Beginning to think things really do happen for a reason. Started at Otter this morning and lost a 10 pound spring at the net...my fault more than the customer. Then a few shakers and soon afer weed from hell.....everywhere from Otter to 3rd rock. All types, bull kelp, that long flat stuff that is tough as rope, eel grass, cabbage..you name it..it was there. After 1 full pass gave up and pulled my last line still fishing but loaded with kepl at the clip and ran on the kicker ahead of the ebb rip on the east side of the point. The water there was super clean so I thought I'll put an hour in over here, hope to get a fish and then go check the other side to see if it cleaned out. In the next hour and a bit we landed and kept 5 springs to 17 pounds, lost 3 more and released a couple. Only 1 other boat kinda close to us all through the bite. Everyone else stayed on the other side and only showed up with us after the bite had ended. I hadn't hit anything the past 3 mornings trolling the east side early before going around the corner...so I pasted it by first thing today. That weed on the west side saved my butt today as it turned out. Anchovy and Skinny G's both pulled them evenly.
2022 Sooke Reports
- Thread starter SFBC
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18Lifetimer
Active Member
Out this morning off Otter Point. Good quick snap came on at 7:15 managed one 10 lber on anchovy. Slowed down after that for us but did see one or two decent ones netted so definitely a few fish around still. Moved over to Possession and into a scrappy teenager that spat the hook. Overall nice morning with mixed weather.
prettyboyfloyd
Active Member
Out from 630-1230. Kept a couple low teens and a hatchery all on chovy around 3rd rock. Saw multiple hook ups, mainly cookie cutters. For the 2nd time this season (never happened ever before) I was swarmed by a mob of white bellied dolphins. That’s pretty cool to see.
Great little solo afternoon outing. Lines down off Possession at 2:00, headed in at 5:00. First fish within a minute. Ended up with seven chinooks to the boat and one coho. Mostly between 5-10 lbs. plus a few missed strikes and juvenile springs. 60' on herring and AP spoon over a dummy flasher.
Todays highlight was a 105cm that I finally got to the boat after a 20min tug of war. Starting to show some colour. Sooke River fish? Hope he makes it.
Todays weird event. As I was turning into Iron Mine Bay one of my rods doubles over and starts pounding big time. Figured it was another big one but it's gone. Pull the gear in and find my bait still clipped in and untouched. Flasher is gone! Big Ling I guess. Yet well off the bottom.
Todays highlight was a 105cm that I finally got to the boat after a 20min tug of war. Starting to show some colour. Sooke River fish? Hope he makes it.
Todays weird event. As I was turning into Iron Mine Bay one of my rods doubles over and starts pounding big time. Figured it was another big one but it's gone. Pull the gear in and find my bait still clipped in and untouched. Flasher is gone! Big Ling I guess. Yet well off the bottom.
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Doug
Well-Known Member
Fished the Otter Point area today from 6 to 10. Flat Calm and not many boats at Otter at 6. In the first 20 minutes got a nice one and lost it 10 ft from the boat and at the same time lots of the other boats were playing fish around us. Then at 645 it went dead so we move to Muir and got killed by shakers, went though 20 pieces of bait in 1.5 hours. None stop action I didn't want. At 830 landed a 79.5cm red spring, then got a 10lb and I let it go because I though we will get a bigger one than 10lb. From 830 to 930 another 7 pieces of bait to shakers and we were down to our last 4 bait. Finally got a good one and landed it, another 79.5cm white spring. back to the dock and also picked up two nice crabs.
All the fish were caught using bait and 65 ft on the DR. The deeper gear has gone dead in the last two day and the fish are feeding shallower.
All the fish were caught using bait and 65 ft on the DR. The deeper gear has gone dead in the last two day and the fish are feeding shallower.
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Fished last Friday am solo east side of Otter to stay out of the wind. Kept my 1 fish limit and release a half dozen others. All 5-12 lb. odd seeing all these small fish at this time of year.
Sunday took 2 friends out on one of the nicest days of the year. Flat calm and sunny. Started east side of Otter again for the ebb. Fishing was good early. Kept 2 around 10-12lb. Release a few 5-10lb. Then it went quiet so we moved up around the corner. Kept an 80cm on the nose and released a couple others. Left the water 11:30. Great day with good friends.
