Fished the 2002 Sockeye run all three days, 07/26/02, 07/27/02, 07/28/02

Kept the boat at a friends dock on the lake to avoid the launch crowds.

07/26/02 - 1st day. on the lake at 5:45. Temps in the low 60's, overcast with light drizzle, water temp 71 degrees.

Fished Southwest side of Mercer Island - 3 on the boat, fishing two rods on downriggers - Red and Black Gamakatsu 3/0 with Les Davis 0 dodger. Double hit at 6:00 - boated both fish, a 5.7lb hen and a 4lb male, both silver bright. Riggers were set at 55 ft & 69 ft. Got another 4 lb male at 6:30 at 69 ft and another 5 lb @ 7:00 (also at 69 ft.) nothing for the next half hr, dropped both riggers to 85 ft at 7:30 and got a double hit 10 minutes later, another 5lb male and a monster 8.9 lb Hen - back at the dock by 8:15.

07/27/02 - on the water again at 5:45 am - 4 in the boat this time, weather the same minus the drizzle. Slower action than the day before, nothing until 7:00 when we moved the riggers down to 85' - boated 4 fish by 10:00 - averaging about 5 lb even mix of hens and males. Went back out at about 3:00 pm with the family to and ran both riggers down to 85' - got two hens 15 minutes apart, one at 6.5lb the other at 4lbs.

07/28/02 - Fishing was insane, on the water at 5:45, 4 in the boat again, started right out with the riggers at 85' - didn't go 10 minutes without a solid strike, had 8 in the boat by 8:00. At 7:00 we had already boated 5 fish so we switched from salmon rods to light trout spinning gear - talk about a blast, broke a few off but manage to put three more in the box, one of them was an big 8.5lb hook nose male.

Love this fishery - note: almost an even split between the black and the red hooks - found that the Eagle Claw red hooks hold their color better than the Gamakatsu after a couple of fish have been on...

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