06-07-2002, 06:59 PM
The Sox are here!!!! Port Alberni, Vancouver Island, BC<br>Results thus far: <br>Sunday: 19 hooked, 13 landed - 2.5 hours (@ 5:00 am of course) <br>Monday: 8 hooked - all landed (4:30 am) <br>Tuesday: 13 hooked, 8 landed (4:15 am) <br>Wednesday _ OUCH! Fish moved up, so missed the early (4:00 am dammit) bite. Found only one at Nahmint, five inside at Cous Ck. Outer inlet being rested (from me) Thursday and Friday am - until Saturday that is! <br>Note: as per usual, the sox are only seriously aggressive at first light right now (read from 4:15 - 6:00 am). For about 45 mins each am, you can't get the gear down fast enough, then.... really scratchy. This will improve with each passing day - until in late June/early July when they'll bite aggresively till almost noon. Expect nearly a million returning this year - should prove to be a great sockeye year here. <br> <br>The style of fishing we employ is not all that common, but provides serious fun! I've perfected it over five years, and now fish this way exclusively. Short description: tie six flashers (brave - comes with experience, might want to try four at first!) to six downrigger clips - six feet or one fathom of line one each is all - nothing on the tail. Clip first flasher (fake flasher) to the wire, lower JUST enough to spin flasher, then clip 8-10 lb test line off light trout rod to wire - 2-3 feet above flasher and six feet behind. Best terminal tackle is old "Krippled K's" (unfortunately now out of production - ANYONE WHO HAS A FEW OF THESE OLDIES LAYING USELESSLY AROUND THAT WANTS TO PART WITH THEM?? E-ME!! (mattstabler@shaw.ca) I'd LOVE a few more!!!) <br>Others that work, albiet not as well: Gypsy sthingy in army truck, Tom Mack's smallest orange or red one side. We've conducted serious experiments lasting hundreds of hours thus far, and found these to be performers. <br>Next, lower wire 15 feet and repeat once or twice - remember, the more flash, the better for these tasty fighters! Rig the opposing side the same way and stagger gear below. Botton gear @ 40 and 47 feet at daybreak, top at around 20 - drop with the fish as the day progresses. <br>The light gear turns 5-8lb sox into 15 lb coho! the action is often as ariel as it is sub-surface - great runs as well. Select rods carefully - we've broken six on fish over the years, including two in the last three days on the freshest (read wildest) sox of the year. Also, try to avoid the congested areas - the wire from close boats often strip the light lines of fish, and perhaps more importantly - your cherished (non-replaceable!) sthingy. <br>Oh, yeah, Either run a black box (Sox like a lot of heat) or new zincs - mine runs neutral, but I fish a lot of species, so prefer this. <br>Good luck trying this - If you do, and discover any good new terminals - let me know K? <br><br><br>