Sunday took 2 friends out on one of the nicest days of the year. Flat calm and sunny. Started east side of Otter again for the ebb. Fishing was good early. Kept 2 around 10-12lb. Release a few 5-10lb. Then it went quiet so we moved up around the corner. Kept an 80cm on the nose and released a couple others. Left the water 11:30. Great day with good friends.
wolf
Well-Known Member
Fishing has still be very good last week sorry for not posting earlier but admit im getting quite tired... had to let a really large one go other day id say pushing 30s was so happy it was hooked on top of nose...
here is a few pics of some very happy people spoons have been ok but bait is mostly what they want right now and like doug said ive hit a few very shallow . last few days ive gotten a few hatchery please if you can guys put them heads in to show hopefully they are the net pen fish. if we have "data" to prove it will defiantly help our cause...
here is a few pics of some very happy people spoons have been ok but bait is mostly what they want right now and like doug said ive hit a few very shallow . last few days ive gotten a few hatchery please if you can guys put them heads in to show hopefully they are the net pen fish. if we have "data" to prove it will defiantly help our cause...
Fins -n- Skins
Well-Known Member
Hey Wolf welcome to the neighbourhood as i just put my boat in the water and noticed your next door. Nice spot you have there !!
kingspring
Active Member
Is the slot lifted September 1 for 2 springs?
Thanks
I have regulation overload syndrome ROS!!
scott craven
Well-Known Member
Unless otherwise advised
back to 2 Chinook a day over 45cm
In area 19/20
back to 2 Chinook a day over 45cm
In area 19/20
kingspring
Active Member
Thanks Scott.
wolf
Well-Known Member
yes LOVE it there
Doug
Well-Known Member
Fished Muir Creek from 6 to 1030. It started out with a release of a 7lb spring and then 2 Socs and some small Coho and then none stop shakers. 20 bait in 3 hours is to much work. At one point we got a shaker and I started reeling it in and the other rod got a shaker, so I left it in the rod holder until I got the first fish release. Then the rod in the rod holder start screaming line out, so I grabbed it but couldn't stop line going out. \a dam big sea lion grabbed the shaker and took off. Luckily the hook bent and I got the gear back.
Ended up with a winter spring, and a 13lb. I could see big fish on the sonar but they didn't want what we were offering. All the fish were caught at 65 ft on the DR and on bait. Only saw one other net out all morning.
Ended up with a winter spring, and a 13lb. I could see big fish on the sonar but they didn't want what we were offering. All the fish were caught at 65 ft on the DR and on bait. Only saw one other net out all morning.
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Englishman
Well-Known Member
Well after enduring the incredible frustration of missing almost the entire chinook season because of boat engine issues (long parts delivery lead times etc.) we finally made it out to our favourite spot, Muir. Our last trip out was August 4th reported here, when we had to come back in on the kicker.
I was not expecting much since in past years action always fell off dramatically for us in the last days of August.
Boy was I wrong this time, as it turned into a remarkable day. Lines down at 7:30am and at 8:00am as we began a turn to avoid the crab traps loading the eastern part of the Muir troll, there was a huge pin popping hit. He felt good and heavy, came in docilely at first, saw us standing with the net at ready and took off for the bottom. A long dogged fight ensured and we finally netted a beauty deep bodied fish a fraction under 80cm and weighing in at 19lbs. Back at the ranch he was a white male.
An hour and half later, almost in the same area, there was another bouncing hit and this time we boated a nice 10lb fish. Did not even think about returning him in the hope of something bigger because, as I said, late August has always been spotty for us. He was a male white too.
The same batch of little frozen herring we used last year, loaded in a conventional T.H. were the killer bait, run at a conventional 66’ on the rigger.
And now for the remarkable part. We next headed out to see if there were any coho. I had a pink stripe hootchie/dodger combo on one side and after it had been down at 45” for only 10 minutes, in 300’ of water we got a decent hit and for a second I thought “coho”, But the thing took off like an express train down and away and fought really hard, much harder than the two in the boat, and I thought, this must be a chinook. So it proved as we netted and released one that was 12-13lb estimated. Definitely bigger than the second one we kept, wouldn’t ya know it!
