For the last week I have fished the Smith River a hand full of times.  My average score has been 3 fish in the 20 lb class per trip.  All fish have been dime bright with the exception of a couple dark ones.  I did have a tough day on the 22nd when the river rose quickly from 9.4 feet at 6:00 am: to 12.14 feet by 10:00 am: on the upper gauge.  We ended up hooking only one fish at 8:00 am: that quickly shook the hook.  Today on the 27th the river was on the rise and has peaked just under 10 feet on the upper gauge at 11:00 am.  The weather forecast calls for partly cloudy skies for this weekend and into next week.  I expect the fishing to remain good for the rest of November and into early December.  If you would like a chance at catching that trophy King give me a call.  (707) 616-3716

Fish on!

Patrick

On Wednesday fishing on the Smith was decent.  Of seven that we hooked we netted three that bit back bounced roe and managed to dredge out a dime bright twenty pounder with a kwik fish.  Most of the fish in the system are dark with a few bright ones lingering around.  It rained on us for most of the day but it didn't amount to much.  We need good couple of inches to bring up the river level and entice some fresh fish to come in.  There's some rain in the forecast for this Friday and the middle of next week, hopefully enough to stir things up.

Fish On!

Patrick

We finally got the rain we needed.  It started raining Thursday the 5Th and by Friday the Smith River had reached a fishable level.  On Saturday I was on the water.  By 2:00 pm we completed our drift landing only 4 jacks.  With the sun still high in the sky we had plenty of time to continue fishing so we headed back up river to fish a hole where we had seen a good number of big fish rolling.  It paid off, we fished right up till dark and managed to land one fish that was in the mid 20 lb range, we also landed another jack, and lost three other big fish.  With more rain in the forecast the action should remain steady on the Smith.

Fish on!

Patrick

I have pretty much wrapped up my Fall salmon and steelhead season on the Klamath and Trinity Rivers.  We did have some decent days of fishing and managed to land fish every day, but for the most part fishing was tougher than what we are used to.  I believe that unethical, illegal commercial fishing practices and poor management play large rolls in the decline of our fish.  I'm not pointing fingers at any body, we all need to play our role in the preservation of our fisheries.  I believe we can all harvest fish from the rivers but we need to work together to come up with a management program that works and play by those rules.  If you look at the counts of fish going through the weirs its not hard to see that the program we have now is not working. 

On a more positive note we are looking forward to Smith River King Salmon and Winter Steelhead on all of North Coast Rivers.  Were just waiting for rain and as soon as we get enough the salmon will start making their way up stream to their spawning grounds.  As they migrate we will intercept them by back trolling lures and back bouncing bait.  If you want an opportunity to catch that trophy King Salmon this is your chance.  Salmon fishing will go into December and will be followed up by the Winter run of steelhead.  In late December all of North Coast rivers will have good numbers of steelhead in them.  Steelhead season will go into March with January and February being the prime months. 

The Regulations for the Smith is one King Salmon and one steelhead.  Some of the other rivers that I guide on are catch and release only with the exception of the Smith, Klamath and Trinity Rivers.  Be sure to check those regulations before heading out.

Fish On!

Patrick

The weather has definitely cooled down inland dropping the water temps on the Trinity to the mid 50's.  The bite did improve but the scores didnt change much do to lack of fish.  The sand bar at the mouth of the Klamath sealed shut about 2 weeks ago and the fish were not able to make it in.  On Friday I fished the Trinity and landed to beautiful Steelhead and lost one Salmon.  On Sunday I went over to the Klamath and only landed one Steelhead of three that we hooked.  On Monday I was back on the Trinity and ended the day with 4 salmon of 8 that we hooked and also lost 1 Steelhead.  My wife and I had our anniversary on Tuesday and spent the day together with my 1 year old daughter taking her on her first boat ride.  

On Wednesday I fished a stretch of river that I normally don't fish.  We switched it up between fly fishing and lures and ended up catching a few half pounders.  Thursday I returned back to some more familiar water and went 2 Steelhead for 6 and 2 salmon for 3 that we hooked one of which was a Silver.  Overall the fishing has been decent.  Between catching a few fish, beautiful country, and good company the days have been enjoyable.  The mouth at the Klamath did break open enough to let a good school of fish in the system.  Some of these fish may hit the Trinity late this weekend continue coming in through next week which should keep the fishing consistent.  Their is some rain in the forecast for early this coming week hopefully not to much but enough to color things up a little would be nice.

Fish on!

Patrick 

I fished Sunday and Monday and fishing seemed to be about the same as the last time I was on the water.  We managed to put fish in the net each day with scores between 3-5 fish per day, mainly salmon and a couple of steelhead.  We had to work hard for what we did catch beings the fish were a little reluctant to bite.  I predict with the inland temps cooling down the fishing will improve and we will start seeing better scores.  I will be back on the river this weekend and through the following week.  Check back soon for an updated report.  I still have a few spots available for October so if you want to have a great day of fishing on one of Northern Ca. most secluded rivers give me call. (707) 616-3716

Fish on,

Patrick

After having a decent day of fishing on Friday I returned to fish the same section on Saturday.  Saturday was a different story there were plenty of fish in the river just not many biters.  We did manage to catch a couple of fish but it wasn't easy. 

On Sunday I ventured over to the Trinity and found some better action.  We ended up hooking a hand full of steelhead and landed two beauties around 7 pounds.  We also found a pod of salmon and had numerous bites and take downs one of which was some thing to remember.  7 year old Eian of Sonoma was fishing a plug in fast water and had a savage take down that would have ripped the rod out of most mens hands.  After this monster hit the lure he ran a short distance and jumped about three feet out of the water and unfortunately shook the hook.  "You did your best Eian and you will get em next time." Over all we had a great day with plenty of action and good conversation to keep our minds off the heat.  It has been hot inland which can make the fishing a little tougher but I'm getting good reports that plenty of fish are pouring into the Klamath and should be hitting the Trinity any day now.  So when the weather cools down I'm sure the fishing will improve.

Fish on!

Patrick

Now Booking Salmon and Steelhead fishing trips on the Klamath and Trinity Rivers

Today I fished the middle Klamath and had a pretty good day. There was lots of boat pressure with the derby going on, but we still managed to land 3 adult salmon, all around 12-13 lbs and 1 nice wild steelhead. There's a pile of fish in every hole, but getting them to bite is a little tough. There should be less boats on the river after this weekend and I would expect the action to only get better. If you're looking to catch some salmon, I have dates available. Now's the time.

Fish On!

Patrick

Steelhead fishing on the North Coast has come to an end for me.  I would like to thank everybody that fished with me this last Fall and Winter and I hope to see you next year.  I will not be doing much fishing until late September when I will be on the Lower Trinity fishing for Fall Salmon and Steelhead.  I will be doing some recreational fishing of course so I will post a report here and there when I run into something good.  As soon as I know the regulations for the Klamath and Trinity Fall Salmon run I will post them on my site.  I here that the quota is going to be larger than last years which was 25,000.  If this is true we will definitely be able to keep at least two adult salmon and possibly three.  If you have any question feel free to call or email.

Until September,

Patrick