Peak period for oversized in Bonneville area?

[DaleDor]

What about AFTER the peak of the shad run, such as in July?

[Biteme]

You said absoulute peak time. Fresh shad = great sturgeon fishing, Frozen shad = not so great sturgeon fishing. You can still catch them but it isnt as good by far as when the shad run first hits. May thru June is the time. As far as fishing above the beacon rock deadline in the sanctuary, that can be tough with the strong current and it can be dangerous. If you go when the shad run first gets going and before the holiday weekend in may you can fish in some slower water and catch as many of those big girls as you want.

[DaleDor]

Hi guys.

My brother has never caught a sturgeon, so I’m wondering what's usually the absolute BEST two-week period for the giant 6-10' sturgeon in the Gorge? I'm not talking here about smaller fish.

By the way, would the best fishing be quite close to the dam, and w/in a couple of days after it re-opens for angling (around July 16) from the “Beacon Rock deadline” up to the Bonneville Dam fishing deadline? (At least that was when it re-opened the last few years, I THINK.) If that area is closed from, say, May 1 – July 15, then would the fish in that particular area be a little “dumber”, right when it re-opens to angling, than the harder hit fish that are below the deadline where people have been fishing for them for months?

My first sturgeon the guide said was 9 feet long….fun.

Please release these fish as GENTLY as feasible. I encourage catch and release on all species.

Thanks.

[ 01-17-2003, 02:17 PM: Message edited by: DaleDor ]

[Lured In]

Dale, you can do pretty good from late April though July. The fishing really picks up once the shad hit the river in big numbers around the end of May. Fishing just below the deadline on the WA side can be good, but like anything else, some days are better than others.

More often than not, the wind is the biggest probelm during this time of the year. The wind starts coming out of the west and blowing you around on your anchor. That makes it tough to keep your bait from moving.