Sitka Fishing Report, August 13, 2021

The weather continues to prove uncharacteristically challenging for mid-August with rain, wind, and rough seas. We had a day off between groups for all but two of our boats on Wednesday. Neither of those boats made it to the ocean halibut grounds, but good catches of silvers were available on the inside waters.

Halibut fishing vacillates from good to very slow on the inside waters, and Wednesday was an off day. Thursday dawned rough but our boats did make it to the ocean. Those that fished Cape Edgecumbe enjoyed an early hot silver bite that seemed to die on the mid-morning tide change. Halibut catches were decent on the ocean but the weather blew up by early afternoon, chasing the fleet to calmer inside waters that didn’t produce well.

Rockfish catches remain a constant positive. And, despite the weather, the inside waters produce good opportunities for silvers, rockfish, pacific cod, and halibut. Whatever the weather our fleet gets out every day. When it’s too rough on the ocean, we find opportunities in protected water for all species. It looks like the parade of low-pressure systems crossing the North Pacific comes to an end by the weekend and we’ll be able to chase fish on the open ocean again. Stay tuned.