Sky Report

Stopped at Reiter Thursday afternoon to see how things were. All in all it looked pretty good.

Was there at noon, and the morning crowd had left with lots of limits. Parking lot was still full because people kept arriving ...I think people were getting reports via cell phone from their buds who were there earlier. That's the only reason I can think of why people would come tearing into the parking area full speed ahead and almost be jogging to get the the river as quick as they could. They needed to bring their own rock to stand on anyway.

Need WiFi hot spot there so we can post the current activity....or a fish cam.

River in good shape, dropping. Beware the next storm, the river may not stay down. Little rise would be good for Reiter area to keep river from dropping too low.

Most people fishing the hatchery side....lots of room on the far side.

Saw a couple fish caught up a ways from the tailout where you wade out a bit in to that area where the bush roots are. Was only watching for 20 minutes so that wasn't bad. Saw two really nice big bright fish being carried out, bigger than most hatchery fish and there were some 6# types. A fewpeople in the parking area had limits and said about 30 fish were taken in the morning. A nice weather day.

The Wallace hatchery parking area was overflowing - lots of people there. Lots of cars on US 2 parked near the Wallace. Heard talk of fish being taken but didn't see any. Saw lots of people fishing and returning to cars without fish. But this was mid afternoon so the morning could have been better.

Lower Sky below Sultan is still high and dirty. Not many people fishing Sultan and down. Might be good time to plunk.

Based on the way people were streaming in to Reiter this afternoon, the word is out so if you go better get their early. I noticed the areas along the entrance road before you turn left to the parking areawhere you used to be able to park when the lot was full are now posted.

They really do need to enlarge the parking area. Would be good area for Starbucks stand.

Hi All

I fished Reiter Monday & Tuesday morning until 10 am both days. Saw 10 to 15 fish caught each morning. Which if you look at the # of people, the % is not that great. Nice size fish but by no means was it hot cmpared to other days I have seen over the years with similar conditions. I must say the guys fishing were great. No arguments, problems etc. People got out of the way when fish ran down-river etc. It was actually enjoyable except for the cold rain on Tuesday.

Starbucks at Reiter??? I'm there

Sounds like a pretty good report for Mid-December on the Snohomish system! Maybe we are finally move out of the current marine survival funk.

Let's hope that fishing for the hatchery fish continues to improve into January and the wilds follow.

Happy Holidays and may the New Year bring you tight lines.
S malma

That Starbucks idea may be a good one. A few years ago a guy brought a portable restaurant to the Tamahi Run on the Vedder. He even makes hamburgers and very greasy fries. Yum yum.

It's comical to watch 50 people crowd into a 10 square foot area right in front of the hatchery. That's sporting at its finest!

Thanks for the reports. Appreciate the info on how the run is producing.

Where was the waters edge at when you were there & how were most of the anglers fishing?

FF

I have had a sled for mayby 10 years so, so I don't fish Reiter much anymore but I used to be a fixture there. I like drift fishing more than float fishing, I went there a couple weeks ago and watched about 20 fishermen come and go, absolutely every one walked up with a float on their rod. drift fishing is dead.

Water was just below the line of big trees on Monday and actually rose a few inches while I was there Tuesday morning. As for how people are fishing. I'd say it's 60/40 to 50/50 Floats to drifting. I did both as did a lot of people (You see a lot of guys with 2 rods). I fished with a float right next to guys drifting with no problems. Since Reiter is so rocky (plus the line hung on the bottom) I think a lot of people use a Float not because it is their favorite way but more because they are tired of re-tieing all the time.

drift fishing isn't completely dead...I'm still a drift purist, and so is my fishing partner. That makes three. If I ever have a son, I'll pass on the art to him and that'll make 4.

Note to self avoid the sky this weekend.

Check out this video on the Sultan Slide. Pretty awsome video footage! Too bad the guy has a foul mouth!

http://www.kayakingsucks.com/sultan/sultan.html

These guys were really lucky they weren't right under that slide! Sheesh!

Ok, that was the coolest movie I've seen in a long while!

I fished Reiter Friday and today until 11am both days. The crowds weren't that bad and I was actually surprised that Saturday's crowd thined out by 10 am. A guy walking in had no problem finding a spot later in the morning.

