Banks Lake Reports?

[Mfowl]

Does anyone have a recent report from Banks Lake? Water temp? Walleye success?
I am gonna be out there Monday through Friday this upcoming week, just curious what's been going on. We will be fishing Roosevelt and/or Rufus for a day or two as well.
Any info appreciated, thanks!

[baldopepper]

Haven't fished banks my self, but talked to a couple guys launching at Roosevelt who fished it the day before. Said it was very slow for them so they'd come to Roosevelt. Been slow for trout on Roosevelt but walleye good if you can find em.  Gotta look hard though. Roosevelt lake level down and launching a bit tough for bigger boats at some launches.

[hunter399]

I need to know where the best shore fishing on banks is.
I was thinking of stopping there on way through.
Just a couple hours of shore fishing.
Any helpful ideas ,I've never been there.
So any help is appreciated.

[Mfowl]

Haven't fished banks my self, but talked to a couple guys launching at Roosevelt who fished it the day before. Said it was very slow for them so they'd come to Roosevelt. Been slow for trout on Roosevelt but walleye good if you can find em.  Gotta look hard though. Roosevelt lake level down and launching a bit tough for bigger boats at some launches.

Thanks for the info!

I need to know where the best shore fishing on banks is.
I was thinking of stopping there on way through.
Just a couple hours of shore fishing.
Any helpful ideas ,I've never been there.
So any help is appreciated.

The biggest problem with shore fishing on Banks is that so much of it is shallow flats for a long way out. There is some nice riprap sections along the road by Steamboat/Norhtrup. Also Osbourne Lake just south of Electric City has some access. It's mostly bass water along shore but you could score a walleye especially in the summer with the warmer water. Coulee City Marina at the south end of the lake also has some riprap dikes that you can fish from.

[hunter399]

Haven't fished banks my self, but talked to a couple guys launching at Roosevelt who fished it the day before. Said it was very slow for them so they'd come to Roosevelt. Been slow for trout on Roosevelt but walleye good if you can find em.  Gotta look hard though. Roosevelt lake level down and launching a bit tough for bigger boats at some launches.

Thanks for the info!

I need to know where the best shore fishing on banks is.
I was thinking of stopping there on way through.
Just a couple hours of shore fishing.
Any helpful ideas ,I've never been there.
So any help is appreciated.

The biggest problem with shore fishing on Banks is that so much of it is shallow flats for a long way out. There is some nice riprap sections along the road by Steamboat/Norhtrup. Also Osbourne Lake just south of Electric City has some access. It's mostly bass water along shore but you could score a walleye especially in the summer with the warmer water. Coulee City Marina at the south end of the lake also has some riprap dikes that you can fish from.

Thanks for the report.👍

[Badhabit]

Hole in the Wall area should be red hot now. It's straight across the lake from the state park. The culverts in the bay should have LM hanging on them ready to spawn.

[Mfowl]

Two days in at  Banks Lake and here's my report so far.
Between 4 of us in 2 boats we have kept 26 walleye, released 6 or so small ones and missed quite a few bites. Biggest fish are 22" and 23" but most are in the 16"-20" range.
Water temps in the upper lake are much colder at 49° to start the morning and climbing to low 50's. Steamboat area is starting at 55° in the morning and climbing to the upper 50's in the afternoon.
Fish have been shallower than expected with the best results coming between 25'-35'. They are also spread out and not really concentrated in spots. You have to grind it out but there is fish to be had. Good luck, tight lines!

[Mfowl]

Final report from  Banks lake this week:
Water temps remained similar as some cooler weather and rain moved in. Wednesday we kept 9 for 3 of us in the boat but did get our  biggest at 24.5". Thurs/Fri my brother and I shifted gears to fish Lake Roosevelt for Kokanee and trout. Another brother and friend fished Rufus Woods on Thursday and it was completely dead, 1 walleye and no trout for the whole day. Others reported the same results while they were there. Not sure what the reason would be it was so dead. They fished back on Banks on Friday and had the same results, scratching out fish in different spots. They kept 7 total. Our total walleye take for the week was 42, we had to keep a few dinks from deep water that ruptured their air bladders.
Thurs/Fri on Lake Roosevelt yielded good results. We fished out of Spring Canyon. We landed 3 Kokanee at 16",17" and 22". We also lost 2 nice ones at the boat. We landed 15 trout but only kept 3 with the biggest being 20". We hooked and lost 12-15 fish and had another 10 or so hits that didn't stick. Best results were flat lining dodgers with various rigs 175-250' behind the boat and off planer boards. We also added snap weights for depth as TOD/water temps changed.
Overall very good week of fishing and camping! Good luck out there, tight lines!

[Mfowl]

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[Gooseassassin]

That’s a great week and thanks for sharing. I do ? Ur beer selection though 😂

[Mfowl]

That’s a great week and thanks for sharing. I do ? Ur beer selection though 😂

  Sometimes it's about quantity over quality!