HERE’S A PIECE of advice for this weekend’s much-anticipated halibut derby: get lucky.
I’m not talking in the Biblical sense, but rather, the piscatorial one.
Sure, it always helps to know what you’re doing. And yes, it never hurts to have the best equipment possible.
Yet as any repeat Port Angeles Salmon Club Halibut Derby participant can attest, it’s even better to have a four-leaf clover in your pocket.
Channel your inner Hemingway all you want, but in the end, it’s the guy that’s more like Gump who ends up taking home a fat check.
As Randy Jones of Venture Charters (360-895-5424) in Sequim said, “The bottom line is, all your skill and all your knowledge can’t beat a lucky son of a [female dog].”
This year’s winner is set to reel in $5,000 for their efforts. . . on top of hundreds of pounds in halibut fillets of course.
Port Orchard’s Jason Sanko won the top prize last year with a 180-pound bruiser, which was actually a derby record fish.
The way fishing has been going this spring – a number of triple-digit fish have already been brought to the docks — it might just take a similar effort to win the top prize in the derby this Saturday and Sunday.
“They caught a ton of fish out there [Thursday],” Bob Aunspach at Swain’s General Store (360-452-2357) in Port Angeles said. “There were lots of guys who had limits.”
Creel checks from last weekend told a similar story. (It should be noted that a daily limit for halibut is one.)
Of course, that was on some downright decent tidal action. That’s something derby anglers won’t get the benefit of this time around during both derby dates.
“The tides will be moving, but expect some bites around those tide changes,” Aunspach said, referring to Saturday’s slack tides about 9 a.m.
“That is when I expect a bunch of fish to be caught. And then it’s about an hour later the next day.”
There will be 30 cash prize slots in this year’s derby, the ninth such edition, with the top six fish all getting four-figure bounties.
Aunspach said he’d heard of approximately 260 derby tickets sold as of Thursday afternoon. That number is certain to grow by the time things get underway.
Boundaries for the derby extend from the buoys west of Crescent Beach all the way to a line due north of Dungeness Spit, all inside United States waters.
Fishing hours are between daylight and 2 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.
Among the spots Aunspach recommends: Freshwater Bay, Garbage Dump, the Humps, Green Point, Morse Creek, Rock Pile, 31-36 Bank.
“Every one of those places will produce fish this weekend,” he said, which isn’t too much of a revelation since those are pretty much every halibut hole in the area.
Derby tickets cost $40 to fish one day or two. Information is available at http://www.swainsinc.com/ or by calling 360-452-2357.
More Strait halibut
It’s too bad the waters near Protection Island can’t be included in the derby.
So far this spring, that’s exactly where the biggest of the bruisers — a pair of 200-plus pound halibut — have been caught.
As was reported in Thursday’s outdoors column, Bremerton’s Mike Mollison brought in a 76 ½-inch beast last Saturday fishing near Protection Island.
That was on top of 40- and 50-pound fish he caught the other two days he was fishing.
“It was a good weekend,” Mollison said in the understatement of the year.
His fish was the second halibut weighing more than 200 pounds to be taken out of the waters east of Dungeness this spring (Ray Fredericks of Silverdale caught a 223-pounder on May 3).
And there were plenty of other nice fish caught around those parts, according to Venture Charters’ Jones.
“We had some good days last weekend,” he said. “It was a little scattered on locations, but they tend to come, just take the drift on the basin.”
News out of Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet) near Port Townsend wasn’t quite as vociferous during the past week.
“My halibut stuff is flying out of here, but I haven’t heard of anything this week,” Brian Menkal of Swain’s Outdoor (360-385-1313) in Port Townsend said.
Added Wayne Bibbins of Downhome Charters (360-643-1960) in Port Townsend, “Fishing is a little slower, but you put your time in and you’ll get them.”
Flatty fishing opened in Marine Area 5 (Sekiu) on Thursday.
If the season is comparable to last year, things shouldn’t be too bad.
Coastal halibut
Anglers were blowin’ in the wind during Thursday’s halibut opener on the coast.
Some boats out near LaPush didn’t even bother making the trip all the way out to the southwest corner of the Bottomfish Closure area, according to Randy Lato of All-Ways Fishing (360-374-2052) in Forks.
“There wasn’t much swell,” he said. “It was just the chop you had to deal with.”
Anglers were still able to bring in a few flatties, however, as well as a good number of sea bass and lingcod, which have been plentiful this year.
“There’s a big one here and there, but most of them are fairly small,” Lato said of the halibut. “People weren’t being too choosy. They wanted to get in before that wind was blowing [in the afternoon].”
Joey Lawrence at Big Salmon Resort (360-645-2374) in Neah Bay said there was a little bit of wind up north as well.
