A column by Mark Yussa
Tight Lines
Smiles! I enjoy spreading smiles at this time of the year. Simply refer to me as the angler who never gives up hope when I strongly believe in something. Sure, time is running against us as autumn creeps up to our doorstep, but when it comes to fishing, you can take it to the bank that I’ll be smiling from beamto-beam. I can’t think of a better month on the calendar when there’s hope for catching salmon. The weather is still awesome, and the fish are still willing to bite as they prepare to migrate into their natal rivers and streams. This is now the peak time for coho salmon, better known as “silvers” for their silvery chrome-bright bodies. They aren’t as beefy as their cousins, the Chinook, who average 4 to 15 pounds. Coho make up for the lack of size with their feisty, acrobatic prowess that has them leaping clear out of the water when hooked. First, let’s quickly examine their numbers for 2020. The Puget Sound forecast is 529,505 (combined hatchery and wild coho), and should lead to plenty of fishing stories told around the dining table well into the winter holidays. To see what the immediate future holds, all one needs to do is look back to early June and July when anglers saw a bright flash of “silver madness” with
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gobs of hungry resident coho feeding on abundant schools of krill in central Puget Sound. These resident silvers have put on a few pounds by now, and will be found congregating among their migrating relatives entering the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Hood Canal, and Puget Sound. Changing up your technique from early summer will improve your chances and for starters, dialing up the throttle to 3.0 to 3.5 mph is a key factor to scoring more hook ups. Schools of silvers move around from place to place, so remember to keep a sharp eye on the fish-finder to see where the baitfish and fish are holding. Surface birds feeding on krill and baitfish schools is another way to know where silvers are present. Boat anglers can also focus on the shipping lanes in rip tides and along the edges of a swift surface current. Early morning hours and late evenings are usually when silvers can be found within in the top 30 to 50 feet of the water column. As the sun rises, be sure to go deeper and drop your lines down 125 to 150 feet. In the morning, set a couple rods at different depths from 30 to 45 feet and others as deep as 50 to 80 feet. Once you hook a coho, set the other rods to the same depth. Most will use flashers to create motion to the lure or bait. Popular lures are the Silver Horde Coho Killer or Ace Hi Fly; Luhr Jensen Coyote Spoon; Yakima Baits SpinFish; and plastic hoochies (2- to 4-inch squid imitations). Adding an artificial scent to your presentation will also entice those silvers to bite. Target coho from Sekiu to Port Angeles; Port Townsend south to Possession Bar off Whidbey Island; Edmonds to Richmond Beach; Jefferson Head; Meadow Point to West Point near Shilshole Bay; and Vashon Island to Tacoma. Silvers generate plenty of excitement, which is sure to stir up the wake in the many waterways from Everett to Seattle. Expect long lines at boat launches and mark your calendars for the largest derby on West Coast—the Everett Coho Derby— happening September19-20. Due to COVID-19, check the website at www.everettcohoderby.com for any last-minute changes. I’ll see you on the water soon, delivering smiles to everyone! Mark Yuasa is a longtime fishing and outdoors writer. Born and raised in Seattle, and a U of W alum, Mark joined the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2017 as the Director of Grow Boating Programs after 33 years at The Seattle Times. He also volunteers with the BSA Chief Seattle Council and National Order of the Arrow organizations, and enjoys fishing for salmon and other fi sh species in local waterways.
