Up until April 2005 Mike did all the web design using Microsoft Front Page. In July of 2004 WL.com was contacted by Aaron Borg, fishing enthusiast and web programer. He made the same suggestion that Mike made to Dave Weitl back in 1996 - "I'd like to help with some neat ideas to improve the site". Ten months and uncounted hours of hard labor later, you see the results. WL.com is now a searchable database. This change has allowed the site to move to a whole new level with rich possibilities and benefits to the readers. Now readers can search for old reports, better view current reports, and access information in a much easier and logical manner. WL.com will never be the same, and this is thanks in large part to Aaron's hard work and dedication. We all owe him a huge THANK YOU for his efforts.

If there is no recent report it's because no one has sent in a report for us to post. NWFR relies on readers to submit reports. The idea is simple- you tell me how you did fishing, and I tell you how I did. Enough of us telling each other information creates a useful tool for deciding where we want to fish and what may (or may not) work.

Sometimes our readers express concern that they are giving away their best spots. We wouldn't want you to report on your favorite 10 acre fishing hole unless you wanted to share with the rest of us. There are thousands of places to fish in the Pacific Northwest - that's plenty of water to go around! Most of the locations readers send reports on are well known and regularly stocked by fisheries management. They are hardly "secrets". But if you feel uncomfortable about sharing a spot - don't! You have the option of submitting a "Secret Location" report. You can share you're fishing trip but not reveal the name of the location. Make us guess it! Everyone is welcome to this site - whether you send in reports or not. (But we do hope you'll share in the spirit of goodwill that other readers display)

"Why don't you have a section for...?" I often get a question like "Why don't you have a section for pan fish?" The reason is I haven't had a chance to add it, or maybe I never even thought to add it, or maybe I just haven't had the time or energy to add it. I definitely look to the readers for ideas and suggestions. Unfortunately, I'm not always able to add the things people want. I have to allocate the amount of time I have to work on the web site to first keep up to date with submitted reports, and then look to adding new features to the site. And, the features have to have enough interest to be used by the readers. So you may not always get the sections you request, but I will always give them full consideration and try to respond to you with the reason I decided not to add it. Finally, I am always looking for help with this web site. If you have an idea and want to "flesh it out" for me, I would be very grateful. I am always looking for help, especially as the site grows in size and readership.

Reports may not get posted for several reasons. We do not knowingly post reports have illegal fishing practices in them. We do not post reports are rude, vulgar, call out others, that are racist or for any other reason we deem them to be inappropriate for a family site.

From time to time we receive a report for a location that may be closed, or maybe the angler is using bait when it's a no bait allowed fishery, or maybe some other regulation is broken. Usually a reader will pick up on this and send us an e-mail wanting to know what's up? Because there are so many places to fish in the Pacific Northwest, we am unable to keep track of the various regs for each body of water. If we get a report and it has something illegal in it, we’re not always aware of it, and the report gets posted. When readers alert us to violations in reports, we will review the report and confirm there is a violation. We will then remove the report. We are unable to keep up with the specific rules on every location in the Pacific NW. While this web site can provide a lot of useful information, it is the responsibility of each individual to know the regs for the body of water they are fishing.

Probably not. We've posted most all the maps that are available on the web or from WDFW. Many of these maps were made years ago by the then Dept of Game but if we find more we will post them to the site.

Great! We can use the help. Many of our members have provided support to NWFR as moderators, helping at community events, and even submitting feature length articles on techniques and locations. We are thrilled to be able to let aspiring writers have an opportunity to practice their craft. Contact us at [email protected] for questions and to learn more.

E-mail addresses are private and will not be posted unless specifically requested by the writer. This site does not use cookies, however, sponsors and associated sites may. Disable cookies in your browser if this is an issue. E-mail addresses and personal information will not be given out to private parties, however, may be given to advertisers on the site when you have won a contest that the advertiser is providing a prize for. The content on this site may not be reproduced or copied without permission of the editor. Material submitted to this web site may be used as deemed fit by the editor. Contributors of submitted material to this web site allow use of said material on this web site perpetually. Disclaimer: Know your regulations. Information on this web page is provided by readers. The web master does not make any guarantees as to the accuracy of regulations reported by readers or the season/catch regulations on any particular lake. You are responsible for knowing the regulations of the lake you are fishing. Another Disclaimer: Information found on this web site is for entertainment purposes only. Fishing, boating, and hiking can be dangerous activities. Readers should exercise due caution and diligence and not rely solely on information found on this web site when visiting a new lake to recreate on or hike to.

The report form is for reports only. If you send in general questions to other readers on the report form they will not get posted. I try to respond to the sender to tell them, but if there is no e-mail address then the question just gets deleted. Questions to other readers should be posted on the WashingtonLakes.com Readers Forum.

We believe that NWFR provides a useful tool for anglers to share information and actually gives anglers more opportunities and choices on where to go fishing, thereby reducing pressure on all locations. We do agree that a hot report can have the effect of sending anglers to specific spots. That said, using NWFR as a research tool will allow our readers to find new locations to fish that aren’t the current "most talked about" spots. These heavily talked about spots tend to be terminal fisheries, while locations found on NWFR using our various research features will provide anglers with new fisheries that are not being heavily fished.