I have fished Sook quite a bit! I don't recall zig-zagging there? There are quite a few places were that wouldn't work! 20 boats? That would be a good day during the summer run, about the only think you can do... is "follow the pack" or be ready to get yelled at "a LOT"!

"I do all of the above, depending on where I am fishing and if they are moving or holding. It is fish species, time, area, and gear specific."

i know what you mean obout sooke in the summer hooch,i try to keep away from the clusterf**k,it 's a real gong show out there sometimes with all the weekend warriors everywhere.sometimes i will just run north till i get away from it.Ss

i went on the salmon university website last night and one of their 12 rules of salmon fishing is always troll with the current,tideflow ect.good site have a look.actually hoochiebob turned me on to it.Ss thanks again hootch.

Well, that is not quite the whole thing written there! I certainly don’t want to argue with such a renowned Puget Sound angler as Tom Nelson! Especially as I have already stated I do all the above!

But, I believe Tom actually wrote, “Fish with or across the tide flow, never against it. Salmon face into the tide flow and have a better look at your lure as its coming towards them.” And I believe he also stated, “Pay close attention to the tides. The best tides have a 3 to 7 foot change. Small tidal exchange areas are the best fishing. With big tide and wind the baitfish hide in the relative calm of kelp beds or very deep in the water.”

I agree with that, as the general rule. But, don't home in on just one thing... tie everything in the article together... there is a lot of difference in trolling a 3-7 foot tide that he recommends, than a 10-12 foot tide.

Now… Luhr Jensen recommends, “Salmon, as do other fish, always face into the current so troll with it rather than against it. By trolling with the current, you will constantly be presenting your spoon to salmon from the front where it can easily be seen, rather than from behind where it can’t. When current is strong, salmon also have a tendency to stay in areas where they don’t have to fight it. If the fish are stationary and you’re trolling against the tide and not covering new water, your chances for intercepting them are diminished. If trolling estuary areas, or in Puget Sound and the tide is running strong between changes, look for salmon off points, in back eddy areas and troll zigzag patterns because trolling with the tide is usually just too fast to be productive in this situation.” http://www.luhrjensen.com/downloads/tec ... nsSalt.pdf

Oh, I see they added a couple of things... " If the fish are stationary and you’re trolling against the tide and not covering new water..." But, can I add to that? If the fish "are stationary" and you are right on top of them dangling your bait, right in front of their nose, what more could you ask for? “because trolling with the tide is usually just too fast to be productive in this situation.” It is my belief “Luhr Jensen" has probably completed as much, if not a little more research than Tom! Again, as stated, I do all the above!

"IF" you want your production to go up, you need to be ready to change tactics, based on the situation and areas fished. One does NOT want to always be trolling with the tide… and the ones that chose to sometimes face into a strong running tide holding in a pocket where the fish are holding… that can be quite deadly!

Oh I forgot, I bet everyone on this forum has more time fishing “Sooke” or “WCVI” than Tom and if you told him to fish into the tide... he would be fishing into the tide. Wanna bet?