Season Of Strange Bycatch

The rod bucked with the signal of a savage hit and my father in law ran to the rod holder and came fast to something

It ran a bit, then surfaced

The season of strange by-catch continues

The poor cormorant, duck, whatever it was snaked the cut plug herring a good 15 ft below the surface so the notion of hooking a winged creature wasn't high in the mind when the reel started singing.

We brought it in and couldn't unhook it without picking it up, and I drew that duty

Insult to injury, the damn thing took a big squirting shit all over my pants.  So I have that going for me.

The bastard bird squawked and drove down below the boat

I think I would have preferred a coho.

Here Pink, Pink, Pinky...

Why the hell anyone would disregard pink salmon as a gamefish is beyond me.

2011 was my first experience with the pink salmon run that descends on the Puget Sound in the odd number year rotation.  Anywhere on the west coast, late summer and fall means salmon season and the frenzy it creates amongst fishermen and women is really something that should be experienced.

People lined the popular beaches hoping to intercept the schools of pinks and or coho whilst boats buzzed around the Sound with the hopes of getting to where the beach anglers couldn't.  The embodiment of stress and anxiety of the whole thing can be seen at the boat launches where the line to launch grows by the minute in the predawn morning.  Lord help the guy who's not a proficient back up artist and delays the whole racket.  Many a fight have happened on the boat ramp in salmon season unfortunately

Spending the day with Dave McCoy of Emerald Water Anglers and Dylan Rose of Flywater Travel was a crash course in the mechanics of salmon fishing.  Long stretches of inactivity followed by some of the most frenetic fishing I have ever been a part of.  Once we found a back bay in the South Sound where pod after pod of pinks cruised by, it was on like I have never seen fishing on.  Double after double, after double.

This weekend, we go back to the coast in search of salmon and I cant wait.  Fire up the smoker, it's time to fill it up with pinks.

Fruits of Our Labor...Puget Sound Protein

With the full story coming tomorrow about our day in the Sound, I thought I'd showcase the net result of our efforts.  

That there's some good eats!

Doing Work....

Out in the Puget Sound today with Dave McCoy of Emerald  Water Anglers and Dylan Rose of Skate the Fly. 

Lets say we did some work on some chrome Pink salmon.  More into to follow