Puget Sound

Headed south yesterday. Way too bright for good fishing and tidal movement was weak, but I found a few.
It was either feast or famine. Long periods of no fish followed by multiples once you found them.
These were the best two.
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I meant to post this earlier but got busy with fall home projects and other fishing.
Man, what a fun salmon season this summer. By far the best beach fishing we’ve had in the past 10-12 years. Some years the fish just aren’t up on the beaches, like last year. The boat guys kill them while the beach anglers struggle. Not this year.
There were plenty of small herring and sandlance around to keep things interesting all summer. No plucky bites this summer so the stinger never got deployed. Sorry @Kfish 😉 The fish were pounding standard flies.
I sure wish we could have fished MA 9 in October this year.
I did most of my fishing this summer with @DimeBrite. He’s a great fishing partner and fun as hell to fish with. I was fortunate enough to be present when he landed multiple large coho this summer. Thanks for the fun summer Tim!
As he mentioned in his prior post, we put in a lot of effort to find solitude. We’d both rather catch less fish than deal with super crowded beaches. On one particular two day stretch we hiked 13 miles fishing multiple beach just to avoid people and be able to move around with the tides. While there aren’t any secret beaches, there are some lesser known ones. Even the highly popular ones don’t need any more pressure, which makes we wonder why people post YouTube videos naming beaches or post highly revealing photos. I guess they just like fishing crowded beaches or having lots of company.
I ended up breaking one rod this summer trying to get a coho away from a voracious seal. It had already eaten two of my coho that day. I fixed the rod tip top only to break the rod again the next day. In the process, I also pulled my hammy scrambling over slick rocks trying to avoid another coho being eaten by that fast bastard. My balance has been shit since a recent knee surgery, so definitely not my finest beach fishing moment. Who knew beach coho fishing was a full contact sport? 😂
I got to meet board members @SteelHeadDave @KFCDAVE and @johnnyboy Nice to meet you fellas and hope to see you again. It was great to share the beaches with some fellow board members. I’m sorry I didn’t get to fish with @Wanative this summer. Next summer Fred!
Special thanks to @Wolverine @DimeBrite @Steve_S @jasmillo @Kfish @Vandelay Industries @tyler and @Blackdogfishing for intel this summer. That certainly helped my fishing.
After about 40 round trip ferries rides and lots of early wake-ups, I’m enjoying the more leisurely pace of searun cutt fishing this fall.
A few pics from this summer. Third from the last photo courtesy of @Blackdogfishing and the last two courtesy of @DimeBrite.
Thanks also to those that submitted VTR forms this summer. Hopefully we can get more July beach fishing opportunities in MA 9 in the future.
SF
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Headed south yesterday. Way too bright for good fishing and tidal movement was weak, but I found a few.
It was either feast or famine. Long periods of no fish followed by multiples once you found them.
These were the best two.
View attachment 194616View attachment 194617

