September ‘Silvers’

With large numbers of coho in the Strait of Georgia, September is shaping up to be a good month for fishing

‘Silver’ is a colloquial term for a coho salmon. It’s more commonly used in the US, but the moniker is well known to Canadian anglers as well.

Chinook fishing is usually over by mid-September when most adults have entered their home rivers and it doesn’t restart in earnest until early December when legal sized feeders appear in local waters. A few anglers do go after chums, but coho are the main attraction and it’s a show well worth taking in. However, to maximize fishing time for mature coho just modify the same tactics and presentations that worked earlier in the summer.

Resident coho, meaning those that remain inside the Strait of Georgia all summer, used to sustain the Strait of Georgia recreational fishery. Unfortunately, they mysteriously began to vacate the inside waters beginning in the 1980s. By the mid-1990s they had abandoned the strait en masse. There were rare summers when coho reappeared, and fortunately 2023 happens to be another one of those years.

There is one caveat. Coho non-retention began in 1996. It was introduced by Fisheries Minister David Anderson to conserve interior Fraser River stocks. This regulation remains, but was adjusted to permit the retention of adipose fin-clipped hatchery coho for recreational fisheries in the Strait of Georgia and its approach waters.

September is one of the best times of the year to be on the water. The temperature is warm but not too hot, the heavy fall rains are still weeks away, and those persistent summer winds disappear. It almost makes a successful fishing trip seem like a bonus not the goal.

Understanding Coho Biology Improves Fishing Success

Coho spend half of their three-year life-cycle in freshwater and half in saltwater, with the exception of ‘jacks’ or male coho that return to the rivers at two years old. Coho smolts are four to six inches long and weigh just a few ounces when they leave freshwater each spring.

These smolts double in size by Christmas. Prior to the 1970s anglers targeted them in what was called the winter grilse fishery. By early spring they average two to three pounds and are called bluebacks in reference to the colour of their upper bodies near the backbone.

From a few ounces to over three pounds in a year is impressive growth, but nothing compared to what happens during the months before entering their home streams. In this brief final stage of ocean life they undergo a massive growth spurt. This growth provides the calories needed to sustain them for the difficult spawning run yet to come. Many coho reach 10 pounds or more, with some even exceeding 20 pounds.

In order to fuel this remarkable growth rate coho become eating machines and this makes them easy to catch. However, by September these same coho become more selective about lures and presentations. Summer gear and tactics still work, but they become more effective after making slight modifications.

Modifying Tactics And Tackle

1. Reduce Trolling Speed

A common rule of thumb for summer coho is to speed up if the fishing is slow. Mature adults still prefer lures that are trolled quickly, however, if they aren’t biting try slowing down. I have taken most of my larger coho trolling faster than I would for chinook, but slower than I would for summer coho.

2. Increase Leader Length

Try increasing the attractor to lure leader length by as much as 15 to 20 percent. So, if the leader length between a full-sized flasher and a hoochie is 18 to 24 inches extend that by three to five inches. For trolled herring strip go as long as 42 inches.

3. Fish Deeper

In recent decades, coho seem to be migrating deeper in the water column on the way to their home streams. So don’t be afraid to run a lure or two deeper than 80 or 90 feet.

4. Stack More Lures

Because coho are running deeper, spread the gear throughout the water column. This may require adding a second rod to one or two downriggers. It’s called stacking and it’s easy to learn. Place a second release clip for the stacked rod anywhere on the rigger cable as long as it’s 10 feet above the deep gear. Then shorten the drop back to the stacked lure by as much as a third, otherwise there is a risk of tangling the stacked lure with the deep gear if the deep rod fires first. Finally, reel in as much slack line as possible without tripping the release clip. This also reduces the risk of tangling the lures.

5. Run a Shallow Lure

Behind the Prop Wash

This is what I call the fun rod. With

September

Fishing Tip

Based on the abundance of coho observed in the Strait of Georgia during June and July it might indicate that really good coho fishing is in the works for September. According to longtime guides from Campbell River to Vancouver this is the most coho they’ve seen since the early 1990s. So, put silvers on your fishing calendar for September and check for tidal water fishery notices that are specific to coho salmon before dropping a line.

the help of a few ounces of weight, or a two to 2.5-inch diameter minidiving planer, the lure should locate just under the surface set about 30 feet behind the boat. Run it without an attractor using spoons, real or artificial herring strips, whole baits or plugs.