Friday was a good day with, I would guess an average of 1 fish/person (counting the hooked and lost ones as welll). Lots of guys walking out with their limit.

Saturday started out hot for the 1st 1/2 hr or so then petered out fast with an occaisional fish being caught here and there. There were a couple fo limits leaving by 8 am.

Again, I saw no problems, fights etc. Guys would get tangled once and a while but took care of it with a "Sorry" and "here you go, it's loose".

I fish Reiter 4 or 5 times a year. Not much has changed over the last 15+ years except some of the people. People still get in line before 6 am and walk fast/run to the river out of the parking lot.

i was up there today also. like kp said good river ediqute today. bite was fast and furious for sure just didnt last long. i went 3 fer 3 with 1 released. need some more people like where up there today. i do apologize to the guy i made loose a fish. i dint hear FISHON or see anything, but i floated into a guy with a fish on and yanked it loose. ive never been on that side of the coin b4 and its a sinking feelin so if you are a board member or read this my deepest aoppologies. FISHON

One of the things I like best about fishing is the solitude. Maybe that's why I haven't fished at Reiter Ponds or Blue Creek since the Reagan Administration. I know the odds of hooking into a steelhead are pretty good at the terminal locations, but the overall experience is just not what I'm after.

That being said, has anybody ever had any luck just upstream from the "Big Eddy" hole and the Hwy 2 bridge? That would put you well downstream from Reiter Ponds, but the fish have got to move through there at some point.

Here is the area I'm referring to:

Captain Nemo that is why a person needs to be versatile. I don't go to Reiter for the day but for a few hours. I also only do it at certain times. Then I can go home or head to a few spots that normally have very little or no pressure.

As for your other question. If I remember correctly people do fish that and park along HWY 2. If you drive up from the High Briddge some Saturday you should see a few cars parked on the left

Why not walk up from the boat launch and try for yourself?

$5.00 to park at Big Eddy? Not worth it with so many other productive spots nearby.

ya ive walked uparound the corner from big eddy its a real nice spot , with some success. when did they start charging to park there?

It's a lot of walking for one hole. It's very slow and hard to drift unless you toss floats. The hole has really changed and the tail isn't what it used to be. Fish don't hold in this hole like they used to.

The sign at Big Eddy says "Effective May 2004 all users must pay a $5.00 day-use fee". So don't forget to bring exact change on your next fishing trip to the Skykomish.

As for the changes to the river upstream from the Big Eddy, I think the Sky forged a new channel in that area during the big rainstorm in October 2003.

I dont know when the pay thing came into effect. Isnt that why we have those pretty little yellow stickers on our car. I

Pay $5 bucks, do they have a drop box there? Sounds like they are trying to keep the fisherman out and let that be used for the river runners, what ever happen'd to that ten bucks that we are being charged .... seems as though it gets lost into that black hole called "the general fund" Thank you Gov gridlocke, I cannot wait to see that loser leave town.........

park at the gravel pit before reiters and walk down to the river. there are seveel trails up and down the river with some really good spots for fishing . explore and have fun.

All good information. Thanks for sharing.

That spot below Reiter has alot of good water. Have seen lots of limits come out of there and caught fish from both sides. Have walked in from Reiter or the other side or up from the little parking area on the left just before Zeke's.

Took a friend bobber/jig fishing from the opposite side of Reiter last week. He caught his first steelhead on his first trip targeting them. Saw several others caught near us.

Looks like an above average year so far, with more fish expected. Hopefully, this marks a reversal of the poor juvenile survival, as alluded to by a previous post.

Have done most of my trips to the Cowlitz and the coastal rivers and caught lots of nice chromers this year. I have caught more steelies this year than any previous and released lots of nice fish. Only 2 records left on the card, so have to be selective. Nicest hatchery winter fish 16 lb buck, very tastey, full of fat. Cooked up sort of springer like. A few natives also in the catch already, including the one my friend released on the Sky.

Good fishing.

Anymore new reports from the Sky?
Going to float the Sky tomorrow.

heard of 1 guy getting 5, and 2 fish for some 15 odd boats or something like that...