Winter Clay-Bank Blackmouths

Anglers looking to catch wintertime fish without the threat of combat fishing should check out the Clay-Banks of Point Defiance for Blackmouth (Immature Chinook Salmon) fishing. This winter fishery offers some of the best fishing of the lower Puget Sound, and the fish can be caught either from shore or from boats. The most critical things needed for fishing the month of January are Tide Books and Nautical Charts along with herring, smelt, and jigs; these six things get anglers into fish very fast and the region is touted as the most prolific fishery in all of southern Puget Sound.
The Clay banks are found along the south end of Dalco Passage and run very deep the entire year on both tides. That means fishing can be done day or night if an angler wanted. The “Banks” are where fishing can be done on Flood and Ebb tides, which is only partially responsible for the best fishing location of the entire southern Puget Sound. Tim Hartman (Senior Boathouse Marina Leader) says “the Clay Banks have out-produced more fish than any of the other fisheries of the southern region for at least the last twenty-years”. As manager of Point Defiance Marina & Store, he sees many fish come in daily, when the run is in, so much so that just on the inside of the front door is an index full of hundreds of photographs of happy customers showing off their catches for every phase of the year. Tim says that though the marina officially closes during the blackmouth run, many boaters can be seen fishing and catching daily limits all the time. Most of the frequent winter anglers like to keep like to themselves, but are not discouraged from other fishermen joining the fray, “I suspect because the fishing is that good and the fishermen on the water this time of year brings out the best outdoorsmen”.
The geographical position of Point Defiance, near the Clay Banks, creates fishing opportunities not found in most of southern Puget Sound, especially when it comes to fishing the outgoing tide due to the sudden and deep drop-off found very close to shore on the north side of the Point.
Fishing the Ebb (outgoing) tides should almost always be done on the north side of where eddies are formed vertically and horizontally which create havens for baitfish to hold. The seams of eddies on the surface show tell-tale-signs that two currents collide, and where there is a seam you’ll be sure to find baitfish and below them hungry black-mouth. Nautical charts show the contour of the sound floor and the vertical eddies that for create other holds sure to have blackmouth salmon. The north side is the “true” side of the Clay Banks where the best fishing is done. Tide books will show that the outgoing tide changes by at least fifty-minutes a day, so when fishing this or any other marine are it’s best to plane fishing trips on the basis of tides and not time in order to find the best opportunities to fish.
When fishing the Flood Tide fish the south side of the point and fish close to shore where a huge eddy offers the best fishing for the incoming tide, moreover, the sheer drop from the beach allows access close to shore without the threat of spooking fish or coming within contact of the beach with propeller blades. As a note to boaters, the state fishing and boating regulations state that boaters must yield to shore fishermen in the same area, so be kind to the shore anglers who don’t have the same freedom boaters do.
Make sure to take certified Nautical Charts when fishing the area to get a better fix on how close shore fishing can be done without straying too far out from where the best holds are. Fishermen out on the water without a chart should look for seams and fish the inside “closest to shore” to get the best presentations in the slower water. Once where to fish has been verified using the chart it’s time to consult an up-to-date Tide Book.
Tides dictate the best times to fish and sometimes optimal fishing can be very odd hours. So, when consulting a tide-book it’s best to look for the best tide and then consider the times of incoming and outgoing currents. Both the incoming and outgoing tides create seams and eddies to fish, so decide where to fish and then make sure to head out a couple of hours before optimal fishing conditions present themselves. Before leaving any area where tides are changing from the flood to ebb and ebb to flood, be sure to fish the “slack” tide. Sometimes the best bites come when there isn’t a current at all. As each current subsides it allow fish to move on that may be pressured from fishermen with fresh ones moving in, and those are the fish that make the effort worth it; however, there are two ways to fish the slack that produce.
Slack tide simply means water that doesn’t move and to make great bait presentations during this time baits need to be trolled at speeds no more than two to three knots, preferably slower. For those fishermen that fish with artificial lures it’s a great time to break out flutter baits like Buzz-bombs and Zingers. Whether jigging or casting, the falling action of the lures simulates injured fish and when properly used, they become dinner bells for black-mouth fish moving into the area. The subsonic vibrations created by falling flutter baits can attract fish as far as a hundred yards.
The best baits are herring and smelt. The fresher the bait is the better. Whether fishing either baitfish, start out with cut-plugs and fish them deep. Start fishing about twelve feet from the bottom of the bay and drift the boat without the use of the motor. If the hit doesn’t come within the first pass switch to herring strips and then whole fish using the same drift pattern before starting the entire process over about every twenty-feet. Once the fishable depth is found change up the offering and presentation when the bite goes off. Most of the time fishermen can hook between six and eight fish before pressuring the enough to stop biting. The diversity of the baits, presentations, and depths keep fishermen hooking fish for as long as the tide holds.