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Northwest Outdoor Report

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Kokanee Bite Taking off on Lake Samish
Kevin John at Holiday Sports in Burlington says the kokanee bite on Lake Samish has been heating up the last few days. He’s talked to several anglers who have been limits of kokanee up to 17 inches on the lake. The hot rig has been a Sling Blade dodger with a Wedding Ring spinner behind it tipped with shoepeg corn and a pink Berkley maggot. Kevin says the larger fish are being caught 20 to 30 feet deep on the downrigger and the best fishing has been occurring in the middle of the lake directly in front of the boat ramp.

Bass Tourney on Lake Washington This Weekend
The American Bass Association is hosting two tournaments on Lake Washington this weekend with separate tourneys running on both Saturday and Sunday. Larry Williams from ABA expects between 20 and 30 boats to turn out for the event. With the smallmouth bass recently moving up onto their beds he expects fishing to be quite good and thinks it will take a 22 plus pound limit to take top honors in both events. Williams says the best technique for catching smallmouth bass on Lake Washington this time of year is a drop shot rigged with either a Snyper or a Yamamoto bait.

Halibut Opener Most Productive Around Port Angeles
Anglers couldn’t have asked for better weather on the halibut opener last week. Anglers got flat seas, sun burns, and there was some good fishing at least for those in the Port Angeles area. WDFW fish checkers in Port Angeles checked 141 boats with 146 halibut on the opener last Thursday. That’s an average of more than one halibut per boat. Last year the average out of Port Angeles was around .3 halibut per boat. Port Townsend and Mutiny Bay off Whidbey Island kicked out a few halibut, as well, while the fishing elsewhere in the eastern Strait and the northern Puget Sound was pretty spotty for halibut. Halibut opens in Neah Bay and LaPush this weekend and anglers are once again getting excellent water to fish for halibut offshore.

Neah Bay Halibut Opener Slower Than Expected
Mike Jamboretz from Jambo’s Sportfishing said they had to fish longer than usual to get their limits of halibut on the Neah Bay opener on Thursday. Jamboretz said the ling cod were so thick on most of 72 Square that it was hard to get to the halibut. He had to move quite a bit to find areas with good halibut numbers and finally found some better fishing on Blue Dot. Most of the fish averaged around 30 pounds and their biggest fish was 45 pounds on the opener. Neah Bay and LaPush are open again today for halibut and Jambo says they’ll have “canoe weather” offshore for fishing again.

Special Hunt Permit Deadline Drawing Near
Hunters should be aware that the deadline for special hunt applications is May 22nd this year. Hunters can apply for special hunts for deer, elk, mountain goat, moose, bighorn sheep, and turkey in Washington thru the special hunt process. The drawing for special hunts takes place in late June.

Two Beaches Open for Clamming
Razor clam digging will be open Friday and Saturday on the Long Beach Peninsula and Twin Harbors beach will be open through Tuesday. Copalis and Mocrocks beaches are closed for the season because harvest guidelines have been met on those beaches. Low tide is at 8:12 a.m. today and digging usually starts a couple of hours before the low tide.

Florida Cops Enlist Alligator to Capture Fleeing Criminal
St Petersburg, Florida – A suspect who fled from Pinellas County Sheriff’s deputies after a routine traffic stop was attacked by an alligator and later found at a local hospital being treated for puncture wounds to his face, arm, and armpit area. According to the police report the suspect, Bryan Zuniga, ran into the alligator at a nearby water treatment plant where it attacked him. He had no choice but to check himself into the hospital and of course…that’s where the police caught up to Mr. Zuniga and arrested him. If you run from the cops in Florida…you probably don’t want to wander too far off the beaten path.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

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Lake Chelan Still Tops for Kokanee
Mike Campbell from Lowrance Electronics lives in Chelan and says the kokanee fishing on Lake Chelan is the best he’s seen in over 30 years. He described the fishing as “wide open” on the lake right now. Campbell says the kokanee are averaging  between 16 and 18 inches and  he recommends using a Luhr Jensen Triple “000” dodger and a Kokanee Killer tipped with shoepeg corn to catch them. He says the best fishing has been occurring in 60 to 105 feet of water around Rocky Point and Minneapolis Beach. Campbell says that once you find a school on your electronics it’s important to stay on them.

