Cady Lake is a popular fly-only lake in the Mason County portion of the peninsula. In recent years, saltwater cutthroat have attracted a large following in the South Sound, especially during late spring, with some of the most productive beaches found at Gig Harbor's Point Fosdick, Kopachuck State Park, Olalla, Penrose Point State Park and Nisqually Reach.

OLYMPIC PENINSULA
Better known for its river fishing than its lakes, the Olympic Peninsula receives far fewer catchable hatchery plants than other regions. Having said that, it is richly endowed with both large and small stillwaters. A few miles south of Port Townsend, Anderson Lake was traditionally one of the most popular opening-day lakes, but the crowds have declined since the state began charging a $5 parking fee at state parks. Anderson is food-rich, with a nice population of carry-over rainbows in the 12-plus-inch range. All types of lures and baits are legal through August, when catch-and-release, selective fishery regulations come into play.

Closer to Hood Canal, Ludlow and Horseshoe lakes are good early bets, as are Sandy Shore and Tarboo lakes, all of which are on Pope Resource's timberlands. South of Discovery Bay, Leland Lake receives tens of thousands of hatchery rainbows, and is a favorite of families and non-boating anglers who can fish from its dock. To the south, Mason County hosts a large number of productive trout lakes, ranging from massive Lake Cushman to small mountain ponds. Anglers looking for some 8- to 12-inch hatchery rainbows should head to Trails End, Haven, Maggie, Wooten and Devereaux lakes. Trout are harder to come by on 4,000-acre Lake Cushman, but trollers take cutthroat to several pounds, along with good numbers of kokanee. Nearby, Prices Lake -- a beautiful, forest-rimmed, selective fishery lake -- is a favorite of float-tubing flyfishers, who have a shot at wild rainbow, cutthroat and brook trout.

Some of the best trout fishing on the Olympic Peninsula is for its wild fish, which continue to thrive in its large lakes and the upper reaches of many rivers. Located a couple of miles from Cape Alava, the most northwestern point of land in the lower 48 states, Lake Ozette is the third-largest natural lake in the state. It supports a good population of wild sea-run cutthroat, which prey heavily on juvenile sockeye salmon in late spring. Lake Crescent is home to both the unique Beardslee rainbow (the record is 18 pounds) and crescenti cutthroat (12 pounds). But it no longer opens until June 1, and downriggers are prohibited. Lake Sutherland, several miles east of Lake Crescent, is stocked with large numbers of rainbows and is open year 'round. The Elwha River supports arguably Western Washington's most productive rainbow fishery, and last year it turned on earlier as a result of the low snow pack and remained productive into autumn.

SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON
Southwest Washington provides anglers with a wider range of lakes and ponds than any other area of Western Washington. There are easy-to-reach lakes near Vancouver, such as Klineline Ponds, Lacamas Lake and Battle Ground Lake, which receive, respectively, about 32,000, 14,000 and 25,000 rainbow plants. There are remote, hike-in waters in the Indian Heaven Wilderness and the network of mountain lakes north of Mount St. Helens. There are sprawling reservoirs -- Mayfield and Riffe on the upper Cowlitz, and Swift, Yale and Merwin on the Lewis -- that provide productive trolling after the water warms in late spring and summer. There are small rural stillwaters like the Kalama area's Horseshoe, which receives more than 20,000 hatchery rainbow and brown trout, and urban lakes such as Longview's Sacajawea, which gets a similar number of trout and to which kids can ride their bicycles.