Deer Lake will soon be an option for ice fishermen.
The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission on Friday approved a year-round season for the lake south of Chewelah. A bag limit of five lake trout with no more than one larger than 26 inches was also approved.
Under current rules, the lake closes to fishing on Nov. 30 per year and no bag limit on lake trout.
The change will take effect on July 1.
The vote was in response to a petition from an angler who argued that extending the season would provide a new ice fishing opportunity in Eastern Washington and a chance to catch large lake trout through the ice.
The commission voted to accept the petition in December and drafted a rule. Public comment was gathered in January.
Chris Donley, the eastern fish program manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, told commissioners that commenters have expressed concerns that a year-round season could lead to overexploitation of the lake. trout, also called mackinaw.
That led to a bag limit of five, and setting a size limit. Donley said the agency initially proposed a 30-inch size limit but scaled back in response to public comment.
Requiring anglers to keep one fish over 26 inches is intended to keep some trophy fish in the lake.
Deer Lake is about 14 miles southeast of Chewelah. It is a popular fishery in the area, and it offers anglers the opportunity to catch rainbow trout, smallmouth bass and other warm-water species in addition to lake trout.
It once had a strong kokanee salmon population, but predation by lake trout and smallmouth bass has decimated kokanee numbers, according to commission documents.
Rainbows are stocked, but lake trout are not. Donley said the lake trout population is self-sustaining and denser than other lakes.
WDFW considered extending the season year-round in 2018 but cut the proposal after landowners expressed concerns that summer homes along the lake could be at risk for theft and winter vandalism, according to commission documents.
