Everett Coho Derby: 9/23-9/24

Read a report on Piscatorial Pursuit's board, of hordes of coho swimming by Lagoon Pt., on Whidbey's west side. But nobody was catching anything!  http://www.piscatorialpursuits.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php/topic/1/26384.html

Still, it sounds like the best option, short of driving all the way to the coast.  I'm going to head out towards Bush Pt. If there's no action in the morning, I may drive around to the lower Stilly for an afternoon/evening fish, in the lower river. Even if there's no salmon, maybe I can get into some SRC, on the fly rod.

"Coho phenomenal for some, tough for others" ... http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2003268157_fish21.html

Go gettem and good luck guys!  Hopefully you'll be on the phenomenal side of things.

-Allen

Well- I got skunk'd.

I launched from the beach just south of the PT. Townsend Ferry launch at 7am yesterday. It was a  beautiful day with hardly any wind during the morning hours that I fished.  I began by paddling south against the building ebb current for about a mile, and then drifted with the current until I had rounded the point at Fort Casey.  I only saw 2 fish break the surface during this first 2 hours.  I was flyfishing and did have two fish follow my fly all the way up to the boat, but that was about it for the day.  I was varying my retrieve and still couldn't get these fish to strike.  Very different than what I have experienced out of Neah Bay, so I am starting to wonder if I can be successful with the flyrod from a kayak after all........  I guess I'll just keep trying different things.

Anyway, I paddled back to the launch and beachd the kayak so I could cast my new 6 wt from the shoreline looking for sea-run cutts.  No success there either, though I really like the new rod!  It was a great day to be on the water and since I didn't see any of the trolling guys bring in any fish, I didn't feel too bad with getting skunk'd.  I will be out at our cabin on Anderson Island this weekend, so I hope to get out and get some fishing in down there. 

Pete

The late, late report-

Got to Seattle that Friday evening, and after dropping off the kids, I hightailed it to GI Joe's to pick up supplies and a derby ticket. It was just before 9pm and the guy at the service desk told me that they cut off ticket sales at 8pm.  *($@#&()^%#% The print out from the derby website said sales were going til 9pm!! He was adament, and by now it was too late to go somewhere else. @#%^&$$&*^% This meant that the only way to get a derby ticket was to pick it up at derby headquarters, in the morning. Not very convenient, as I had planned on going out to Whidbey that evening. But I got there (derby HQ) at 4:30 am, and was in the Mukilteo ferry line by 5:15. Had to wait an hour for the %(%#@# ferry, so I organized my gear.

Made it to Bush Pt., and launched to beautiful weather. It was pretty busy with 25-30 boats in the neighborhood. I was the only one in a human powered craft, and caught a few shocked stares. That was about all I, or anyone else, caught. Well, not quite true. I managed several sculpins ( including one that was bigger than any I've ever caught), a couple of flounder, and 1 chinook at 9" (My herring was at least 7"!  ) I saw one coho, ~8#, caught in 6 hours. I was trolling and mooching; riding the tide, offshore, almost to Lagoon Pt., then trolling nearshore, back upstream to Bush. After the tide change, I stayed N. of the point in a little rip that set up where the water running along the shore drops off and speeds up, towards the point. With the incoming tide and a N wind, I didn't want to go around the point and get blown to Possession.

After haullng out and loading up, I drove up island to the Keystone area, where the wind seemed even stronger, and would have blown me right back to Bush Pt. Picked up a mocha in Coupeville and drove to Cornet Bay, on the east end of Deception Pass. Coronet Bay is well protected from all but the worst winds. Pretty protected from the worst of the tides, too, as it is an out of the way corner.

There was a fish checker stationed at the ramp, so I started chatting with him. He had checked 20 boats, with out seeing a single coho!!! Not very encouraging, but the tide was slacking and after resting a while, I felt it was my obligation to fish hard! Caught some dog fish, a cab, a few sculpins, and broke off something big (the beadchain swivel on a mooching weight broke).Tried a sabiki rig, as folks on the docks were catching some smelt and herring, but I struck out. After the tide changed, and the sun set, I gave it up, for the day. Went and got a couple of burgers, and parked in the 24 hour parking at the Keystone ferry, and slept till dawn.

In the morning, I wasn't feeling too optimistic about the saltwater scene, so I decided to do some exploring for potential launching/fishing sites. I drove north, off island, and to La Conner, first. Walked the docks for a few minutes, and could see little herring there, too. Also checked out spots on the N fork of the Skagit, the S Fork Skagit, The Stilly, and Kayak Pt. (Oh, and Smith Island on the lower Snohomish). Tried fishing the lower Stilly, and while I saw some fish roll, I never got a hit. The water was really low, and for that river, relatively clear. What fish there were, seemed really spookish

Ended up at the awards ceremony, back at derby HQ. (Biggest salmon derby on the West Coast, they said.) Barely 400 fish for more than 3000 anglers. They had more prizes, than fish caught!    The prizes were very impressive, and every one that caught a fish, took home prizes. They had lots of extra prizes, like for the smallest fish, the average fish, fish caught by the oldest angler, the youngest angler, largest by active duty, etc., etc.  A couple of boats were given away. I left wondering about the feasibility of doing a parallel or human powered catagory. At the very least, going as a contigent would get a bunch of exposure.

I left wondering about the feasibility of doing a parallel or human powered catagory. At the very least, going as a contigent would get a bunch of exposure.

You ask and you shall receive ... hopefully.  I received this email from one of the derby organizers today.

That sounds quite interesting. I will pass this along to the derby board for consideration. If not a division maybe a prize of some type for the largest fish caught in a kayak.  Thanks for your input.

So ... did you find any decent spots on your scouting mission?

-Allen

So ... did you find any decent spots on your scouting mission?

Found a couple launch sites on the S. Fork Skagit, That makes 3 that I know of, in ~2-3 mile intervals. The fish checker at Coronet was a WDFW biologist, that works out of some barge with offices (and labs?) tied up on the river. I asked him if he knew anything about sturgeoun in the river, but he said he didn't know of any effort. He did say that he had once seen a 10-12'er, hanging off the side of an Indian boat, on the Nooksack.

Just west of Stanwood, at the bridge going out to Camano Island, there is a possible launch site in to the slough. Would be muddy at low tide, but not impossible. Would be a good place to explore, when it's too windy for the big water.Maybe dino potential? Crabs?

 Out on the N end of Camano, there is a small county park with picnic tables and a small ramp. (Utsalady Pt.) Potential for winter blackmouth, fall coho, searun cutts and crabs. Limited parking, might be tough on weekends, in the summer. http://mapper.acme.com/?lat=48.33902&long=-124.669&scale=14&theme=Topo&width=4&height=3&dot=Yes

The lower Stillaguamish has a ramp, just downstream of Marine Drive. I didn't see any fish rolling here, that was a little farther upstream. But in the low water, even with the ebb-tide, rowing upstream against the current would have been feasable. http://mapper.acme.com/?lat=48.33902&long=-124.669&scale=14&theme=Topo&width=4&height=3&dot=Yes