Smallies Hanging Deep in Lake Stevens
Greg Rockenback at Greg’s Custom Rods in Lake Stevens says there’s been some nice smallmouth being caught on the lake in 30 to 40 feet of water. Greg recommended using football head jigs in any pattern that resembles a crawfish. Lake Stevens holds more smallmouth bass than largemouth’s and Rockenback says the smallies will go up to 6 pounds in the lake. He says the water temperature is about 45 degrees right now and he’s hoping with the warm weather it will jump start the kokanee bite soon.

Washington Halibut Seasons Announced
The halibut season in Puget Sound will be shortened a bit this year to compensate for exceeding last year’s quota. This year’s halibut season was reduced by five days in the eastern strait and nine days in Marine 5 because of last year’s quota over-run. The southern Washington coast will see a slight increase in its halibut season. Managers have moved the fishing days from Thursday thru Saturday to Friday thru Sunday to accommodate an extra weekend day to allow more anglers to harvest halibut. For more on the upcoming halibut season in Washington be sure to check out the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife website.

Wenatchee Wolf Pack Confirmed
After being wiped out as a breeding population in Washington in the 1930s wolves have been making a comeback here in Washington State recently. Since 2008 wolf packs have established themselves in Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Kittitas, Stevens, and now Chelan County. The Chelan County pack was confirmed recently by trail cam photos sent from a resident in Pitcher Canyon just south of Wenatchee of two wolves feeding on a dead bull elk. State biologists say that wolves are rarely a threat to humans but they have been known to attack pets, especially dogs.

Springers Still Slow on the Columbia
Only 13 percent of the springer quota had been caught on the Columbia River through last Sunday. The season is set to close on April 6th, but officials are meeting on Wednesday to review the run to date and decide whether a season extension is warranted. Many think an extension of the springer season will occur on the Columbia. The season is scheduled to end on the lower river April 5, but with such a small percentage of the quota having been caught by anglers it’s likely that the season will be extended. Oregon officials are meeting on Wednesday to decide whether a season extension is warranted. The annual NSIA derby is on the river today, which will be a good gauge of how the fishing is.

Walleye Limit Increased
WDFW just increased the walleye limit on Lake Roosevelt, the San Poil River, and the lower Spokane River to 16 walleye per day with no size restriction. Officials are trying to control the population of walleye to reduce predation on native species and produce more quality walleye for future fishing opportunities.

Kokanee Seminar at Three Rivers Marine April 10th
Don’t miss the free Kokanee Seminar on April 10th at Three Rivers Marine in Woodinville. Capt. Ryan Bigley’s seminar will kick off at 7:00 p.m. and mini-clinics start at 6:00 p.m.. Kokanee are just starting to bite in our local lakes and now is the time to learn where, when, and how to catch these great eating fish. Three Rivers Marine will have free hot dogs and pop as well as a ton of raffle prizes including a Jared Johnson edition Lamiglas kokanee rod to give away. Get ahold of Kent Alger at Three Rivers Marine in Woodinville for more details.

Renew Licenses for 2013
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife would like to remind fishers and hunters that licenses are good thru Sunday, March 31st. Fishing licenses, hunting licenses, and Discovery passes will all need to be renewed on April 1st for the coming year. License fees will remain the same across the board for 2013.

