Ship's Log April 19-24 2020

Shakedown

I do not think this vessel has ever trolled salmon. The set up is for tuna, with a propeller that churns up a full 5 knots at idle in a calm sea, or in the harbor. At 1100 rpm James Lee will make 7kts at sea. Saves a lot on fuel, but forces one to come up with extra gear in order to slow down to the 2.7 knots average salmon trolling speed.

We did quite a few adjustments to the rigging to get set up for the salmon troll fishery, and a friend gave me an old set of trolling drogues (sea anchors) to slow me down. We also purchased some 32 inch stabilizers that have 55 pounds of lead attached to the head of a triangle shaped wood thingie that keeps the vessel a bit more level in choppy seas, and also slows you down a bit. Another manufacturer of sea anchor drogues sent me a pair to try but they were ultimately too small.

Here is how this trip played out...

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Ship's Log April 28-May 1st 2020

Don’t Rush It

We worked real hard and real fast all day Monday the 27th to get to the stores to buy the rigging, get it ready, make our ice appointment, and get across that nasty ass Umpqua River Bar at high tide slack by 5:30pm. It was a windy day, but tomorrow is expected to be very nice, followed by a crappy ocean day, followed by a nice day, and then another. I figured we needed to get out across the bar when the time was exactly right for a safe cross, deal with the crap ocean on the way out, and fish starting on April 28th during that nice day...

Once we finally had it all ready to get ice, got ice, and then were ready to cross the bar, I called the Coast Guard for the bar report... Breakers in the south. That means NO GO. The bar is where the river meets the ocean. On the Umpqua here in Winchester Bay Oregon, we pay special attention to that!! The tide and the swell from the ocean meet together and MASH goes the waves. If it is breaking in the south, the normal safe travel lane, then you are going to have to wait... Many bad deals have happened on this bar over the years. It is one of the most unsafe crossings on the entire west coast of USA. I have lived my life of ocean fishing dealing with this bar, and have learned patience by having had these experiences.

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Ship's Log May 2-5 2020

Family Sacrifices

After the sale of the fish from trip 2, I went home to Cedar Grove Ranch and spent some good times with Kristi and the boys. The ocean weather forecast was grim, so I made plans with the boys. Wyatt and I would make a birdhouse for his shop class, and Zac and I would go shooting. Then the 3 of us would go fishing somewhere for a trout or two. These boys ages 13 and 15 are getting very tired of being “quarantined” to their home due to this Coronavirus thing. They have been creeping out of their rooms, rubbing their squinty eyes and looking around wondering what happened to these last couple of months. They helped with dinner as we made our plans...

After dinner, I looked at the weather. This season set dates for April 20 to May 5th. It is May 1st. The weather improved a bit, giving a little window of time to leave May 2nd and fish through the 5th. A 3 day window of time for the finish of this little season 1 of 2020. I paced a bit. Then I made a loud statement like this. “I’M GOING FISHING!”

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Ship's Log May 26th-29th, 2020

Priceless Salmon

I have a calendar right behind me as I type this stuff on my computer at home. When I learned the season dates for salmon 2020, I put big X’s on each day open for April and May-June.

I got a lot of stuff done during the break after the first season which ended May 5th. My brain got a bit twisted somehow. I thought I had to fit what needed done into the dates May 5th thru the 19th which was when I had to go back to sea for second season. I went to work on home projects, Honey-do’s and some kid time. Jeff and I installed the new captain's chair on the James Lee, added on the new Troll Valve, and got the boat ready.

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