Ok, I am going to start with a veiled reference to a John Denver tune.
Alright I get it, not exactly a ” get off your feet and shake your booty ” kind of performer but a couple of hundred years from now someone somewhere will be singing “Country Roads” around a campfire. I digress…. John Denver once wrote a song called ” Some days Are Diamonds, Some days Are Stones “. His song perfectly summed up my last two days out on the water.
I’ll get to that in a few paragraphs.
What you all want to know is what’s happening in the Sound fish wise.
I think we are seeing the first real push of Robertson Creek springs and a whack of feisty coho in the mix as well. Mears Bluff at Effingham, Kirby, Austin, Cree and Cape Beale have all gone off in the past few days. Run your gear 35 to 65 feet off your riggers and you are in the money.
I still haven’t switched to bait yet, no need. Irish Cream, No Bananas, and Bon Chovy Skinny G’s have been lighting it up. There is also a good mix of shakers and pinks hanging around so no sense feeding the fish with bait. It’s expensive and spoons are working very well. I have been having success with Irish Cream and Bon Chovy 4 inch Amundsen Skinny G knock offs. I run them at 55 – 65 ‘ at Austin and Cree, 37 and 42 at Kirby and Beale. 6′ to 7’ behind green and chartreuse flashers.
Troll them 2.7 to 3 mph.
We have been landing springs from 16 – 24 lbs the past few days. The coho are getting noticeably bigger, some are already pushing 10 lbs.
Hali fishing has tapered off some. It’s always worthwhile putting in the effort though. With halibut (like most fishing) it’s persistence and putting in the time. As I always preach, get on the bank, find a hump that comes up to 200 ‘. Fish near and around it. Salmon bellies work the best out here.
I spent 9 hours on the hook yesterday with guests, Francis, Victor and Dwayne and managed only one 85 cm hali. After dragging up numerous skates, dog fish and whatnot it turned into my worst hali trip in years. I came home humbled with my tail firmly between my legs. I felt terrible for my crew. The only positive was getting Dwayne his first ever halibut. As the song says, “some days are stones”.
The next morning was their last day and we went after springs and coho. We fished Irish Cream Skinny G knockoffs behind chartreuse flashers and it just went off. We limited out my guests and managed two for me. 8 springs in 3 hours. It doesn’t happen all the time but hmmm…. Some days are diamonds…
So get your butts here people. Whether it’s by Highway 4 and waiting for the pilot car, Lake Cowichan way, or float plane via Pacific Air, it’s on. We dream about these kind of summer days on the water.
Phone Harbourside at 1-250-728-3330 for rooms, moorage, ice, tackle and bait.
Ask for Coach and if I am not on the water I’ll come down for a chat.
In the meantime and in between time, I am gonna go fishing! Some days truly are diamonds…
Coach aka Jonathan…