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Whatcom Creek Report
Whatcom County, WA

Details

11/02/2015
Chum Salmon
Evening
11/02/2015
2
2207

Thanks to daylight savings time I can no longer fish the Nooksack after classes due to a lack of time. So, I turn my attention to Whatcom Creek.

I was very unimpressed with the level of sportsmanship that I saw there. That was to be expected. Everyone was snagging. There was literally not a single fish properly hooked. I heard some guy say "I can't see how you find passion in this, its so easy for you" to another fisherman who had just snagged his 3rd fish in a row. I really can't see that connection either, but passion probably has nothing to do with it.

I moved away from the crowds onto the opposite side of the bank and started slinging metal. You can't use jigs here, because of an anti-snag rule LOL. So I turned to dick nites instead. Got a take and fish on. Was a really big chum, forgot that my drag was set to deal with 8lb line, and not 15lb... so he screamed away and into the logs... breaking me off. Oh well. I did catch a chunky little sculpin later, which totally makes up for the lost chum.

Oh well, there will be another time. Lots of dark fish, a couple bright(ish) ones too.

There were police officers down there but they weren't doing anything about the snaggers and such. Actually they were being educated by a citizen about which fishing practices are legal and which are illegal at that spot Good on him; he also gave me advice about what is legal and illegal here. Hopefully sometime the officers will do something about it.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

People say "they're just chums." It's sort of sad that this mentality arises among anglers. Chums are still a pacific salmon, and just because they don't have the flavor of kings or silvers doesn't mean that it is okay to snag them. Do you really think that if they were silvers instead of chums people would fish ethically for them? Hell no they wouldn't. People snag kings all the time. I see folks trying to net and grab steelies up at Reiter in the low water and the hatchery creek. Seriously. It's such a condensed area. They need to pay someone to net every chum at the stairway and release the ones that are foul hooked. That way the snaggers, who usually aren't out for sport, don't get any meat. Maybe then they'll stop. I told one guy that a fish he caught was foul hooked, and when I told him it needed to be released, he got mad at me and bonked it. Pisses me off.

There are people that fish legally here too and hook fish in the mouths. Just a sadly small portion of anglers.

Lots of people just turn a blind eye to these combat-type fishing spots, but I find them hard to ignore. Why do we cast a blind eye on these spots instead of having a moderator or something? Granted, the urban atmosphere leads to combat fishing regardless. I stay away from the wall, and wouldn't be there at all if I had more time. But our fish are being wrongfully taken from us. People get up in arms when someone poaches a lion and start kickstarter funds and sh*t to help save lions, but when it comes to our salmon (hatchery or wild) people get mad but no action is taken.

I think it's about time that we change.


Comments

tleeMV
11/3/2015 7:29:00 AM
What are you going to do to change it?
goodtimesfishing
11/3/2015 11:28:00 AM
We all know of these types of fisheries(snaggers) and yet you almost never see enforcement! If enforcement would show up in these spots more then once or twice a season maybe there would not be so many of the snaggers. And by show up I mean do there job writing LOTS of tickets, god knows there are lots of violations. Don't you hate when you remind someone they can't keep fish because it was foul hooked and the persons response is "I have never seen a game warden down here". By the way that cop is not there to enforce the regs but to protect the people that remind the losers of the regs!
Anonymous
11/3/2015 1:19:00 PM
Snagging isn't the biggest crime happening there. Eating nasty pale meat Chum is the real crime. Gross, and don't tell me they will be great in the smoker. Bad fish makes bad smoked fish.
Ian Horning
11/3/2015 3:26:00 PM
Fishing rules are in place to protect the fish themselves. Taking home illegal fish is still a crime. The ethics behind it is another issue. What I'm saying is that people are poaching the fish and nobody is there to stop it. Someone could drop a net and take ten chums and the response would be "yeah, that happened" lol. There is an anti-snagging rule in place, but that stops nobody.
cogitator
11/4/2015 4:50:00 AM
Ian,
I agree with your comments in principle, but you have to pick your battles. This area (Whatcom and Skagit) has only one freshwater officer. Do you really want him to spend his day watching for sniggers at the wall?
The Bellingham police have agreed to lend a hand, but here again do you want them to spend their day watching for sniggers.
We all know that 99% of the people there intend to snag, but unless they actually get caught keeping a snagged fish it would be very difficult to convict them.
The answer to this problem is to elect a legislature that is pro-fishing. The funding for the things that I care about keeps getting cut and cut and cut. While subsidies for the fat cat corporations keeps getting raised and raised.
That's my rant for today.
Good luck to you kid.
Keep your tip up and lit him run!
rseas
11/4/2015 6:12:00 AM
Predator 1; Fred's and I believe Haggen's recently had "keta" (chum) on sale. We have caught, bled and kept cold many chums over the years and they were acceptable table fare. They also can or process very well. Point is, chum are a healthy source of protein and in certain cultures are considered a treat.

I will agree that many of the fish at the wall are boots but to each their own. There are chromers available and the regulations alow the angler to drop unwanted fish directly in the tube to the holding pond. We have legally caught many bright chums both in the salt and in fresh water and have never had one that was not edible. Table fair or not, they are fun to catch!
rseas
11/4/2015 8:44:00 AM
LOL! But then I'm weird, I absolutly love to fish for steelhead but don't like the way they taste...
bigskyx
11/4/2015 10:29:00 AM
Where in the anti-snagging rule does it prohibit the use of jigs?
Anonymous
11/4/2015 11:33:00 AM
Certain Chums are good. However Whatcom Creek Chums aren't going anywhere. They have no is no fat content. Pale meat and dry. I ate plenty of Yukon River Chum this Summer, killer Fish! As far as catching Chums you're right, they are strong fish. And you are correct about handling, Bleed and ice immediately, you're fish will taste much better. But a pale meat Chum is never going to taste good.
ClayJay
8/15/2016 9:45:00 AM
bigskyx,

You are not allowed to have any weight attached less than 12" from your hook. Although it is technically a jig-headed hook, it is still weighted and therefore illegal.
ClayJay
8/15/2016 11:05:00 AM
cogitator,

While you do have valid points, I don't know what you are trying to achieve with your use of the word "sniggers"? The letters a and i are quite distant from each other on the keyboard, and you use the term twice in your post, as well as using the correct term "snagged". Come on, be better.
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Available Guide

Available Fishing Guide:
Website: Darrell & Dads Family Guide Service

Phone: (509) 687-0709