Bet your bips on it. Here they come! Big,
chrome bright, fresh from
SE Alaska’s
rich ocean pasture with an attitude. Bone crushing strikes,
monofilament peeling off the reel, hard head shakes attempting
to get those sharp hooks out of their chops......yeah, it’s
king salmon time baby. Giddy up!
King salmon, a term used in the
Pacific Northwest
for mature Chinook salmon, are entering the prime of their
lives and on their way home to salmon hatcheries or the rivers
of their origin. Three, four and even five years ago, these
king salmon jumped a train northbound, foraging on bait-fish,
squid and zooplankton, destined for the waters off northern
British Columbia and SE Alaska. They hit every diner on
this journey, putting on weight like a sumo wrestler at a
steak house. This all-you-can-eat behavior prepares them
for their migration into
Washington
and
Oregon
rivers where their feeding appetite ceases and they live off
their bodies until they begin spawning, usually by late
September and throughout October.
The 2010 version of this annual phenomenon is a
special chapter in recent strengths and weaknesses of the
Chinook salmon population, due largely to the strength of the
Columbia River
king salmon forecast. As reported in this space a month
ago, this is clearly the largest return of king salmon since
the modern day record was set in the Columbia River back in
1987, when three-quarters of a million king salmon produced a
tsunami wave of silver migrating into the lower
Columbia.
I know, as I was there.
In last month’s column, I encouraged anglers to
head to
Westport,
on the central
Washington
coast, to participate in a new hatchery-produced, fin-clipped
king salmon fishery. At this writing, that fishery is
history (June 12-30) and the news is out: 7,000 anglers popped
around 4,600 hatchery kings. The ratio of hatchery fish
to wild fish was about 60% or greater. In the commercial
troll fishery in May and part of June, the rate was around
80%. Non-tribal trollers took around 40,000 kings during
this timeframe, which again suggests that the kings are off
our coast now, and should continue their pasturing before
entering the
Columbia River
in mid-August. The coastal salmon season re-opens July 1st (Neah
Bay,
La Push and Ilwaco) and July 4th (Westport).
Check WDFW for regulations regarding which days of the week
these four coastal areas are open before charging down to the
beach.
If ocean salmon fishing does not turn your
wheel, you have more options than attempting to pick winning
numbers in the state’s lottery. First, the
San Juan Islands
opens July 1st,
seven days per week. This is the beginning of their king
salmon season. Last year, it was hotter than
Mt.
St. Helens
on May 18, 1980, especially in the eastern San Juans.
Anglers from
Bellingham
to
Everett
hope that is the case again this year. Second, the
Strait of Juan de Fuca from Sekiu east to Ediz Hook in
Port Angeles
also opens for hatchery kings only, on July 1st.
This region is a special king salmon fishery attracting
anglers with boats deemed not safe for ocean water conditions.
Freshwater
Bay,
just west of
Port Angeles
has been very good the last few years, along with Sekiu, the
premier small boat fishery in inland waters.
Third, beginning July 16th,
for the fourth consecutive year, Puget Sound waters from the
north tip of
Vashon Island
to Pt. Wilson, Port Townsend will enjoy another six week
hatchery-only king salmon fishery. Port Townsend has
been the big ticket on the opener the last few years and
that’s a good bet again this year. Do not overlook
Kingston
or Pt. No Pt. on the ebb tide or Possession Bar west of
Edmonds.
If your head isn’t spinning with salmon fishing
options by now, golf is an option. My two older brothers
are big time golfers. As I have said to them, if you can
suggest a recipe for grilled fresh golf balls, that rival a
slab of king salmon on the barbe, then sing it to me.
In the meantime, I am heading for the big show,
the smell of a fresh caught king salmon emanating out of my
cooler in the morning. Mercy! Somebody help me now!
See you on the water... it’s show time
