A number of the agreed-upon 2021-22 salmon season fisheries have been posted by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife after last week’s blanket salmon season announcement.
Marine Area 5 (Sekiu) will open with a two-fish limit July 1, with anglers able to keep hatchery chinook a minimum of 22 inches long while releasing all chum, wild coho and wild kings.
Anglers will have access to a quota total of 4,077 chinook.
Chinook retention will end Aug. 15, and the fishery will continue with a silver focus through September.
Unfortunately, there will be no October coho fishery once again.
Blackmouth chinook will open back up March 1 and run through April 30 with 1,504 chinook on the table for Area 5 recreational anglers.
Anglers in Marine Area 6 (Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca) also will open July 1 with a two-fish limit and a 22-inch size limit on hatchery kings west of the true north/south line through the No. 2 buoy.
Marine Area 6 has been allotted a total of 4,769 kings for the summer season.
Chinook retention also ends Aug. 15 in Marine Area 6, with chum and wild coho also off the table as the fishery changes to mainly hatchery coho retention through Sept. 30.
Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet) will open with a two-fish limit July 16. Only one of the fish may be a hatchery chinook, and the minimum size for keeper kings is 22 inches. All chum and wild coho and kings must be returned.
Area 9 has a 4,700 chinook quota this summer. Hatchery chinook retention ends when the quota is depleted or by Aug. 15, when the fishery transitions to silvers with a two-fish limit. Release all chum, chinook and wild coho from Aug. 16-Sept. 30.
Hood Canal (Marine Area 12) north of Ayock Point will open July 11 and run through Sept. 30 with a four-fish limit with anglers required to release all chum and chinook.
South of Ayock Point, salmon will open July 1 with a four-fish limit and a minimum size of 20 inches for kings. Anglers must release chum and wild chinook.
Recreational anglers will have a shot at a quota of 2,309 kings on Hood Canal.
Two hatchery chinook a minimum of 22 inches will be part of this area’s four-fish limit both north and south of Ayock Point from Oct. 1 through Nov. 30. Chum must be released through Oct. 15.
Release spawning bass
Quilcene angler Ward Norden said the stretch of sunny weather we have seen has started the pre-spawn activities of largemouth bass at Lake Leland.
“I saw the first bass boat of the season appear at the lake this past week,” Norden said. “In order to protect this bass fishery, anglers must release any bass over 2 pounds since these are the spawning females full of eggs.
“The smaller bass between 1 and 2 pounds are often the males who will be protecting the nests of eggs from marauding yellow perch, crawfish and native bullheads.”
Norden said the future of the lake’s quality bass fishery depends on taking care of the spawning fish through mid-May.
“These next four weeks are the only time of year when catch-and-release is a good idea for any bass much over 1 pound or 12 inches in length,” Norden said. “This is also true of the other lakes around the Peninsula which have the bass in them, which is most of the smaller lakes.”
With the opener of lowland lakes on Saturday, it would be good to heed Norden’s advice.
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Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-406-0674 or mcarman@peninsuladaily news.com.
