When I last talked to Dave Marchaud, who is a fish checker for the Colville Tribe on Rufus Woods, he mentioned that there had been a recent plant of triploids into the big reservoir. So, I called Jill Phillips, the hatchery manager, who manages the plants of trout in Rufus Woods and other Colville Tribal waters. She confirmed that they released 17,000 fish in late October. They were smaller fish, intended for the lakes, but with the growth rate these are known for they will get bigger fast. Jill mentioned a fish caught above Chief Joseph Dam that was part of a release of fish that averaged 1.7 pounds weighed 8 pounds when the tag was turned in a year later. Amazing. Many of the fish being caught at the net pens and all the way down to Chief Joseph Dam are from a plant of 25,000 made earlier this year that was comprised of many fish weighing 4.5 pounds. She also mentioned that they will be releasing approximately 10,000 fish next April that will average 1 ½ to 2 ½ pounds and there will be small releases of fish in the 6- to 8-pound class at times, too. Thank you Colville Tribe!
My niece Ellie Coen shows off one of the Rufus Woods triploids she landed this summer.