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My Charter Fishing Experience |
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Written by Administrator
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Sunday, 12 July 2009 23:34 |
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I recently took a trip to the Washington state coast for a week long vacation of camping, beach combing and fishing. Of the three I was most excited about fishing as my partner and I were going to go salmon fishing and it was their first time doing so. I made reservations for camping at Twin Harbors state park in Westport, we packed up the car and took off right after the 4th of July so we could avoid too much of a crowd. We arrived at the campground at around 3pm and immediately switched sites to a more private campground. I’m of the opinion that I go camping to enjoy nature and the first site we had was 5 feet from our neighbor and I didn’t like that. The site we settled on was wooded and private and gave us a sense of nature. We unpacked and setup camp and just hung out the first day as it was late and we figure we’d go into town the next day and scout out for a charter to hire for salmon fishing.
The next day we woke up, had a little coffee and headed into Westport to find a charter and grab some breakfast. If you’ve ever been to Westport then you know its not a very big town so walking up the boardwalk and scouting for a fishing charter didn’t take long. We grabbed brochures for the local chartering companies and headed to a restaurant to decide which to hire. After looking at the brochures and not really seeing anything that stuck out at me I finally asked the waitress which she thought was the best. She pointed to one of the brochures on the table and named off a couple of boats that had a reputation for a great captain. I don’t want to name the charter as I don’t have any type of relationship with them other than customer but lets just say that it was one of the charters on the main tourist drag of town. After we ate we walked back down and signed up for a day of salmon fishing. We didn’t get the boat she suggested as it was full but when we mentioned the boat names the clerk recommended another similar sized boat so we took it.
The morning of the trip we woke at the crack of dawn so that we could be at the boat by 5:45. We arrived looking for coffee which hadn’t been made yet and sat and stared waiting for captain Dave to arrive. When it got there he made sure the coffee was made and let us know our two deck hands names and told us we’d be motoring out about 11 miles off shore. We hunkered down for the boat ride as the waves that morning we’re a bit much. Even on a 54 foot boat you can feel the waves on the ocean toss you around a bit.
When we arrived to our first fishing location the deck hands showed us how to fish for the salmon. They were biting about 40 feet down and were generally no deeper than fifty. They told us to strip out the line to about that depth and just reel back up and you should catch fish. Dene and I grabbed a couple of rods on the stern of the boat and proceeded to strip out the line. Right away we heard “fish on!” from someone on the starboard side of the boat. As the deck hands went racing toward the guy fighting that first fish Dene shouted “I got one” and one of the deck hands came running towards us with the net. Dene brought the fish closer to the boat and the fish was netted with efficient speed, clubbed and tossed into the fish hold. Dene started feeling a bit sick at this point and went to lay down. About 10 minutes later I grabbed my first fish of the day. It was about a 10 pound Coho and fortunately was not a wild Coho as these are not legal to keep in our state. The deck hand netted my fish and the fishing frenzy began on the boat. Everyone of the 13 passengers were bringing up a fish. After another hour or so and a few missed bites, I caught another fish. This one fought hard and was fun to catch, I soon discovered that it was a wild Coho and we let it go but man was that fish fun. As the day was dwindling down I had a few more bites and on our last stop I actually brought up a flounder which seemed great but I would have needed many more to get any meet out of the catch.
As we headed back to port, I watch the deck hands clean the catch with expediency and prowess. Man they were fast. The boat had caught its limit and I was thinking about the waitress in the restaurant a couple of days before recommending this charter. She was spot on. I guess the moral of this story is that even though the fancy brochures look great, it would seem word of mouth is really the best bet when fishing these charters.
Happy fishing! |
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Last Updated ( Monday, 13 July 2009 01:14 )
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, 30 June 2009 03:37 |
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There is such an assortment of bait that it is difficult to recommend any particular color, size, or type as the best. There are more than a thousand good baits on the market. All will catch fish at some time or another so trial and error is often how to choose the best. Also, it can depend on where you are fishing and what you are fishing for when you choose your bait. Bass often eat different things than trout and salt water fish generally don't take much to power baits much. Also putting scent on your bait can make a huge difference in the success of the bait.
Fishing baits usually weigh from 0 to an ounce to three ounces. The most popular weight preferred by the majority of bait casters is the 5/8-ounce bait, while the average is between 0 and 3 quarters of an ounce. Baits can either be used as a whole or cut into chunks. Anglers can also use dead or live baits.
The Different Types of Bait
There is a wide array of organisms being used as fishing baits. Among the different types used in fishing, the commonly used are the small fishes. These consist of widely used fishing baits such as herring, anchovies, menhaden, and some others that are inborn to certain local waters. Larger fishes are usually used as chunk baits. Fishing baits can be used whole, chunk, and strips, based on the activities of the type of fishes being chased. The size of the fishing bait is usually well matched with the size of the fish being hunted. Other common organisms used for bait fishing are crabs, worms, shrimps, crabs, clams, sand fleas, eels, and squid. Among all of the organisms mentioned, the crabs and the shrimps are the well-liked organisms to be used as fishing baits.
Shrimp are favorably used as fishing bait and are considered to be very valuable bait for a huge number of saltwater fish, especially those that are considered inshore fish like redfish, speckled trout, shook, and a lot more. Whereas, various crab species, especially the fiddler crab, sand flea, and the blue crab, are perfect fishing baits for many varieties of inshore fishes and bottom fish. These crabs are usually clasped through their shell, usually on either the right or left of the head.
How to Acquire Fishing Bait?
Fishermen can acquire fishing bait either buying them in bait shops or simply by capturing it themselves. The advantage of buying fishing bait is convenience, while catching live fishing bait is less expensive and can be more effective in luring fish. Digging for earthworms is another activity. Earthworms make an excellent bait.
Indeed, when it comes to bait fishing, using the proper fishing bait are important and imperative to the success of fishing. Hence, anglers should know the basics of choosing fishing baits in order to save time and money. There are many great places to get fishing bait and lures. You can purchase bait and lures at your local sporting good store but more than ever a store such as Bass Pro Shops offers top noch gear at a great price. Check out their link for great bargin deals.
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