Port Renfrew Marina Report Oct. 19/18

At Port Renfrew Marina for 2018 we had a great Chinook season. Lots of fish though most were smaller than in the past, the averages were in the mid to high twenty pound range. The largest fish caught at the marina (that is recorded) was 38.5 caught by Gail and John Gordon. The spring fishing continued in to late September which was a real bonus.

For the months of May, June and July crab fishing was excellent! Lots of big ones and so sweet and tasty!

For Port Renfrew Marina this year was our first Sockeye run in eight years as the opening four years ago went down the inside and we missed out. This run we had was plentiful and although not big in size, the numbers were there and there were many happy anglers. Knowing it will likely be another four years for an opening had everyone hoping to get their limits.

Coho were a bit of a disappointment. They were around in good numbers until the rains hit, then they were gone up the river. It became a hit and miss experience. Too bad, as for a lot of fishermen this is their favorite fishery.

Annual fundraising: Over the course of Port Renfrew Marina’s season we had a few fundraising efforts for salmon enhancement. This year our grand total was $15502.95 which we were very pleased to see and want to thank all the businesses who donate to our derby’s and all the customers and people who contribute in one way or another to raise this money. This year we gave $10,000.00 to Juan De Fuca Salmon Restoration Society and $5502.95 to South Vancouver Islander Anglers Coalition. Another great year for donations and we thank everyone for helping, it isn’t just one or two people, when everyone pitches in and contributes in any way they can it all adds up to a successful effort!

We want to send out thanks to Todd Garrett for his help this year in getting the docks put away for the winter. We can always count on Todd to help when needed.

Important Notice: This year at the marina the gate will be kept locked with no vehicle traffic. If you need to come in and check on things you need to park and walk in. If for some reason you do need your vehicle then arrangements must be made with Reid, our caretaker, 250 483-1486. But in general there will be no traffic past the gate.

We at Port Renfrew Marina want to wish all our customers both past and present a safe, healthy and happy winter and we will see you in the 2019 season!

Bud & Rex

Port Renfrew Marina Report Oct.1/18

This past weekend was Port Renfrew Marina’s annual Coho Derby, “Winner Take All.” And another great derby goes down in our memories. Saturday was a beautiful day with calm seas. Sunday although calm for the most part saw some heavy rain. While Coho fishing was good, almost all were on the small side with lots of shakers to keep the anglers busy.

This years winner, Wally Brouse with his friend, Rick Swanson, caught his Coho on the Saturday, Sept. 29th. The hatchery Coho and weighed in at 13 pounds 10 ounces. There was a lot of speculation that it would be beat but it couldn’t be done. The lucky two won a great pot of cash, $11,200.00 from the pot and $3,800.00 from the side bet for a total of $15,00.00! Not bad for a Coho weighing in under 14 pounds! that works out close to $1,070.00 a pound! The two of them did the split and shared the winnings for $7,500.00 each. Even though the Coho that won wasn’t anywhere near as big as the ones in the past, it was big enough to win! And it couldn’t have happened to two nicer guys, Congratulations guys!!

The two raffles the marina had, the Lenovo Laptop and the Lowrance Hook 5 were drawn shortly after the derby winner was announced. The winner of the Lenovo Laptop was Jackie McGregor and the winner of the Lowrance hook was Vern Wheeler. The amounts raised were $690.00 for the Lenovo Laptop and $595.00 for the Lowrance Hook 5.Thanks go out to all who took a chance on winning all the raffles and auction items we had for the fundraising events. And in a future post we will know the total amounts being donated to the San Juan Hatchery and also the Sooke Chinook Initiative Enhancement.

Important notice: Please note that Port Renfrew Marina will be closing on October 14th this year. Please make sure you mark that date down so you are fully prepared to come take your unit and or boat out before the gate is locked or make arrangements for winter storage. Any units left after closing will incur storage costs.

Bud & Rex




Port Renfrew Marina Report Sept28/18

At Port Renfrew Marina Coho fishing slowed after last weekend as we had a ton of rain just before the weekend. With this week of nice weather fishing will hopefully improve as fish hold, waiting for the next rain. A big San Juan Coho will probably win the derby so the bay and river mouths will be a great place to fish for the one.