I meant to post this earlier but got busy with fall home projects and other fishing.
Man, what a fun salmon season this summer. By far the best beach fishing we’ve had in the past 10-12 years. Some years the fish just aren’t up on the beaches, like last year. The boat guys kill them while the beach anglers struggle. Not this year.
There were plenty of small herring and sandlance around to keep things interesting all summer. No plucky bites this summer so the stinger never got deployed. Sorry @Kfish 😉 The fish were pounding standard flies.
I sure wish we could have fished MA 9 in October this year.
I did most of my fishing this summer with @DimeBrite. He’s a great fishing partner and fun as hell to fish with. I was fortunate enough to be present when he landed multiple large coho this summer. Thanks for the fun summer Tim!
As he mentioned in his prior post, we put in a lot of effort to find solitude. We’d both rather catch less fish than deal with super crowded beaches. On one particular two day stretch we hiked 13 miles fishing multiple beach just to avoid people and be able to move around with the tides. While there aren’t any secret beaches, there are some lesser known ones. Even the highly popular ones don’t need any more pressure, which makes we wonder why people post YouTube videos naming beaches or post highly revealing photos. I guess they just like fishing crowded beaches or having lots of company.
I ended up breaking one rod this summer trying to get a coho away from a voracious seal. It had already eaten two of my coho that day. I fixed the rod tip top only to break the rod again the next day. In the process, I also pulled my hammy scrambling over slick rocks trying to avoid another coho being eaten by that fast bastard. My balance has been shit since a recent knee surgery, so definitely not my finest beach fishing moment. Who knew beach coho fishing was a full contact sport? 😂
I got to meet board members @SteelHeadDave @KFCDAVE and @johnnyboy Nice to meet you fellas and hope to see you again. It was great to share the beaches with some fellow board members. I’m sorry I didn’t get to fish with @Wanative this summer. Next summer Fred!
Special thanks to @Wolverine @DimeBrite @Steve_S @jasmillo @Kfish @Vandelay Industries @tyler and @Blackdogfishing for intel this summer. That certainly helped my fishing.
After about 40 round trip ferries rides and lots of early wake-ups, I’m enjoying the more leisurely pace of searun cutt fishing this fall.
A few pics from this summer. Third from the last photo courtesy of @Blackdogfishing and the last two courtesy of @DimeBrite.
Thanks also to those that submitted VTR forms this summer. Hopefully we can get more July beach fishing opportunities in MA 9 in the future.
SF
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I missed beach fishing with you too Brian. I just noticed you have your wooden net back.👍
I'm going to have to get my right arm/ shoulder in shape for casting flys.
 
Headed south yesterday. Way too bright for good fishing and tidal movement was weak, but I found a few.
It was either feast or famine. Long periods of no fish followed by multiples once you found them.
These were the best two.
View attachment 194616View attachment 194617

I meant to post this earlier but got busy with fall home projects and other fishing.
Man, what a fun salmon season this summer. By far the best beach fishing we’ve had in the past 10-12 years. Some years the fish just aren’t up on the beaches, like last year. The boat guys kill them while the beach anglers struggle. Not this year.
There were plenty of small herring and sandlance around to keep things interesting all summer. No plucky bites this summer so the stinger never got deployed. Sorry @Kfish 😉 The fish were pounding standard flies.
I sure wish we could have fished MA 9 in October this year.
I did most of my fishing this summer with @DimeBrite. He’s a great fishing partner and fun as hell to fish with. I was fortunate enough to be present when he landed multiple large coho this summer. Thanks for the fun summer Tim!
As he mentioned in his prior post, we put in a lot of effort to find solitude. We’d both rather catch less fish than deal with super crowded beaches. On one particular two day stretch we hiked 13 miles fishing multiple beach just to avoid people and be able to move around with the tides. While there aren’t any secret beaches, there are some lesser known ones. Even the highly popular ones don’t need any more pressure, which makes we wonder why people post YouTube videos naming beaches or post highly revealing photos. I guess they just like fishing crowded beaches or having lots of company.
I ended up breaking one rod this summer trying to get a coho away from a voracious seal. It had already eaten two of my coho that day. I fixed the rod tip top only to break the rod again the next day. In the process, I also pulled my hammy scrambling over slick rocks trying to avoid another coho being eaten by that fast bastard. My balance has been shit since a recent knee surgery, so definitely not my finest beach fishing moment. Who knew beach coho fishing was a full contact sport? 😂
I got to meet board members @SteelHeadDave @KFCDAVE and @johnnyboy Nice to meet you fellas and hope to see you again. It was great to share the beaches with some fellow board members. I’m sorry I didn’t get to fish with @Wanative this summer. Next summer Fred!
Special thanks to @Wolverine @DimeBrite @Steve_S @jasmillo @Kfish @Vandelay Industries @tyler and @Blackdogfishing for intel this summer. That certainly helped my fishing.
After about 40 round trip ferries rides and lots of early wake-ups, I’m enjoying the more leisurely pace of searun cutt fishing this fall.
A few pics from this summer. Third from the last photo courtesy of @Blackdogfishing and the last two courtesy of @DimeBrite.
Thanks also to those that submitted VTR forms this summer. Hopefully we can get more July beach fishing opportunities in MA 9 in the future.
SF
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A great summary and photos from the spectacular salmon season you had @Stonedfish !!
Brian landed a massive number of coho from the beach this year from all over Puget Sound, with every wild coho released. The big hatchery buck in that last photo was a beast! Thank you for all the hard work you do behind the scenes with WDFW to advocate for sport anglers in general and the beach anglers in particular. Nobody fishes the beaches harder than @Stonedfish ! God knows I've tried to keep up the pace of his year round saltwater calendar, but always fail 😅. Anybody who has the chance to fish the beach with Brian should jump on it.
 
