The fleet will be out in force Saturday morning for sure, celebrating opening day of the boating season, participating in the first weekend day of the lingcod fishery, and the first day of the two-day recreational spot shrimp season in local waters. Get your ramp spot early.
The shrimp opener will draw the bulk of the fishing fraternity, and it should be a normal season, according to state Fish and Wildlife Department shrimp biologist Mark O’Toole at the agency’s La Conner office. O’Toole said test fisheries by the department recently showed above average populations of the big, prawn-size spot shrimp in Hood Canal, Marine Area 9, and Marine Area 7; about average numbers in Marine Area 8; and populations a little below average in Discovery Bay.
The WDFW last week expanded shrimping opportunity in Marine Area 7 West, the west side of the San Juan Islands — Friday Harbor/Roche Harbor/San Juan Channel — from an originally-scheduled 13 fishing days to 30 days. The area will now be open daily, beginning Saturday, and will close when the recreational quota is reached or Sept. 15, whichever comes first.
The season in Marine Area 7 East and South, along with the rest of Puget Sound remain unchanged.
The very popular Iceberg Point on the south end of Lopez Island, a shrimp hot spot, is in Marine Area 7 South, and doesn’t participate in the season expansion.
The reason for the additional opportunity, O’Toole said, is that recreational shrimpers in 7 West didn’t reach their quota last year.
O’Toole said commercial shrimpers are probably done with one-day openings in the Edmonds area, areas 8-1 and 8-2, and Area 7.
Where to soak a pot? “There are a lot of productive shrimping spots around here,” O’Toole said, “but the south and southeast sides of Gedney (Hat) Island and the Clinton shoreline should be worth a try, along with almost anywhere in the Everett area.”
Other than Area 7 West, scheduled spot shrimp seasons are as follows: Hood Canal (Marine Area 12), open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 2, 9, 11 and 13; Discovery Bay (Marine Area 6), open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on May 2, 9, 11 and 13; marine areas 4, 5, 6 and 13 (except Discovery Bay), open daily beginning May 2 until quota or Sept. 15; marine areas 7 East, South and West, open May 2 for a one-day fishery and reopen May 13-16, May 20-23, and May 27-30 (except for 7 West, above); marine areas 8-1, 8-2 and 9, open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on May 2 and May 13.
For a full shrimp schedule, see www.wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/shellfishing.
Mike Chamberlain at Ted’s Sports Center in Lynnwood suggested shrimping “anywhere from in front of Edmonds up to Brown’s Bay; Picnic Point; north of Mukilteo; Elger Bay; Baby Island/Greenbank; Utsalady (the deeper spots) and Columbia Beach.” He says it’s crucial to use lots of oily bait and scent, and to pull after an hour to see how you’ve done. If you haven’t, move.
Average shrimping depth, Chamberlain says, is about 240 to 300 feet plus or minus, and he likes a minimum of 10 pounds of weight in his pot. Go to 30 or 40 pounds if you’re fishing deep or the tide is really running — some places in the Strait or San Juans.
Commercial bait pellets are a good place to start, he says, adding things like fish cat food; cheap tuna, salmon or mackerel; fish or egg oils made by Pro Cure and others; salmon or tuna carcasses; guts from cleaned fish; leftover salmon eggs frozen from last season, and other stuff, the oilier the better.
For traps, he likes the conical (top smaller in diameter than the bottom) commercial type, and looks to Kufa, Ladner, or Dungeness Gear Works for quality equipment.
Big trout
The Lachapelle family scored big over the weekend, as younger daughter Morgan won the kids’ fishing event at Fortson Pond in Darrington on Saturday and older daughter Lexus took the Lake Tye derby on Sunday, in Monroe. Morgan’s rainbow measured 17.5 inches, while Lexus’ fish weighed in at 6 pounds, 4 ounces. Proud Dad Kevin Lachapelle said Lexus has now won the Sky Valley Chapter, Trout Unlimited-sponsored kids’ event two of the last three years.
And opening day angler Marlin Methven nailed a 5-pound, 12-ounce trophy ‘bow trolling on Lake Ki. The fish measured 22.5 inches in length.
Bass tourney
The 2015 Potholes Open Bass Tournament, one of the largest in the Northwest, produced 1,068 bass over the weekend of April 18-19 for 103 entrants. That included 907 largemouth and 161 smallmouth. The winning team was Levi Rodelo of Warden, and Peter Kline of Tulalip, who fished the dunes for 47.21 pounds of bass, weighed and released. The team’s largest fish weighed 5.6 pounds; the largest taken in the derby was a largemouth of 7.6 pounds.
Lingcod
The San Juan Islands remain the place to go for lingcod on our inland waters, due to the wealth of rocky habitat found there. The season opens May 1 and a lot of spots in the islands will produce fish, but depending on how far you want to run, Kevin John at Holiday Sports in Burlington lists these favorites: Deception Pass, for the first couple of weeks of the season; Burrows and Allan islands south of Anacortes; the south side of Lopez Island; Cattle Point; Iceberg Point; and Point Colville, among a lot of others.
Eastside trout results
Selected opening day trout results from the Columbia Basin:
Grant County: Park and Blue lakes in the Sun Lakes group, didn’t run up large numbers, but the fish were big. Anglers averaged 3.5 trout per rod, but they averaged 15 inches and included some larger holdover fish. Park Lake rainbow averaged 14 inches, and anglers took 2.3 trout per rod. Anglers on Warden Lake took 3.1 fish per person, average, but the rainbow were smaller, at 10 inches, and showed very few larger holdover trout.
Okanogan County: Alta Lake put out a 2.6 fish per person average, to 17 inches; Big Twin, 1.8 to 18 inches; Chopaka (flies only), 7.9 per rod; Conconully Lake, 3.4 to 17 inches; Conconully Reservoir, 2.8 to 12 inches; Pearrygin, 0.4, to 17 inches; and Wannacut, 0.5, to 11 inches.
Chelan County: Wapato Lake, 4.8 per person, to 18 inches.
Douglas County: Jameson Lake, 3.3, to 17 inches.
Wood ducks
The wood duck cams maintained by the Richland Rod and Gun Club are now showing hatching ducklings and the “jump” out of the box. Live streaming video at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/rrgc-nestcam.
Commission nominee draws fire
A coalition of sportfishing interests released Tuesday its opposition to a nomination by Oregon governor Kate Brown to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission. The group requested that the governor withdraw her recent nomination of Bruce Buckmaster, saying in the release that “for the last decade Buckmaster has served as a lobbyist, spokesman and chief strategist for the commercial gillnet industry.”
Members of the coalition include the Coastal Conservation Association of Oregon; the Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association; the Northwest Steelheaders; the Northwest Guides and Anglers Association; and the McKenzie River Guides.
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