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The highly anticipated annual sport Dungeness crab season will open statewide this Saturday, Nov. 1. Here on the North Coast, winter crabbing is a tradition that dates back generations. Boats will be working the near shore waters, bays and river mouths baiting, setting and pulling pots and rings — all in the hopes of a big payout of rich, delicious crab.

When the first pots are pulled come Saturday morning, anglers will get their first peak into the health and weight of this seasons crop. The CDFW pre-season testing, which was to take place on Oct. 25, was postponed until Nov. 10 due to a lack of boats in all the testing ports. A typical year will find the meat content at around 20 percent, with the theory being that crabs will add one percent of meat a week and reach the 25 percent mark for the commercial opener of Dec. 1. Meaty crabs or not, we’re just happy to have these tasty crustaceans back on the dinner menu.

Rockfish, Halibut seasons coming to the end
The recreational rockfish season for boat-based anglers as well as the Pacific Halibut season will come to a close on Friday, Oct. 31.

Marine Forecast
The weekend offshore weather doesn’t look great, but the bigger boats should be able to get out and set some gear. As of Wednesday, Saturday’s forecast is calling for N winds 5 to 10 knots with 10-foot waves at 13 seconds coming out of the west. Sunday is looking better; the forecast is calling for N winds up to 5 knots with west waves 6-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.

Weekend Weather forecast
The next system is set to hit Thursday night and will stick around into Saturday morning according to Reginald Kennedy of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “We could see up to 1 inch of rain in the Mad, Eel and Van Duzen basins, with an inch and a half falling in the Smith basin. After a dry Sunday, the next system will move in sometime late Monday or Tuesday morning, bringing another half-inch to the area. After that, we should be dry until Friday night with a wet weekend predicted,” Kennedy said.

Crabbing locations
If you’re planning on heading offshore and leaving pots overnight, your best bet is to start setting gear in 100 to 150 feet of water. Historically, crabs tend to be in deeper water at the beginning of the season and will move in towards the beach later in the year. If you’re soaking for just a few hours and don’t have the equipment to go deep, dropping pots just outside the entrance in 50 feet is a good option.

If you don’t have means to head offshore, you can still find plenty of crab. One of the top spots to soak a few rings is Crab Park, located at the end of Cannibal Island Rd., in Loleta. There’s access to launch a kayak or canoe in the estuary of the Eel River. You can also launch your boat at Pedrazzini Park at the end of Cock Robin Island Rd., and make your way up the estuary towards the mouth of the Eel.

Humboldt Bay also has a few good locations to catch some crab. Out in front of the PG&E plant is a good spot as well as the flat off of the South Jetty parking lot. Another top location is either side of the channel leading into the South Bay. Up north, inside Trinidad Harbor is another popular spot among the locals. You can launch your small boat, kayak or canoe right off the beach and head out to Prisoner Rock, where the bottom is sandy and 40 to 50-ft deep. Launching here requires a relatively calm ocean, which may not be the case this weekend.

To the north, Crescent City harbor is a good option for the smaller boats, especially if the ocean is rough. If you’re running offshore, South Beach from Mussel Rock to Endert Beach, in 40-feet of water, is also a good option. Straight out of the harbor in 100-feet has also been a good location.

Bait:
Squid is probably the most popular bait, but any type of fish carcass frozen from the summer will work. Raw chicken, especially drumsticks, work as well.

Regulations:
In Del Norte, Humboldt and Mendocino counties, the season runs from Saturday, Nov. 1 through July 30, 2015. 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. Traps and nets for Dungeness crab may not be set before 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 1. A valid California sport fishing license is required. For more information regarding recreational Dungeness crab fishing regulations and other crab species, visit dfg.ca.gov/marine/invertebrate/crabs.asp

Potential hazardous bar crossing on Saturday
For crab fishermen heading offshore, there could be potential hazardous bar condition on Saturday due to the combination of tides and swells converging at the time when boats will be headed in and out the mouth of the bay. After Saturday’s high tide at 7:55 a.m., 6.2-feet of water will be flowing out of the bay and running straight into 10-foot swells. This could be dangerous and it’s best 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. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan

Weekend Tides – Humboldt Bay
Sat., Nov. 1 (High: 7:55 a.m. and 7:40 p.m.) (Low: 1:00 a.m. and 1:49 p.m.)
Standard time begins at 2:00 a.m. Sunday
Sun., Nov. 2 (High: 7:45 a.m. and 7:54 p.m.) (Low: 1:55 p.m.)

