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Posted by Steve A. on 13:36:46 03/27/03
In Reply to: Northern Washington ? posted by Jim Sammons La Jolla Kayak Fishing
Hi Jim:
You are in for a treat. I grew up in Washington and fished for over 30 years from Washington to Alaska. However, never did I fish from a kayak. Now I am down here in Tarzana and loving my kayak fishing. Yesterday, I spoke with my Dad who lives in the San Juan Islands, just south and east of Vancouver Island. The Washington season closes in three days, but he has been doing REAL well. The old guy has developed the commercial and sport fishing skills to catch a lot of salmon, he seldom gets skunked.
Often when mooching for salmon, you will be keeping your lead within 6 feet of the bottom and it will require between 2.5-4 ounces. You will want to continuously work your bait around the bottom structure. If they have you on a boat and fishing with a downrigger, then you fish with no weight at all and all you do is stand around and tell stories and drink cocoa.
If there is a lot of bait around, you should find salmon. You know a lot about hooking a fish. Not to bore you, but this is what I expect when a salmon strikes. About 60 percent of the time, I will receive two or three gentle tugs. Don’t set the hook on gentle tugs. Instead, immediately peel off three or four hands full of line (6 to 8 feet). You are dropping the herring back in front of him. Reel in four or five turns. If nothing happens, rapidly let out another 10’ of line and wait for a five count and then start reeling in three or four cranks at a time with a 3 second pause until you have reeled in around 15’ of line. Keep in mind that you are trying to tease the salmon to take a big bite. Let another 10 to 15’ out and reel it in again, three or four cranks at a time. If the salmon comes back, reel in to set the hook and then set the hook with the rod. A salmon’s mouth is not bony, so you don’t have to be too aggressive with the hook set. If the fish does not come back, fish your way back to the surface to check your bait. BTW, salmon most actively feed on tide changes 1 1/2–hours before and after the change. Usually low slack water is best for salmon.
Here are some ideas for a rod, consider a line rating of 12 : 30 # rating. Twenty-pound test line will work well on your reel. You do not need a lot of spool capacity, 200 yards is fine. If you are fishing for salmon (spring kings) you can expect them to run between 10 to 25+ pounds. If you are mooching for salmon you will use a six-foot leader at 15-18 pound test. Your leader will have two hooks, generally a 2/0-1/0 size combination. If they are using large bait, you may use a 3/0-2/0 combination.
There is excellent bottom fishing available, lots of ling and rockfish. You may be fishing anywhere from 40 to 200 feet of water. Here I would use 25# test. Herring works well on all bottom fish. Candle fish are excellent bait when they are available. At the deeper depths, you may need to fish on the tide changes so you can stay on the bottom. In the Spring, the halibut come east through the Strait of Juan de Fuca to spawn in shallower water. This may provide some opportunities as well.
There are a lot of Dog Fish (sand sharks) up there and they can be a real nuisance. When you are fishing for bottom fish and they become bothersome, go to the artificial lures and put on a small strip of herring for taste. Scampi’s work well, but you will need 2 to 4 ounce lead heads. Don’t hesitate taking barracuda type jigs along. Blues, greens and chrome will work and they are heavy enough to work well.
The Point Defiance Dart is an excellent lightweight jig for salmon and bottom fish. A big white bucktail (2-3oz) will be productive as well.
Jim, I look forward in reading about your experience.
Steve A.
: I was lucky enough to be invited by Ocean Kayak up to their facility in Ferndale Washington. I get the chance to test paddle as well as test fish some new kayaks. I think you can guess which kayak I am refering to. The area we would be going to is west of Victoria on the southern part of Vancouver Island... near Jordan River.I have never been to this area and was hoping for some fishing advice, as in what to bring and what to fish for. I will be up there next week. I've always wanted to paddle up there and of course fish. Now it is on someone elses dime. I think it is great that they are showing the effort to bring in some kayak fisherman for input on new products. To make sure they get it right. Thanks in advance for the help.Jim SammonsLa Jolla Kayak FishingThanks in advance for the help.
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