Willamette Valley/Metro - Sportanglers have been frustrated with a 38% mark rate for the summer chinook return this year. Typically, the mark rate is closer to 60% and although catches have been fair, few fish are being taken home for consumption. Fishery managers will meet today (Wednesday) to consider additional time on the water by the sportfleet. The any chinook season on the Columbia opens up on August 1st.

Springers and summer steelhead continue to cross Willamette Falls by the hundreds daily. There’s little angler interest on the mid-70-degree water of the lower Willamette at this time. A few are bass fishing while some are fishing catch-and-release for sturgeon which has been good at times. Spring chinook and shad fishing is all but over. Upriver summer steelheading is fair to good in the stretch between Eugene and Springfield.

North Santiam steelhead has been fair but is improving. On the South Santiam, steelheading has been fair to good with the bonus of spring chinook in the river. Mornings are a good bet although evening fishing has been quite good recently.

A few spring chinook and summer steelhead are being taken on the upper Clackamas. For these fish in summer conditions, be there at first light to connect. It’s a hardware show now with spinners and spoons taking fish. Try a copper finish if nickel and brass aren’t producing.

Try the Sandy River early in the day from Dodge Park upstream. While there are springers and steelhead in the river, many are looking forward to coho which won’t be arriving for several more weeks.

Northwest – With the minus tide now upon us and the summer steelhead run coming on strong, action for these fish should ramp up this week along lower Columbia beaches. Hot colored spin-n-glos tipped with coon shrimp should account for success on the morning tide series. Sockeye retention remains open as it appears we’re on the way to a record return. Sockeye are occasionally taken while fishing for steelhead.

Ocean fishing out of Astoria was excellent over the holiday weekend. Coho and some chinook were taken south of the mouth of the Columbia, not much effort along the Long Beach Peninsula. Rough seas this week will keep offshore effort to a minimum. A strong minus tide will make bar crossings dangerous.

Garibaldi ocean trollers also took fair numbers of coho over the holiday weekend. Some halibut were taken between 90 and 170 foot of water as well. Crabbing is great on the ocean and improving in Tillamook and Nehalem Bays but a large portion of the crab remain in a soft shelled state.

This will be the last minus tide for clam diggers as the season closes beginning July 15th until September 30th along Clatsop area beaches.

Southwest- Salmon fishing has been decent out of Depoe Bay and Newport with limits of rockfish being taken although lingcod have remained more challenging. Ocean crabbing has been good but half or more in the pots are soft-shells at this time of year.

The Oregon coast is open for all shellfish except mussels; the harvest of which is closed due to a naturally-occurring toxin.

Sport boats launching out of Reedsport are taking good numbers of chinook and coho salmon and have returned with good catches of ocean crab. Winchester Bay is slow to fair for crabbing although the surf perch fishery in the lower Umpqua has continued to produce.

Tuna remain 20 or more miles offshore out of Charleston with windy conditions preventing most sport boats from making the trip. Clamming will be excellent in Coos Bay with a series of minus tides extending into the coming week. Bay crabbing has improved but is only fair.

Charter boats out of Gold Beach have been scoring limits of lingcod then finishing up with similar results for rockfish. Bottom fishers are taking cabezon to 7 pounds since that specie became legal to keep on July 1. Ocean crabbing has been fair.

Offshore fishing has been good out of Brookings for chinook averaging 20 pounds and most coho around eight pounds. Bottom fishing has been good as well with some large cabezon filling out rockfish limits. Boats are starting to troll Rogue Bay but no fall fish have yet been reported. Fishing is poor in the low, warm waters or the lower Rogue River. Fish are being taken following a long dry spell on the middle river as summer steelhead are starting to show up. With over 200 summer steelhead at the hatchery already, upper Rogue steelheading is fair but will improve as numbers build. Spring chinook are being caught above Shady Cove. Wild Chinook may be kept from Dodge Bridge down to the Hatchery Hole.

Trout are biting light at Diamond Lake but they are biting. Power Bait is still the best choice but keep baits small to improve hookup-to-bite ratios.

Eastern – With decent summer steelhead movement in the Columbia, fishing is picking up on the lower Deschutes as the season gets underway here.

Caddis Flies and Stoneflies are hatching evenings on the Metolius but not in great number.

Crane Prairie has been fishing well for fly anglers. With Damsel Flies furiously hatching, the local ‘bows have been suckers for the nymph version.

Gold Lake continues to produce nice-sized rainbows and brook trout to anglers using nymphs or wet attractor patterns.

Wallowa Lake is fishing well for trout but poor for kokanee. While still too high to wade, the Wallowa River has started to drop and is producing trout on Stonefly nymphs.

SW Washington- Summer steelhead are starting to show in fair numbers on the Cowlitz. The Kalama and Lewis systems remain depressed.

Mainstem Columbia plunkers should find fair to good success for steelhead this weekend. As long as water temperatures remain cooler than 67 or 68 degrees, action should remain fair. It won’t be long however, until the mainstem Columbia edges toward 70 degrees.

NorthWest Kayak Anglers

Reading Weather, Bar & Ocean Conditions for a Small Boater