Casey Kelly

Fishing on the Columbia River above Bonneville Dam is in full swing! Dam counts over Bonneville have been a steady 4,000 to 9,000 fish a day and fishing is starting to get good. When counts stay high like they have been, there is awesome opportunity to catch some of these Idaho bound Spring Chinook. These fish have the famous dark red meat and are packed with tons of healthy fish oils. With only 20,000 fish over the dam we are only a fraction into the predicted 150,000 to 200,000 to go over. There will be plenty of time for some really hot fishing coming up within the next three weeks up in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge. I do have seats open for the duration of the month, so feel free to call or email to go catch some of these great fish. Next up will be the Summer Chinook and sockeye fishery coming up in June. The Columbia River season has been set this year from June 16th to July 1st. I still have days open for that as well and those dates are prime time to catch both species of these fish.

Fishing on the Columbia River for Spring Chinook has finally kicked in high gear! The Columbia River was scheduled to close on April 5th, but the WDFW has extended the season to Fri, April 12th! We are now getting multiple hookups per day so this week through next Fri should be some dynamite fishing! Also, I am starting to book Summer Chinook and Sockeye dates. The Summer Chinook run looks promising to have some great fishing come June. These fish are just as tasty as their close relatives, the Spring Chinook. Sockeye Salmon also arrive in full force in June as well. Although not large in size, they are many, and they are delicious eating fish also! Due to the assumption of closure of the season on Spring Chinook on the 5th, I have all of next week free. Call or email me for info or to book a trip for the upcoming summer fishing season.

After a slow start to Spring Chinook fishing on the Columbia River in Feb, and the beginning of March, things are starting to pick up quickly on the big river. The season is set to end on the 6th of April, and I still have some seats open. I suspect the quota will not be met by that date so I’m looking forward to a few days in April to fish the Columbia. The Cowlitz River is also picking up nicely for Winter Steelhead and should be great fishing till mid April. Get out and enjoy some spring weather and great fishing with us on our local rivers!

Fishing for Salmon was fantastic all through October and November! Now with the Winter Chinook coming to an end it is time to start concentrating on the up coming Winter Steelhead fishery! At this time there are a few Winter Steelhead around on the Lewis and Cowlitz Rivers, but things will not really heat up until Christmas time and all through the month of January. On the Cowlitz River there are Steelhead in decent numbers through December, but steelhead smolt plants have been redesigned for a later arrival of steelhead in March and April. There will be three times the amount of steelhead in March and April then in December and January for the Cowlitz River beginning this year and continuing into the future. Come March it’s full-fledged chrome steelhead slaying on the Cowlitz! There is another exciting fishery to discuss that is right around the corner. Beginning on Jan 1st sturgeon retention becomes available above Bonneville Dam. Sturgeon is on a major decline below the dam and WDFW officials have made a yearly limit of five sturgeons to one sturgeon per person below the dam. Close management from state officials above the dam ensures that there is plenty of sturgeon to catch in that area. This fishery is action packed with 30 to 70 fish days and full boats of keeper sturgeon is the norm. Don’t miss out on this one if you like to catch sturgeon because it doesn’t take long for anglers to reach the quota set by WDFW officials. Sadly, sturgeon have been on the decline for nearly two decades in the lower Columbia River due to many factors, but without these factors present above the dam, there are still great numbers of sturgeon in the Columbia River Gorge. Christmas is right around the corner and if you don’t know what to get your loved ones, a fishing trip is a fantastic gift idea. I would like to thank all my customers that joined me for a great year of fishing! It was fantastic to meet a lot of new people and catch up with past customers as well! Your business means the world to me and I will strive to make every fishing adventure your best ever! I would also like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Please be safe over the Holidays. See you on the river soon!

Fishing for salmon continues to be fantastic into the month of Oct! Most Columbia River fishing guides will tell you that the fall Chinook fishery is their favorite time of the year. Because of high catch rates, and nice sized fish that get caught on a daily basis, it’s easy to see why the fall is a fishing guide’s best season for catching their client’s fish. Now that the Columbia River has slowed down the tributaries of the “big river” have prevailed for the last month or so. The Cowlitz River and Lewis River along with Tillamook Bay and other famous Oregon rivers have been the go to for about a month now. Just as Tillamook is at its peak fishing for salmon in Nov, Winter Chinook start to come in on other tributaries of the Columbia. Just because old man winter is coming to the northwest doesn’t mean that fishing goes cold too, there is plenty of opportunity to catch dandy Chinook all through Oct, Nov, and Dec. Winter Steelhead on the Cowlitz River and Lewis River will shortly follow, and I’ll tell you those fish are a kick in the pants to catch! Prime dates are still open in Nov and Dec, don’t miss out on some awesome salmon and steelhead fishing to come!

