Outdoor Report 12/5
Winter Steelhead becomes a real possibility! Most local rivers will start to see their first few Winter Steelhead of the year and you never know what you may hook when chasing them. All along the coast there are still some nice fall Chinook around and folks have also been catching some incidental wild Coho. Targeting tailouts or walking speed runs will be great places to start looking for Winter Steelhead. Jigs, beads, bait or pink worms are all great choices for those that are wanting to use bobbers. Hardware is also a great way to find aggressive early Winter Steelhead. Blue Fox Spinners, Little Cleo’s and P-Line Pro-Steel Spoons are all great options when looking for the right hardware to use. Once we get another shot of rain, look for more Steelhead to be caught. Catch and release sturgeon fishing has been great lately, with the Portland Harbor being a good place to spend a day chasing these prehistoric creatures. Squid, herring, smelt and sand shrimp have all been producing at times. This time of year the fish can be finicky, so it often pays to have more than one type of bait at hand. Crabbing has been good for those that have been making the drive to the coast. Tillamook, Nehalem and Astoria have all been producing nice fat keepers. The lack of rain has made for some great crabbing! Netarts Bay has also been productive as of late. Bottom fishing has been a good choice for anglers looking to fill their freezers with delicious fish when conditions allow. Lingcod and Rock Fish have both been caught in good numbers with anglers reporting good success from Astoria all the way down to Coos Bay. P-Line Rock Cod Rigs, large curly tail grubs and vertical jigs have all been producing well. Jetty fishing has been good with anglers reporting good success when targeting Rock Fish, Perch and Greenling. The Lingcod fishing hasn’t been as good, however, the possibility of catching a monster Ling off the rocks is always a real possibility. Sand shrimp and white curly tail grubs have been the most popular options lately. Crabbing has also been good off the jetties, with reports of some folks catching limits of fat Dungeness Crab. Trout fishing has been good for anglers wanting to spend a day on the lake. Trolling is always a great choice as it’s an easy way to cover some ground and find the schools of biters. Mag Lips, Flatfish, wedding rings or small spinners will all produce well for you. Bank anglers will do well fishing bobbers and bait or casting small Rooster Tails along the shorelines. Kokanee fishing has been good, especially up at Merwin lake. Merwin is such a big body of water that folks can spread out and fish by themselves all day long. The Kokanee have moved up in the water column which makes it nice for folks that aren’t using downriggers to target these delicious land-locked Salmon. Small Spin-N-Glos, wiggle hoochies, small spinners or wedding rings will all work when trolled behind a dodger. Shoepeg corn and a few of your favorite scents will be all you need when trying to decide what bait to use. Always be sure to check local regulations at ODFW and WDFW before heading out. Find reports and two most widely used baits, information on the Fisherman's Community page.