Man Arrested for Shooting a Deer in a Walmart Parking Lot
Indiana Gazette, Pennsylvania – At the Resort Plaza Walmart in Indiana, Pennsylvania people can save a dollar and apparently waste a buck, as well. Arcangelo Bianco Jr. was doing some banking at the Walmart back on November 26th when he spotted a huge 10 point whitetail run around the corner of the store and across the parking lot. He quickly jumped out of his truck with a handgun and began firing multiple rounds at the animal. After successfully harvesting the big whitetail he loaded the deer in the back of his truck and took it to a local processor. In addition to having a parking lot full of witnesses the incident was also captured on Walmart’s surveillance cameras. The game officer working on the case said it was the nicest buck he’s seen come out of Indiana County in the last three years. A preliminary hearing for Bianco is scheduled for May 1st.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

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I-5 Stretch Producing Springers on the Columbia
Eric Linde from Linde’s Sportfishing in Vancouver, Washington says that about a third of the boats are catching springers on any given day on the Columbia and traffic has been light so far. Linde says he’s been getting a few bites a day fishing just above Interstate 5 near Portland International Airport. His go to setup so far this season has been a green label herring behind a chartruese Fish Flash. Linde expects the fishing to continue to get better in the coming weeks.

Chelan Cranking out Phat Kokes
Don Talbot at Hooked on Toys in Wenatchee says the Kokanee fishing on Lake Chelan is starting to heat up. He said the Kokanee are running in the 16 to 17 inch range and most of the action has been taking place around Wapato Point and Rocky Point. Talbot also likes to troll the area between Wapato Point and First Creek in about 300 of feet of water, targeting the water column between 50 and 100 feet to find kokes. He said to use a pink and white mini-Ace Hi Fly tipped with white shoe peg corn behind a Luhr Jensen 50/50 dodger. He also like to run a couple of larger size 1 hooks with his hoochie rig, as it helps to keep these soft-mouthed fish on the line. Don said to be sure to swing into Hooked on Toys in Wenatchee to get help rigging up any of the troll gear necessary to catch Kokanee on Lake Chelan.
Use Swim Baits to Target Sea Bass off Ocean Shores Jetty
John Martinis at John’s Sporting Goods in Everett has gotten some great reports from the jetty at Ocean Shores last weekend. Martinis has a tackle shop customer that’s been catching his limit of nice sea bass casting swim jigs off the jetty. John says the go-to lure is a 4 inch red-flake motor oil twin tail grub rigged with a 2 ounce jighead. The successful angler has been walking to the end of the jetty on days when the weather is nice and working the jig over the submerged rocks.  Martinis says to wear foul weather gear and to watch the weather carefully though, as the surf often pounds across the jetty at Ocean Shores. Martinis notes that ling cod season opens today in Marine Area 2 and the jetty’s are a great place to find them also.

Catch and Release Only for Sturgeon Starting in 2014
Starting May 1st recreational fisherman will be limited to one white sturgeon per year in Washington. By 2014 new regulations require the release of all white sturgeon in Puget Sound, its tributaries, the Washington coast and the Lower Columbia River below Bonneville Dam. The new rules were adopted to address drastic declines in the population of white sturgeon in Washington state the last five years. Catch and release fishing will still be allowed for white sturgeon in all the effected areas.

Spot Shrimp Seasons Announced
Recreational shrimp fishers will get more days to fish and a larger share of the catch in areas of Puget Sound under fishing seasons announced by WDFW. The spot shrimp season is set to begin May 4th and will run from one day to several days longer in areas of the Sound due to policy changes recently adopted by WDFW to give recreational shrimpers a larger percentage of the overall quota. In the San Juan Islands the shrimp fishery could be open for more than a month in Marine Area 7-West and the shrimp season is expected to run for 13 days in Marine Areas 7-East and 7-South, up from just 6 days last year. Hood Canal and Discovery Bay shrimp seasons will be open a total of 5 days this year and Marine Areas Marine Areas 8-1, 8-2, 9, 10 and 11 will be open two days this year. Please log onto the WDFW website for a complete listing of the new shrimp seasons.

47 Lakes Stocked with Trout
With Spring Break fast approaching WDFW is stocking dozens of lakes in Washington with more than 250,000 rainbow trout. The 10 to 12 inch trout will be stocked into year-round lakes in Grays Harbor, Thurston, Pierce, Mason, Kitsap, Island, King and Snohomish Counties. The State is planting the lakes to give families a chance to get out fishing over spring break and to give them a chance to tune up their gear before main trout opener on April 27th. A complete list of the lakes being stocked can be found on the WDFW website.

Blackman’s Lake Planted with Triploids
The Snohomish Sportsmen’s Club just planted Blackman’s Lake in Snohomish County with about 200 triploid trout ranging in size from one and a half to as large as six pounds. Blackman’s lake is on the north edge of Snohomish County and has a large fishing pier and an improved boat launch.

Little League Raffles off an AR-15 in Illinois
Associated Press – A youth baseball league in the eastern Illinois town of Atwood wasn’t happy with the previous fundraiser’s it’s held to raise money for the league, so they’ve decided to raffle off an AR-15 assault rifle. A local gun shop owner provided the Rock River Arms AR-15 for the league, which is in bad need of baseball equipment that it can’t afford. Charidy Butcher of Atwood Armory is the shop that donated the gun and they said the raffle is going gangbusters. They’re phone has been ringing non-stop since 4:30 in the morning the day after the AR-15 raffle item was announced. Butcher says the lucky winner of the AR-15 will need to have a background check and will need an Illinois Firearm’s Owner I.D. card to get the gun.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
TheOutdoorLine.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

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“B” Run Steelhead Trickling into the Cowlitz
Phil Stephens from Mystical Legends Guide Service says there’s some really big three-salt hatchery steelhead cruising up the Cowlitz River right now. The “B” run on the Cowlitz just got started and while most of the guides are only picking up a few fish a day it won’t be long before the run gets into full swing. Stephens says these late steelhead hit a yarnie really well and he fishes them almost exclusively when he’s sidedrifting. He suggests using a 4 to 5 foot leader and using a little shrimp scent on the yarn sometimes helps to draw strikes. The Cowlitz “B” run starts to hit the river in earnest in early March and runs strong thru the end of April.

Lake Washington Still Productive for Cutties
Todd Daniels from Tall Tails Guide Service says he’s still catching around a half a dozen nice cutthroat a day on Lake Washington. Daniels says the fish have moved a little deeper and he’s been getting most of his bites trolling 20 to 35 feet deep. His best lures have been orange label cut plug herring and fire tiger needlefish spoons trolled at least 100 feet behind the boat. Daniels said the area between the Cedar River, Mercer Island, and the Boeing plant is where most of the action is occurring.

Skwala Hatch Nearing on the Yakima
Josh Holt from Red’s Fly Shop on the Yakima River says there’s been a few Skwala’s around, but overall the fish are still in their winter feeding mode. He says most of the trout are being caught nymphing with size 16 to 20 red or black brassy’s. The guides working out of Red’s have been getting a couple of trout a day on dries and he suspects that the Skwala hatch should get into full swing in the next couple of weeks when the weather starts to warm up. The forecast is for 60 degrees in the Yakima Canyon tomorrow and if that weather pattern continues the hatches should start to come off soon.

Puget Sound Salmon Forecasts Released
The salmon forecasts for the Puget Sound and the Washington coast were just released and numbers for Puget Sound look very good for the summer of 2013. Salmon runs of note are the Nooksack with a forecast of 46,500 Chinook. The Nooksack run has increased steadily from 23,000 king salmon in 2009 to this year’s forecast of over 46,000 fish. Hood Canal will also see an increase of Chinook with a combination of wild and hatchery Chinook making up the 69,000 Chinook projected to head back to the Canal. On the coho front the Skagit is forecast for 137,200 wild coho this fall, up from just 48,300 last year and the ever-solid Snohomish system is forecast to get just over 163,000 silvers. And the pink salmon forecast for the Puget Sound is for an astonishing 6 million pink salmon to stream into Puget Sound. While it’s too early to tell what the seasons will look like many think that with the rock-solid forecasts for both Chinook and coho they should be much the same as last year on Puget Sound. A more detailed look at the salmon run forecasts is posted in the Outdoor Line forums.

Spring Chinook Seminar at Outdoor Emporium Today
Don’t miss the yearly spring Chinook seminar today from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at Outdoor Emporium in downtown Seattle. The seminar features longtime Columbia River guides Eric Linde and Steve Leonard along with Outdoor Line host Tom Nelson. They’ll be covering everything from run timing, where to fish, and how to rig up for spring Chinook. Outdoor Emporium provides a free lunch and there will be a ton of tackle giveaways, as well.

Duck Dynasty Crew Runs off Singer Morissey
Grammy award winning singer Morrissey cancelled a performance on the Jimmy Kimmel show this past week after finding out that the cast of A&E’s hit show “Duck Dynasty” was also booked as a guest on the show. The former front man for the Smiths is an ardent animal rights activist and said he couldn’t take the risk of being on a show alongside people who amount to animal serial killers. The publicity didn’t hurt Duck Dynasty one bit either, as it posted the largest viewing audience in A&E’s history the night after the Morissey/Kimmel catfight with 9 million viewers.

Squirrel Cookoff World Championships Announced
Joe Wilson of Squirrel’s Unlimited just announced the 2013 World Champion Squirrel Cook Off to be held on September 7th. The event will be held in Bentonville, Arkansas and will feature hundreds of contestants from across the country that are the best of the best at whoopin’ up a mean batch of squirrel. Squirrel’s Unlimited president Joe Wilson says the event will draw an estimated 10,000 people to the area. Last years squirrel cook off will be televised on Bizarre Foods on the Cooking channel on April 1st. Interested parties should log onto squirrelcookoff.com for more information.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Northwest Outdoor Report

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February Razor Dig Scheduled
WDFW just tentatively approved a razor clam dig on the Washington coast for the weekend of February 7th thru the 12th at Twin Harbors. Long Beach will be open February 8-10 and Copalis and Mocrocks beaches will be open February 8th thru the 9th. WDFW will release a final approval for the dig after marine toxin test results come in next week.

Smaller Spring Chinook Run Forecast for the Columbia
Fishery managers from Washington and Oregon are projecting a run of just over 141,000 spring Chinook for the Columbia River this year. The forecast is down 25 percent from the 10 year average and well below the 203,000 spring Chinook that returned to the upper Columbia River last year. The forecast will allow anglers to catch up to 5,000 upriver springers before the run is updated in early May.

Lake Washington Kicking Out Cutties
Todd Daniels from Tall Tails Guide Service (206-437-8766) is reporting excellent fishing for cutthroat trout on Lake Washington this past week. He had a thirteen fish day on the lake earlier in the week that included a few blackmouth between 3 and 5 pounds. Daniels says that even though the blackmouth have to be released they are a blast on light trolling tackle. The most productive areas have been on the south end of Lake Washington between the Cedar River and Mercer Island and also up on the north end of the lake near Kenmore.

Wynoochee Fishing Well
Derek Anderson from Screamin’ Reels Guide Service (206-849-2574) is reporting steady action for hatchery steelhead on the Wynoochee River the past couple of weeks. Derek has been catching most of his fish backtrolling plugs and baitdivers. Anderson said his biggest hatchery steelhead so far this winter has been 17 pounds and he’s had quite a few chunky fish in the 10 to 14 pound range. He’s been getting his fish on a mix of plugs and baitdivers and Anderson thinks the size 35 Hot Shots in green and blue will really produce this next week in the low and clear water. The Wynoochee River should fish excellent all the way thru the month of March.

Dickson Eye’ing Queets and Hoh for Wild Steelhead
Longtime north sound flyfishing guide Dennis Dickson of Dickson’s Flyfishing (425-238-3537) says the dolly varden are still snapping Egg Sucking Cop Cars on the upper Skagit river, but the steelhead fishing has been poor. With the upper Skagit closing on February 15th, however, he’s gearing up to head to the coast to fish the Queets and Hoh Rivers for wild steelhead. Dickson’s top choice on the coast for flyfishing water is the Queets followed closely by the Hoh River. He suggests tying up pink or black leeches when the water is high and red or blue marabous for low and clear water. Check out Dickson’s weekly flyfishing reports at Flyfishsteelhead.com for up to date river reports!

