Shelter Cove:
Captain Trent Slate
of Shelter Cove Sport Fishing had clients from Friday through Sunday during
the past weekend, and he was cleaning his boat on Saturday evening after
putting his clients on to easy limits of rockfish and lings to go with 9
Dungeness crab apiece (limit is 10 in this area on a charter boat), and the
private boats starting coming in around 5:00 p.m. with limits of big salmon
to 29-pounds. He went to the same area on Sunday morning; and after trolling
for 3 hours with only one 14-inch shaker to show for their efforts, they
pulled the crab pots for 6 limits before picking up rockfish limits and 5
ling cod on three drifts. After returning to trolling for salmon, they put
two fish in the box, losing another salmon in the process. He is expecting
the salmon bite to go off this week, since the high winds in the 12 to 18
knot range have scattered the bait over the past couple of days. There is
room on the boat this current weekend of May 19th which is an
unusual occurrence. The weather hasn’t allowed them to rockfish far up the
coast, but the local bite has been very good.
Fort Bragg:
Slate said, “I heard
that Fort Bragg went off today with huge fish,” and a little research
uncovered a wide open bite at the Whistle Buoy with most of the skiffs
coming in with early limits of big fish. The wind was rough, but since the
fish were biting, most of the boats toughed it out. This is the first good
report from Fort Bragg on the salmon front so far this season. It also one
of the rare reports we have received.
Shelter Cove:
Captain Trent Slate of Shelter Cove Sport Fishing took a ride on
his motorcycle down from Garberville on Wednesday morning, and he arrived at the
Cove with all of the boats returning to the tractor launch. Thinking the winds
pushed them back into the harbor, he drove down to find that all of the dozen
boats but one came back to the cleaning tables with limits of salmon in the 10
to 12-pound average. The lone boat that didn’t limit was John Santella on the
‘Psycho Ward,’ who farmed five fish during a frustrating day. Slate is starting
his season in earnest with his first chartered salmon trip on Friday as part of
consecutive trips through Monday.
Shelter Cove
Trent Slate of Shelter Cove Sport Fishing said, “The salmon bite
is on, as all of the boat limited out on Wednesday 5-2.” The fish were
found south of the Red Can near the Tolo Banks. Slate was down at the harbor
working on his boat, and he got to see the dozen boats come in with quality
limits in the 12 to 15-pound range. Slate said, “It was difficult to keep
working on the boat when I knew the fish were out there.”