6. Use the Current to Your Advantage

September coho feed late into their migration and, more importantly, move with the feed and current. To find them anglers need to cover lots of water. So, avoid trolling into the current. Instead, troll with it or zigzag diagonally across it to find the fish.

Lures And Attractors

If a lure includes green as a primary colour it’s good for coho. Other effective colours, pigments and patterns include chartreuse, glow, UV, chrome, silver, blue, pink and holographic tapes in cracked ice or plaid. Stick with smaller lures that match juvenile herring, anchovies, needlefish, krill or squid and adjust the size and colours according to the feed or fishing conditions. For example, glow, white and pink for krill; green, blue and chartreuse for baitfish; UV and glow for dark days, deep fishing and dirty water. Keep using hot lures even if they’ve taken a beating from numerous strikes. These often out-fish the same brandnew lures right out of the package.

I am a big fan of full-sized plastic flashers in the same colours recommended for lures. However, if the bite is slow I often put out a metal attractor like the 10-inch Abe & Al.

A Note On Stacking Lures

Full sized flashers can be run with stacked lures, but it significantly increases drag. I like to run stacked spoons, baits or plugs without flashers or dodgers, or with smaller attractors like a 10-inch Abe & Al, a small herring dodger or mini-flasher. Boats 20 feet or bigger can easily handle four rods for coho fishing, while three rods is ideal for boats from 15 to 19 feet long.

Boats with two riggers can add a stacked line to each rigger to get to four rods in the water. Or they can run a variation setup with two rods off one rigger, a shallow ‘fun rod’ off the centre, and a single deep lure run from the second rigger. Running stackers requires at least 12-pound cannonballs to compensate for the extra drag and faster coho trolling speed. Fifteen pounders are better.

Both options are good initial tactics for the start of any coho trip because the lures are covering a large segment of potentially productive water. Once anglers locate the depth that’s producing strikes, they should reposition most of their other lures around that general depth.

Update

SE Alaska Chinook Troll Fishing Ban Overturned

On June 23, 2023, barely six weeks after US District Judge Richard Jones ordered a halt to the 2023 southeast Alaska chinook salmon troll fishery, the Ninth Circuit Court of Western Washington overturned his ruling. The court’s decision allowed this fishery to begin on July 1 as scheduled.

The earlier decision by Judge Jones agreed with the position brought forward by the Wild Fish Conservancy that the US Federal Government’s plans for the troll fishery were insufficient to protect chinook salmon, originating from Washington and Oregon and failed to take into account endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales that rely on these salmon as a food source. The Jones decision instructed the National Marine Fisheries Service to redo a biological opinion that had initially permitted the southeast Alaska troll fishery to proceed.

The Alaska State government appealed that decision arguing that the importance of this fishery to approximately 1,500 commercial fishermen outweighed the gains from closing the fishery. To support their case, it was pointed out that the gains cited in the original decision were small, adding that the 20222023 proposed chinook catch for the southeast Alaska troll fishery was within the Canada-US Pacific Salmon Commission’s agreed upon limits. Those limits already included a 30 percent reduction from the 20212022 commercial troll totals to address chinook conservation needs.

In striking down the previous decision the Ninth Circuit Court concluded, “that substantial certain impacts of not fishing outweigh the speculative environmental threats.” The Wild Fish Conservancy announced their disappointment with the decision while vowing to appeal the court’s ruling.

Bavaria C38

A well performing, roomy cruiser from Germany

BY PETER A. ROBSON

AAs I’ve written before, it’s always a challenge to schedule a sailboat review when we’re unsure if there will be decent wind, and without wind, the review is going to miss important sailing characteristics. The Windy and PredictWind apps help, but they’re not always accurate. However, on a beautiful summer day in July, the stars aligned, and we had an excellent day on English Bay with gusty eight to 14-knot westerlies. Aboard were Pacific Yachting editor Sam Burkhart, Yacht Sales West broker Richard Hargreaves and myself.

Founded in 1978, Germany-based Bavaria Yachts is one of Europe’s largest production yacht builders. The company has come back swinging since a brief period of insolvency in 2018 and the subsequent purchase by CMP Capital Management Partners, a German investment company. Since then, Bavaria has been steadily improving production efficiency, paring down its model line and replacing older models with new. Bavaria currently produces 500 sailboats and powerboats each year. Their current sailboat lineup consists of 11 models with six in the C-Class from 38 to 57 feet (11 to 16 metres).

