Outdoors Report: Anglers enter prime time

March is the peak of the fishing season in Western Washington for winter steelhead and winter "blackmouth," and there appears to be plenty of both for anglers who put in some time.

Two salmon derbies last weekend reveal the story for blackmouth, as anglers call chinook before they mature and head for their natal streams and hatcheries. A 15-pound, 5-ounce chinook topped the Geoduck Tavern Derby on Hood Canal, and a 16-pound, 4-ounce fish topped the Hot Plug Derby on Saratoga Passage between Whidbey and Camano islands.

"I would say fishing was good," said Tony Floor, recreational fishing lobbyist for the Northwest Marine Trade Association, who was on hand for the Geoduck derby. "I talked to a number of guys who said fishing was good, but not great. There were 70 fish caught the first day and 70 the second. The best fishing was in the Seabeck area."

What's curious is that fishing reportedly was just fair in both the canal and Saratoga before the derbies. But the derbies show fishing was better in both places.

The top four fish in the Hot Plug Derby were all impressive chinook. The second through fourth fish went 15-8, 13-6 and 13-4, and all fish entered were hatchery chinook, since anglers in catch areas 8-1 and 8-2 must release all wild chinook.

"We heard that almost all the top fish came from the Camano side," said Bob Ferber at Holiday Market sporting goods in Burlington.

The winner reportedly was taken at Onamac Point, and at least one of the other bigger fish was caught at Elger Bay.

Other blackmouth action worth mentioning is all in the northern areas, including Lip Lip Point and Midchannel Bank on either end of Marrowstone Island near Port Townsend, the Winter Hole at Port Angeles, the Sekiu area and Hein Bank along the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the San Juan Islands.

The bite in the islands was a bit off last weekend, perhaps from slack tides. But that should change with a prime morning ebb now and into this weekend.

As for steelhead, the peak of the wild runs is right now and into April, and while no one is claiming this will go down as a great or even good season, all the better rivers on the coast are producing fish, including the Hoko, Sol Duc, Bogachiel, Calawah, Hoh, Queets, Clearwater, Wynooche and Satsop.

"The rivers are looking good and fishing is not spectacular, but decent," said Bob Gooding at Olympic Sporting Goods in Forks.

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