Fishing Reports for September 7
Washington
Marine Area 1 (Ilwaco)
Action this past weekend was Hot and Furious with many boat filling and heading in by noon. Much more of what we have become accustomed to in the past few years. Troll Jigs to pick up that first fish, then it is a live bait show. Purple and Black seems to be the color of choice. For those who do not have live bait capabilities, when you get a jig strike, continue to troll for 10 to 15 second before stopping. This will most likely result in a second or third hit.
This fishery should continue into mid-October if the weather allows.
The popular bay fishery and the Boat Basin fishery here in Westport will kick into action later this month. Check the WDFW site for details.
No word on Razor Clam digs as of yet but we should hear something soon.
Head down to the coast to enjoy the fall weather.
Marine Area 3 (LaPush and Forks)
no report this week
Marine Area 4 (Neah Bay)
no report this week
Marine Area 5
no report this week
Marine Area 6
no report this week
Marine Area 7
Jim Weaver with a nice Chinook. Came up loaded with candlefish. Lack of bait hasn’t been a problem in MA 7.
The San Juans continue to be slow for Chinook. There are fish caught every day, but not huge numbers, and not huge fish. Yet. September can see a big push of big fish. Let’s hope that happens. Recent rains won’t hurt. At some point the King’s will make a move for their home rivers.
Marine Area 8.1
no report this week
Marine Area 8.2
no report this week
Marine Area 9 (Admirality Inlet)
no report this week
Marine Area 10
no report this week
Marine Area 11
The salmon fishing is closed through January 2017 in area MA 11 however in MA 13 from the Narrows Bridge to Olympia salmon fishing will reopen Oct. 1st 2016.
Crab fishing has closed for now while WDFW crunches numbers to see if there is any quota left to allow a winter harvest of Dungeness crab.
There are Squid around the area docks for those who would like to try their hand at Squid fishing, also the Pt. Defiance Marina is providing Squid fishing classes for more information just call 253-591-5325.
Point Defiance Marina has rental boats and motors and launch and overnight moorage facilities with pump out stations and shore power. In addition we have storage space for boats up to 17 feet as well as kayak storage. For more information call 253-591-5325.
Basic Fishing Classes are offered throughout the summer months. Two-hour classes are $15.00 and can be designed for youth and adults. Boat House Tackle Shop open 7 days a week.
Boat lifts open at 5am tackle shop open 5:30am tackle shop close 8:30pm boat lifts 8:50 and facility 9:00pm. For more information call 253-591-5325 Call 253-591-5325 or visit us on Facebook “Point Defiance Marina.”
Pier Peer in Tacoma Marine Night
Saturday September 17 , 2016 from 7:30 – 9 pm Ages 8+ Cost $8 each Family Night on the Point Defiance Pier learning about marine life that divers find and that can be seen in the night lights off the pier. More information here.
Point Defiance Marina Fall Swap Meet
Report submitted by Point Defiance Marina. For more information contact: Art Tachell, Boathouse Marina Technician, 253.591.5325 art@tacomaparks.com www.pointdefiancemarina.com.
Marine Area 12 (Hood Canal)
no report this week
Marine Area 13
no report this week
Freshwater – Lake Chelan
Our summer pattern of trolling for Lake Trout on Chelan early in the morning on the Bar with a sprinkling of big fish continues hot even as we approach Labor Day. Also, hot is trolling the trench later in the mornings. The good news as I write this is cooler damper weather has entered the area. Luckily, no fires have threatened the area this summer, so far…
Mr. Jaureeva with his 17.9 pound birthday fish.
On the Bar, look for depths from 118 to 150 feet deep. That lower hump is still covered with fish during the first hour of light. Later in the morning it is best to troll in the trench at depths of 215 feet to 250 feet. As always, fish within 3 to 5 feet of the bottom and keep your speed from 1.1 to 1.4 mph. Jeff’s drift rig in green has worked quite well off the downriggers in both locations. Bait these rigs with a chunk of Northern Pikeminnow. Scent everything with Pautzke’s Krill Juice. On the Bar, those T4 GPLF Flatfish by Worden Lures continue to be the “go to” big fish lure. For the trench, I switch the outrigger rods over to Silver Horde’s Kingfisher Lite in Green Splatterback Double Glow in the 3.5 size.
