Puget Sound
- Thread starter Stonedfish
- Start date
jeradjames
Steelhead
Took some friends out for some beach fishing for their first time. Just another nice evening on the sound
rotato
Steelhead
Looking good!
Divad
Whitefish
My lunch break came early today on the drive north so I stopped to scout for the afternoon.
And the afternoon was intense! Saw fish across the bay and unpacked the float tube that stays in my truck. Got drug around like Old Man and the Sea, going 2/7 on chum. Managed to long distance release a nice hatchery coho after two runs into the backing, earning its freedom.
Getting taken down the beach a ways, 7wt bent.
Lots of jumps right by the tube.
Forgot the net which created some issues landing them via fin grabs hens the no photos. Kept thinking boy if this chum shakes open mouth while Iām holding it I am going down
Strong fish.
And the afternoon was intense! Saw fish across the bay and unpacked the float tube that stays in my truck. Got drug around like Old Man and the Sea, going 2/7 on chum. Managed to long distance release a nice hatchery coho after two runs into the backing, earning its freedom.
Getting taken down the beach a ways, 7wt bent.
Lots of jumps right by the tube.
Forgot the net which created some issues landing them via fin grabs hens the no photos. Kept thinking boy if this chum shakes open mouth while Iām holding it I am going down
Strong fish.
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roger stephens
Steelhead
I have fished that beach across from the abandoned golf coarse many times from my boat for resident and adult coho, sea-run cutthroat, and chum. The sea-run cutthroat fishing is excellent when the chum are staging along that shoreline about 100 yards below you in water that is 8 feet or less along a shelf where a small trickle of water usually enters into a small shoreline indentation . It fishes best half way through ebb tides to half way through flood tides. There is a nice current seam at the small indentation on both ebb and flood tides. However, I have had the most success fishing the ebb tide tide since you could fish the whole length of the shelf.
Roger
Divad
Whitefish
Tried a new ābeachā (75% mud) in Oly this evening and the chum have arrived in force awaiting the rain. Tailed 3 out of a bunch, all fair eats.
Last 3 outings chasing these fish Iāve learned a lot. They like a very slow retrieve, a steady flutter from an unweighted fly with a sink tip. The simpler the pattern the better as well, as long as itās tied on a very strong hook. I switched to Owner No Escapes and am only using fiberglass after hearing folks rod horror stories when I walked back.
Good fish to kick off the Halloween night.
Last 3 outings chasing these fish Iāve learned a lot. They like a very slow retrieve, a steady flutter from an unweighted fly with a sink tip. The simpler the pattern the better as well, as long as itās tied on a very strong hook. I switched to Owner No Escapes and am only using fiberglass after hearing folks rod horror stories when I walked back.
Good fish to kick off the Halloween night.
jeradjames
Steelhead
I've been noticing new Sea Run Cutthroat behavior on the two north sound beaches I've been frequenting the last few weeks. Lately, there has been a lot more freshwater type behavior I haven't noticed before. I've been seeing less jumping and more sipping on the top water like trout in the freshwater sipping a dry fly. My usual baitfish patterns are still getting hook ups but the fish are short striking a lot more and as a result I have been changing flies more frequently to figure out what works. It's been a lot of fun trying to figure this out. This morning's best pattern was a muddler minnow with a brass hook. I'm going to get a spare spool with floating line and start experimenting with small top water patterns and see what happens.
What you are seeing with the sipping action is likely them taking euphausiids or amphipods which gets more prevalent as we move from fall into winter.
SF
stateofthesound.wa.gov
stateofthesound.wa.gov
Brian beat me too it. I love winter with the 5wt, a floater and some euphosid or amphipod flies. Catching SRC or rezzies that are sipping these bugs is a nice, but sometimes very frustrating, changeup from the normal strip and rip. The reward just feels better.
Sounds like the perfect opportunity to experiment with Steve Raymond's "Cutthroat Candy", his go to cutthroat dry fly and often the only fly he fished. While he usually tied it in a size 8 I think I would include some smaller versions as well.
