MarDon Fresh News – March 22, 2019 

The current water level on the Potholes reservoir is remaining fairly steady in the 1043.5-foot range. The Potholes Reservoir remains iced over and no launches are available yet. The Bureau did open the Potholes Canal several days ago – so water is flowing thru the system. With the warmer temperatures the ice should be off the Reservoir around April 1.

The Sandhill Crane festival begins today and runs thru the weekend in Othello. There are plenty of birds in the local fields and in the Columbia Basin Wildlife Refuge to watch as they make their annual stop-over on their way to Southern Alaska.

Along with the Sandhill Cranes, there are thousands of Snow Geese in the area as well. They are awesome to watch as they raft up on the Potholes Reservoir or set down in a field. The not so good side is that the Snow geese are  forcing the farmers in the area to replant fields as they eat differently than Canada geese. The Snow geese will grub thru the ground not only taking the above ground growth but the roots as well – thus clearing the ground of the crop. The Canada geese typically will graze on the above ground foliage leaving the roots intact allowing the crop to survive.

Call the MarDon Store for the latest and fishing info at 509-346-2651.

Thousands of Snow geese flying over an iced over Potholes Reservoir yesterday!

MarDon Fresh News – March 8, 2019

MarDon Fresh News – March 8, 2019

While winter is slow to give up its grip on the area this year, spring is right around the corner! The Central Washington Fish Advisory Committee has been busy building fish habitat boxes this winter and they will be placed in the Potholes Reservoir once it is free of ice. The MarDon Resort tackle store has been getting ready for the coming season – lots of new tackle arriving! We anticipate that the fishing will be outstanding this year based on the past two years.

The Sandhill Cranes will be arriving over the next several weeks. Take some time to drive thru the Columbia Basin Wildlife Refuge and surrounding fields to view these awesome birds as they pass through our area on their way to Southern Alaska. The Sandhill Crane festival is based out of Othello and will be held March 22, 23 & 24 of 2019.

There are a number of anglers ice fishing the Potholes Reservoir and the year around Seep Lakes. Reports of trout, a few perch and walleye are being caught in the Lind Coulee arm of the Reservoir. Make sure to check the regulations before fishing as many of the Seep Lakes have changed from a March 1 or April 1 opener to the 4^thSaturday in April.

New CWFAC  fish habitat boxes ready to be placed in the Potholes Reservoir as soon as it is ice-free!

Spring is right around the corner - hard to tell by the iced-in MarDon dock!