Siltcoos update...

quick update for folks thinking about kayak fishing coho in Siltcoos starting October 1, I have been mostly avoiding the overcrowded Siuslaw so far and instead spending time enjoying the solitude of Siltcoos as the SRC start coming in ahead of the coho...

as of Sept 11th, lake level is normal (not low which is a good sign for dam operations once the rain starts), water temp is 70F (which is same as last year at this time), no big algae bloom so far and weeds along the west side are hit and miss, none in some areas, lots in others...

my son and I picked up 3 SRC yesterday cast/trolling 'pink panther' spinners, I'll be out for October 1 opener for sure and quite often all month and will post updates here as the coho start showing up...cheers, roger

Thanks for the update. Looking forward to giving it a try again this year.

what is SRC? never heard that til now.

what is SRC? never heard that til now.

Sea Run Cut throat trout. A very feisty little fella.

Thanks for the update Roger.  I'm hoping to fish again this year.  I'm have a lot going on in sep and oct. but I should be able to squeeze some fishing in after the rains.
Dana

fished the west shore Sunday Sept27, picked up 3 more 12" SRC for the freezer, lake is down to 65F and water level still normal/full (good news due to lack of rain).  weeds are going to make it a challenge to troll along the west shore this year, especially off the marina, outlet, and bay by FishMill Lodge, the weeds do thin out as you get down closer to Booth Island...roger

I fished the lake Sunday (no sign of any coho but I put a nice SRC and big rainbow in the yak) and checked the river again from the dam down to the ocean on Wednesday morning, 10/21, still absolutely no sign of any coho coming up the river yet.   run should start soon...cheers, roger

Thanks for the update, I am excited to pull my first lake salmon from Siltcoos...  hopefully the new yak arrives in time, otherwise I will have to use my pb.
Looking forward to some quiet times ahead soon.

Thanks for the report Roger. Is that the average sized cutty you are pulling out of Siltcoos?

Thanks for the report Roger. Is that the average sized cutty you are pulling out of Siltcoos?

I would say average SRC in Siltcoos are 10" to 16", that latest one was just under 16"...perfect dinner for my wife and I!

Nice! Cant wait to try some coho fishing there!

I'm new to this Oregon coastal lake fishing, trolled up lots of trout inland though.  Any lure advice for a local noob looking to put fish on my kids line in Siltcoos this time of year?  We mix it up between trolling lures and drifting flies, any especially effective colors and sizes?
Thanks for sharing the knowledge...  I have already learned quite a bit through lurking!

I'm new to this Oregon coastal lake fishing, trolled up lots of trout inland though.  Any lure advice for a local noob looking to put fish on my kids line in Siltcoos this time of year?  We mix it up between trolling lures and drifting flies, any especially effective colors and sizes?
Thanks for sharing the knowledge...  I have already learned quite a bit through lurking!

casting and trolling spinners and medium sized plugs produce the most fish.  no bait, no scent.

bell and bell-hochie spinners in a size of a BlueFox #4 or #5.  inline blade spinners have worked really well for us in pink, see attached our top producer, BiMart usually stocks this in pink and blue.  locally made spinners from NCLAFs are heavily used at Siltcoos.

sunny:  pink, orange, chartuese, gold
cloudy: black, black/green, black/red

plugs I am thinking like Hotshot and Brad's wigglers, I think MagLip 3.5 would work.  and I always seem to get one coho each year casting a 2/5 cleo type spoon, gold/red has been the best...

FYI- I rehook all my lures for Siltcoos with EWG #2 trebles from either Owner or Gamakatsu...

Awesome, thank you!
We'll get out there next week and can be well prepared now.
Hey, are the NCLAF spinners something Bimart carries?

Awesome, thank you!
We'll get out there next week and can be well prepared now.
Hey, are the NCLAF spinners something Bimart carries?

not usually, Sportsman in Florence usually has a big selection, west side of 101 and just north of the bridge...

http://www.nclaf.com/