i was wondering has anybody fished for sockeye from a float tube, I think i will try it this year i mean i have a trolling motor..

I would advise painting or dyeing your tube and your clothing Chartreuse or Fl. Orange, you might also want to wear a helmet with a high powered strobe light. Bringing a Megaphone might be a good idea as well.

Skagiteer, you worry me my friend. I hope that you don't have other suicidal thoughts like float tubing amongst the pack in Lake WA.

Does anyone float tube lake washington at any time of year?

You're probably a nice kid skagiteer so my suggestion is to completely erase the idea from your head. There are tons of fisheries in the area that are float tube friendly. If you were from Oregon I would tell you to go for it. :p

i just wanted to see what people would say

So how about the Cowlitz in a canoe?

Definitely seen that done.

I've seen just about everything else out there for the socks', why not a float tube too!!!!! Besides it'll troll just about the right speed!!! :p
Good luck and tight lines, Jeff

Okay, you've seen it done. Is it safe at the current low water levels? Most of the spots I have seen "look" pretty benign, but are we looking at a leisurely float with a few spots that need attention, or a leisurely float with a few moments of terror? I try to avoid terror if possible! Life jacket on, float plan,too. 25 years as a canoist. Remember, terror is not good!

I have done some spots on the Skagit, hunted ducks on the Black River, and paddled down the Deschutes in Thurston County in addition to a lot of hunting in small inlets with lots of current in the sound.

Terror = not good.

Andy

Andy

How about "Float Tube Fridays"? Every Friday from Fourth of July until Labor Day, Lake Washington would be open for float tube sockeye fishing only. You could launch at the northern tip of Seward Park early in the AM. and expect to wash ashore along the Boeing or Coulon Park shoreline after dark. It's possible winds, currents, or fighting sockeye salmon might alter your itinerary. That shouldn't be a problem, since you're bound to end up against the I-90 bridge, on Bill Gates' property, or right back where you started

Float tube?!!! ha hah ha hah ha!!!!!!! Hey don't forget your electric trolling motor! ha hah ha ha ha!!!!!! he he ehh ehh ........

Some people just have to troll

Any M, No problem on the whole "Cowlitz in a canoe" idea. The stretch from Barrier Dam to Mission Bar is a piece of cake.... Helen Keller could float the Cowlitz. The only item of concern is that on the Cowlitz you've got lots and lots of sleds. Normally this wouldn't be a real problem, except that you also have lots and lots of idiots on the Cowlitz....And a lot of those idiots own sleds! Idiots in and of themselves are no big deal (I'm surrounded by them) but give an idiot about 200 hose power to play with and some poor sonofa***** in a Coleman canoe doesn't stand a chance

I was thinking some thing like that might be a concern. I'll just bank it there. A

Some years back, a friend and I were fishing at the Barrier Dam on a typical December Day. We had rowed the drift boat over to the island are were futiley trying to catch a King. It rained about 3" during the day. Above us there were a couple of goofballs in one of those little seyvlor kayaks. Eventually they loaded there gear up and headed across the Rising Cowlitz. About half way they ran out of "gas" and began to drift past the launch. They made it through the first tree against the clay bank, but it put them sideways and the next tree rolled them. One guy popped up and clung to the bank. We did not see the other. We started hollering and a sled came out from behind the island and caught up with the "kayak" . The second man had been held down by his gear, but had freed himself and was clinging to the "kayak". They pulled him in, and as they headed back to pick the other guy off the bank, the "kayak" was flying like a kite behind the sled.

Use the right tool for the Job!

GutZ

Gutz,

That sounds just like the terror that I am trying to avoid! There is a big difference in handling between a rubber kayak and my little 15' aluminum canoe, but thanks for the story. A

Although this thread began with a question about float tubes, it expanded to include canoes. I thought I would mention that I find a canoe to be the single most versatile watercraft I have ever used. Canoes definitely aren't the best boat for every application, but they can be safely and successfully used for more applications than any other craft that I am aware of. Rivers, lakes, bays, oceans, sloughs, ponds, flooded fields - only a few places they can't safely go.

I use my sled on the Cowlitz generally (no car shuttle hassle), but I've also used my canoe and inflatable raft. I fish just as well with any of them, but the Cowlitz is large enough that a motor boat makes getting around more convenient. I rate the Cowlitz easily as canoeable as the Skagit, and moreso than the Sauk and (upper) Skykomish, for instance.

As for float tubing Lake Washington, the problem isn't the float tube. It's the nitwits in powerboats who don't pay attention to where they're going. Otherwise, it would probably be kinda' cool. Almost like swimming in the ocean near the whales in Maui, but not as safe.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.