TIME TO HIT the salt water for the rules are now in the favor of anglers across much of the North Olympic Peninsula.
After catching and releasing countless numbers of wild coho in search of those hard-to-find hatchery fish, anglers can now keep wild silvers in Marine Areas 5 (Sekiu), 6 (Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca) and 9 (Admiralty Inlet).
Catch totals dipped last weekend off Port Angeles, and Bob Aunspach of Swain’s General Store (360-452-2357) in Port Angeles has a theory on why.
“I think a lot of guys were tired of turning wild fish back overboard and just said ‘Let’s sit this weekend out and wait until October,’” Aunspach said.
“I think it will be a busy weekend, and you’ll see those catch numbers triple at least what they’ve been.”
The number of anglers checked at the Ediz Hook and Port Angeles west ramps did drop from previous weeks, so Aunspach may be on to something there.
He and a buddy fished off Ediz Hook last Friday and had to do some wading.
Wading through the wilds, that is.
“We probably caught a dozen, but only one fish that was a hatchery,” Aunspach said.
That large harvest moon also may have played a role in the tougher bite around Port Angeles.
“A big, bright moon like that, maybe it makes it so they can feed pretty heavily at night and not so likely to bite during the day,” Aunspach said.
“It sure could have an impact.”
Sekiu a slam dunk
Glenn Teeter of Van Riper’s Resort (360-963-2334) in Sekiu said Thursday that fog was slowing down some of the action off Sekiu.
“We’ve still had five boats come in that have limited out,” Teeter said.
Catch report numbers stayed strong at Sekiu over the weekend.
Teeter said the average size is getting bigger as well.
“It doesn’t seem like the real big coho, the hooknoses, have come through yet, but the average size is getting up to about 8 pounds,” Teeter said.
“The quantity of fish around is about average and the size is a little below average.
“They’ll get bigger, and once they start entering the spawning phase that hook nose starts developing.”
Crabbing back on
Anglers heading out for coho should bring along and set some baited crab pots, as the crab season resumed Thursday, and double-whammy potential exists.
Even if you are crabbing in Port Angeles Harbor.
A 2005 study says eating 0.39 pounds of uncooked seafood a day from there could increase your risk for cancer.
Results of that study were recently presented to the Clallam County Board of Health.
Eating 0.39 pounds of crab per day is a sizeable amount, so there’s no reason to worry.
“Nobody has that steady a diet of it, and the crabs don’t live there all the time,” Aunspach said.
“I’m not cutting out Dungeness crab from my diet.
“I haven’t started glowing in the dark yet.”
Lakes stocked for fall
Lake Leland near Quilcene received a plant of 2,000 rainbow trout last week from the Eells Springs Hatchery near Shelton.
These were larger trout, averaging 0.87 fish per pound.
“Lakes Leland and Sandy Shore both have water temperatures in the mid-50s, and trout fishing is already picking up,” said Ward Norden, owner of Snapper Tackle Company and a former fishery biologist.
“The pier and the bank fishing area at [Lake Leland] County Park has been very busy.
“Nice-sized fish were planted, so that should make people smile.”
Teal Lake near Port Ludlow also received a stock of 350 rainbow trout last week.
Both Lake Leland and Teal Lake are open year-round.
Teal Lake has selective gear rules and a daily limit of one trout.
Anglers can keep five trout from Lake Leland, two of which may be more than 14 inches in length.
Bluegill in Sutherland
A report on the unwanted presence of bluegill in Lake Sutherland ran in Thursday’s edition of the Peninsula Daily News and is available online at tinyurl.com/PDN-Bluegill.
These game fish are a nuisance because of their appetite for the eggs of kokanee and rainbow and cutthroat trout.
There also are worries that bluegill could snack on the eggs of sockeye if that salmon species chooses to navigate up the Elwha, through Indian Creek and into the lake.
One positive from the article was a quote from Fish and Wildlife biologist Mike Gross.
“One thing that is not a possibility is the use of chemicals to kill the bluegills,” Gross said.
The chemicals would kill other fish.
This is precisely what happened in Crocker Lake in 1998 when the state used Rotenone to kill a population of aggressive Northern pike that had taken up residence.
Crocker Lake, once a productive recreational fishery, remains closed to all fishing to this day.
Public opinion on how to deal with these invasive bluegill should be collected as part of the ultimate fisheries strategy.
For now, the state rules pamphlet lists bluegill, or sunfish as they also are called, under the “Other Game Fish” regulation.
This means there is no minimum size and no daily limit for this species on Lake Sutherland, so go catch a cooler full.
Lake Sutherland is open for trout, kokanee and now bluegill fishing through Saturday, Oct. 31.
Kokanee report
Port Angeles angler and lure designer Pete Rosko hit up Lake Sutherland for kokanee last week and came away disappointed.
“It was a perfect fishing day on Lake Sutherland . . . calm with overcast skies and near-ideal water temperature,” Rosko said.
“Unlike my previous 30-plus years on the lake, this was very different, especially for kokanee.
“Normally, the last half of September offers easy catches of kokanee as they form in dense schools prior to spawning.”
Rosko had been out on the lake for kokanee earlier in September and also had tough trips.
“Previous September trips often resulted in days of 100-plus kokanee caught by vertical jigging,” Rosko said.
“Despite several trips, prior to Friday’s trip, this is the first year that this has not occurred.
“The fish were few and scattered over the entire lake.
“Only time will tell if this is the new norm for Lake Sutherland. I hope not.”
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.
