Fishing Washington

Steelhead fishing on the upper Grays River has started as of the 15th of December.  There were lots of anglers on the water with most of the holes being taken at first light.  Fishing was productive but not hot on the 15th.    I saw about a dozen fish hooked up and caught by 12:00 when the hail and heavy rains started in.  This was a scouting fishing trip and I decided to load up the girlfriend and head back into town for some Christmas Shopping instead of having her out there freezing to death.   I did manage to put the hooks into a nice 8 lb fish throwing a green hot shot in a nice long run.  Most anglers were casting float and jigs.  The water was dark with a good shot of silt and a green / brown color.  I figured throwing a reaction lure would work and it did.  The fish was in front of a rock and hit about 10 feet from the rod tip as the plug swam past the rock.

Grays River, Grays River Fishing, Grays River Steelheading, Hot Steelheading Spots, Steelheading, Winter Steelhead, Winter Steelheading

Bookmark to:

   Winter Silver fishing is in full swing.  Days catches are varying from 2 to 10 fish a day.  The trick is catching the rivers between the heavy rain storms and river level swings.  The fish are coming into the rivers chrome bright and willing to strike.  Winter fishing is a hardware game.  Eggs and other bait will work but plugs rule supreme for drawing strikes.   We throw plugs in the deeper holes, backtroll them in moderate and fast current areas, and troll them in slow water holes.  Fatfish, Wiggle Warts, and Brad Wigglers all work.  I prefer dark metallic plugs in clear water and fluorescent orange and Pink in tannin colored or murky water.   Winter Steelhead are starting to show up all of our rivers and fishing will be hot in another week with steady catches of fish happening all the way into March and April.

Chehalis River Guides, Coho Fishing, Coho Guides, Cowlitz River, Cowlitz River Guides, Kalama River Guides, Lewis River Guides, Satsop River Guides, Winter Steelhead

Bookmark to:

     Sturgeon fishing is slowing down as winter temperatures hit the Northwest.  The sturgeon are still in the rColumbia River, but the colder water is slowing their metabolism and willingness to hit your bait. The bites we are getting are very light and you have to watch your rod closely and set the hook on the first solid take down.  Most fishing effort will be switching over to the Willamette River for the rest of the winter.  The Willamette runs a few degrees warmer than the Columbia during the winter months and the Sturgeon tend to hit better due to the warmer water temperatures.  Look for the Sturgeon to be tight to the bottom and watch your sonar closely to be sure you don’t miss the fish.  Make sure to work the deeper holes where the sturgeon will be holding in the cold water conditions.  I like to use squid with a sand shrimp wrap during the winter months. Don’t be bashful about using scents.  A good shot of strugeon frenzy or any of a number of shrimp, fish oil, or crawdad based scents can increase the number of bites and hook ups you will get during a  winter days fishing.

Columbia River Sturgeon Fishing, Cowlitz River Sturgeon, Cowlitz River Sturgeon Fishing, Portland Oregon Sturgeon Fishing, Sturgeon, Sturgeon Fishing, Sturgeon Guide, Sturgeon Guides

Bookmark to:

 Bass fishing is always slower during the winter month.  With the latest cold snap the bass fishing has slowed and will stay that way for the next several months.  If you are a die hard bass fisherman or woman, don’t dispair.  Fish slowly, as in drink a cup coffee between twitches and slides of your lure along the bottom.  Doing this can bring you the biggest bass of the year and possibly your life.  Hit Silver lake and look for the warmest part of the lake.  Plan to fish 6 to 9 feet deep ( deepest parts of the lake).  Cast a 6 inch worm or balck and blue bass jig out.  Make sure to put a pork rind on the jig.  Let the jig sit on the bottom for a couple of minutes and watch your line very closely.  I like to use fluorescent yellow braided line that floats.  This allows me to watch the line for slight twitches and movement.  Let the fish suck the jig in, they tend to hold on longer in cold water. A good day is three or four fish.  The great part is most of them are 4 to 6 lbs this time of year.

Bass Fishing in Washington, Bass Fishing Silver Lake, Largemouth Bass Fishing, Silver Lake, Smallmouth Bass Fishing

Bookmark to:

Winter Steelhead fishing is hot for hatchery run Steelhead on the Grays River.  This small river is a fun and challenging fishery with tons of small to medium sized hatchery brats to put on the bank. Fishing this river will have you stalking agressive fish in low clear water conditions.  The fish are often easy to see in the clear water.  You have to stalk close and then make careful casts to the fish.  Once you get your drift right you can see the fish slide up and take your jig or fly.  Once you are hooked up the fish will tear up the river and you can see every roll, twist and turn the fish makes.  Come out and enjoy a day enjoying the excitement of shallow water fishing for the northwest premier winter fishery Steelhead Trout.

Grays River, Grays River Fishing Guides. Grays River Fishing, Grays River Fly Fishing, Grays River Guides, Grays River Steelhead, Grays River Washington

Bookmark to:

The Chehalis River is producing limits of silvers on the hot days.  The key to the Chehalis systems is to watch the river levels.  Make sure it is dropping or holding steady before you fish it. I spend my time throwing wiggle warts and fatfish, along with spinners to the banks and around logs on the Chehalis.  I cover a lot of water searching for the Silvers.  Once I find a good concentration of fish I stay on them and work the water hard until the fish turn on and hit the gear.  Bites often come in short flurries with lulls, so be patient and you will put fish in the boat.

Late run silvers are big and mean on this river.  The Chehalis has a strong run of both hatchery and native Silvers and it is open for retention of both types of Coho.  This year the Chehalis was also open for Native Chinook.  The State decided the runs were strong enough to sustain a short season.  That fishery is closed now, but the fish were huge and the fishery while not spectacular was steady.  WDFW is expected to open another short season next year.  The Chinook were running large this year and the shots are of a nice fish and a monster that weighed 52lbs.  Both Chinook shown in the pictures were returned to the river health and strong.  Fish of this size need to be allowed to spawn to create future generations of giant fish.  

Chehalis River Chinook Fishing, Chehalis River Fishing, Chehalis River Fishing Guide, Chehalis River Fishing Guides, Chehalis River Fishing Reports, Chehalis River Guide, Chehalis River Guides, Chehalis River Silver Fishing, Chehalis River Washington

Bookmark to: