Fishing at Port Renfrew Marina has been very good for some time now, today it showed signs of slowing down slightly although everyone was coming back with fish, maybe one or two less than the few days before. Limit catches of springs and Coho have been amazing with Chinook fishing being good this long, it bridges the gap between spring salmon season ending and the Coho season starting. Coho, though slower today has been very very good! Twelve to eighteen pounds has not been uncommon. These hook nosed beauties are right in the mouth of the river! Low tide in the morning or just before dark are the best times.There is no need to snag. Zingers in peach reeled fast or a big blade spinner are all producing biting fish at both mouths of the river. This could be one of the best Coho years in recent memory
Coho Regulations: Quite a few people have come to us asking about regulations and boundaries so we are posting this information for everyone to see.
- Up to September 5th you are only allowed 2 hatchery Coho in or out of the bay.
- September 5th: 4 Coho per day only 2 may be wild INSIDE the whistle bouy.
- Oct. 1st 4 Coho per day, 1 may be wild outside of the whistle bouy. This means you are allowed to retain 1 wild Coho on the outside, if you want to retain 1 more it has to be caught inside the whistle bouy.
- No Chinook retention in the bay except for the triangle from Woods Nose to the whistle bouy to East Point.
Notable catches:
- Brian Woodley & friends 30
- Mike Game 28.5
- Sorry, no name 16lb Coho
Upcoming Event: Coming up in a month will be our annual Coho Derby "Winner Take All." This derby is on Saturday, September 30th and Sunday, October 1st. Tickets will be available at the Port Renfrew Marina only and are $25.00 a rod with $5.00 of each ticket going to the San Juan Hatchery. This derby is our most popular one we hold and we do get a huge turnout, the prize money is a cash payout to the person who catches the biggest Coho and the pot usually runs around $10,000 or more depending on attendance. We want to reassure everyone that even though we are a first come, first serve business we make sure we find room for all entrants to the derby for camping if needed and moorage. Please remember we are a cash business and come prepared and if possible small bills and change as it can be difficult for us since there is no bank in Renfrew!
Closing date: Well, it seems like we were announcing when the marina would be open for the season just a short time ago and now here we are posting the closing date. This year even though Thanksgiving is our usual closing date, the holiday is a week early this year. We were undecided as to whether we should close a bit earlier but our usual time is mid month and so that is when we will close the gate. This year the closing date is Sunday, October 15th. We ask that all our customers please make sure they have contacted us regarding any winter storage they may need for their unit and or boat. Winter storage is to be prepaid, if you do not contact us and do not remove your unit, winter storage rates will apply. We ask that all outstanding accounts be settled up before this date. Once we close if you need to come and check on your unit you will need to contact our caretaker, Reid Warren for access through the gate as it is kept locked. His number is 250 483-1486. Any person storing their unit on the marina property can stay overnight ONE night a month to make sure things are working correctly and your things are in order.
Bud & Rex