It seems like every time I go up there its a different story. Went up Monday with by brother in law, who's fished for salmon a handful of times, and my dad, who rarely fishes. We took a boat and fished the whole day. I was really looking forward to the trip and hopefull that we'd find biters for a great day of fishing.

There weren't as many fish as I've seen sometimes, and not as few as i've seen other times. There were enough to make it possible to usually be into a school up within a couple hundred yards of the hatchery but not many past the hotel dock to the North.

I saw maybe 5 fish fair hooked from a boat or float tube. Doesn't mean there weren't many more, I just didn't see them. Don't know about from the bank, though every one I noticed was being drug up backward or sideways. Saw some guys bobber fishing but everything I saw them bring in was snagged as well.

We tried the clown corkie thing with no luck. Finally my brother in law resorted to a spoon and started hooking (snagged) fish. He only had one spoon and two little spinners. I shouldn't admit to this but I took the spinner, clipped the blade off and started slowly dragging it through the water, after fishing 10 or so minutes, without jigging and deliberately ignoring bumps, I hooked a chum, what do you know, in the mouth! It was a soft, sure take. It got off. Within a few more casts I hooked another in the mouth and brought it in. Then I snagged a fish and busted the lure off. We went and bought some tackle at the hardware store and my bro in law caught one in the mouth on a chartreuse steely type spoon. He also snagged many others. The fish got thick around us so I put on a little green fly and caught one in the mouth within a few casts, probably just flossed him though cuz I couldn't seem to do anything but snag them on the fly after that. I did find though, that by just pointing my pole toward the fish and pulling the fly would come loose virtually everytime without breaking my line. I guess their skin is soft by the time they are up there.

After the low ebb the fish weren't schooling around the hatchery much so we went North just past the last pilings. The fish stage up along the shore there when they get really thick and a very few were occasionally jumping. We were all casting spoons, I had a hot pink pixie on and my bro-in law a chartreuse steelie type spoon. I hooked up two in the mouth and landed one without a single other bump or snag. My bro in law caught one mouth hook and snagged one.

Things died there and we went back up to the hatchery. As the fish started moving in again I caught three more in the mouth on the hot pink pixie and snagged maybe one. I was using a very slow retrieve and deliberately ignoring bumps. The takes were soft and sure and unmistakeable. I passed it off to my dad, who hadn't fair hooked a fish all day and he caught 2 in the mouth in 3 casts. One was hooked so deep I doubt he lived. My bro-in-law also got one more on the green spoon in the mouth. Then it kind of died. I finally snagged a fish on the pixie, he went around a piling and we lost the lure. We went to the hardware store again but they didn't have any more hot pink pixies, just some little "humpy special" spoons, hot pink with a single siwash hook. I bought a couple.

When we got back the fish got real thick after high ebb. I lost one of the humpy specials on a snagged fish, then mouth hooked a fish on the other only to have it get off. Finally a hen took the remaining spoon so deep I couldn't see it and she busted me off before I landed her (I was using 10lb test). I put on some hot pink yarn on my fly rod and caught one more in the mouth before it was time to leave.

My thoughts about Hoodsport at this point from this trip and the handful of others I've taken are as follows:
1. By what I've seen at least %95 of fish taken from boats are snagged.
2. There is a better chance of flossing fish from the bank as the tide gets higher because they all line up in the same direction.
3. There are some fish out there that will actually take lures, for whatever reason. Hot pink was the color we were lucky with but I know green is the good old standard.

Our tally of fair hooked fish for the day:
Dad - 2
Bro in Law - 4
Me - 7

Not exactly the 40 fish day some have talked about, but not awful and certainly a lot of fun. It was an especially good day for my fishing partners.

I'm sure if the goal had been just catching fish, snagged, fair hooked, or whatever, we could have probably had 40 each.

I'm going back next Monday and hope to try this short leader, slow retrieve with a corkie thing from the boat and maybe find some more biters.

Had to give the Hoodsport zoo a try yesterday as I had never been there.

It was intresting to say the least...fished the bugrod all day.

Couldn't dial in them at first but a good freind found decent numbers of fish a chartreuse glo-bug (his stand by chum fly).

Worked typical saltwater ffing techniques and finally gave in and started fishing them like the fish they were, terminal.

I finally found the color they wanted...a very slim dressed chum candy tyed with flourofiber instead of krystal flash. And no, they werent lined!

Hit the 'picket fence' as high tide neared and gave a pink polliwog a try (an infamous surface fly for coho). Managed to have 3 or 4 so fish come and crash the fly and solidly hooked up on most of them.

Intresting day to the say least...obviously just a once or twice a year visit.

btw-Fishormen, I remember seeing you anchored out by the pilings. I was the fellow in the multicolored pontoon manuvering my way around your anchor rope on that one fish...and the one that proceded to drop my pliers in the water and let loose a string of expletives. <img border="0" alt="[wall]" title="" src="graemlins/wall.gif" />

Try a wee sized Dick Nite, White and Char. with a slow retrieve. They seamed prone to biting this more than the corkey.

Don't be to discouraged. Had days when they wouldn't take anything, and others where you'd get take downs for couple of hours straight. Be glad still begining part of the season with many a weekends to go........

Robert

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"SO THE WILD THANG"

Hey Sparkey, I though you were an old pro out there, that's why I was asking your advice!

I lost my leatherman's this year too after having them 13 years - bummer

It seems the advice I am getting here and elsewhere is a small bait with a slow retrieve. I'm going up Sunday/Monday and am looking forward to catching some fish!

For what it's worth, I've had pretty good luck last Friday evening and again Monday evening getting the hook into the chums' mouths with some very small flies and a floating flyline. One fly that worked very well was a small, olive woolly bugger and another was a small pink pearl shrimp. These were size 10 or 12. Just a cast and a drift, with hardly any retrieve at all. The woolly bugger had some lead wraps and the hook on the shrimp was heavy enough to provide some very slow sink. Both days, I started with a yarn fly on a size 1 octopus hook and got nothing but snags. Things turned around dramatically once I settled on the two flies mentioned above.

We have fished there twice this year from the beach. both trips I used the bug rod and a floating line,both trips I have lost track of the fish the fish I released. This year we are using a new bug, the average seem to be 1 out of 8 are foul hooked.I have found that pointing the rod at the fish and yanking the line I get rid of foul hooked fish quickly.

Flyfished the salt a bunch for salmon and cutts but just never at Hoodsport...my apologies.

You might want to try a little shrimp oil on your corky and yarn. Big difference in good hookups. Also if your in deeper water,go with less lead and a slow just under the surface retrieve. For fly fishing,use floating line ,Chum candy fly and a slow retrieve. Most of our hookups have been in the mouth, but you're aways going to get foul hookups so many fish in a small area. Good luck to all and keep your tempers in-check.
Don <img border="0" alt="[wall]" title="" src="graemlins/wall.gif" />