LET’S GET THIS party started.
After months of waiting and weeks of hype, the halibut season opened in most areas Thursday.
Though the lowland lakes opened last weekend, lingcod is in season and shrimping starts Saturday, it’s halibut that makes the North Olympic Peninsula go crazy.
“They’re the glamour fish,” Ward Norden, a fishing tackle wholesaler and former fishery biologist, said.
It’s easy to understand halibut’s pull. They’re big and easy.
“They ain’t hard to catch,” Bob Gooding of Olympic Sporting Goods (360-374-6330) in Forks said.
“Drop here 500 to 600 feet, bounce twice, and you’ve got halibut.”
The flatfish aren’t picky, either.
“There are so many baits of choice,” Bob Aunspach said. “Herring, octopus, squid.”
Brian Menkal of Brian’s Sporting Goods and More (360-683-1950) in Sequim also recommends mackerel.
But weight, not bait, is the most important thing you drop in the water.
“Make sure you stay in contact with the bottom,” Menkal said.
Menkal and Aunspach say the amount of weight varies from 16- to 48-ouncers.
Halibut season is so short that weather conditions can’t keep away, but it can hinder anglers’ success.
“They don’t care if it’s pouring rain or sunny,” Aunspach said about the big fish. “The wind is the factor.”
Wind makes the boat drift too quickly, which pulls the bait off the bottom.
Often wind determines how successful a halibut season is.
Aunspach has heard the wind put a damper on the early hours of Thursday’s opening.
“Lots of guys were on the water,” Aunspach said, “but it’s really rough.”
Anglers near the Strait of Juan de Fuca have no shortage of location to catch halibut.
Some of the hottest spots, according to Aunspach, are the 31-36 Hole (about six miles northwest of Ediz Hook), the Rock Pile (7.5 miles north of Ediz Hook) and Green Point (5.5 miles east of Ediz).
Menkal also suggests the Dungeness Spit and near Ediz Hook.
Halibut season details for Marine Area 6 (East Juan de Fuca Strait) and Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet):
■ May 3 to 19: Thursdays through Saturdays only.
■ May 24 to 28: Thursdays through Mondays only.
■ May 31 to June 2: Thursdays through Saturdays only.
Unfortunately, those out West have to wait a little longer for halibut.
But that doesn’t mean the season will be any less remarkable, according to Dawn Lawrence of the Big Salmon Resort (360-645-2374) in Neah Bay.
“Every year, so many flock in with hopes of getting what they refer to as ‘plywood fish,’” Lawrence said, while also providing a new nickname for us to use.
Halibut season details for Marine Area 3 (LaPush) and 4 (Neah Bay):
■ May 10 to 19: Thursdays through Saturdays only.
■ May 24 to 28: Closed, no halibut fishing allowed.
■ May 31 to June 2: Stay tuned. Halibut fishery may reopen if quota has not been met.
Donnaynn Olson of Olson’s Resort (360-963-2311) reports pristine water in Sekiu, but halibut fishing there remains a few weeks away.
Details for Marine Area 5 (Sekiu):
■ May 24 to 28: Thursdays through Mondays only.
■ May 31 to June 23: Thursdays through Saturdays only.
In all areas there is no minimum size regulation, but the daily limit is one.
Razor dig a go
It’s official, the razor clam dig at Twin Harbors has been approved for Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
The dig, which will be the last of the season, was given the green light by state fishery managers after toxin tests confirmed the clams are safe to eat.
If you have an unscrathed clamming itch, go early.
“This is the last chance to dig fresh razor clams until this fall,” Dan Ayres, coastal shellfish manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, said.
“With digging restricted to one beach, I’d recommend arriving early and getting your clams before it gets too crowded.”
The razor clam opening is scheduled on morning tides. No digging will be allowed after noon.
Morning low tides will be as follows:
■ Saturday, May 5: 6:32 a.m., -1.5 feet.
■ Sunday, May 6: 7:19 a.m., -2.1 feet.
