[Editor’s note: Updated to include May 15 and 16 as halibut fishing dates in Marine Areas 6 and 9]
UPCOMING HALIBUT SEASONS are relatively static for the marine areas abutting the North Olympic Peninsula now that the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has finalized plans based on the 214,110-pound catch quota provided by the International Pacific Halibut Commission.
Marine Areas 3 (LaPush) and 4 (Neah Bay) receive most of the halibut catch quota, 108,030 pounds, and will open for halibut Thursday, May 14.
The fisheries will remain open Thursdays and Saturdays through Saturday, May 23, provided the halibut allotment has not been met.
If there is available quota, the fishery will re-open June 4 and/or June 6.
Additional days could be added (Thursdays and Saturdays), depending on the amount of quota available.
Moving east, Marine Area 5’s (Sekiu) halibut fishery will open Friday and Saturday, May 15-16, and again Thursday through Sunday, May 21-24 (Memorial Day weekend), and Friday and Saturday, May 29-30.
The Marine Areas 6 (Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca) and 9 (Admiralty Inlet) halibut fisheries are open Friday and Saturday, May 8-9; Friday and Saturday, May 15-16; the Thursday through Sunday of Memorial Day weekend May 21-24; and Thursday through Saturday, May 28-30.
Separate from halibut, the state also made an adjustment to bottomfish regulations in the deeper Pacific Ocean waters west of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line in Marine Areas 3 and 4.
Anglers will have more days to retain bottomfish, including lingcod.
Starting this year, the 20-fathom (120 feet) depth restriction will be in place Saturday, May 9, through Labor Day, rather than May 1 through Sept. 30, as in past years.
In all marine areas open to halibut fishing, there is a one-fish daily catch limit and no minimum size restriction.
Anglers may possess a maximum of two fish in any form and must record their catch on a catch record card.
With ample time before the start of the season, anglers can prepare by stocking up on heavier test line, spreader bars, herring scent, candlefish and squid jigs, and all the other tools of the halibut fishery.
Halibut how-to
Noted angler John Beath will discuss how to fish for halibut, with a focus on Marine Area 6, at the Thursday, April 16, meeting of the Puget Sound Anglers’ North Olympic Peninsula chapter.
The meeting will be held at Trinity United Methodist Church, 100 S. Blake Ave., in Sequim, at 6:45 p.m.
Beath, expert fisherman, guide and a club member, will share his wealth of knowledge about how, when and where to catch halibut during the short season.
He runs a host of fishing websites online, including halibutchronicles.com, halibut.net, salmonchronicles.com and gofishmagazine.com.
The meeting is open to the public.
For more on the Puget Sound Anglers, visit www.psanopc.org.
OAT Run on tap
The first leg of the Peninsula Adventure Sports Series, begins with the Olympic Adventure Trail Run on Saturday, April 11.
The series is comprised of three endurance events: the Olympic Adventure Trail Run, a half-marathon and 12-kilometer trail race on the Olympic Adventure Trail; the Great Olympic Adventure Trail Run, a marathon and half-marathon trail race Saturday, Sept. 19; and the Big Hurt, a multisport race making its return to the area after a 10-year hiatus, Saturday, Sept. 26.
The Olympic Adventure Trail Run is in its third year on the single-track Adventure Route section of the Olympic Discovery Trail, west of Port Angeles.
The starting lines of the one-way course are higher in elevation than the finish line, but the course challenges runners with more than 2,000 feet of cumulative elevation gain in the half-marathon, and 1,000-plus feet of gain during the 12K.
The course runs west to east on the trail. A barbecue and after party will be held at Harbinger Winery following the race.
Family Medicine is the title sponsor of the Olympic Adventure Trail Run.
There are still a few spots open for the race. Participants can sign up by clicking the “register” button at oatrun.org/registration.
BirdFest swoops in
Those looking for a less physically taxing outdoors adventure next weekend can register for events of the 12th annual Olympic Peninsula Birdfest.
Most events occur Friday through Sunday, April 10-12, but there are overnight birding trips to Neah Bay beginning Tuesday.
There are birding outings planned all over the Dungeness Valley and surrounding coastal areas, classes on photographing and drawing the winged wonders, and a banquet catered by Kokopelli Grill.
The banquet includes a live auction and a raffle and speech from Lynsy Smithson-Stanley, the National Audubon Society deputy director for climate and strategic initiatives.
Prices for events vary.
For more information, visit www.olympicbirdfest.org.
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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.
