Fishing the North Coast

By Kenny Priest

fishing@northcoastjournal.com

With no rain in the forecast for at least the next 10 days, the end is in plain view for the late, fall-run salmon season on the North Coast. The Chetco saw a few good days of fi shing but the Smith was somewhat of a disappointment. The rains, along with the runs of salmon, were short-lived, forcing most of the anglers to throw in the towel by mid-November. With the calendar now saying it’s December, it’s transition time. The majority of the salmon have reached their destination and we now wait for the winter steelhead to make their way into all of the coastal rivers.

The Chetco has seen a few adults make their way in along with a bunch of half-pounders, and the Smith steelhead should be right behind them. But don’t give up entirely on salmon just yet. The Smith, Eel, Mad and Chetco should each see another spurt or two of fresh kings move in when and if the rivers rise.

According to Kathleen Zontos of Eureka’s National Weather Service, the fi rst couple weeks of December are looking dry. “There’s some light rain in the forecast for Monday night but it won’t be enough to impact river fl ows,” said Zontos. “The high pressure that’s set up o the coast looks like it will holdover for the next few weeks. The trend is for below normal precipitation predicted through Dec. 14.”

Sport crabbing out of Eureka remains slow. Boats fi shing on either side of the entrance are averaging around four keepers per pot on an overnight soak. Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sportfi shing was on the water over the weekend and reports the crabbing isn’t improving. “Our trip on Sunday was tough,” said Klassen. “We ended up with limits, but we averaged around three and a half crabs per trap.”

Other than the Smith, all North Coast rivers subjected to low-fl ow fi shing closures, including the main and South Fork Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek and Van Duzen, are closed to fi shing. Sections of rivers that are open include the main stem Eel River from the paved junction of Fulmor Road to its mouth. The Mad River from the mouth to 200 yards upstream is closed until Jan. 1, 2021. Be sure and call the low-fl ow closure hotline, 822-3164, to determine if the river is open prior to fi shing. CDFW will make information public by a telephone recorded message each Monday, Wednesday and Friday as to whether any river will be open or closed to fi shing. Rivers will not automatically open to fi shing once the minimum fl ows are reached.

With no rain for a couple weeks, the Smith is very low and clear. Boat pressure has been light as most guides have canceled their salmon trips due to the conditions and lack of fi sh. Winter steelhead should start to trickle in even during the low-water conditions. As of Wednesday, fl ows were right around 800 cubic feet per second on the Jed Smith gauge.

Low water has slowed an already slow salmon season on the Chetco reports Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. He said, “Flows are now below 900 cfs and no major rain is in sight. A few dark jacks and an occasional bright adult salmon are being caught by the handful of boats still fi shing. Half-pounders have shown up, along with the fi rst adult steelhead of the season. Four adult steelhead were reported last week at local tackle shops.”

Salmon fi shing was good on the Elk and Sixes before Thanksgiving, but both are now low and clear and di cult to fl oat with drift boats according to Martin. “They should have another batch of salmon after the next major rain,” he added. ● Read the complete fi shing report at www.northcoastjournal.com. Kenny Priest (he/him) operates Fishing the North Coast, a fi shing guide service out of Humboldt specializing in salmon and steelhead. Find it on Facebook, Instagram,

YouTube and www.fi shingthenorthcoast. com. For up-to-date fi shing reports and North Coast river information, email kenny@fi shingthenorthcoast.com.