By Mark Yuasa Coastal razor clam enthusiasts will dig this uplifting news! WDFW today approved the initial 39 digging dates for the 2020-2021 razor clam season that begins this Wednesday (Sept. 14) through Saturday (Sept. 19) during morning low tides. Digging will be open Wednesday (minus-1.0 feet at 6:17 a.m.) at Long Beach, Twin Harbors…
By Mark Yuasa The Columbia River revealed plenty of nice surprises this summer and there’s another place that’ll capture the hearts of those looking at a “final chance” for big fall chinook. One of my favorite times of year is now through mid-October to trek east of the Cascades to the Columbia in the Hanford…
By Mark Yuasa It appears the coastal razor clam “shellabration” could get a jump start in the not too distant future, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) just completed summer assessments noting populations have soared to historical proportions. “It’s going to be a spectacular year of digging and the razor clam population…
By Mark Yuasa Chinook salmon runs are peaking in many places and it all boils down to knowing that when mid-August rolls around, time is working against us. While that’s the case there are options from the Columbia River to Willapa Bay and Westport and clear into southern Puget Sound. “It’s tougher than I thought…
By Mark Yuasa This is my favorite and most busy time of the year to wet a line with a multitude of salmon species spread throughout the Columbia River, the eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca clear into Puget Sound and other fishing holes around the Pacific Northwest. Many are making plans to hit the…
By Mark Yuasa The fishing adrenaline rush hits me around this time every summer and right now opportunities are exploding all across the state. Let’s start along the Upper Columbia River at a fishery known as Chelan Falls where summer chinook action has been going strong as fish continue to climb the 12-plus fish ladders…
By Mark Yuasa The 2019-2020 coastal razor clam digs were cut short due to the pandemic, which left millions of clams on beaches in what was turning out to be a memorable season and now all eyes are focused on the future. “We had a stupendous population of razor clams that were left on the…
By Mark Yuasa There is no reason to feel crabby about this news! The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife announced today the Puget Sound Dungeness crab fishery will begin next month in many marine areas including south-central Puget Sound which has been closed since 2018. The Dungeness crab season opens July 2 through Sept….
By Mark Yuasa The Puget Sound spot shrimp fishery has been spot-on in many areas and it appears the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) staff are finalizing where anglers can once again set pots for the tasty prawn-sized critters. “We are going over the data to see what’s left and I can tell…
Preliminary reports from the Puget Sound spot shrimp opener on June 11 were decent. “It was a nice day and we surveyed Area 10 and 11 (central and south central Puget Sound) and it looks like most people did well,” said Don Velasquez, a WDFW shellfish manager. “We’ll be taking a look at the catch…