Design And Construction

The new C38 is the smallest offering in Bavaria’s C-line. The C-line is designed by Cossutti Yacht Design (the C is for Cossutti). The C-line is a departure from Bavaria’s Cruiser line and is more performance oriented with blunt bows that flare out considerably above the waterline, hard chines and beams that carry all the way aft.

The interior utilizes the full beam to maximum effect.

The C38 has a whole lot to offer for coastal cruisers. During our test sail it proved almost effortless to drive and sailed beautifully with its big rig. Its wide chines offered solid stability, and due to its wide beam (13’ 6”/3.98 metres), there’s a great deal of room belowdecks.

The C38 is available in a two or three cabin layout with one or two heads, while the layout of the saloon remains the same regardless. It is offered in both standard (best for our waters) and shallow draft versions with either a regular mainsail or in-mast furling. A self-tacking jib is normal though a genoa is offered as an option.

On Deck

Boarding is via the folding swim platform, though side gates provide alternate access. The teak-planked platform is sizable, and its gas struts make it easy to deploy and retrieve manually. One interesting feature is the rudder quadrant and autopilot gear, which are accessible via a hatch in the cockpit sole, as opposed to most sailboats where the rudder gear is deep in the stern. The twin wheels (but single rudder) allow good access between them to the expansive teaksoled cockpit. B&G wind instruments front both wheels while a chart plotter is mounted on the aft end of the cockpit table and visible from either station. Winches controlling the main are within easy reach of the helm. Spacious lockers provide ample storage under the cockpit seats. A cockpit shower offers both hot and cold water, with the hot water produced by the engine.

Moving forward, the shrouds are attached outboard and therefore don’t encumber passage. The windlass is semi-recessed, and the anchor runs through a roller on the bowsprit. A hinged and notched metal plate serves as a nifty chain brake. The anchor locker is interesting in that the anchor rode is housed in a box/shelf above the main locker area, freeing up 80 percent of the locker for storage of fenders and the like.

THE RIG The deck-stepped Seldén fractional mast has two sets of aft-swept spreaders and a split, adjustable backstay. The test boat came with the optional in-mast furling and a double-ended mainsheet (no traveller). It is attached to the boom midway along, and this means more muscle power is required to sheet it in in heavy airs as opposed to end-of-the-boom sheeting (which isn’t practical on the C38). When sailing upwind, no mainsail adjustment is necessary when tacking, and the same goes for the self-tacking jib. It couldn’t get much simpler. The mast is 61 feet (18.57 metres) high (from the waterline) and taller than many yachts in the 40-plus-foot (12-metre) range. The main is a generous 124 square feet (37.8 square metres) and the jib is 88.5 square feet (27 square metres), so the C38 has plenty of power, even in light air. A code zero or gennaker will certainly improve performance off the wind and can be mounted on an eye in the bowsprit. The halyards, outhaul, vang and such all lead back on deck to clutches and self-tailing winches on the cabin top. A second set of winches (genoa, code zero and gennaker) are mounted on the cockpit coaming, while a third set for the mainsail is accessible from the helm. All winches on the test boat were manual Lewmar 45s.

INTERIOR The interior is surprisingly spacious for a vessel of its size and utilizes the full beam to maximum effect. The layout is very modern with white oak veneers and squared-off cabinetry with mahogany and holly engineered flooring and comfy faux-leather beige upholstery. The headroom of 6’ 6” (1.98 metres) is generous while natural light and ventilation is provided by hull windows, overhead hatches and deckhouse windows with opening ports. The companionway hatch is longer than most and this allows for shallower steps to access the saloon area. The steps lift to provide access to the diesel while side panels provide additional access.

The head, immediately to starboard, was ordered with an electric toilet (freshwater flush) inside a separate shower compartment which comes with a wooden grate. The vanity area includes a recessed sink and under and over counter storage.

Tucked under the cockpit are two guest cabins with berths almost five feet wide (1.5 metres) and 6’ 5” (two metres) long, both with deep side shelves and hanging lockers. The portside guest cabin can be configured for storage, though it makes more sense to order it as a berth and pile gear on it when not used as such.

