fishingaddictsnorthwest.com

Spring time is so close we can all almost hear the first honey bee zip by our ear, we can picture the flowers and trees blooming across the land, and we can smell the spring Chinook coming back from their long 3-4 year journey in the ocean. That’s right, with spring time just around the corner, so is the arrival of one of the most sought after fish there is. There is something that a spring Chinook does to all avid fishermen that cannot be explained. Maybe it’s the fact that these fish are extremely aggressive and usually will bite exactly what is put in their face, maybe it’s the fact that these fish can rip line off your reel at about 35 feet per second, or maybe it’s the fact that these fish are the best eating fish you have ever sunk your teeth into. If these fish can make it past all the rath of sea lions and other obstacles a good run of these fish will be heading for the Cowlitz and North Fork Lewis Rivers.

The Cowlitz River is going to be your first and best bet out of the two rivers to pick up some springers. A year ago the estimated return was 4,100 and the run came back stronger than predicted at 4,900. The predicted run this year on the Cowlitz is 12,500 fish, with a spawning need of 1,250 fish. If this return happens it would be double what the 5 year average has been, which pretty much means GAME ON! A majority of these fish are going to be bonked at the mouth of the Cowlitz. The technique best for picking up fish here is to anchor up based on the tides. Every fisherman out there has their own technique and spots of where these fish travel, the rule of thumb is most fish will be in 6-25 feet of water. Find that depth and anchor. There are many lures of choice but Luhr Jensen Kwik fish is the most popular. Sizes K-13 to K-16, with the K-14 & K-15 the most common. The larger sizes are used when the current slows down, the smaller sizes are good when there is faster current. On the belly of your kwikfish place a sardine fillet and attach it using stretchy thread. This will make your plug give off a very oily scent to the springers heading its way. 50″ leaders & 18″ to 26″ lead lines are industry standard. For weight you can use 2 or 8 ounces depending on the depth and current of the water.
If you’re not looking to anchor fish another great way to pick up springers in the Cowlitz is to back troll for them. The method of choice is going to be either back trolling plugs or bait and diver. You’re going to use the same set up as anchored but you will be trolling against the current with your kicker motor slow enough to allow the boat to back down with the current. This can be a very effective method! Launch at either barrier dam or blue creek and work around that area.
If you’re reading this article and getting sad because you don’t have a boat, don’t worry because tons of fish are caught on the Cowlitz by bank fishermen. Plunking is highly effective on this river and there are lots of places to do it. From your fishing pole, use a 15 to 25-pound mainline and two 8mm beads up your line, then tie a size 3 swivel and a 32-inch piece of 30-40 pound mono. Run up a large slider followed by two more 8mm beads and then another size 3 swivel. Tie on another 36-inch 15-20 pound leader and size 2 Spin-N-Glo with two 5mm red beads and a double 2/0 hook. For bait you can use sand shrimp or cured prawns. Some good places to give a chance are the high bank hole, which is located across from Delameter Road just below Four Corners; this is one of the best holes on the river. Another good bet would be the mouth of the Toutle Located on the east side of the river, take I-5 exit 49, head east and take the first left, which is a frontage road. Travel about 2 miles to the parking area above the train bridge at the Burlington Northern-Sante Fe gate, park there and it’s about a mile walk.
The Lewis this year is also expected to get a better than normal Spring Chinook numbers. The forecast a year ago was 2,200 and the actual run was 1,900 which were worst of the decade. This year the expected number back is 6000, which if it turns out could make for a really good year. The hatcheries need 950 spring Chinook for spawning purposes. I talked to Paul Ambrose from Great Northwest Rivers Guide Service (www.greatnwrivers.com) He said that the technique of choice in the north fork is to hover fish, simply put hover fishing is a super slow back troll technique where you “hover” over the hole and wait until you get a bite. Standard technique is to let your bait hit the bottom then reel up 2 cranks and hold it, the bite is not very heavy and you should set the hook after a few “taps”. Most people use cured eggs with sand shrimp. You can do this in any significantly deep hole you find and it will hold fish. I like to also use mackerel and sardine with eggs. Have you heard the saying; “early bird gets the worm.” On the North Fork this can really pay off. If you can use bait/diver on Johnson creek flats first thing in the morning that always produces fish, and quite a few doubles. You can also use cut plug herring and sardine and back troll them on this river.
On another note the Kalama River hasn’t had the best of numbers in the past years and it looks like the forecast for this year isn’t going to be much better. The 2009 return of 350 was the second worst since at least 1980. The only worse year was 338 adults in 1985. This year a weak 900 fish are expected to return with the spawning goal for the hatchery of 500 spring Chinook. Even with these numbers, talking to Monty Thierry of Reel Adventure Guide Service (www.reeladv.com), he assures me that fish can still be taken, so don’t let that out of your radar for a possible on catching some spring Chinook this year. These fish are the best table fare the great pacific northwest has to offer, and it looks like all these rivers this year are going to put a lot of it on all of our tables! Happy Fishing!
Your Local Fishing Addict,
Marlin LeFever