“We’ve heard of a couple fish being caught outside a little bit,” he said. “We’re expecting some good catches today. We just haven’t seen anything yet.”
Things should perk up for Saturday’s opener, the last scheduled for the early halibut season in Areas 3 (LaPush) and 4 (Neah Bay).
If sufficient quota remains after the early season, the fishery will reopen June 4 and 6, with another scheduled June 18, depending on the quota.
Lake fishing
Spring is here and so is some decent lake fishing on the Peninsula.
Teal, Sandy Shores and Tarboo should all be looking good this weekend as the weather continues to warm.
“Those are your big three right now,” Menkal said. “I’ve heard more good things about Teal than anything else.”
All three recently received catchable trout plants, with Teal’s latest additions (100 rainbows) averaging one pound in size.
It should be noted that the Lake Crescent fishing opener is a little more than one week away (June 1).
In the opinion of this particular columnist, that’s one every angler should have circled on their calendar.
Shellfish harvest
Clam and oyster lovers will have all sorts of beach to comb during the holiday weekend with a number of minus tides hitting Hood Canal.
This is the first of a series of spring and summer low tides that will occur on the Peninsula.
While these might not come during the coveted “R” months that harvesters prefer, the digging should be good. Just make sure to cook the hell out of those things.
Among the best spots for diggers should be Duckabush, Point Whitney, Quilcene Bay Tidelands and Dabob Bay.
Here are the tides for this weekend inside the Canal:
• Saturday – -2.53 feet at 10:37 a.m.
• Sunday — -3.43 feet at 11:19 a.m.
• Monday — -3.91 feet at 12:04 p.m.
For information on beach openings, visit http://www.doh.wa.gov/, and click on “Shellfish” under the heading “Beach closures.”
Also . . .
• Waters West Fly Fishing Outfitters will host an introductory fly fishing class on Saturday, May 30, at its shop at 140 West Front St. in Port Angeles.
The class, which begins at 9 a.m., will cover a myriad of subjects including equipment, knot tying, fly casting, entomology, fly selection, reading water and landing fish.
Students will take a field trip to water with a chance for catch and release.
Cost is $75. To sign up, call 360-417-0937.
• Hurricane Ridge Road is now open 24 hours a day, weather permitting.
For up-to-date road closure information within the park, call the park’s 24-hour road conditions hot line at 360-565-3131. Information on weather conditions at the Ridge is also available at www.nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/hurricane-ridge-current-conditions.htm.
• A hunter education class will be held at the Quilcene Harbor Yacht Club in early June.
Classes will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on June 8, 10, 11, 15, 17 and 18.
Live fire and a walk-through is scheduled for June 20 at the Jefferson County Sportsmen’s Club.
For more information, contact Rick Olson at 360-765-3947, Riley Brazil at 360-732-4003 or Mark Castillo at 360-732-4402.
• Specially trained members of Flotilla 42, Coast Guard Auxiliary will be offering free vessel exams at Ediz Hook and Port Angeles Boat Haven on Saturday and Sunday.
No citations will be given, but boat examiners will check for several items, including flares, life jackets and fire extinguishers.
If neither date is convenient, call 360-417-0827 or 360-461-9429 to make an appointment.
• Flotilla 42, Coast Guard Auxiliary will host boating safety classes in the second floor training room of the Pease Building on Ediz Hook on June 12-13.
The cost is $25 per person or $35 for two if they share a book. Pre-registration is required, and can be done by calling 360-681-4671.
The class is required for boaters 25 years or younger. The requirement will increase by five year intervals each year, meaning boaters 30 or younger will have to take the class next year.
• Spring Fling continues in the Dungeness Valley this weekend with a guided stroll from Johnson Creek trestle to Sequim Bay State Park on Sunday,
The group will meet at the White Feather Way parking lot at 2 p.m. Non spring-fling participants are asked to donate $5 to participate.
For more information on Spring Fling, a River Center fundraiser, visit www.dungenessrivercenter.org.
• Washington Trails Association will gather an all-day work party at Peabody Creek Trail in Olympic National Park next Tuesday.
Volunteers must pre-register 48 hours in advance. To pre-register, contact Washington Trails at 206-625-1367.
Call us, photos welcome!
Want your event listed in the outdoors column?
Have a fishing or hunting report, an anecdote about an outdoors experience or a tip on gear or technique, why not share it with our readers?
Send it to me, Matt Schubert, Sports Department, Peninsula Daily News, P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles, WA 98362; phone, 360-417-3526, fax, 360-417-3521; e-mail matt.schubert@peninsuladailynews.com.
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Matt Schubert is the outdoors columnist for the Peninsula Daily News. His column appears on Thursdays and Fridays.
