A funny thing happened on the way to the Stanwood Eagles Blackmouth Derby — it was canceled.
Actually, it wasn’t funny at all. Scheduled for April 9-10, the event had sold a bunch of tickets and coordinator Ed Keller had things ready to roll. Then, with only a week to go, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife folks announced that the derby’s waters, Marine Areas 8-1 and 8-2, would close to fishing on Monday, April 4.
Panic time. Keller stayed cool, however, and decided to hold the derby on April 2-3, instead. He and friends started calling and e-mailing ticket holders, and managed to raise a loyal group of 59 anglers who agreed to change their plans.
“All things considered, it went off well, Keller said. “Most of those who couldn’t participate on very short notice were able to give their tickets to friends, or make other arrangements. I ended up having to give refunds to only two people.”
And the fishing was pretty good. Keller weighed 29 fish and said there were probably another dozen caught in the 5- to 6-pound range that weren’t weighed. Not bad, compared to last year’s derby when 130-some participants weighed just 17 fish.
The chinook were good-sized, too. The top dog, worth $1,300, went 18 pounds even and was caught by Glen Helton Jr., off Greenbank on a spoon. In second place was Mike Johnson at 16 pounds, 13 ounces. He caught his fish in the North Bluff area. Third went to Tina Anderson at 13 pounds, 8 ounces, also fishing a spoon, at Ole’s Hole.
The state closure runs through April 30, so the Hot Plugs derby later this month, which Keller also runs, is off for now, he said.
Shrimp
Dates for recreational spot shrimp fishing in Puget Sound this year have been released by the state, and shellfish biologist Mark O’Toole in La Conner said the seasons are similar to those in 2015. All seasons will start one week later than usual, on May 14, because of extremely low tides on the traditional first Saturday in May.
The seasons are: Hood Canal, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 14, 18, 28 and 30; Discovery Bay, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on May 14, 18, 28 and 30; Marine Areas 4, 5 and 6, and 7 West, open daily starting May 14 and close when the quota is reached or Sept. 15, whichever comes first; Marine Area 7 South, daily May 14-31; Marine Area 7 East, open May 14-15, 18-21, and 25-28; Marine Areas 8-1, 8-2 and 9, open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 14 and May 18; Marine Areas 10 and 11, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 14; Marine Area 13, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 14, 18, 21 and 31.
Kids’ fishing class
With the April 23 opening of statewide lowland lake trout fishing season on the horizon, parents might want to take their youngsters to a kids’ trout fishing class scheduled from 6-8 p.m. on April 13 at Silver Lake Park on the west side of Silver Lake. The event is co-sponsored by Everett Parks and Recreation and the Everett Steelhead and Salmon Club Youth Organization. Experts will discuss the basics in Silver Lake Hall, then give casting instruction outside, as preparation for the May 14 Silver Lake kids’ fish-in. Bring your own rod/reel or borrow gear at the lake.
Registration is required. Call the parks and rec department at 425-257-8300, extension 2.
Turkey talk
The Black Diamond Gun Club will host a presentation on wild turkey hunting basics from 4-6 p.m. on Sunday, with representatives from the state and the Wild Turkey Federation. Subjects include calls and equipment, decoys, the three varieties of wild turkey in Washington, safety and ethics, where to go and how to do it. Go to blackdiamondgunclub.org for more information and a link to a map, or call 360-886-8047. The club is located 2 miles south of Black Diamond on Highway 169.
Steve Dazey at the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Mill Creek office (425-775-1311) said the class is part of a series planned to turn the state’s hunter education program into more than just info to pass the test necessary for a first hunting license. Dazey calls it “enhanced hunter education,” and says there already have been pheasant hunting classes in Eastern Washington, with other subjects to come, including waterfowl, turkey, deer and elk. The classes, which will be scattered around the state, are a partnership between the state and “non-governmental organizations,” Dazey said.
“We hope to have classes specifically for women and other hunting sub-groups,” he says. “As an example, we’ve scheduled one at Mill Creek for our ethnic Chinese citizens, utilizing a bi-lingual instructor.”
Dazey said he hopes to present classes in all five of the counties making up the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Region 4, from the Pierce-King county line to the Canadian border.
Wood duck video
The Richland Rod and Gun Club will again run its “duck cam” program, spying on hen wood ducks as they nest, incubate eggs and feed their young. The best part of all is “jump day,” when the ducklings bail out of the nest for the first time. Jump day last year was May 1.
“We’re starting out nesting-box cameras as we find nesting hens close to power and internet wifi,” Dale Schielke of the RRGC said. “I have one camera currently streaming live, online.”
For a list of cameras and their status, visit http://www.rrgcwoodducks.org/in-box-cameras.
Razor clams
The current series of razor clam digs on three coastal beaches continues as follows: Thursday, 7:07 a.m., minus 0.6 feet at Long Beach, Copalis and Mocrocks; Friday, 7:54 a.m., minus 1.1 feet at Long Beach, Copalis and Mocrocks; Saturday, 8:42 a.m., minus 1.3 feet at Long Beach and Copalis; Sunday, 9:32 a.m., minus 1.2 feet at Long Beach and Mocrocks; Monday, 10:23 a.m., minus 0.9 feet at Long Beach; and Tuesday, 11:19 a.m., minus 0.4 feet at Long Beach.
Marine toxin levels at Twin Harbors beach remain above the 20 parts per million threshold set by public health officials and the beach is closed to razor clam digging, according to Dan Ayres, the Department of Fish and Wildlife. He said it’s uncertain whether Twin Harbors will open this spring, so interested diggers should monitor the department’s razor clam webpage at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/shellfish/razorclams/current.html.
A list of proposed digs beginning April 20 can also be found on the webpage.
For more outdoor news, read Wayne Kruse’s blog at www.heraldnet.com/huntingandfishing.
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