Author: fishingthenorthcoast

Pam Luther of Brookings landed this Chetco River trophy salmon last week while fishing with guide Mike Stratman, pictured right. The once-in-a-lifetime king, which likely weighed over 50 pounds, was released. Photo courtesy of Redwood Coast Fishing/Mike Stratman

With no rain in the forecast for at least the next 10 days, the end is in sight for the late, fall-run salmon season on the North Coast. The Chetco saw a pretty decent return, but the Smith was somewhat of a disappointment. The system had plenty of water, but the big pushes of kings never really materialized, forcing most of the anglers to throw in the towel at the end of November. With the calendar now saying it’s December, it’s transition time here on the coast. The majority of the salmon have reached their end destination, and we now wait for the winter steelhead to make their way into all of the coastal rivers.

The Chetco has seen a few adults make their way in along with a bunch of half-pounders, and the Smith steelhead should be right behind them. But don’t give up entirely on salmon just yet. The Smith, Eel, Mad, and Chetco should each see another spurt or two of fresh kings move in when and if the rivers rise.

Weather ahead
Not much in the way of rain headed our way according to Ryan Aylward of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “The models are showing dry conditions will stick around through at least the end of next week. There are some really weak systems that are trying to reach the coast, but they’re dying off prior. We may see some drizzle, but that’s about it.”

Sport crab fishing update
Crabbing is still excellent offshore, as well as inside Humboldt Bay reports Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing.  He said, “There’s lots of crabs around, we’re not having to pull many pots to get limits for our customers. We’ve dropped some pots in the bay just in case we couldn’t get outside due to weather, and we’re seeing 12 to 14 keepers per pot. The crabs in the bay aren’t quite as clean as they are on the outside, but they’re just as tasty. Both outside and in the bay, the crabs are getting fuller — we’ve seen a definite improvement,” Klassen added. The weather looks good through the weekend, with light winds and swells running between five and seven feet.

The Rivers:
All North Coast rivers subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Smith, Eel, South Fork Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, and Van Duzen are currently open to fishing. Some of the rivers could close next week due to low flows. Be sure and call the low flow closure hotline, (707) 822-3164, to determine if the river is open prior to fishing.

Chetco/Elk/Sixes
The Chetco has been in good shape for salmon and steelhead the past week, but we are at that transition period from the fall kings to winter steelhead reports Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “Overall fishing is slow, but a few salmon are still being caught, along with some early steelhead. Most of the steelhead are half-pounders and have been holding between Loeb Park and Miller Bar. Salmon are now spawning in the upper river. With no rain in the forecast, the river will be low and clear soon, but will still be fishable. The next big rain should have steelhead season in full swing.”

Salmon fishing is winding down on the Elk and Sixes, although a few kings are still showing up. Both rivers will be low by this weekend according to Martin.

Smith
With no rain for a couple weeks, we’re dealing with low and clear conditions reports guide Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service. “There haven’t been many boats out as most of the guides have cancelled their salmon trips due to lack of fish. The steelhead should start to trickle in at any time. Even if the water is low, they can still make a pretty good showing, you just never know from year to year when that will be.” As of Wednesday, flows were right around 3,000 cfs on the Jed Smith gauge. 

Mad
The river isn’t loaded, but there are a few fish around according to Justin Kelly of Eureka’s RMI Outdoors. He said, “Most of the guys who put some time on the water last weekend hooked a fish or two. The scores weren’t red hot, but there were fish to be had. There’s a pretty good mix of both salmon and steelhead in the river, with quite a few bright salmon still making their way up. Most of the steelhead caught have been wild, but there are a few smaller-sized hatchery fish around. The water is dropping, but it still has some good color. Even with the lack of rain, we should see the steelhead push in.” As of Wednesday, the Mad was flowing at 760 cfs and dropping but it should remain open through the weekend and early next week.

Eel
Main
The main stem is in good shape, with some really nice color reports Paul Grundmans of Grundmans Sporting Goods in Rio Dell. He said, “I haven’t seen much activity on the river, and haven’t heard of any fish being caught. We should see some late kings and a few early steelhead start to show, although we typically start to see the steelhead show up in bigger numbers by mid-December,” Grundman added.  The flows were 1,900 cfs on the Scotia gauge on Wednesday afternoon and predicted to be around 1,500 cfs on Saturday.

South Fork
The South Fork was running at just around 500 cfs on Wednesday, but holding decent color. It should remain open to fishing through the weekend, but could close next week due to low flows. There’s some older salmon around, along with a few fresh kings. A few half-pounders have made their way into the system, and the adult steelhead should be showing up any time.

Van Duzen
Running at just under 350 cfs as of Wednesday and not predicted to drop much more over the weekend. According to Grundman, “It’s plenty fishable but not a lot of people trying. “The water is a nice shade of green slate.”

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

For the first time this winter, just about all of our coastal rivers will come into play at the same time. Following last Sunday’s big rise —  and without any substantial rainfall since — the rivers have been dropping quickly all week. From the Smith down to the South Fork Eel, all the rivers should be some shade of fishable green by the weekend. The main stem Eel is the lone river that may need a couple more days to clear. What you’ll find swimming in these rivers, however, remains to be seen. The Smith and the Chetco, for the most part, are void of fresh kings. And the steelhead have yet to make a large showing. The Mad could be your best option as quite a few steelhead are already in the river. The Eel and Van Duzen should have some late arriving kings, as well as a handful of early-season steelhead moving through. The rivers may not be loaded with chrome, but at least we’ll have a few more options for the weekend.

Weekend forecast
Not much rain is in the forecast over the next week or so according to Matthew Kidwell of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “Friday is looking dry, with the next chance of rain coming on Saturday. We probably won’t see much rain, up to an inch in the Smith basin and possibly a half-inch here locally. We’ll see some showers on Sunday, with less than a half-inch expected in Del Norte and Humboldt Counties. The beginning of the week we’ll be back to a dry pattern as Monday through Wednesday are looking dry.” Kidwell added.

Extreme tides could cause hazardous bar conditions, coastal flooding
Some of the biggest tides of the year will arrive this weekend, bringing with them the potential for flooding in some of the low-lying areas around Humboldt Bay and along the coast. They could also create hazardous bar conditions for crab fishermen heading out of Humboldt Bay during ebb tides as a large volume of water will be running directly into swells predicted to be 5-feet and larger.

According to the Eureka’s National Weather Service, the higher than normal tides are the result of Perigean Spring tide. This is when the moon is either new or full and closest to the earth.

Morning high tide predictions – Humboldt Bay (North Spit)

• Sat., Dec. 2 (8.2-ft. high tide at 9:58 a.m. down to a low of -1.3 at 4:49 p.m.
• Sun., Dec. 3 (8.5-ft. high tide at 10:40 a.m. down to a low of -1.6 at 5:35 p.m.
• Mon., Dec. 4 (8.5-ft. high tide at 11:25 a.m. down to a low of -1.8 at 6:22 p.m.
• Tues., Dec. 5 (8.4-ft. high tide at 12:13 p.m. down to a low of -1.8 at 7:10 p.m.

