Aug.11/09 Port Renfrew Marina Report

Well August is here and so are the BIG CHINOOK! Fishing at Port Renfrew Marina has been fantastic this month. Fishing along the shore has been excellent for tyee plus spring salmon. Lots of boats are reporting 10 to 15 fish days in the last week. Very calm seas have allowed even the smaller boats to get to the fishing spots west as far as Logan Creek. As we are writing this report we are getting news that fishing has got even hotter with more springs than ever today! More in the 30's and 40's!! August 8th saw at least 150 springs land on Port Renfrew Marina's docks. Many over the 30 pound range, usually 6 or more and at least one over 40 pounds each day. A lure of choice seems to be the purple haze teaser heads, the green and white glows.

Offshore halibut and spring salmon fishing is still very good with the 170 at the west end of the Swiftsure Bank being the current hot spot. Spoons and plugs are working well there, the favorites being the pearly whites with rainbow colors.

Coho have moved a bit off the beach much to everyone's relief as they can now keep bait in the water for more than 30 seconds. If you are looking for Coho you won't be disappointed. Some hatchery fish have been hitting the 17 pound mark already. This has the makings of an incredible fall fishery. Yahoo! Big northerns!

Notable catches:

• Shane Telford   39
• Dave Quayle     41
• Jesse Vanin       40   42
• Glen Clements   34    31
• Noel Armeneau     45
• Wayne Schiffner  33  31  34  36
• Kerry Rawlick    30  32  33  35
• Steve Beal      38
• Norm Baker    32
• Shannon  30  (could this fellow contact the marina as your e-mail address was lost.)
• Tony Pedro on Millertime Charters 40
• Graham Doe on Pacific Shores Charters 36
• Merv Pywell   32
• Simon Walden  33  36
• Bob McClintock   39
• Keith Cook     41.5
• Cory Kovacs   42
• Bill Cooper of King Coop Charters  30 32

Important Dates: Port Renfrew Marina will be having it's annual Labour Day Derby coming up on Sept. 5th and 6th. This will be our 12th derby and it is beginning to look like it's going to be a great one. The donations that have been coming in are very generous and we are very excited to see how much money we can raise for our local hatchery. As we said before this hatchery has not had an government fund increase since 1992 so it is very important to all of us that this event be a huge success. The tickets are $50.00 a rod and include a t-shirt, dinner, beverages and a live band. There will be raffles and hidden weight prizes. We are now selling tickets for a APS Outboard motor with the help of M & M Marine. It is a 9.9HP  4 stoke with a long shaft and retails for $2000.00. This outboard has identical fittings to a Yamaha. Tickets are available at the marina and are 1 for $10.00 or 3 for $25.00. If you are a business or individual who would like to donate to this derby please contact us by e-mail or by phone at 250 483-1878 or 1 866 565-2354. All donations are greatly appreciated and we thank each and every person or business that has given a donation. The very success of this derby depends hugely on the generosity of the donors.

Port Renfrew Marina is also having the Coho Derby on Oct. 3rd and 4th. This derby is winner take all. This year the tickets will be $25.00 with $5.00 from each ticket going to the hatchery.  The way things look right now with the Coho this could be quite an exciting derby so please try and support this one also and help your local hatchery while having a wonderful time. Check previous years for winnings!

Please Note: If anyone is wondering, our ATM is still working and it seems that the problem has been resolved and we can rely on it for the rest of the season. Please note that we are a cash only business so please come prepared. Campfires are NOT now allowed at this time. Sorry for the confusion, we were told the campfires were ok and now they aren't. It is very important that you check the regulations for yourself to avoid a big fine.

Bud & Rex

Port Renfrew Marina Report Aug.3/09

It appears that the Chinook have definitely arrived at Port Renfrew. Quality fish, many into the 40 pound range are hitting the the scales at Port Renfrew Marina. Each day seems to be bringing us 3 to 6 and sometimes more in the 30 pound range and many in the 20's. Camper Creek, Culite and Logan Creeks are all turning on at least 2 times a day, with limit catches of big springs for some lucky boats. The Nitinat area is doing well also.  Anchovy, Coyote spoons and plugs are the lures of choice. The bigger plugs 6 & 7" seem to be hooking the really big fish. Look for the white spoons and plugs, ones with the rainbow pastels. The weather this past 3 weeks has been unusually hot and calm with mostly nice seas and some spotty fog. Everything is pointing to having a hot August for fishing! Coho are still everywhere with some of the wild fish already in the 12 to 15 pound range. This should translate into a fantastic fall fishery. The Coho fishery for the big Northerns is something that you will have to see to believe and shouldn't miss! Remember at this time you can retain 2 hatchery Coho a day, with a possession limit of 4.

Halibut fishing for "chickens" is the norm for this time of year and continues to be very good and consistent with no problem in getting your limit at Swiftsure Bank.

Notable catches: (pictures to be posted by approx Aug. 6th)

• Ken Gillard        38  30
• Bob Morris        35
• Ian Batty           33
• Clint MacDonald    35
• Terry Van Wieren    32
• Wayne Schiffner     34, 36, 38
• Kerry Rawlick         39
• Dan Dupray            42
• Dan McGiveron on No Bananas Charters 42
• Fred Uhlman           30
• Brian Dice               32
• Kelly Wagner of Last Chance Charters 31
• Wally Brouse          30, 36
• Jeremy Fall             41.5
• John Redlick           43
• Howard Buelkert     48
• Chris McRae on Pacific Shores Charters     41.5
• Pete Van Dendungen on Dutchman Charters  42

Port Renfrew Marina hosted the 9th Davey Derby on July 24, 25 and 26th. This annual event has become more and more popular every year with amazing prizes. this year was no exception. Here are some stat results.

SALMON

1. Gerry Hamilton 40.4

2. Gary Fiege 35

3. John Switzer 34.9

4. Lance Rowlinson 34.7

5. Del Leslie 32.5

6. Glen Calahoo 32

7. Terry Vanwiern 31.4

8. Chris Heppell 30.9

9. Rhonda Mellings 30.6

10. Randy Mutch 30.5

11. John Degraff 29.8

12. Daryll Johnston 29.5

13. Dez Hatchard 29.5

14. Don Daigle 29.3

15. Larry Green 28.8

TOP WOMAN’S SALMON

Rhonda Mellings 30.6

TOP HALIBUT

Barry Cozens 30

TOP CRAB

Garrnett McDonald 8.16 inches

Please note: Unfortunately there is a complete campfire ban in Port Renfrew and that does include the marina until there are 2 days of rain. For customers wondering about the ATM, it is working but as always we recommend you bring cash with you.

Important Notice: Port Renfrew Marina will be having it's 12th annual Labor Day Derby on Sept. 5th and 6th.  This derby is a 2 day event with the prize ceremony held on Sun the 6th and followed by a dinner with beverages and a live band. Tickets are $50.00 a rod and include a T-shirt, dinner, beverages and a dance. There will also be a bullhead derby for children 12 and under on the 6th at 9:00 a.m. All proceeds go to the local hatchery in Port Renfrew to help keep the growth, protection and success of ongoing Salmon stocks for us and future generations. Anyone interested in helping out with a donation please contact the marina office at 250-483-1878. All donations are greatly appreciated!

Bud & Rex

July27/09 Port Renfrew Marina Report

Port Renfrew Marina is seeing Chinook fishing starting to improve. This past week there were far more spring salmon hitting the docks than in recent weeks. One problem is keeping your bait in the water without a Coho taking it. It is not uncommon to go through 3 to 5 packages of anchovies a day in order to get the springs. Coho are getting bigger with the hatchery fish in the 5 to 8 pound range being taken both on shore and at Swiftsure Bank.

Halibut fishing is still great at Swiftsure and are being caught both on the troll and jigging. No barndoors but lots of chickens. The exception is the picture you see on the report on Dwayne' Issac's 3 Halibut all over 100 pounds. (see last report for details)

Swiftsure is still the hotspot for Chinook. They are being taken on plugs, spoons and hootchies, the popular colors being in the whites with rainbow shades. They are finding them at a depth of about 170 feet on the downrigger.

Please Note: With the fog lately it is advised that you don't fish the "Chicken Ranch" without radar as the freighter traffic has been quite heavy.

Notable Catches:

• Noel Atkin    32
• Cory MacInnes   34
• Marty Fladager   30
• Rick Ditherbide    34
• Rick Stubbs          36
• Greg Grover     30, 33.5
• Tim Wilkerson on charter with Millertime charters    44

Notice: Port Renfrew Marina is happy to announce we finally have our ATM up and running. So far, so good! The Davey Derby was held this weekend and we will have results and pictures in a weeks time or so. In the meantime you may want to check their website at www.daveyderby.ca Campfires are still allowed in the campground but with this heat please exercise caution!

Bud & Rex

July 15/09 Port Renfrew Marina Report

Mid July fishing at Port Renfrew Marina is nothing less than spectacular at Swiftsure Bank. Limit catches of Chinook, Halibut and Coho are the norm. Coho are found in big numbers throughout the area. Chinook in the mid 30 pounds are being caught on plugs and hoochies at depths of 150 to 200 feet.  White plugs seem to be a top choice. The seas have been noticely calm lately with no wind and occasional light fog but as we all know in Renfrew that can change at any time.

Along the shoreline spring fishing is still fair though the good news is that the big springs are showing up. Camper Creek and the rockpile have produced Chinook into the 40 pound range. There were over 15 springs over 30 pounds caught in just the two days this past weekend.

Notable Catches:

• Ian Batty                 32
• Marion Randall      41
• Terry Van Weiren     32
• Wanye Schiffner      31,  33
• Nick Laddish           30
• Phil Rankine            34
• Mike Styba              38
• Shane Telford          32
• Chris Arnold           35
• Ken Webb                42
• Rick Bourne            33
• Kerry Rawlick          39
• Bruce Cook             35
• Traci Englot            40
• Todd White              38
• Desi Hatchard of Viciousfishcharters 34,  35

Our apologies to any of the notable catches we missed. If you catch a spring 30 or above or any other large catch please let us know in the office so you will get recognition in our reports.  

Halibut barndoors are still being caught by the highliners. Halibut of all sizes keep coming in. One unbelievable catch came to the dock in Duane Issac's 17 foot Double Eagle. The three anglers had a 161 and two more each weighing in at 100 pounds! How the boat didn't sink is even more amazing!

Sockeye is rumored to be open possibly this Friday July 17th. We will try to keep you posted and you can call in at the office to get an update. The number is 250 483-1878, or toll free 1 866 565-2354.

Please note: The ATM at our office is still not working. We will be making another attempt to get this problem corrected so until this is done please be advised to bring cash with you as we are a cash only business.  We are not set up for credit cards. We are so very sorry about the inconvenience since we had this machine running all last year and customers began to rely on it and now we don't have it. Both ourselves and the company we are dealing with are trying everything to correct this issue. Also there is apparently a sign on the Cowichan circle road saying that the gas is closed. We are trying to correct this also since it is not the case. We do have gas, for car, boat and diesel.

Important: Power Supply. Please note that the power Port Renfrew Marina supplies is ground fault and as we all know we get some heavy rain here and it is only one of many things that can cause your breaker to trip. People using power at Port Renfrew Marina do so at their own risk and we cannot be held responsible for the possibility of this happening.  This is particularly important for anyone using a freezer to store bait or food. Please exercise caution.

Bud & Rex

Davey Derby -- July 24, 25, 26, 2009

Port Renfrew Marina is pleased to host the 9th annual Davey Derby, July 24, 25, and 26, 2009.  This event offers a great weekend's fishing, super prizes, as well as a good cause.  The derby is a major fundraiser for Port Renfrew and the Cowichan Valley. Entry fee is $45/rod, with all proceeds going to charity. 

Below is the thank you letter that the Davey Derby organizers sent to the Port Renfrew Marina.  The letter explains the good that this derby is doing in the local community.

But maybe more importantly....here's Des Hatchard with the winning fish, a 41 pound beauty!  Good fishing, good times, come on out to Port Renfrew and join in the fun!

***** 

The Dave Nicholson Benevolent Fund, its participants, and our associated charities would like to give thanks to the fine people at the Port Renfrew Marina for their kind donation to the 8th annual Davey Derby.

Through your help we were able to raise over $21,000 at last years’ event which was sent out to: the Cowichan Valley Food Basket Society, Chemainus Harvest House, the Lake Cowichan Community Services (Soup Kitchen), Lake Cowichan Food Bank, Cowichan Food Connection (Bread Bus), the CIBC Run for the Cure, Victoria and Cowichan General Hospital’s Neo-Natal Care Units, Cowichan Valley Search and Rescue, the Cowichan Lake Salmonid Enhancement Society, the San Juan Enhancement Society, Victoria’s Pink Salmon Foundation, and 6 families in the Cowichan Valley area who are were facing difficult financial times through loss of a loved one or serious illness.

You should feel proud that through your continued help The Davey Derby has been able to raise and distribute over $80,000.00 since our inception. This could not have been accomplished without the help of the caring people at the Port Renfrew Marina. Thanks again,

Audie Williams Derby Organizer