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Jim Martin

Guide Service

What We Fish

McKenzie River Salmon Fishing – Umpqua River Salmon Fishign – Alsea River Salmon Fishing

We will start out with the spring chinook salmon on the Mckenzie River. These fish start entering the Columbia River in January near the coastal town of Astoria. They will travel over several weeks to reach the Mckenzie River in Eugene and Springfield. The best two months to catch these bruisers are May and June. I do catch some in July and depending on the year July can be a nice surprise. The spring salmon we get are high in omega 3 fatty acid the heart healthy fat and I might add arguably one of the best salmon to eat. Now these fish like your deeper holes on the river but, as experince has taught me, when the river gets crowded and the deeper holes get overcroweded with fisherman and boats I will start to pick them off in the travel lanes between said holes. I like to use several methods like back bouncing, diver and bait, quick fish and in some areas we use floats. It’s important to know what the fish are doing from day to day. What worked today may not work tomorrow for these fish. Spring chinook can run from 12 to 16 pounds up to 40 pounds plus with exceptions to every rule of course. I have had clients land 25, 30, and 40 pound spring salmon on the Mckenzie and the middle fork of the Willamette rivers. I have not managed a brute on the Umpqua River yet…

Now your fall chinook salmon will enter the bays on the Oregon coast in July eating feeder fish such as herring, candle fish, and such. They follow the fish in, feed in a kind of a dine and dash, then go back out into the ocean to continue on their journey.

These fish that come into the different bays may be fish from a completely different river. August is when you can count on the fall chinook salmon to start entering into their rvers to start their trek up to the head waters. Now your fall chinook salmon will enter the bays on the Oregon coast in July eating feeder fish such as herring, candle fish, and such.

They follow the fish in, feed in a kind of a dine and dash, then go back out into the ocean to continue on their journey. These fish that come into the different bays may be fish from a completely different river. August is when you can count on the fall chinook salmon to start entering into their rvers to start their trek up to the head waters. They tend to stay in the salt water or bays untill we get freshets or rain that gets them on the move, normally after two to five inches of rain. We start to fish for these 25-pound-average salmon up in the rivers but prior to that it is mostly trolling a herring of spinners or another feeder fish like anchovies. The fall chinook salmon have nick names bcause of their size, for example Legends of the fall, Pigs, Hogs, and Bad Boys. The average size can be 25 pounds. I have had clients land fall chinook salmon on the Alsea River, the Siuslaw River, and the Umpqua River. The biggest we have boated is 46, 49, and over 50 pounds with many in the 25 to 35 pound class. Up in the river, I use the same techniques I use for spring chinook salmon. I will use 50 pound braided Power Pro on the reels and 30 pound Trilene Big Game leader. Anything less that that and you may get your heart broke.

Silver salmon are a smaller version of the king salmon, aka chinook. Silver salmon are also known as coho salmon. These are also a fish that comes in the fall into the bays and up the rivers. These fish normally average six to 12 pounds with of course some smaller and some larger.

All of your salmon will go up into the rivers to spawn where they die and make a great food source for their offspring. The size of the fish normally is determind by the number of years they stay out in the ocean. The DNA of certain fish will play a roll in their size as well.

Be aware, there are exceptions to all the rules, and we reserve the right to fall back on that statement. LOL, Harmless.

Trout Fishing

Trout in Oregon are plentify from the high lakes in central Oregon to the costal lakes on the Oregon coast. There are a large variety of trout depending on where you choose to fish. I normally catch rainbow trout, cut throat trout, and the sean run cut throat trout, which will go out into the ocean and return to the rivers. The trout will be various sizes depending on the river and the time of year. There’s nothing better than fresh pan fried trout for a shore lunch.

Steelhead are a trout that leaves the rivers as a smelt three to six inches long. It goes out to sea and returns after a couple of years.

These fish are prodminatly found on the coastal rivers and they normally start arriving in November and run through March and some places April. Now this is what we call our winter steelheaad. Some rivers have great runs of summer steelhead which will start in March and run through October. They have the ability to spawn and return to the ocean and repeat this process several times.

Steelhead are known for their fiesty nature and the arial show they put on above the water…Let’s just say they like to show off.

Be aware, there are exceptions to all the rules, and we reserve the right to fall back on that statement. LOL, Harmless.

Smallmouth Bass

Smallmouth bass…now here is a fun one.

There are smallies and largemouth bass in a lot of lakes and rivers, but in the northwest the Umpqua River is famous for its smallmouth bass numbers. Let’s put it this way, it seems like there are more fish than rocks in this river. Use Ultralight rods and it’s not uncommon to catch and release 100 or more fish in a day.

Dungeness Crab

Dungeness crab are normally plentiful in the months that end with er, September through December. The summer can be good, too. Crabbing is always fast paced and of course they are great to eat. We use crab pots or crab rings. We lower them to the bottom of the bay loaded with some kind of bait. I prefer chicken because the seals and the sea lions tend to leave them alone. Each person is allowed 12 legal crab and that is plenty. Once again, crabbing is fun and exciting.

Be aware, there are exceptions to all the rules, and we reserve the right to fall back on that statement. LOL, Harmless.