Eel River salmon returns
As of Nov. 21, a total of 105 Chinook salmon have entered the Van Arsdale fish count station according to Scott L Harris, an associate Biologist with the Northern Region. Making up that total is 41 males, 53 Females, and 11 jacks. According to Harris, all of the Chinook appeared as though they had spent quite some time in the lower river and this was reflected in darker coloration and some abrasions. No steelhead yet, but this is typical for Van Arsdale, located high in the Eel River Watershed. For more information, visit http://eelriver.org/interactiveresources/fish-count/

The Rivers:

Smith
Salmon fishing on the Smith was pretty good late last week, but it slowed by the weekend reports Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service. “After the big rise on Sunday, the fishing was decent on Monday and has slowed even more since. The water is dropping quick and is already clear. There’s not a lot of salmon in the system right now, and low and clear conditions will make it even tougher. There’s been a few steelhead caught, but not many. When the flows get down to around 2,000 cfs, the steelhead that are in the river will start to stack up. We’ll find out pretty quickly if they’re around in big numbers. With very little rain in the forecast, river conditions will be tough for the weekend,” Coopman added.

Chetco/Elk/Sixes
The Chetco was blown out for more than a week, but should be fishable most of this week and this weekend reports Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “The color was good on Tuesday, but it was still a little high for drift boats. I will be focusing mainly on steelhead when I get back on the water Wednesday, along with running plugs through the likely salmon holes. The river got to 18,000 cfs last week and has been slowly dropping since.

The Sixes has been high for several days, while the Elk has been fishable according to Martin. “It has been slow, not a very big salmon run on the Elk this year. The Sixes has been good whenever it has been below 2.5 feet, and should be in prime shape for the rest of this week.”

Mad
The Mad was just beginning to turn olive green on Wednesday and may be the best bet for the weekend, or before. As of Wednesday, it was right around 8 feet, and it typically fishes well at 7.5 feet. There’s already been a few steelhead caught, and more should be on the way following the big rise earlier in the week.

Eel
Main
The main stem is still big and dirty as of Wednesday, but dropping quickly according to Paul Grundmans of Grundmans Sporting Goods in Rio Dell. He said, “The top of the main stem could fish by the weekend. We should see some late kings and a few early steelhead start to show, although we typically start to see the steelhead show up in bigger numbers by mid-December.” The flows were 7,000 cfs on the Scotia gauge on Wednesday afternoon, but it’s predicted to drop below 3,500 cfs by Saturday.

South Fork
The Leggett area is already clearing, and the Miranda area should drop back in by the weekend. There should be a few kings around and possibly some early steelhead in the mix as well.

Van Duzen
Running at just under 1,000 cfs as of Wednesday. According to Grundman, it should fish above Yager Creek by the weekend.

Upper Trinity
Very busy Thanksgiving weekend on the Trinity reports Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service. He said, “Everything should get back to normal this week. With no rain in the forecast, the water will drop back to low and clear. We have cold weather, which will slow down the fishing. Take your time in these conditions. Most activity is fly fishing and the river conditions are good from Lewiston down to the South Fork. Fish are in the four to six lb. range, with boats averaging one to three adults landed.”

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

Other than the Smith and Chetco, all of the North Coast rivers were still off color as of Wednesday. And with more rain in the forecast, all of the local rivers will likely see another bump in flows starting late Saturday. If you’re looking to get in on some coastal king action this weekend, the Smith may be your only option. But the Smith, along with the Chetco, have both seen the fish counts tail off this week. The good news with all of the rain that has fallen in November is the late run of coastal kings have had plenty of opportunity to make their way upriver and into their spawning areas. This is all perfectly normal, and hopefully we’ll reap the rewards of these excellent river conditions two or three years from now.

When the rivers do drop back into fishable shape, my guess is we’ll see the first signs of the impending winter steelhead run. There’s already been a few caught on all the rivers, but with more high water coming, expect the steelies to start showing in numbers. But don’t give up entirely on salmon just yet. The Smith is still seeing fresh fish coming in daily and there should be some smaller spurts of fish coming into the Chetco, Eel and Mad.

Weekend weather and marine forecast
Very little rain is forecasted for Humboldt on Thanksgiving Day, but the Smith River area could see anywhere from a half to an inch according to Ryan Aylward of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “We may see a couple tenths here locally on Thursday, with the bulk of the rain staying to the north. Friday is looking mostly dry, but two systems will arrive over the weekend. The heaviest rain will hit Saturday night and sometime late Sunday. Rainfall totals will be two to five inches in the Smith basin, with the larger totals falling in the mountains. The Eel and Mad basins will likely see two to three inches, with the mountain areas picking up the higher rainfall totals. A few lingering showers are in the forecast for Monday, with most of the rain falling to our north. Right now, Tuesday through Thursday is looking dry,” Aylward added.

Friday’s offshore forecast looks good, but the weekend is looking pretty rough for offshore crabbing. Friday’s forecast is calling for winds out of the NE up to 5 knots with SW waves 8 feet at 11 seconds. The wind will start to pick up on Saturday, coming from the S 10 to 20 knots. Waves will be out of the S 7 feet at 7 seconds and NW 10 feet at 15 seconds. Sunday is looking similar with SW winds 10 to 20 knots and S waves 6 feet at 8 seconds and W 13 feet at 14 seconds. The forecast will likely change, so before you head out, check the marine forecast at www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka and click on the marine tab. You can also call the National Weather Service at (707) 443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at (707) 443-6484. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit: www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan

Humboldt Steelhead Days announce fishing contest dates for 2018
The founders of Humboldt Steelhead Days, Mad River Alliance — in their 5th year of producing this annual wintertime event — announced this year’s fishing contest will occur on the Mad and Trinity Rivers and will be limited to hatchery fish only. The three biggest hatchery fish on both rivers, caught and measured, from Jan. 13 to Feb. 17, 2018 will be eligible to win prizes and bragging rights. Anglers must register with a $10 donation in order to be entered into the contest. For more info, visit http://www.humboldtsteelheaddays.com/

Crabs plentiful for offshore anglers
Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing reports the sport crabbing remains excellent out of Eureka. He said, “On an overnight soak, we’re getting up to 25 keepers per pot. The crabs are big, and there starting to get a little heavier. Both the north and south sides of the entrance are fishing well, there’s lots of crabs out there. I’m hearing the same type of crabbing inside the bay as well,” Klassen added.

Nov. 24 and 25 free fish days in Oregon
ODFW is waiving all fishing licensing requirements on the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving to encourage people to #optoutside with friends and family during the long holiday weekend. All fishing, crabbing and clamming in Oregon will be free for both Oregon residents and non-residents. No licenses, tags or endorsements are needed on those days, but all other fishing regulations apply.

