Where do you bowfish carp in Western Wa? I live near Edmonds, and want to stay closer to home. Eastern Wa is just too far.

We used to do it on Sauvie Island growing up ... so I would imagine similar conditions around here might have them. Lakes along lower Skagit perhaps??

I've seen people do it on Green Lake in seattle.

I smell a rat!

Lake Washington and those carps in there are huge

Why do you smell a rat?

Any place on Lake Washington? I got no boat, and that could be a problem. I need all the info I can get.

There may be areas around the Arboretum that have Carp and you could rent a canoe at the UW boat house.

Juanita Bay on the old golf course park area has lots of carp rooting in the shallows, but the walkway docks say no fishing, so I don't know if you can shoot carp there.

Is it even legal?

Yep, bowfishing for certain species is. Don't think you could do it for salmon ... though it might be kinda fun

Before you go shooting a bow within the city limits of any city, you should probably check the city municipal code to see if it is legal. That is an entirely separate question from whether the wildlife laws allow bow fishing for carp, which they do of course.

The City of Seattle is very uptight on those kinds of laws. It is exactly the same question some people have considered when bow fishing for deer. While it is illegal to discharge a firearm within most city limits, it may also be illegal to shoot a bow. Anyway, it is just a thought and it is something I would figure out first before bow hunting for carp within city limits.

When do carp spawn in Western Wa.?

From shore is going to be really tough in Western WA. On the eastside I've arrowed a lot, from a boat, in the mid Columbia, Banks lake, and Potholes reservoir. The only place that I've ever shot from shore has been in the wasteway at Potholes. Bring them home, run them through a chipper. Rose bushes really appreciate a good chopped carp feeding.
When they drain Banks lake to work on the dam later this year. Archery carp hunting should be really good in August/September/October.

This is a copy of a post I made a few years ago...

Back in the 50s and 60s my aunt lived on Long Lake NW of Spokane. My cousin and I would shoot carp from their dock. These things were huge, upwards of 40lb. My aunt claimed in the early days there was a commercial fishery for them and they were sent to a market in Chicago. We also fished using a rod and reel with a small wad of bread for bait, sometimes worked. We also tried jumping in and grabbing them by hand with some success. My aunt used them for fertilizer.

A good place to start would be from that RR bridge on the Skagit in the curtain of death post. Feel free to take all the carp in those boats!!!!