Anyone been fishing Puget Sound lately

Cutty Sark · Posted: Tue Jul 31, 2007 11:40 am Post subject:

Tom--SHhhh. Just kidding, Fish PnP today,with the wife and kids, had some issues with bad realese clips but once I got that worked out it was on fire, probably hooked into 15-18 kings altogether in about 4 hours, multiple doubles etc... Landed probably about 10-12 of the fish hooked, some real beauties, but most had one too many fins. 2-3 were high teens low 20's, one we lost right at the boat was bigger, and my wife had on a monster that we lost after about 20 mins of fighting it, It just kept peeling line over and over, I really wish we would have seen that one just to know the size, you never know, but I think it was a very large fish. We got two hatchery fish that we kept about 7 and 13 lbs, and countless memories. My 6 year old, fought half the fish and finally got a keeper to the boat all by himself. Truly an unbeleivable day, definitly one of the best days I've had. I love this fishery, and I am hoping it stays open at least until wednesday so I can get out again. I can't see it making it to the weekend. Although when we got in the fish checker had check 26 boats himself and only seen 6 fish. I saw Sensei heading in when we were going out, in the mukilteo area.Now to the details. We were fishing a green splatterback coho killer, behind a green flasher, and a green ace hi fly behind a chrome flasher, 110-140 feet of water right on the bottom most of the time. Both setups produced equally well. All the fish I have caught out there in the last two weeks have had 4-5 inch herring in their stomachs. get out there if you can!!!

Jazzmanic · Posted: Tue Jul 31, 2007 1:56 pm Post subject:

Great report Sark. I hope it stays open until Friday, that's the earliest I can get out. I'm kicking myself not going to PNP. Sad

Peter

Jazzmanic · Posted: Tue Jul 31, 2007 7:45 pm Post subject:

Alas, we can no longer keep Chinook in Area 9 as of midnight. Cry

Chinook salmon fishing in Area 9
will close at end of the day July 31

OLYMPIA – The recreational fishery in Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet) will close to the retention of hatchery chinook salmon at the end of today (July 31), when the catch is expected to reach the season quota for that area, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW).

Peter

Robbi · Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 10:52 pm Post subject: 17 pound King

They told me not to bother. The Chambers Bay kings were too difficult to catch on a fly. So of course, I gave it a try. Yesterday I hooked into two, one took me 150 yards into my backing. He was just headed "out"! I lost them both, but it was enough to bring me back today. And guess who came along? Cordell. First time fishing in C-Run for him. Too bad he didn't stick around another 10 minutes. I hooked my first fish today right after I took him back to the dock. I was anchored up in the current and there was no way I could hold the fish. He really ran to deep water. So I rigged up my anchor to a float that I could deploy if I hooked up. A few minutes later I hooked another, and I managed to uncleat the anchor and was able to at least put up a fair fight. The fish was on the darker side, but was still a fighter. Way into the backing again, but this time I got the fish back to the boat. Three looks at the net, and three more runs. Then I was able to get it in the net. Great fun. Hope Cordell is there to catch the next one.

Robbi

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rogerbum · Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 11:36 pm Post subject:

Nice going and even nicer picture. Sometime I should get you in my boat so I can get properly schooled on how to fish salt with a fly rod. I've fished streams for trout and lakes for bass and pan fish with the fly rod but haven't ever used it in the salt. You clearly have it figured out...

Sea Wolf · Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 12:01 am Post subject:

Robbi-

Nice going!

And good sportfishing too!

It's nice to hear from someone not trying to just pack the freezer as tight as possible!

Joe.

Squarehead · Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 1:59 am Post subject:

nice one!

CatyMae n Steve · Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 9:08 am Post subject:

Great story -- too bad Cordell wasn't there...maybe he'll stay onboard longer next time Wink

Well done!

