Around this same time the past few years, our Pacific halibut seasons were coming to a close as red-hot fishing made quick work of the quotas. Much like last year, the same cannot be said for 2025. Though we’ve had some pretty good flurries, the bite remains fairly inconsistent. Boats have been covering a lot of ground, searching from Trinidad south to the Eel River Canyon in looking for schools, but have to yet to locate any spots that will offer consistent fishing day after day. As of the end of July, our projected catch rate stood at 16,731 net pounds harvested against the 39,280 quota. But we know we’ve caught quite a few since the catch estimate was last updated.
Now, with the tuna water in clear view, anglers will shift their focus to the longfins giving the halibut a bit of a breather. This should set the stage for halibut, rockfish, and Dungeness crab combo trips come November.
Tuna update
A handful of boats made the run west out of Eureka on Tuesday and Wednesday looking for tuna. Scored ranged from a couple to mid-teens. The water is currently sitting at roughly 38 miles straight west of Eureka. After the wind blows through this weekend, early next week could be a possibility to head offshore again.
Weekend marine forecast
Breezy conditions are in the forecast for the next few days, but things look much better starting Monday. For coastal waters out 10 nautical miles, Friday’s forecast is calling for north winds 20 to 25 knots and north waves 8 feet at seven seconds and west 3 feet at 10 seconds. Saturday is calling for north winds 10 to 15 knots and waves out of the north 7 feet at seven seconds. Sunday looks better, with winds out of the west 5 to 10 knots and waves north 6 feet at eight seconds and northwest 3 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/ or www.windy.com. You can also call the National Weather Service at 443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at 443-6484.
The Oceans:
Eureka
According to Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing, the Pacific halibut bite is still decent, but not red hot. “You really need to grind on them,” said Klassen. “There are some limits coming, but it’s not every day. If you land on a good spot, you’ll do well. Boats have mostly been fishing between the 51 and 55-lines. The rockfish bite at the Cape wasn’t great the last couple days, mostly due to the wonky current. We caught lots of black rockfish, but the lings and other varieties were tougher to come by. The fish are there, just need better conditions. The tuna water is sitting about 41 miles off of Eureka, so we may get an opportunity early next week when the ocean lays down.”
Shelter Cove
Not much has changed at the Cove reports Jake Mitchell of Sea Hawk Sport Fishing. He said, “Rock fishing remains solid with the lingcod being hit and miss. The weather hasn’t allowed to get back to the halibut grounds this week. Most rock fishing effort was around the whistle buoy. It’s looking like we may get a shot at tuna Monday and Tuesday.”
Crescent City
The California halibut bite really turned on this week reports Will Moore of Crescent City’s Englund Marine. “I’ve seen close to 20 caught myself,” said Moore. “Boats trolling South Beach are doing well along with anglers fishing off the rock wall across from the launch. The Pacific halibut bite is not really happening. The rockfish and lingcod bite are still on fire, with limits coming pretty easily The Sisters and right out front at the cans have both been very productive. One boat went out for tuna on Wednesday and got one at 30 miles. We should get some better opportunities in the coming week.”
Brookings
“Fishing remains open for hatchery coho salmon, but action has been slow, as the bulk of the run has migrated north, headed back to the Columbia River,” said Andy Martin of Brookings Fishing Charters. “Fishing for coho has picked up considerably out of Coos Bay, Winchester Bay and Newport as the run moves north. King fishing is closed, but they are around in good numbers, and anglers continue to encounter them while bottom fishing. Halibut action is good at times out of Brookings, but large numbers of small black cod have made soaking baits difficult. Lingcod and rockfish action is good, along with sport crabbing.”
The Rivers:
Lower Klamath
Steelhead fishing is hit and miss on the Lower Klamath. The fish seem to be trickling in, offering decent fishing one day and very slow the next. Fishing should only get better as we head into the first few weeks of August. The daily bag limit is two hatchery steelhead or hatchery trout per day on both the Klamath and Trinity rivers, with a possession limit of four. Anglers must have a Steelhead Fishing Report and Restoration Card in their possession while fishing for steelhead trout in anadromous waters. More information can be found here.
Lower Rogue
According to Martin, the Rogue Bay has improved, but is fair at best. “Some boats are catching a few fish a day, while many are returning without fish. New kings are arriving daily, and can be seen splashing and rolling along the jetties.”
Kenny Priest operates Fishing the North Coast, a fishing guide service out of Humboldt specializing in salmon and steelhead. Find it on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and fishingthenorthcoast.com. For up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information, email kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com.
