Shad questions

Perfect Drift · 02-18-2002, 09:15 PM

Columbia River Shad- wondering what the background on them is. 1) How did they get into the Columbia 2) Are they the Columbia's largest run of fish 3) Where do they spawn 4) when do the smolt go down river 5) Why is the gorge the only place we catch them.
And why do Dick Nite spoons cost so darn much?????
Seems like 49 cents would be a fair price.

David Johnson · 02-18-2002, 10:40 PM

They are from the east coast, like D.C. to Main. They were brought by rail way to the Sacramento River, California in the late 1800's. From there they have dispersed and migrated to other rivers. They are also found in several coastal rivers of Oregon.

Shad are a member of the herring family and they are plancton (sp).

They are the Columbia's larges run of fish.

They spawn in fast water below the dams. They are a brodcast spawner, they just do thier thing and let it fly in the current.

I beleive most the smolt go down river in September but I'm not totaly sure.

They catch them the best in the Gorge becuase of the current.

Dick nights cost so much becuase people will buy them :grin:

There is some thought that the shad smolt compete for food with the salmon smolt but I don't know if there is any thing confermed.

Z-Man · 02-19-2002, 12:34 AM

I luv hooking into shad in the multnomah channel...it's also a great way to get a kid hooked on fishing..fun and easy to catch..nice and slimey :smile: !!

[ 02-19-2002, 01:35 AM: Message edited by: Z-Man ]

fishchaser · 02-19-2002, 07:33 AM

We also catch them in the Willamette up by the falls, in Oregon City. Dick Nites costs so much because they work. I quite using DN and started using A BARREL SWIVEL AND A SIWASH HOOK. You probably think I am crazy but it's true. They love it. :grin:

Lured In · 02-19-2002, 01:37 PM

Kaus...you do not have to go up by the dam to catch shad on the Columbia. I fish less than 1 minute from the Camas/Washougal ramp and slay them. Once the run gets going we can nail better than 50 an hour. IMHO the absolute best place is down on the Willamette on the east side just above the Clack in 20 feet of water or just below the Clack on the west side in about 15 feet. Best day last year 3 rods, 150+ fish in 2 hours on the Willamette. We had to stop because because we couldn't stop laughing and we were getting tired.

This year I am going to go for a shad on a fly and try using down riggers instead of a dropper. We'll see how it goes.

As far as the DN spoons, they are all I use and have never lost one, but I have had to replace the hooks. :grin:

Lured In · 02-19-2002, 01:48 PM

sorry for the double hookset...

[ 02-19-2002, 02:49 PM: Message edited by: Lured In ]

Fishing freak · 02-19-2002, 02:26 PM

Fishchaser,

Have used the barrel swivel with siwash hook for a couple of years from shore by the dam, very effective! Does this also work from a boat ( using a dropper)?

Lured in,

How much dropper weight do you need to fish this way on the willamette? Seems like
it takes quite a bit to stay down.

Tanner · 02-19-2002, 03:02 PM

You take your Dick Nites and give me my little chartreuse mini grubs and we'll see who cleans house on the shad :grin: Flyfishing for them up by the falls is an absolute blast.

wetaline · 02-19-2002, 03:17 PM

Anyone want to expand on how to fly fish for them on the willamette. I've always heard about it, but never knew the details to doing it succesfully.

Mrdorkfish · 02-19-2002, 07:10 PM

I have always fished for Shad on the Columbia in anywhere from 16 to 20 feet....dropper 2 to 4 ft....For the fly fisherman who make their own flies...i have always used a small bronze streamer hook...a small piece of maribou at the tail...anything silver for the body...red hackle at the throat and two eyes of bead chain....i give it a good coat of head cement to help it withstand the abuse from countless attacks :shocked:

Mrdorkfish

fish_on · 02-20-2002, 07:29 AM

Best price on Dicky Nites is at Sportco in Fife Wa $1.50 and if at the register you show them your Oregon drivers licence, no sales tax. They have the best selection of fishing gear I have seen.

TundraIII · 02-20-2002, 07:52 AM

Hey Kaus, forget about the Dick Nites, bought a bunch of them last season and had meager results. Got frustrated and ran the boat onto the beach at Clackamete park, hopped in my truck and ran over to fishermans marine. Picked up a pile of mini grubs,
chartruese with glitter, headed back out to the river and just knocked them dead! Had people running by my boat to ask what I was useing and spent the afternoon with an audience watching me and the kids slaughter the little stinkers. If you put in at Clackemete Park and fish the Willamete, it hardly matters what depth of water you fish, you'll find them in 10 ft of water just as easily as 20 ft.

Lured In · 02-20-2002, 12:46 PM

Fishin Freak, I use whatever is necessary to stay down and you are right it can get heavy. Usually it is 6oz or so. (that is why I want to try the downrigger routine, no weight and lighter rods.) Two years ago the water was cranking and I could hardly get my anchor to hold much less fish.

Tanner, I'll take that bet and I can guarentee the results! It will be a virtual tie. :grin: Notice that both you and Tundra prefer chartruese.

My experience with everything from spoons, to darts, to spinners and grubs have shown me two things, go small and go chartruese. If you haven't tried it, you can do your own test. Shad fishing permits a two lure set up. (double splitters or 3 way swivles.) Run any two shad rigs; one chartruese and the other any color/style of your choice and you will see that the chartruese lure will dominate. You will catch fish on just about any of them, but chartruese is the key. Run double chartruese and look out, double on! :shocked: Nothing like 10+ pounds of poor man's tarpon strapped together. :grin:

I stopped doing the double rig as it can be a line managment nightmare. Its fun to try once though.

Another common occurance is that one side of the boat will fish better than the other with the same lure. Ideally you can swing the boat far enough over to even it out.

Tacklebuster · 02-20-2002, 03:59 PM

For all you shad slayers,
Can you target these critters around the Portland area? I have heard rumors of shad being caught around Fred's Marina in the channel. I mainly sturgeon fish and would like to fish for some shad in the same general area. Thanks for any info.....

Stacie L. Kelsey · 02-20-2002, 04:54 PM

We have a booklet on Shad Fishing which covers how and where to catch shad in Washington (including the Columbia River) and what to do after you catch them.

Let me know if you would like me to send you a copy.

kelsyslk@dfw.wa.gov

:grin: :grin: :grin:

Cohodependent · 02-20-2002, 11:38 PM

All of you guys are talking about fishing from boats. How would it differ if one was to fish from the bank? Standard drift set up?

mike5097 · 02-20-2002, 11:56 PM

I have fished for them from the bank using a setup very similar to a drift rig. In fact I used my trusty old 8.5 foot Ugly Stick Rod, 10lb test.
Ran a 1/2 to 3/4 ounce egg sinker up the line, then beads to a barrel swivel,then 6 lb leader to darts or jighead with grub. I have tried it with slinkies, but sometimes you need wieght to get out where they are. Slinkies will just tangle up with your line if they are too long and not hitting the bottom. Lead may work OK but I have never tried it.
Cast up stream, let it sink down and reel in.
It's pretty fun when they take it.
The only problem is that the guys who plunk for Shad from the shore sometimes don't really give a hoot how you are doing it and when they see you catching them sometimes sit down right next to you and toss it in, then give you dirty looks when YOU dare to snag THEIR rigs!
But then again casting beats sitting on a bucket!
Do a search on Shad and you will find alot of info!
Check this out!:
http://64.85.6.140/cgi-bin/gfboard/m...2&threadid=725

[ 02-20-2002, 01:01 PM: Message edited by: mike5097 ]