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We finally got the rods in the water around 8pm, setting ourselves up for a night of steelhead fishing! Pulling lighted plugs and glow in the dark Spin-N-Glos with sand shrimp. Everything was perfect, the weather, the water, and fishing with your best buddies. Anticipation was high; it was up to the fish now.

Summer Steelhead, Salmon, and sturgeon fishing the Columbia River and its tributaries can be an angler’s haven, thousands of salmon and steelhead poor over the dams every year on their journey upstream. Chinook salmon reaching over 40lbs, more steelhead than you can shake a stick at, and lots of keeper sturgeon! It truly is a great time to be fishing this Columbia River fishery.
Summer Chinook fishing is extremely hot! With fish averaging from 16-22 pounds and some well over 30 lbs, you really can’t beat fishing for these monsters. Sardine wrapped kwik-fish and Spinners are extremely productive. This year the season runs straight through July so we get a lot of time to target these huge chromers. Water depth and current flow are extremely important, try to stay in between 8-20ft of water on a normal day but some day’s fish are being caught as deep as 30ft of water. According to the preseason forecast there are almost 90,000 Summer Chinook expected to return to the Columbia this year! These Summer Chinook are by far the best tasting fish and they put up a heck of a fight.
Steelhead numbers over the dam continue to grow! Lots of fish are being caught in the lower river system already and it will only get better. A lot of places allow night fishing as well as day fishing so you never have to stop! Summer steelhead will continue to trickle into our river systems all through summer and into early fall. These fish have tons of stamina and will give you quite a show when hooked! Fishing Spin-N-Glos with sand shrimp, spinners, and small kwik-fish are all great ways to pick up steelhead in the Columbia. When it comes to night fishing, pulling lighted plugs and rigging up a glow in the dark Spin-N-Glo will knock them dead! There are so many fish and a ton of time to go catch them, it is definitely worth it!

Sturgeon is also a hot summer fish on the minds of many anglers! Sturgeon in the Columbia River vary from 20 inches to 20 feet! A keeper sturgeon will have to be within 42inches and 60 inches, making it difficult sometimes to find a fish to put on your dinner table. These fish are very hard fighting (some say the hardest), and taste amazing if prepared right. My favorite is fishing for oversize sturgeon! These monsters average between 6-12ft long, they will tear you up and keep fighting for up to an hour or more. There are many different types of baits used for sturgeon. Sand shrimp, smelt, anchovies, herring, sardines and squid all work well, make sure to use lots of scent also. If you are after the big fella’s then try a fresh whole shad.

We are all very lucky to get to enjoy this great Columbia River fishery. I hope that everybody will help preserve and protect our waters we are so fortunate to have here in the great northwest and enjoy every last minute you have on them. Whether its salmon, steelhead, or sturgeon fishing this summer I hope to all the best of luck!

Your Fellow Fishing Addict,
Shaun Keller