Looking for a little help on where to fish. Taking the wife camping at Decption Pass in mid September and was thinking of taking the boat. They have launches there but I have never fished there before. I have mostly fished the south sound around Pt Defiance, the Columbia river, or up at Sekiu. Looks like areas 6, 7, 8-1 are pretty well within reach without too long of a run. Looks like area 6 will only let you keep fin clipped coho, area 7 chinook (1) and fin clipped coho, area 8-2 keep anything but chinook. I love our regs!!! All this within a few miles of each other and every area is different in what you can catch and keep. Anybody wanna give me some advise on what areas are best during September and where I might find fish. The wife has mostly lake fished before and has never caught a salmon. She only went out with me once last year at Pt D crabbing and we fished a little while letting the pots soak. Didn't catch anything (pretty slow) didn't see anyone else hook anything either. I think once she hooked one she would be hooked. Thanks in advance.

A beautiful area and you should be able to have a great time up there. Just keep track of where you are and what the regs are for each of the areas!

My one bad fishing experience was my only trip up to that area several years ago. Went up there looking for pinks and ended up going home with a WDFW pink slip. I started fishing in Area 8-1, moved to Area 6 and ended up in Area 7 without knowing it. The paragraph on the bottom of page 107 got me....in big trouble... and the officers took great relish in nailing my ignorant butt. They even had me read that paragraph to them so they could laugh at me when I professed I didn't have a clue what it meant.


"Waters of Area 7 in Rosario Strait and the eastern portion of the Strait of Juan de Fuca southerly of a line running true south from the westernmost point of Fidalgo Head to Burrows Island, then westerly and southerly along the shore of Burrows Island to the Burrows Island Lighthouse, then westerly to Bird Rocks, then westerly from Bird Rocks to the southernmost point on Decator Island, then southerly across Lopez Pass to Lopez Island and following the shore of Lopez Island southerly and westerly to Iceberg Point, then from Iceberg Point to Cattle Point, then south soutwest to the Salmon Bank Buoy, and then true south from , and then true south from the Salmon Bank Buoy to the Area 7 boundary - CLOSED to fishing for SALMON Aug. 1-Sept. 30.

That is clear isn't it? I was 200 yards over the boundary.

Yes, I did see all those exceptions. Made sure I tried to understand them. Better to just stay completely away for those areas. That is why I am looking to see if anyone knows where and hopefully it wont be near one of those taboo boundries out in open water. Maybe they should rope these areas off like they do in swimming areas (ha ha ha )

Sounds like you need to take a lawyer along with the boat to interrpret the regs. Might try drawing all of that in on a chart. Good luck, it is a beautiful area to be in.

There's good salmon fishing at the Pass, by the west side of Hope Island, just off West beach. You could launch at Cornet Bay. September is prime time for coho.