Commercial crab season delayed north of Point Arena
In a press release issued on November 17, 2017, the Coastal Dungeness Crab Tri-State policy representatives from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife agreed to delay the opening of the 2017-18 Coastal Dungeness crab fishery from Point Arena, California north to the US/Canada border until at least December 16, 2017. This decision was based on crab condition tests conducted by WDFW, ODFW and CDFW which shows that all test areas do not currently meet the minimum meat recovery criteria. The Tri-State Dungeness Crab Pre-Season Testing Protocols specify that after the first round of testing, if any area does not meet the minimum meat recovery criteria (23% north of Cascade Head and 25% south of Cascade Head) a delay is required and additional testing is required before a season opening date can be confirmed. A second round of both meat recovery and domoic acid testing is scheduled to be conducted after Thanksgiving. For more info on commercial Dungeness crab, visit https://www.psmfc.org/crab/

The Rivers:
All North Coast rivers subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Smith, Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, and Van Duzen are currently open to fishing. Be sure and call the low flow closure hotline, (707) 822-3164, to determine if the river is open prior to fishing.

Rohnert Park resident Tony Sargans landed this big Chinook salmon on a recent trip to the Smith River. With more rain the in the forecast, the quick-clearing Smith will likely be the only option this weekend for late-run fall king action. Photo courtesy of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service

Smith River
It was pretty tough fishing last weekend reports Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service. He said, “Scores were about a fish per boat, or less. Fish were rolling, but the bite was definitely off. The river went big on Tuesday, up to 35,000 cfs, and it was full of debris and leaves. Only a couple boats were out and I didn’t hear of any fish caught. This was the blowout that we needed, now we’ll see how many new fish move in on the drop. The river should be in good shape through Saturday. I haven’t seen any steelhead caught as of yet, but I’ve heard of a few. Steelhead season should start to take off in the next couple weeks,” Coopman added.

Chetco/Elk/Sixes
According to Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing, the Chetco was fishable over the weekend before it blew out again on Monday. He said, “It went from 3,000 cfs on Sunday to over 15,000 cfs on Monday and will probably be out of shape all week. Steelhead are now being caught. A plunker got one on Friday, then there were four caught on Saturday and another three on Sunday. A few boats that were salmon fishing caught steelhead on plugs, including a 15-pound hatchery fish caught by Mike Van Camp of the Chetco Outdoor Store. A few have also been caught by boater’s side-drifting roe. Salmon fishing was decent over the weekend, but the run will quickly wind down after this latest high water.”

The Elk and Sixes both fished late last week and over the weekend according to Martin. “The Sixes is fishing better than the Elk. Both blew out on Monday and will be out for a few days. These will be the best bets for salmon from this point on.”

Upper Trinity
If you’re headed to the Trinity, expect some heavy pressure over the holiday weekend reports Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service. “The rain we received definitely moved some fish around. Most of the concentration has been from Lewiston down to the Junction City area, with multiple boats and bank fisherman tossing mostly flies. Some of the boats are having success backtrolling plugs. The rain earlier in the week made the lower river a little big, but with no rain since, the Junction City to Willow Creek area will start fishing this week. The river is dropping quickly.” Huber added.

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

A series of rain storms moved across the North Coast late last week bringing sizable rises to the Chetco and Smith rivers over the weekend. With off and on rain in the forecast, both rivers will be up and down through the week and into the weekend. With the increase in flows, the rivers should see a pretty good influx of new kings, and should push the older fish into their spawning grounds. For the Humboldt rivers, including the Mad, Eel, and Van Duzen, the rain coming over the next few days will put them out of commission for a while. All three are forecasted for dramatic rises beginning Wednesday and more coming late in the weekend.

Weekend weather and forecast
Some pretty decent rainfall totals are expected in the Eel basin on Wednesday according to Ryan Aylward of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “The heaviest rain should fall to our south on Wednesday, and we can expect off and on showers locally here on Thursday. Totals will be anywhere from an inch to a half-inch. The weekend is looking mostly dry, with the next system set to arrive late on Sunday. This system has a chance to be a big one, but we’re seeing conflicting models. The Smith basin could see up to two inches, and an inch and a quarter could fall in the Eel basin. Looking out further, we should continue to see storms coming one after another, but it’s hard to predict how long the breaks will be in between,” Aylward added.

The weekend marine forecast is calling for winds 5 to 10 knots out of the SE on Saturday, with waves NW 4 feet at 9 seconds. Sunday looks a little rougher, with winds out of the SE 10 to 20 knots and S waves 5 feet at 6 seconds and NW 4 feet at 13 seconds. The forecast will likely change, so before you head out, check the marine forecast at www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka and click on the marine tab. You can also call the National Weather Service at (707) 443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at (707) 443-6484. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit: www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan

Crabs plentiful for offshore anglers
Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing is reporting excellent crabbing out of Eureka. On an overnight soak, he’s getting between 25 to 30 keepers per pot. According to Klassen, both the north and south side of the entrance are fishing really well, with limits coming easily. “The crabs are still light, but we’ve seen a slight improvement this week,” Klassen added. Crabbing has also been excellent inside of Humboldt Bay. It’s the same story as outside, plenty of crabs, but they’re light.

CA Dungeness crab update
The next round of quality testing is currently being scheduled, and will take place prior to Dec. 7. For more info and test results on commercial Dungeness crabs, visit https://www.psmfc.org/crab/

Domoic Acid testing is continuing, and the latest results show the crabs in the Eel River Area have come back clean. Back to back testing has resulted in zero percent of the samples exceeding action level, which means no more testing is required in that area. To see the latest DA test results, visit https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CEH/DFDCS/CDPH%20Document%20Library/FDB/FoodSafetyProgram/DomoicAcid/CrabDA17-18.pdf

The Rivers:
All North Coast rivers subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Smith, Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, and Van Duzen are currently open to fishing. As of Wednesday morning, the South Fork Eel River remained closed to fishing. The low flow closure hotline for North Coast rivers is (707) 822-3164. To see all the forecasted river levels, visit http://www.cnrfc.noaa.gov/index.php?type=ol&product=fcstPointsFcst

Main stem Eel
A few salmon were caught earlier in the week prior to the river becoming muddy on Tuesday. A big rise is predicted for the next couple days, it will likely take a couple weeks of dry weather for it to clear.

Smith River
Conditions continue to be up and down on the Smith reports Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service. He said, “There’s been lots of debris in the river, which makes it tough to fish plugs. Since the weekend, we’re seeing about a fish per boat. I think there’s more fish around than it seems, but it’s been tough to get them to bite and as tough to land them. Another big rise is expected tonight, so we’ll have to wait and see what that brings,” Coopman added.

Reminder: A North Coast Salmon Report Card is required to fish for salmon on the Smith River. The daily bag and possession limit is 1 Chinook salmon and no more than 5 wild Chinook salmon over 22 inches per year.

Shannon Lemieux of Junction City, Ore., holds a 47-inch, 48-pound king caught Nov.12 on the Chetco River with guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. The salmon hit a HawgNose FlatFish. Photo courtesy of Andy Martin/Wild Rivers Fishing

Chetco/Elk/Sixes
The Chetco was high and unfishable most of last week, but dropped below 4,000 cfs on Sunday and fished well for a day before blowing out again Monday morning,” said Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “It hit 10,000 cfs on Monday and was dropping back into shape, but will be out again with the storm expected the middle of the week. Plugs worked well on Monday, with just about every boat getting a fish or two early in the day. There were a lot of fish over 30 pounds caught on Monday. We caught a 47-inch, 48-pound king above Ice Box.”

