Heading to Westport Sunday in a 18' Hewescraft. Gonna follow the tide and route instructions from Salmon University setting GPS waypoints as I leave for the return. The SU page is a little concerning and I don't get concerned easily...should I be? Will there likely be other boats to follow? Any basic advice out there for kings? Gps waypoints


Thanks in advance.

I've only gone out of Westport a few times, but here is what little I know.

First the good news.... you will catch lots of fish and there will be plenty of other boats in view. I would just look for the floating charter armada and fish around them. The fishing part is easy at Westport.

As for Sunday - You must cross the bar before 6:30am. There is a strong ebb current between 7 & 10. I would make it a point to cross the bar at 5:30am and return back across at noon. The bar should be very flat then. You can stay out later in the afternoon if you like but you should have your fish before noon anyway. Under no circumstances would I come back across the bar between 7&10am no matter how seasick you may be on the outside!

Speaking of seasick, it doesn't appear that the ocean conditions will be ideal on Sunday. The swells appear to be about 3' at 8 seconds today but are forecasted to increase to 6' on Sunday. Seas that size can seem quite large in an 18' boat.

Would I fish Westport in an 18' boat on Sunday? No. I'd wait for better weather. But I'm a wuss, and don't enjoy carnival rides either.

Anyone else with more Westport experience want to chime in?

I certainly agree about the bar conditions. Don't cross during the strong ebb flows.

I was out in 6 foot swells yesterday on my 24' Olympic and it was quite a ride. Don't forget your Dramamine and keep your life jackets on.

When you get to the launch, they have some GPS coordinates posted. Use them. All the charters are using them too. There are a tons of fish in that area.

...as far as catching the kings - it's easy.

We used herring and caught them between 30 and 75 feet. If you haven't caught a fish in 20 minutes, move your gear up or down until you find them.

Have fun!

The fish checker recorded a 50 lber yesterday. Lots in the 30's.

I was there Thursday on a charter. We crossed during maximum ebb flow, a large tide change, and an 8 foot swell. How was it you ask?? Well....it was like a cauldron from hell !!!!. Large breaking swells that seemed to come from all directions. The 50 foot boat heaved and hoed all over the place while the captain worked the waves with the throttles. The crowd on board cheered as an especially large wave sent water over the bow and back to the aft section of the boat. They thought it was fun and I did too but during this time I thought to myself: "This churning cauldron would chew up my little 23 foot boat."

Later on, in the afternoon, during better tide conditions and smaller swells, the bar area was as flat and nice as your favorite summer lake. Talk about a split personality!!!! It was amazing.

I am going to be out in my 21' Thunder Jet Sat and Sunday... Conditions permiting, which I think they will.

Jeff

CHECK THESE LINKS OUT BEFORE YOU GO:

OUT BEYOND THE BAR:
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/wrhq/TotalForecast.csh?TotalForecast+WR+PZ+156

THE BAR ITSELF:
http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/wrhq/TotalForecast.csh?TotalForecast+WR+PZ+110

PS: HUG THE SOUTH JETTY & POP RIGHT THRU

I thought about that if you hug the South jetty seems like you would be out of the current a lot faster than going straight out through the middle.... and then if you wanted to go north a little you could go out a couple miles first.

Jeff

You can't always count on being able to see other boats. Last Sunday it was socked in and kind of rough. A GPS is a must in my book. Follow the bouy line out if you can see them and when you get past the last one head out 11-15 miles at a heading of about 245..fish in 175-200 ft of water and troll at 50' with a 6-7" spoon or a large herring.

IF YOU STAY CLOSE TO THE SOUTH JETTY, like anywhere on the actual bar its choppy/squirrely etc but, closest to the jetty (of course, using assured clear distances from the rocks) it's the quickest way through it, the further in the middle of the bar you go it's been my experience the longer the bar (taking more time to cross the mess) & the rougher the bar is, just try it the jetty once (thank me later), when you get close to the actual bar (while still in the good stuff) you'll see the good stuff just past the bar itself (whichever way) & you'll be surprised how quick you pop thru the bar, if you don't like what you see, go ahead & go to the middle & slug it out...

remember that there is a long section sunken jetty off the end of the visible one and the water is really shallow there. The tide and current really can swirl near the jetty but it can also be smooth there. Conditions change fast and there is no hard and fast rule except to be prepared for any eventuality.

u do not want to be near the bar on sunday during max ebb flow around 0830. combined seas to 8ft. also they are forcasting 6-7ft swells with a 1-3ft wind waves. that can make for a rought ride in any boat!