Woodley Island sport crab trips
Reel Steel Sport Fishing, Shellback Sport Fishing, and Full Throttle Sport Fishing are all booking crab trips out of Woodley Island for Saturday’s opener. 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 Shellback Sport Fishing, call (707) 442-7115. Reel Steel Sport Fishing can be reached at (707) 499-4925 and Full Throttle’s reservations number is (707) 498-7473. The weekend trips fill up quick, so you’ll want to call early to reserve your spot.

The Rivers:
As of Wednesday afternoon, all North Coast rivers subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Eel, South Fork Eel, Van Duzen, Mad, Redwood Creek, Smith were open to fishing. However, the low flow closure hotline stated the So Fork Eel, Van Duzen, and Redwood Creek would close Thursday morning unless increased flows warranted keeping them open. With rain predicted for Thursday evening, it’s likely these three rivers will open back up sometime either Friday or Saturday. You’ll want to make sure and call the hotline, (707) 822-3164, prior to fishing.

Smith River
According to Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service, fishing has been tough the last couple of days. He said, “The river has dropped and cleared, and it’s getting tougher to find any current. The rise we had last week probably pushed the older fish up river, but there isn’t a lot of new fish stacked on the lower end. We have a decent shot of rain coming later in the week, and that rise should bring in some new fish and rejuvenate the river.”

Lower Klamath
As of Wednesday, the lower Klamath was flowing at just under 6,000 cfs and should be plenty fishable. Depending on how much rain falls on Thursday and Friday, it may blow out by the weekend.

Upper Trinity
Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service has been covering water from Douglas City to Del Loma and reports the rain really helped move the fish around. “There’s quite a few salmon around, and some fresh fish are starting to push in. We’ve seen quite a few fresh jacks this past week as well. I’ve been targeting mainly steelhead, and the bite has been good. There’s lots of fish around and they are mostly bright. Plugs and side-drifted roe are both catching fish,” Huber added.

Chetco River
Anti-snagging rules will be lifted after Monday, Nov. 3 and the section above Nook Creek will open to salmon fishing. The daily/season bag limit is 2 Chinook per day, with only 1 unclipped. The season limit is 20, with no more than 5 unclipped. For more information, visit http://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/fishing/docs/2014_Chinook_Fisheries.pdf

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Eureka resident Eric Banko with a big king salmon caught Friday on the Smith River fishing with Kenny Priest of Fishing the North Coast Guide Service.

Rain is falling, and it sounds like plenty more is on the way. And if the amounts predicted come to fruition, we could see all of the North Coast rivers that are subject to low flow closures opened up to fishing as early as Friday, or possibly even Thursday. The exception would be the Smith River, which opened up on Monday. Forecasted rainfall totals through the weekend look pretty impressive. In the Smith basin, three inches are slated to fall through Friday morning with another three inches predicted to accumulate from Saturday’s storm. In Humboldt County, the forecast is calling for roughly three inches combined from two systems, which should taper off by Sunday afternoon. This is welcome news for the salmon that have been trapped in the estuaries of rivers like the Eel, Mad, and Redwood Creek. The rain should also aid the salmon and steelhead as they head up the tributaries along the Klamath and Trinity rivers.

 Upper Trinity River closing to the take of adult salmon
The CDFW projects that the Upper Trinity River anglers will have met their catch quota of 681 adult fall-run Chinook salmon above Cedar Flat by sundown on Friday, Oct. 24. Starting Saturday, Oct. 25, anglers may still fish but can no longer keep adult Chinook salmon over 22 inches in the Trinity River above Cedar Flat. Fish tags may be removed and returned to CDFW. Anglers may still keep a daily bag of three Chinook salmon under 22 inches.

The fall-run Chinook salmon quota on the Lower Trinity River is 681 adult Chinook salmon from the confluence with the Klamath River up to Cedar flat. This sub-area quota has not been met yet, and anglers may retain one adult Chinook salmon as part of their three fish daily bag limit. Anglers may keep track of the status of open and closed sections of the Klamath and Trinity rivers by calling (800) 564-6479.

Klamath re-opens above I-5
On Friday, Oct. 24, the Klamath River from the Interstate 5 bridge up to Iron Gate Hatchery reopens to the take of Chinook salmon over 22 inches. The Iron Gate Hatchery has met the 8,000 adult fish number needed for spawning purposes. This means anglers can keep one Chinook over 22 inches as part of the three-fish daily bag limit in this section of the Klamath River.