“The Sixes was the best river on the coast over the weekend, with most boats catching the wild portion of their limits on Saturday and Sunday,” according to Martin. “It blew out again Monday, and even though it was pretty dirty on Tuesday it fished OK. The Elk has been in decent shape but the fishing has been slower there. It will probably be the best bet this week, however, with more rain expected.”

Upper Trinity
The rains earlier in the week really helped get the fish moving reports Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service. “It’s starting to get cold, which definitely tells me it’s steelhead season. Fishing was good from Lewiston all the way down into Willow Creek this week. Methods used right now are the fly fishing with a stone and a pin bead. We ran a combination of side drifting roe and mag lips 3.5’s and 3.0 this week. We’re seeing one to three adults per day. The weekend was really busy with the clear weather making pressures extremely tough and watching our counts go down. The forecast of heavy rains will help push more fish from the lower Klamath up to the Trinity,” added Huber.

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

Keith Bureen of Auburn holds a salmon caught last week on the Chetco River with guide Rye Phillips. All North Coast rivers, including the Chetco, will be on the rise following the storms that are currently hitting the area. Photo courtesy of Rye Phillips

The season’s first real storms are currently drenching the North Coast and putting rivers on the rise, and it looks like there’s plenty more of the wet stuff on the horizon. If the forecast holds, we should see enough rain in the next few days to open all of the rivers to fishing that are currently closed due to low flows. This includes the Eel, South Fork Eel, Van Duzen, Mad and Redwood Creek. The Smith has been open to fishing since last week, but it was low and clear up until Wednesday afternoon. According to Ryan Aylward of Eureka’s National Weather Service, we’re in for some wet days ahead. “Between Wednesday and Friday, the Smith basin could see up to five inches of rain,” said Aylward. “Here locally, the Eel and Mad basins could get up to three and a half inches. Saturday is looking mostly dry, but the rain will return on Sunday and we’ll see some pretty significant rainfall totals into next week.”

With the first big river rise of the season, I would expect there to be lots of debris coming down the rivers, and hopefully a lot of chrome bright kings heading the opposite direction. To see all of the North Coast river levels and predictions, visit http://www.cnrfc.noaa.gov/index.php?type=ol&product=fcstPointsFcst. To get the low flow lowdown on all of the North Coast rivers, call 707-822-3164.

Weekend weather and marine forecast
According to Aylward, we can expect the rain to continue on into next week. “Monday we’re looking at another half to an inch, with the rest of the week looking very wet.”

The weekend marine forecast is calling for winds 5 to 10 knots out of the S on Saturday, with waves W 5 feet at 8 seconds and NW 2 feet at 16 seconds. The wind will pick up on Sunday, blowing out of the S 15 to 20 knots with waves S 5 feet at 6 seconds and NW 4 feet at 12 seconds. The forecast will likely change, so before you head out, check the marine forecast at www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka and click on the marine tab. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan/

Sport crab update
The sport Dungeness crab season kicked off this past Saturday, and those who ventured offshore reported the crabs were plentiful and good-sized, but definitely on the light-side. Captain Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing set gear south of the entrance this week in 100 feet of water and reported 20 to 40 keepers per pot following a two-day soak. “The reports are good for boats fishing both north and south of the entrance,” added Klassen. Opening day reports from Trinidad were about the same as Eureka – plenty of crabs, but they’re light. Up north to Crescent City, Chris Hegnes of Englund Marine reported that the crabs are thick, but also really light. “Straight out of the harbor in 80 to 90-feet of water was one of the top spots along with the full length of South Beach. There is a huge volume of crab out there, and a short soak on the opener produced up to 30 keepers per pot. Crabbers also did well inside the harbor,” Hegnes added.

Pre-season crab quality test results
The first round of meat yield tests are complete, and the crabs are definitely on the light-side. Crescent City came in at 17.6%; Trinidad 15.3%; Eureka 16.1%. Crabs need to be at 25 percent prior to commercial harvest. The next round of testing is scheduled for some time prior to Dec. 7. For more info and test results on commercial Dungeness crabs, visit https://www.psmfc.org/crab/

Willow Creek weir trappings
For the trapping week of Oct 29 through Nov. 4, only one Chinook jack was trapped at the weir. To date, 865 jacks have been trapped compared to 69 for the entire 2016 trapping season. This past week, 11 adult Chinook were trapped, bringing the season total to 1,026. In 2016, only 459 total Chinook were trapped.

The Rivers:
Smith River
Fishing was decent over the weekend, but should really improve as we’re finally getting our first big rise of the season reports Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service. He said, “The river fished really well on Monday, but Tuesday was tough.  Conditions are really going to change over the next few days. The river is going to rise by about 7,500 cfs on Thursday, which should give us a more stable drop. We’ve had some sharp rises, along with sharp drops, which can make for tough fishing. We haven’t seen a lot of big fish yet, hopefully that will change in the next few days. The wind, coupled with a rising river, means we’ll be cleaning a lot of leaves off the lures. Looking at the 10-day forecast, we might see rain on six of those days. The river should really stabilize and I expect the fishing to be really good.”

Reminder: A North Coast Salmon Report Card is required to fish for salmon on the Smith River. The daily bag and possession limit is 1 Chinook salmon and no more than 5 wild Chinook salmon over 22 inches per year.

Chetco/Elk/Sixes
“The rain in the forecast for last weekend was a lot less than expected, so the river stayed low and fairly clear,” said Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “Fishing was slow for the most part. There are a lot of dark fish up high, and the lower river has plenty of bright fish, but there is not a lot of current for plugs or back-bouncing. Lots of people were anchoring, so the best holes were tied up. The guides on the river late Tuesday got into some nice fresh fish during the afternoon tide. There also was a fair bite in the estuary. We should have really good fishing this weekend with the big storm expected Wednesday and Thursday. The roads are covered with leaves, so plugs will be effective this weekend, but people will need to clean their lures regularly. The Elk and Sixes never got to driftable levels this week. The forecast looks good for the weekend, but expect a crowd, as the first major high water event draws a ton of out-of-the-area boats. This will probably be the best weekend of the season, however, on the Elk.”

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and www.fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com.

