2018 Sooke Reports
- Thread starter SFBC
- Start date
Mako 22
Well-Known Member
Yea PA Guy Ediz Hook was a zoo three days ago, not only was the parking area full of trailers but you needed traffic cops out on the water from the Coast Guard Station to the end of the Hook!
Funny thing, less than 10 trailers at the ramp next to the Yacht club.
John in Port Angeles
Funny thing, less than 10 trailers at the ramp next to the Yacht club.
John in Port Angeles
Sam7
Well-Known Member
Launched from Prestige and headed out to possession, trolled there for about an hour with nothing going on, that I noticed. Headed down to the Trap. I made a few laps there before I had a coule of pin poppers, the first was of good size but ended up being a long line release. I know it's Monday, and the waves were a little choppy, but I was all by myself by about 2:00. Today I wished that I had a GoPro, at about 2:15 the rod goes off and there is a decent fish on. As the fish is about 35 feet from the boat and it's on the surface, the eagle that hangs out in the area, takes a dive and tries to grab the fish. The eagle circles around and takes four more dives, with the last one being about 10 feet form the boat. Eagle 0- LimeRicky 1.
2 hits on both rods, green chrome teaser with beatsy, 66' bloody nose with cop car flasher, 55'
Tsquared
Well-Known Member
Good fish story!
Hillier420
Member
Heard sockeye open aug 1. Is Sooke open for Sox’s as well?
Hoochiebob
Well-Known Member
They are where you find them. In past years sometimes way out by say the third tide line and sometimes right off the mouth of Sooke Inlet. Sometimes you will see them jumping. Usually we fish shallow for them especially if they are jumping but like all salmon they can be found at different depths and you will need to search for them.
You want to find/attract/create a tight school and get on top of them so that they stay with and slowly follow your boat . Run as many red/orange flashers as you and your boat can handle, possibly including some dummy flashers in very close to the balls. If you can simulate a school you can attract them to it and they will follow it and the bite will stay on.
As for lures, years ago I picked up a box of rigged Sockeye lures at a garage sale, that had come off of a commercial boat from before you had to clip the barbs. They where small short pinkish orange squirts with all but a few of the arms removed. The head was painted with what appears to be some sort of water proof black/deep purple ink and there was a large single stainless siwash hook in them attached to a swivel which had one end loop out the front of the squirt and tied to a very short heavy stiff leader. Using these old commercial rigs have worked great for us, after we pinched the barbs of course.
I have also heard that black of black and purple squirts also work good.
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Tsquared
Well-Known Member
As Rockfish said, we used to use squirts rigged sparsely when fishing Sox commercially. I used to take a squirt and cut it lengthwise in quarters, then Wire each quarter to a swivel on a 5/0 stainless hook. Play around with leader length but generally tails are shorter than coho and as Rockfish said, carry as much bling as you can handle. A gold chain around your neck will help.
When the bite is on, you don’t want to waste much time landing a fish. Sox start to quickly spin in the water beside the boat making them a hard target for gaffing and will do the same in a full sized landing net once you get them onboard, making it a pain to get them out in a hurry. I use a smaller net with the bag tied off so it kind of looks like a lacrosse goalie stick. I then dip the net below the sockeye beside the boat and fling it in the boat. That way you can quickly get your gear back in or land the next fish if you’re in the middle of a double or triple header.
T2
When the bite is on, you don’t want to waste much time landing a fish. Sox start to quickly spin in the water beside the boat making them a hard target for gaffing and will do the same in a full sized landing net once you get them onboard, making it a pain to get them out in a hurry. I use a smaller net with the bag tied off so it kind of looks like a lacrosse goalie stick. I then dip the net below the sockeye beside the boat and fling it in the boat. That way you can quickly get your gear back in or land the next fish if you’re in the middle of a double or triple header.T2
pachito
Active Member
Talked to my buddy fishing in Uke last night and word has it they are thick offshore there so wont be long before they are here,,,next 2 weeks should be awesome.
good luck
tubber
Well-Known Member
They got 1700 in 6 sets in the test seine at Bonilla yesterday. I don't know if they set in a pattern or only try their favourite depth, or go by the sounder, but those numbers are okay. So there are sox in area 20 now. 200o+ in one set would be an indicator of a strong, peaking run. They get way more per set in Area 12 in prime time because the fish are trapped along the beach on one side.
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Good fish day in Sooke but crappy seas and weed at first light. Landed 3 of 8 on the morning trip up to about 20 pounds and 5 of 8 on the afternoon trip up to 22 pounds. Challenging day to be running 3 riggers, steer the boat, avoid the weeds and deal with rods that were very active during the bites. Time for a couple of pops.
Saxe Point
Well-Known Member
But I assume that the complete finfish closure from East Point to Otter
Point is still in effect? In other words, no fishing for sockeye in that area?
True?
Fisherben3
Active Member
Saxe Point
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the confirmation and the tip!
Stizzla
Crew Member
Nice job out there! Do you pull up all riggers and rods on a big one? (20+)