 Weekend Weather
A couple pretty wet systems are set to roll through the North Coast according to Reginald Kennedy of Eureka’s National Weather Service. The first will have started Wednesday and should stick around through Thursday. “We could see up to 3 inches of rain in the Smith basin, the Eel and Van Duzen around an inch and a half, and Redwood Creek may see 2 inches. All the rivers should see a fairly significant rise,” Kennedy added. After a break on Friday, the next round of rain will be here Friday night and will linger until Sunday morning. “Rainfall totals for the weekend should be similar to the first system.” After a break on Sunday afternoon through Monday, the next system will arrive on Tuesday according to Kennedy. “Next week looks to be wet as well,” Kennedy said.

Dungeness crab testing begins this Saturday
According to DFG Senior Marine Biologist Pete Kalvass, who oversees the Invertebrate Management Project, CDFW will begin collecting crab Oct. 25 and should have meat yield results by the following Monday or Tuesday. Ports scheduled for testing include Crescent City, Eureka, Fort Bragg, Bodega, and San Francisco. For more information regarding recreational Dungeness crab fishing regulations and other crab species, please visit the DFG Marine Region website at www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/invertebrate/crabs.asp

The Oceans:
Eureka
Rough ocean conditions have kept the sport fleet tied up for the past couple weeks, and more is in store for this weekend as well. Friday’s forecast is for winds from the south 10 to 20 knots and west waves 10-feet at 12 seconds. Saturday is calling for southwest winds 15 to 25 knots and waves out of the west 16-feet at 12 seconds. The wind and swell will calm on Sunday. Winds are expected out of the north to 5 knots and west waves to 11-feet at 12 seconds.

The Rivers:
Smith River
According to Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service, the Smith was in good shape on Tuesday and quite a few fish were caught. He said, “The rise on Tuesday brought in quite a few new fish, and there were lots of jacks around as well. There were also quite a few fish that had been in the river for a while. Overall, the fishing was really good; we probably hooked roughly 20 fish, including some nice bright ones to take home. I’m a little uncertain what’s going to happen with the rain that’s forecasted for the next several days. If it goes as high as predicted, it will certainly rejuvenate the river and move the fish around. There may be a window on Friday morning, but conditions should be ideal early next week.”

River Closures
As of Wednesday evening, all the North Coast rivers, except the Smith, that are subjected to low flow fishing closures, including the Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, and Van Duzen were 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. The Mattole, also falls under low-flow regulations, but doesn’t open to fishing until Jan. 1

The CDFW 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.

Klamath
Lower Klamath
The Klamath has been on the rise since earlier this week, but it remained fishable. Fresh fish were still entering the river according to the CDFW fish counters. The few boats that were out reported adult salmon, jacks as well as steelhead this week. With rain forecasted for the next several days, the river will most likely blow out.

Trinity
Upper
Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service reports there’s quite a few fish holding down in the Junction City area. He said, “Those fish are holding, waiting for rain and probably bound for the South Fork and some of the lower tributaries. We’re getting anywhere between three to five fish per trip working the Douglas City area down to Del Loma. There are a few fresh fish around, but not many. Most of the fish we’re seeing are colored up. There’s quite a few silvers spread throughout the river, and we’re starting to see some fresh steelhead make it up.”

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My favorite time of the year is finally here. The season’s first storms are peppering the North Coast, and rivers like the Eel, Smith, and Checto are beginning to fill with much-needed water. The late fall king salmon, who’ve been waiting patiently in the their estuaries, are ready to charge upriver towards their final spawning destinations. For anglers, the chess game is just getting started. If you’re like me, river flows, rainfall totals and river level forecasts are being constantly monitored. My iPhone has become a permanent fixture in the palm of my hand, pouring over the data that will provide the best opportunity to ambush the kings as they make their way upriver. Making sure my favorite Kwikfish are in working order, stocking the freezer with a season’s worth of sardines, and digging out the back-bouncing bait is all part of the fun. Another aspect of fishing the coastal rivers this time of the year is keeping track of the openings and closings of rivers that are regulated by low flow closures, which began Oct. 1. To stay up-to-date on the what’s open and closed to fishing, it’s a wise to add the low-flow closure hotline, (707) 822-3164, to your contacts. For a complete list of low flow regulations, visit and bookmark fishingthenorthcoast.com/2014/10/16/low-flow-regulations-for-north-coast-rivers.

Checto anti-snagging bobber rule in effect

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.

PFMC public comment needed on Halibut

There are only a few days left to solicit public comments for the November 16, 2014 PFMC meeting, and HASA is asking for your help. The Council is scheduled to take final action on proposed changes for the 2015 Area 2A halibut fisheries at the November 14-19, 2014 Council meeting in Costa Mesa, CA. The deadline to make it into the briefing book is this Friday, Oct. 17. You can still submit comments afterwards until Nov. 4, but they will not make it in the book and instead will be handed out on the first day of the meeting. Public comment on the options can be submitted to pfmc.comments@noaa.gov.