The 2017 recreational Dungeness crab season is set to open on Saturday, Nov. 4 at 12:01 a.m. With several crabs testing over the FDA action level of 30 ppm for domoic acid from Bodega Bay to Crescent City, a health advisory will likely be issued prior to the opener. Pictured above are Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing and Lonnie Dollarhide as they pull crabs from a sport trap last season. Photo courtesy of Kenny Priest

The ever-popular recreational Dungeness crab season is scheduled to open on time this year, and the season’s first crustaceans can be legally hauled from the salty waters of oceans and bays beginning Saturday morning. However, the California Department of Public Health could issue a health advisory on the sport season similar to the start of the 2016 season when they recommended that sport fishermen remove the viscera, or guts, from the crab before cooking, since that’s where domoic acid concentrates. Parts of the West Coast have already seen their share of problems with domoic acid. The recreational crab fishery in southern Oregon is currently closed due to unhealthy levels of domoic acid, and six Dungeness crabs tested from Bodega Bay to Crescent City have exceeded the 30 ppm action level. For updated information on health advisories and shellfish and crab closures, visit https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Ocean/Health-Advisories

In Del Norte, Humboldt and Mendocino counties, the season runs from Saturday, Nov. 4 through July 30, 2018. The minimum size is five and three-quarter inches measured by the shortest distance through the body from edge of shell to edge of shell directly in front of and excluding the points (lateral spines) and the limit is 10. A valid California sport fishing license is required. For more information regarding recreational Dungeness crab fishing regulations and other crab species, visit http://www.eregulations.com/california/fishing/saltwater/invertebrate-fishing-regulations/

CDFW is reminding crabbers of the new state regulations that went into effect on Aug. 1 2016, regarding the crab fisheries and crab trap requirements. Dungeness crab size and bag limits are now uniform statewide. All crab traps will be required to have a destruct device, must be marked with the GO ID number of the operator of the trap, and may not be deployed during the seven days prior to the opening of the Dungeness crab season. For more info on the new regulations, visit https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=132266&inline

Marine Forecast
Ocean conditions don’t look too bad for the weekend, with no advisories posted as of Wednesday. Saturday’s forecast is calling for SE winds 5 to 10 knots with NW waves 7 feet at 13 seconds. Sunday is looking a little rougher, with winds out of the S 10 to 15 knots with NW waves 9 feet at 12 seconds. The forecast will likely change, so before you head out, check the marine forecast at www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka and click on the marine tab. You can also call the National Weather Service at (707) 443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at (707) 443-6484. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit: www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan

Weekend Tides – Humboldt Bay

• Sat., Nov. 4 (High: 12:29 a.m. and 12:09 p.m.) (Low: 5:59 a.m. and 6:50 p.m.)
• Sun., Nov. 5 (High: 1:20 a.m. and 11:49 a.m.) (Low: 5:42 a.m. and 6:36 p.m.) (Standard time begins at 2:00 a.m. Sunday)

Woodley Island sport crab trips
Captains Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing and Marc Schmidt of Coastline Charters are both booking crab trips out of Woodley Island beginning Saturday. Trips will generally last two hours. Departure times will depend on the tides, but most often they’ll leave sometime in the morning. To book a trip with Reel Steel Sport Fishing, call 707-499-4925. Coastline Charters can be reached at 707-601-3474. The weekend trips fill up quick, so you’ll want to call early to reserve your spot.

Weekend Weather forecast
Rain is in the forecast off and on through the weekend, with most of the rain falling on Friday and Sunday. According to Karleisa Rogacheski of Eureka’s National Weather Service, the Smith River basin could see up to three-quarters of an inch on Friday from midnight until 10:00 a.m. Humboldt County could see anywhere from a half to three-quarters on Friday. Saturday is looking mostly dry, with a chance of some lingering showers. On Sunday, the Smith basin may see up to three-quarters of an inch while a quarter to a half is predicted for Humboldt County.

River Closures
As of Thursday morning, all the North Coast rivers subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, Smith and Van Duzen are closed. Sections of rivers that are open include the main stem Eel River from the paved junction of Fulmor Road to its mouth, the main stem Mad River from the Hammond Trail Railroad Trestle to its mouth and the main stem Smith River from the mouth of Rowdy Creek to its mouth. The Department of Fish and Game will make the information available to the public no later than 1 p.m. each Monday, Wednesday and Friday as to whether any river will be closed to fishing. The rivers can be opened up at any time. The low flow closure hotline for North Coast rivers is 707-822-3164.

Smith River
Britt Carson of Crescent City’s Englund Marine reports a few fish are being caught at the mouth as well as the Sand Hole. He said, “It started to pick up the last few days, I’ve been seeing more fish hooked. With the rain coming later in the week, the salmon should really be on the move.”

The Smith is predicted to rise to just over 750 cfs on Saturday afternoon, but will be back under the 600 cfs threshold by early Sunday morning. The next system is forecasted to push the flows to nearly 5,000 cfs by very early Monday morning. To find out if the river is open to fishing, call the low-flow closure hotline at 707-822-3164.

Chetco
The Chetco has a lot of fish in most of the deeper holes, but with sunny, bright weather and low, clear water not many guides have been out,” said Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “This week’s expected rain should have the river in near-perfect conditions next week, and maybe as early as the weekend. There was another short commercial salmon season off of Brookings early in the week and they caught a lot of fish, so there is another big group of salmon stacked up near the mouth. Any rain event around the first week of November generally leads to excellent salmon fishing on both the Chetco and Smith.”

The Chetco is open to salmon fishing through Dec. 31 upstream to Nook Creek. The fly angling and salmon bobber angling restrictions will end on Sat., Nov. 4.

Elk
If the Elk gets up to 4 feet, it should have a bunch of fish according to Martin. “Generally the Elk fishes better in November than October so this storm should kick things off.”

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

Antelope resident Kim Walton Allum landed a beautiful Chinook salmon on Monday while fishing the Chetco River. Both the Chetco and Smith saw a big push of fish enter the rivers following last weekend’s rain. Photo courtesy of Mike Stratman/Redwood Coast Fishing

Last weekend’s rain provided a glimpse into what could be one heck of a late-fall coastal salmon season on the Smith and Chetco rivers. Following last Thursday’s rain, the Smith opened to fishing above Rowdy Creek for the first time this fall. And per usual, that first big rise brought in plenty of big, chrome-bright kings. Sunday was the day to be there, with just about all of the boats landing fish. Monday was the day to be on the Chetco as the river dropped to 3,000 cfs in the morning and brought in a bunch of new kings. Fish were spread throughout the river, and everyone was catching. If these first few days are any indication, we could be in for a fantastic season. All we need is more rain.

Weekend Weather
Enjoy the sunshine while you can as we could see a pattern change late next week. “The next chance for rain is late next week, with a chance of some light showers on Thursday and Friday,” said Ryan Aylward of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “The models are showing a potentially bigger storm next Saturday. We’ll have to see if that materializes, but we should start to see a shift into a wetter pattern,” Aylward added.

Recreational abalone season set to close
Recreational Red Abalone season will come to a close on Nov. 1. CDFW reminds abalone anglers that the law requires them to return their abalone cards to CDFW or report their harvest data online by Jan. 31, 2018 even if they did not try to take abalone. Data may also be submitted online from Nov. 1 until Jan. 31, 2018 at www.wildlife.ca.gov/licensing/lishing#758846-harvest-reporting

Crab harvesting closure extended on Oregon coast
In a press release issued on Monday, the Oregon Department of Agriculture and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife announced the immediate closure of recreational and commercial crabbing from the north jetty of the Coquille River, which includes the bay in Bandon, to the California border due to elevated levels of domoic acid.
This includes crab harvested in bays and estuaries, and on beaches, docks, piers, and jetties. The recreational crabbing season in the ocean closed coast-wide on Oct.15
The announcement extends last week’s recreational closure. Crab harvesting from the north jetty of the Coquille River to the Columbia River remains open in bays and estuaries, and on beaches, docks, piers, and jetties. For more information, call ODA’s shellfish safety information hotline at 800-448-2474 or visit the ODA shellfish closures web page at: http://www.oregon.gov/ODA/programs/FoodSafety/Shellfish/Pages/ShellfishClosures.aspx

