Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3718 Aug 17-31 | Page 27

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VOL . 37 • ISS . 18

There is nothing that excites an ocean salmon fisherman more than being able to mooch for their prey , and the ability to fight and land a big , hard-driving salmon on light tackle is an angler ’ s dream . Trolling is very effective , and it is never right to complain about landing a salmon using any method , but to be able to fish without dropping a 2.5-pound weight to the bottom is something to which we all look forward .

Captain Trent Slate of Bite Me Charters out of Loch Lomond Marina in San Rafael starting mooching with anchovies within the past two weeks , and he has been putting his clients onto limits of big fish on the mooch . I have had the opportunity to fish with Slate several times when he operated Shelter Cove Sport Fishing out of Shelter Cove in Humboldt County for 15 years , but this was the first time I have been able to fish with him since he relocated to his hometown of San Rafael two years ago .
After leaving Loch Lomond at 6:00 a . m . in Slate ’ s 27-foot Boston Whaler Offshore , we started out off of Bolinas where Slate put in early limits of big fish by 9:00 a . m . on Monday , July 10 , but the conditions had changed by Wednesday . There was a huge fleet for a weekday out in slightly deeper water , and we made a few drifts in the area . In addition to being able to mooch , the ocean was flat calm which led Slate to make a few adjustments such as hanging a ‘ Bloody Stump ,’ cutting off the head of the anchovy and running the leader through the body so the head hung towards the bottom . In the slower drift , Slate explained that the salmon prefer a more wounded presentation .
Amazingly , I had the hot hand and

SALTWATER

Aug 17 - 31 , 2018

Mooching Along the Marin Coast Yields Salmon Limits

WHAT ’ S HOT SALTWATER by Dave Hurley

landed the first two legal salmon the boat before anyone else hooked up . My early success led every captain in the area including Jim Smith from Alaska to comment to Slate that the ‘ salmon must be thick .’
These were a small grade of legal salmon to 8 pounds , and since the fish weren ’ t biting in earnest , Slate made a calculation that the action would be better up north so we made the long run up to Double Point . After arriving at Double Point several minutes later , we steadily picked through a number of small , legal salmon to get close to limits . The grade was much smaller than Slate had been picking up in previous trips , but towards the end of our time at Double Point , Lenny Mejia of San Francisco / Copperopolis , was on the hook with a much larger fish . Mejia handled it like a pro , and after a few minutes , Slate deftly handled the net and brought the 18-pound salmon to the deck .
Slate wasn ’ t satisfied with the overall grade , and we ran back down to the edge of the North Bar at Muir Beach to round out our limits . My highlight of the day was watching 87-year old Sandy Sanders of Ione on the hook with another salmon in the teens and successfully bring the fish to the net . Sanders has been a pilot since his teens , and he still flies and restores vintage WW II airplanes out of an airstrip in Ione . To be able to still land a big fish at nearly 90 years old is quite a feat .
Once we arrived at the North Bar , we finished out 6 limits plus three crew fish ,
and deckhand Erik Castillo of Novato landed the biggest limit of the day with two salmon to 20 pounds within minutes of each other . The boat landed every fish hooked on this day , and that is the beauty of mooching , you feel the fish , feel the fight , and have the destiny of hooking the fish in your hands .
Although the action wasn ’ t as ‘ hot and heavy ’ as in the past week , Slate said , “ I like to work for them because it always is a puzzle trying to figure out where to go , where they are biting , and when to make your move . It is always good to finish the day with limits and happy anglers .”
Slate was back out on the North Bar on Thursday , and there were big fish once again , but a south wind brought
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a nasty chop on the water . South wind is never good for salmon fishing , and they worked hard for a fish per rod of big fish to 28 pounds . The salmon are just stuffed with anchovies , and the 20 pounder that Castillo landed on Wednesday must have had 50 anchovies in its gullet and partially decomposed in its belly . The key is finding the bait , and there has been a tremendous amount of bait hanging in certain areas off of the Marin coastline .
Captain Slate is the only party boat currently running out of Loch Lomond , and he targets salmon , rockfish / ling cod , Dungeness crab , striped bass / halibut , and sturgeon , depending upon the season . He can be reached at ( 415 ) 307- 8582 or www : bitemecharters . net .
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Captain Trent Slate ( left ) gives Sandy Sanders a helping hand showing off the salmon he caught while mooching outside the Golden Gate .
Photo by DAVID HURLEY , Fish Sniffer Staff .
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