The fact the fish seem to be getting picky (short strikes and refusals) about the fly they want. It is often the case that we are fishing over the same fish regularly thus they become more difficult to fool. A pattern change or going smaller can sometimes be effective. While a freshwater example it is common to see BWO hatches on the waters with the mayfly being pretty small (often an 18). When I first encounter a hatch in a given pool even though the fish are taking a size 18 I fish a size 14 with success. If in a few days later or next week I'm fishing the same water I may need to drop to a 16 and then an 18 for success. When fishing over a pod of fish after the bite stales a fly change (different pattern, color or size) will produce a few more fish. However, if I'm going to fish that water more than once every couple weeks I don't change up when the fish go stale, rather keep those change up patterns for the next visit. Experience has taught me that on frequently fished waters have a "new" pattern for each trip results in more fish overall.
Curt
roger stephens
Steelhead
Tried a new ābeachā (75% mud) in Oly this evening and the chum have arrived in force awaiting the rain. Tailed 3 out of a bunch, all fair eats.
View attachment 88447
Last 3 outings chasing these fish Iāve learned a lot. They like a very slow retrieve, a steady flutter from an unweighted fly with a sink tip. The simpler the pattern the better as well, as long as itās tied on a very strong hook. I switched to Owner No Escapes and am only using fiberglass after hearing folks rod horror stories when I walked back.
Good fish to kick off the Halloween night.
Hot spotting? Are you okay
Roger
jeradjames
Steelhead
Thanks everyone, this forum has really helped me out a ton. I've read a lot about the transition to winter feeding habits (all the SRC books and old forum posts) so I'll start experimenting with euphausiid and amphipod patterns.
If fishing a top water pattern, is strip setting not the way to go?
Thanks for the tips Curt. I'll try and tie up a few this week and see what happens.
Some interesting stuff in here. Hopefully the increase in funding can help out. Additionally, it's fascinating to see how much money is going to behavioral change. There are so many people coming to the Puget sound region that still don't get close to it to understand the kids impact their own actions may have. Total uphill battle, but it's one reason why I always try to take newbies out on the boat to try to show the beautiful place we live in and how we all live in it.SFstateofthesound.wa.gov
SeaRunner
Steelhead
The wariest SRC I've experienced have been those sipping euphausiid and amphipod in shallow, still water on mirror calm days with a bit of sun on the water. I've done best with delicate casts and small patterns (size 14 or smaller) retrieved with the amphipod hop or just allowed to drift.
Top water will also work, though I haven't experienced it to work any better or worse during these sipping conditions than at other times. The cutthroat candy and other small hair skater patterns are great. They were all I fished before foam became prevalent in fly tying. They can be harder to keep skating after a few fish and I've generally transitioned to using foam in everything.
Going into late fall and winter I've done best on sculpin patterns, amphipod patterns, top water, and generic streamers tied with glow in the dark materials. I really like the glow in the dark streamer patterns on those rainy and dark November/December days we get where it never really gets fully light. My wife hates those days but I don't mind them.
Top water will also work, though I haven't experienced it to work any better or worse during these sipping conditions than at other times. The cutthroat candy and other small hair skater patterns are great. They were all I fished before foam became prevalent in fly tying. They can be harder to keep skating after a few fish and I've generally transitioned to using foam in everything.
Going into late fall and winter I've done best on sculpin patterns, amphipod patterns, top water, and generic streamers tied with glow in the dark materials. I really like the glow in the dark streamer patterns on those rainy and dark November/December days we get where it never really gets fully light. My wife hates those days but I don't mind them.
Bambooflyguy
Life of the Party
Itās difficult for me to cast a size 14-16 into a gazillion gallons of waterā¦ā¦Iāve caught some sea runs on caddisās.
Divad
Whitefish
@jeradjames right after reading your post I immediately thought to try a crustacean pattern. Sure enough everybody else said the same last year a little size 8 white/light orange crustacean got me a lot of cutties in fall/winter/early spring. The rezzies liked them too.
last year a little size 8 white/light orange crustacean got me a lot of cutties in fall/winter/early spring. The rezzies liked them too.
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Tried a new ābeachā (75% mud) in Oly this evening and the chum have arrived in force awaiting the rain. Tailed 3 out of a bunch, all fair eats.
View attachment 88447
Last 3 outings chasing these fish Iāve learned a lot. They like a very slow retrieve, a steady flutter from an unweighted fly with a sink tip. The simpler the pattern the better as well, as long as itās tied on a very strong hook. I switched to Owner No Escapes and am only using fiberglass after hearing folks rod horror stories when I walked back.
Good fish to kick off the Halloween night.
Slow, fluttery, hovery and slightly obnoxious has been my go to with chum.
Looks like Iām going to have to dig up a few north facing beaches to kick-off Chumvember this weekendā¦