I've only had the privilege of corresponding with Brian via DM/PM text.
He IS the man.

If you ever want to jump in the little sled and go exploring in the south end of MA13 Brian let me know!!!
 
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Brian you must be sore as hell after all the recent encounters with gravity. Getting old er is a gift and a curse. My balance is suspect at best. I guess I should sell my unicycle for self preservation. Dave

Yes, I’ve been horizontal to the ground more than I like to be recently, as you well know.
@DimeBrite does a great imitation of me trying to stop myself from taking a header or dunking. 😂
SF
 
Headed south yesterday. Way too bright for good fishing and tidal movement was weak, but I found a few.
It was either feast or famine. Long periods of no fish followed by multiples once you found them.
These were the best two.
View attachment 194616View attachment 194617

I meant to post this earlier but got busy with fall home projects and other fishing.
Man, what a fun salmon season this summer. By far the best beach fishing we’ve had in the past 10-12 years. Some years the fish just aren’t up on the beaches, like last year. The boat guys kill them while the beach anglers struggle. Not this year.
There were plenty of small herring and sandlance around to keep things interesting all summer. No plucky bites this summer so the stinger never got deployed. Sorry @Kfish 😉 The fish were pounding standard flies.
I sure wish we could have fished MA 9 in October this year.
I did most of my fishing this summer with @DimeBrite. He’s a great fishing partner and fun as hell to fish with. I was fortunate enough to be present when he landed multiple large coho this summer. Thanks for the fun summer Tim!
As he mentioned in his prior post, we put in a lot of effort to find solitude. We’d both rather catch less fish than deal with super crowded beaches. On one particular two day stretch we hiked 13 miles fishing multiple beach just to avoid people and be able to move around with the tides. While there aren’t any secret beaches, there are some lesser known ones. Even the highly popular ones don’t need any more pressure, which makes we wonder why people post YouTube videos naming beaches or post highly revealing photos. I guess they just like fishing crowded beaches or having lots of company.
I ended up breaking one rod this summer trying to get a coho away from a voracious seal. It had already eaten two of my coho that day. I fixed the rod tip top only to break the rod again the next day. In the process, I also pulled my hammy scrambling over slick rocks trying to avoid another coho being eaten by that fast bastard. My balance has been shit since a recent knee surgery, so definitely not my finest beach fishing moment. Who knew beach coho fishing was a full contact sport? 😂
I got to meet board members @SteelHeadDave @KFCDAVE and @johnnyboy Nice to meet you fellas and hope to see you again. It was great to share the beaches with some fellow board members. I’m sorry I didn’t get to fish with @Wanative this summer. Next summer Fred!
Special thanks to @Wolverine @DimeBrite @Steve_S @jasmillo @Kfish @Vandelay Industries @tyler and @Blackdogfishing for intel this summer. That certainly helped my fishing.
After about 40 round trip ferries rides and lots of early wake-ups, I’m enjoying the more leisurely pace of searun cutt fishing this fall.
A few pics from this summer. Third from the last photo courtesy of @Blackdogfishing and the last two courtesy of @DimeBrite.
Thanks also to those that submitted VTR forms this summer. Hopefully we can get more July beach fishing opportunities in MA 9 in the future.
SF
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It was good to cross paths with you and @DimeBrite this year.

I can relate to the rewarding feeling of moving around and exploring different beaches. Part of the reward I feel with beach fishing is in the hunt, as I’ve discovered that one beach can fish so much differently than another that is a 5 minute drive away.
 
I've only had the privilege of corresponding with Brian via DM/PM text.
He IS the man.

If you ever want to jump in the little sled and go exploring in the south end of MA13 Brian let me know!!!

Let’s try to make that happen this fall.

It was good to cross paths with you and @DimeBrite this year.

I can relate to the rewarding feeling of moving around and exploring different beaches. Part of the reward I feel with beach fishing is in the hunt, as I’ve discovered that one beach can fish so much differently than another that is a 5 minute drive away.

I agree. Exploring new places is a lot of fun and having success makes it even better.
SF
 
A few more from today with @Kfish . Lots of salmon around. Not a lot interested in flies though.

I love our spotted SRC friends. Always willing to fill the void and play. Even they were being finicky today. Maybe the bright sun was the cause. Lots of followers with no commit but enough to have a really solid day once we made the switch.

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I can report that some of the coho were around 60 feet of water at first light, chasing small surface bait under the cover of seagulls. I lost them after keeping one coho, then found them again in 500 feet of water next to a very large and dense weed/flotsam line that also attracted some exotics, such as this giant black drum and all the ecosystem attached to it. That line also atracted a new toy for the puppy. Kept a cookie cutter 5.5 lb hen (early) and later on deeper water a feisty 28 incher/~9 lb buck (weighted 8lb 11oz at home after loosing it's head to the WDFW samplers, even if the adipose fin was larger than my thumb still had a CWT tag). I saw 3 other boats fly fishing today, one with two other forum members, another named "T... Wife" and another unnamed dark blue smallist aluminum boat. Stayed away from most people, lots of purpoises on herring and a sea lion that fought a large coho and lost it after smaking it a few times, looks like coho do coho-escapist stuff not only for fishermen. Cool to see other people away from the trolling horde/circus!
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I wonder if you can find out what program that fish came from? It would be interesting to see if bigger unclipped wire tagged fish like yours are coming out of hatchery or net pen releases. My guess would be hatchery but who knows?
The Muckleshoots CWT 50k of the unclipped coho they release from the Elliott Bay net pens. They do that in other programs as well so not that uncommon to get a unclipped fish with a CWT. That used to happen even back in the 90’s when they actually still did regular beach creel checks.
SF
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Just saw the tag information posted at the WDFW CWT site for the unclipped 28 inch, ~9 lb coho buck I kept mid September from MA10 (see above next to a 5.5 lb hen). Getting back to @Stonedfish question: yes, it was reared at the Elliot Bay net pens (2023 broodstock) as part of the Suquamish Tribe program. If you want to know this type of information of a fish you kept that is identified as having a CWT and sampled by a creel sampler, just ask to take a picture of the barcode on their sample after they take the fish head off, then check the lookup website below. This fish took 5 weeks from kept to reported online. Also some information about the net pens in Puget Sound below.
 
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Just saw the tag information posted at the WDFW CWT site for the unclipped 28 inch, ~9 lb coho buck I kept mid September from MA10 (see above next to a 5.5 lb hen). Getting back to @Stonedfish question: yes, it was reared at the Elliot Bay net pens (2023 broodstock) as part of the Suquamish Tribe program. If you want to know this type of information of a fish you kept that is identified as having a CWT and sampled by a creel sampler, just ask to take a picture of the barcode on their sample after they take the fish head off, then check the lookup website below. This fish took 5 weeks from kept to reported online. Also some information about the net pens in Puget Sound below.
Fascinating, so would he have been a very large resi?
 
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Just saw the tag information posted at the WDFW CWT site for the unclipped 28 inch, ~9 lb coho buck I kept mid September from MA10 (see above next to a 5.5 lb hen). Getting back to @Stonedfish question: yes, it was reared at the Elliot Bay net pens (2023 broodstock) as part of the Suquamish Tribe program. If you want to know this type of information of a fish you kept that is identified as having a CWT and sampled by a creel sampler, just ask to take a picture of the barcode on their sample after they take the fish head off, then check the lookup website below. This fish took 5 weeks from kept to reported online. Also some information about the net pens in Puget Sound below.

That is a really good size fish coming from a net pen project. It would be interesting to know its life history. Did it grow to that size in the sound being a rezzie or take off and spend its life in the straits or ocean? Whatever it did it didn’t miss any meals.
Thanks for the follow up to my previous question and the information you provided.
SF
 
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