Fishing report 1-8
Winter Steelhead fishermen have been eagerly awaiting rivers to drop into shape after last week's torrential rains. The beginning of January is almost the new start time for some Winter Steelhead fishermen. With many rivers utilizing a broodstock program, hatchery fish started returning just a week ago or so and will run through the first few weeks of April! Along the coast, anglers are starting to find success, like Pro Chris Vertopoulos, who found fish the past few days using BnR Tackle pink worms. These fish should be entering river systems in waves, so it is possible to not run into any fish in the upper stretches of a river and then run into fish in every tailout of the lower river, or vice versa. So, even if the day starts out slow, many seasoned Winter Steelhead fishermen know that it only takes one well-placed cast to change the tone of the day. Beads, yarnies, eggs, shrimp, pink worms, jigs, spoons, spinners, and plugs are all techniques you will see if you choose to launch your boat on a Steelhead river in early January. Being prepared with several options is key, as you never know what they may want that day.
Catch and release Sturgeon fishing is going to get better and better as the river conditions continue to improve. The turbidity is steadily going down, and the river height is falling as well. The major thing to still pay attention to is the debris that may still be coming down the river. If you are on anchor, it would be wise to make sure that everyone is keeping their eyes peeled for logs, stumps, or any other large debris that could be coming down the river toward you. Shrimp, squid, herring, prawns, and smelt are all great Sturgeon bait right now.
Bottom fishing has been stellar for folks when they have been able to get out over the bar the last few weeks. Now, weather conditions have been rough this past week but look for that to change as we finally have some decent weather. Pro Andy Martin has been doing really well when the ocean allowed him to cross the bar. Shrimp flies, Farallon feathers, and swimbaits had all accounted for fish in his coolers.
Crabbing has been really good, even with all of the recent fresh water. Pro David Johnson had family in town over the holidays, and he found plenty of crab when he took them out for a day on Tillamook Bay.
Razor clamming last week was decent, but the wild weather and waves made for challenging conditions. Those who put the time in found their limits, but it wasn’t without effort. The weather for next week's digs looks much better, and the clamming should improve as well.
Kokanee fishing at Lake Merwin has quietly been going on, and people keep it quiet for a reason! Being able to find limits of landlocked salmon in January doesn’t just happen in any body of water. These delicious fish are typically high in the water column, chasing the warmest water they can find. Trolling dodgers with a small spin-n-glow, small spinner blade, wiggle hoochie, Brad’s Kokanee Cutplugs, or small Spindawg will all work well for folks chasing a limit. Even with the fish being high in the water column, it can pay dividends to stagger your trolling depths to initially figure out what depth the fish are running at that day.
