Sooke Reports - Spring and Summer 2011

I think its great fun to hunt down bait balls. Many times in the past I have brought home fresh bait from bait balls. I've noticed that when your fishing with the herring from bait balls, their bellies rot out of them within a few minutes. Is there some sort of solution I can soak the bait in to help toughen up their bellies? I've tried a bit of salt in the past but didn't seem to help all that much. How do the bait companies manage to stop the bellies from rotting out?
 
Anchovies are penned and held without food for a couple weeks. This not only ensures their digestive tract is void of food but it also causes them to be more streamlined (loose their belly) and easier to roll. Adding any chemical to harden them up will reduce their fishyness. We used to use a teaspoon of formaldehyde, but it never fished as good as bait without it. The secret is to get it into the freezer as fast as possible. I normally only scoop bait (for freezing) at the end of the day on my way back to the dock. Zip lock bags with the air removed helps...then only thaw the bait you will use in the next hour of fishing. Keep it frozen in a cooler until just before you use it...this will prolong how much time you get before the bellies fall out. Without the chemicals you won't ever be able to fish your own bait as long as the starved down bought stuff. Its free so changing it out more often is not really an issue.
 
My friend who fishes up in Renfrew was in the Marina derby this weekend, he came in 4'th with a 29lber. also got a 22lber. He told me both were whites...!
3'rd - 31, 2'nd - 33, 1'st - 35. Is what he just told me this morning. Hope this run of whites are on their way to Sooke !?
 
Any chance of getting out with a forum member later this week/weekend? would love it! staying at my girlfriends cabin right on gordon's beach, directly between otter and sherringham points. Would take the member out fishing here in vancouver for some big vedder whites in front of the cap or whatever is around when they make it into the big city...
 
Damn did I ever get lost in the fog this morning. My little gps crapped out. It was good and foggy right up to 12:30. Managed a couple of pinks at Otter. It looked pretty quiet , only 6 boats. Didn't see any size coming in.
I got kind of freaked out when I thought I recognized Sheringham in the fog but only later realized it was the cliffs before Secretary Isl
 
I fished Sooke today and we lost a fish (25+lb) at the boat and a hour later landed a 36lb (white). I assume the fish we lost was also a white by the long fight it put up and catching it in the same area as the other fish. I usually find the whites put up a little more of a fight than the reds.

The white Springs are here....
 
saltydawg said:
Damn did I ever get lost in the fog this morning. My little gps crapped out. It was good and foggy right up to 12:30. Managed a couple of pinks at Otter. It looked pretty quiet , only 6 boats. Didn't see any size coming in.
I got kind of freaked out when I thought I recognized Sheringham in the fog but only later realized it was the cliffs before Secretary Isl
Click to expand...

Salty, that is a scary story! To avoid getting lost like that I always carry one of those little hand held GPS units as a back up for the one on my boat. It is only meant for hiking really but the maps show the coast pretty well and so it works fine for inshore waters - for getting home anyway - won't show all the details of proper coastal chart maps.
If I didn't have one of these I might imagine I could see the white cliffs of Dover in the fog.....LOL
English
 
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fished secretary this morning from 8- 2ish - one or two pinks, one small spring that got off at the boat ... and about 6 or 7 big coho ( 9-12 lbs) all wild.... guess i missed out on some of the big whites that made it in ?
 
A` simple compass and heading north will keep you from getting lost in the fog.. All the shore east of Sooke Harbour are rock...west is mostly gravel....this will tell you which way to go..east or west.
 
I agree with Profisher x2 and would like to add a watch. With a compass and watch and the simple formula.....60 x distance = speed x time . We have travelled up and down this coast using it always. Time your boat at different rpms on a good day when there is no fog and your GPS is working ! Trust your compass and practice steering by it.
The only other help I got taught when I was young here @ Sooke was to shut the motor off and listen. There is a highway all along west of Sooke entrance and none east of it all the way to William head & Metchosin. Pay attention to all sounds. Listen for the surf and bigger boats(OMG frieghters).
:)Use all your senses and Be Safe Out There !!
 
saltydawg said:
Damn did I ever get lost in the fog this morning. My little gps crapped out. It was good and foggy right up to 12:30. Managed a couple of pinks at Otter. It looked pretty quiet , only 6 boats. Didn't see any size coming in.
I got kind of freaked out when I thought I recognized Sheringham in the fog but only later realized it was the cliffs before Secretary Isl
Click to expand...

