chrisdonna
New member
I am going to Neah Bay for the June chinook season. I have a berth reserved at the marina in Neah Bay for June 15th through the 18th. Are there any other c-brats headed that way :?:
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fishing Neah Bay
- Thread starter chrisdonna
- Start date
Salmon Fisher
Member
I have fished out there in a 16 foot Sylvan, same as a Starcraft. Just watch the weather and you should be fine. I would love to go in my 22 cruiser, but will probably fish Westport the week of June 20 for my first trip down there this summer.
Good luck, let us know how you do!
Good luck, let us know how you do!
T.R. Bauer
New member
Jazzmanic":100jbz0d said:Neah Bay in a 16? I'm still hesitant about taking our 22 outside. Good luck in your fishing and let us know how you do.
The 16 in the right hands is a very good little boat. I take my 22 way out all the time in Alaska into the open gulf. Just like everyone has mentioned, you have to watch the weather and go when it is safe, and run back like hell when it seems to be falling apart. Now don't get me wrong, I would much rather be out in a 22, 25, or a Tomcat as the 16 has less margin for error.
Pat Anderson
New member
Hey, Chris! Have not seen you post in a while! Patty did not cash the fish head bounty check from the Great State of Idaho in time, but dang if they didn't notice and issue a second check! We had a great time at Pend Oreille, hope to make it back one of these days.
Now, for Neah Bay fishing, the guy you want to talk to is Roger of SeaDNA. I imagine he will be chiming in here pretty soon.
Now, for Neah Bay fishing, the guy you want to talk to is Roger of SeaDNA. I imagine he will be chiming in here pretty soon.
Cutty Sark
New member
When the weather is good you will see some smaller boats out in the strait just a couple miles out of neah bay, and with the right conditions doing just that in a 16 footer is fine, I would do it in a heartbeat. The fishing just outside in the straight can be pretty darn good in itself. I would be hesitant to venture too far around the corner however, as weather can change quick and it can get ugly. Also Sekiu is just down the road and many people fish there in small open boats, if it's too nasty at Neah Bay you can always duck further into the straight and try your luck there. But I'm guessing maybe Chris has fished Neah bay Before?
Good Luck!!
Sark
Good Luck!!
Sark
I was speaking more to my comfort level in a 16 out in open ocean than I was to the sea worthiness of 16's or the experience level of the skipper. I've been out in the open ocean on Rogerbum's 22 and it was great out there, I'm just saying I'm not sure I would be comfortable if the weather came up and I was caught outside in my little 16 angler, Barquinho. I have no doubt there are skippers out there with much more experience tham me who would do just fine in a smaller boat.
Just sayin' ...
Peter :wink
Just sayin' ...
Peter :wink
I'm probably not headed out that way for while but I may try to get out there for the early king season. In general, the weather is worse in June than in July and it gets very good in August. The 16' is fine, just watch the weather but there are many days in August when I wouldn't bat an eye at taking the 16' into the ocean. Often the ocean is much flatter than the straits as the straits tend to funnel the wind more. Usually on the return trip (later in the day when the wind is picked up a bit), the wind is coming from the west and you're headed east so the trip is easier than pounding out into the wind.
As for kings, the early king action can be quite good in the straits and quite good very close to Neah Bay. The favorite spot there is just on the NNE corner of Waddah Island in the early, early AM. Also, all along the break water between Waddah and the main land. However, there is often a weed line along the breakwater and that's not a problem on the corner of Waddah. So, get out EARLY and definitely don't drive past Waddah to go look for fish, they're usually right there.
As for kings, the early king action can be quite good in the straits and quite good very close to Neah Bay. The favorite spot there is just on the NNE corner of Waddah Island in the early, early AM. Also, all along the break water between Waddah and the main land. However, there is often a weed line along the breakwater and that's not a problem on the corner of Waddah. So, get out EARLY and definitely don't drive past Waddah to go look for fish, they're usually right there.
chrisdonna
New member
Thanks for your replies and the good and well-heeded advice on paying attention to the weather. I have not fished this area yet. I will be fishing with a friend that has a lot of experience in this area with a 17' open-bow boat. We are both pretty cautious guys. Last summer he caught a 35lb. king right at the island around 5AM. I'm sure we will be there every morning. Pat, anytime you want to come on over and catch some more macks don't hesitate! They are still worth 15 bucks a head.
Cutty Sark
New member
Sounds like fun, If we get a good weather window and the fishing is good, I might swing out that way for a couple days this summer. Good luck let us know how you do.
