Baseball players rarely find free time during the long season. But when they do, they take advantage of it.

That was what Chicago White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham, and pitchers Mark Buehrle, John Danks and Zach Stewart did on Thursday afternoon by booking a salmon fishing charter trip on Puget Sound.

After getting some rest from a late-night flight, the players met Captain Steve Kesling, owner of Adventure Charters in Seattle to pursue what has been an excellent pink and coho salmon fishery this late summer.

It took only 15 minutes of trolling in front of Shilshole Bay before the first rod popped off the downrigger, and assistant athletic trainer Brian Ball landed a nice pink salmon.

"Usually the afternoon bite is somewhat slower than the morning, but we had fairly consistent action over the course of five hours," Kesling said.

This was the second time Beckham and Ball had joined Kesling on Puget Sound, while Buehrle, Danks and Stewart had never fished for salmon before.

"We've seen all the sights in Seattle like the (Space Needle), downtown and (Pike Place) Market so this is something different to do," said Buehrle, who threw a perfect game in 2009 and a no-hitter in 2007. "Otherwise we'd just be sitting in our hotel room doing nothing. It was a great time."

Beckham pointed out that this fishing trip didn't produce the big coho like their 2009 outing.

"It was so much fun catching salmon, although this time we didn't get any big ones, and we didn't catch as many," said Beckham, who did some bass fishing in the offseason. "The other time we went out in the morning (when the bite) was probably better. That doesn't matter though since it was such a nice day."

This isn't the first fishing outing the White Sox have pursued on an off-day this summer. Back in July, a group went walleye fishing on Lake Erie.

"When we had an off day in Cleveland, and caught our limit of walleyes trolling around with night crawlers," Ball said. "We like to make it an effort on these off days to go fishing."

The group managed to catch nine pink salmon, and lost just as many.

"This was a lot of fun and I'd do it again," Buehrle said. "It is something where we can go out and just enjoy being on the water."

And what did they do with their catch?

A good chunk of the fish arrived at the White Sox clubhouse for dinner Friday night before their game with the Mariners.

Notes

• The new snowboarding film titled "The Art of FLIGHT," is 8 p.m. Sept. 10 at McCaw Hall, 305 Harrison Street in Seattle. Details: www.artofflightmovie.com.

• The Seattle Rifle & Pistol Association sight-in is 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Sept, 17-18 and Sept. 24-25; and Oct. 1-2 and Oct. 8-9 at 725 135th Ave. S.E. in Snohomish. Cost is $10. Details: 425-508-6005 or 425-775-9531.

• The Coast Guard Auxiliary Edmonds Flotilla is offering two 12-week boating classes for experienced and novice boaters. The Weekend Navigator begins Sept. 13, and will discuss electronics and navigating. The Boating Skills and Seamanship begins Sept. 15, and will cover all aspects of boating. Details: 425-483-9684 or email boatclasses@hotmail.com.

• Come celebrate the removal of the Elwha Dam 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sept. 17 at The Mountaineers OutdoorsFest in Magnuson Park (7700 Sand Point Way N.E.). This event is held in conjunction with another in Port Angeles for those who cannot attend. There will be a live stream of the dam breaking ceremony. There will be kid activities including creating salmon hats, participating in a 'mock' dam removal at noon, and becoming a junior ranger. Talk to an Olympic National Park ranger about the project, its history and benefits to culture, wildlife, and habitat. Interact with a hands-on model of the Elwha watershed. Details: http://celebrateelwha.com/.

Mark Yuasa: 206-464-8780 or myuasa@seattletimes.com