San Juan Islands Steady for Blackmouth
Derek Floyd from Angler’s Choice Charters (425-239-5740) is reporting fairly steady action in the San Juan Islands this past week. He’s had blackmouth all the way up to 16 pounds and he says the average weight of the fish has been around 9 pounds. He’s been using smaller presentations like 3” and 3.5” Coho Killers and Kingfisher Lite in glow patterns behind a green glow flasher. Floyd says that the northern Rosario Strait has been fishing good as well as the north shore of Orcas Island on the ebb tide. Derek says there’s definitely been some bigger fish in the islands recently and he wouldn’t be surprised if a 20 plus pound blackmouth won the upcoming Roche Harbor Derby.

3 Spots Left for Roche Harbor Derby
Debbie Sandwith at Roche Harbor Resort reports that there are only 3 spots left in the Roche Harbor Derby next weekend. The derby boasts $25,000 in cash prizes and this year there’s a $30,000 jackpot for any winning fish over 30 pounds. The derby is February 7-9 and you can find more information about this great event at Rocheharbor.com.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

Washington OK’s Another Round of Razor Clam Digs

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OLYMPIA – Clam diggers today got a green light to proceed with a two-day razor clam dig Nov. 11-12 at three ocean beaches.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) approved the dig after marine toxin tests showed that the clams on the three beaches are safe to eat.

Beaches scheduled to open for the two-day dig include Long Beach, Twin Harbors and Mocrocks. No digging will be allowed either day before noon.

All diggers age 15 or older must have an applicable 2011-12 fishing license to harvest razor clams on any beach. Licensing options range from a three-day razor clam license to an annual combination fishing license, which can be purchased on WDFW's website (https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov) and from license vendors around the state.

Under state law, diggers can take 15 razor clams per day, and are required to keep the first 15 they dig. Each digger's clams must be kept in a separate container.

"It's important that diggers keep the clams they dig to prevent wastage," said Dan Ayres, WDFW coastal shellfish manager. "It's not unusual to encounter some small clams, especially this early in the season."

For best results, Ayres recommends that clammers start digging an hour or two before the evening low tide. On Nov. 11, an evening low tide of -0.4 feet will occur at 6:48 p.m. The evening low tide Nov. 12 will be -0.4 feet at 7:23 pm.

"This season's tides are not as favorable as those in the past few years," Ayres said. "Low tides will occur later in the day, so diggers will have to be prepared for the dark during evening digs in fall and winter."

Copalis Beach is not included in the two-day dig, said Ayres, who cautions diggers to observe the boundary between Mocrocks Beach and Copalis Beach, which are adjacent to one another north of Grays Harbor.

Mocrocks Beach, which is open for digging Nov. 11-12, lies north of the Copalis River and includes Iron Springs, Roosevelt Beach, Seabrook, Pacific Beach and Moclips. Copalis Beach, which will be closed for the dig, lies south of the Copalis River and includes Ocean Shores, Oyhut, Ocean City and Copalis.

WDFW has tentatively scheduled three other razor-clam digs through the end of the year – all pending final approval until future toxin tests confirm the clams are safe to eat. The tentative schedule for future openings is posted on WDFW's website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/shellfish/razorclams/current.html.

Northwest Outdoor Report for October 8th

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Puget Sound Crabbing Re-opens Today
Seven marine areas of Puget Sound reopen for recreational crabbing today at 8 a.m.. Marine areas 4, 5, 6, 7, 8-1, 8-2, and a portion of area 9 north of a line between Olele Pt and Foulweather Bluff will be open to crabbing 7 days a week starting today thru December 31st. Marine areas 11 and 13 will reopen for crabbing on November 21st and Marine Areas 10, 12, and the southern portion of Area 9 will remain closed, as the catch quota’s have already been met in those areas.

