Fishing out of LaPush

Getting there:  LaPush  is a small coastal Indian town at the mouth of the Quileute River, north & west of Forks Washington.  This town is on the Quileute Indian reservation, so you need to abide by their tribal regulations.   

If you are coming from the eastern part of the peninsula as from Port Townsend, you will be on Hiway 101.  About 1 mile before you get to Forks, Hiway 110 heads west & ends at La Push, which is about 14 miles.

Coming from the south & Aberdeen, again on Hiway 101, head northwest toward Lake Quinalt & on past to Forks.  About a mile past the town of Forks, take hiway 110 to it's end at La Push.

Marina:  The Quileute Indian tribe has recently built a marina & which has a good launch, 96 slip moorage & fuel.  There are Showers & Restrooms, boat pump-out, fish processing available.  The marina is open 7AM to 7 PM Monday thru Sunday.  The harbormaster Arnold can be reached at  360-374-5392 or VHF channel 80 using the call sign of "Quileute Marina".  The word is he does not take reservations other that prepaid monthly berthing.  Prepay the launch fee & get your berth assigned at the Harbormaster's office on the western end of the boat basin before you launch.  The marina has fuel, however it has been known to run out on a heavily used halibut opener.  The precaution would be to bring some 5 gallon gas cans & if need be, run back to Forks for enough fuel to get by until they get a delivery, which is usually the next day.

There can be confusion as to assigned mooring berths, if you happen to be there on heavily used days like the halibut openers.  During the height of one of these the seasons, all the berths may be taken.  It is advisable to return early to reclaim your berth, OR leave your electrical power cable tied to the dock in plain view at your berth.   Some boaters will leave extra bumpers tied to the dock to "save" their space.  Others have been known to make up a sign with their boat name & attach it to the berth area to save it.

There is assigned boat trailer parking & if any trailers are parked in the vehicle area & not moved within the time requested by the harbormaster by him posting a notice on the trailer, it will be towed off.

There is a fish cleaning station on the upper dock near the marina office, but to access it from water, you have to tie up to the fuel dock, thereby blocking other boats who need to refuel.   Many fishermen will purchase a 2' X 4' folding table & use it for a portable cleaning station on the dock near their boat.  If you choose this table method, make a back for it so your fish won't slide off & be lost under the dock (one fisherman lost 1/2 of a nice halibut this way).

When cleaning fish, during heavily used periods a sign is posted on the docks to not dump the carcasses in the marina waters as this tends to attract more sea lions.   These carcasses need to be hauled out & dumped in the river or ocean.   However it is OK to throw out the small skins & guts that the sea gulls will eat.  These sea gulls get brave & will even sneak up behind you & take fillets right out of your plastic bags 2' from you if you are not watching.

There is Quileute River's Edge Restaurant 360-374-5777, near the marina office.   During the summer there will be garbage dumpsters & "Honey Buckets" placed strategically around the marina.

RV Spots: There are motel & RV spots are available nearby with reservations  1-360-374-5267 or 1-800-487-1267.   Another is Lonesome Creek RV Park, 490 Ocean Dr.. La Push WA  98350  phone 360-374-4338  

However if you have your boat moored here, you can park your camper in the parking lot overlooking the boat basin for an extra $2.00 a day.   There are not any hook-ups for this option.   

There is another RV & camp grounds back about 6 miles at the intersection to Mora, called Three Rivers Resort & RV, 360-374-5300 or click here for their website
.

Facilities Nearby: There is a general store,  Lonesome Creek Store & Resort 360-374-4333, on the left just as you come into town.

Boat launch at La Push with float D to the left	Coast Guard Bar Restrictions

USCG:  The Coast Guard's operations are on the east end of the boat basin.  The phone number for this station is 1-360-374-6469.  The Coast Guard has a yellow sign on the upper end of their boat coverage (as seen in the upper RH picture) to the east of the launch.  IF the wave height is over 4' the there will be 2 yellow flashing lights on the upper sides of this sign.  This indicates a rough bar & they have closed it for crossing.

For those of you who fish out of LaPush we have just installed an AM radio transmitter, identical to the kind you see broadcasting highway information. The broadcast, on 1610 AM, has the local weather and bar conditions as well as any restrictions placed on boats due to hazardous conditions. The signal can be heard at about Three Rivers. You can also call in and hear the same broadcast by calling 360-374-6993.

The same type of system is currently operating on the Columbia River.  All the major coastal entrances will have the same system in operation by the first of the year 2007.    If you want to check the bar conditions and get the current local weather for the Quillayute River, 360-374-6993 phone number will also get you to the pre recorded messages.   (10-31-06)

 Heading out:  Coming out from the boat basin, you enter the Quileute River, you will turn left & head downstream or west.   The channel is not wide, follow the small buoys & the south jetty out to it's end, James Island will be on the Northwest, (RH).  You pass between the island & the jetty.  The slot is minimal in comparison to other river bars, I estimate the width of the river here at about 150'.  Once you are past the jetty you are basically in the open ocean.  You will however notice the rock on the north side of the channel near the island, so don't hold close to the island once you are past it.   Most of the boats crossing the bar head south & make a big circle around the island if they are heading north or northwest.  

Chart of the channel

GPS Locations:  Listed here are some of the GPS locations that may prove usable.