An oven and three-burner propane cooktop highlight the L-shaped portside galley. A reasonably sized door fridge with small freezer compartment is mounted under the countertop. Storage is in drop down cabinets (with room for a microwave) and a deep counter-access pantry.

Forward is the U-shaped dinette with folding table that, when opened, allows those on the opposing settee to sit at the table, making room for six. It also drops down to provide an additional berth. A modest chart table at the forward end of the saloon will prove useful for storing cruising guides and folded paper charts. This is where the VHF (with remote) was mounted and while not fitted, there’s room for a second chart plotter, though owners these days more often opt for a portable tablet.

Long hull windows in the bow mean

Specs

LOA 11.31 m / 37' 1"

Hull length 10.99 m / 36' 7"

LWL 10.27 m / 33' 8"

Beam 3.98 m / 13'

Draft (std) 2 m / 6' 6"

Disp 9,386 kg / 20,692 lbs

Fuel 210 L / 55.5 USG

Water with extra tank 360 L / 95 USG

Holding 70 L / 18.5 USG

Std Power Yanmar 40 hp with saildrive

Built by Bavaria Yachts

Giebelstadt, Germany Bavariayachts.com

Sold by Yacht Sales West Vancouver 604-488-1202 great views outside. Dual hanging lockers with shelves combined with overhead shelves offer adequate storage. The master bed is notable at 5’ 6” (1.7 metres) in width. A second head can be optioned for the master, though it involves notching into the starboard portion of the berth.

ENGINE AND SYSTEMS The test boat was powered by a 40-horsepower Yanmar with sail drive and three-blade folding propeller. A bow thruster provided additional manoeuvrability. Heating is via a Webasto forced air diesel heater. Battery power consists of a 95 Ah AGM starting battery, two 180 Ah AGM house batteries and a dedicated 180 Ah AGM thruster battery. With minimal electrical demand (primarily the refrigeration and the heater), the 2,000-watt inverter and the two house batteries should be more than adequate when at anchor, even for several days. The only flaw I could see in the engine compartment was that although heat shrink connections were used on most of the connections, electrical tape was used on others, which is acceptable but doesn’t look great.

UNDERWAY It is well known that a single rudder is much more responsive than twin rudders, especially when backing up, as the thrust of the prop can be used directly against the rudder. The bow thruster also makes it easier to manoeuvre in tight spaces. Under power at 2,400 rpm, we sliced through the water at a little better than 6.5 knots.

At wide-open-throttle (3,000 rpm) our top speed was 7.7 knots. These are nice numbers. We did hard-over turns at speed and were able to do a 360 within about a boat length.

Once out of False Creek, the main and self-tacking jib unfurled cleanly and we were soon under sail. The fluky and constantly shifting breeze kept us on our toes. Because of this it was difficult to get accurate speed readings, but the C38 never stalled out or lost way. At 40 degrees apparent, our top speed was between 5.5 and 6.3 knots. At 65 degrees our speed increased to as much as 6.8 knots in gusts, but in lulls, our speed never dropped below about five knots. Even in gusts to 14 knots, it only took a finger on the wheel and the C38 sat nicely on its chine. I was impressed with the Elvstrom verticallybattened Sport-Tech laminate mainsail and jib which were well built and held their shape perfectly. The sailing was so easy, almost effortless, on that sunny afternoon. After a few hours, we reluctantly headed back into False Creek where Richard backed us expertly into the berth.

CONCLUDING REMARKS It was tough to find fault with the C38. The German workmanship appeared to be very good throughout. The rig was larger than expected and the sailing characteristics were delightful. The blunt bow and wide beam provide the C38 with tons of interior volume. While not considered a bluewater cruiser, the C38 would make a super coastal cruiser for BC waters. A nicely equipped, sail-ready C38 is available for just under $500,000.

Since

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JEANNEAU 30 NC 895, 2022 - Save on ordering a new one - fully loaded with Garmin electronics, fusion sound system, forced air heating, and a Westerbeke 3.5 KVA generator. $229,000 USD

• Fully equipped

• Lithium ion batteries

• Low hours

• Volvo shaft driven,

• 17” Garmin screens and much more.

• Boathouse kept (available)

• NO Luxury Tax

$1,359,000 USD

Experience The Exceptional Princess