Photo by Michael T. Williams

It was one of those late spring desert days -- sunny but not too hot, breezy but not too windy. Wearing polarized sunglasses, I spotted a cruising fish, cast my fly on an interception course, then held on as another smallmouth frantically rushed about trying to throw the hook. The pinched down barb allowed a quick release followed by another cast and another catch. This was Banks Lake at its best.

Banks Lake, part of the Bureau of Reclamation's Columbia Basin Irrigation Project, was created in 1951 by damming the north and south ends of the Columbia River channel known as Grand Coulee. This long, skinny, 27,000-acre lake, ringed with basalt cliffs and talus slopes along its 90 miles of shoreline, produces some of Washington's best smallmouth and largemouth bass fishing and it's open all year.

SPRING
Smallmouth fishing starts to pick up in March and April, triggered by warming water. According to Mike Carney, a Banks Lake guide and B.A.S.S. touring pro, spring produces a good smallmouth bite as the fish start to move up the water column from their deep-water winter habitat. He favors crankbaits such as Luhr Jensen's Baby Hot Lips T.A. Anything with an orange belly attracts smallmouth searching for crawdads, a food favorite.

When water temperature rises, smallmouth migrate into shallower water. Carney recommends fishing rocky shoals and flats with water depths around five feet, adjacent to deeper water where the fish can run and hide. Lou Nevsimal of Coulee Playland agrees. "Look for broken rock rubble with immediate access to deeper water," he says. Nevsimal seconds the crankbait suggestion and adds that fishing jigs draws strikes too.

The spring largemouth bite begins to heat up in May. The males combine feeding activity with their search for appropriate nesting sites so the successful fisher will prowl for prime nesting habitat. Carney suggests looking for old submerged roadbeds that run through and along the lakeshore. These sites often consist of raised roadbeds with deeper water to each side, which provide good spawning beds and deep-water protection.

May is a great time to put fish in your livewell but you'll have company on the water. The Washington State BASS Federation holds its Jamboree and Jr. Bassmaster Championship at month's end. Savvy tournament participants hit the smallmouth first because they are the dominant species in the lake, then target largemouth in hopes of swapping out a smallmouth with a bigger largemouth. That tactic makes sense when you consider that an 11.57-pound bass, the heaviest largemouth ever recorded in Washington, was taken from this lake.

SUMMER & FALL
Once the spawn ends, both species of bass move off the beds into deeper water. Carney again suggests working submerged roadbeds. He also expects to find fish in the flats during the lowlight early morning and evening hours, which means staying on the water late or getting out of bed way early. Nevsimal spends time working over the Million Dollar Mile area south of Steamboat Rock.

Fall is Carney's favorite time of year when he throws popper-type baits, light spinnerbaits and Senkos fished without weight over the roadbeds and grass-lined flats. Fall offers the opportunity of combining early morning fishing and afternoon upland bird hunting.

STEAMBOAT ROCK STATE PARK
Steamboat Rock, a 600-acre block of columnar basalt jutting 1,571 feet above sea level, forms a peninsula, which is home to Steamboat Rock State Park, a perfect home base. The park offers two camping areas, a day-use area, boat launch, docks, sandy swimming beach, horseback riding, hiking and other activities for the non-fishers in your party. One word of caution, which goes for the entire Grand Coulee area: This is rattlesnake country, so keep your fingers out of crevices and watch where you step.

The area between Steamboat Rock and the east shore, known as the Devil's Punch Bowl, produces largemouth from the reeds, especially in the spring. Try a No. 23 Uncle Josh Kicker Frog.