Marine Area 8.1: “Inside” Information 1

Way back when I was a young fisherman, the waters of Puget Sound to the east of Whidbey Island were referred to by my saltwater mentors as the “inside”. Once one ventured to the west of the largest island in the continental United States you were said to be “outside”.

These days in my way of thinking, the term “outside” refers to Pacific Ocean waters west of the Straits of Juan de Fuca but the term “inside” to this day seems an apt description for Marine Areas 8-1, 8-2 and at least the southeast portions of Area 9.

Fundamentally, I approach 8-1 differently than the other two areas primarily due to the lack of predictable, consistent tidal current. Notice I said “tidal current” and not “tides”. To be sure, the tides do rise and fall in 8-1 as in all areas of Puget Sound. However,  the currents that provide the flow to allow the changing water levels are described by NOAA as “weak and variable” and therefore Current Prediction Tables are not available for the waters between Camano and Whidbey Islands known as Saratoga Passage.

Do I try to work 8-1 during the predicted tide changes? Yes, I do!

Why? I don’t know!… The force of habit probably..

The “book” on Marine Area 8-1 is that the largest fish of our winter chinook or “blackmouth” season generally come from one of three locations: Elger Bay, Baby Island and Greenbank.  

A working knowledge of these three areas will produce for the savvy blackmouth man and are great, protected areas that will be comfortably fishable in a stiff southerly wind that will have the Possession Bar boys back at the dock!

Elger Bay is a sandy flat that will often hold herring as well as the occasional candlefish hatch. Work Elger’s bottom with Kingfisher Lite 3.5 spoons or apple core hoochies with a strip ahead of Jim’s Breakaway or Oki Flashers.

Often, the drag (or trolling path) from East Point to Baby Island will hold suspended bait particularly closer to the beach homes adjacent to East Point. Don’t ignore these schools! Run one downrigger just below the bait and keep the other close to the bottom and see which gets bit first! At Baby Island, I’ve found blackmouth feeding on very diverse forage. We’re talking poggies or pile perch, herring and anchovies!

Greenbank is often the home of the “Saratoga Pig”, or the not-so-mythical 20 pound blackmouth! The drop off here can be steep and often choked with commercial shellfish pots but don’t let that discourage you. This is an area that merits serious attention. I love fishing Silver Horde plugs or herring in a helmet at “The Bank” but I have the flashers & hoochies handy in case the bait size is small.

When blackmouth fishing be prepared to perform a quick “autopsy” on your first fish to determine what his last meal was comprised of. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve “matched the hatch” and turned one fish into several!

Good luck this blackmouth season and look for parts two (Area 8-2) and three (Area 9) coming to a blog near you soon!!!