It seems that every time I try to fish lately I wake to a windstorm, snow, freezing rain, or just another short day of daylight. I happen to have a really bad case of cabin fever going right now but at least I know that help is just around the corner with our trip to…
If you remember my Salmon River blog back in January where I mentioned that you'd better get to the Quinault River after it comes back into shape. It's in shape folks and now is the time to be there. Like…right now! The Quinault gets it's far share of gagger-sized steelhead in the 20 pound range…
By Tony Floor I was looking back in time, a few days ago, to previous March columns and not surprising to me, the common theme in those writings was my focus on the “banks” in the eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca. Clearly, from a saltwater salmon angler’s perspective, it is a time of the…
I know, I've got it bad… I await the salmon forecast numbers like a kid waiting for Christmas morning. Hello, my name is Tom and I am a "salmon sicko". After watching the numbers for a number of years (never mind how many…) I've found that you can "call some shots" by digging into the forecast…
I know, I know, you’ll give me the ol’ “you’ve got to take the good with the bad and accept everything in nature” drovel that I would expect from all of you that love the outdoors as much as I do. Shoot! I’ve even said it ma’self. If there’s a thousand, or even a million,…
This is just a preseason forecast but if they are as accurate as they were last year then we are in for another great year of chinook salmon fishing in the ocean and on the Columbia. I can't wait to get this season started. COLUMBIA RIVER FALL CHINOOK 2011 PRESEASON FORECASTS Stock Group 2011 February Forecasts …
Formerly known as "Presidents Day", this national holiday has been hijacked by local salmon anglers and derby organizers! The Hot Plug and Olympic Peninsula Salmon derbies offered over $30,000 in cash and prizes during one of the best winter chinook or "blackmouth" seasons in recent memory, which certainly added up to a memorable three-day weekend! The 25th edition…
BY ROBERT STRONG. “How tough could it be?” I said to myself as I slid my credit card across the counter to the girl at the fly shop. After all I’ve been fly fishing since the age of 13 and I can double haul a large Wooly Bugger with the best of em. Every Summer…
The fly-fishing section of the International Sportsman’s Expo in Sacramento was an entire building complete with casting pond and corner stage for presentations by experts. Since my buddy Nate was too overwhelmed to ask questions about upgrading his eight-weight fly-rod, I assisted. I asked a Sage rep what he had under $200. Impossible, so he…
I was able to attend the hearing for SB 5669 today and I couldn't have been more proud to be associated with all of my recreational angling brothers and sisters. We showed up in big numbers, big enough in fact that we couldn't fit everyone in the room and many had to wait in the…