The howling north winds have provided a much-needed break for both the salmon and the quota. Since last Saturday, winds that are all too common in late June and early July have kept boats tied to the docks at every North Coast port. Fortunately, the weather is finally starting to lay down, and the timing couldn’t be much better. The Fourth of July holiday weekend is traditionally one of the busiest of the summer for ocean salmon anglers, and with seas forecast to ease back down to around five feet, there should be no shortage of boats headed offshore in search of kings.
The good news is we know the fish are here, as anglers left them biting last weekend before the wind took over. The only question now is what kind of conditions they’ll find after nearly a week of pounding north winds. The ocean will likely be a much different place than it was a week ago, but if the salmon are still hanging around, the holiday fleet could be in for a productive weekend.
Potentially dangerous bar crossing
With large tidal exchanges in effect through the weekend, there could be potential early morning hazardous Humboldt bar conditions. High tides will be over six feet and will drop to minus or very low tides. With a large volume of water flowing out of the bay and running into 5-foot swells, you’ll want to error on the side of caution — even if it means waiting until the out-flowing water from the bay has slowed, which usually occurs within 30 to 45 minutes prior to the tide bottoming out. If you’re planning on hitting the bar at daylight in the next few days, check the conditions first. The latest tide and current predictions can be found here.
Low tides —Fri. July 3 (-.63 at 9:01 a.m.), Sat. July 4 (-.31 at 9:35 a.m.), Sun. (.16 at 10:08 a.m.)
Weekend marine forecast\
According to Eureka’s National Weather Service, “the end of the persistent northerly gale is finally in sight. Hazardous seas have certainly been observed in the inner waters with the Humboldt Bay North Spit buoy reading up to 12 feet at 9 seconds as of Wednesday evening. The gales in the outer water and portions of the inners responsible for these seas will wind down into Thursday morning.”
As of Thursday afternoon, Friday’s forecast is calling for north winds 10 to 15 knots and waves northwest 5 feet at seven seconds and southwest 1 foot at 15 seconds. Saturday’s forecast is calling for north winds 10 to 15 knots and waves northwest 5 feet at eight seconds and southwest 1 foot at 15 seconds. The winds will decrease Sunday, coming from the northwest 5 to 10 knots, with northwest waves 7 feet at nine seconds. These conditions can and will change by the weekend. For an up-to-date weather forecast, visit weather.gov/eureka or windy.com. You can also call the National Weather Service at (707) 443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at (707) 443-6484.
Eel River Pikeminnow Fishing Derby underway
After another successful Eel River Pikeminnow derby in 2025, CalTrout is back with another derby that runs from July 1 through Aug. 31. The derby, which is put on with the help of CDFW, has increased the prize money available and will now offer $5,000 worth of prizes for:
- Most pikeminnow (greater than 6 inches) caught over the duration of the contest. (1st $550, 2nd $450, 3rd $400)
- Most pikeminnow (greater than 12 inches) caught over the duration of the contest. MUST include tape measure in photo. (1st $800, 2nd $700, 3rd $600)
- Biggest fish (length). MUST include tape measure in photo. (1st $500, 2nd $400, 3rd $300)
- Drawing for kids (under 18) that entered a pikeminnow in the contest. (6 winners – $50/each)
Contest rules
- Online form: submit entries using one email address. All entries at the end of the contest for the “most pikeminnow…” will be tallied by participant email address.
- Mail in Form: mail in forms must be postmarked on or before September 3. Send a copy of your photo(s), minimum size 3”x5” each, along with completed entry form to: CalTrout, 1380 9th St., Arcata, CA 95521
- Individual contestants can win no more than one prize category. In the case of multiple wins, the largest prize amount will be awarded.
- Photos must be geotagged. The link to turn this on for your iPhone or android is located here.
- Cheating or falsification of entries will result in automatic disqualification.
- Photos from poor angles or of bad quality are subject to disqualification.
Contestants will follow all CDFW fishing regulations, including no bait, barbless artificial lures only.
Prohibited actions: Throwing fish on the bank or into the river, any blatant waste of fish.
All waters open to angling on the South Fork Eel River downstream of the Humboldt County line to the confluence with the mainstem. The mainstem Eel from Dos Rios to the mouth of the Van Duzen. The Van Duzen from Grizzly Creek to the mouth of the Van Duzen.