Published in March 2010 Issue of Northwest Sportsman Magazine

Spring Chinook are starting to trickle into our great Columbia River, and with each day the numbers should get stronger. Columbia River Fishery Managers are predicting the strongest run of Spring Chinook since the 1930’s with an estimate of 470,000 returning adult salmon for the 2010 season. If the numbers are record breaking as planned then all of us fishermen should have a great season and hopefully a full punch card!

As we prepare for some great salmon fishing let’s talk about a few key tactics to catching more fish. First thing to figure out is where to fish and when, seasoned fishermen already have this down but if you are new to the sport then you better start doing some scouting. There are creel surveys posted by ODFW/WDFW which tell you how many fish were taken from each boat launch, this will get you started. Finding good holding water will improve your odds extremely. Remember that Spring Chinook tend to move very fast upriver so just because an area is good for a few days don’t mean it will produce as well a week later. Tides are also a big factor and will change with each location you decide to fish, watch the tide and know when it changes. Second is to figure out which technique you will be using. There are three techniques that are commonly used while fishing for Spring Chinook: Trolling, Anchoring, and Plunking. Trolling and anchoring should be pretty good below 205 bridge as far down river as Longview bridge. Plunking is going to be really good above I-205 this year because there will be no boats but it can also be done in the lower river.

Trolling seems to be a favorite among the hard core Springer fishermen! This technique is great because it allows you to cover a lot of water and you can go back through the same area over and over again. These fish will start moving upstream rather than holding in a specific location, with trolling you can stay with the fish which will produce better catches. Knowing when the fish move and acting on it is the hard part. Always remember to troll with the tide, not against it. Spring Chinook generally won’t chase bait against the current. Trolling is definitely more costly to fishermen for fuel and bait, but it is a lot of fun and well worth the investment!
Anchoring is a great cost effective way to catch Springers, and it produces quite a few fish when done right. Finding a seam in good holding water is the most difficult part, when you do find your spot its game on! Sardine wrapped Kwik-Fish, Plugs, or herring if the current is strong enough, are the baits of choice. Anchoring is very effected by tides and is normally only done on the outgoing tide. This technique can be lots of fun when the fishing is hot but it can also be extremely boring, come prepared with a deck of cards just in case. Also be careful of those sea lions, they tend to steal a lot of fish from anchored boats.

For you guys and gals out there that don’t have boats, Plunking is your best bet! Plunking from the shore is more difficult to take springers than in a boat but can be productive when the fishing is hot. This method is generally done by taking a long bank rod, run a 30” leader to a Spin-N-Glo tipped with sand shrimp or prawn and run a dropper line to a weight(18”-30”), try casting as far as you possibly can to get into the seam. Finding good water to bank fish from won’t be too difficult this year, the complete river between I-205 bridge and Bonneville dam is bank fishing only, this will give the bank fishermen the upper hand when the fish are really pushing through that part of the river.

Spring Chinook fishing in the Columbia River is one of the most anticipated sports among all fishermen in the great northwest. We could see more fish this year than we might ever see in our lifetime and that is just amazing! With our hopes running high and the beginning of the run at our doorstep we should start seeing more fish every day. I hope that everybody has an insane Springer season and let us keep this great sport alive.

