Is cook creek on the Quinalt reservation? Is any part of it fishable without a guide?

SD, Yes you're correct, guide only. Hit the Wed. before Thanksgiving and had a blast. Full of Brats right now. Check out Letty Potter's sight. She charges $100 for a walk in. Good luck.

Erndog

Fished it Turkey day, same spot as Earndog. We got 16 landed in 4 hours, all nice winters. Hooked a number of old kings and silvers as incidentals. I would call it a confidence builder. Others call it fishing in an aquarium. Either way, it is a chance to hook a number of fish.

Best of luck!

With ya on that one Dogfish. I don't know if you noticed but it sure seemed to be an early bite. Plus we had some weather changes during our time and soon as it started raining them Kings kicked in. We did hook in to a few bright ones to beat it. Same thing also, hooked in to pleanty of brats early. Had our limit in 2 hours, than C&R the rest of the day.

Erndog

dude...

why pay the natives? those guys and girls out there aren't guides they have just obtained licenses from thier tribal leaders.... salmon river is free water down below the q1000 bridge, there is alot of water and alot of fish!!
this is only my view of the cook creek robbery...as mad as we all get about tribal netting off the res why pay these guys to go unless they are going to let you kill as many as they kill during thier netting schedule on our rivers?

It's important to recognize that not all water downstream of Q1000 on the Salmon is outside the Rez. There is actually just a short stretch (what I call the horseshoe) that is off rez. Then you have about a 2-3 mile stretch, down through the gorge before you hit National Forest land, then National Park. I know the Quinault cop that patrols Salmon River and he loves to bust people in the area below Q1000. Word to the wise.

Bowhunter

Letty Potter is a great guide and does know how to fish. The cook creek fish are just hatchery fish correct?? So why does it matter if you bonk a couple if they're going to end up that way anyways. Sounds like Dogfish and Erndoggy dog caught their limit and then caught and released.

Thanks alot for the feedback. There is hardly any information on cook creek at all on the net. The only reference I could find is one sight on the cook basin. I will check out the salmon river and make sure I buy a good map and talk to the tribal police first! 100 bucks is not too bad for a walk in to fish restricted water. I paid 50 bucks for Hunter's parking permit which I used only once since it lookd like Blue creek down there!

Make damn sure the creek is up significantly and not low and clear. We fished it a couple years back and when we got there it had dropped to low and clear conditions so fishing was a bust. We left around 10:00am and went over to the hump and ended up landing a couple each so the day was not a total waist. Good luck!

Eddie,

Id like to see a Quinault Cop do anything to me or any non indian for that matter if I was fishing below the Q1000.

First off tribal cops have what is called a limitted commission which gives them juristiction only on the reservation. Secondly Washington is a Public Law 280 state which means that tribal cops have no juristiction over non-indians, it also means tribal law has no meaning whatsoever to non indians even on the reservation. The only thing that could be done to a non-indian even on the reservation would be escorting them off. If the tribe wanted to press charges for tresspassing agianst the non-indian they would have to go through the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office. It would be up to the Jefferson County deptuy or prosecutors office to persue charges if they wanted to do so and I very seriously doubt they would tred into those waters.

Just to add a note,

If a tribal cop tried to place you under arrest on tribal land for violation of tribal law that would be a violation of your constitutional rights as a united states citizen.

Another note, washington state being a public law 280 state means if you are non-indian and on tribal land washington state and federal law is what governs you. What Im getting at is this, if you are on reservation land and following state and federal laws both game and criminal I dont see what the tribe could do to you other than say you were tresspassing. They sure as heck couldnt charge with with a crime or arrest you.

Now detain you is another thing but if you agreed to leave on your own free will they couldnt lay hands on you, or else you might own the reservation because of a federal tort lawsuit.

What im getting at is they can not enforce tribal law on non-tribal people. Now if you violate federal or state law they could detian you and hold you for a deputy, which would be within their power.

All in all public law 280, mean's tribal land is considdered private property instead of a soverin nation to any non-indian in washington state. In reading the law this is what it intends even if it still does call a trible in washington state a soverin nation.

When are you coming back you turd? The brats are here in full force.

Interesting.............

So what's stopping a guy from fishing the lower Quinault and just leaving when they bust you?

I always wondered about WDFW using the Q1000 as a deadline in the regs........and the tribe using a point 60 feet below the bridge as their deadline.

The lower deadline markers below the Q1000 road weren't there the other day and many non-indians were fishing away down there.

Rich, Interesting points. Here's my take: if I know that I'm doing something wrong - that is fishing in an area that is closed to me, and I get caught by the Quinault cop, the last thing I will do is to assert my rights as a Non-Indian or a 280 or whatever. If I willingly fish in an area that is closed to me, I should expect to pay the consequences. That is personal responsibility. The gun that the cop carries means something too! I don't think that I want to be the test case. Certainly, I have seen the cop go chasing somebody through the brush to catch them, he certainly expended more energy than I would of thought warranted for a trespassing ticket. I may have misunderstood your post - is it your contention that there is no rez land below Q1000?