Sark
Sark
chrisdonna
New member
Well, just finished up and on the way home. Had a great time, loved the marina and the folks that run it. Fishing was OK numbers-wise, but a little disapointing regarding the sizes of the fish we caught. We tried as hard as we could to stretch a 23" ling out another inch, but it wouldn't budge, same with a 23" king. One 30" inch king had managed to keep his fins intact. Caught over a dozen salmon all told. Not a keeper in the bunch. Had a great time surfing the big rollers on the way back in to the marina. We never went very far out as the commercial guys were catching their fish in close. One feller went out to the Swiftsure banks on Thursday and stayed too long. his beard was whiter and longer when he got back. He was driving a 20' Trophy. He reported waves breaking over the boat.
Starting getting the boat ready for a three week fishing trip to Neah Bay. I will be there from 26 Jul thru 15 Aug. There have been very few fishing reports from the Brats about Neah Bay. Has anyone been out there recently?
I will have camp set up a the Cape Motel RV Park if any Brats are in the area stop by for a visit.
I will have camp set up a the Cape Motel RV Park if any Brats are in the area stop by for a visit.
chrisdonna
New member
I have just returned from a second go-round at Neah Bay. Because of the weather and the fact that I was by myself I stayed pretty close to the bay entrance. Finally caught 3 salmon that I could take home. Five friends were fishing out of a 24' North River and they spent time out about 10 miles at a place called "Table Top". They found some Coho that were willing to bite and had 4 doubles while gleaning 10 keepers out of about 20 + fish caught. This was in one afternoon. Sounds like the fish are still out in the ocean. If you can get out there safely, that's were you should head. The only Kings that I heard of being caught were two that I landed fishing North of the green entrance bouy. Fishermen are doing well with the Black Bass.
Hi Ken. Looks like you're bypassing Barkley and areas north this year. We're heading to Barkley again, but this time will be staying at Poett Nook since the places we've been staying have been sold and prices skyrocketed for "guided" fishing (which we don't do). Where abouts on Neah do you plan to look? Any good areas that you've accessed from Barkley? Good luck, and be sure and report. We'll give updates from BC. Prices for ferries and fuel have been starting to have an effect, though we've still been doing well fishwise. Ron
In my experience for the past many years, the coho tend to hang off the end of the straits until late in Aug/early Sept. and then blast through pretty quickly. There's an early run of small coho in the first week of July or so that you can pick up in the straits but after that, coho fishing in the straits is hit and miss until much later.
Table top is a plateau that is about 6-8 miles WSW of Tatoosh. Coho collect and feed here and it's been one of the better spots for fishing since I've been going out there. My preferred location is the NE corner in about 450' of water. There's a big canyon (1100-1200' deep) between Table Top and Tatoosh and fishing on the edges of the canyon is best. The west side of Table Top also drops off quickly and is a good place too. You'll often see the charters out on this edge. IMHO, if you're not out in the ocean, you're missing some of the best fishing this time of year. It's often nicer once you get outside than it is in the straits so don't be too afraid of going out there. You can't tell what the ocean will be like until you get about 1 mile past the entrance to the straits so don't let the water conditions right near Tatoosh influence your decision. It's often like a washing machine there especially during max current. Once you get past there, it can be flat as a pancake on the other side. Other good spots are the yellow buoy about 1mile N of Tatoosh and "Limp Spot" a location farther south (maybe 8 miles S of Tatoosh) on the edge of the canyon. Both edges of the canyon are generally good but the W edge tends to be better. You'll see the commercial trollers running up and down the edges of the canyon from Tatoosh all the way to Cape Alava.
Table top is a plateau that is about 6-8 miles WSW of Tatoosh. Coho collect and feed here and it's been one of the better spots for fishing since I've been going out there. My preferred location is the NE corner in about 450' of water. There's a big canyon (1100-1200' deep) between Table Top and Tatoosh and fishing on the edges of the canyon is best. The west side of Table Top also drops off quickly and is a good place too. You'll often see the charters out on this edge. IMHO, if you're not out in the ocean, you're missing some of the best fishing this time of year. It's often nicer once you get outside than it is in the straits so don't be too afraid of going out there. You can't tell what the ocean will be like until you get about 1 mile past the entrance to the straits so don't let the water conditions right near Tatoosh influence your decision. It's often like a washing machine there especially during max current. Once you get past there, it can be flat as a pancake on the other side. Other good spots are the yellow buoy about 1mile N of Tatoosh and "Limp Spot" a location farther south (maybe 8 miles S of Tatoosh) on the edge of the canyon. Both edges of the canyon are generally good but the W edge tends to be better. You'll see the commercial trollers running up and down the edges of the canyon from Tatoosh all the way to Cape Alava.