■ Monday, May 7: 8:07 a.m., -2.3 feet.
Twin Harbors beach extends from the mouth of Willapa Bay north to the south jetty at the mouth of Grays Harbor.
Lingcod open
The lingcod season opened throughout much of the Peninsula on Tuesday.
Out by the Pacific Ocean, though, the season has been opened for a while now.
If the action out there is any indication, lingcod lovers around the Strait are going to be happy.
The season has been open in Neah Bay since mid-April, and Lawrence reports most anglers have come back to shore limited out.
In Marine Areas 5, 6, 9 and 13, the lingcod season closes June 15.
Spearfishing in those areas runs from May 21 to June 15.
Those near Neah Bay and LaPush have until October to snag some lingcod.
More on shrimp
Don’t let the big halibut opening make you forget the spot shrimp season opens on Saturday.
We talked spot shrimp yesterday (find the story online at peninsuladailynews.com), and I marveled at the use of cat food as bait.
But why is cat food so effective?
According to Norden, the cat foods best for shrimping contain tuna.
Tuna is an oily fish, and once those oils are released in the water the spot shrimp are unable to resist the scent.
While cat food is the most fascinating bait, it isn’t the only one that will fill your pots.
Norden recommends mackerel, for one.
Aunspach, meanwhile, saves the heads of the salmon he reels in and uses them as shrimp bait.
Lake update
The big lowland lakes opening last weekend was a success, thanks to nice weather and the big trout planted by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“Lots of folks noticed those larger fish,” Mark Downen, state fish biologist for Mason and Kitsap counties, said in a press release.
“With bigger fish and cool but sunny weather, it was all in all a good opener.”
According to creel checks conducted at 112 lakes around the state, anglers caught an average of 3.99 trout.
Among Jefferson County lakes that opened last weekend, Lake Anderson, Sandy Shore and Silent Lake had the best openers.
Anglers checked at Anderson caught an average of 4.3 fish on opening day.
At Sandy Shore the rate was 4.5 per angler.
The eight anglers checked at Silent Lake caught 8.4 fish.
Go ahead and chase your halibut dreams, the lakes will be waiting for you.
“It’s important to remember that we stock lakes with trout for the whole season, not just opening day,” Chris Donley, state Inland Fish manager, said.
“Trout fishing should be highly productive in lowland lakes through June, and then again in September.”
For the kids
Because every angler needs to start somewhere, the 10th annual Kids Fishing Day will be held Saturday, May 19 in Sequim.
Kids 14 years and younger can fish for free at the City of Sequim water reclamation pond and demonstration park (Blake Ave in Sequim, north of Carry Blake Park).
Whatever the young anglers’ skill level, they should have success.
The pond has been stocked with 1,500 trout, some weighing in at 10 pounds.
There will also be a special pool set aside for toddlers.
The event is being put on by the North Olympic Peninsula Chapter of the Puget Sound Anglers, in coordination with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the City of Sequim Public Works Department.
Kids can bring their own poles or borrow one from the Puget Sound Anglers’ stock. The club will provide bait.
Club members will also teach kids how to clean and ice their catches.
Kids Fishing Day begins at 8 a.m. and ends at 2 p.m.
The pond will be stocked with 1,000 more fish in the weeks following this event, so kids 14 years old and younger will be able to fish there throughout the summer.
Fly fisher meeting
The Olympic Peninsula Fly Fishers next gathering will be Monday.
The meeting will feature a presentation on the advantages of tube flies by club president Dean Childs.
Tube flies are a relatively new type of fly that is often used to pull in steelhead.
Complementing Childs’ talk, Dave Steinbaugh will demonstrate a new technique for tying tube flies.
The meeting will be held at the Campfire USA Clubhouse (619 E. 4th St., Port Angeles). It begins at 7 p.m.
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Outdoors columnist Lee Horton appears here Thursdays and Fridays. He can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5152 or at lee.horton@peninsuladailynews.com.