The fishing tip of the week is to remember to use set tension releases when deepwater trolling here on Chelan. Pinch pad style downrigger releases will result in too many false release to be efficient or to have much fun. We really like the simplicity and reliability of Sam’s Pro Releases by Gold Star / Silver Horde for a great set tension release. Remember to wrap your line 4 or 5 times on the hard plastic pin, not on the rubber spacer for best results.
The Hunts with their Pile ‘o Lakers!
The kid’s tip of the week is to use the ever shortening block of after school daylight hours to enjoy the fall fishing bounty and the beauty of our area. A couple of hours on the Lake or dunking bait at Roses or Antilon is always fun. Although it would mean a drive back in the dark, this is a great time to take them to the Tumwater Canyon of the Upper Wenatchee to watch the spawning Chinook. A huge push of Fall Chinook are expected up the entire Columbia system. A hearty after school snack will get them through until a later dinner. Remember to keep it short. Minutes for a school age child are like hours to an oldster like me. Acceptance of that fact is necessary to make it enjoyable for them. Resistance is futile…
The safety tip of the week is to read your local weather report and be aware of incoming weather when fishing Lake Chelan in the fall. This is the time of transition in the Valley. When the colder low pressure systems collide with those lovely high pressure ridges that give us our typically beautiful fall weather, violent albeit short lived wind and lightning can result. If we are expecting one of those patterns, plan your proximity to the launch site accordingly.
For more info call Anton & Sandra Jones of Darrell & Dad’s Family Guide Service;darrellanddads.com; antonj@aol.com or call (509)687-0709 or toll free at (866)360-1523.
Freshwater – Potholes Reservoir
This past weekend the weather was perfect. All campsites were filled as usual on Labor day. Fishing was good for some, while others could not buy a fish. I fished Potholes and Corral over the weekend and had a good time. Walleye are now starting to show and the bass fishing is good. The lake is low but higher then normal for this date. I did get back into the dunes area accessing by the Whale bones and motored slowly. I did see boats that had grounded them selves in shallow water over a sandy bottom. The launches were crowded so patience was needed as once a year boaters were out.
Report submitted by Tom Pollack.
British Columbia
Vancouver
no report this week
Vancouver Island (Saltwater)
no report this week
Alberni Inlet, Barkley Sound, and Ucuelet
Tracy and Bryan fish with Doug of Slivers Charters and landed these two Coho as a double header at Assets Island
The Alberni Valley and all of Barkley Sound has experienced rain fall over the past few days which has helped many of the migrating salmon swim much more quickly to their natal streams, creeks and rivers. Fresh Chinook and Coho are moving from the vast Pacific Ocean into Barkley Sound. The salmon that have recently reached the waters of Barkley Sound will migrate fairly rapidly up into the Alberni Inlet. The water in much of the Inlet and also Barkley Sound is not stagnant and has cooled down dramatically which help the salmon to migrate a little more quickly. The Chinook and Coho will also be a little more eager to bite the variety of lures put out by many anglers. There are currently plenty of Chinook and Coho Salmon in the system.
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has announced that there is a decrease in the Chinook run size returning to the Somass River System. The original forecast of one hundred and twenty thousand Chinook returning to the River system has been cut in half to approximately sixty thousand.
The best salmon fishing currently is in Barkley Sound. The many salmon that were in the Alberni Inlet have moved into the River system. The Inlet will fill with fresh salmon in the coming days. Weather conditions are forecast to improve and warmer air is in the immediate forecast which will slow the salmon migration. This will also be very true of the salmon down in Barkley Sound locations. The ample Chinook and Coho at Swale Rock, Harbor Entrance,Pill Point, Assets Island, and the Bamfield Wall should hold for a few days. The Bamfield Wall has been inconsistent for the last ten days. Pill Point, Swale Rock, Harbor Entrance and Assets have all had very consistent sport fishing over the same amount of time. The salmon in the sound have been biting and feeding very hard around tide changes. The Chinook and Coho are also very active between tides. The same scenario has been true for those fishing in the inlet. The salmon are in fairly shallow water in Barkley Sound and also the Alberni Inlet. Fishing between thirty and fifty feet has not been uncommon. The best lures in the Alberni Inlet are the O-2, 0-15, 0-16, spatterback and AORL 12 hootchies. Anchovy in the Inlet is also working. In Barkley Sound anchovy in a variety of Rhys Davis Teaser Heads seem ideal and for many is working the best. Leader lengths from five and a half to six feet behind gold, green, or burgundy flashers with a gold face are working very well. The AORL 12 hootchie with 38 to 42 inches of leader behind a burgundy and gold flasher or a kinetic flasher is ideal for Coho in Barkley Sound and the Alberni Inlet.
