New kid on NWKA

Hey Guys and Gals, I'm new here and member of your cousin site NCKA for a year or two.  I've been kayaking for two years, mostly lakes and only once on the salt.  So I'm still a beginner by most of your standards but I get around pretty good and wish that I had more free time to get on the water.

I'm looking for some advice on places to yak fish on the coastal river waters. Anything could be fun; cutties, bows, steel or chinook. Fly fishing is my preference but I won't snub my nose at gear.  This weekend I'm working my way up the coast for a PB trip out of Astoria on Monday. A few day of work and then I'm hanging out for a week or so before heading to the Deshutes for a few days of sled fishing.

So, if you could go where ever you want for the next week or two, where would you go and what species would you target?

Columbia/Willamette>>sturgeon
Chelan>>macs (might be a bit out of your way)

Sturgeon.  Guess that never really crossed my mind but, getting towed around for awhile could be fun.  I've heard that the Columbia has some monsters.

Any thoughts on some water that's a  little smaller than the Columbia? Maybe a little further south?

Hey, Yak Outback, I'm Island Hoppa, transplanted here almost two years ago from SF Bay Area. I'll be along the coast all next week, in Depoe Bay. It's one of the nicest salt water spots for kayak fishing. If you want to meet up on Saturday we can try some Lingcod and Rockfish.

I'll be fishing the Willamette for Sturgeon, etc. tomorrow.

H

It sounds like you're going to fish buoy 10 maybe? Since you said coastal rivers, you can get searun cutthroat right now. I would try tidewater of any of the rivers. I am not familiar with the north coast but you could make some inquiries since it seems like some rivers have more than others. Also, a few fall chinook are being caught now in many rivers near the mouths although it is spotty and a bit early.

Island Hoppa,  thanks for the offer but I think it will hard to get that far north by saturday.  Maybe the weekend after next if you fish there on a regular basis.  Lucky guy as far as the relocation.

C_Run, it sound like you are further south. Some thoughts are the Rogue, Chetco or Coquille for this weekend.

On the 25th through 1st it's wide open for anywhere that my heart takes me.

Chetco and Rogue would be the better bets over Coquille for salmon. I just spent a week there. Success rates were low on the Rogue from what we were told but certainly there are people out there trying and some are catching.  http://www.currypilot.com/Sports/Sports/Going-the-distance-brings-in-the-albacore. Check this guy's reports in the Brookings paper for recent reports on salmon fishing down there.

Chinook are just starting to be caught on the Umpqua and Siuslaw. Should be picking up over the next couple of weeks.

Hmm, could get interesting as things warm up.