Columbia River fall salmon tracking better than expected

Fall salmon fishing continues to be hot across the lower Columbia River, and the schools are now moving upstream. The Buoy 10 catches of chinook were so good that fisheries managers were forced to close the final week of the chinook season to the retention of un-clipped, wild chinook. Only hatchery chinook may be retained. Coho catches in the fishery and in the ocean have been so good that some anglers think the runs were under-projected this year. Chinook retention will close after Sept. 2 in the Buoy 10 fishery, but will remain open in the river reaches above Tongue Point. These areas will allow for the retention of un-clipped chinook. According to Ryan Lothrop, the Columbia River chinook run is coming in better than expected pre-season. “Currently the fall chinook passage over Bonneville Dam is tracking well ahead of expectations for both brights and tules,” said Lothrop in an email. “However, it is still too early for an update as the 50% passage complete date based on the 10-year average is September 7. The run at this point in time appears to be early but again it is too early to say if it is larger than forecast.” He reports that chinook catches in the estuary have also been above expectations. “Catches in Buoy 10 have been tracking ahead of what we’d planned to-date. The lower river sport fisheries started off ahead of schedule when the fisheries opened on August 1 but have settled back down to typical catches to-date. “The fishery upstream of Bonneville Dam has been picking up some early fish as well (e.g., mouth of the Deschutes) given the early passage and may be tracking a bit ahead of schedule.” The heavy catches could impact some of the reaches in the main stem Columbia, but it is too early to say for sure. “We do not yet know if any restriction of the fisheries upstream of Buoy 10 will need to occur. We will know more after each week’s catch and stock composition updates on how things are looking,” Lothrop continued. Certainly, the heavy return could impact in-river fisheries, with the catches as strong as they are. However, most anglers and guides are just happy that the fishing is as good as it is. The coho show Fishing guide Bob Rees has been targeting the estuary, and intends to stay down there well into October to target coho after chinook retention closes after Sept. 2. He reports the fishing has been hot. “We had 14 coho in the river by 11 in the morning,” said Rees, “and we started at eight. So, we got those fish in about three hours. They were good sized, too.” He has split his time between the ocean, and in-river, with good success in both areas. “We fished the ocean yesterday, and got our limit by 12:30,” Rees said. As with most anglers and guides, Rees was trolling 360 flashers, with spinners and Super Baits taking most of the fish. He reported that he has not been targeting the chinook, because the coho bite has been so good. “Lately it’s been a coho show,” he said, “and today I really did not target chinook water.” He said that when he has fished in-river, he has been starting above the Astoria-Megler Bridge on the incoming tide, and then fishing along the wing jetties when it turns to outgoing. However, he often hits the salt water, and with good success. “When the tide turned and started coming in, we had a rip come through, and as soon as that rip came through, four of our six rods went over. It was game-on from then. For the next four or five minutes we were hooking up.” To say he was fishing shallow would be an understatement. “We were having no trouble getting multiple bites at 14 feet on the line counter reels, with 16 ounces of lead. I could see the flasher and the bait just right beside my boat.” “What was even more exceptional was the fact that most of the fish coming over the rails were hatchery fish.” Upstream chinook For those anglers’ intent on chinook, the action will drift upstream over the next few weeks. That is where guide Dave Mallahan will be found. He has finished up his Buoy 10 fishing, and will next move up to the mouth of the Cowlitz River, until that also closes on Sept. 3. Mallahan is one of the lower Columbia’s most experienced guides, and he will follow the schools of chinook up the river. He reported that this year’s structure will leave him with only a few days at that Cowlitz fishery. “The mouth of the Cowlitz closes after the second of September,” noted Mallahan. “We lost four days there this year.” The mouth of Cowlitz is mostly a trolling show, with the 360 flashers and spinners or cut-plug lures being the favorites. Many anglers do anchor and fish stationary baits during the dropping tide, but Mallahan has given that kind of fishing up. “I used to anchor but I just troll the 360 flashers and spinners or Super Baits, now,” Mallahan said. “There are only a few good spots to anchor, and you need to be in position and anchored by about three in the morning if you want to get a good spot.” It is important to note that the Cowlitz River itself is not open for the retention of chinook. Once the Cowlitz reach of the Columbia closes, Mallahan will follow the schools up to the deadline at Warrior Rock, near the mouth of the Lewis River. When the mouth of the Lewis River itself is open, a lot of anglers will hover fish, which means holding the boat over the schools and fishing horizontally with bait. With the deadline up at Warrior rock, Mallahan said that technique won’t work as well, so trolling is the key. Around Sept. 9, Mallahan will move upstream again, up to Drano Lake, where the chinook fishing is already picking up. He will switch tactics for this fishery, and start hover fishing. “You can troll up there, but I hover fish with salmon eggs and shrimp,” Mallahan said. “Before, nobody did that. They all trolled, but now everybody is doing it. It works really well.” Other good areas to intercept chinook over the next month include the mouth of the White Salmon River, the mouth of the Hood River, and the mouth of the Deschutes River. Also, in a couple weeks, tributaries where the fall chinook can be retained will start to light up. And then, the coho run will begin slipping into the tributaries, and anglers can chase those salmon well into November. “It should be really good, there’s probably a half million fish coming up,” Mallahan said. These fisheries can close with short notice if catches range too high, a definite possibility this year. Always check the regulations prior to fishing. Check the reach-by-reach Columbia River regulations online at https://myodfw.com/articles/regulation-updates#columbia-zone Emergency rule changes can be found online at https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/emergency-rules

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