It did not end there. An hour later we were waay off Otter, in 350’ of water and at least a kilometre out from the crowd hugging the usual Otter troll line and we got another pounding hit on the same dodger/hootchie combo running at 45’. Again it took off down and away and seemed heavy. Again after several nice reel screaming surges, we netted and released a chinook I estimated at 17-18lb!
So what gives!! We have trolled that line back to Sooke from Muir before with hootchies looking for coho and have never had a single chinook the size of those two. In fact I think I have only ever had one 8lb chinook, several years ago, while trolling a dodger.
So could’a released the 10lb fish and done better with either of those fish!! But I am not complaining. Who knew you could catch chinook in 300’ plus of water with a dodger/hootchie combo running at 45’!!
I was not expecting much since in past years action always fell off dramatically for us in the last days of August.
Boy was I wrong this time, as it turned into a remarkable day. Lines down at 7:30am and at 8:00am as we began a turn to avoid the crab traps loading the eastern part of the Muir troll, there was a huge pin popping hit. He felt good and heavy, came in docilely at first, saw us standing with the net at ready and took off for the bottom. A long dogged fight ensured and we finally netted a beauty deep bodied fish a fraction under 80cm and weighing in at 19lbs. Back at the ranch he was a white male.
An hour and half later, almost in the same area, there was another bouncing hit and this time we boated a nice 10lb fish. Did not even think about returning him in the hope of something bigger because, as I said, late August has always been spotty for us. He was a male white too.
The same batch of little frozen herring we used last year, loaded in a conventional T.H. were the killer bait, run at a conventional 66’ on the rigger.
And now for the remarkable part. We next headed out to see if there were any coho. I had a pink stripe hootchie/dodger combo on one side and after it had been down at 45” for only 10 minutes, in 300’ of water we got a decent hit and for a second I thought “coho”, But the thing took off like an express train down and away and fought really hard, much harder than the two in the boat, and I thought, this must be a chinook. So it proved as we netted and released one that was 12-13lb estimated. Definitely bigger than the second one we kept, wouldn’t ya know it!
It did not end there. An hour later we were waay off Otter, in 350’ of water and at least a kilometre out from the crowd hugging the usual Otter troll line and we got another pounding hit on the same dodger/hootchie combo running at 45’. Again it took off down and away and seemed heavy. Again after several nice reel screaming surges, we netted and released a chinook I estimated at 17-18lb!
So what gives!! We have trolled that line back to Sooke from Muir before with hootchies looking for coho and have never had a single chinook the size of those two. In fact I think I have only ever had one 8lb chinook, several years ago, while trolling a dodger.
So could’a released the 10lb fish and done better with either of those fish!! But I am not complaining. Who knew you could catch chinook in 300’ plus of water with a dodger/hootchie combo running at 45’!!
Cut Plug
Well-Known Member
Awesome report Englishman and a couple of comments based on your report and the previous one. First, springs seem to be arriving late this year all along the WCVI so hang in there as we may be seeing good action for the next while. Fingers crossed! Second, and for the previous post, if you’re encountering too many shakers then either switch to spoons with smaller hooks ( to save bait and minimize release mortality, you obviously won’t avoid them that way) or move. Those are future 4 year olds. IMHO We should try our best to let them grow up. No judgement here, just a thought…
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Its actually not that uncommon as you may think. Happened to me on several occasions over the years. I think there are just as many Chinook travelling way out as inshore but of course way out is a pretty big playing field and finding these schools out there is much more difficult (plain luck) than along the structure where you know the others are travelling.
Rayvon
Well-Known Member
Had a great day yesterday fishing the flood in the afternoon at Otter after running out from town.Had 3 oversize released after great long run fights.Fishing alone I was kept busy pulling undersize fish and trying to stay out of other boats way.The $200 gas bill was well worth it,I haven't had much luck this year in town for salmon.
BigBoat
Crew Member
Wolf, PM sent.
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