Salmon fishing is hot around the state

It doesn't matter where you point the salmon-fishing rod this week, because just about any direction will get you into fish.

The Strait of Juan de Fuca from Sekiu to Port Angeles opened Tuesday, and fishing is fairly decent for hatchery chinook.

"Our checkers [Tuesday] saw an average of about 0.35 chinook per angler at Sekiu, and most of those fish were nice in size [12- to 15-pound range]," said Mark Baltzell, a state Fish and Wildlife biologist. "I heard they haven't seen many of the smaller blackmouth [immature resident chinook] in the catches, and the biggest was 22 pounds."

At Sekiu, creel checkers saw 96 boats with 122 anglers that caught 43 hatchery-marked chinook. Dockside interviews with anglers showed a nice mark rate of about 71 percent on the chinook kept.

Port Angeles creel checkers saw 15 boats with 10 hatchery chinook, but most were in the 6- to 10-pound range. Freshwater Bay is also fair to good for chinook.

The San Juan Islands opened with a bang Tuesday, and many were easily getting their one chinook daily limit.

"It is hot fishing in the San Juan Islands, and everyone I talked to did good," said Mike Lindquist, owner of Salmonator Charters in Anacortes. "Point Lawrence was really good, and other places like Tide Point, Eagle Bluff, Obstruction Pass, and Decatur and James Islands had fish."

Jay Field with the Anacortes Chapter of Puget Sound Anglers got a pair of 17-pound kings Wednesday and a 10- and 13-pounder on Tuesday's opener, plus reported some decent crabbing in the island chain.

In south central Puget Sound, anglers were catching some quality-sized chinook, but there just aren't many around yet.

"I know fishing wasn't great this last week in Area 11 [south central Sound], but on Monday our test fishing boat got three marked chinook around [the Tacoma area] off the Clay Banks and Point Dalco," Baltzell said. "They didn't get a bunch of fish in June, but the mark rate for hatchery fish is sitting at 88 percent.

"We really aren't seeing that many smaller-sized fish in Area 11, and most are in the 12- to 15-pound range. Even from our creel checks, anglers are saying they haven't been releasing many unmarked fish, but the problem is finding them."

Salmon anglers will also be gearing up for the inner-Elliott Bay king fishery that opens Friday, although traditionally this area isn't good until later this month. The Edmonds pier is also giving up a few kings. Central Sound opened Tuesday for coho, and it was fair at Jefferson Head.

Anglers at Westport got into some of the best salmon fishing of the season earlier this week, but since then it has slowed to the point where it has become a desert.

"What load of fish was here Sunday and Monday has dried up, and the charterboats are having a really hard time finding fish," said Tony Floor, director of fishing affairs for the Northwest Marine Trade Association. "We went out [Wednesday] and didn't touch a fish."

To the south, Ilwaco remained fairly good for chinook and a few coho. But up north at Neah Bay and La Push, salmon fishing was also slow and turnout was sparse.

Fishing reports

• Chinook, steelhead and sockeye in local rivers: "The [Skykomish River] wasn't too bad, and we're interviewing a lot of anglers bringing in steelhead and chinook," said Chad Jackson, a state Fish and Wildlife biologist. "The river water level is bouncing up and down, and when it starts to decrease people are finding some pretty good fishing. The reports are showing some good-sized chinook, and we saw one 28-pounder from a regular who fishes from the shore."

Last week, 224 Skykomish anglers kept 18 chinook and 22 steelhead for an average of about one fish for every 5 ½ rods.

The Upper Skagit and Cascade rivers were pretty much out of fishing shape, but before that it was fair to good.

"The guys sticking around by the hatchery where the river dumps in are getting a few fish, and just before the rivers went out it was getting better," said Brett Barkdull, a state Fish and Wildlife biologist. "Usually when the river comes back into shape fishing is good for a couple of days."

Barkdull says the sockeye are pouring into the Baker River, and while he hasn't gotten any reports this is usually the time when fishing pick up.

Other options are the Green, Snoqualmie, Samish, North Fork Stillaguamish, Calawah and Sol Duc rivers.

• Crab in Puget Sound: "It has been incredible, and we've gotten up to 340 legal crab in the boat for nine days of fishing, and I've been taking about five to six people on each trip," said Floor.

Crabbing is open daily in southern Puget Sound, and the rest of Puget Sound and Hood Canal is open Wednesdays through Saturdays only.

• Shellfish in Puget Sound and Hood Canal: Some huge minus-low tides should expose beaches. Check the regulation pamphlet for what's open and closed. Low tides: Today, minus-3.9 at 11:26 a.m.; Friday, -3.5 at 12:14 p.m.; Saturday, -2.8 at 1:01 p.m.; Sunday, -1.7 at 1:50 p.m.; and Monday, -0.2 at 2:35 p.m.

• Chinook, sockeye, shad, sturgeon and steelhead in the Columbia River and its tributaries: "Bank and boat anglers [in the Cowlitz River] around the trout hatchery averaged nearly a hatchery steelhead per rod," said Joe Hymer, a state Fish and Wildlife biologist.

The Columbia is closed for summer chinook, but places below Bonneville are still open for sockeye, shad and steelhead. Sockeye fishing remains open through Sunday from Rocky Point to the Highway 395 Bridge in Pasco. Sturgeon catch-and-keep fishing is allowed in the estuary July 10-12, July 17-19 and July 26-27.

• Trout, bass and other game fish in statewide lakes: "The kokanee fishing in Lake Stevens is quite good, and [Curt Kramer, a retired state Fish and Wildlife biologist] got 20 fish [on Wednesday]," said Mike Chamberlain at Ted's Sports Center in Lynnwood. "There are great smallmouth bass opportunities in Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish."

Trout fishing has slowed down somewhat, but still fair to good at lakes Goodwin, Mineral, Angle, Serene, Martha. McMurray, Sixteen, Lone, Pass, Mayfield, Deer and Cottage.

Mark Yuasa: 206-464-8780 or myuasa@seattletimes.com