HASA is supporting Alternative 4, which will increase our halibut quota to 4 percent. They are submitting public comments on this, but need more emails/letters to be submitted. For more information, visit http://www.pcouncil.org/2014/09/32634/halibut-sept2014-decisions/

Weekend Weather

According to Reginald Kennedy of Eureka’s National Weather Service, we’ll be in between storms on Thursday, but more rain is on the way. “The next storm should arrive Friday afternoon and linger into Saturday morning. Rainfall totals will be from a quarter to a half-inch. The next system will hit early Monday and could pack a little better punch. We could see up to three-quarters of an inch. Tuesday and Wednesday are both looking dry, we should see more rain moving in Thursday night,” Kennedy added.

The Oceans:

Eureka/Crescent City

Rough offshore waters brought both ports to a standstill this past week for sport anglers targeting rockfish and halibut. And it’s looking like they won’t get much of a break this weekend with more unsettled weather on the way. Friday is calling for winds out of the SE to 20 knots, with waves 10-feet at 11 seconds. Saturday looks decent, with winds out of the S to 5 knots and waves 7-feet at 11 seconds. Sunday looks a little nasty, with S winds to 10 knots and 13-foot swells at 15 seconds.

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.

Smith River

The Smith opened to fishing on Wednesday after rising above the 600 minimum cfs level, but was closed as of Thursday morning. There were reportedly quite a few fish on the lower river, but the increase in flows should have pushed those fish up and brought some fresh fish in from the ocean.

Lower Klamath

There’s still fresh salmon coming into the river, reports Alan Borges of Alan’s Guide Service. He said, “I heard the mouth was almost shut this past weekend, but it opened back up earlier this week and we saw a bunch of new fish enter the river. There’s quite a few fish around, some older fish along with the new ones as well as some jacks. I haven’t seen any steelhead or silvers lately. We received close to three inches of rain on Tuesday night, but the river was in great shape on Wednesday. I didn’t see any dirty water coming down.”

Upper Trinity

According to Steve Huber of Steve Huber’s Guide Service, who’s been working the Del Loma area, the fishing has been tough. “There doesn’t appear to be a lot of fresh salmon around right now. We’re getting a shot at three or four per trip, along with a couple steelhead. The fishing is just slow right now; a good shot of rain would do wonders. The smolts were released at the beginning of the month, and they’re pretty thick right now. It will be tough to fish bait without it being wrapped,” 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.

North Coast rivers that are regulated by low flow closures, including the Eel River, Mad River, Mattole River, Redwood Creek, Smith River and Van Duzen River will begin angling restrictions on Oct. 1, except for the Mad River, which went into effect Sept. 1. The Department of Fish and Game will make the information available to the public by a telephone recorded message updated, as necessary, no later than 1 p.m. each Monday, Wednesday and Friday as to whether any stream will be closed to fishing. The rivers can be opened up at any time. The low flow closure hotline for North Coast rivers is 822-3164.

The main stem Eel from the South Fork to Cape Horn Dam and the Mattole River will be closed until Jan. 1.

Areas subjected to Low Flow Closures:

Mad River — the main stem Mad River from the Hammond Trail Railroad Trestle to Cowan Creek. Minimum flow: 200 cfs at the gauging station at the Highway 299 bridge.

Eel River — the main stem Eel River from the paved junction of Fulmor Road with the Eel River to the South Fork Eel River — minimum flow: 350 cfs at the gauging station near Scotia.

The South Fork of the Eel River downstream from Rattlesnake Creek and the Middle Fork Eel River downstream from the Bar Creek — minimum flow: 340 cfs at the gauging station at Miranda.

Van Duzen River — the main stem Van Duzen River from its junction with the Eel River to the end of Golden Gate Drive near Bridgeville (approximately 4,000 feet upstream of Little Golden Gate Bridge). Minimum flow: 150 cfs at the gauging station near Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park.

Mattole River — the main stem of the Mattole River from the mouth to Honeydew Creek.

Minimum flow: 320 cfs at the gauging station at Petrolia.

Redwood Creek — the main stem of Redwood Creek from the mouth to its confluence with Bond Creek. Minimum flow: 300 cfs at the gauging station near the Highway 101 bridge.

Smith River — the main stem Smith River from the mouth of Rowdy Creek to its confluence with Patrick Creek; the South Fork Smith River from the mouth upstream approximately 1000 feet to the County Road (George Tyron) bridge and Craigs Creek to its confluence with Jones Creek; and the North Fork Smith River from the mouth to its confluence with Stony Creek. Minimum flow: 600 cfs at the Jedediah Smith State Park gauging station.