Purchase iPhone and download Navionics chart. Great backup system to get in
 
TheRock said:
Purchase any Supper phone, Smart phone, I pad, I phone.. you can get Navionics on any of them.. yes great back up.
http://www.navionics.com/NavionicsMobile.asp
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Not Blackberry = (
Although all phones have a gps and will show you where you are.
Some great tips in the last few posts. You can have as many electronic back ups as possible but common sense and a bit of knowlege will help to keep you safe and from panic.

Fishing...
Fished Saturday out west - landed 2 springs lost 1, release a wild coho, landed a few pinks and some shakers
Fished Sunday Trap and East - No springs, release a wild ho, kept a nice sockeye, kept and lost a pile of pinks and some shakers.
Fished Wed out West - no springs, release a wild ho, lost a couple of hos, few pinks and tons of shakers.

Saw too many wild coho at the cleaning station on more than 1 day. Just because they are the size of pinks does not make them pinks. Pinks are the easiest fish to identify. If it doesn't have big leopard type spots on its tail it is NOT a pink!

Tips
 
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How is the fishing in the Sooke Area....Coming over from Van on the weekend (Sat) to spend sometime over there.
Where are the HOT SPOTS to fish and what are the depths and are you using bait/spoons ??????

Also how is the FOG????

Thanks Guys...(Old Seadog):
 
I personally think the way the sportfishing guide instructs the novice on salmon recognition could be way better. You should be told to start by running your finger along the mouth...it you feel sharp teeth you know its is either a coho or a spring. This eliminates 3 possibilities right off the bat. Then white gums = Coho...black = spring....fricken easy.

No teeth eliminates coho and spring. All pinks have oval spots along with no sharp teeth so they are easy identify, or should be. The toughest 2 are sockeye and chum. My advice to a novice if you are down to either a sockey or a chum and sockeye are closed...let it go...the worst case is your releasing a chum. If sockeye are open then bonk it...the worse case is your so called sockeye may not impress your barbi guests ;)
 
What a beauty day out there today. No fog, no wind, dead calm and lots of sun. Unfortunately very slow. Fished Beechy to Sooke Harbour mouth from 8 -4 and only one 11lb spring off Secretary and a plague of shakers. Saw no pinks. Apparently there was an early bite at the Trap between 6:00-7:00. Saw one guy at the dock with 2 legal size springs.
 
Yep its slow got a 23 lb beauty with big spots chrome and purple back, and a 12 lb chum???? kinda early but hell ill take it didnt see much action and no pinks....

Wolf
 
Slow for us last night. Two fatty pinks and between Trap and Secretary between 3pm and sunset. At 6:30 we saw the oddest thing just west of the trap...there were two orca's travelling with a young grey whale right up tight 20ft from the shore.Did any one else see this last night? Has anyone ever seen this happen anywhere before? Maybe just a coincidence that they were traveling the same way at the same time in the same place? I tried to take a pic with my phone but it didn't turn out. Beautiful night on the water.
 
Orcas might have been hungry
 
ChoveyRoller said:
Slow for us last night. Two fatty pinks and between Trap and Secretary between 3pm and sunset. At 6:30 we saw the oddest thing just west of the trap...there were two orca's travelling with a young grey whale right up tight 20ft from the shore.Did any one else see this last night? Has anyone ever seen this happen anywhere before? Maybe just a coincidence that they were traveling the same way at the same time in the same place? I tried to take a pic with my phone but it didn't turn out. Beautiful night on the water.
Click to expand...

Wow, that's cool! I saw a TV program once (BBC Blue Planet maybe?) where Orca's attacked a grey whale calf. However, this was out in the ocean and there were many Orca's. If your grey was "young" and not a calf (likely if there was no mother around) and only two Orca's I doubt any predation was involved. You could ask that guy Ford who does all those Orca studies, what this behavior is about?
English
 
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