2017 Nootka Sound/Esperanza Inlet Reports
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Jaybones
Member
Fished Nootka on Tuesday and Wednesday, we didn't have a place to stay so we did two-day trips from Campbell River, got up at 2:30 am and left by 3:00 am. Super long days but worth it. First day we arrived at Camel Rock at 6 am in time for the morning bite, there was a decent bite in the am and we were able to pick up a couple of nice springs. Picked both of them up at 50 feet on the rigger and we were using anchovies with a silver Betsy flasher and bloody nose teaser head on one side, Moon Jelly flasher on the other with a pearl glow Teaser head. The bite died off and we headed out to the monument to see what was going on out there. Tried out there for a bit but no bites although we did see some caught. At around 1 pm we headed back to Camel Rock to try our luck back there. Another bite started at around 2 ish and we were able to pick up 4 more springs for our limit, fish were a little deeper and we were picking them up around 60 feet on the rigger, sometimes just off the bottom, again on anchovies. Smallest was 17lbs with two at 22lbs and one at 21lbs. Lots of bait balls on the sounder and had 2 double headers which was a ton of fun. Next day up again at 2:30 and fishing by 6 am, again a morning bite that was a bit better than the morning before unfortunately, we were only able to boat one Chinook, I think we went 1 for 6 in the am. My buddy's 11-year-old son was with us and he was playing the fish so user error was definitely a factor. Again when the bite died off we headed out to the monument and tried out luck out there with the same result as the day before. So again at 1pm we headed back to Camel Rock to see if the afternoon bite would repeat itself. Sure enough, the bite started at around 2pm we had a little bit better success rate in the afternoon and were able to boat 5 more springs to get us 6 for the day. Same gear as the day before but we fished a little deeper picking them up down as deep as 70 feet in 90 feet of water. Again the largest was 22 with the smallest being around 15 lbs. Jelly fish are a problem this year but I don't think it is as bad as last year but they do foul your line and we would check them every 20 mins or so. All in all two great days.
LocoWahoo
New Member
Hey Wondermur, love the sound of this setup. How much line between the swivels to let the Jetdiver move? I assume it's rigged main line - bead swivel - line w jetdiver - bead swivel - leader - bucktail? CheersSaanauk
No I haven't tried these Olympic lures. They look like an option for trolling in the wash with the blade on the front.
I think the name grandslam bucktails misleads us BC folks a bit. It sounds like a coho fly and we want to catch springs! Plus bucktailing is often not very productive in my attempts.
What has worked great for me is a variation on bucktailing. I use my 9wt fly rod, flyreel and 70yds of 20lb mono over dacron backing. Then I take jetdiver a couple of 6 Bead swivels and thread that onto the main line so it can slip up and down the main line. Attach your end tackle with leader to main line and check it behind the boat. It digs down to 10-25 feet below the boat and zigs and zags about and coho will hit it if they are nearby. They don't have to come up to the surface to hit your gear. I often use coho killers for that. And if you stop the boat it all floats to the top as the jetdiver is full of air and only dives when you are moving like a plug would. You just point the rod directly at the water and adjust the drag tight enough to set the hook and put it in the rod holder. When the fish hits it hooks itself as there is tension on the line from the jet diver and no bend in the rod. The fish takes off and the jetdiver runs up the line and provides no drag when the fish runs.
This is a lot more effective than using sinking fly line and hookup % is way better imho.
If you only run two rods this is an easy third rod option. And if you have other boats nearby you can fish your gear just 20' behind the boat and maybe 8' below surface below the prop wash and not be the annoying guy in the fleet with a trailing line way behind your boat
Wondermur
dance a jig
Active Member
Just returned from annual trip to Nootka yesterday where we stayed at Critter Cove for 5 days. Wonderful weather, wonderful facilities and hosts at Critter Cove, and decent fishing. It was slower than I would like, but were able to get our fish. We spent our efforts mostly inside except for one trip to Beano Creek and 2 trips to Burdwood, both of which yielded light returns for us, although some at Critter were fortunate to score big time at Burdwood earlier in the week. As reported earlier, the fish were deeper, say 60'+ at Camel Rock, and we caught them on anchovies and various smaller spoons but the high producer was this new Gibbs spoon called "Skinny G" in green and white 5' behind an assortment of flashers. As reported earlier, fish were smaller with most retained in the 17-22 lb range. What a delight to start and end our trip using the new docks at the Gold River ramp, instead of the chaos there of prior years.
Good luck. DAJ
Good luck. DAJ
spring fever
Well-Known Member
Just back from a quick trip to Nootka-painfully slow for most folks and a real Gong show inside and on the ramp. Burdwood produced a couple for us on a chovie and a Ccar coyote. Never saw any other nets there and fished it twice at prime times. Beano Creek was like a parade of boats at Easter --we got Nada but not a prime time--we did talk to one guy who said he had one. So bad I went bottom fishing and picked up some nice lings, yelloweye and 1 121cm Hali-not all lost. So where are the fish--happened on some nice ones about 3 miles outside the Bajo moaning buoy but it was very lumpy and booted a few beside the boat-got a few in the low 20's before basically getting kicked off--but they were there-guess I traded the bottom fish for 3 hours of flat water. Word of warning--I have fished Nootka for over 20 years and have never seen so many boats and folks with so little regard for boating rules or even common sense. If you don't like fishing with road rage and attitude and aren't prepared to go outside and get away from it all -then don't bother. I will be giving it a miss and will go back to Winter Harbour. Quit it once before in 2003-should have stuck to my guns and given July and August a miss-Good Luck guys--DFO is there in full force!! I was there for 2 days fri am to sun morning.
walleyes
Crew Member
Good report Spring.