For more information, visit https://tribresearch.org/pikeminnow/
Saturday, July 4 is statewide free fishing day
On Saturday, July 4, people may fish California’s waters without a sport fishing license. All regulations, such as bag and size limits, gear restrictions, report card requirements, fishing hours and stream closures remain in effect. On Free Fishing Days, every angler must have the appropriate report card if they are fishing for steelhead, sturgeon, or salmon in the Smith and Klamath-Trinity river systems. For more information visit, wildlife.ca.gov/Licensing/Fishing/Free-Fishing-Days
Junior Angler fishing program coming July 12
The Redwood National and State Parks, along with California Fish and Wildlife experts, will be hosting a Junior Angler Fishing Program Sunday, July. 12. The event, which runs from 9:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. will be held at Freshwater Beach with anglers meeting at the Thomas H. Kuchel Visitor Center. Address is 119441 Highway 101 N. in Orick. This is a free event, and fishing equipment will be provided. Participants 16 years and older are required to have a fishing license. For more information, call 707-951-5388.
California Halibut Derby on Humboldt Bay coming July 25
The Nor-Cal Guides and Sportsmen’s Association will be holding the second annual California Halibut Derby on Saturday, July 25. The fishing event will be held within the waters of Humboldt Bay. Check-ins, Weigh-ins, and Awards Ceremony will be held at Woodley Island, 601 Startare Drive at the East-I Lot Grass Area.
This is a slot size derby; a measurement will be drawn in the morning before the derby and posted to the event’s Facebook and Instagram pages. Adult payouts will be $500 for 1st place, $300 for 2nd place, and $150 for 3rd place. Youth Payouts – $100 for 1st place, $75 for 2nd place, $50 for 3rd place. Youth payouts will be in the form of gift cards. All Youths registered in the Derby will receive a rod and reel combo! Raffle prizes will include fishing trips, rods and reels, fishing tackle and gear, merchandise and more.
Big Fish Prize: entries will be California Halibut 30” and above. ONLY ONE Big Fish can be entered per entrant. In case of a tie, winner will be determined by weight. For the big fish, adult and youth divisions will be combined. Winner to be announced at event.
Entry Fees for adults are $60 (comes with a $30 NCGASA Membership). Youth entry fees are $40, 13 years and under (comes with a $10 NCGASA Membership)
*If you are a current NCGASA member, you will receive $20 in raffle tickets at check-in.
You can register online at https://ncgasa.org/product/california-halibut-derby/. Entrants will need to be signed up and paid for by July 24 at midnight.
The Oceans:
Boats fishing out of Shelter Cove, Eureka, Trinidad, and Crescent City have all been mostly tied since last weekend due to high winds. Better conditions will begin Friday, and the long weekend looks plenty fishable.
Brookings
“After a month of very good salmon fishing, the king action suddenly slowed down out of Brookings late last week, in part because of windy weather limiting where anglers can fish,” said Andy Martin of Brookings Fishing Charters. “Except for a brief daylight bite, fishing has slowed considerably near the mouth of the Chetco. Strong winds and big wind waves are preventing anglers from getting offshore. The first albacore of the season were caught last week out of Brookings by a sport boat that ventured 70 miles out and returned with four small albacore. Commercial fishermen are finding tuna 100 miles offshore. Halibut fishing is slow, but several fish were caught during a brief offshore weather window last week.”
The Rivers
Salmon season now open on parts of Klamath and Trinity Rivers
The spring Chinook salmon fishery on the lower Klamath River (downstream of the Highway 96 bridge at Weitchpec) and Trinity River (upstream of the confluence of the South Fork Trinity River) opened on July 1 and will run through Aug. 14 on the Klamath River and through Aug. 31 on the Trinity River. The daily bag limit has been set to one Chinook salmon (no size restrictions), and the possession limit set at two Chinook salmon.
Lower Rogue
According to Martin, The Rogue Bay is producing a few salmon, but windy weather, and a morning minus tide have limited the chances to troll in recent days.
Kenny Priest operates Fishing the North Coast, a fishing guide service out of Humboldt specializing in salmon and steelhead. Find it on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and fishingthenorthcoast.com. For up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information, email kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com.
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