Reefnet fishermen set out to Legoe Bay for the 2024 season, starting on Thursday, Sept. 12, to catch fall salmon running near Lummi Island.
As of Monday, all the gears have collectively caught more than 1,000 coho salmon — majority wild with some hatchery fish — nearing their limit.
The reefnet is a sustainable fishing practice rooted in Indigenous practices. A net was once strung between two canoes and is now between two barges or floats. The fishermen use solar panels to power cameras to watch the fish, and winches to help lift the nets. As the fish swim between the floats, the net is lifted from the water, hauling the school on board.
The fish hang out in a live well — sunk into the ocean to allow seawater to flow through — where they swim and rest before being bled, then processed on shore.