There are fairly clear skies and warm days ahead and you can bet that anglers are going to out in force on the upper Columbia River and Rufus Woods Reservoir. Due to the cold weather and high flows earlier in January on the upper Columbia, few anglers were even trying to get out after the steelhead, so there are very, very good numbers available to anglers for the balance of the season here. You can bet that steelhead anglers will be tossing bobber and jig set ups from Bridgeport all the way down to above Rocky Reach Dam. If I was able to get out, I would head for Wells Dam. One of the biggest steelhead I ever caught came from this stretch of river about this time of year. The bar below the dam offers the best shore fishing for steelhead anywhere on the upper Columbia. The fireboxes along the shore at the bottom end of Rufus Woods, and further up stream at Brandts Landing will be crowded, so bring lots of wood and get there early. Fishing for triploid rainbow should hit its peak about now, and as the Colville tribe begins their release of 2,000 fish fresh interest in fishing will be sparked. It should be a great month.