#MOUTCHA BAY RESORT NOOTKA SOUND FULL#

We are encountering bellies full of squid and needlefish in both species of salmon, so we have been sticking to small baits and glow hoochies. Coho are anywhere from 25 to 85 ft on random feeding programs. Fishing on the inside is really picking up, but the fish are shallower, in the 35- to 55-ft range in the early mornings, then dropping deeper in the mid-afternoon down to 65- to 95-ft range. Spring salmon on the outside will remain deeper (in the 55- to 85-ft range) where the water temperature is 6 degrees colder. Popular areas continue to produce, with Wash Rock, Maquinna Point, Beano Creek, and the open area of Bajo Reef continuing to be the hot spots.

Bottom fishing has also been on fire, with chicken halibut in the 25- to 45-lb range seemingly everywhere outside of Maquinna Point and out on the reef. If the forecasts are correct, fishing should remain excellent throughout the rest of our season both on the inside and outside waters. July fishing remains outstanding, with limits of Chinook in the 22- to 28-lb range, and Coho in the 8- to 10-lb range hitting our docks every day. The waters of Nootka Sound (along with many other locations along the west coast) were teeming with life as multitudes of mature Pacific Herring came to spawn on various kelp, gravel, eelgrass, and rock beds, producing what will become even greater opportunity for the resident and migratory fish alike- not to mention us anglers! We’re all very excited for another fantastic year out of Nootka Sound and Esperanza, and you should be too. The herring spawn along coastal regions was said to have been the strongest since the mid-1970s.

The spring of 2022 marked something even more exciting for all things living in west coast Vancouver Island aquatic ecosystems.

Moutcha bay resort nootka sound