Thanks for the shuttle offer, but I really am looking to make this as simple as possible (he's been fly fishing maybe twice!)
That early season is also when the monster sized carp are rolling all over the shallows.
Like, catchable carp, or those
ones in the basin that ignore my flies but chase my kayak?
Thanks @Freestone !
Yeah, that's kind of what I'm hoping for - too many for him to miss
Not sure I'd take the Mirage drive on moving water, but I do have a pontoon that I haven't used in many years - that would be fun!
These are my waters, and I completely agree with the other comments, but will add what I know from my experience. Red's will do floats from the Benton City boat launch (River State Park) and pull out at Horn Rapids Park. It's roughly 11 miles. Timing is everything, but I've found that June is the most 'solid' month to fish, while May can produce some bigger, hungry fish. I've never seen a fish in April, but I'm still trying to get snowboarding in, that time of the year. The caveat being that it's not uncommon for the river to be blown out. This is obviously due to melt, but the flows can literally change on a day to day, even hourly basis, due to upper dams, the Tieton, and whatever the various irrigation districts have got going on. I check the Yakima flows on the USGS site at Kiona, even though I can just look at the river while I'm having my morning coffee. High water and high turbidity doesn't bode well, but also, spikes and drops in water temps, tend to throw the fish off, from my experience. The earliest, that I have seen fish, is Mother's day, (my daughter, 10 at the time, brought in a 20"), and the latest has been the first week of October. A DIY trip with a pontoon is great (I use a small, personal pontoon), but a kayak will get you out of slow water, faster. The challenge with a full distance float like this, is if that occasionally the wind will come out of the north, and slow you down considerably, and if it's really bad, push you back up river, making for a very long day. I recommend a sea anchor or even a five gallon bucket to keep you moving, if the wind is not favorable. Mostly, the wind comes out of the west, but best to plan your trip on a calm day. The portion of river towards Horn Rapids, can get very slow and I've found myself rowing more than fishing, which isn't so much fun. Don't hesitate to hit me up with any specifics.
I pointed out some extreme situations, but for the most part, it's a very easy going, comfortable float. I float it with my daughter and her friends, frequently. Many people just cruise down the river on their paddle boards, and when the heat is really cranking, it's common to see the inner-tube armada's come down in droves. July and August can still be excellent, you just need to watch out for the heat and smoke. Last summer, I went out on a 107 degree day, with 80 plus degree water temps, and still landed 14 fish, with a couple of big one's in the mix.
I haven't actually targeted the carp at that time of year, preferring to chase the pre-spawn bass. I think the carp are spawning at that time, so not sure how interested they'd be in eating. But there are some BIG carp in there below Horn Rapids dam.Like, catchable carp, or those
Depends on the time of year and which section you're on. Later in the year there have been times when I've had to get out of the kayak and pull it over rocks and bars. The river also develops some pretty substantial weed growth too. Later in the year, I can't use the pedal outdrive system in one of the kayaks as it just gets fouled with weeds. Same would probably happen to a trolling motor unless you set it up with a weed guard.
