I just got back from a week of fishing on the Sacramento and Feather Rivers for Stripers and it went great! This is a really fun fishery and is unlike anything we do here on the coast. A typical day of Striper fishing includes alot of bent rods, warm weather and beautiful fish! Stripers are also phenomenal eaters. Kinda like a more moist halibut, with firm and sweet white meat. Most fish here average 3 to 5lbs and its not uncommon to catch 30-40 of the little buggers in a day. Plus, there are a enough fish over the 10lb mark to keep things interesting.

I may be going back this coming weekend for a couple of trips, so if anyone would like to add Friday or Monday (or even next Tuesday) I would love to get you aboard! By the way, my new 21' Willie Boat Classic is an unbelievable boat! It's quite possibly the prettiest boat on the river, and more importantly, its a fishing machine!

Tight Lines,
Mike

The last week and a half have provided some of the best steelhead fishing of the season so far. Not only are we seeing over 10+ hookups a day, the average size of the fish seen has been very solid. We are hooking at least 1 fish a day in the low to mid teen range while most are over 9lbs. The suprising thing about the last week is the ratio of bright fish to downrunners, which has shaped up to about 80/20 in favor of fresh run steelhead. Most of our fish are falling to sidedrifted or boondogged eggs and fish pills but I've also been putting out plugs in a couple of spots with good results.

While everything should stay in shape into the first part of next week, it looks like there could be some rain on the horizon. If things stay relatively dry, I don't see why fishing wouldn't hold up. I have some space in March, and considering the fishing we're seeing now, it should be a great month of uncrowded fishing. Give us a call if you want to catch some of these fish before the season ends.

Mike

I must apologize for a lack of reports, but the computer has been in and out of the shop for awhile now. Finally we got it back in working order and I hope to have a regular report up now.

Since its been awhile, I wont rehash the long ago but Ill give you an idea of whats been going on recently. I've been fishing the Eel River system for the last week or so and fishing has been mostly great but there have been a few slow days mixed in. Periodic rain has been the cause of the couple of slow days I've had since I've been down here. The day before yesterday saw great fishing on the mainstem Eel in a light rain. Well, that light rain raised and murked up the river yesterday enough to turn off what was a great bite. We only ended up with one fish out of 3 plug strikes. Scores yesterday ranged from 0 to 2 fish from the boats I heard from. Almost all the fish yesterday were caught on plugs and these fish seemed to be intent on moving and didn't seem to want a thing to do with a piece of roe.

There is supposed to be rain tonight with will make tommorrow iffy, but from tuesday on through the end of the week, the Eel system should fish great.

Mike

The water is getting low, but the fishing still remains solid. I'm hooking 5 to 8 fish a day and they are all chrome bright beauties! It looks like rain is in the forecast for the middle of next week which will make for some better conditions. As it remains, if you can stay out from the middle of the pressure, there are fish to be had.....

Mike

It's been awhile, but I just got my computer into the trailer so I will make a point of updating reports more frequently. I've been fishing everyday since New Years, bouncing between the Smith and Chetco Rivers. With the exception of one day where I only landed one fish, fishing has been very solid on both rivers. Our lack of rain has created some low water conditions, but fishing has held up and there are plenty of fish around to make me think it will be good for some time. Above are some pics from the last nine days. Note the 30lb chromer King Salmon Peter Maris caught on January 2nd!

Tight Lines,
Mike

We're in the middle of the driest December ever here on the North Coast. However, steelhead are starting to pile up in the lower sections of all our rivers and there is rain in the forcast just after Christmas time. I believe fishing will be incredible after we get some water. These fish have got to be ready to go. I have a few days left available in January: 1-3, 9, 17, 30, 31. With the rain forcasted to start about the 26th, those first few days in January should be great, get them while they're still around!
The picture above is client Tyler Carmichael with the first winter steelhead caught in my boat this season. It was on the Eel River early this month and latched on to a big salmon plug. Plenty more of those to come!

Mike

Rain is coming tonight and will bring the Smith into play for and through the weekend, hopefully longer. I've still been on the Trinity and fishing has continued on the same pace as reported previously. On the 13th fishing with Bruce Fulmer and Carl Casale, I had one of the most remarkable big fish days I've ever had. I caught the 3 biggest Trinity salmon of my career on the same day. The biggest was over 50lbs with 2 more in the high 40s. One of them was fairly bright and Bruce said that it cut beautifully, like an ocean salmon. The biggest fish was also a keepable specimen, but we decided to let it swim away to make more monsters. As a side note, some steelhead have decided to show up.

I'll let you know how the Smith fishes in the next few days.

Mike

Rain hit unexpectedly last early Sunday morning and raised the Smith to a decent level. I left the Trinity biting great on Sunday and fished the Smith Monday and Tuesday with clients Mark Gavasse and Jeremy Baker. Fishing was good both days with a mix of bright and dark fish caught. Our biggest was a huge 45lb buck caught by Jeremy.