Patricia Stockel of Eureka, pictured right, along with skipper Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing landed this whopper Vermilion rockfish on Monday while fishing near Cape Mendocino. The North Coast rockfish season, as well as Pacific Halibut, both come to a close at the end of October. Photo courtesy of Reel Steel Sport Fishing

Fresh kings still entering the Klamath

This week’s lake-like ocean conditions prompted more than a few boats to target late-season rockfish near Cape Mendocino as well as halibut off the coast of Eureka. While the Halibut bite has been spotty at best, the rockfish and lingcod action remains nothing short of stellar. Every boat that’s made the trek south reported limits of fat rockfish, along with limits of lingcod. The halibut bite on the other hand, remains a little tougher. There were lots of skunks reported, and a few boats were lucky enough to land a couple — a true hit and miss report. If you’re planning a trip offshore this weekend, be sure and check the marine forecast prior to leaving as both Saturday and Sunday are looking a little on the rough side. Both rockfish and halibut seasons will come to an end on October 31.

Rain coming next week
Looks like we’re stuck with dry conditions through the weekend, but changes are on the way early next week. According to Reginald Kennedy of Eureka’s National Weather Service, we’ll see some rain begin to fall on Monday afternoon and it should last into the evening. “We could see up to a quarter-inch on Monday, then we’ll dry out on Tuesday. More rain is predicted for Wednesday as a series of systems roll through the area. We should see rain off and on through Saturday the 18th. It looks like we could get anywhere from two to three inches of rain over the four-day period,” Kennedy added.

Weekend marine forecast
As of Wednesday afternoon, the weekend offshore forecast does not look good. Friday’s forecast is calling for N winds 5 to 10 knots with waves W 4-feet at 12 seconds. It starts to get a little ugly on Saturday, with N winds 5 to 15 knots and waves NW 5-feet at 8-seconds and W 8-feet at 17 seconds. Sunday looks similar with N winds 5 to 15 knots and waves NW 5-feet at 8 seconds and W 9-feet at 16 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 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.

Tuna out of Eureka
With a flat ocean since the weekend, a handful of boats have been targeting tuna out of Eureka. Marc Schmidt of Coastline Charters ran 56 miles on Saturday and boated 16 large tuna, with the biggest tipping the scales at 36-pounds. A few boats ran on Monday as well, but the results weren’t quite as good. The high boat landed eight, while some of the other boats came back wit 4 or less. More boats made the run on Wednesday, but I didn’t hear any scores.

The Oceans:
Eureka
Skippers Gary Blasi of Full Throttle Sport fishing and Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing both have been running trips to the Cape this past week, taking advantage of the calm ocean. Both report a lingcod bite that is completely off the hook. According to Klassen, they come into the shallows this time of the year to spawn. He said, “We’re catching lots of 22 to 24 inchers that I believe are real aggressive males that are sitting on beds. We’ve had a few really good spawning years, and I think we’re seeing the results this year. The halibut bite remains slow, with less than a fish per trip average. “They must be somewhere we haven’t looked yet,” Klassen added. The inshore warm water may have something to do with it added Blasi. “If it’s not affecting the halibut directly, it may be affecting what they’re feeding on this time of year.”

Crescent City
Leonard Carter of Crescent City’s Englund Marine reports the rockfish bite has been good the last few days. He said, “The ocean has been flat, and the few boats that are going out are coming back with limits. There aren’t many people still trying.”

Port of Brookings Harbor – Chetco Bubble Season
Cindy Jones O’Reilly of Sporthaven Marina (541) 469-3301 reports the bubble season at the mouth of the Chetco is still going strong, with lots of fish still coming in. She said, “I heard the fishing was excellent on Tuesday, but had slowed down as of Wednesday afternoon. The leader in the Chetco Hawg Derby as of Wednesday is still the 38.8-pound king caught last week. The bubble season will wrap up Sunday, October 12. For more information, visit http://www.dfw.state.or.us/MRP/salmon/Regulations/docs/2014_Chetco_SW_Sport.pdf

The Rivers:
Smith River
A few salmon are being caught at the mouth on Kastmasters and Cleo’s according to Carter.

Lower Klamath
There’s still fresh adult kings coming into the lower Klamath, but there aren’t many jacks around reports Alan Borges of Alan’s Guide Service. He said, “The last few days the fishing has been real good as we’re still seeing brand new fish come in. It’s obviously slowed down since the peak of the season, but we’re still hooking upwards of 20 fish per trip. We’ve seen a few Coho around, and there’s some steelhead being caught as well. The river is in great shape, the release from the upper Klamath brought down a little moss, but it’s not bad at all. The water temperature is a cool 63 degrees.”