It's unfortunate how inconsiderate people can be isn't it. We face the same thing at our boat launches on my home lake. It's a big popular lake and on the weekends it gets busy, in all honesty I just stay away on the weekends ans only fish most of our lakes during the week. Ignorance is one thing but just being ignorant I can't stand and I have no patients for. People have been raised different the last generation and it's all a me, me mentality. Boating licenses should be no different than drivers licenses, they have to tighten up on the schooling. Proper boat launch etiquette should be a huge part of the training. Not that all would follow it anyways but at least they would have a clue.
It's to bad to hear that it's spreading like a disease, unfortunately I feel it's only going to get worse as more of the new me, me generation gets older.
It's unfortunate how inconsiderate people can be isn't it. We face the same thing at our boat launches on my home lake. It's a big popular lake and on the weekends it gets busy, in all honesty I just stay away on the weekends ans only fish most of our lakes during the week. Ignorance is one thing but just being ignorant I can't stand and I have no patients for. People have been raised different the last generation and it's all a me, me mentality. Boating licenses should be no different than drivers licenses, they have to tighten up on the schooling. Proper boat launch etiquette should be a huge part of the training. Not that all would follow it anyways but at least they would have a clue.
It's to bad to hear that it's spreading like a disease, unfortunately I feel it's only going to get worse as more of the new me, me generation gets older.
Tailwalker
Active Member
Can you be more specific about the poor behavior? Was it at the ramp or on the water trolling/fishing?
salmonkiller01
Well-Known Member
Just back from Nootka, we were cut off, boats at full speed in the pitch black ripping by us,out at the light house had a boat running full speed rip between me and another boat 40 feet away.( we were the only 2 boats in this spot, but he save 18 seconds heading out). Never seen so many boats inside the sound ever in 10 years. Lots of deep breaths and counting to 10, or do what we did and move away from the crowds.
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walleyes
Crew Member
Sounds like Otter Point on a weekend.
codfather
Crew Member
Tailwalker, this is my short story about bad behavior on the water.
The other day at Beano I was trolling along the caves.
Now remember the two MAIN rules of the road (water).
The first one is the three R's.
1- Right (starboard).
2- To the Rocks.
3- Has the RIGHT OF WAY.
As Spring Fever said to a client that I've had for years and tells the story when he had a boat and fumbled around out here. Right to the rocks YANK. He has never forgot.
Sorry I digress, the 2nd rule is NEVER cross someone's bow.
So as I was saying I was trolling North up Beano and some guy comes from the outside and cuts in front of me so I had to slow down not to cut his damm gear off. Then comes to the back of his boat and says to me, hey buddy get with the troll pattern.
I did not even respond as I say you can't reason with a idiot and just kept on trolling along. Now in the old days I would have reeled up my gear and dropped my cannon balls down and grabbed 2 flasher and all there line.
3 days ago I was trolling at the Lighthouse around by Church Bay. I was pushed on the rocks up to 20 feet of water and the guy looks at me like I did something wrong. The seen two collisions within inches just about happen so I got the hell out of there and went to Burdwood all by myself and caught 2 springs.
So that's my story for the week.
casper5280
Crew Member
I have used that method, and it does work very well. Lol. I like you, now do the count to 10 method, but there are many a day that I think I should go back to my old days.
Tailwalker
Active Member
Codfather, Thanks for the examples of bad behavior. I like to think some of those people don't really know the rules so pointing them out may help; but I suspect for some, rules don't apply to them.......may they lose every hook-up, if at all!!!
salmonkiller01
Well-Known Member
Its typical on the inside to be cutoff. The right to the rocks actually works. I had never heard of it until reading on the vancouver thread. It works great until someone really needs to do what they want LOL.
Hats off to the guides in the area, putting up with the crowds all season.
RODNREEL
Active Member
Sad but true !!!!!!!!!!
spring fever
Well-Known Member
Sure-the ramp was an absolute Gong show-everyone wanted in and there were 8 to ten boats waiting in the river to get out-there was absolutely no attempt at control-guys were launching between boats and this on a low falling tide. There should have been an in/ out designated side. Guys were just pushing in where ever and then sat there getting their boat loaded after they'd jumped the line. The FN just took money-no attempt at control or direction.
Camel rock-the tack belonged to the brave and fearless--forget right rod to the beach-in fact forget everything you thought you knew-he with the biggest cojones and oldest crapper boat wins the tack---same around the monument. Bound to happen really--the number of boats from tinnys to 40 footers was hard to comprehend. Off-shore was really quite good-I put that down to fewer boats of course but probably more experienced boaters. I'm sure some guys get off on it-there is a bit of a carnival flavour to it but my report was meant to warn people what to expect for the first time--yes you get a shot at some really nice Springs- will it be once in a lifetime experience---you betcha!!-IF your boat driver can get over your fish and get you to the outside so you have a chance to land it. I would call it Combat fishing or perhaps contact fishing. I know it will sound like sour grapes to some--which is Ok-if you are good with it and don't mind it-enjoy. I had a look and a laugh this time and decided not to play-Went outside to take my lumps with the Pacific--much safer and way more peaceful. My 2 cents
Saltwater Cowboy
Active Member
Hey guys thanks for the updates.. heading into the gong show tomorrow till Friday. Where's the best place to grab salt ice in CR tomorrow am on the way up? Looks like it's going to be mid to high 30's temp so salt ice will be needed! Will post a report when I get back!
Aces
Well-Known Member
relentfish
New Member
Stopped fishing Nootka 17 years ago and never looked back! Kyuquot is way more laid back without any of the combat fishing BS