Entries for this year’s Salmon Festival Derby have been remarkably encouraging. There will be many boaters on the water. Safety precautions are always of importance.
For more information and/or reservations, call Doug Lindores at Slivers Charters Salmon Sport Fishing (250) 723-2435; (250)724-2502; cell (250)731-7389 or 1-877-214-7206 www.catchsalmon.ca or www.catchsalmon-ca.com; dlindy@shaw.ca. The cover image of this week’s reports, showing Jin from Toronto with a twenty-three pound Chinook, was also contributed by Doug.
Salmon fishing inside Barkley sound this past week has been good, but there are signs of it slowing down for Chinooks.There has been some nice fish and with the Port Alberni Salmon Festival Derby this past weekend, lots of boats were on the water.
The winning fish was brought in right from the Bamfield area. A whopping 53.3 Chinook. This fish nets winner Dan Weatherby $15,000. Dan was trolling a 3.5 in. Silver Horde, Cookies and Cream spoon behind a flasher when the monster hit. After a missed attempt at netting the fish on the first try, the second attempt was a success and the fish was his.
The offshore banks are producing lots of Coho and a few mature Chinooks as well as small feeders.
Halibut fishing is going strong with lots of 30- 60 pound fish being taken the last few day by guys who put the time in. Dog fish have been a pain at times but worth the hassle until the Halibut bite.
For more info call Ken Bodaly at Rocky Point Charters, Bamfield, B.C. 250-728-3678 or the boat cell phone 250-735-4224 website:www.rockypointcharters.ca email: rockypointcharters@shaw.ca facebook:Rocky Point Charters
Salmon fishing was GOOD this past week although spotty at times. There have been a lot of smaller springs around as well as fish in the teens and twenties. A couple of fish in the low thirties were also caught. The Trap Shack, Beechey Head and Aldridge Point were the most productive locations to fish. The coho fishing has been steady with anglers getting 7-11 lb hatchery fish as well lots of wild coho. Those who targeted coho did quite well using spoons. Anglers using bait are finding anchovies in glow teaser heads have been working best. Also good are spoons, such as the G-Force and Skinny G, in Bon Chovy or Outfitters’ colours. For flashers, the Betsey, Lemon Lime and Bon Chovi have been good.
Submitted by Tom Vaida, Island Outfitters, 3319 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC (250) 475-4969 info@fishingvictoria.com; www.fishingvictoria.com
Oak Bay
Salmon fishing was SLOW again this past week. There were some springs up to 12 lbs caught on the flats but not too many were taken.. Good trolling lures have been Coho Killers, Bon Chovi or Outfitters Skinny G spoons. Anglers jigging have been using Needlefish Darts, Point Wilson Darts or Deep Stingers. Halibut fishing was FAIR this past week. However, most anglers that were fishing for halibut were using extra large herring, salmon bellies and/or octopus for bait. Also working well was the 9” Jumbo Squid in Green Glow. Also working well, and discouraging to dogfish, was the 9” Jumbo Squid in Green Glow.
Submitted by Tom Vaida, Island Outfitters, 3319 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC (250) 475-4969 info@fishingvictoria.com; www.fishingvictoria.com
Pedder Bay
Hunter Grant caught a 50lb halibut caught on the southwest corner of Constance Bank on Sunday.
Salmon fishing was GOOD this past week. The best chinook fishing was near the entrance of Pedder Bay and Bentick Island. There have been loads of salmon and bait there and good bites have been early in the morning, on the tide changes and late in the evening. Some hatchery coho up to 10 lbs were also caught. Anglers targeting the coho have been quite successful trolling out in the deeper water. Anchovies were the top bait this past week. Good choices for teaser head colors are UV Green, Chartreuse, Bloody Nose and Purple Haze. Flashers that are popular include the Betsey, Lemon-Lime and Madi.
Halibut fishing was FAIR this past week. The best areas were Race Rocks, William Head, 27 Fathom reef and Constance Bank. Anglers that were fishing were using extra large herring, salmon bellies and/or octopus for bait. Berkley Gulp and Powerbait soft plastics also work very well. You can also use Mudraker, Lucky or 9” Jumbo Squids if you want to stay away from the dogfish.