Middle Trinity
There’s quite a few salmon hanging around below the North Fork reports Tim Brady of Weaverville’s Trinity Outdoors. He said, “The fish are holding all the way down to the Del Loma area right now. The fishing isn’t red-hot, but the guys who know what they’re doing are catching one or two per trip. Panther Martin’s and Blue Fox’s have been the top producers.” Brady also added the smolts have been released from the hatchery and are working their way down, which will make it tough to fish bait. “I haven’t heard any good steelhead reports lately, but that certainly doesn’t mean they’re not around.”

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.

Oct. 6. 2014 — Had an epic day on the Klamath last Saturday with friends Eric and Nicolas. We hooked a ton of fish, including Eric’s fish around 40 pounds.

Eric could barely lift and hold this monster,

Nicholas landed quite a few fish as well.

Janelle Dyleski of Sebastopol landed this bright 25-lb salmon Monday on the lower Klamath River while fishing with guide Alan Borges, pictured right. Photo courtesy of Alan’s Guide Service

Chetco Bubble Season off to fast start

The warm water finally moved in close enough for the Eureka boats to set their sights on oh-so-elusive Albacore tuna. About a half-dozen boats made the 25-mile trek straight out of the Humboldt entrance to where the water hit 62 degrees according to Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing, who was one of the three charter boats to participate in the hunt. Unfortunately, the day turned out to be nothing more than a beautiful boat ride. No tuna were caught, or even seen for that matter. “We never did see that real blue water, it was mostly green. We saw quite a bit of bait along with dolphins and whales, but the tuna were nowhere to be found. The boats that were out did a good job of covering some water and staying in touch, but we all came up empty,” Klassen added. The next opportunity looks like a one or two day window on the 7th and 8th of October.

Dry weather ahead
After a good start to our rainy season, it looks like we’re going to stay mostly dry for the next couple of weeks according to Reginald Kennedy of Eureka’s National Weather Service. “The next good chance of rain will be around the 14th or 15th, but that’s still a ways out there, a lot can change between now and then,” Kennedy added.

Judge Rejects Agribusiness’ Lawsuit over Trinity River Flows
In a press release issued on Wednesday by Earthjustice, and the Hoopa and Yurok Tribes, a federal judge dismissed almost all claims in a lawsuit brought by a coalition of agribusiness and irrigators seeking to prevent the protection of salmon in California’s Trinity River. Judge Lawrence O’Neill, based in Fresno, largely upheld the Bureau of Reclamation’s ability to provide additional flow in the Trinity to prevent harm to salmon, but indicated that different legal authorities need to be invoked.

The agribusiness-dominated San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority and Westlands Water District brought the case last year against the BOR, which controls water releases from the Trinity Reservoir to the drought-stricken Trinity and Lower Klamath rivers in Oregon. These rivers support huge runs of Chinook and Coho salmon, on which commercial fishing industries and the Yurok and Hoopa Valley Tribes depend for sustenance.

“Ultimately this case is also about preserving the California salmon fishing industry,” said Glen Spain, NW Regional Director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations (PCFFA), which represents commercial fishing families coast-wide. “It makes no sense to sacrifice thousands of fisheries jobs over 700 miles of coastline to provide just a little bit more water to a voracious Central Valley Agribusiness system that has already sucked up far more than its share in a major drought.”

“Straight up, if the Bureau of Reclamation did not make the decision to augment flows on the Klamath, we would be right now cleaning up thousands of salmon carcasses on the river,” said Thomas P. O’Rourke, Sr., Chairman of the Yurok Tribe.

To read the entire press release, visit: http://earthjustice.org/news/press/2014/judge-rejects-agribusiness-water-grabbing-lawsuit-over-trinity-river-flows.

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.

Boating safety class this Saturday
The USCG Auxiliary has scheduled a recreational boating safety class for Saturday, Oct 4 in the Woodley Island Marina Conference Room from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The class is open to all boaters, not just the recreational fishing fleet. Persons wishing to take the class can register by calling Thom O’Connor at 707-954-4481 or email ocowest@charter.net. Cost of the class is $20 per person.

The Oceans:
Eureka
The ocean was a little bouncy over the weekend, though Klassen was able to bring two halibut to the boat on Sunday. He said, “The weather looks better towards the end of the week, we should be able to get some good days in at the halibut grounds and we should be able to run to the Cape too. At least that’s the hope.”