Hunting Season Opens October 15
Deer hunters will take the field in most of Washington’s Game Management Units on October 15th and duck hunters will also get a 5 day season October 15-19, with a brief closure before main hunting season reopens on October 22nd. Pheasant season will open in Eastern Washington on October 22nd. For more detailed information about hunting seasons please log onto the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife website.

Showdown With a Grizzly Bear
Montana outfitter Erin Bolster and her horse “Tonk” will appear on the David Letterman Show on Tuesday night. The pair saved a young boys life from an enraged 750 pound grizzly bear  on a trail ride in the Flathead National Forest back on July 31st. Erin charged the bear three times with her horse before plucking the young boy to safety. You can catch Erin and her incredible story right here on the Outdoor Line after the next break.

House Bill Allows for Lethal Removal of Sea Lions
Tired of seeing sea lions feast on endangered salmon and steelhead at Bonneville Dam? House bill 3069 was passed on Wednesday that will allow for the lethal removal of trouble sea lions from the Columbia River and its tributaries.

The Endangered Salmon and Fisheries Predation Prevention Act allows Washington state, Oregon, Idaho and the four Columbia River treaty tribes to obtain one year permits from the Secretary of Commerce for the lethal removal of a limited number of sea lions from the Columbia river system.

Fishing License Sales Up in Washington
It’s not all gloom and doom for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife these days. In the toughest economy in decades the department has managed to post strong gains in both resident and non-resident license sales from 2006 to 2010. The biggest jump in license sales came from 2008 to 2010, with sales increasing from just over 800,000 resident licenses sold in 2008 to nearly 1.1 million in 2010. A post has been started in the Outdoor Line forums if you’d like to chime in on this latest news.

NOAA Suspends Alaskan Catch Sharing Plan
NOAA’s decided to postpone the Alaskan halibut Catch Sharing Plan after receiving over 4,000 comments in opposition to it. The plan called for a reduction in the daily halibut limit in Area 3A, which includes the tourist-heavy Kenai Peninsula, to just one halibut per day. Halibut numbers have been declining in recent years in Alaskan waters and members of the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council have been scrambling to come up with a plan to stop the decline. Many point to the nearly 6.5 million pounds of bycatch from trawling in the Gulf of Alaska and another 2.5 million pounds of bycatch from the long line fleet. Commercial bycatch in Alaska is currently higher than the total recreational quota.

Rob Endsley
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

July brings expanded crab season and king salmon fishery!

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By Tony Floor, Director of Sportfishing Affairs, NMTA

Yep, the calendar never lies. July is here and it represents the kickoff to so much to do and so little time to do it.

If you take the time to Google the word, July, you’ll learn a number of things. For many, it suggests the 4th of July, 2011 version is a big day, celebrating the US of A’s 235th birthday.

But you will also learn, that the Puget Sound Dungeness summer crab season opens (yum-yum) on July 1st, along with the San Juan Islands and Strait of Juan de Fuca king salmon fishery. Dungeness crab along with fresh grilled king salmon. Somebody help me.

From my perspective, this is the most important Dungeness crab summer season in the history of sport crabbing in Washington. The story rewinds back to June of 2005, when sport crabbing enthusiasts, asked Washington’s Fish and Wildlife Commission to please review the allocation split between sport and commercial crabbers. That split, or crab harvest, has been about two-thirds commercial and one-third sport. Currently, there are about 250 commercial crab fishing licenses in Puget Sound, and 235,000 sport crab license holders. Throw in the ocean commercial Dungeness crab catch and the results suggest that the sport crab fishery takes about ten percent of the total Washington catch. Sounds perfectly out of balance to me.

After years of deliberation on this contentious issue, the Commission voted last October to change the allocation to a new 55/45 split, favoring the commercial industry. The commercials did not like this change, slightly reducing their catch for the purpose of increasing our take, and filed suit in Thurston County Superior Court, asking the judge to impose a temporary restraining order that would stop the implementation of the new allocation which was set to begin on yes, July 1st. The judge ruled in favor of the Commission’s decision and here we go with a five-day at week (Thursdays through Mondays) crab season until Labor Day in early September. If you listen carefully, you’ll hear crab pots splashing into Puget Sound from Olympia to Port Townsend and Deception Pass south. The San Juan Islands will open for their season in mid-July, as the result of a latter molt by male crab.

