November Means… River Fishing for Fall Salmon!
The Wilson, Trask and Nestucca Rivers will bring loads of fun for November Salmon fishermen.
River fishing for fall salmon in Tillamook County holds special meaning for me as a guide. Having cut my teeth as a guide on the Wilson, Trask and Nestucca Rivers, the month of November really gets my blood going.
I’ll move out of the bay on the next rain and we’ll stay in the rivers until the run is over. This years robust return ought to still be providing us opportunities into December. December? Yes, I said it and anyone who’s fished Tillamook County knows that on good run years, we’ll see brand new fish well into December.
Speaking of “brand new”….
Many clients question the quality of our November/December fishery and wonder if we’re fishing on dark fish. Well the answer is unequivocally, no. We fish low enough in all the systems that we’re catching fish fresh out of the salt. During our river season last year, I only recall releasing one fish the whole season!
So here’s how we do it….
Many love this time of year because it’s all hands on. Whether we’re back bouncing or bobber fishing everyone almost always has a rod in hand unless they are better off with it in the rod holder. Some of my older and younger clients choose to put the rods in the holders, but that’s their choice. Have you ever had a #30 come up and eat a gob of eggs while you’ve got the rod in hand? For those of you that have experienced this, you know it’s probably the best bite in sport fishing, but for those of you that haven’t, I’d invite you to come and see what all the hubub is about.
Drift or Power Boat
I’ll be fishing in both boats this year. Of course the 25′ Willie Raptor is incredible in the lower river with it’s spacious comfort and Willie tracking ability. Also, new for this season is perhaps the nicest drift boat on the water. Those of you the steelhead fished with me last year saw it and experienced the room that this 19×66 Willie offers and hopefully many more will experience the utility of this boat for Salmon. Flat floors, movable seats and room to comfortably fish three.
The bottom line is that it’s an exciting time of year and I look forward to stacking them up over the course of the next six weeks.
Tight lines,
Lance