Roger Stephens
03-18-2007, 08:23 PM
I have been in Mexico for the last couple of weeks so last Friday was the first time which I have fished on Puget Sound in the last month. I was pleased that the size of resident coho and quality of this fisheries is holding up. About a month ago the resident coho were about 15-16"(appox. 1 lb.). On Friday they were in the 16-17" range(appox. 1 1/2 lb.). Thus, it appears that the resident coho have increased an inch or so in length and put on approximately 1/2 lb in the last month. These growth rates are pretty normal for spring/summer when the resident coho switch to baitfish as their main meal. By late July/August these fish should should be 4-5 lbs if baitfish remain available to them in Puget Sound. This bodes well for an excellent "in Sound" summer fisheries for adult resident coho.
On Friday I had an excellent day of fishing for resident coho as I found two coves(sandy bottom)with nearby points with tidal current where nice sized schools of resident coho were actively feeding on sand lance fry(1 1/4 to 1 1/2"). The fry were definitely sand lance fry as they had silvery bodies with ill-defined tails. Almost all the resident coho activity was 100 to 200 ft. from shore in deeper water.
At the first location the resident coho were moving with the moderate current as they chased after the small weak swimming sand lance fry. Every couple of minutes groups of fish would come by as they slashed on the surface. At the second location some large schools of resident coho were moving back and forth in the cove(slight current) as they chased after the sand lance fry.
I kept 1 resident coho for dinner and it's stomach was absolutely full of sand lance fry with some even sticky out of it's mouth. Also there were a few sand shrimp mixed in with the baitfish in it's stomach. It was amazing how many sand lance fry that this resident coho had eaten. Several other fish puked out sand lance fry when released. Resident coho are incredible "eating machines" at times!
The fly of choice was an olive/white(artic fox) S.T.(sequin tube) clouser minnow(approx. 2" long). I was using a full sinking(type VI) and a rapid erratic retrieve while fishing from my boat.
Roger
On Friday I had an excellent day of fishing for resident coho as I found two coves(sandy bottom)with nearby points with tidal current where nice sized schools of resident coho were actively feeding on sand lance fry(1 1/4 to 1 1/2"). The fry were definitely sand lance fry as they had silvery bodies with ill-defined tails. Almost all the resident coho activity was 100 to 200 ft. from shore in deeper water.
At the first location the resident coho were moving with the moderate current as they chased after the small weak swimming sand lance fry. Every couple of minutes groups of fish would come by as they slashed on the surface. At the second location some large schools of resident coho were moving back and forth in the cove(slight current) as they chased after the sand lance fry.
I kept 1 resident coho for dinner and it's stomach was absolutely full of sand lance fry with some even sticky out of it's mouth. Also there were a few sand shrimp mixed in with the baitfish in it's stomach. It was amazing how many sand lance fry that this resident coho had eaten. Several other fish puked out sand lance fry when released. Resident coho are incredible "eating machines" at times!
The fly of choice was an olive/white(artic fox) S.T.(sequin tube) clouser minnow(approx. 2" long). I was using a full sinking(type VI) and a rapid erratic retrieve while fishing from my boat.
Roger