ENDLESS SALMON

[HOGTIDE]

Can you believe the constant stream of salmon 'mother' Columbia has produced this past season? We saw good numbers of springers being caught right from the get-go, back in the 2nd week of February. That massive run continued right through mid-summer, where we saw several chinooks caught each day of the steelhead season.

Without so much as a pause in that action, that initial run has been swallowed up by an unending torrent of fall chinooks.

I have been fishing the lower Columbia hard for about 27 years now. Yesterday may have been the 'best' day I have ever witnessed. Most every boat, with multiple fish,2,3,4 & 5, as far as I could see... and we are talkin' chinook, here. My retired pals give the same report for most of the previous week.

The freezer is full. You have taken care of friends and neighbors with too much fish. Your wobblers are a scratched up mess from Tyee Teeth. For the first time in a very long time, I have almost quenched my unending thirst for a rod down hard in the holder and a reel with a bad drag, screamin'.

I am a satisfied fisherman.

[FM2]

Hogtide, you wouldn't mind sharing where you fish would you [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] I cancelled a trip to the Astoria today based on terrible fishing reports and would like to get on the Columbia sometime during the week but am not familiar on the hot spots. Say somewhere from Rainer to Portland ?

I read there is going to be a gil net season from Mon to Wed of this week which I would think would slow the fishing down upstream from Longview where they are going to put in, what do you think ?

"We saved millions of Salmon and Steelhead smolts!" [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]



[ 09-16-2001: Message edited by: ****** ]

[HOGTIDE]

FM2

No place that special. The entire stretch from below the mouth of the Lewis down to Marker #75 seems to remain consistant. Look for the edge of the coldwater. I hear lotsa of slow reports from Frenchmans, just upstream from the Lewis...might be due to a 'lack' of cool water. There are many fish passing through!

Good Luck

[FM2]

Thanks HT, is there a particular method you have had good success with ? and what depth ?

Are you aware of the nets going in ?

Thanks

[HOGTIDE]

Depths have been rather random this year. Yesterday, we were successful at 39/40 feet. The past several weeks I have done well in 35, while at the same time everyone tells me 44 is where to be for success...sooo, ya see, random! However, I still firmly believe, figuring out bottom contours and fastlanes is the key .(See Past Post: My Slant On Anchoring)

I always fish a 5' dropper & 4.5' leader. Had great success with Silver Clancys, but my partners have done just as well with Silver Alvins. I like Chartreuse tape...does it matter???...yesterdays fish were taken on a gold Alvin. I say pick your favorite wobbler and tell everyone that it is 'THE' hot one...especially with a custom tape job! Let's face it; Big Chinooks like to feed on slow moving, swaying pieces of metal [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]

As for the nets...despite their claims that they have little impact, things will shut down for about 3 to 4 days after they do their straining job. [img]images/icons/frown.gif[/img]

Good Luck

HOG