Submitted by Tom Vaida, Island Outfitters, 3319 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC (250) 475-4969 info@fishingvictoria.com; www.fishingvictoria.com
Sidney
Salmon fishing was SLOW BUT BETTER this past week. The Pender Bluffs produced springs up to 30 lbs but not very many fish. The Powder Wharf area also gave up a few fish, especially on the evening bite. Anglers using spoons found Coho Killers, Gibbs Needle G and AP Tackleworks needlefish spoons the most successful this past year. Anglers jigging have also been caught springs using Needlefish Darts and Deep Stingers. The Powder Wharf and Shag Rocks area are popular for jigging salmon.
Effective July 25, 2016 at 00:01 hours until October 14, 2016 at 23:59 hours, you may not retain Chinook salmon in the following waters: Subareas 18-6 to 18-8, 18-10.
Submitted by Tom Vaida, Island Outfitters, 3319 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC (250) 475-4969 info@fishingvictoria.com; www.fishingvictoria.com
Sooke
The salmon fishing was GOOD last week. Muir Creek, Possession Point and Secretary Island were the hotspots. The springs seem to be either at one or the other of these locations each day. The fish have been running shallower with 20-60 feet on the downrigger the best depths. There were some big springs in the 20’s and low 30’s, lots of teens and some small ones too. The coho fishing has been good and many of them were big. The hatchery fish were running from 8–14 lbs and the wild, unmarked coho were even bigger. The wild fish outnumbered the hatchery fish this past week. Anchovies are now the top choice for bait and good choices for teaser head colors are UV Green, Chartreuse, Bloody Nose and Purple Haze.The top spoons for Sooke anglers are the White Lightening and Irish Cream Coho Killers. For flashers, you can’t go wrong with a Super Betsey, Madi or Bon Chovi Flasher. Hootchies in White, Cop Car and Army Truck have been effective recently.
Submitted by Tom Vaida, Island Outfitters, 3319 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC (250) 475-4969 info@fishingvictoria.com; www.fishingvictoria.com.
Victoria
Fishing for salmon was GOOD this past week. The week started out with lots of springs and coho off the harbour area. It slowed down on Thursday and Friday but picked up again on the weekend. The wild coho were as large the teens in size and hatchery coho up to 12 lbs were caught. There were good bites at times and other long periods were there was nothing happening. The best depths have been 40 to 75 feet on the downrigger. There were good bites at Macauley, the V21 buoy, the breakwall, Brotchie Ledge and Clover Point. Most of the springs have been from 8 to 15 lbs in size but some in the twenties and low thirties were caught. Bob McMillan and Bob Pepper landed 4 springs Thursday off the breakwater that were 18 to 30 lbs in size. Anchovies have been a good bait to use (12 or 10 pack) and Bloody Nose, UV Green and Purple Haze have been the most popular colors for teaser heads. Spoons have been successful in getting hook ups as well. Green Spatter Back UV Coho Killers, 3.5” Cop Car spoons or AP Tackleworks needlefish spoons have also brought good results in Victoria.
Submitted by Tom Vaida, Island Outfitters, 3319 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC (250) 475-4969 info@fishingvictoria.com; www.fishingvictoria.com
Cowichan River
no report this week
Lakes
Fishing is GOOD in most lakes for both trout and bass. All streams within Management Units 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4, 1-5, and 1-6, except the Big Qualicum River, the Puntledge River and the Quinsam River are closed to fishing until further notice. For clarity, in freshwater management units 1-1 to 1-6 only the Big Qualicum, Puntledge and Quinsam/Campbell Rivers remain open to angling. Effective immediately to 23:59 hours Friday September 30th 2016 the Nitinat River will open to recreational angling for chinook and coho. The daily limit will be 4 salmon per day of which: • Two (2) may be chinook, of which only one (1) may be greater than 77 cm. in length, and• Two (2) may be coho, marked or unmarked.
Submitted by Tom Vaida, Island Outfitters, 3319 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC (250) 475-4969 info@fishingvictoria.com; www.fishingvictoria.com
no report this week
Oregon
Tillamook Bay
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife reports that fishing on the bay is fair with fall Chinook starting to show up; a few fish are being caught.
Great Lakes
Lake Michigan
no report this week
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