Fishing Success at Echo Bay

Echo Bay Marina in typical grey morning calm.

Monday, July 15, 2013

The classic drippy, foggy morning gave us time to read and write a bit. When it brightened we motored about 6 miles to Pierre’s Echo Bay marina, stopping on the way at to talk with Chris Bennett at Blackfish Lodge where they do salmon fly fishing charters.

Our destination for the day was Billy Proctor’s famous museum, a short woodsy hike from Pierre’s. When we arrived, Billy was in a sort of cranky mood, but he warmed up as he told us about his efforts to restore local streams destroyed by logging. He and other volunteers ran a salmon hatchery for about 20 years and at the same time he collected all sorts of arrowheads, carving tools, Japanese fishing floats, bottles and lures, etc from the beach around. In his younger days there was a much bigger community. The school at Echo Bay had 30 kids but it closed in 2008 due to lack of pupils and now most of the local houses are only occupied in the summer.

We really enjoyed our visit with Billy and bought the book called Dynamite Stories from an excellent selection of local literature at his little store. He himself has written several books, most well known being Full Moon, Flood Tide. Unfortunately our copy is sitting at home.

Colene cleans the rockfish she caught. Bill stands by to carry equipment.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Seven sea stars in the crab trap!

This day Colene and I mostly spent fishing. Bill and Charlie went out in the pedal kayak. By the end of the day we had come up empty, but Colene talked with Mike, the dock manager at Pierre’s marina about fishing spots. He recommended going outside Sally’s Rock and drifting downwind and current. Sure enough that did the trick. Colene hooked a large rockfish. Yay!! Saved from eating sausages.

Our crab trap was out in a little cove where we had actually seen crab on the bottom. Colene struggled with the weight as she pulled it up. Instead of crab it was covered inside and out with sea stars, very slimy and prickly to remove. We could see a sac of some sort bulging out of one. 

Might this have been a seastar reproductive orgy?? 

Could this sac be a reproductive organ?