What a September it has been on the Columbia River and Lewis River for Fall Chinook! 2012 has been a well above average year for the Chinook on the Columbia River, Lewis River, and Cowlitz River so far! With thousands of Fall Chinook still to come in through October, and November, the Lewis typically remains a strong fishery for another month and a half! With a very short break between Winter Chinook and Winter Steelhead, colder (but not to cold) weather returns to the Pacific North West but the fishing will start heating up for the Winter Steelhead on the tributaries of the Columbia River. By late December Winter steelheading is in full swing and lasts through most of March on the Lewis and Cowlitz Rivers. Don’t get cabin fever this fall and winter, come join us on some dynamite fishing to come!

Hi Everyone,
Fishing for fall Chinook (King Salmon) is starting to heat up on the Columbia River! We have been averaging 4 to 6 salmon a day this week, and it will start getting really good as we move into September. Washington fishing guides and Oregon fishing guides flocked to buoy 10 this month and it has been very good out there on the coast, but now the fish are entering the Columbia River in great numbers and even into the tributaries like the Lewis and Cowlitz Rivers. These chinook have been averging about 20 pounds but we have landed a couple in the mid 30’s. We are also still catching summer run steelhead as well, and as the month rolls on there will be the B run steelhead starting to show up in the catches. The B run steelhead are a bigger fish than the A run, so we will start seeing some dandy’s coming to the boat. It is not uncommon to get steelhead in the mid teens to the twenty pound range in September. I still have plenty of seats left for this up coming fishery so go to the rates and booking page and reserve your seats before there gone.

Hi Everyone.

The Summer Chinook and Sockeye Salmon run on the Columbia River was fantastic this month! Catching limits of Sockeye was very common for nearly all of June and as well as the Summer Chinook! The Summer Chinook also known as “ June hogs” started out a little slower and then turned in to a very good fishery for nearly 3 solid weeks! Looking forward to next year’s June fishery, it’s definitely one of the best months in the year for fishing. Summer Steelhead fishing has been picking up on the North Fork of the Lewis River in the last week or so also. So far these steelhead have been on average quite a bit larger than normal averaging 12 pounds or so. I will keep posting fishing reports throughout the month.

Fishing for Sockeye Salmon and Summer Chinook Salmon has been dynamite for the last two weeks. With a record setting Sockeye run it has been some of the best Sockeye fishing in the lower 48 ever! We are starting to catch some Steelhead also and with a run of 1.5 million heading up the Columbia River it is for sure to be a blood bath for at least two months! In august the Fall Chinook will start making their way from the Pacific Ocean up through the Columbia River in also record breaking numbers, so make sure to plan a trip with us to catch some of those big boys.

Hello everyone.  Fishing on the Columbia River is starting to pick up nicely for oversize and keeper sturgeon!  Also the shad are running in huge numbers right now making for a fun day on the water catching them one after another.  Summer Chinook will be open on the 16th of June and it is anticipated to be a great opener for the “June hogs” and also Sockeye Salmon.  The Summer Chinook are a fantastic tasting fish much like the Spring Chinook that come in just before them. Sockeye Salmon are also one of the best table fare fish their are,  Sockeye Salmon are not a very large fish but they make up for it in taste and healthy fish oils they contain. This is my favorite time of year to be a Columbia River fishing guide, because there are several different species of fish for and catch in great numbers!  The Columbia River Summer Steelhead will start to mix in with the catch of the Summer Chinook and Sockeye as well, and in late June, early July it will be full-fledged hot Summer Steelhead fishing!  This is a popular time to fish so seats will fill fairly fast, book your trip ASAP for the best dates.   I will also be spending quite a bit of time on the North Fork of the Lewis River and Cowlitz River during the month of July, These fishery’s are much more of a hands on approach to catching fish because everyone has a fishing pole in their hands, casting constantly into areas where fish hold.   So if that’s what you like to do make sure to let me know that you want to experience a much more pro-active way to fish.  Hope to hear from you soon!