HALIBUT SEASON IS underway, with anglers targeting some of the most productive fishing grounds across the North Olympic Peninsula in today’s opener.
Let’s hope for low wind, calm seas, complete hook sets and good-sized ‘buts for everyone heading out.
Finding bait and finding the bottom with your line are general pieces of advice.
But it’s not as easy as heading out, consulting the depth finder and dropping lines any old place.
Halibut are ambush predators and like to conceal themselves along the edges of structures that rapidly drop off to deeper water or along the edges of plateaus.
Fishing from shallow to deeper water is the best bet because halibut are looking for prey in the water column and anglers are less likely to get hung up starting higher up.
The following fishing spots are considered some of the more tried and true halibut holes:
Marine Area 4 (Neah Bay)
• The Garbage Dump: Found inside the Strait of Juan de Fuca just west of Neah Bay at Koitlah Point.
Marine Area 5 (Sekiu)
• The mouths of the Sekiu and Hoko rivers: west of Sekiu.
• Near the mouth of the Twin Rivers: east of Pillar Point.
Marine Area 6 (Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca)
There’s tons of structure to explore in the vast range of Marine Area 6. These spots are found moving from west to east in Marine Area 6.
• Whiskey Creek to Tongue Point: 10-12 miles west of Port Angeles.
• The Humps: just northwest of Port Angeles.
• Rock Pile: head north 7.5 miles from Ediz Hook. Likely to be crowded, so not the best spot to troll.
• 31-36 Hole: a popular and productive bank about six miles northwest of Ediz Hook.
• Green Point: a series of sandy flats 5-6 miles east of Ediz Hook.
• Coyote Bank: a popular spot along the Canadian border a bit further to the northeast of Port Angeles.
• Hein Bank: about eight miles north-northeast of the Dungeness Lighthouse.
• Eastern Bank: a large underwater tabletop southeast of Hein Bank.
• Dungeness Bank: off the tip of Dungeness Spit.
• Dallas Bank/Protection Island and McCurdy Point: Anglers launching out of John Wayne Marina in Sequim, the Gardiner boat launch and Port Townsend all could find success off Dallas Bank, north of Protection Island.
• Smith Island and Partridge Bank: at the north and south ends, respectively, of a collection of sandy flats and dropoffs off the west coast of Whidbey Island (Did I mention Marine Area 6 is huge?).
A change in Area 6
Unlike previous seasons, anglers fishing for halibut in Marine Area 6 will not be able to retain lingcod incidentally caught when fishing for halibut seaward of the 120-foot depth boundary.
This is to protect rockfish species, including yelloweye rockfish which are listed under the Endangered Species Act.
However, lingcod retention will still be allowed seaward of the 120-foot depth restriction in Marine Area 5, which is outside of the area where yelloweye rockfish are listed.
In all marine areas open to halibut fishing, there is a one-fish daily catch limit and no minimum size restriction.
Anglers may possess a maximum of two halibut in any form while in the field, and must record their catch on a catch record card. There is an annual limit of four halibut.
Marine areas 5-10 open today, Saturday, May 9, 11, 18, 24, 26, June 6, 8, 20 and 22 as long as there is sufficient quota. Puget Sound will be managed to an overall quota of 77,550 pounds.
Marine areas 3 (La Push) and 4 (Neah Bay) will open today, Saturday, May 9, 11, 18, 24, 26, June 6, 8, 20 and 22, as long as there is sufficient quota. The combined quota for both areas is 128,187 pounds.
Fly Fishers meet
Fly-fishing in the remote Spatsizi Wilderness of northern British Columbia will be discussed at this month’s meeting of the Olympic Peninsula Fly Fishers by club members Bill Kindler and Troy Herridge at 6 p.m. Monday (May 6).
The fly fishers’ meetings, open to all interested anglers, are held in the Campfire USA Clubhouse in Webster Park, 619 E. Fourth St., in Port Angeles the first Monday of every month.
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Sports reporter/columnist Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-417-3525 or mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