Port of Brookings Harbor – Chetco Bubble Season
Cindy Jones O’Reilly of Sporthaven Marina (541) 469-3301 reports the bubble season at the mouth of the Chetco is off to a really good start. She said, “The weather was nice on Wednesday and lots of fish were being caught. We weighed in several in the 27-34-pound range already and I’m hearing there are some 50-60-pound fish out there. Herring was the top producer on Wednesday. The leader as of Wednesday afternoon in the Chetco Hawg Derby is a 38.8-pound king caught by Greg Kawaguchi. The bubble season will wrap up Sunday, October 12. For more information, visit http://www.dfw.state.or.us/MRP/salmon/Regulations/docs/2014_Chetco_SW_Sport.pdf

The Rivers:
Smith River
Leonard Carter of Crescent City’s Englund Marine reports a good push of fish came in with last week’s rain. He said, “I heard there were fish as high as the Early hole last week, though the river is closed as of Wednesday. A few fish are also being caught in the estuary,” Look for the Smith to bust wide-open on the next big rain.

Lower Klamath
King salmon fishing remains excellent on the Lower Klamath River. Fresh fish continued to pour into the river this week, and so far, there haven’t been any signs of the run coming to an end. The fish are spread throughout the system, with boats working from Johnson’s down to Starwein finding fish in just about every hole. A couple silvers, which normally come into the river on the tail end of the king run, were reportedly caught this week. Water conditions are excellent, with the river flowing at 2,500 cfs and reading a very salmon-friendly 65 degrees.

Middle Trinity
Tim Brady of Weaverville’s Trinity Outdoors reports quite a few salmon have entered the middle of the Trinity. “The biggest concentrations of salmon are between Junction City and Hayden Flat. A few have trickled above, but not in big numbers as of yet. From what I’m hearing, the fish are in real good shape. Spinners and roe have been doing well,” Brady added.

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

Fishing the North Coast comes out every Thursday in the Times-Standard newspaper and is listed on the Eureka Chamber of Commerce’s website. For the most up to date information, find FNC on Facebook.

Marc Schmidt of Coastline Charter, shows off two of the 24 albacore tuna he boated on Monday while fishing out of Eureka. Schmidt, along with a couple friends, ran more than 57 nautical miles towards Punta Gorda where they found the warm water and plenty of hungry albacore. (Photo courtesy of Coastline Charters)

Low Flow closures on North Coast rivers begin Wednesday
If I were a betting man, I’d probably lay down a few bucks on the Trinity River being the salmon hotspot this weekend as all signs point towards this coastal gem busting wide-open. The second water release of the season, which pumped 3,400 cfs out of Trinity Lake for the better part of six days, in all likelihood signaled a large amount of king salmon to begin their annual migration from the Klamath into the Trinity. It’s no secret the number of returning kings to the Klamath was underestimated — the fishing has been off the hook for weeks now. And now, as the water releases have been cut back to normal and the tributaries and creeks are flowing again following a few inches of rain, the Trinity is primed and ready to be the top spot for big, fall king salmon.

Good start to rainy season
It’s certainly not going to bust us out of the drought, but the first real storm of the year dropped some pretty impressive rainfall totals. According to Reginald Kennedy of Eureka’s National Weather Service, the Smith River basin saw the bulk of the precipitation, with up to 3.5 inches of rain falling. “Down in Humboldt, we’ll see anywhere from 2 to 2.5 inches of rain. I don’t foresee any significant rises to our local rivers, but it should help build the water table and get the creeks running again,” Kennedy added. According to Kennedy we’ll see some on and off again showers through Friday, which could produce up to a half-inch in some locations. Saturday is calling for widely scattered showers as the system moves east, and Sunday should be dry.

Weekend marine forecast
Friday and the weekend aren’t looking great for offshore adventures. Friday, wind is forecasted out of the NW to 5 knots, with swells at 8-feet at 9 seconds. Winds will blow out of the NW both Saturday and Sunday at 5 to 15 knots. Saturday, waves are forecasted at 3-feet at 4 seconds and 9-feet at 12 seconds. Sunday is calling for waves 2-feet at 4 seconds and 6-feet at 10 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.

Boating safety class coming next Sat
The USCG Auxiliary has scheduled a recreational boating safety class for Saturday, Oct 4 in the Woodley Island Marina Conference Room from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The class is open to all boaters, not just the recreational fishing fleet. Persons wishing to take the class can register by calling Thom O’Connor at 707-954-4481 or email ocowest@charter.net. Cost of the class is $20 per person.

