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[DanL]

Was going down to Seattle last weekend and when crossing the Skagit on the I-5 I saw quite a few boats and lots of people on the banks. Anyone know what they were fishing for?

[TNAngler]

Was going down to Seattle last weekend and when crossing the Skagit on the I-5 I saw quite a few boats and lots of people on the banks. Anyone know what they were fishing for?

Pinks.  And from my brother, there are a bunch of them in there now.

[Steelie1030]

Fished the Skagit on saturday with sand shrimp, no bites. The water was very murky, even so I saw five caught. The previous Saturday,with clear water, I caught three on sand shrimp out of six hooked. The fish were in prime condition. There was no opportunity to fish spoons or fly cast...too many people, all were plunking.

[TNAngler]

Fished the Skagit on saturday with sand shrimp, no bites. The water was very murky, even so I saw five caught. The previous Saturday,with clear water, I caught three on sand shrimp out of six hooked. The fish were in prime condition. There was no opportunity to fish spoons or fly cast...too many people, all were plunking.

It can be a madhouse down there.  You almost need a boat to be able to do anything but plunk.

[Sandman]

Fished the Skagit on saturday with sand shrimp, no bites. The water was very murky, even so I saw five caught. The previous Saturday,with clear water, I caught three on sand shrimp out of six hooked. The fish were in prime condition. There was no opportunity to fish spoons or fly cast...too many people, all were plunking.

I am curious.  I can understand the lost opportunity to fly fish in a crowd, but why is plunking possible in a crowd but casting spoons is not?  What is the problem you have with casting spoons amid plunkers? Does your spoon, moving more freely with the current, get tangled with nearby plunkers whose weighted presentation may be moving more slowly?

[TNAngler]

I am curious.  I can understand the lost opportunity to fly fish in a crowd, but why is plunking possible in a crowd but casting spoons is not?  What is the problem you have with casting spoons amid plunkers? Does your spoon, moving more freely with the current, get tangled with nearby plunkers whose weighted presentation may be moving more slowly?

Moving more slowly?  More like not moving.  It would probably be possible but you would be very limited in where you were fishing as you would have to cast downstream.  It depends how many people there are but people can get pretty pissy if you aren't following the crowd and getting caught up in their lines because you are fishing different.

[andrew5]

when you guys are saying lower skagit, are we talking about the Skagit on the American side, which i am guessing flows out of Ross lake?

I was just curious if the pinks migrate through Ross lake into what I guess would be classified as the upper skagit (aka fly fishing heaven).

[Sandman]

Moving more slowly?  More like not moving.  It would probably be possible but you would be very limited in where you were fishing as you would have to cast downstream.  It depends how many people there are but people can get pretty pissy if you aren't following the crowd and getting caught up in their lines because you are fishing different.

Ah, I had thought plunking more like bottom bouncing, not bar rigging.

[HOOK]

andrew5 - No fish get past the dam at Ross lake. apparently way back in the day salmon/steelhead used to get all the way into the Canadian side of Ross lake, this is something I was told by several people over the years. Would be pretty cool to see salmon/steelhead in that smaller Skagit above the lake 

[clarki]

andrew5 - No fish get past the dam at Ross lake. apparently way back in the day salmon/steelhead used to get all the way into the Canadian side of Ross lake, this is something I was told by several people over the years. Would be pretty cool to see salmon/steelhead in that smaller Skagit above the lake 

Actually I'm not so sure that salmon/steelhead ever found their way into Canada along the Skagit River. The are actually 3 dams on the uper Skagit: Gorge, Diablo and Ross Dams. None were built with fish ladders so one could easily blame the dams for impeding anadromous fish migration into Canada, however one source I read claims that "most of which are built above a natural barrier to salmon". So even without the dams, it doesn't seem that the upper reaches of the Skagit in Canada ever hosted spawning salmon.

On another note, I do recommend a road trip east along US Highway #20 along the Skagit River. It is a beautiful and interesting trip, especially of you stop to take in the interpretive sites regarding Seattle City Light and the the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project.

[fishman254]

andrew5 - No fish get past the dam at Ross lake. apparently way back in the day salmon/steelhead used to get all the way into the Canadian side of Ross lake, this is something I was told by several people over the years. Would be pretty cool to see salmon/steelhead in that smaller Skagit above the lake 

Correct, they don't migrate above the dam....if they did, the resident trout fishing (vs. sea-run fishing) likely would not be as good.
I fished the Skagit in the US this year, we went under I-5 in our boat yesterday, and had 100 fish day (2 people), and 6 fish day, it depends on water clarity. Need 2' visibility or it's much much slower fishing.
Dick Nites in pink/white combo is the best. Although in super dirty water spin-n-glow and sand-shrimp rules.

[fishman254]

On another note, I do recommend a road trip east along US Highway #20 along the Skagit River. It is a beautiful and interesting trip, especially of you stop to take in the interpretive sites regarding Seattle City Light and the the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project.

I went there and saw 6 eagles on the walk. I went to the Harrison River and we counted 100+ eagles standing in one spot. The Harrison (Fraser Valley in general, technically) has more eagles during the fall than any spot on earth, I've heard. Alaska is too cold in late fall for as many eagles as the Fraser Valley. We're lucky to live where we live.

[fishman254]

Ah, I had thought plunking more like bottom bouncing, not bar rigging.

Plunking is bar-fishing (cast out, put rod in holder, let current work the lure), not bottom-bouncing (casting/retrieving.) I know the terms can get a little confusing in our sport at times, especially across different countries.

[htdub]

Went fishing couple weekends ago, in Burlington. Found nice spot on the river. Most of the locals were bar-fishing with sand shrimps, with alot of success. Big lineup for the shrimps at Holiday Market.

The group of us fished with lures (buzzbombs, spoons etc) , had lots fish on the line.

Current moves enough, water was pretty clear for a mud bottom river.
 

[TNAngler]

Couple years ago, I was out with my dad on the rocks on the other side of the river under the trees there.  He had stepped out onto a rock about a foot into the water and was fishing.  Hooked onto a decent sized pink and got the fish calmed out a little bit and turned to step back onto shore so we could net it.  Right then the fish decided to run and took his $300 rod and reel out of his hands.  The rod sat with the butt out of the water for about 10 seconds and then it started jerking down as the fish pulled it further along.  The water was about 6 feet deep so no way could we get it.  Had to call my mom to bring the boat to the river.  We drove over to where the pole went in and used a long net to try and drag along the bottom.  After about 10 minutes, he hooked the handle on his reel and grabbed the pole quick.  Fish was still on the end of the even though it had been probably an hour or two.