Current question

[fish stalker]

Silly newbie question and its sounds so obvious, but just want to make sure I have this right

If im looking at a current chart and the current is on a ebb at -1.7 eg that is still a running current of 1.7 kn?, its only - because its ebbing? so would probably be running to fast to keep gear on the bottom?

 

[rendraW]

Silly newbie question and its sounds so obvious, but just want to make sure I have this right

If im looking at a current chart and the current is on a ebb at -1.7 eg that is still a running current of 1.7 kn?, its only - because its ebbing? so would probably be running to fast to keep gear on the bottom?

that's right, a -1.7 kn current is still 1.7 knots, just running in the other direction.
Pretty fast for halibut, totally doable for salmon.

 

[fshnfnatic]

That's right,fish stalker. As rendraW stated,-1.7 is 1.7 knts in the ebb direction. With 2lbs. of weight at anchor,you
would be able to get down,but would have a fair bit of line out if fishing in more than 150 ft. of water. That would be
pretty much the max. that I would fish at anchor. Anything more than that,I would switch to drifting/backtrolling,
over a sand or mud bottom only to prevent hangups.

 

[salmonboy]

how can u drift with a 2lb ball with currents at 1.7knts or greater? backtrolling in that kind of current is almost impossble...can e done but not recommended...thats 2mph...not good advice for a newbie...my advice to fishstalker is not to anchor in that speed or drift...until u know what your doing...

That's right,fish stalker. As rendraW stated,-1.7 is 1.7 knts in the ebb direction. With 2lbs. of weight at anchor,you
would be able to get down,but would have a fair bit of line out if fishing in more than 150 ft. of water. That would be
pretty much the max. that I would fish at anchor. Anything more than that,I would switch to drifting/backtrolling,
over a sand or mud bottom only to prevent hangups.

 

[Big Green Machine]

how can u drift with a 2lb ball with currents at 1.7knts or greater? backtrolling in that kind of current is almost impossble...can e done but not recommended...thats 2mph...not good advice for a newbie...my advice to fishstalker is not to anchor in that speed or drift...until u know what your doing...

What advice do you have then?

 

[salmonboy]

uhh read my post again......if your new hali fishing, and dont understand current charts , and how to read the water...go with someone that can teach u how to do it....things can go wrong in hurry under heavy current! Until u know what your doing out there its better to be safe than sorry! Whats your advice BGM?

 

[sir-vivor]

Hey Guys, talking about currents , since there are no current charts avail for the banks seaward of Bamfield, how can a guy fish a bottom productively, I know tides are not the best but what else can a guy do but fish the slack ?? Or ... are there current charts ???
Most guys I ask up there say " Just fish the tides " ???

 

[wolf]

LOOK for slack tides and currents and fish those better when they are weak for hours at a time usually about a week before/after full moon is best 1.7 is way to fast.
Hell i dont even fish in a 1.2 kt too fast for me and if you think your fishing with your lines out 800ft so be it the best times are when currents are dropping to slack and when they are picking up to go faster for some reason it gets them biting almost like the last harrah......

Good luck Wolf

 

[profisher]

Once you are out of JDF Strait you don't really have strong enough currents on the WCVI that would stop you from anchoring and being able to fish. I think they mean fish the productive tides when the fish typically are active and are biting.

 

[Doug]

If the tide is running to fast you can always fish the -100 ft depth at Jordon River. I find Hali fishing at the 1.75 -2 knot range is better at JR and anchoring no problem. Only problem at JR is if the winds come out of the WSW and the tide is Ebbing fast the water can be ugly and the ride back to Sooke takes hours.

 

[Rum Buddies]

fast water fishing is very tricky - BUT I've gotten 4 fish over 100lb and each time the current was flying with gear barely able to stay on bottom.


Things can go very wrong, very fast though - always make sure you have a sharp knife within arms reach when on anchor.

 

[Birdsnest]

Isn't the #1.7kn a maximum potential current at that spot on the largest tide exchange?

 

[spring fever]

Isn't the #1.7kn a maximum potential current at that spot on the largest tide exchange?

That's my read on it!! However we have all seen currents that bear no resemblance to the tables or Charts. If I looked at a chart and saw the 1.7k -then that is what I would expect as a worst case scenerio on the ebb.

 

[salmonboy]

was out at point no point few weeks ago when currents were strong off victoria....we tried to anchor and lock up 3 times...checked the current station directly off point no point out in the shipping lanes(pillar point i think....middle of the straight) said it was 2.8 mph...ended up drifting on anchor a few miles, caught a few butts too, i didnt think the current wold be that bad out there, but it was...fished out there lots when current is too strong off vctoria, never seen it like that! Anyway 1.7 knots is definately to fast for a newbie to anchor in, let alone go drifting! BigGreenMachine maybe u can give me some lessons on how to anchor and drift in high current, cause u seem to know everything about everything!

 

[fish stalker]

With so few 'good' current days out there in a month I thought for sure you guides are out there putting off the rigger regardless?

Ive been trying to match up my fishing partners days off with my days off with good currents, next to impossible. 1 out day past month and half has worked. Crossing my fingers he dosnt get called in next weekend, looks killer.

 

[reelfast]

all of these sources provide FORECASTS!!!! so just like the weather forecast, they vary, sometimes considerably. i use a smart phone app called 'tides and currents' and then balance that with direct observation. you also have to factor in bottom structure as well as shore line topography. the currents don't simply go in and out, they also swirl, stall and change directions in not so obvious ways. what you observe on the surface is not well related to what is happenning along the bottom. the only way to do this is time on task. there is simply no substitute for doing, recording what you observe as well as what was predicted and over time, you will be closer to understanding a small slice of the strait. this information i do not share, way to hard to acquire.

 

[Derby]

Haa Haa...okay....

 

[Adler]

I have a follow-on question - I've been using the BC All Tides from Michael H Jackson - JDF East for current speeds, and for tomorrow, it seems to indicate that currents will be less than 1 kt tomorrow (Sunday) between 3 and 5, with slack occuring just before 4pm. However, the Beecher Bay low tide is predicted to occur 4 hour earlier! Why such a huge difference between the two areas that would seem to be so close? Thanks.