. Most people like the east end since it is easier to locate the fish.

The lake is a reservoir of the Cowlitz River and the lake can fluctuate throughout the year big time!! So if you are boating...BE CAREFUL!!

HERE IS A 4.25 from last years LEWIS COUNTY's OPEN...

http://www.dropshot.net/images/Riffe_4.25.jpg

[shalom]

Nice fish . :dance: Thank you for sharing, I drove by Morton yesterday . :smile:

[Beerbelly]

Go to the kosmos boat launch and fish all the stumps and creek beds out front of the launch, you will get some sm bass, perch if you have enough water. :dance:

[bucketmouth]

Very nice fish.

About 3 years ago the OBPC had a Washington Dept of fish & wildlife biologist speak to us about the various areas in WA where good bass fishing was to be had. He told us about Riffe Lake then. I have wanted to fish it ever since but still have not gotten up there.

[sbasser]

Riffe is a place where there's a lot of structure,...and some navigational hazards. Given a choice, I'd launch at Cosmos. Straight out from the ramp is the old roadbed, a very rocky point that sticks WAY out into the lake. Go slow and use your depth finder. I'd hug the right hand shoreline for a hundred yards or so, just to be really safe. I've seen people drive their trucks out into the lake on the old road, and they're right in front of the ramp. There are thousands of huge rootballs from monster trees underwater, so expect to get hung up plenty.

Splitshotting works, DropShot should be great, light C'riggin' works, crankbaits, jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, lots of places where Senko's will produce, etc. I would not bother going under the bridge, up the river, tho I have seen bass up there. I have seen some sort of lizards lazily floating around in the water. Take that as a message that there are NO bass right there! A lot of the cuts/bays are very deep and never seem to produce. Fish points, and places where you find water coming in, even if it's not a creek...a spring up the bank will draw fish.

The water is very clear in some months. Once, in July or August, I saw two nice 3lb to 4 lb Smallies on the bottom, next to a rootball. I dropped my jig & pig in there, and could see it, tails waving. One of the Smallies was nose-down on it, very interested. The water was 22' deep. I think a smaller bait would have gotten a hit. I've done ok there, got a Big Fish trophy and 2nd Place trophy, but it can be very tough.

Typical weather...early AM, strong wind from the East. Calm for an hour or maybe two, as the direction changes and then a strong wind out of the West or SW. This lake can get quite rough, but there are plenty of places to hide. Only problem is that you have to launch at one end or the other, and so I would recommend the Cosmos launch...more good fishing areas close.

Be prepared to have the boat in 75' and cast to the shore. Spring has a lot of floating logs and firewood sized chunks of wood in the water, old spare tires/wheels, etc. You have to be very careful to avoid this stuff, or you could get hurt. The campgrounds are nice, but usually hard to get campsites. Both ramps are about equal, but can be covered with wood, out of the water, and are always a long, slow, bouncy backup to the water. Sometimes, 4x4 is required (Autum, low water). Holler if you need more info. C&R, Steve
sbasseratyahoodotcom

[bucketmouth]

Very informative. Thank you Sbasser

[corkyking]

Thank you all.
I've cut and pasted it all into a doc and will take this info with me when I go. :smile:

[sbasser]

Happy to help, guys. I should add a couple of favorite baits for Riffe. I'm not big on spinnerbaits or crankbaits, but I do think a spinnerbait (short arm, vertical jigging type) might be a good bet. I have done well with a 5" Kalin Grub in Avacado. I cut 1/2" off the nose and rig it on an Owner "Bullet" jighead. This is a lot like a Brewer's "Spider Slider", but bigger and with a decent hook. Cutting the 1/2" off fits the hook into the waist of the grub, just ahead of the tail. Splitshotting (#1 SS) a 4" Green Pumpkin Lizard is a good bet. Or an unweighted 5" Venom Super Doo* on a 1/0 EWG if it's calm. Early AM, I'll be throwing a silver/black back Rapala Husky Jerk.
*Edit: This is an old favorite before Senkos! The Senko is much better for the unweighted technique.

The structure in this lake is absolutely awesome, as WA lakes/reservoirs go. When running down the lake, stay pretty close to the center. I've seen 360'+ on the DF. There are at least three really dangerous places. That road in front of Cosmos Launch. It comes from about 90 degrees to the left, along the small creek channel. There is a low bridge you can see to the East. In high water, you can get up to the bridge. Looking from the Cosmos ramp, you can see the other, higher, bridge where the river enters the res, somewhat to the left. If you run straight for it, you'll cross the point that the old road goes down. At somewhat lower water levels, you'll hit the road. High water, you may clear it. Or not. Great place to fish! If you don't have a boat, but do have a 4x4 with open box, carefully drive out onto the road, climb into the box, and fish from the truck! Rip-Rap on both sides holds Smallies. The river channel is beyond that, of course. Another real good place. The river channel turns around a big flat point. Fish it. Follow that point around to your right (west), fish it. Where the steep bank starts, you'd best fish! Here, you can have the boat in 75' to 100' of water and cast to the shore. Wow! TRANSITIONS are key spots...cliff to shale slide or flatter bank...fish there.

From there west, it gets shallower, and forms a flat about 22' that goes for a long way. Covered with huge stumps and root balls. Fish it, but be prepared to get hung up. On up the South shore is a broken down bridge with a creek under it. At high water, you may not be able to get under it. At low water, you won't find much water beyond a small pool on the far side. If you can get back in there, do so. If not, fish the creek channel out as far as you can (it will get too deep, at some point).

Farther down the lake is a line of huge floating buoys. No sweat, keep blasting. There is a rocky point on the N. shore a bit West of there that forms a "J", and is one of my top secret spots for jerkbaits in the AM. Continuing westward, maybe a half mile from the Mossyrock launch, there is a very sneaky reef out from the South shore. That one is just underwater at full pool, and I bet it has a lot of lower units and prop blades imbedded in it. NO marker buoys!!! It is parallel to the shoreline. Probably a decent place to fish, but I haven't caught much (or fished that much) that far west. If you watch the contours of the shore, it's pretty safe to assume that it continues underwater. Watch out for those logs and chunks of floating debris. C&R, Steve

[ 03-15-2004, 08:20 PM: Message edited by: sbasser ]

[rebell]

Great info sbasser.

I have heard of some great catches on Riffe lake, but have never made it over to your side of the river to check it out. Now you have got me thinking it's time for a road trip.

[Moley Molson]

hey bassfinshingnw

Good to see another person from Morton.
I grew up there too. Graduated in 95.

[bassfishingnw]

:cheers:

I graduated in 91'

Jason Eastman :smile: