Otter Point on The Ebb

profisher

Well-Known Member
I had an incident with another boater this week on the morning ebb tide. The guy did what in my mind from 50 years of fishing this spot was a bonehead move. After the confrontation it was apparent to me he had no idea why he was in the wrong when I heard him repeating to his wife its all about him and that I thought I owned the spot. I was annoyed but not as pissed as I would have been if it had been someone who I thought knew better. So to maybe help some guys out who don't fully understand what guys are doing out there I thought I would explain it a bit. This is about fishing the ebb at Otter...specifically off Otter Point itself as the west beach is pretty straight forward. I've had close to the same encounters before while off Otter in the ebb flow.
The diagram I included shows how the currents set up on the ebb at Otter...and is close to the same at Sheringham. The flow runs from north to south of the east shore of Otter and out towards the USA and curves west the further out you go. Eventually the ebb flow bends enough it heads due west towards Sheringham. If you followed it further west a portion of that flow gets forced back east and at peak flow velocity it ends up creating a false flood along the 3rd and 2nd rocks. At this point at the border between the ebb flow off Otter and where the false flood converge they create swirly type water and a weed trap....a place to either avoid or find the cleanest way through to move from one zone to the other.
I was in the boat marked "Me" trolling north going into the ebb flow just east of the back eddy line and weed trap. No matter if fishing the west or east zone of Otter you fish parallel to the beach either into the current or with it. This is where some guys don't understand the area. I think they think they should have right of way through the ebb flow and expect boats in that flow to give way to them because they think they are still fishing parallel to shore....when in fact once you get through the weed trap area the shore now runs north to south and that is the tact you take to parallel the beach. As I approach the weed trap not only am I looking for the cleanest path through it I 'm looking for a hole in the boat traffic to squeeze into without pushing anyone off their line. This guy came right towards my bow and ended up on my port bow with downrigger lines inches apart form one another. We both raised our arms at the same time ....gesturing what are you doing to each other. After some words I ended up doing a hard starboard jog to create separation...letting the ebb flow push me back a bit and then hard port to get behind him and back on my line. He was still upset with that move telling his wife I was going right over his lines and I still thought I owned the water. So basically Otter has 2 zones on the ebb...the west zone you fish east/west from Otter to 2nd rock to 3rd rock. Once you get directly south of Otter in the weed trap area it changes to the east zone where you fish south/north. In both zones if you are fishing in the opposite direction you only cross other boats by staying clear of them. If this helps anyone understand it better and avoid a confrontation...mission accomplished.
 

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Thanks Profisher, as a rookie I have been reading right rod to the rock stuff and am a more timid driver usually trying to not get in anyone’s way. Last week at Possesion I made a tack Into the flo from east to west and as there was no other boats at that time I stayed in closer. My mistake as boats turned and arrived quickly I looked for my chance to head out but unfortunately I was caught. Looking Straight ahead was kelp Island And another boat coming at me fast. I was now faced with only bad choices. If the boat had just given me another 5ft we could’ve got buy but instead I was yelled at and squeezed, my left rod took kelp and my right rod got his rigger and peeled off. I guess my point is stuff can happen fast and just a bit of understanding by all can make the experience less stressful and helps me become a better boater. I do apologize to other guy as I was in the wrong and luckily got all my gear back.
 
Thanks Profisher, as a rookie I have been reading right rod to the rock stuff and am a more timid driver usually trying to not get in anyone’s way. Last week at Possesion I made a tack Into the flo from east to west and as there was no other boats at that time I stayed in closer. My mistake as boats turned and arrived quickly I looked for my chance to head out but unfortunately I was caught. Looking Straight ahead was kelp Island And another boat coming at me fast. I was now faced with only bad choices. If the boat had just given me another 5ft we could’ve got buy but instead I was yelled at and squeezed, my left rod took kelp and my right rod got his rigger and peeled off. I guess my point is stuff can happen fast and just a bit of understanding by all can make the experience less stressful and helps me become a better boater. I do apologize to other guy as I was in the wrong and luckily got all my gear back.
I was almost hit by a boat off possession a few weeks back, the guys flasher was outside my window he was that close. He was yelling at me and didn’t even try and move out of the way even though he turned right into me just stayed on his line.What pissed me off the most was I was going around after I had moved out of another boats way. I didn’t just cut that boat off and yell at him just got
I had an incident with another boater this week on the morning ebb tide. The guy did what in my mind from 50 years of fishing this spot was a bonehead move. After the confrontation it was apparent to me he had no idea why he was in the wrong when I heard him repeating to his wife its all about him and that I thought I owned the spot. I was annoyed but not as pissed as I would have been if it had been someone who I thought knew better. So to maybe help some guys out who don't fully understand what guys are doing out there I thought I would explain it a bit. This is about fishing the ebb at Otter...specifically off Otter Point itself as the west beach is pretty straight forward. I've had close to the same encounters before while off Otter in the ebb flow.
The diagram I included shows how the currents set up on the ebb at Otter...and is close to the same at Sheringham. The flow runs from north to south of the east shore of Otter and out towards the USA and curves west the further out you go. Eventually the ebb flow bends enough it heads due west towards Sheringham. If you followed it further west a portion of that flow gets forced back east and at peak flow velocity it ends up creating a false flood along the 3rd and 2nd rocks. At this point at the border between the ebb flow off Otter and where the false flood converge they create swirly type water and a weed trap....a place to either avoid or find the cleanest way through to move from one zone to the other.
I was in the boat marked "Me" trolling north going into the ebb flow just east of the back eddy line and weed trap. No matter if fishing the west or east zone of Otter you fish parallel to the beach either into the current or with it. This is where some guys don't understand the area. I think they think they should have right of way through the ebb flow and expect boats in that flow to give way to them because they think they are still fishing parallel to shore....when in fact once you get through the weed trap area the shore now runs north to south and that is the tact you take to parallel the beach. As I approach the weed trap not only am I looking for the cleanest path through it I 'm looking for a hole in the boat traffic to squeeze into without pushing anyone off their line. This guy came right towards my bow and ended up on my port bow with downrigger lines inches apart form one another. We both raised our arms at the same time ....gesturing what are you doing to each other. After some words I ended up doing a hard starboard jog to create separation...letting the ebb flow push me back a bit and then hard port to get behind him and back on my line. He was still upset with that move telling his wife I was going right over his lines and I still thought I owned the water. So basically Otter has 2 zones on the ebb...the west zone you fish east/west from Otter to 2nd rock to 3rd rock. Once you get directly south of Otter in the weed trap area it changes to the east zone where you fish south/north. In both zones if you are fishing in the opposite direction you only cross other boats by staying clear of them. If this helps anyone understand it better and avoid a confrontation...mission accomplished.
 
Empathy goes a long way in the world but seems to be left behind at the dock. Bottom line is not everyone is a "local" and if I am in a new area I just sit back and watch for a bit to see what everyone else is doing. Anyway this is a great thread and lots for everyone to learn, on all sides of the discussion.
 
Original...Possession is a bit more complicated because it is a smaller area and if the fish are holding off the point you are doing circles all morning. It can be a cluster there for sure...but there still is a proper way to fish it. The reef and pinnacles there make it more of a challenge too, especially in the fog.
 
Right now thanks to DFO all fishing for chinook is concentrated in 1 month or about 6 weeks.. That puts alot of pressure on all spots with alot of boats in one area.. Most guys don't read this forum but i,m sure most guys don't go out and say today i,m going to cut someone off or have a near miss.. The fog has made it really difficult to fish some of these area's lately.. Cooler heads prevail. Oh and Pro i think you need some art lessons lol.
 
Almost make sense to do the return deep water instead of squeezing in there. I can see why the guy probably lost it. I understand your local knowledge but a lot of the guys don't pay attention too the current is doing.

Same is the some that though Otter close to shore and swamp everybody then going for outside when traveling.

Thanks for posting anyway..
 
Get the stick out of your butt SV. When I do go home down the beach there is nobody fishing in close if there is I go outside through the biggest hole between boats there is. . The other day there were 25 boats off Otter and no bite.....so everyone was spread out from 100 ft of water to 250. If I went out in deep water I would have had to cut between boats at some point...so I went in along the beach n 20ft of water and close to no one. Does it matter if my wake when it does get to you that it hits you on the port side or the starboard side? I travel by kayakers in the harbour and give them just as much distance as possible which because of tight quarters is about the same distance as a beach run past Otter....they never ***** about it. You obviously have a personal problem with me and post just to contradict what I'm saying. And as far as going into deep water to get into the east zonewhen fishing ...when the ebb on a full moon cycle is ripping at 3 mph....I'm not going out into the deep to get stuck there for an hour trying to get back to the reef and along the wells O-Weary beach front. BTW I had already been sitting in the flow on that spot for a few minutes creeping towards the reef which was coming up...he tried to force me to move...not squeeze in somewhere...which would have been fine. If someone came straight at you on a collision coarse broadside from deep water while you were trolling in front of 2nd rock and expected you to get out of the way...what would you do? What happened to me was the same scenario just different spot. Any way I"M trying to educate not stir the pot, maybe you should do the same.
 
Basically sounds like he was on your port side so should have given way, trolling or not, regardless of current flow.
 
I wasn't going to get into red light green lights but yeh that too. Technically both parties if dealing with collision regs have to avoid a collision...so I wouldn't be in the clear if he came head on from port and hit me...if I didn't try to avoid him.
 
Get the stick out of your butt SV. When I do go home down the beach there is nobody fishing in close if there is I go outside through the biggest hole between boats there is. . The other day there were 25 boats off Otter and no bite.....so everyone was spread out from 100 ft of water to 250. If I went out in deep water I would have had to cut between boats at some point...so I went in along the beach n 20ft of water and close to no one. Does it matter if my wake when it does get to you that it hits you on the port side or the starboard side? I travel by kayakers in the harbour and give them just as much distance as possible which because of tight quarters is about the same distance as a beach run past Otter....they never ***** about it. You obviously have a personal problem with me and post just to contradict what I'm saying. And as far as going into deep water to get into the east zonewhen fishing ...when the ebb on a full moon cycle is ripping at 3 mph....I'm not going out into the deep to get stuck there for an hour trying to get back to the reef and along the wells O-Weary beach front. BTW I had already been sitting in the flow on that spot for a few minutes creeping towards the reef which was coming up...he tried to force me to move...not squeeze in somewhere...which would have been fine. If someone came straight at you on a collision coarse broadside from deep water while you were trolling in front of 2nd rock and expected you to get out of the way...what would you do? What happened to me was the same scenario just different spot. Any way I"M trying to educate not stir the pot, maybe you should do the same.

Huh? All I said was you could have easily went wide. Sorry you think its personal.
 
Rollie you cut inside if there are 200 boats at otter......you know it, I know it, everyone knows it. Quite a few years ago Roy offered you publicly (in this forum) to give you $10 bucks a year for gas to stop doing it......so let's be honest here
HEYYYY i didnt want to get involved here LOL LOL
btw he never took me up on it FYI LOL LOL must be getting late in season ... people are tired etc


Sometimes its a gong show Some people come WAY to close to each other sorry Rollie but your one of them I will add your a great guy off the water but sometimes a bit aggressive dont take it personal as I have no issues with you bud . there is another boat which remains nameless as we all know who he is and gets his clients to steer the boat....thats way worse!!!!

Last week on the hard flood and in fog a guy actually hit my boat right on the anchor dead flat i was in 90 feet he figured HEY lets go down on the inside but ohhh wait **** he came in from 30 feet cut in front of me and bam into me ... I said right rod to shore bud on the flood he starts cussing me etc I calmly said DUDE im in neutral im going backwards your cutting into me your doing 5 kts!!!! in the 35 years ive been fishing I have never seen this before i was actually laughing at the guy as it was so stupid my clients who have been with me alot and know how my GPS works said your doing the normal as im sitting in the rip... I actually felt sorry for the guy as he was really freaking I had no where to go as i was under no power....
 
LOL I'll keep it honest if you keep it real....200 boats at Otter... when ever was that? A bit of the Donald is rubbing off on some of us eh!? Roy when the other boat you don't want to name goes down the beach or when the old blue decked loud boat and guide did it ....it doesn't bother me.....why would it I'm not fishing in 20 feet of water in the kelp. The exhaust noise of that boat was more annoying than anything else. I know people who live on the beach who have asked me who it was that kept waking them up in the wee hours. And yes when I do run down the beach there is bull kelp just below the surface so no one is going to fish that water. In fact the only guys I worry about are the shore casters and try to swing out a little at the point so I'm out beyond where they can cast to. Again does it really matter if me or anyone else in running the shallows? A funny story about the aggressive bit. I took John Poulson fishing quite a few times and didn't know until later that he was hiring me to observe and learn as he had his own boat. Found that out later. One day at Possession he is in his boat by himself and he plays chicken with me and I gave way and he took the spot that I was trying to get to. He hooks up into a nice fish and I then to bail to give him room to play his fish. The next time I saw him at an event we were chatting and I mentioned the incident. He smiled and said I remembered that you told me that when the bite is on you have to be aggressive and get to the spot or you are going to watch someone else catch fish. I laughed.
 
LOL I'll keep it honest if you keep it real....200 boats at Otter... when ever was that? A bit of the Donald is rubbing off on some of us eh!? Roy when the other boat you don't want to name goes down the beach or when the old blue decked loud boat and guide did it ....it doesn't bother me.....why would it I'm not fishing in 20 feet of water in the kelp. The exhaust noise of that boat was more annoying than anything else. I know people who live on the beach who have asked me who it was that kept waking them up in the wee hours. And yes when I do run down the beach there is bull kelp just below the surface so no one is going to fish that water. In fact the only guys I worry about are the shore casters and try to swing out a little at the point so I'm out beyond where they can cast to. Again does it really matter if me or anyone else in running the shallows? A funny story about the aggressive bit. I took John Poulson fishing quite a few times and didn't know until later that he was hiring me to observe and learn as he had his own boat. Found that out later. One day at Possession he is in his boat by himself and he plays chicken with me and I gave way and he took the spot that I was trying to get to. He hooks up into a nice fish and I then to bail to give him room to play his fish. The next time I saw him at an event we were chatting and I mentioned the incident. He smiled and said I remembered that you told me that when the bite is on you have to be aggressive and get to the spot or you are going to watch someone else catch fish. I laughed.
The whole point is it's an asshole move.....whether there is 5 boats or 50..... it's an asshole move. You admit it so just quit it. Doesn't matter who else does it....you do and freely admit you do so quit being an asshole.....don't paint others or bother calling them "Donald". An asshole move is an asshole move period
 
The Donald was meant to be funny not serious and I put a smiley face emoji after that line and it wasn't there when I looked later on at my post. I guess if leaving Otter by running down the shallows where there are no boats is an asshat move then I'll just have to live with that label.
 
The older I get the less interested I get in fishing where boats are crowded together. Not what I’m out there for.

Yup, it’s supposed to be relaxing and enjoyable not a full on contact sport.

Again the reason I quit fishing there in prime season. That and got tired of the gentlemen that started this thread yapping about all the dumb Albertans on the radio all the time. I guess he didn’t think any of us knew what channel they run. So I just figured I’d go spend my money where it’s more appreciated and leave the gong show behind. Not exactly a good ambassador for the tourist businesses in the area.
It’s unfortunate as I really like that area and the fishing and got to know it well and a few people there that I do miss conversing with as I learned a lot off them over the years, but it is what it is, it’s just not worth the hassle.
 
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