Alan Liere's hunting and fishing report for Sept. 17, 2026

Cooler temperatures are improving trout fishing across parts of North Idaho, including the North Fork of the Coeur d’Alene, where Silver Bow Fly Shop reports a few mahogany duns and October caddis. Hoppers, ants, and beetles can still produce strikes, and smaller fly patterns are expected to work best. The St. Joe River is also highlighted as summer winds down, and the Spokane River below town has been fishing well. Anglers continue to favor chubby or hopper setups with a dropper, while nymphing remains productive, and streamers are worth consideration.

On Lake Coeur d’Alene, trout and kokanee friends trolled with a guide from Fins and Feathers, keeping 22 kokes mostly 14–18 inches long, taken at 50 feet on downriggers. Some smaller fish were caught and released for next year’s fishery. In Washington, Conconully lakes in Okanogan County are open through October, Fish Lake near Lake Wenatchee holds big triploids and perch plus kokanee, and Jameson Lake in Douglas County is noted for fall trout. Steelhead and salmon reporting includes allowed additional adult hatchery coho retention through Oct. 31 between the Buoy 10 line upstream to the west end of Puget Island.