Bait still seems to be the best. If you can find some herring strip or cut your own that may be the ticket as it has always been the “go to” Coho bait. Spoons and hoochies in some green or yellow shades on short leaders are another choice. Coho killers are always popular.

Notable Catch:

  • Chris Wilkinson 26

Port Renfrew Marina’s annual Coho Derby “Winner Take All” is coming up this weekend. This derby is really popular with all fishermen. The tickets are available only at the marina office and are $25.00 a rod with $5.00 of every ticket going to salmon enhancement. There is only one winner and the cash pot will go to him or her, the amount dependent on the number of entrants.

Closing: A heads up for everyone that Port Renfrew Marina will be closing the gate for the winter season on Oct. 14th. This includes things such as Costco tents, if left set up they will get damaged through the winter weather guaranteed. Please make sure you make arrangements with us regarding winter storage or removing your unit and or boat. Any units or boats left after closing will incur storage fees so please make a point of the date.

Bud & Rex

Port Renfrew Marina Report Sept. 16/18

At Port Renfrew Marina the biblical scale of rain last weekend and into Monday & Tuesday moved any holding fish into the rivers. With that happening the fishing dropped right off for the rest of the week but then the Chinook showed up in a new run that set up at Camper Creek. Many limits of springs came to the cleaning tables. This came as a bit of a welcome surprise since we had had such heavy rains. Hopefully they stay around for another week or so.

Coho fishing is improving on a daily basis and will continue into October.

Offshore for Coho, they are being caught in the 300 to 600 foot depths, down 40 to 60 feet on the downrigger. Hoochies, spoons and bait, anchovies and strip, all work well trolled fast. Once the rain stops the two river mouths are great places to try casting for them in shallow water.

Coming soon will be Port Renfrew Marina’s annual Coho derby, “Winner Take All.” The dates are September 29th and 30th. Please be aware of the fact that wild Coho are only allowed to be kept (1) inside the bay, they do not open outside the bay until Oct.1st. This derby as we have said before is extremely popular with all anglers! It is a simple and easy derby, for $25.00 a rod you can come and enjoy a weekend of fishing for Coho and maybe if luck falls on you, go home with the cash prize. The amount of winnings will depend on the number of entrants but most years the total is in or around and sometime more than $10,000.00! Now that the campfire ban has been lifted it should make a great weekend and also the weather is predicted to be quite decent. For each $25.00 ticket $5.00 of it will go to salmon enhancement so by participating in the derby you are also helping the salmon. We feel strongly about saving the salmon for all of ourselves and for the future fishermen and people who enjoy the whole fishing experience.

Notable Catch:

  • Michael Mark 35.5

  • Don Ronlund 18 lb Coho

Michael Mark 35.5

Don Ronlund 18 lb Coho

On September 30th Port Renfrew Marina will be making a draw for 2 raffle items. The proceeds from both these raffles will go to salmon enhancement.

  •       17.3" Lenovo Laptop

              Generously donated by

    Kelly Wagner of Gizmo's Computers

     110 8OUMOOCUS with AMD A6-7310 1TB     HDD, 4GB Ram & Windows 10.

    It combines impressive power and performance to ensure smooth day-to-day computing. It features a bright & vivid display with incredible graphics. With 4GB ram & a speedy A6-7310 processor, this laptop can keep up with your multitasking for work, or streaming online content.

    ·    17.3" display HD LED  (1366 x 768)

    ·     2.0 CHz AMD A6-7310 Quad-Core processor

    ·    Memory 4 GB of DDR3L SDRAM

    ·    Storage 1TB Hard Drive Disk

    ·    Windows 10

                  Value: $699.00

       Tickets: $5.00 each or 3 for $10.00

    Tickets available @ Port Renfrew Marina

  •    Lowrance Hook 2  5

           Split Shot  HDI

      Generously donated by: 

            Island Outfitters

    ·       The world's easiest fishfinder, with exclusive technology for novices and pros. Just plug it in and fish. Simple menus and automated settings

    ·       Split Shot Transducer with Down Scan and Chirp technology (covers a wider angle under the boat)

    ·       5" color display

    ·       Choose full screen or split screen display  (full sonar, full GPS or split screen sonar/gps)

    ·       Create and save routes, waypoints and trails for navigating

    ·       Canadian Navionics+ included (shows contours, light houses, danger rocks at low tide with high detail)

    ·       Manufacturer's 1-year limited warranty

    Value: $500.00

     Tickets: $5.00 each or 3 for $10.00

    Tickets Available at: Port Renfrew Marina

  1. Attention: Port Renfrew Marina will be closing it’s gate for the season on October 14th. Please make sure you make arrangements to take your unit and or boat out before that date or arrange storage for the winter. Storage must be paid at the time of making the arrangement and be advised it must be cash.

    Bud & Rex

Port Renfrew Marina Report Sept.6/18

At Port Renfrew Marina Sockeye fishing has sadly ended from what we can see. After waiting 8 years for an opportunity to fish for these beauties lots of anglers made the most of their brief appearance. 

"Chicken Ranch" fishing is over for halibut and spring salmon for 2018. Coho are still out there in good numbers. 

Chinook fishing remains strong along the beach and East Point or San Juan Point as some know it, with limit catches hitting the docks on a daily basis. Still most in the twenties. 

Coho have started to show up with reports of good sized wild ones released. The bay opened Sept. 5th for retention of 2 wild and though it's a bit early they can be found.

Offshore Coho fishing is starting to heat up and will only get better the later in the month we get. Generally hoochies and spoons are what the Coho like.

Putting on a derby of this proportion can be a huge job but as usual we had a some dedicated helpers that we can count on and this year they came through again! We want to send out a big thanks to the people who helped collect donations which is a huge job and anyone who has done this will definitely agree. Thanks to Sharon Winters, Deb Gilmore, Brian Kitagawa, Vic Gee and Chris Clements.

For the derby we also want to thank the people who help with all the other many things needed doing such as selling raffle tickets, helping at the silent and live auctions, setting up and taking down tables, cleaning up and helping with getting the prizes set up. these people are Sharon Winters (my right hand girl!) Linda Holman, Diane Clarke, Judy DeFrane, Linda Bondu and Melanie Bingham, Marge & Steve Donaldson, Doug Mills, Mike Game, Dennis Summerhayes, Candace & Brian Kitagawa. Without these people helping the derby would never go as smoothly and we owe them a big thank you for taking time out of their day to help. Please forgive us if we forgot anyone and please let us know as everyone who helps deserves recognition.

Winners: Top three

  • Dustin Mayo: 29lb 13oz.

  • Clayton Wright: 27lb 13oz.

  • Dave mills: 27lb 7oz.

Woman's biggest fish and biggest for under 16:

  • Robin Dubay: 25lb 9oz.

  • Blake Voghell: 14lb 2oz.

Port Renfrew Marina's 21st annual Labor Day Derby was a huge success and fun was had by all. The dinner was great with the help of the Lake Cowichan Kinsmen and the dance as always was so popular and really fun. The band has added a sax player and new songs and everyone was dancing into the night. The weather held and it was just a great way to celebrate the summer ending. Every year we get told this was the best one yet and this year was no exception. Everyone commented on how well it went, how many prizes there were.

As mentioned there is a lot of businesses and individuals who donate to a derby to help for salmon enhancement and we want to thank and acknowledge these for their generous donations and a willingness to support this kind of cause. Below is the list of everyone and please if you stop by any of these places try and make a point of thanking them and also if given a choice of where to get a service or goods try to choose the businesses that supported the derby and believe in helping to save the salmon for us and future generations to enjoy. 

Harbour Air, Alpine Marine, Islander Reels, Kelly Wagner of Gizmo's Computers, Island Outfitters, Tomi's Restaurant, Butler Bros, Chris Clement Construction, Port Renfrew General Store, Victoria Truss, Handsome Dans, Soule Creek Lodge, Sooke Legion Hall, Valley Floors, Central Is. Powerline, C.E.S. Gallery House, All Battery, Stillhead Distillery, Adrena Line, Nisers, Deans Marine, Willow Street Antiques, Tirecraft, Larry Green of DSS Welding, Bucky's, Joe Serpa, Lorelei Green, Chris Flint, Dennis Summerhayes, Merv Pywell, Barry Hobbis, Dave & Ruth Haddad, John Sheldrake, Hugh Hamer, Doug Mills, Bob Biggs, John Strolger, Marion & Howard Randall, Ian & Deb McGregor, Jim Hermanson of Great West Equipment, Silver Streak Boats, Greg's RV, Sooke Power Supply, Steve Holgate & Sure Span, A&W of Sooke and Lk. Cowichan, Lordco in Sidney, Buckerfields, Diamond Eye Care, E.C.S. Sleggs, Fields, Birks Intertruck, Select Mortgage, Redl, Sheringham Distillery,  Bumper to Bumper, Princess Auto, Liqour Planet, Lakes Marine Supply, Milestones, Val Galvan, Wendy Palou, Lifetimer Boats, Tiptons, Riverside Cold Beer & Wine Store, Peninsula Coop, Shoppers Drug Mart-Sooke, Sooke Castle Pub, Lynn James, Glenwood Meats, Cineplex Theater, Ajac's Equipment, Parker Marine, Thai Pinto Restaurant, Bin 4, Turmeric Restaurant, Six Mile Pub, Superstore, Darcy's Pub, White Spot-Langford-Duncan, Browns Social House, Fountain Diner, Great Canadian Oil, Artisan's Well, Country Grocer, Irly Bird, Red Arrow, Red Rooster restaurant, Dog House Restaurant, I Max, Serious Coffee, 17 Mile Pub, Western Foods, Route 14, E-Fish-Ent, Sooke Brewing Co, Subway- Lk Cow, Hardie Honey, Romeos Pizza, Floyd's Diner, J&V Burgers & Pizza, Jakes on the Lake, ATP Bait & Tackle, Saltair Pub, Farmacy, Village Foods, Trailhead Resort, Scotty Plastics, Black Dragon Enterprises, Steve Lamont of Maple Bay Marina, Steve Freisen Meats, Eagle Eye Sports, Prestige Resort, Westcoast Tire, Fastenall, Trotac, Harbour Chandler, Gone Fishin', Monti's Boat Sales, Duncan Ironworks, Big Fish Lodge, Anglers Retreat, Northwest Aluminum, Fairway Markets, Sabhai Thai Restaurant, Boston Pizza, Westland Insurance, Home Hardware, Starbucks,Tim Hortons. Now, with a list this long it can happen that someone or a business has been missed, PLEASE let us know if someone was omitted as we want to give recognition to all who donated.

Monies Raised from Raffles: 

  • Gift Basket: $1506.00

  • Bar Fridge w/ beer: $272.00

  • Magma Gass Grill: $470.00

  • Watercolor Painting: $200.00

  • Islander Reel: $2365.00

For a total amount of $4813.00

Live Auctions raised $1675.00 and silent auctions raised $2225.00. We still have two raffles to complete on Sept. 30th, they are a Lenovo 17.3" Laptop donated by Gizmo's Computers value, $699.00 and a Lowrance Hook 5 with GPS and Sonar and navigation map capabilities donated by Island Outfitters, value: $500.00. Tickets are $5.00 each or 3 for $10.00 and are available at Port Renfrew Marina. Once we have those completed and the monies brought in from the Coho derby we will be able to give a total amount being donated. 

Upcoming Event: Coming very soon will be Port Renfrew Marina's annual Coho derby, "Winner Take All." This derby is going to be on Sept. 29th and 30th this year. A little earlier than usual but Thanksgiving is early this year so unfortunately we can not have it in Oct. This means that wild Coho will not be open outside the Bay but that shouldn't hold things up. Last year Coho were found in very shallow water at the river mouth. The tickets will be $25.00 a rod with $5.00 of each ticket going to salmon enhancement. Whoever catches the biggest Coho wins the cash pot which usually runs around $10,000.00 sometimes a bit less but most of the time, more. The winnings are dependent on the number of entrants. This is our most popular derby of all for it's simple set up and it's very reasonable cost. it is a hectic and wild 2 days but a lot of fun. Don't miss the chance to win a large pot of money and go home with Coho.

Important Info: Coming soon also is Port Renfrew Marina's closure for the season, this year we close on Oct.14th. This date is important for you to keep in mind if you are either needing storage for the winter or plan on taking your unit and or boat home. Please be sure to make arrangements before that date.

Bud & Rex