THE RAINSHADOW RUMBLE, the annual rivalry football game between Sequim and Port Angeles, isn’t the only game in the Dungeness Valley today.
Anglers can target coho, trout and other game fish on the Dungeness River starting today.
Coho fishing is open until Dec. 31 from the mouth of the Dungeness River up to river mile 11.3.
The minimum size is 12 inches, and the daily limit is four coho.
Trout fishing is open until Jan. 31 from the mouth of the Dungeness up to the fork of the Dungeness and Gray Wolf rivers at the Dungeness Forks Campground.
Trout must be at least 14 inches in length, and the daily limit is two.
Despite recent rains, the water level is still below normal in the Dungeness River.
Brian Menkal of Brian’s Sporting Goods and More (360-683-1950) in Sequim stopped by Railroad Bridge Park on Monday to take a look.
“The river was still pretty low,” Menkal said.
“It looked like those rains we had over the weekend had already been absorbed.”
There should be plenty of fish in the river — with numbers varying on fish already counted at the Dungeness Fish Hatchery.
“Before the most recent rains, the hatchery had counted 500 fish,” said Bob Aunspach of Swain’s General Store (360-452-2357) in Port Angeles.
Jerry Wright of Jerry’s Bait and Tackle (360-457-1308) in Port Angeles had heard a different tally.
“The hatchery already got their fish,” Wright said.
“Something like 2,000 were counted.”
With the low water levels, coho will collect in deep-water pockets to rest and recharge before continuing upriver to spawn.
“They’ll stack up in anything that’s deeper, and they will look for riffles,” Aunspach said.
Riffles are a shallower stretch of stream bed that can serve as a shelter from predators for salmon and trout.
“My favorite method is to use spoons or spinners,” Menkal said.
“I would really recommend softer colors, nothing too bright to spook the fish.
“You don’t want to pull out a rocket red. Stay away from the fluorescents and use softer colors, softer pinks, oranges and darker colors like purple and green.”
Presentation-wise, Menkal said, “you are looking to make a soft, subtle strike so you can set the hook.”
Access-wise, many of the properties neighboring the Dungeness River are private.
There are some public spots, the dike near the Dungeness Schoolhouse is a good spot located close to the mouth of the river.
“Go down toward the schoolhouse and hit some tidal fish that are coming in with the tide, or just target deep pockets,” Wright said.
There are areas along Ward Road near the Olympic Game Farm that provide fishing access.
The area around the U.S. Highway 101 bridge over the Dungeness is popular with anglers, as are some turnouts along Taylor Cutoff Road.
West End whoppers
The Quillayute River system has produced in a big way recently.
“Guys have been getting a lot of really big kings out on the West End, look like some around and maybe even above 40 pounds,” Aunspach said.
“And the crazy thing is, they are still pretty darn bright.”
Once kings hit freshwater, like all salmon, they undergo a change in color, moving from bright chrome silver to a motley mixture that can range from olive to copper to even a darker brown.
Wright went out on the Sol Duc River on Wednesday.
“We went fishing there yesterday at Maxfield Road,” Wright said.
“It was one board [water level on the boat ramp], kind of clear and low.
“But we caught — I don’t know how many fish we caught — but it was a lot.”
You could almost sense Menkal’s smile when he talked about the West End rivers.
“I’ve heard some stories,” Menkal said.
“Yes, some folks are having some really good times out there.
“Some people are really sacrificing themselves.
“You might as well just do it, try and get a fish or two.”
Good coho action
Coho numbers stayed strong in the Strait of Juan de Fuca from Seiku to Port Angeles.
“The catch has improved size-wise for sure over these last few days,” Aunspach said.
“We’re seeing more of that 8- to 10-pound class.”
Pressure was way down, owing to stormy weather, but 169 coho were caught by 156 anglers in 76 boats, according to state Department of Fish and Wildlife checks conducted last Friday through Sunday at the Ediz Hook and Port Angeles boat ramps.
That’s a 1.08 fish-per-angler average.
Checkers at Olson’s Resort in Sekiu counted 255 coho landed by 176 anglers in 69 boats, a 1.44 fish-per-angler average.
Beach casting
“Beach casters are still doing pretty well for coho off the various points along Admiralty Inlet [Marine Area 9],” said Ward Norden, owner of Snapper Tackle Company and a former fishery biologist.
“Best success now is almost exclusively with bobbers and herring.”
Chum are likely to start turning up in bigger numbers in the creel reports.
“Worth noting is the fact anglers are suddenly reporting huge numbers of chum migrating just out of reach of the casters,” Norden said.
“I am [expecting] one of the largest chum rums in decades to enter Hood Canal this fall, given the size of the unique chum run that came into Quilcene Bay this summer.
“Also, the chum will be much larger than usual, as the beach casters are already commenting, in frustration no doubt, that those jumping chums this week are ‘slabs’”.
Stick to the hunt points
To clarify a portion of Thursday’s outdoors column, waterfowl hunting at the Lower Dungeness Unit is allowed only in five designated hunt points on a first-come, first-served basis.
A map is located at tinyurl.com/PDN-HuntPoints.
Hunters are advised to stay off any tidelands in the surrounding area, as those are off-limits to hunting.
The full listof rules is available at tinyurl.com/PDN-HuntRules2015.
Aim for the locals
Norden said he hasn’t seen much sign of waterfowl migration yet this fall.
“Probably due to the mild weather and lack of storms, even the early migration of ducks into local bays has not started, though there are plenty of local birds,” Norden said.
“Since the normal September migration hasn’t come through yet, this opening week may provide a unique opportunity to harvest some of the early migrators, i.e. shovelers, blue wing teal etc . . . that are normally already down in California and Mexico by now.
A trip over to the Skagit Valley could prove fruitful.
“On the other hand for those interested, the snow goose migration onto Puget Sound estuaries from their breeding grounds in Arctic Russia has already begun.
“Apparently, they had their most successful breeding season in a decade from all the juveniles that have been seen already out on the Skagit Flats.”
Deer stealthy
Norden said deer have taken up nocturnal hours.
“Hopefully the modern firearm hunters won’t discover what the early muzzleloader hunters discovered around Hood Canal,” Warden said.
“The deer have adopted the annoying habit of moving only between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., probably due to the shirt-sleeve weather.
“It was rare for many muzzleloader hunters, including this one with a doe tag, to even see a doe during shooting light.”
Send photos, stories
Have a photograph, a fishing or hunting report, an anecdote about an outdoors experience or a tip on gear or technique?
Send it to sports@peninsuladailynews.com or P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles, WA 98362.
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Outdoors columnist Michael Carman appears here Thursdays and Fridays. He can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5152 or at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