Your fellow fishing addict,
Shaun Keller

To  many anglers Spring Chinook is one of the best tasting fish the North  West has to offer. Anglers each year head to the Columbia to try their  luck in hooking these amazing fish. Typically you’ll find that the  Willamette will start producing fish before the Columbia. This is because  smolts are released from the Willamette a little sooner than the rest  are released.

A relaxing, fun and successful way to catch these fish is anchor fishing.  This can be done on any river that is tide affected but found most popular  on the Columbia River and Willamette. The first thing you must always  be aware of is your tide. The only way to properly fish on anchor is  to fish an out going tide. This will keep your boat straight on anchor  and give your plugs the action they need to work in the water. The best  way to get started is venturing out and exploring holes with a fish  finder. You want to find water anywhere from 18-30ft. You can find fish  in other water as well but these depths are more common to hold fish  this time of year. Using your fish finder you want to find holes that  provide shelves or drop offs. Often times these salmon will just lay  behind these shelves looking for slower water to rest in before continuing  their journey upriver. Once you find shelves the best thing to do is  mark your location on your GPS either on your fish finder or a hand  held. If you don’t have either you can still manage it just may take  longer to locate the shelf next time you go out. The best thing to do  if you don’t have a GPS is try and memorize something along the shore  directly across so next time when you come back you can line yourself  back up and come close to getting in the same spot. Once on anchor you’ll  want to start getting your gear ready to go. I prefer to fish a braided  line either 50lb power pro or tuff line when fishing plugs or spinners.  This is because there is no stretch in your line which increases your  hook sets because fish will often hook them selves before you even grab  your rod. From my braided line I run it to a spreader which looks just  like heavy gauged wire bent in a 90 degree angle with swivels on the  ends. Three way swivels will work as well but you’ll find the spreaders  prevent tangles and frustration. From there you’ll want to tie an  18”-24” 15lb mono dropper line down from your spreader. This is  the line that connects down to your weight. Weight size may vary depending  on the current but for the most part 8-10oz will work. The reason I  run a lighter monofilament line for my dropper is because if your weight  snags on the bottom you want your weight to break loose first. This  will hopefully save you from having to re-rig a whole set up and also  save money. All that’s left to do now is tie on your plug. I like  running Luhr Jensen Kwikfish in a size K14 or K15. Colors will always  vary but there are few that seem to be winners each year. One of my  favorite is one many refer to as the “Double Trouble” it’s a chrome  body with Chartreuse on each end. The most key part to this whole setup  is making sure your plug is properly tuned. To do this put your plug  in the water and pull it upstream and watch the action. A properly tuned  plug will always stay straight inline and not pull to one side. If your  plug does run to one side you’ll want to tune it by adjusting the  eyelet your line connects to. If your plug pulls to the left turn the  eyelet to the right and vise versa if it pulls to the right. Now that  the plug is properly tuned wrapping your Kwikfish with bait will greatly  increase your catch rate. You’ll find the majority of everyone fishing  will be using Sardine fillets which you can buy filleted already or  take whole sardines and fillet them yourself either is fine. The reason  sardine is chosen over many other baits is because of its oil content.  Being that’s it’s a very oily fish it leaves a stronger scent in  the water attracting more fish to your plug. Wrapping your plugs is  easy I start by cutting fillets down to about 1” X 2” fillets. You’ll  want to place your fillet on the belly of you plug. So in order to do  that cut a slit about half way up the fillet. Using that slit you can  now slide it around the hook on the belly of the plug. Magic thread  or miracle thread is a couple threads out there you can use to wrap  your plug. I like to start at the back of the plug and work my way to  the front of the plug then wrap back towards the back making a total  of about 20-30 wraps. To finish it off just make several half hitch  knots and this will keep your bait secure. Now you’re ready to put  your lines in the water. Make sure to check your drags ahead of time.  You want a drag that is snug but not tight and not too loose. If a fish  hits you want them to be able to take line. You’ll find more fish  will hold the plug longer with a looser drag which equals more hook  ups. Hopefully some of these tips will help bring more fish to the boat  this year good luck!