Casey Kelly

Summer Steelhead fishing is been phenomenal so far this month and it’s just getting started! The steel head were a little less eager to move out of the cold ocean water at first due to the warm Columbia River water, but now are really moving through! We will be fishing for steelhead till the 10^th of August and then we will be switching gears to the famous Buoy 10 fishery in Astoria Oregon. I still have some awesome dates left for the Fall Chinook and Coho Salmon fishery in Astoria remaining. This is one of the hottest fishing destinations in the world for Fall Kings and Coho Salmon! It is projected to be the third largest fall run on record, but the way the other projections have panned out this year, I believe will be much more fish than they expect. For instance 75,000 Summer Chinook were expected to return and we already have 130,000 over Bonneville Dam!   Don’t miss out on this year’s fall run of salmon; it will be another one for the record books!

Summer fishing is in full swing! We are finally wrapping up our Summer Chinook fishing, which was absolutely amazing this year! The run was much larger than predicted which gave us an extra three solid weeks of high numbers of fish hitting the boat! Now we are starting to switch gears to the acrobatic little over achievers known as steelhead. Summer Steelhead, much like the Summer Chinook and Spring Chinook are traveling a great distance to their spawning grounds which make them great eating fish due to their healthy oils they need to complete their journey. They are also a blast to catch!   Steelheads are known to make quick runs, and fly out of the water when hooked! There are still great dates left to catch these exciting fish.

After Summer Steelhead we will be heading to the buoy 10 fishery in Astoria Oregon in August.   The third largest Fall Chinook and Coho run are expected to return yet again this year! This is the most popular fishery of the NW. Generally we can only keep non hatchery fish until Aug 30^th, but this year it has been extended to September 7th! This is so exciting! I can’t explain how cool this is that we get to retain chinook until the 7^th! It will be ridiculous good fishing! I’m starting to get a lot of inquiries, and soon the best dates will be gone. Don’t wait too long! Looking forward to fishing with you!

Summer Fishing is here! Summer Chinook fishing has been surprisingly very good for the first half of June! With water conditions a bit warmer, catch rates are fairly higher than previous years for this early in the month. Starting on the 16^th, we will also be able to retain Sockeye Salmon, and there are a ton of them expected to return to the Columbia River again this year! Sockeye are many people’s favorite fish to eat and for good reason, they are renowned for being the very best eating salmon on the planet! We are also starting to catch a couple steelhead per day, which is a great bonus fish, and also wonderful on a dinner plate! Steelhead fishing gets hotter and hotter as we move into July, then about the 1^st week of July, Summer Steelhead fishing turns silly good through the whole month and into August! Don’t forget to book you Buoy 10 trip early this year. Another near record breaking run is expected to return to the Columbia again! It’s definitely an exciting fishing year so far, it is so wonderful to see great fish runs returning to the Columbia River and its tributaries! We are having healthy fish runs year in year out, and the future is definitely looking bright for our NW fisheries! Looking forward to seeing all the new and old faces this summer on the water!

Spring Chinook fishing has been steadily good fishing all the way through April and now into May! What a great Springer season it has been! We will still be catching springers regularly in the tributaries of the Columbia River until the last week of May. Then it will be time to switch gears to Summer Chinook beginning in June. This fishery is my favorite, and one of the most productive times of the year to catch the best eating fish the Columbia River provides. The Summer Chinook season has been set to start on May 15^th and continue through June 30^th! On June 16^th, we will be able to retain sockeye salmon as well. There is no other place you can catch great numbers of Summer Chinook, Summer Steelhead, and Sockeye all in the same day! Summer Steel heading will start in late June and continue clear until the beginning of August. This is another fishery where high number of catch rates is common, and steelheads are quite the feisty little critters. These fish usually average about 8 pounds, but they commonly make big runs while jumping and flipping through the air! I am so excited for this fishing season! This year will be one to remember without a doubt. Don’t forget to book early for the Fall Chinook season as well; it’s projected to be another near record breaking run on the Columbia River and its tributaries! I still have great dates left for this season, call soon for the best dates.

Fishing for Spring Chinook on the Columbia River has been fantastic so far this year! The Columbia’s Spring Chinook season was extended to April 11^th and Thursday the 16^th for one more opportunity to fill the sport fishing’s quota of 11,000 fish. Then we will be targeting springers on the Cowlitz River, Wind River and Drano Lake. Each of these rivers is a two fish limit, and high catch rates are very common! If you didn’t get a chance to fish the lower Columbia River this year don’t worry, there is plenty of time left to get in on the action!