Digger,
I am skipping BC this year only because my long-time fishing buddy is away on a summer long RV trip to the east coast. Things should be back to normal next summer. I have never fished out of Poet Nook, although I have cruised over that way from Ucluelet. As I remember, it looked like a good set-up, although it would be a long drive for any last minute supplies. I haven't heard any news about BC fishing, but if the Sockeye run is still open, it would be easy to access from Poet Nook. It has been a few years but we had good luck with the sockeye fishing out of China Creek near Port Alberni. I really liked the calm flat water fishing.
Roger,
Thanks for the info. I will be there long enough to check out all the "hot spots" and maybe find a few new ones. I know what you mean about the water conditions changing once you get out in the open. We often saw the same effect fishing out of Ucluelet. Depending on the tides and winds, the pass leaving the harbor could be pretty rough and choppy until you got out in much deeper water. Hope to see you out there.
I am skipping BC this year only because my long-time fishing buddy is away on a summer long RV trip to the east coast. Things should be back to normal next summer. I have never fished out of Poet Nook, although I have cruised over that way from Ucluelet. As I remember, it looked like a good set-up, although it would be a long drive for any last minute supplies. I haven't heard any news about BC fishing, but if the Sockeye run is still open, it would be easy to access from Poet Nook. It has been a few years but we had good luck with the sockeye fishing out of China Creek near Port Alberni. I really liked the calm flat water fishing.
Roger,
Thanks for the info. I will be there long enough to check out all the "hot spots" and maybe find a few new ones. I know what you mean about the water conditions changing once you get out in the open. We often saw the same effect fishing out of Ucluelet. Depending on the tides and winds, the pass leaving the harbor could be pretty rough and choppy until you got out in much deeper water. Hope to see you out there.
Just got back from a 3 week fishing trip to Neah Bay. Fishing was generally good although we had a few days with very slow fishing. We started out with very good coho fishing the last week in July fairly close to the harbor. We had to cull about 3-4 wild fish for every hatchery. Most days we had 20-30 fish on with quite a few getting off before we got them to the boat. After the first week the coho fishing really slowed down close in. We fished the rest of the time at Swiftsure bank with some days good and some slow. Bottom fishing was good with easy limits around Umatilla Reef. Black Rockfish were easy to find along the outside shoreline south of Cape Flattery.
I hadn't been to Neah Bay in so long I had forgotten how long the runs were. Once you clear the harbor it is still 5 NM to Tatoosh and another 11 NM down to Umatilla. The run to Swiftsure is 12 NM once you clear the harbor. If you plan a trip here and are not familiar with the area use caution when returning during high current flows. Watch the tides because hugh very rough rips develop within 2 miles of the Cape and Tatoosh. This very confused water develops without any wind action. We got caught in one returning from Umatilla which was as bad as any seas I have ever been in.
All in all it was a great trip. I saw a few C-Dorys while fishing, including Quillback and SeaDNA. We also saw Patty and Barry from C-Cakes in the parking lot of QFC in Sequim. Then Harvey from the Sleepy-C also met us while we were at the QFC. Anytime you park a C-Dory anywhere for very long it draws a crowd!
I hadn't been to Neah Bay in so long I had forgotten how long the runs were. Once you clear the harbor it is still 5 NM to Tatoosh and another 11 NM down to Umatilla. The run to Swiftsure is 12 NM once you clear the harbor. If you plan a trip here and are not familiar with the area use caution when returning during high current flows. Watch the tides because hugh very rough rips develop within 2 miles of the Cape and Tatoosh. This very confused water develops without any wind action. We got caught in one returning from Umatilla which was as bad as any seas I have ever been in.
All in all it was a great trip. I saw a few C-Dorys while fishing, including Quillback and SeaDNA. We also saw Patty and Barry from C-Cakes in the parking lot of QFC in Sequim. Then Harvey from the Sleepy-C also met us while we were at the QFC. Anytime you park a C-Dory anywhere for very long it draws a crowd!
Ken,
It was good to see you out there. Last Tues, Wed and Thurs were each worse than and other days of salmon fishing I have had at Neah Bay in the past 6 years.
