A SALMON-PACKED video taken on the Sol Duc River last week by Olympia’s Dave Miller went viral and made the rounds on social media.
In the video — viewable at www.tinyurl.com/PDN-SolDucRun — hundreds of salmon have congregated in the river and are milling about.
The females are looking for the right spot to dig a redd and deposit their eggs.
The massive run of salmon made the Sol Duc look more like Interstate 5 at rush hour than a bucolic, backcountry stream.
Brian Menkal of Brian’s Sporting Goods and More (360-683-1950) in Sequim was impressed by the clip.
“I saw that video, and it was like, ‘Whoa,’” Menkal said.
But Menkal said runs of that size are actually somewhat common.
“If you get a big run of fish like that, you can see something similar on the Quillayute, Bogachiel and Sol Duc,” Menkal said.
“But having it recorded like this makes it that much cooler.”
Besides the video, Menkal has heard reports that there are lots of salmon in the rivers on the West End.
He ventured out with a friend on the Calawah and had success.
“We cleaned up on the Calawah on Sunday and Monday, ended up keeping our limit apiece,” Menkal said.
“That rainy spell we had raised the water levels and really brought the fish into the rivers.”
Menkal caught coho, but he said he saw some other anglers catch some sockeye as well.
Another impact of the big rain and wind storm, Menkal said, is an increased amount of timber in the rivers.
“There were some blow downs as that storm front knocked a lot of trees in the river,” Menkal said.
He advised to keep a close watch on your surroundings as a fish on the line may head for the cover of those fresh snags.
“Your line will get broken off if you get caught in there,” Menkal said.
When anglers can see fish in such numbers, the inverse also is true: they can see anglers.
“They are a little more spooky when the water is low, so don’t go out in your favorite red shirt; try to stay hidden from the fish,” Menkal said.
This means donning camouflage gear, but if you don’t have any camo, wearing similar colors like olive green, gray and brown.
“Black is not a good color, either, and during bear season you don’t want to wear black or you might end up mounted on somebody’s wall,” Menkal said.
“You just want to try to blend into the bank.”
With water dropping back to pre-storm levels in the rivers, light gear is the way to go.
“There’s not much need to put too much lead on with it still kind of low water,” Menkal said
“I’d suggest floats with jigs, floats with eggs underneath, or get a spinner that won’t drop to the bottom and drag.”
And if you are lucky enough to come upon another massive run, be a good steward, avoid the temptation to snag salmon and hook them where they should be hooked: in the mouth.
Salt water fishing
Expect catch rates to rise this weekend in Marine Area 5 (Sekiu), as anglers will have the option of keeping both wild and hatchery coho from Saturday through Monday.
This is the first of three wild coho weekends at Sekiu this month.
Wild coho retention also will be allowed Sept. 19-21 and 26-27.
Anglers also can keep wild coho for the entire month of October.
Larry Bennett, the head state Department of Fish and Wildlife fish checker in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, said the catch totals improved last week out at Sekiu.
Last Saturday was the best day, with 113 anglers catching 120 coho from 43 boats at Olson’s Resort’s east docks.
Over at Van Riper’s Resort, 69 coho were caught by 51 anglers in 21 boats.
Many anglers also docked in Sekiu but headed west to fish.
“They had an opener out in Area 4 (Neah Bay) where they were allowed to keep wild coho and that shot the numbers up,” Bennett said.
“Lots of boats took the short trip out to Area 4 and came away with limits.”
Bennett said the silvers have been weighing in from 5 to 8 pounds, but there has been an occasional fish in the lower teens.
In a change from previous seasons, anglers in Marine Area 5 will have to release chinook in October.
But there is a silver lining.
“There’s been a trade-off with releasing the chinook in October, and in exchange the state is going to give them a little extra season in April,” Bennett said.
The winter blackmouth season will run from February 16 to April 30 in 2016, a gain of 20 days for that fishery.
“I think that’s a positive change because the weather is getting better in April and people are more likely to want to get out and get fishing,” Bennett said.
Another change
That was fast. After a week of allowing anglers fishing off Neah Bay to keep wild coho, the state revised its policy, making wilds off-limits again, starting today.
The catch rate for silvers was higher than the state expected, leading to the change.
Those fishing in other ocean areas, like Marine Area 3 (LaPush), are still allowed to keep wild coho.
Port Angeles improves
The fishing isn’t hot near Port Angeles, but catch rates improved a bit over the past week.
“It got up to close to a fish per boat on the weekend there in Port Angeles,” Bennett said.
Last Saturday was the best day in a while, with 32 coho and 10 pinks landed by 70 anglers in 25 boats.
Bennett said cohos will bite on just about anything, but suggests green or various-colored hoochies.
“Coho aren’t picky like chinook,” Bennett said.
“And they are still feeding in the Strait [of Juan de Fuca], so more are likely to strike.
“When they start getting up in the bays, the terminal areas towards the mouth of the rivers, they don’t bite so well.”
Beach fishing in PT
Beach casting from Point Wilson at Fort Worden State Park in Port Townsend has provided some success.
“People are catching silvers and pinks both off Fort Worden,” Menkal said.
Ward Norden, owner of Snapper Tackle Company and former fishery biologist, says the silver bite is improving in Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet).
“Glow green and UV white trolling squids are producing the most fish for trollers, while beach casters are doing best with either chartreuse or green Buzz Bomb and Rotator jigs,” Norden said.
“One comment I have heard from a number of successful anglers is that the coho are rather small at the moment.”
In Dabob Bay, Norden said the coho numbers are improving.
But those silvers are finding some tough sledding in the Big Quilcene River, in the form of a large number of summer chum spawning in the river.
Anglers can’t fish for those chum they are an endangered species.
Lake fishing reopens
Norden also tipped me to a positive development in freshwater fishing.
“Due to the reduced fire danger after recent rains, Pope Resources has reopened access to its lakes south of Port Townsend, Sandy Shore, Ludlow and Horseshoe,” Norden said.
Patrick Raymond, area resource manager for Pope Resources, confirmed this information.
Raymond said he unlocked the gates himself Wednesday.
“These lakes haven’t been fished all summer, so they should provide an enticing angling experience with both trout and bass responding to the shorter days and cooler water,” Norden said.
Send photos, stories
Have a photograph, a fishing or hunting report, an anecdote about an outdoors experience or a tip on gear or technique?
Send it to sports@peninsuladailynews.com or P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles, WA 98362.
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Outdoors columnist Michael Carman appears here Thursdays and Fridays. He can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5152 or at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
