YAKIMA COUNTY, Wash. — The Yakima River Canyon is being featured as one of the top nine winter fishing destinations in the United States for 2023.
That doesn’t come as a surprise to Red’s Fly Shop managing partner Steve Joyce, who’s been a fly fishing guide for more than 25 years. He said that’s because the Yakima River is one of the few places that’s not too cold for fly fishing this time of year.
“Or weather here is mild enough that, you know, even in December in January, we do get windows where we can get out and not just fish but but actually have pretty good fly fishing,” Joyce said.
Joyce said there’s about 70 miles of floatable, fishable Yakima River where there’s a lot of public access, but the highest fish populations are between Ellensburg and Selah in the Yakima River Canyon. He said it’s important to remember that area is catch-and-release only.
“The canyon itself spans like two miles over that 19 miles,” Joyce said. “There is seven different places where you can put boats in and take boats out if you want to float.”
FishingBooker, an online platform for connecting anglers and fishing guides, said they picked the Yakima River Canyon as a top winter fishing destination because it’s a great place to cast some flies in the cold months.
“Washington’s only Blue Ribbon Trout stream is also our only West Coast pick this year – but, boy, is it a good one. Unsurprisingly, the main attraction here during wintertime are Rainbow Trout. It’s at this time of year they get “funneled” to specific zones where anglers in the know will target them with gusto. These defined drop-offs and slowdowns following large riffles are known as “feed me” zones and are a hallmark of Yakima River winter fishing. Most of the time you’re unlikely to run into a lot of other anglers during your day on the water. That said, you can count on company in the form of elks, blue herons, and bighorn sheep. Nature’s beauty at its finest.” — FishingBooker
Yakima Valley Tourism reportedly reached out to the publishers in November to ask if they would include the Yakima River Canyon in their publication.
“We’re happy they considered our pitch and included the canyon,” Yakima Valley Tourism communications and travel trade manager Adam Stewart said in a news release. “The Canyon is a special place for anglers, locals and visitors.”
However, Joyce said right now might not be the best time for people to try recreating on the Yakima River due to a cold snap happening in the area.
“When we get down into single digit temperatures and even the teens, what happens is icebergs start floating down the river and that’s not productive fishing,” Joyce said.
Joyce said the weather should be good enough for fishing on Christmas Eve or Christmas, but that could change if the temperatures don’t go back up. He said it’s a good idea for people to check in before they go out fishing to make sure it’s safe.
“It’s a good idea if you’re driving up here, just swing into the shop,” Joyce said. “We keep track of that every day and we’ll let people know where they can and can’t float.”
Red’s Fly Shop is located at 14702 State Route 821 in Ellensburg. They have a retail and online store with a variety of fly fishing equipment. They also offer tour guides, boat rentals and other services for fly fishing enthusiasts.
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