Part 1

The only thing that never changes is change itself.

You’ve probably heard that bit of profundity somewhere along the line.  There is much, much truth in it.  It applies to Pacific Northwest angling every bit as much as it does to anything.  For more than a half century now I’ve had a ringside seat from which to watch these changes come about.

I wrote my first outdoor columns for The Daily News in Longview, Washington way back in 1946.  Nowhere have those changes I mentioned been more apparent than on the Columbia River where it separates the states of Washington and Oregon.

Walleye like my late friend Herb Williams is shown holding here didn't exist in the Columbia River when I first started writing about fishing more than a half century ago.

Here’s just one example of what I’m talking about.  In February of this year an angler named Mike Hepper set a new Washington State size record for walleye.  His fish was a whopping big walleye that weighed 19.3-pounds.  Hepper caught that lunker on a nightcrawler fished behind a Mack’s Lure Smile Blade.

Now here come those changes I’ve mentioned.  When I first started writing about Columbia River angling neither walleye or the Smile Blade spinner that helped put the new record in the boat even existed.  Back then you didn’t hear or read about either one. 

Something else that didn't exist 50 years ago were dandy fish getters like these Mack's Lure Smile Blades.  Today they are used by Columbia River anglers as well as fishermen all over the nation for their walleye fishing.  A Smile Blade helped Bill Hepper, current holder of the Washington State walleye size record, put his 19.3-pounder whopper in the boat.

You read and hear plenty about both today.  That’s one major change.  Here’s another: Today you can find darn near as many anglers going after walleyes on the Columbia River as those fishing for the migratory species.  And it’s a cinch you won’t have to hang around Columbia River walleye anglers very long before you hear about Smile Blades as well as some of the other fish attractors the folks at Mack’s Lure are selling out of their Wenatchee, Washington headquarters.

For that matter you’re just as likely to find anglers talking about Smile Blades, Wally Pops, Hot Wings and other Mack’s Lure products wherever you find walleye anglers in other parts of the nation.  The Washington tackle company’s products have figured in numerous major walleye tournaments in recent years.

Once walleye were found in the Columbia I remember writing an outdoor column in which I predicted that fishing for walleye on the Columbia might one day be darn near as popular as salmon or steelhead angling.  I wasn’t out of my tree in making that prediction although there were readers who were convinced I was.

The number of walleye fishermen has increased steadily on the pools of the Columbia above Bonneville.  Now these big perch are showing up in increasing numbers in the Portland area.  I've had reports of them being caught in the vicinity of St. Helens and as far down river as Clatskanie.  As far as I know they aren’t showing up in large numbers that low down, but they are there.

Did I hear somebody snort when I said "big perch”?  Contrary to what many old timers might tell you, the walleye is indeed a member of the perch family.  It is not a "walleyed pike," though I've heard them called that time and again.  The walleye is the largest member of the perch family.

If walleye do eventually take hold in the lower river the way they have in middle stretches of the Columbia, fishermen who used to live in the Midwest will be delighted.  The walleye is prized as a sports fish in many regions of the United States.

Just why is this interesting fish so highly regarded in states like Minnesota, the Dakotas, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Ohio and others?  You'll have to sit down to a dinner of freshly prepared walleye to come up with the answer.

The walleye doesn't belong in the same ring with steelhead and salmon when it comes to fight.  At the dinner table it's a different ball game.  The white, flaky meat of a fresh walleye is superior.

I realize you can't answer for another's taste buds, why my goodness I know people who even like liver and onions!  But most folks who like eating fish flat love walleye. 

Properly prepared, a walleye fillet is delicious.  It would be a toss up for me if I had to decide between a steak from a fresh spring chinook or a just caught walleye fillet.  Columbia River fall salmon and steelhead wouldn’t even make the finals.

In my next column we’ll take another look at the impact the coming of walleyes to the Columbia River has had.  Watch for it beginning July 1.

-To Be Continued-