Tues. we caught only 3-4 wild coho and no keepers for 3 rods out from about 6AM until 2PM. At that point I called it quits on salmon and loaded up on bottom fish at Umatilla reef ( fished on the S and W side of Ozette Island). Since the only place people were catching fish was Swiftsure, we went out there on Wed. We fished from about 9AM until 3PM in some mildly rough water and had only one good king (about 14lbs) to show for out efforts. I think we had maybe 7-8 bites all day, landed about 1/2 of them and had to throw all but the one back. So Swiftsure wasn't that great on Wed. either. Thurs. I was down to two people fishing (me + one other) and since Swiftsure wasn't that great on Wed., I went to Table top and hit it hard all day. We got two small coho for two rods in the water about 8-9 hours. Again we had a total of about 8 hits and landed about 50%. When I've been out there in Aug. for each of the previous 5-6 years, I typically get a bite every 5-8 mins with 2-3 rods in the water. Tues - Thurs were about 1 bite every hour.
Fri. I went back to Swiftsure. I was able to get a little earlier start on Fri since I was done submitting a grant (yes I was doing writing in the early AM and late PM while I was out there). We got 4 nice fish off of Swiftsure. 3 kings, 2 around 12# one around 15# and a 10# coho. Two of the kings came very early the remaining two fish took until 2:30 or so to catch. Saturday, I was back at Swiftsure one more time. We get lines in the water around 7:30 and were limited on salmon by about 8:20. We had a strong offshore flow of about 20kts and the seas were very rough on the way out (3-4' confused waves). When I turn back into the wind to run back, I could only make about 5kts without burying the bow. So I got the crap beat out of me for about 2.5 hours as I worked my way ESE. I elected to go a bit S so as to get in the shadow of Tatoosh and the mainland with the idea that I might make another run down to Umatilla reef if the seas were less confused in the lee side of the mainland. Once we got closer to land, things were much better and I made the trip to Umatilla in about 1.5-2 hours. There we limited on bottom fish (20 rockfish, 3 keeper ling cod, 1 cabezon and a few kelp greenling. So overall, a successful trip - especially the last 2 days. I left my boat out there in dry moorage so I'll be back to see of the coho run materializes.[/u]
It was good to see you out there. Last Tues, Wed and Thurs were each worse than and other days of salmon fishing I have had at Neah Bay in the past 6 years.
Tues. we caught only 3-4 wild coho and no keepers for 3 rods out from about 6AM until 2PM. At that point I called it quits on salmon and loaded up on bottom fish at Umatilla reef ( fished on the S and W side of Ozette Island). Since the only place people were catching fish was Swiftsure, we went out there on Wed. We fished from about 9AM until 3PM in some mildly rough water and had only one good king (about 14lbs) to show for out efforts. I think we had maybe 7-8 bites all day, landed about 1/2 of them and had to throw all but the one back. So Swiftsure wasn't that great on Wed. either. Thurs. I was down to two people fishing (me + one other) and since Swiftsure wasn't that great on Wed., I went to Table top and hit it hard all day. We got two small coho for two rods in the water about 8-9 hours. Again we had a total of about 8 hits and landed about 50%. When I've been out there in Aug. for each of the previous 5-6 years, I typically get a bite every 5-8 mins with 2-3 rods in the water. Tues - Thurs were about 1 bite every hour.
Fri. I went back to Swiftsure. I was able to get a little earlier start on Fri since I was done submitting a grant (yes I was doing writing in the early AM and late PM while I was out there). We got 4 nice fish off of Swiftsure. 3 kings, 2 around 12# one around 15# and a 10# coho. Two of the kings came very early the remaining two fish took until 2:30 or so to catch. Saturday, I was back at Swiftsure one more time. We get lines in the water around 7:30 and were limited on salmon by about 8:20. We had a strong offshore flow of about 20kts and the seas were very rough on the way out (3-4' confused waves). When I turn back into the wind to run back, I could only make about 5kts without burying the bow. So I got the crap beat out of me for about 2.5 hours as I worked my way ESE. I elected to go a bit S so as to get in the shadow of Tatoosh and the mainland with the idea that I might make another run down to Umatilla reef if the seas were less confused in the lee side of the mainland. Once we got closer to land, things were much better and I made the trip to Umatilla in about 1.5-2 hours. There we limited on bottom fish (20 rockfish, 3 keeper ling cod, 1 cabezon and a few kelp greenling. So overall, a successful trip - especially the last 2 days. I left my boat out there in dry moorage so I'll be back to see of the coho run materializes.[/u]