Commencement Bay shore fishing? Dash Point pier?

[hrairguitar]

Hi all. I'm really hoping someone can give me some insight here.

My family and I are going on vacation this weekend to Tacoma. We rented a house on the Puget Sound in Commencement Bay. My 12 year old son loves to fish and is insisting we bring our poles. The thing is though is that I have no clue what to expect. I've tried researching but there really isn't much available so I'm hoping someone on here can help me out and set some expectations.

Should I bring a lighter setup and just chuck kastmasters and spoons all day? Heavy setup with some pyramid sinkers launched out with bait?

I know there's a pier near our place at Dash Point. The type of fish to target does not matter. Just whatever gives us the best chance at feeling a tug on the line.

Thank you!

[Boeing Creek]

If you're fishing from the pier or from the beach and looking for anything that bites, I would recommend a "hi low" rig (can buy these or tie your own) and an ounce or two of lead on it and for the bait use "Gulp" artificial sand worms, raw shrimp, little bit of octopus, something like that. You will get some sand dabs for sure. These are smaller flat fish (like a skinny flounder), typically the size of your hand but sometimes up to dinner plate size. You can either cast the rig out and reel in the slack the wait for bites, or drop straight down from the pier until it hits bottom and then bounce it on the bottom a bit.

Important to note: to be legal you need a license (you can do this online, see https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/#/login) and you need to be using barbless hooks. You can start with a barbed hook but must pinch down the barbs with a pair of pliers.

[Boeing Creek]

PS: another fun thing to do from the pier is crabbing, down in tacoma it is open Sunday and Monday only. You get yourself either a castable trap (like https://www.amazon.com/Danielson-Crab-T ... B003OB7IX4 or https://www.amazon.com/Promar-AC-333W-L ... B078J5PJNW) or a crab ring (like https://www.amazon.com/Danielson-401299 ... B003OB5HH8) and some bait (I use chicken drumsticks and zip tie them onto the crab ring) and you're in business.

Here too you will need a license (available at same link above, needs to be a shellfish endorsement on there) and a way to measure the crabs to make sure they are legal, most people use a crab gauge (like https://www.amazon.com/AirFly-Dungeness ... B082HFTCSN).

If it were me I would buy the ring, a gauge, some zip ties and a 6 pack of drumsticks. For $40 plus the cost of your license it is a pretty fun way to spend the afternoon with a kid.

For dungeness crab, each person can keep 5 males measuring minimum 6.25. For red rock, each person can keep 6 of either sex measuring at least 5.

[hrairguitar]

If you're fishing from the pier or from the beach and looking for anything that bites, I would recommend a "hi low" rig (can buy these or tie your own) and an ounce or two of lead on it and for the bait use "Gulp" artificial sand worms, raw shrimp, little bit of octopus, something like that. You will get some sand dabs for sure. These are smaller flat fish (like a skinny flounder), typically the size of your hand but sometimes up to dinner plate size. You can either cast the rig out and reel in the slack the wait for bites, or drop straight down from the pier until it hits bottom and then bounce it on the bottom a bit.

Important to note: to be legal you need a license (you can do this online, see https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/#/login) and you need to be using barbless hooks. You can start with a barbed hook but must pinch down the barbs with a pair of pliers.

Thank you so much. These sand dabs sound right up our alley to entertain us. I'm assuming with it being the holiday weekend that the pier will be packed with people so we'll most likely check it out and gauge it but I'm sure we'll be launching from the shore of our house most of the time. Thanks for the tips about the barbless hooks. I read something about a catch card too for me and even the kid.

Thanks again! I finally feel optimistic about the fishing now. Though it was going to be a lost cause.

[Boeing Creek]

You'll need a catch card for salmon or crab, it's a free add-on with your saltwater license. if you're targeting anything else you don't need the catch card. Good call on the pier being packed, should have no issue getting sand dabs in pretty much any depth so fishing from the shore sounds like a good bet. Good luck!