Dungeness crab testing
According to Christy Juhasz, an Environmental Scientist with CDFW, the next round of testing for Crescent City and Eureka were sent to California Dept. of Public Health (CDPH) on Friday, Oct. 20. “A fisherman went out today to collect another round of Dungeness crab samples at Crescent City to be shipped this week as well. We are tentatively scheduling preseason quality testing in the next week,” Juhasz added. . For more information regarding recreational Dungeness crab fishing regulations and other crab species, please visit the DFG Marine Region website at https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Invertebrates/Crabs

Dungeness crab sport fishery to open statewide
The popular Dungeness crab sport fishery will open statewide on Saturday, Nov. 4, barring any delays. The daily bag limit is 10 Dungeness crabs per person, except when fishing from a commercial passenger fishing vessel (or party boat) south of Mendocino County, in which case the limit is six. A legal-sized crab must be five and three-quarter inches measured by the shortest distance through the body from edge of shell to edge of shell directly in front of and excluding the points (lateral spines). Crabs taken from party boats must measure six inches minimum distance.

Willow Creek weir trappings
“The rain brought us quite a flush of fish last Friday. It was good to see them after some fairly slow days the rest of the week,” said Mary Claire Kier, an Environmental Scientist on the Trinity For the trapping week of Oct 15 through Oct. 21, 22 Chinook jacks were trapped at the weir. To date, 856 jacks have been trapped compared to 69 for the entire 2016 trapping season. This past week, 114 adult Chinook were trapped, bringing the season total to 990. In 2016, only 459 total Chinook were trapped.

River Closures
As of Thursday morning, all the North Coast rivers subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, Smith and Van Duzen are closed. Sections of rivers that are open include the main stem Eel River from the paved junction of Fulmor Road to its mouth, the main stem Mad River from the Hammond Trail Railroad Trestle to its mouth and the main stem Smith River from the mouth of Rowdy Creek to its mouth. The Department of Fish and Game will make the information available to the public no later than 1 p.m. each Monday, Wednesday and Friday as to whether any river will be closed to fishing. The rivers can be opened up at any time. The low flow closure hotline for North Coast rivers is 707-822-3164.

The Rivers:
Smith River
The river opened to fishing on Friday, but Sunday was the day. After peaking at 4,200 cfs early Sunday morning, the Smith was full of bright kings, along with some darker fish that have been holding in the lower river for a while. The increase in flows brought in a bunch of new fish, and the boats working the forks all the way down to the Outfitters all landed fish. The bite got a little tougher on Monday as the river was on a pretty steep drop. With no rain since Sunday, the river has dropped out and is closed as of Thursday morning to fishing above the mouth of Rowdy Creek. It looks like it will be closed for a while, with the next rain forecasted to hit the area late next week or weekend. The daily bag and possession limit is one (1) Chinook salmon and no more than five (5) wild Chinook salmon over 22 inches per year.

Chetco/Elk/Sixes
“The Chetco fished well last Friday and again Saturday morning before blowing out Saturday afternoon through Sunday,” said Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “On Monday, as the river dropped from 4,000 cfs to 3,000 cfs overnight, fishing was really good. There were fish spread throughout the river and everyone on the water was catching fish. Really good plug bite. On Tuesday, once flows got down to around 1,000 cfs, fishing was tougher, although all the guides still got a couple of fish. The river will be low and clear over the weekend.”

According to Martin, the Elk fished okay on Monday, while the Sixes was decent on Tuesday. “The Elk went from 4.2 feet on Sunday to 3 feet on Monday. Both rivers will be too low to drift by the end of the week,” added Martin

Trinity
Upper
Fishing from Douglas City to Del Loma, Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service reports it was nice to see rain last week. “We did get some color to the river on Sunday from the fire in Junction City. They released the smolts from the hatchery, so it’s nearly impossible to fish bait. We switched over to plugs, making it a little bit easier to get down to the steelhead. Most the steelhead we are seeing are in the four to six-pound range. There are still a few salmon around and up on their beds. Fly guys are finding success with stones and egg imitations and some of the bank anglers  are out there with nightcrawlers and roe. Most of the fishermen are concentrated in the Junction City to Del Loma stretch.” Huber added.

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

Five year-old Corabella Pagliuco of McKinleyville had her hands full landing this nice-sized California halibut last weekend on Humboldt Bay. She had a little help from her dad Bob, as well as Skipper Tim Klassen, pictured right, of Reel Steel Sport Fishing. Photo courtesy of Bob Pagliuco

If you thought the California halibut season was belly up, you may want to reconsider.

The effort has definitely tapered off over the past few weeks, but the bite remains as strong as it’s been all season. “We fished over the weekend, and it was as good then as it’s been all season,” said Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing. “It’s every bit as good now as it was two months ago. There are still lots of shakers in the mix, but they are plenty of keepers as well. The one consistency we’ve had all season is bait in the bay. There’s been a good mix of anchovies and sardines around, which is one of the reasons the halibut have stuck around. We’ve been fishing further up in the channels, but I think they are still spread throughout the bay. The one thing I’ve seen all season is they bite much better when we have the smaller tide swings, which we had last weekend.” According to Klassen, about the only thing that can slow the bite is the rain. Once the freshwater infiltrates the bay, both the halibut and the bait will likely head back to the ocean. The recreational fishery for California halibut is open year-round. The daily bag and possession limit is three fish, with a minimum size limit of 22 inches total length.

Rain on the way
According to Ryan Aylward of Eureka’s National Weather Service, we should see some rain beginning on Thursday. “We’ll see most of the rain on Thursday, but showers will likely linger into early Friday. Another weak system is forecasted for Saturday, but it shouldn’t amount to much rainfall. Rainfall totals for Thursday through Saturday should reach two inches in the Crescent City area, with more falling in the hills. In the Eel basin, we should see anywhere from a half to an inch of rain. Right now, next week is looking dry, with a weak system potentially forecasted for next weekend,” Aylward added.

Weekend Marine Forecast
As of Wednesday, the weekend marine forecast isn’t looking very fishable. Saturday, SE winds are forecasted 10 to 15 knots with waves W 12 feet at 14 seconds. Winds will decrease quite a bit on Sunday, up to 5 knots coming out of the NW with W waves 11 feet at 13 seconds. These conditions can and will change by the weekend. For an up-to-date weather forecast, visit www.weather.gov/eureka/. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan, or you can also verify the conditions as reported by looking at the bar cam at www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/barCam/?cam=humboldtBayBar. You can also call the National Weather Service at 707-443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at 707-443-6484.

Chetco bubble season wrap-up
The Chetco Bubble Season ended up being a big success according to Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “According to ODFW, 530 fish were kept during the four-day season,” said Martin. “That’s is above the 300-fish allocation, but a sign a lot of fish are holding off the mouth right now. The first weekend had 1,009 anglers, a substantial effort, and big economic boost for Brookings.

