Fishing the North Coast

from North Coast Journal 10-28-2021 Edition

News

Coastal Rivers Full, Smith Best Bet for Salmon

By Kenny Priest

fishing@northcoastjournal.com

Trying to decipher last week’s rain and river level predictions was not for the faint of heart. But when it was all said and done, all of the North Coast rivers got the fl ushing they desperately needed. Some rivers, especially to our south, went far beyond what was forecast and eventually hit fl ood stage. Coastal rivers from the Smith to the South Fork Eel mostly fell short of predictions, but are plum-full of water, nonetheless. Considering it’s still October, the future is looking bright.

As for fi shing, the Smith was the only green river on the coast. The river opened to fi shing Thursday but was on a steep rise for most of the day and night. Boats were on the water Friday but conditions weren’t great. By Saturday, the river had dropped and the fi shing was much improved, with just about all the boats landing fi sh.

Looking toward the weekend, the Smith peaked Tuesday afternoon at 11.25 feet on the Jed Smith gauge. It’s predicted to be on a slow drop through the weekend and should be full of fresh kings. The Chetco will likely draw a crowd this weekend, as the fl ows settle into the range of 2,000 cubic feet per second. For current Smith River conditions, visit https://cdec.water.ca.gov/river/smithStages.html. For the Chetco, visit www.nwrfc. noaa.gov/river/station/fl owplot/fl owplot. cgi?lid=CHTO3.

Weather ahead

According to Jonathan Garner of Eureka’s National Weather Service o ce, after the storms clear out Wednesday, the next chance at rain will be Friday. “There is a chance of rain Friday and Saturday, but the amounts are uncertain,” he said. “It will be more hit and miss and we probably won’t see widespread rainfall. We’ll defi nitely be heading into more of a drier pattern at least for the next seven days.”

The Rivers:

subjected to low-fl ow fi shing closures, including the Smith, Eel, South Fork Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek and Van Duzen are open to angling, but don’t expect green water on rivers other than the Smith. Be sure and call the low-fl ow closure hotline at 822-3164 to determine if the river is open prior to fi shing. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife will announce whether rivers will be open by a telephone recorded message each Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Smith River

The Smith fi shed well Saturday, with most boats getting limits of bright kings. Fishing was a little tougher Sunday, as the river was on the rise for most of the day. There are bright as well as dark salmon spread from the forks to the outfi tters. Most of the fi sh are being caught on plugs but back-bouncing the deeper slots with roe has also produced. Conditions look good through the weekend.

Chetco River

High water has made salmon fi shing tough on the Chetco, but fl ows will be close to ideal as the weekend approaches, reports Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. He said, “Salmon are spread throughout the system. Bobbers must still be used until Nov. 5, as ODFW said it is sticking with the published low-fl ow regulations. Last week’s brood stock seining for the Chetco hatchery program produced nearly 75 kings over two days. Some of the salmon were close to 40 pounds. Flows reached 8,000 cfs. Less than 4,000 is considered good, and anything between 1,500 and 2,500 cfs is prime. Catches during high water have been nearly a 50-50 split between hatchery and wild fi sh.” Eight-year-old Bryson Blevin, along with dad Tyler, landed this nice king salmon Saturday while fishing the Smith River. Photo courtesy of Tyler Blevin

Upper Trinity closed to the take of adult kings

In a press issued Oct. 20, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife projected the Upper Trinity River quota will have been met as of 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 24. This triggers the closure of the adult fall-run Chinook salmon fi shery on the Trinity River from the Old Lewiston Bridge to the State Route 299 West Bridge at Cedar Flat. The Lower Trinity River quota will be met as of 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 31. This triggers the closure of the adult fall-run Chinook salmon fi shery on the Trinity River from the Denny Road Bridge at Hawkins Bar to the confl uence with the Klamath River. Both sectors will remain open for fi shing and the harvest of jack Chinook salmon less than or equal to 23 inches. For more information, visit www.wildlife. ca.gov/News/trinity-river-adult-chinook-salmon-quota-met. ● Read the complete fi shing report at www.northcoastjournal.com Kenny Priest (he/him) operates Fishing the North Coast, a fi shing guide service out of Humboldt specializing in salmon and steelhead. Find it on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and www.fi shingthenorthcoast.com. For up-to-date fi shing reports and North Coast river information, email kenny@ fi shingthenorthcoast.com.