Dan, if you read the regs I'm pretty sure they say below Q1000 off Reservation land. The boundary for the reservation is about 60 foot downstream of the bridge. At that point you enter non rez land. You reenter rez land about 1/2 river mile down from that boundary line. (I may be wrong about the distance, but it is just past the tailout of the big hole).

Eddie,

Like Dan S just said is the Lower Quinault really closed to us? Can anything really be done to us for fishing there?

The one thing I would worry about is if a tribal member got upset with you and decided to destroy your property or assault you. Unless they committed a felony crime agianst you you would pretty much be SOL. Now if you decided to protect yourself you could be cahrged by the state or feds.

I was thinking...............cast, look over shoulder, and run if anybody shows up.

Let me make my point agian,

WDFW enforcement or county deputies would have juristiction over you for any game or criminal violations on tribal land. Enforcement of tribal laws in washington state on a non indian would be agianst washington state and federal law.

If you were on tribal land and did not violate any washington state laws the state of washington could do nothing to you.

If its closed in the regs and you get caught by anyone they could swear a complaint against you in city, county or state courts. They do not have to be an offical just a citizen. If its open but on private property it's trespassing only. The same above still applies.
This has been tested in Watersheds for hunting and fishing many times.

So the Tribal police could swear a complaint against you in the local court. It also depends how close the tribe and the local law enforcement work together.

Rich, Years ago if we got pulled over in kitsap county and the rez cop went to write a speeding ticket or whatever we would tell him not to waste his time so he wouldn't bother because he knew we wouldn't pay but some did pay because they didn't know any better.But if someone got pulled over drunk he would detain you tell the sheriff got there.Nowadays the rez cops around here have been deputized by kitsap county sheriffs office from what I have been told so supposedly their tickets are for real now

you ever here of anything like this ?

Tribal Police Cannot charge you through a city county or state court unless they have commission from the sheriff in that county in which the reservation is located.

If they have been commissioned by the county and the infraction or citation is for Kitsap County it is good. If its for the tribe its no good unless the tribe has incorperated as a city which none in the united states have.If a reservation did incorperate as a city they would loose their soverin nation status.

Bowhunter,

I didn't pay for my trip. I was a guest. Anybody invites me to fish in waters where you need a guide, I'm going. Sorry.

You can play Don Quixote all you want, but nothing you and I say or do will change the treaties. Hiring a guide to fish on that river means that on that day they are not going to be netting.

I don't like gillnetting, especially on the Chehalis, but neither of us can do squat about it.

I fish that system about twice a year. This year I might just fish it three times. Nothing wrong with that.

Take care,

Andy

If someone gets a map of this area i would be very interested in seeing where exactely this non-rez land is, Fishy............

Theking,

In washington state only the state of washington can press charges.

A citizen in washington state does not have authority to press charges. A citizen in washington has the right to file a complaint with law enforcement. Law enforcement then has the authority to persue charges with the court if they feel the charges are waranted.

In idaho the citizen has the authority to press charges but this is not the case in washington.

Hey Andy,

I used to fish it alot because my uncle used to log with one of the guides dads out on the quinualt but then politics got involved with the rest of the guides when they caught wind of how little I was paying them.... it is just a personal thing with me now....that used to be a better system than it is now where guys could take off down river and catch fish everywhere now through the years it has washed out and the number of good holes has diminished so all the clients really only have a few holes to crowd in.... the returns there are still really good and from what I hear pretty hot right now!!! our hatcheries could learn a thing or two about steelhead.....
anyway good luck out there.... and go bonk some fish!!!!!!

oh and letty is a good fishing gal.... she knows what she is doing......

Huuuum, seems like the last time I was at the Salmon there were signs on both sides of the bridge (downriver side) that said, "This is National Park" no guns allowed or somethig like that..
Maybe check with a Ranger. Isn't there a R station on 101 near Queets?

Peri, you were at the Queets River road, not Q1000.

Rich,

Thats what I said. The citzen swears a complaint, the officer files it and the DA decides if there is a reason to prosecute a case.

Hey Rich,

Are we gonna be able to make a 1 or 2 dayer out in the OP? If so let me know I'll spring for the motel!

You are right Andy, it was Queets R. road..

Guess I'd better peek at my Gazetteer to locate the road in question!!

Mavrick,

I doubt it while im over here anyways.

When I get back over to the right side then oh ya.

Ok on regards of the salmon I been fishing it for twenty years and have been escorted off the res. many times but never got a ticket or fine in the process or ever heard of anyone getting one just told to politely leave Larry the tribal officer is actually a real decent guy, I really don't fish it at all any more because all the pressure has just ruined it!!! Cook creek is on fire fished with letty last couple of days and it is a bannere year for sure hope a few of our hatcheries can kind of come up to bat also!!!PEACE

I fish with Letty a few times a year , and yes she know's what she is doing on the river .
If you knew her at all you would not be so critical . Letty is a good guide, and a very good person , and is very thankful and respects the places she has to fish. Go to some of our rivers and look at some of the trash on the ground.