All the pictures below were taken at near a high tide.  

Looking out the south jetty to James Island	Indian fisherman netting in the channel
On the bar, distance from jetty to island about 250'	Outside looking back at the slot

 Conditions are usually not that severe as the island & the jetty protects most of the entrance.  One exception exists: on a heavy southerly or southwesterly wind, & the swell then comes directly into the mouth of the river and in this event, simply do not go fishing, especially if you have to cross on a low tide.  The good news is, this is not the customary wind & during the summer, it is unusual.  The prevailing summer winds are west-northwest and these are mostly blocked by James Island, making the normal trip to the ocean the easiest and quickest on Washington's coast.

It is suggested however you take a GPS reading of this entrance for safe return if happens to be foggy.

This location can be a sleeper as for fishing, in that not that many fishermen go out of here, however some some Westport charter boats are running out of here for halibut.   Salmon season can be very productive, plus there are plenty of small rock islands near shore that abound with Sea Bass, Cabezon, & Ling Cod.

Bottom Fish:  You can be in prime sea bass & Ling Cod locations within 15 minutes of leaving the boat basin.   Just go out around James Island & hang a right, there are many small islands & rock reefs that may be partially submerged.  One word of caution, is that there can be many partially submerged rocks that can play havoc to boat hulls & props is you do not pay attention when running closer, within a mile or so of shore.  However these can all be excellent bottomfish locations.   These locations are so numerous that there is no need to save any GPS numbers, just find rock structure & watch your depthfinder, & get the lure in the water.  Most lures will be jigs of some sort in from 1 to 3 oz. size. However if you have some old freezer burned herring, this is a good chance to put it to use, as these fish are not that picky.   Just rig it up on a short mooching leader with about 2 oz of lead.

One location that is frequented by many fishermen is for Ling Cod is The Rock Pile, which is a rocky hump about 7 1/2 miles NW & at about 130' of water.   However as of 2006 the regulations are restrictive at 20 fathoms for bottomfish, & that puts this location off limits at any time there is not a halibut season running.

Once we saw lots of fish on the depthfinder screen directly under the boat, but nothing could be caught, in bringing the jig in it was observed the sea bass were just playing with the worm tails.   In retrospect, maybe this would have been the time for small chunks of herring, or changing to a SMALLER jig.

The large Ling Cod below was taken on a small live sea bass near one of the many islands.  If this happens, you will have to net the Ling soon as it is not hooked, but just holding onto your hooked smaller fish

Ling Cod taken near Carroll Island on live bait

Halibut:  Most of the halibut fishing well probably be north of the river entrance.   There is a large "C" shaped closure north of here, most fishermen will fish in the open part of the "C" or south of the closure.  You need to mark the closure on your GPS & or plotter, so you can be sure you are fishing in legal waters.   Some even run farther west, to a prime location that is about 30 miles from the harbor known as SW-2.   If this on your itinerary, it is suggested that you run with a partner boat for safety's sake, plus take extra fuel.

The halibut closure northwest of LaPush, it is shaped like a big C with the center open for halibut fishing.  The open area is about 5 miles wide & 4 miles north & south. The opening GPS is 48-11-00 / 124-58-00 on the NE corner, 48-11-00 / 125-11-00 on the NW corner, 48-04-00 / 125-11-00 on the SW corner, & 48-04-00 / 125-59-00 on the SE corner.  Most of the depths here will be from 85 fathom (510') on deeper.

Halibut Closure

 I am sure that by looking at the charts, you should be able to find fish in a reasonable proximity to the harbor, without going that far.

Salmon:  It appears that the best salmon fishing is from the Q buoy, north to Cape Alava.  The normal "go to" location is straight out & North to near the Rock Pile.  Later in the season the fishing can be hot near the Q buoy.  Most of these fish will not be deep, at from 30' to 50' down.

Safety:  There can be an occasional "Sleeper Wave", but this can happen about anywhere.   On 5-14-05 a 22' Seasport took one of these broadside & rolled it over while bottomfishing near Hand Rock in 46' of water.  It threw the 2 fishermen into the water with the skipper still inside, he swam out & helped pull the others onto the trim tabs of the overturned boat.  Another buddy boat was nearby & picked them up.   The boat was then mashed against the rocky shore by the time when the Coast Guard got there.   

In retrospect the skipper decided that fishing in a spot where the depth goes from 120-40 in a short amount of distance will be avoided on days with wind/current/weather.  This is most likely what happed as a swell bounced back from the under water ledge and built up a already large wave that had to have been 50% larger already.  His best guess is that the wave that hit him was around 18' tall and moving fast.   He said it was ALL OVER IN 3 SECONDS FLAT.

Wear your Personal Flotation Device at all times when on the water.

Heading Back in:  Under normal conditions, the bar crossing is uneventful, but it can be dangerous if southerly winds prevalent, specially on a low tide.  If you are heading back in from the north, just pull in toward shore & run toward Carroll Island & Sea Lion Rock, then to Cake Rock & the next island will be James Island.   Swing wide & line up with the buoys & head into the slot.

Copyright © 2004-2006 LeeRoy Wisner  All Rights Reserved

Back to Ramblings

Originated 05-15-05, Last Updated 05-07-2006
to contact the author click here