Picking spots is key to catch

If you can pick and choose your fishing days and avoid bad weather, which might be tough in the coming days, then you'll likely find some pretty good action especially on the saltwater fishing scene.

"It has been lights out on Possession Bar, and it has also been very good at Port Townsend [off Midchannel Bank]," said Gary Krein, owner of All-Start Charters in Everett. "Anybody who knows what they are doing are getting a limit of blackmouth [resident chinook]. Most of the them are 7 to 10 pounds along with some up to 13 pounds."

Krein says the whole bar has fish, and it is best on the east side during the outgoing tide and on the west side during the incoming tide.

Schools of herring and candlefish are everywhere, and Tuesday Krein reported solid bird activity on baitfish that stretched three miles wide and two miles long.

Pete Sergeef, on one of the state Fish and Wildlife test fishing boats, reported on Tuesday they landed 10 keepers [chinook 22-inches or longer], and while it was somewhat slower yesterday they still managed to hook some nice fish.

Other fairly decent stops are Point No Point, Double Bluff off Whidbey Island and down south at Jefferson Head where the chinook are somewhat smaller in size.

The Camano Island area reopened for hatchery chinook, and fishing was fair to good at Elger Bay, Baby Island, Camano Head, Sandy Point and Onamac Point.

On Sunday, at the Everett ramp 58 boats with 116 anglers had 79 chinook, and at the Camano Island ramp 26 boats with 52 anglers had 35 chinook.

The privately run Grady White Derby is Saturday, and the Bayside Marine Derby is this weekend. Cost is $30; $5 off with a canned food donation. Largest fish is $2,000. Details: www.baysidemarine.com.

Central, south central, southern Puget Sound and Hood Canal are open for salmon.

The Tengu Blackmouth Derby was held Sunday in Elliott Bay, and 36 members caught only three chinook keepers. Results: 1, David Kano, 5 pounds, 14 ounces; 2, Gary Wong, 4-10; 3, Steve Nitta, 4-7. All the action came at depths of 200 feet off Todd Shipyards. The derby is every Sunday through Dec. 27 at Seacrest Boathouse in West Seattle. Details: 206-324-7600.

Quick bites

• Squid jigging is good one day and lousy the next at the Bremerton, Des Moines and Edmonds piers, and Pier 86 in Seattle. More chums filtering into estuaries off Johns Creek in Oakland Bay, Chico Creek, Kennedy Creek in Totten Inlet, Hoodsport Hatchery, North Bay near Allyn, Perry Creek in Eld Inlet, McLane Creek and Eagle Creek south of Potlatch State Park.

The crab fishery opened up strong in Central and most of northern Puget Sound; both are open daily through Jan. 2. Crab fishing is also open daily at Neah Bay, Sekiu and South Sound.

The daily catch limit in Puget Sound is five Dungeness crab, males only, in hard-shell condition with a minimum carapace width of 6 ¼ inches. Fishers may catch six red rock crab of either sex per day, provided those crab measure at least 5 inches across.

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