10 July 8 , 2022 MAP FEATURE
VOL . 41 • ISS . 11
The GSSA All-Ladies “ Fish Like a Girl ” salmon trip aboard the Salty Lady on July yielded limits of king salmon for all aboard . Photo courtesy of Jared Davis , Salty Lady
GSSA All-Ladies Trip Returns from Point Reyes with Salmon Limits , Great Memories
SAUSALITO – For the fifth year in a row , the Golden State Salmon Association ( GSSA ) sponsored the group ’ s All-Ladies “ Fish Like a Girl ” salmon trip aboard the Salty Lady on a day with stellar fishing . On July 8 , 18 girls , two deckhands and Captain Jared Davis departed from the Sausalito Harbor at 5:30 am . and went outside the Golden Gate amidst windy weather . “ We went all the way to Point Reyes , with one stop along the way at Duxbury Reef ,” said Cat Kaiser , GSSA events director . “ The weather was a little gnarly , with a 6 to 7 foot swell and 20 mph wind , but no one got sick . The girls didn ’ t even notice because they were having too much fun dancing on the run out .” About 30 minutes into the trip , Captain Jared Davis stopped to drop their lines at Duxbury Reef to find out if there were any fish there . Lauren Garcia , chef of the William Tell House , caught the first and smallest fish of the day , an 8-pounder , there . For her efforts , she received a “ naked man flasher for salmon from Allure tackle . After they didn ’ t catch any more fish there , Captain Davis made the 2-hour run to Point Reyes . Jess Karracker caught the first fish at this spot , a 28-pound king and the day ’ s jackpot fish . That big Chinook was followed with multiple 20 to 25 pound fish all day , said Kaiser ;. The fishing was great there , with the 18 anglers catching full limits of kings . Annie Nagel of Rohnert Park ended the day with the last salmon of the trip , a 15 pounder . Six of the women had never been on one of these trips before . “ There were a lot of fish between 15 and 20 pounds ,” said Kaiser . “ We were
trolling at 30 to 80 pulls , everything from anchovies to Big Mike ’ s spoons . The average fish weighed around 18 pounds .” Because of fog , there was near-zero visibility . “ There were probably 100 boats around us but we only saw two because of the fog and low visibility ,” noted Kaiser . The action was constant throughout the trip . “ We went through 29 trays of bait ( anchovies ). Some bites didn ’ t stick . We also hooked a bunch of black cod ( sablefish ) and mackerel ,” Kaiser observed . The next GSSA all girls trip aboard the Salty Lady is scheduled for
Captain Virginia Salvador of Gatecrasher Fishing Adventures shows off a huge king salmon caught during a trolling adventure off the Marin County coast on June 27 .
Photo courtesy of Gatecrashing Fishing
Adventures
August 18 . Kaiser emphasized , “ The biggest thing about this trip is that none of the girls were noticing the weather – they were too busy having a dance party and listening to Michael Jackson and drinking mimosas on the way out to the fishing ground .” Kaiser said the goal of these trips is to get more women involved in sportfishing in “ an environment that ’ s supportive , fun and filled with joy .” These girls were hugging one another and jumping up and down when they caught fish . They were high fiving and ecstatic for each other ,” she stated . Kaiser herself landed a 15-pound king on the trip , “ We got a little taste of the Pacific Ocean today for sure , but trust me - these girls are tough , and I swear they didn ’ t even notice ,” commented Captain Davis . “ Aside from limits of salmon , we went way over limits on the smiles , the laughs , and love for their sister anglerettes . Their friendships and support for each other is hard to explain if you didn ’ t see it for yourself , it was absolutely the best day ever .” Information : ( 415 ) 548-0150 . The 2022 ocean abundance projection for Sacramento River fall Chinook , the driver of West Coast salmon fisheries , is estimated at 396,500 adult salmon , compared to the revised 2022 forecast of 322,137 fish , according to Jeromy Jording of the National Marine Fisheries Service . The abundance estimate for Sacramento fall Chinook swimming in the ocean is based largely on the return of two-year-old “ jacks ” to hatcheries and natural spawning areas last fall . Over 17,000 jacks returned to the river last year , compared to 14,000 the previous year .
“ This year ’ s ocean salmon fishing season is one of the best we ’ ve seen in a long time , reflected both in the sport and commercial ocean fishery ,” said John McCManus , President of the Golden State Salmon