As I sat through that historic and electrically charged Commission meeting last October, there was concern expressed by commissioners, along with commercial crab representatives, that the sport fishery’s violation of the crab fishing rules was too high and we should not be rewarded with more crab as the result of a greater allocation. Representatives such as myself, vowed to work with Fish and Wildlife shellfish biologists to turn up the volume to help educate crabbers of knowing the rules before launching their crab gear in Puget Sound.

We, at the Northwest Marine Trade Association began our outreach for crab education at last January’s Seattle Boat Show, creating a crab education center, and increased the number of free crab fishing seminars during the Show. There were more crab fishing seminars than any other fishing seminars during the Show. It was a huge success.

In the last few weeks, I’ve been on the road, preaching like a Baptist minister, accompanied by Rich Childers, policy lead for Puget Sound crab management at the Department, to sit down with newspaper reporters from Bellingham to Olympia, urging them to write about the importance of knowing before you go, as the Commission will be briefed at the end of the year, about our ability to comply with the rules. The number one violation is failure to record the crab catch, by individual crabbers, during the process of bringing crab aboard. They must be recorded immediately. In other words, if a WDFW enforcement boat approaches you in the act of crabbing, and let’s say there are 10 crab in a couple of buckets that have just been caught……then there needs to be 10 crab recorded on crab record cards (the limit is 5 male Dungeness crab per person, measuring at least 6 ¼ inches across the back of the crab).

WDFW enforcement statistics suggest, it is not the people who crab often who violate the rules, but to the contrary, it appears to be crabbers who go occasionally, and as a result, don’t know the requirements. The solution, you guessed it, is to go as often as you can! I accept the assignment.

The 1st of July is also, as stated earlier, the kickoff to king salmon fishing (hatchery kings only) throughout the Strait of Juan de Fuca until August 15th. I have spent considerable time in my life, especially in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, learning about intercepting these incredible salmon from Sekiu west to Pillar Point, Freshwater Bay and Ediz Hook at Port Angeles. Historical records show, that it was Chet Guasta, from the Bremerton area who boated the current Washington State king salmon record of a 70 pounder in the Sekiu area back in the mid 60’s. This year’s king salmon show will produce highlight films again this summer, as Puget Sound salmon hatchery bound mature chinook salmon, migrate east down the Strait of Juan de Fuca highway before entering Puget Sound at Port Townsend. Can you imagine hooking and landing a 70-pounder here in Washington? I’ve caught hundreds of them, every night, in my dreams.

And if the Strait of Juan de Fuca summer king salmon fishery does not float your boat, then you might consider chasing kings in the San Juan Islands. Eagle Bluff, Obstruction Pass, Tide Point, Pointer Rock in the eastern portion of the Islands will produce king salmon on the opener. Or, on to the western San Juans, at Eagle Point, Pile Point and Smugglers Cove, just off the kelp beds, I know there is a 71 pounder chasing baitfish with my name on it.

Finally, in terms of fishing options, the highly popular hatchery only Puget Sound king salmon fishery opens from Port Townsend to south Puget Sound on July 16th. Participation in this fishery has been huge and the catches have been good to great. Mid-Channel Bank, Possession Bar, Point No Point, Kingston, and Jefferson Head are recognized hot spots for these kings.

The table is not only set, dinner is served. Tonight’s menu features fresh melt-in-your-mouth king salmon, oozing with Omega-3’s accompanied by chilled jumbo Dungeness crab on the side. And yes, a swig of a favorite grape juice triggering a migration of my eyeballs rolling east, to the back of my head. It’s showtime in the great Pacific Northwest. And you thought all those fireworks were about a state birthday! See you on the water.