A draft halibut season structure that features additional time on the water for halibut anglers in Marine Areas 6-10 next April and more consecutive openings will be presented at a November meeting of the Pacific Fisheries Management Council.
The draft schedule came out of the second halibut meeting of the season-setting process, a state Department of Fish and Wildlife hosted event in Montesano on Monday.
Sequim resident Dave Croonquist attended the meeting as a representative for Marine Area 6 (Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca).
He cautioned that these dates are all preliminary and subject to change.
“Puget Sound could have as many as 33 days to fish for halibut in 2020,” Croonquist wrote in an email. “The bag limit will stay the same at four fish. Puget Sound [Marine areas 5-10) will be fishing Thursday, Friday, and Saturday with an additional six days in April for Marine Areas 6-10.”
Those additional April dates are Thursday through Saturday, April 16-18 and 23-25.
Benefit to anglers
The change to successive opening dates should be a boon for anglers. The halting approach of Thursday/Saturday or Friday/Sunday openings has impacted the number of out-of-area working anglers able to enjoy halibut season.
It’s tough to take an additional day off of work in order to drive, arrive and wake up in time for those coming to the Peninsula from far afield.
There will be successive openings on Memorial Day weekend — another bonus for the region’s tourism economy.
“We’ll fish Friday, Saturday and Sunday of Memorial Day weekend [May 22-24],” Croonquist said.
The only change for Puget Sound and the North Coast (La Push and Neah Bay in Marine Areas 3 and 4) will be a closure on May 21.
The North Coast will open on April 30 with a Thursday and Saturday schedule.
“As in the past, catch rates could drive an earlier closure,” Croonquist said. “Last year, Puget Sound left over 39,000 pounds [of the area’s quota] on the table. Hopefully, we’ll be able to catch our full share in 2020.”
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Sports reporter/columnist Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-417-3525 or mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
