Thread: New to Washington State

Welcome to Washington State. Just so you know, I did my Army time at Ft. Stewart. I was an air traffic controller at the airfield. (Then called Wright Army Air Field, now called something else) I was there when they built the new (now 45 year old) tower. I really miss Georgia. The soft pines, warm weather, pecan trees & red clay. One day with the Lord's blessing I'll be able to visit again. Anyway, I'm sure you will find some folks here who can steer you in the right direction for crappies and gills. If you were more in the middle of the state, I would recommend Mar Don Resort at the Potholes Reservoir just south of Moses Lake. Around here (eastern Washington) you can find them at Eloika Lake just north of Spokane. But the sizes aren't anything to write home about. Anyway, welcome to the forum. Have fun and share.

By The Way, what's your MOS? Mine was 93B20.

I went to school in Seattle. Escape/Evasion at Ft Lewis. Love them big ol' Ant hills out there.
There's a couple good Crappie lakes down I-5 from you.
Lake Washinton and Lake Sammamish both have lot's of Crappie.

I'll bet yo get hooked on Trout, Steelhead and Salmon long before you find that good Crappie lake though.

I grew up in the north Tacoma area. Harts, Tanwax, Kapowsin and Ohop are in your neighborhood and all have crappie. Most people in the area focus on salmon, trout, or bass, so the crappie don't much attention. They sometimes get to decent size, but the crappie are smaller than you're used to thanks to the short growing season. Anything over 12" is considered a whopper. Crappie in WW start spawning around late May or early June, depending on the water temperature.

In the summer months there is a lot of pleasure boat traffic on these lakes, except one. If you want to stay away from the jetski/waterskier crowds, Kapowsin is your best bet. It's got tons of standing flooded timber, so going fast would be suicidal thanks to all the stumps that end just below the waterline. There used to be a boat rental place on Kapowsin, but I haven't been there in years and I'm not sure if it is still around. It has some really nice bluegill too. When I was a kid, my friend's mom caught one all of 12" on a family fishing trip. I saw the picture they took of it next to a measuring tape. It was huge.

I'm also kind of new to Ft Lewis area. We've been here since Sept. My wife is a 68W in the Army. We came from Ft Polk where the fishing is awesome!! I haven't gotten out to fish yet, cuz it's so cold and the fishing license starts in April here. I will surely be getting my license in April. I own a 2012 Hobie Outback kayak and love Crappie fishing. Maybe we can hook up and find some slabs some day.

This is weird. One post about a transfer from Ft. Stewart to Ft. Lewis and I did my duty at Ft. Stewart. Another post about a transfer from Ft Polk to Ft Lewis, and Polk is where I did my basic training. I'd love to visit both Ft. Polk & Stewart, but I wouldn't trade my home ground anything.

Hey guys, really appreciate all the replies and we ended up buying a home in Graham. My MOS is 92F but up for re-enlistment and hope to change that. Love my MOS but if im gonna stay in and hope to get promoted gotta switch to something I can further my career in. Thanks again and wish you all tight lines in the near future

You are real close to a couple good lakes down there.
Kapowsin, Ohop, Silver
Welcome to Washington