Charter Trips and Tips

Bottom Fishing on the Moonlighter

By John Chamberlin

WSF March 1984

“You’d better put that camera down and grab a fishing pole, or these guys will have your limit and you won’t be able to fish!”

Skipper Scott Lafferty, of The Moonlighter, was addressing me, and he was serious. He’d cut the engine just moments before and given the signal for everyone aboard to start fishing. I wanted pictures, and fishing action had been so non-stop, I’d simply kept snapping photos.

With that admonition from the skipper, I hastily stowed the camera and picked up one of his stout, stiff, 6-foot fishing rods. Putting the big Penn Senator reel on free- spool, I let the heavy lead plummet to the bottom. No sooner did it hit than I felt a strong tug on one of the three jigs that rode above the lead. I started reeling and felt something strong and heavy on the end of the line.

It must have taken two or three minutes to crank it in, but as the end of the line neared the surface, we saw three beautiful sea bass thrashing about, pulling in three different directions!

Using 60-lb. test line and leader, there was no need for a net. I simply hoisted the three of them over the railing. They probably weighed a total of about 12 pounds, but hardly caused the stout rod to bend. The deckhand extracted the hooks and dropped the bass into the waiting fish box. By then, the pile of fish in the box was growing fast, and there were sea bass flipping around all over the deck.

No one’s jigs seemed to reach bottom without picking up at least one fish, but just as often, two or three. At that rate, of course, it wasn’t long until everyone aboard had his limit of fifteen fish, and it was time to head for the dock. Surprisingly, it had been only twenty minutes since the first jig hit the water!

The Moonlighter is a 6-person boat working out of Neptune Charters at Westport, Washington. According to Lafferty, the fast action we enjoyed was not unusual. In fact, his records show that of the 90 trips he made last year, limits of bottom fish were caught 86 times, and near-limits on three other occasions.

Lafferty attributes this outstanding record to experience and concentrated effort. Westport has long been a center of salmon fishing activity. Only in recent years, with a general decline in salmon runs and curtailed seasons, has attention turned to other species. However, from the time Lafferty starting working The Moonlighter at Westport in 1980, he has aggressively pursued and studied bottom fish, viewing salmon merely as an incidental catch.

On his boat, identical gear is used by each angler. He feels that being thoroughly familiar with all equipment is a real key to keeping it in working order. Each outfit is set to fish when customers come aboard. Lines and leaders are 60-lb. test monofilament, heavy enough to handle almost any husky fish, and sufficiently tough to survive a lot of abrasion on the rocks below. Lead weights are from molds Lafferty created, and the number of them he goes through is mind-boggling. He claims about 200 pounds of lead is lost on the bottom during a typical week. He also fashions his own jigs, and uses them up so fast that he “ties them all the time—just like a lady addicted to her knitting!”

The Moonlighter is geared to make two trips daily, and is the only Westport boat currently doing so on a routine basis. Surprisingly, according to Lafferty, the past 31) times he has made these double daily excursions, all anglers aboard have taken home limits of fish.

We hadn’t left the dock until 2 p.m., and since all fishing was done in a 20-minute period, one might think it was a quick, and not very fulfilling trip. However, this was not the case.

The Moonlighter is small by charter boat standards, could not be mistaken for Mr. Vanderbilt’s yacht, is in obvious need of cosmetic reconditioning, and according to Lafferty, is “the slowest boat at Westport.” Further, some of Lafferty’s favorite spots are far from shore.

A brisk westerly breeze greeted us on our afternoon at sea. Even in Gray’s Harbor, there was a heavy chop, but The Moonlighter chugged along steadily and encountered no problems negotiating the famous Westport bar. Once beyond that, we bounced along smoothly through 5- to 6-foot waves.

Heading in a generally northwesterly direction, Lafferty slowed down occasionally to consult his chart recorder and other instruments. Each time, he’d shake his head and say “Not today.” Once or twice, he leaped out the window adjacent to the wheel and quickly spooled a jig to the bottom, apparently to confirm that his “not today” conclusion was correct. Each time, he’d quickly assume his position at the wheel, open the throttle, and take off at a slightly different angle toward mid-Pacific.

The hands on my watch continued to turn. It was now after 4 p.m., and we not only hadn’t seen a fish, but hadn’t even had a hook in the water! “Could it be,” I pondered, “that Lafferty has resorted to a bit of exagger- ation in describing past successes of The Moonlighter, or worse yet, that I’d be on the boat the only time it was ever skunked?”

Happily, these tortured thoughts were not to persist. The next time he cut the motor, after glancing at the chart recorder, Lafferty shouted “This is it! Everybody fish!” At that instant, the furious activity described at the start of this article commenced.

When it was over 20 minutes later, we leisurely gathered the loose fish from around the deck, stowed our gear, and steered a straight course for Westport.

Our deckhand went to work on what appeared to be an almost insurmountable job—filleting all those fish! As it turned out, he had plenty of time to spare. It took him only about 30 seconds per fish, and we didn’t get back to the berth until nearly dark.

The tenacity and hefty appetite of a 28-pound ling cod proved its downfall. One fisherman worked several minutes to reel a large sea bass to the surface. His difficulties stemmed from the fact that the ling also wanted the sea bass and had it half-way down its gullet. Fortunately for the angler, the net was slipped beneath the ling before it could let gol•

All other fish boated were succulent sea bass (black rockfish) weighing between 3 and 6 pounds apiece.

According to Lafferty, when ideal conditions exist, he often makes larger bottom species such as ling cod and yelloweye rockfish his primary target. When doing so, he switches to bigger and heavier terminal tackle. He has designed his own 17-ounce lead-head jigs on size 10/0 hooks, and when going for these big fish, everyone aboard again uses identical gear..

On our way back to Westport, I asked Lafferty if our 20 minutes was a new speed record for hauling in limits. He reckoned it was quite good, but said it couldn’t com- pare with the speed of one party of six he took out last summer. They caught limits of 15 fish each in just 61/2 minutes!

As recently as two years ago, Westport was thought of only as a salmon fishing resort. Thanks in part ot the pioneering efforts of Lafferty and a few others, however, a dramatic change is in progress. Where over 200 charter boats once caught salmon feverishly during a short summer season, there are about 100 boats now, but some of them are helping Westport to become known as a diverse recreational area.

The Moonlighter is available for bottom fishing trips year-round. Winter storms often curtail activity from December through February, but outstanding fishing is the norm throughout the balance of the year. According to Lafferty, one peak period occurs from mid-April through the 4th of July, while “the real hawgs come in from about mid-October through November.”

For ah unusual experience in fast fishing, and one which will provide many bountiful meals of savory seafood treats, write Neptune Charters. P.O. Box 426, Westport, Washington 98595, or call (206) 268-0124. The Moonlighter requires a minimum of three anglers on each trip, with a price tag of $44.00 each, including tackle.