Flows dropped out on the Smith by Wednesday and I was back to the Trinity, where the great fishing picked up where it left off. Most the fish we're pulling on are fish over 20lbs with a few jacks mixed in. Many of these fish have some color, but there are a few shiny ones mixed in everyday. All in all some of the best uncrowded fishing you could ask for!

I have been presenting this option to my clients I booked for the Smith this month and its not a bad backup plan. I will continue go east until the fishing over the hill dries up or it starts raining again. It looks like there may be some significant moisture on the horizon late next week. We'll see how that pans out.

Mike

I'm still fishing the Trinity River as we wait for rain to open up the Smith and other coastal drainages. While there is precipitation in the forecast nearly everyday, there doesn't seem to be the gullywasher in the mix that we need. This could change anyday. Meanwhile, there are fish piling up in the estuary of the Smith, so once it rains enough, fishing should be phenomenal.

In addition, the Trinity continues to fish very well. Not only are we seeing double digit days everyday, there are some big fish in the mix. Also we are seeing some fairly bright fish each day.

Mike

I've been back over the hill since my last report and fishing has been good. While the juvenile salmon were too thick to fish bait through at first, their numbers have since thinned. This has caused my numbers to go up and I've been able to get 15 to 25 good bites a day. While most fish have some color, there have been a couple of bright ones kicking around. There are not many steelhead around and that run has been a bit of a disappointment this year.

Ill be inland until it begins raining or this run peters out. Once it rains ill head up to the Smith. Speaking of the Smith, I only have a few days remaining open on my calendar. They are the 16th, 22nd, 23rd, 28th-30th. These days will book so call asap if you're interested. If you aren't aware, these are the biggest, brightest salmon in the state and the last few years have been nothing short of spectacular. Come and check these brutes out!
Mike

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We've had a couple of early storms roll through, which has forced me to be flexible in fishing locations. We've been back and forth from the coast to the Trinity with good to great results wherever we fish. I will probably fish the coast until Saturday, when I will head back to the Trinity. I believe fishing will be great here until the rains permanently set up for the winter

!
I ended up with a bit of a break this week. I had a camper shell installed on my truck on Monday and a day off on Tuesday. Today I canceled due to very unsettled conditions with all the early wet weather we had the last few days. Tommorrow is my son, Jacksons' 3rd birthday, so I elected to take the day off for that. 4 days off feels pretty wierd right now, but time with the family has been great!

Preceding my break and the wet weather, fishing continued to go well. Before the rain, there were a ton of salmon on the lower Klamath, which I anticipate to be in the Trinity by the time I start fishing again on Friday. The river will be higher than normal, but I expect fishing to be very good. I'll let you know how it goes and I'll leave you with a few pics of fishing last week.

Mike

P.S. My remaining open days for this month are the 26th, 30th and 31st. If the rain stops, fishing on the Trinity should still be great. However, if it rains significantly by then we could be fishing on the Smith. Look out if thats the case! Kind of a win-win in either circumstance. Book those dates while they're still around

Fishing remains excellent. On top of numbers, I'm seeing some bigger salmon and bonus steelhead start to show. It doesn't seem to matter where you fish, there are plenty of salmon on every drift around!

Pictured above, Brett Druehl hoists a beautiful 32lb Chinook. The next day, Jeremy Baker and his 8 year old son Drew showed up to fish with me. Drew hooked and landed this 28lb King. Pretty impressive salmon debut for this young guy!

Mike

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I mentioned in my last report that fishing slowed but there were still lots of fish around. Well, like I suspeced would happen, the fishing got good again. On top of the bite turning around, more fish showed up and the bite has been pretty wide open. What a year!

On a less positive note for me, the cancelation bug has bit again and this Monday, the 17th has opened. Also the 26th and 27th remain open.

Also, my open October dates are now available to book. Fishing should be amazing all month long until the serious rains hit late in the month or early November. The open dates are as follows: 2-6, 10, 16, 25-28, 30, 31st.

Fishing remains very good on the Klamath and Trinity. Since I have started fishing, I have been able to land a limit of fish every day. While this is great, the fishing has slowed down a little the last couple of days. I'm still seeing lots of fish in the river, but the bite seems to be a little off. This may have something to do with the full moon that we experienced early in the week. With the number of fish around and still coming up the Klamath, I would expect to see the bite turn back on in the next couple of days. Along with the jack salmon, we are seeing some nice fish hit the net. My biggest so far has been about 25lbs. Steelhead have been pretty scarce, although we have been able to hook a few. With all the salmon around, I haven't spent a ton of time chasing them, though.

BTW, I still have the 18th, 26th and 27th open, so don't hesitate to call if you're wanting to catch any of these fish!

Mike