By Steve Jones
Many Washington fly fishers have good memories of Chopaka Lake north of Tonasket in the Okanogan NationalForest. Though it’s had its up and down years, the lake has reliably produced lots of big trout for fly fishers. That was in danger after apparent vandalism in early 2025 to a water diversion on Chopaka Creek reduced the flow of wateri nto the lake, which threatened the fishery.
Representatives of the Methow Valley Fly Fishers and the Okanagon Fly Club met in September with Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife representatives to talk about repairing the damage and preserving the water right from Chopaka Creek that supplements natural flow into the lake.
WDFW responded and recently Pete Speer, President of the Methow Valley Fly Fishers wrote with “wonderful news
about Chopaka.”
The state issued speedy permits for the repairs and WDFW brought together crews from its Scotch Creek and
Sinlahekin wildlife areas to get the work done before winter.
“Overall, it sounds as if things should be all set for Chopaka,” Pete wrote. “We lucked out that our wildlife area crews were able to get the equipment and had the time to respond so quickly.” The fishers in the Methow and Okanogan clubs will keep an eye on the lake, said Pete, but for now “everything is still functioning appropriately, and things have remained as they should.”
Thanks to the fishers in the Methow and Okanagon clubs for spotting the problem and working for a quick fix.