2009 Will Be Remembered as the Year of the Coho
Fall Coho and Chinook Salmon Highlights
Nestucca (Hebo, OR), Siletz (Lincoln City, OR) and Sandy Rivers (Sandy, OR)
click to enlarge images
I'll remember the Fall of 2009 as the season that gives me hope for the future of our native fisheries. Since the closure of the coastal coho fishery to the taking of native silvers several years ago, I have witnessed weak run after weak run of these fiesty wild fish and imagined that the run may weaken further and become extinct sooner than later. However, these fish have shown us that they are fighters and with the decrease in ocean commercial fishing pressure have made a strong recovery. I saw the first glimpses of the return in 2005, when there were far more coho in coastal systems than previous years. It just so happens that Coho run in four year cycles and they were left alone to propogate and grow during this past spawning cycle. The result was the best coho season I have ever seen in Oregon and a season that rivaled some seasons in Alaska.
We had fantastic fishing action during September, October and November and averaged 10 hookups a day between two anglers. To top it all off, most days we had the rivers to ourselves. It was a pleasure to guide and fish for these magnificent salmon. While the Chinook run wasn't quite up to par, it was thankfully better than the past two seasons and some days it was even pretty darn good. We took a lot of chinook in the 12-20 pound range, plus a couple monsters including a dark buck apporoaching 40 pounds caught and released by longtime customer-Bob M. Way to go Bob!.
To book an upcoming Fall salmon or winter steelhead trip, call us at 503.515.3533 or email us!
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