The Rivers:
River Closures
As of Thursday morning, all the North Coast rivers subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, Smith and Van Duzen are closed. Sections of rivers that are open include the main stem Eel River from the paved junction of Fulmor Road to its mouth, the main stem Mad River from the Hammond Trail Railroad Trestle to its mouth and the main stem Smith River from the mouth of Rowdy Creek to its mouth. The Department of Fish and Game will make the information available to the public no later than 1 p.m. each Monday, Wednesday and Friday as to whether any river will be closed to fishing. The rivers can be opened up at anytime. The low flow closure hotline for North Coast rivers is 707-822-3164.

Chetco
With the bubble season closed, anglers are now focusing on the estuary reports Martin. “I ran a trip Monday and my crew hooked five kings and landed three. We lost one to a sea lion. On Tuesday, ODFW seined the Chetco at Social Security Bar for the hatchery collection. There are a ton of fish there. There were 34 adult kings kept for the hatchery and another 50 released from a single pull of the net. There are a few hundred more fish in that hole alone. There should be a lot of fish upriver this weekend after the expected rain,” added Martin.

The Chetco is currently open to salmon fishing to Nook Creek. From the power line crossing at RM 2.2 upstream to Nook Creek (RM 14) from Sept. 1 through Nov. 3, angling is restricted to fly angling and bobber angling only, with 1 single point hook. Fly angling gear must include a strike indicator. Bobber angling gear must include a bobber and a leader no longer than 36 inches in length. Any weight (except the bobber or strike indicator) may be no more than 36 inches from the hook when suspended vertically. The leader below the bobber or strike indicator must remain suspended in the water column and not resting on the river bottom. The daily/seasonal bag limit is 2 Chinook daily, only one may be unclipped. 20 seasonal, no more than 5 may be unclipped.

Smith
Britt Carson of Crescent City’s Englund Marine reports the mouth of the Smith is giving up quite a few salmon. He said, “I’ve seen quite a few caught this past week, with a gold/copper 3/4 oz. cleo being the top producer. The Sand Hole has a few fish in it as well, and guys are catching a few there tossing cleo’s and kastmasters. Even with the low flows, there’s a few fish as far as Ruby Park. With the rain coming later in the week, the salmon should really be on the move.”

The Smith is predicted to rise to just over 800 cfs on Friday morning, but will be back under the 600 cfs threshold by late evening. The next system is forecasted to push the flows to 1,300 cfs by noon on Sunday. To find out if the river will open to fishing, call the low-flow closure hotline at 707-822-3164.

Trinity
“There are definitely some fish in the system, with a mix of both salmon and steelhead,” reports Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service “I’m seeing a few salmon up on beds for the first time in a couple years, and we’re seeing good numbers showing up to the hatchery. Even with the river dropping to 300 cfs over the weekend, the river is fishable from the top all the way down to the Klamath. Quite a few steelhead are being taken on flies, we’re catching most of our fish on natural cured roe and plugs. There’s still some one-way controlled traffic in the Junction City area due to the fires, making things a little slow to move around. Some weather’s coming in this week, which will definitely help the fishing. The flows are predicted to go up to about 500 cfs.

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

Customers of guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing hold limits of Chinook salmon caught Oct. 8 in the ocean just off the mouth of the Chetco River. Photo courtesy of Andy Martin/Wild Rivers Fishing

After a slow start to the Chetco bubble season on Saturday, the bite really picked up on Sunday. According to guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing, the ODFW fish checkers reported 40 kings for 250 boats on Saturday. “We landed three kings on Saturday, but only one was over the minimum keeper size of 28 inches. On Sunday, we limited out with four kings and lost another four. Most of the other guide boats also limited out. Plug-cut herring was the bait of choice over whole anchovies. The best bite was out in 50-feet of water near the red buoy, where trolling with 12 ounces of lead out 30 feet on the linecounters did the trick.” Martin added. The bubble season will wrap up this Sunday, Oct. 15. According to Martin, the second weekend of the bubble season usually produces more fish — and bigger fish. The daily bag limit is one (1) Chinook per angler. If you plan on making the trip to Brookings for the weekend, make sure and check the forecast prior to leaving home. Saturday’s forecast is calling for a mixed swell to 7 to 8 feet and 2-foot wind waves. Sunday looks better, with a mixed swell to 6 feet and 1 to 2-foot wind waves. For a complete list of regulations, visit http://www.dfw.state.or.us/MRP/salmon/Regulations/docs/2017_Chetco_State_Waters.pdf

Marine forecast
As of Wednesday, the marine forecast doesn’t look great for the weekend. Saturday, north winds are forecasted 10 to 20 knots with waves NW 7 feet at 10 seconds. Winds will decrease slightly on Sunday, with north winds 10 to 15 knots and NW waves 7 feet at 10 seconds. These conditions can and will change by the weekend. For an up-to-date weather forecast, visit www.weather.gov/eureka/. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan, or you can also verify the conditions as reported by looking at the bar cam at www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/barCam/?cam=humboldtBayBar. You can also call the National Weather Service at 707-443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at 707-443-6484.

Potential storm brewing next week
The first significant cold front of the season is forecasted to hit Del Norte and Humboldt sometime mid next week bringing with it some potential rainfall according to Brad Charboneau of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “It’s still a little ways off, but the models are showing rain beginning possibly Wednesday evening and lasting into Thursday. It’s hard to predict this far out, but right now models are showing two to four inches of rain potentially for the Smith basin and one to three inches in Humboldt,” Charboneau added.

Recreational groundfish regulations changes effective Oct. 16
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced new restrictions on recreational fishing for groundfish in waters north of Point Conception to the Oregon/California border in a press release issued on Oct. 5. Changes to authorized fishing depths described below take effect Monday, Oct. 16 at 12:01 a.m., and will remain in place through the remainder of 2017.

The recreational groundfish fishery depth restrictions will be as follows: for the Northern Management Area, which runs from the Oregon/CA border to Cape Mendocino.

Take is prohibited seaward of 20 fathoms (120 feet) in depth. The ‘all-depth’ groundfish fishery slated for November and December 2017 in this area is canceled. For a complete list of areas of depth restrictions, visit https://cdfgnews.wordpress.com/2017/10/05/changes-to-recreational-groundfish-regulations-effective-oct-16/

Dungeness crab testing in progress
According to Christy Juhasz, an Environmental Scientist with CDFW, “The recent Domoic Acid test results indicate that we may not have any delays this season, but we are still waiting on northern port results which could come in late this week or early next week. We also plan on conducting preseason testing for the north coast at the end of Oct. or early Nov. Depending on these results we will learn more about whether any delays will happen.” Juhasz added. Since July 1, areas within Bodega Bay and Half Moon/SF have been tested, with zero percent of the samples exceeding action levels. For more information regarding recreational Dungeness crab fishing regulations and other crab species, visit the DFG Marine Region website at https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Invertebrates/Crabs

Trinity flows dropping
Flows coming out of Lewiston Dam will be reduced beginning Saturday, going from 450 cfs down to 300 cfs by Monday.

Willow Creek weir trappings
“We trapped more Chinook than steelhead at Willow Creek weir this past week, but the steelhead are real beauties,” said Mary Claire Kier, an Environmental Scientist on the Trinity “We also picked up another pink (humpy) salmon. The Coho we are seeing are still both small in number and size.” For the trapping week of Oct 1 through Oct. 7, 107 Chinook jacks were trapped at the weir. To date, 779 jacks have been trapped compared to 69 for the entire 2016 trapping season. This past week, 165 adult Chinook were trapped, bringing the season total to 777. In 2016, only 459 total Chinook were trapped.