Robbi · Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 10:05 am Post subject:

If you want to fly fish puget sound (or the straits) and have a good shot at catching a salmon, NOW is the time. If you have a 6, 7, or 8 weight rod,(6 is ideal) a reel with a good drag, go find a pod of pinks and throw a pink fly their way. Talk about a great fish on a fly rod! If you don't know where the pinks are, go to any beach with fishermen lined up way to close to have any fun landing a fish, and start looking for fish out of the way of their buzz bombs. Most beach fishers fish points of land, but pinks can usually be found in the bays on either side of the points, especially the closer they get to their home rivers. Unlike kings and silvers, pinks will keep on chasing flies readily during their waiting period. The pink run this year is huge. I don't think that we will see a run like this one again for many years-if ever.

I usually have an open seat. Robbi

Sawdust · Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 11:13 am Post subject:

Robbi,

WAY TO GO

Dusty

Robbi · Posted: Fri Nov 09, 2007 1:35 am Post subject:

Oh, Another fish story! I was out this afternoon enjoying the calm weather and I had my fly rod with me, but there wasn't much going on. Just before sunset I decided to head back to Steilacoom from the east end of Fox Island. It's about a two mile crossing. I saw a big tractor tug coming up from the south and behind him about a mile was a big freighter. We don't get too many large ships south of the Narrows Bridge, but there are a few that go to the port of Olympia. I thought that I would cruise across between the two boats. When I hit the wake of the tug, the freighter was still about a mile south of me, but now I could see four patrol boats, those red inflatables with the hard bottoms, two huge outboards and a 50 caliber mounted on the bow, escorting the ship on all four of it's corners. They had there blue lights flashing so I figured it had to be a military ship. I knew that one had just off loaded the equipment for a stryker brigade that had recently returned to Fort Lewis from Iraq. I was about 45 degrees off of the bow of the ship when I saw something that I have never seen before. In 250 of water, a school of large salmon was feeding on the surface. They were showing all of their backs as they came out of the water not 50 feet from the boat. These were 10 to 15 pound fish. I couldn't believe it Shocked

. I had broken down my rod at Fox Island, so I stopped the boat and went forward and grabbed my rod. I was fumbling getting it together while these salmon were still on the surface. I finally got the rod together and was just about to make a cast when I heard the siren. Oh crap. I looked back and here was one of the gun boats closing in on my stern, a blue light special! I knew my best move was not to move, so I waited while they closed in. They stopped and the man at the gun on the bow, dressed in full combat gear, gulp, called out to me that I was to "move towards shore until the ship passed." I said (like I had a choice) "sure thing," but then I added as I continued to hold my fly rod like some kind of lame excuse, " you see all of those salmon?" He turned out to be quite chatty and said "we saw porpoises just south of here" The blue light was still flashing and I knew that I had no chance of even one cast to a pod of fish the likes of which I will probably never see again. I moved on as the USNS Britten passed 1/2 mile to starboard with three corners guarded, and one patol boat straying a bit towards Chambers Bay.

chromer · Posted: Fri Nov 09, 2007 9:44 pm Post subject:

Robbi,

What were you planning to throw at these fish? A Miwayki popper or perhaps a Deceiver? Could you see them chasing bait?

Robbi · Posted: Sat Nov 10, 2007 12:15 am Post subject:

I had a brown and white clouser tied on that was about 2 inches long. Not a lot of time to pick out a new fly. I don't think they were after baitfish, not the usual slashing behavior. My guess is they were feeding on euphausids which are starting to show up in large numbers.

Robbi

Sea Wolf · Posted: Sat Nov 10, 2007 1:04 am Post subject:

DaveS · Posted: Sat Nov 10, 2007 3:39 am Post subject:

Hi Robbi,
With all that is going on with the demonstrators in Olympia after the unloading of the Stryker Brigade vehicles, you are fortunate that they didn't use the 50 cals on you. (With the footage I saw on TV, I would imagine that had the O.P.D. officers been on the fast boats they might have, as they're patience is probably wearing thin).
(It is reminding me of the late 60's during Viet Nam days).