Fishing for Winter Steelhead on the Cowlitz River has been very good in recent weeks and continues to be good into the 2^nd week in March! Now our attention has turned to the most prized NW salmon, the Spring Chinook. We have been averaging one to three fish a day and will see those numbers rise as we get farther into March and into April. In recent years fishing for spring salmon has not been that good until the last week in March, but this year they are showing up a little early due to low water and higher water temperatures. After the Columbia River closes we will begin to focus our efforts on the Willamette and Cowlitz Rivers until the last week of April. Then off to two of my favorite fisheries. The Wind River and Drano Lake!   Success in these areas demands top notch bait and fishing components. Both of which I’ve worked very hard over the years to master “what they want”. The best fishing will be from the last week in April, to the second week in May. Both of these fisheries are a two fish limit which makes it well worth filling the boat and filling the coolers! Contact me soon for the best dates to go and catch the best eating salmon on the planet!

Fishing for Winter Steelhead is heating up in a big way on the Cowlitz River in recent days! This is a very fun fishery due to the unpredictable actions of steelhead after they get hooked. One second they are screaming line off the fishing reel, and the next they are jumping high out of the water! Fishing for steelhead will be very good until the first week in April, and possibly beyond. Also the world famous Spring Chinook fishery will be getting off to a hot start a little earlier this year due to warmer and lower water than normal. We are expecting these fish to start showing strong in the last week in March with a strong run forecasted to return! The Spring Chinook are the most sought after fish the Pacific Northwest has to offer! Prices on these fish in (specialty seafood markets only) will reach as high as 35 dollars per pound! It is well worth the cost of a fishing trip to catch Spring Chinook as an average fish of 15 pounds would be worth nearly 500 dollars! They cost so much because they are the best eating salmon you can catch in the world next to Summer Chinook, Summer Steelhead and Sockeye Salmon. Fishing for Spring Chinook will yield high catch rates clear till the end of May. This long season ensures people with busy schedules a chance to get out and catch them! We are currently booking for Winter Steelhead and Spring Chinook, don’t miss out on these great fishing opportunities!

Fishing for Winter Steelhead thus far in 2015 has been a great one so far! This is the time of year Columbia River fishing guides focus on the tributaries of the Columbia River to catch the awesome Winter Steelhead that return from the Pacific Ocean. Fishing for Hatchery steelhead was very good on the Cowlitz River in December, as was on other rivers as well. The Winter Steelhead have ran a few pounds larger this year due to the great ocean conditions we have had the past several years. We will get one more shot at the hatchery winter steelhead in early March, and for the past few years March has begun to out produce December and January combined! Not only will we have a lot of hatchery fish returning, we will also have a lot of native fish to return as well! Native steelhead are a sacred creature of the NW, and from what we have seen size wise from the hatchery steelhead, the native steelhead should be exceptionally nice fish. Generally we see one or two fish a day pushing the 15 plus pound class which is a real treat for anyone who likes to catch steelhead! This year I can’t stress enough to potential clients that if you want the best dates for any fishery you might choose, it is important to book early. NOAA has forecasted all fish returns across the board to be excellent this year! Whether it be Spring Kokanee, the world famous Columbia River Spring Chinook, the locally known June hogs (Summer Chinook), the awesome eating feisty Summer Steelhead, or the high paced action of Fall Chinook and Coho Salmon, don’t miss your chance to get out for another fabulous year of fishing!

What a year for fishing for salmon and steelhead has been! 2014 went down in the record books for the best returns on record for sockeye, fall chinook, and coho salmon! 2015 projections are already in and we are expecting the same if not a greater run of fall chinook this upcoming year. As the coho and chinook run dwindle on the tributaries of the Columbia River, the winter run steelhead is starting to pick up nicely. As a bonus, the Pacific Northwest is receiving an El Niño weather pattern this winter and the weather has been very nice thus far. Not too often do we get to fish for these awesome winter steelhead in 55 degree weather. We have a long way to go before the winter steelhead are not available for catch in local NW rivers. Typically we will be fishing for them clear to the end of March with good success. Christmas is upon us once again, and there is no better gift than a fishing trip on one of our great NW rivers. Gift certificates are available for such purchases. If you’re itching to get out and catch some steelhead this year, I still have some prime dates available. Hoping everyone has a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year! See you soon!

Fishing for Fall Chinook and Coho Salmon has been unreal in the tributaries of the Columbia in the month of October thus far! Finally, very good numbers have returned to the Cowlitz and other tributaries after being somewhat lack luster the past few years! The projections of all time record breaking runs have come true! After a hot long dry summer in the northwest, temperatures are starting to fall to more (IMO) “comfortable” conditions. With cooler temps the water has also cooled down a bit making fish bite much better as well. As we enter the end of October, we will start seeing more and more “B” run Coho Salmon entering the tributaries. We are expecting large numbers of these fish this year and will be catching them clear into mid-November! Another fishery many of my clients are excited about is the upcoming Winter Chinook fishery. The November and December King Salmon are BIG! When you add high water and big fish, the fight after catching these Winter Chinook is ferocious! I still have some very good dates left on the late Coho and Winter Chinook. Even though temperatures are cool, fishing is hot!! Don’t think it’s too cold too fish because I do carry a 40,000 btu heater and hot water to warm your hands in case they get a little chilly in these winter months. I want to thank all my customers that came out with me this year and am looking forward to seeing you all again!