I wonder if the downlside we've seen in the past 5-10 years in Sooke isn't directly related to the commensurate huge expansion of the fishery at Port Renfrew? Back in the 80's and 90's when I fished Renfrew a lot, 20 to 30 boats between Owen Point and Camper Creek was a busy weekend day, and pretty much no one bothered to go as far as Logan. On top of that, most of us mooched. Fast forward to last August when I counted over 150 boats between the Rockpile and Logan, everyone fishing with what we used to call "Sooke gear" - downriggers, flashers and anchovies.
Many of the old time trollers I've dealt with on the North Coast and WCVI have stated that they beleive that only a certain percentage of any run of fish are "biters."
I'd be willing to bet that 99% of the fish we see (used to see?) at Sooke swim right by Renfrew. I'd also be willing to bet that most of the "biters" are picked off either there or along the WCVI befre they get to ujs here in Sooke.
The same number of fish are getting caught pretty much every year, they're just getting caught in another location.
Further, these dire predictions of no fishing in 5 years, and runs getting wiped out by sport anglers are not really reflected in the evidence of what is getting back to the spawning grounds. Some runs are doing great while other aren't - its been like that for years. We knew it was going to be a tough spring due to the Nicola fish issue - why do you think that we still have restrictions in place, because there's too many fish around? The lower Fraser guys are totally off the water - it could be worse.
From what I've been told, the forecast looks good for particularly summer Thompson reds and lower Fraser whites. I'm going to remain positive about the local scene for August. I personally had a pretty good August and Sept last year too, whilemy July sucked. You had to be an idiot to not get fish for most of June last year. No one was predciting the end of the fishery then, were they? What a difference a year makes!
Cheer up guys, if you want to lay waste to 'em like we used to, just hitch up the boat and head to Renfrew like the rest of the crowd. Or, be a little more patient and enjoy the fact that you've got a pretty decent fishery right in your own back yard. It could be worse IMO.
Gooey.
, he was over the moon. With all his enthuisiam, I forgot how slow the fishing was and totally enjoyed the fog and wind, the luckies and the sun[8D] when it finally appeared.
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