The Oceans:
Eureka
The ocean’s been rough, right now there isn’t much going on reports Skipper Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing. “The last day we were able to get out was Friday, and that turned out to be a tough day. The fish were really off the bite, likely due to the big groundswells. Looking at the forecast, we may be able to get out on Sunday, but that looks iffy,” Klassen said.

The Rivers:
Chetco
According to Martin, there’s quite a few jacks and about four dozen adult salmon at Social Security Bar now. He said, “Those were likely the fish that were holding in the estuary last week. Fishing was good in the estuary along the jetties early last week prior to the weekend ocean opener.”

Smith River
A few fish are reportedly being caught at the mouth tossing Kastmasters and Cleo’s. If the rain comes as predicted next week, we should see a decent push of fish enter the lower river. The river is currently closed to fishing above the mouth of Rowdy Creek.

Middle Trinity
We’re finally starting to see more anglers on the upper Trinity, and seeing more steelhead caught as well reports Tim Brady of Weaverville’s Trinity Outdoors. He said, “From what I’ve heard, things are starting to pick up. More fish are starting to move into the upper section, and with that comes more anglers and better reports.

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

Photo courtesy of CDFW

On Sept. 18, the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) voted to bring groundfish depth restrictions for the balance of 2017 back to 2016 depths in California from Pt. Conception to the Oregon border according to an Oct. 3 article in the Fish Sniffer Magazine. The reason behind the depth restriction is the yelloweye rockfish is predicted to exceed harvest guidelines. By allowing anglers to target deeper water, more yelloweye were caught and likely misidentified, leading to an over-harvest.

The restrictions will go into effect after the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) publishes an official notice of the regulation changes, which is expected to be Oct. 16 according to the CDFW website. The CDFW states on its website: “In-season changes to recreational regulations are pending, and expected to take effect in mid-October. Please check this webpage or call the regulations hotline at (831) 649-2801 for updates before engaging in fishing for groundfish.
The article states that CDFW data suggests recreational anglers are in danger of exceeding their allowable take of 3.9 metric tons of yelloweye rockfish, due to the mortality of fish released or those kept by mistake. The groundfish depth restrictions in each region will revert back to those in the 2016 regulations. For the Northern Management Area, which includes all of Del Norte and most of Humboldt County, depth restrictions will go back from 30 fathoms (180 feet) to 20 fathoms (120 feet) for the remainder of the season ending December 31. For more information and a complete list of the restrictions, visit the CDFW Marine Region Groundfish Central website at www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Groundfish.

Weekend marine forecast
As of Wednesday, the ocean forecast for the weekend doesn’t look very fishable. Friday, NW winds are forecasted 5 to 10 knots with waves N 6 feet at 5 seconds and S 2 feet at 20 seconds. Winds will increase on Saturday, coming out of the NW 10 to 20 knots and NW waves 8 feet at 10 seconds and S 3 feet at 16 seconds. Sunday is looking a little worse, with N winds 15 to 25 knots and NW waves 12 feet at 14 seconds.
For an up-to-date weather forecast, visit www.weather.gov/eureka/. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan. You can also call the National Weather Service at 707-443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at 707-443-6484.

2017 Chetco River bubble fishery opens Saturday
The Chetco River fall Chinook bubble season, which will once again be halved and split over two weekends in 2017, opens on Saturday, Oct 7. The recreational season will be Oct. 7-8 and Oct. 14-15 so more anglers can take advantage of the weekend dates. The fishable area is within three nautical miles of shore between Twin Rocks and the Oregon/California border. The bag limit is one Chinook per angler per day. Minimum length is 28 inches and the terminal tackle is limited to no more than two single point barbless hooks. For more information, visit www.dfw.state.or.us/mrp/salmon/Regulations/docs/2017_Chetco_State_Waters.pdf

Eleven year-old Owen Peterson, of Arcata, nailed this dandy California halibut on Sunday while fishing with his father Andy. The big fish was caught on a live sardine and measured 44-inches and weighed 36-pounds. Photo courtesy of Andy Peterson

The Oceans:
Eureka
After some decent weather on Wednesday and Thursday, it looks like we’ll be off the water for the weekend reports Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing. “After not fishing for quite a few days, we finally got a break on Wednesday and were able to make it to the Cape. Friday is looking iffy right now, so we may be fishing in the bay for California halibut. There hasn’t been much effort in the bay lately, but the last report I heard was there’s still plenty of fish around,” Klassen added.

Another good week of salmon trapping in Willow Creek
“A big push of Chinook through the Willow Creek weir this past week, and they were not all jacks,” said Mary Claire Kier, an Environmental Scientist on the Trinity River who manages the Willow Creek weir. “We saw the first Coho of the season, and a couple of pinks as well. For the trapping week of Sept. 24 through 30, 337 Chinook jacks were trapped at the weir. To date, 673 jacks have been trapped compared to 69 for the entire 2016 trapping season. This past week, 295 adult Chinook were trapped, bringing the season total to 612. In 2016, only 459 total Chinook were trapped. Numbers picked up at the hatchery too, and Junction City is going to be trapping for one last week, the weir will be removed this Friday for the season.

Low Flow River Closures now in effect
North Coast rivers that are regulated by low flow closures, including sections of the Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, Smith and Van Duzen are all closed to fishing as of Oct. 1 due to low flows. The Mattole, also falls under low-flow regulations, but doesn’t open to fishing until Jan. 1. For more information and up-to-date closure info, call the North Coast low-flow closure hotline at 707-822-3164 or visit http://wp.me/p3Qr6S-JM

The Rivers:
Smith River
Chris Hegnes of Crescent City’s Englund Marine reports there are a few salmon being caught every day at the mouth of the river. He said, “I haven’t heard anything about the Piling and Sand holes, but I know fish are being caught at the mouth tossing Kastmasters and Cleo’s on the outgoing tide”

Lower Klamath
According to reports, there’s almost zero effort on the lower river right now, but the occasional boat is still getting into a few fish. Reportedly, they are having to work really hard for them. The few boats that are out are mostly fishing flies and spinners. There’s some moss around, but it doesn’t appear to be anything out of the ordinary.

Middle Trinity
There still aren’t many anglers out steelhead fishing, but I am hearing a few steelhead are being caught from Junction City to Douglas City reports Tim Brady of Weaverville’s Trinity Outdoors. He said, “The highway closures are making it tough for people to get to the upper sections from down river. The usual steelhead anglers are starting to trickle in, so we should start to hear more reports. The river is in great shape, so hopefully we’ll start to see some of the fish that are going through the Willow Creek weir start to show up.”

Lower Trinity
Fishing in the lower Trinity is probably your best bet for steelhead right now. Reportedly bank anglers fishing in the Willow Creek area over the weekend were putting up some pretty good numbers. There’s quite a few adults around as well as half-pounders. Lots of hatchery fish in the mix as well.

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com