Hello Finegrain,

I am planning on doing the same trip tomorrow with a 22' Bayliner and 3 kids. What were the water conditions like? Where did you fish? Many other boats up there?

Thanks,

MB

There were no more than 5 trailers in the parking lot at any time while I was there, but it was a Monday and a Tuesday and Lings and halibut were not yet open. Area 4 Ling season opens this Friday, so it might get a little busier. I imagine that it is quite a zoo when halibut season opens (May 11, IIR).

The water was quite calm for us -- nothing more than 3', and mostly 1-2'. When going from point to point, I was able to make 20 MPH consistently (18' boat). There was some wind at times, enough to throw off our drifts, but we were able to find more sheltered areas around Waadah regardless of the wind direction. The trick for us was to hug the rocks where the kelp was, without actually drifting into the rocks. It would have been very helpful to have a second adult on the boat whose primary responsibility was keeping the boat situated properly. As it was, I had to do that, plus keep all the gear running. With the frequent snags and seal encounters, I was having to do a lot of maintenance and repair.

The water out in the more open areas looked to be quite reasonable as well. I wasn't comfortable with my knowledge of how to fish for the deeper and bigger rockfish, and my kids needed periodic "land breaks," so we stayed within 1/4 mile of shore the whole time, and never want farther west than the Garbage Dump.

I know your situation exactly. I was also thinking about trying La Push and will report back on results and conditions.