Dave Webb
July 17, 2025
Strawberry was beautiful this morning. Cool temperatures, no wind, and fast fishing. We didn't catch anything big, but caught plenty of cutthroat and rainbow trout until the wind kicked up. We did not connect on any kokanee.
Strawberry has settled into a typical summer pattern. In general, fishing is better early in the morning and late in the evening. Most fish that showed on my graph were down 30-40 feet. Pretty much any small lure caught cutthroat. Our best producer was a pearl-colored Needlefish.
We catch som many cutts at Strawberry that I usually use lures with a single hook, to make it easy to release the fish unharmed. Rapalas and Jakes are usually very productive but make it more difficult to release the fish.
I used a downrigger to get my lures deep enough, which was about 35-40 feet. My companion fished with leaded line and he caught more fish than I did. Leaded line can be very effective but it is difficult to guage exactly how deep you are getting. (The depth depends on boat speed, action of the lure, and other factors.)
We saw people in anchored boats who were bait fishing near the bottom, and most were doing well.
Shore fishermen need to look for spots where they can cast into deeper areas.
Fly fishermen do best fishing near inlets during early morning and late evening hours.
Strawberry is being fished hard, and it is amazing that it offers such consistently good action. I like to fish on a weekday morning to avoid the crowds. On weekends, the boat ramps are busy.
Most summer mornings are beautiful, and most summer afternoons are windy. Thunderstorms can develop during the afternoon, creating challenging boating conditions.
Today, the wind picked up at about 11 am, which is right on schedule. Some raindrops were falling as we loaded the boat.
It was a fun trip.