The Columbia River spring salmon season has been extended through April 9th. These are prime dates as the fish numbers are impriving every day.

Columbia River Spring Chinook Spring Chinook are being caught daily in the Columbia River right now. As the month goes on the fishing will get better by the day as more fish show up. I am sure you have heard they’re the best tasting Salmon found anywhere in the world. The nutritious fat reserve these fish build to make their journey is where they get their delicious, juicy flavor. Why do these fish build up their reserve? Many of these fish will swim up the Columbia and to the Snake River where they will continue into Idaho. They will do this all without eating. Once they get to the spawning grounds they will hold in the rivers until September and October, then begin to spawn. To live that long, and go that far is why the need all of their fat built up. Tributary Spring Salmon The Springer action does not stop when the lower Columbia River closes on April 7th. I will be fishing the Willamette River which is predicted to get a return of over 70,000 Spring Chinook. Here I use the trolling methods used in the Columbia. Prawn Spinners are usually very effective here also. The Lewis and Cowlitz Rivers are supposed to have improved runs over the last few years as well. This is some of my favorite fishing. Hover fishing, back bouncing and bobber fishing are my three most productive methods of fishing here. The absolute best bite in the world is a Spring Chinook chewing on a bait of eggs tipped with shrimp all while holding the rod in your hand. Later in the season, when the bulk of the run is above Bonneville Dam, I will fish the mouth of the Wind River. This place truly can live up to its name. If there’s one thing you can count on here, it’s wind. Prawn spinners behind a Pro Troll style flasher are my go to when fishing here.

There’s 33,000 more Spring Chinook forecasted to enter the Columbia River this year than last. It is widely known that Spring Chinook are the best tasting Salmon. When fishing for them I prefer to troll a cut plug herring and triangle flasher a couple of feet from the bottom going down stream. Trolling with the current allows me to put my bait infront of as many fish as possible. With the currents in the Columbia River if you trolled against the current you might be in the same place for hours. On big tides, which cause the current to move very fast or in high water where the fish are looking for an easy travel lane, I find it best to anchor. Here I use a variety of cut plug herring or quickfish style plugs wrapped with tuna or sardine to entice a bite. It’s exciting to look forward to this spring, don’t hesitate to reach out and book your adventure. Winter Steelhead We are in the heart of Winter Steelhead season, overall fishing has been better than years past. This is the time of year we start seeing a variety of our wild fish. The wild fish tend to be our biggest Steelhead of the year. I enjoy this part of the season because all of the rivers have fish in them, which means the angling pressure is spread out through the state. It is not uncommon to have an entire river you yourself. I have found most of my success this winter using a float and bead. I believe the bead imitates an egg floating down the river. I have been told Steelhead naturally want to destroy any eggs because they do not want competition for their offspring. This seems very counterintuitive for the species to me, but mother nature has her own ways of doing things! The thrill of catching a Wild Steelhead on a cold morning in a secluded river canyon can not be beat. I still have some availability through the rest of my season. You don’t want to miss out on catching these fantastic fish.