Fishing report 8-7
The Astoria/Buoy 10 fishery opened up on August first and the reports were mixed. Some folks actually reported good Coho fishing right at Buoy 10 which gives hope for a great run in the coming weeks. Chinook will really start to show in the next week as usually the first few soft tide sets of the month will be the tides the Chinook ride into the river on. Trolling herring or anchovies right on the bottom on outgoing tides is a sure fire way to get your boat into a limit of Fall Chinook. Pro, Steve Leonard, actually found a mix bag of Chinook and Coho this week while trolling in the river. He landed fish on both Brads Super Baits as well as cutplug herring so having both in your arsenal would be a great idea. This fishery will have both triangle in-line flasher guys and 360 flasher fisherman trolling the same lines and the same types of tides. So ultimately it will become more of a personal preference as to what types of flashers you will want to utilize at what times of the day.
The ocean has been absolutely on fire for Coho and Chinook the past week. Pro, Mike Kelly, has been absolutely crushing it on the South coast while Pro’s like Josiah Darr and Bill Monroe jr. are doing their work out of the North coast. Everyone is seeming to be able to find the fish. Superbaits, spin-n-fish, Spindawgs, Hotta’s and Super Cutplugs have been all the rage this summer. And rightly so. Those baits work exceptionally well in the ocean when the Coho start to light but or when there is a massive school of Coho you fish through. Traditionally, Ocean Coho are light biters that love to steal your bait. So these plastic spinning baits have seemed to change the game when it comes to fishing around a pile of Coho. Reports of fast pace actiom bring hope for those chomping at the bit to have huge schools of Coho come flooding into the lower Columbia.
Not as popular of an option this time of year, but the catch and release Sturgeon fishing on the Columbia has continued to be phenomenal for those trying their hand at this awesome fishery. Squid, herring, anchovies and sand shrimp are all top bait choices.
Bottom fishing also remains excellent. The ocean is a bountiful place to be this time of year as the Salmon fishing, Tuna Fishing and bottom fishing gives anglers more opportunities than they know what to do with. Large Lingcod are still on the menu as is a wide variety of other bottomfish species. Shrimp flies, farallon feathers, vertical jugs and swimbaits are all great bait choices.
Tuna fishing has really started to heat up in the Northwest as the fish have finally closed the distance and become accessible to the sport fishing fleet. Pro, Ted Teufel,
has been getting after the Tuna the last few weeks and also found a couple of Blue Fin Tuna in the mix! Trolling Tuna Clones has been one of the most productive techniques as has vertical jigs and live bait. Having multiple
Rods rigged for multiple techniques will help you capitalize on every opportunity as the fishing can be fast and furious at times.
Crabbing is slowly getting better and as we head towards September we will likely see it get even better.
Summer Steelhead are absolutely still getting caught all throughout the lower Columbia and its main tributaries. Rivers like the Deschutes are starting to get even better as the weather warms up. This forces the Steelhead to look for cold water sanctuaries that will give them a reprieve from the hot Columbia River water. On the Deschutes Pro, Jeremy Toman, has been keeping his clients busy catching steelhead by casting spinners, plugs and bubble and fly. These hard fighting, high flying fish are a favorite among many Northwest anglers, and for good reason.
Walleye fishing this time of year definitely does not get the credit that it deserves. The vast majority of fishermen have switched this focus to Salmon coming into the river or Steelhead that have started heading into their respective tributary. While the Walleye are still as prevalent as ever and as willing to bite as ever. Trolling bottom walkers and worm harnesses is what most anglers will be doing right now to find them a pile of delicious Walleye.
Trout fishing is an option that will last all summer and fall. The heat of the summer is probably some of the toughest conditions that Trout fishermen will face throughout the year. The fish become very in active throughout the majority of the day which can lead to long periods of no action for anglers. However, the first few hours of the day and the last few hours of the day can, at times, be a free for all. The Trout will suddenly come alive and become very aggressive as they try to pack in the calories they need to wait out another hot day. Casting spinners and kastmasters is always a great option as is casting a bubble and fly or fishing bait.