Tuna out of Eureka
On Monday, Marc Schmidt, of Coastline Charters took off from Eureka with a couple friends for what he thought was a scouting trip for albacore tuna. Fifty-seven miles later off of Punta Gorda, the trip quickly turned into an epic fishing adventure. The first fish came within five minutes of having the troll gear in the water, and that was followed by six-way, where they put five of them onboard. The rest of the day produced a fairly steady bite, with a couple one-hour lulls mixed in. All told, they boated 24 albies, the smallest weighing 22-pounds and the biggest tipping the scales at 38-pounds. A very excited Schmidt said, “It was a very good day considering how things have been for California albacore fishing this year and with low expectations for the day, we were very happy.”

The Oceans:

Eureka
According to Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing, not much has changed in Eureka. He said, “The halibut bite is still hit and miss. A few here and there are being caught, but not many. Hopefully we’ll get some better conditions next week so we can look around a little more. Most of the fish have been coming from 200 to 300-feet of water. Not much has changed down at the Cape, it’s easy limits of rockfish and quite a few quality lings are coming over the rail too.”

Crescent City
Haven’t heard of any halibut being caught this week, but the rockfish bite is good for the few anglers that are still fishing reports Chris Hegne’s of Englund Marine. “The ocean is going to be pretty rough the rest of the week, and the weekend isn’t looking much better,” Hegnes added.

Low Flow River Closures begin Oct. 1
North Coast rivers that are regulated by low flow closures, including the Eel River, Mad River, Mattole River, Redwood Creek, Smith River and Van Duzen River will begin angling restrictions on October 1st, except for the Mad River, which went into effect September 1st. The Department of Fish and Game will make the information available to the public by a telephone recorded message updated, as necessary, no later than 1 p.m. each Monday, Wednesday and Friday as to whether any stream 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. NOTE: The main stem Eel from the South Fork to Cape Horn Dam and the Mattole River will be closed until January 1, 2015

Areas subject to low flow closures:

Mad River: The main stem Mad River from the Hammond Trail Railroad Trestle to Cowan Creek. Minimum flow: 200 cfs at the gauging station at the Highway 299 bridge.

The main stem Eel River from the paved junction of Fulmor Road with the Eel River to the South Fork Eel River. Minimum flow: 350 cfs at the gauging station near Scotia.

The South Fork of the Eel River downstream from Rattlesnake Creek and the Middle Fork Eel River downstream from the Bar Creek. Minimum flow: 340 cfs at the gauging station at Miranda.

Van Duzen River: The main stem Van Duzen River from its junction with the Eel River to the end of Golden Gate Drive near Bridgeville (approximately 4,000 feet upstream of Little Golden Gate Bridge. Minimum flow: 150 cfs at the gauging station near Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park.

Mattole River: The main stem of the Mattole River from the mouth to Honeydew Creek.

Minimum flow: 320 cfs at the gauging station at Petrolia.

Redwood Creek: The main stem of Redwood Creek from the mouth to its confluence with Bond Creek. Minimum flow: 300 cfs at the gauging station near the Highway 101 bridge.

Smith River: The main stem Smith River from the mouth of Rowdy Creek to its confluence with Patrick Creek; the South Fork Smith River from the mouth upstream approximately 1000 ft to the County Road (George Tyron) bridge and Craigs Creek to its confluence with Jones Creek; and the North Fork Smith River from the mouth to its confluence with Stony Creek. Minimum flow: 600 cfs at the Jedediah Smith State Park gauging station.

The Rivers:
Lower Klamath
The Klamath really starting dropping into prime shape earlier in the week, but the rain could potentially change the conditions over the weekend reports Mike Coopman of Mike Coopman’s Guide Service. He said, “The river was still pretty big, but it was starting to clear. There are still lots of fish around, maybe not as many as a few weeks ago, but the fishing is still really good. With the higher water, the fish have been flying up river. Most of the fish we’re catching are coming on the flats, where they’re traveling and resting. The fish haven’t been sitting in the holes due to all the extra current. The grade of fish is still good; we’re catching quite a few adults and roughly 4 to 5 jacks per trip. I think the weekend may be a little tougher fishing. With the rain we’re getting this week, we’ll probably see some dirty runoff in the upper Klamath where the fires are burning. The ocean is also pretty rough with big swells predicted through the weekend, making it tough for salmon to enter the mouth.”

Trinity
If we don’t get too much rain, the entire Trinity should be in good shape for the weekend reports Tim Brady of Weaverville’s Trinity Outdoors. He said, “I spoke with a couple guys who were fishing around Big Bar on Tuesday and reportedly a few fish were caught and quite a few were rolling. With the river on the drop, those fish should begin to slow down and hold up in the holes. My guess is the rise moved a lot of fish into the river, and hopefully some of the larger creeks don’t get too muddy.”

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

Check out North Fork Studios.net for more information on a film that will be coming up about the history of The Eel River.