The 2021-22 winter steelhead season has come to an end on the Chetco, Smith, Elk and Sixes rivers. Fishing closed for the season March 31, and re-opened May 22 for sea-run cutthroat trout. Anglers will begin to catch a few king salmon in the Chetco estuary in June and July, with the best trolling in September and October. The fall drift boat season for salmon begins in late October or early November, after the first major fall rains. Winter steelhead will arrive in early December, with the best fishing in January and February.
A nice steelhead from February 2022 on the Chetco River with Capt. Andy.
This past season was good overall, despite high water in December, then a prolonged period of low, clear water. Even though the river was low, and difficult at times to get a drift boat through shallow riffles, fishing was good. There was an above-average return of both hatchery and wild steelhead in both the Chetco and Smith rivers during the 2021-22 season.
Fishing was especially good late in the season, after the crowds were gone. Rain in March brought in impressive schools of hatchery and wild steelhead, leading to high scores for the handful of local guides still on the river.
Currently, the best fishing opportunities are in the ocean, through our partner charter company, Brookings Fishing Charters. Learn more about ocean charters out of Brookings at www.brookingsfishing.com
To book a river salmon or steelhead trip, call (541) 813-1082 or visit www.wildriversfishing.com.
A nice limit of Chetco River steelhead with Capt. Andy in January 2022.
Steelhead season is off to a strong start on the Chetco and Smith Rivers, with near-perfect conditions and a big return of winter fish. The Wild Rivers Fishing crew has been enjoying success on both rivers.
Despite cold weather, with lots of snow in the hills, fishing has been has been good the past week. A major winter storm is expected to start the new year, which could limits options for the first week of 2022.
A beautiful Chetco River steelhead caught with Capt. Andy.
Both rivers blew out around Christmas, but the Smith quickly dropped back into shape, and the Chetco has been in prime shape for the past few days. During the higher flows, plunkers fishing large Spin-N-Glos from shore did well. Drift boaters side-drifting roe and Corkies did well as the river began to drop.
A wild hen steelhead is released on the Upper Chetco.
Wild Rivers Fishing has guides licensed in Oregon and California to fish the Chetco and Smith rivers, and operates under special use permits from the US Forest Service to fish the Wild and Scenic Upper Chetco and launch at the Forks on the Smith River to drift through Redwood National Park.
Nice Chetco steelhead caught on a 3.5 MagLip plug.
We also fish the Elk and Sixes rivers during the winter, and occasionally on the lower Rogue River. Steelhead season is off to a great start on the lower Rogue, where some guides are getting into double-digit numbers anchoring and fishing 3.5 MagLip plugs.
The Chetco is expected to blow out by Jan. 2, and could approach flood stage with the combination of heavy rain and melting snow. When we get back on the water, we will start by running plugs and then side-drift as flows drop.
The 2021 drift boat salmon season on the Chetco, Smith, Elk and Sixes rivers started hot, as big storms brought impressive numbers of fish in, but ended on a slow note, as prolonged low, clear water made fishing tough the second half of November and in early December.
Capt. Andy holds a pair of Chetco River kings from early November.
In October and early November, the action was great. The Wild Rivers Fishing crew of Andy, Michael, Rye, Mick, Sam and Shane bounced around from the Smith to Chetco and then Elk and Sixes, getting into decent numbers of kings on each trip. The rivers then blew out in early November, and then slowed as the rain stopped.
Capt. Michael with a chromer Sixes River king salmon.
Action overall was above-average early in the season, but slow during the second half. Focus now turns to winter steelhead, which are already showing up on the Smith and Chetco rivers, and should get better with rains in mid-December. A few more bright salmon also should show up on the Chetco and Smith, and especially on the Elk and Sixes, after the first big rain of December.
The first drift boat salmon trips started in late September, when rains increased flows on the Smith River and a bunch of jacks moved in. Andy, Rye and Sam got in on the action, and caught big numbers of salmon on plugs. Lots of doubles on the smaller kings stacked up in the lower section of the Smith.
In mid-October, more rains fell, and the drift boat season got underway on the Chetco and Smith. We used bobbers and eggs, plugs and divers and bait to get into fish on both rivers. Another big rain in early November brought in the last decent fishing on the Smith and Chetco, which then slowed as the bulk of the fish moved upstream to spawn.
The action was good on the Elk and Sixes for a couple of weeks, but they too got low and clear and the action slowed.
Peak season for steelhead fishing is late December through February. With several local guides working out of our office, we have some availability. Call (541) 813-1082 to schedule a winter steelhead drift boat trip.
Here are some more photos of our 2021 drift boat salmon season on the Chetco, Smith, Elk and Sixes rivers.
The drift boat salmon season on the Smith and Chetco rivers is winding down, about to give way to steelhead fishing now through the end of March. Heavy rain in mid-November allowed for the first opener of the season on the Smith River above Rowdy Creek and on the Chetco River above the estuary. Two weeks into the season, most of the salmon run has now spawned as the first steelhead begin to show up.
A nice king salmon released on the Smith River with guide Rye Phillips of Wild Rivers Fishing.
The opening day on the Smith resulted in epic fishing for the guides Wild Rivers Fishing had on the river. Andy, Mick, Rye and Sam got customers into big numbers of kings, with double-digit hookups for some of the anglers. Salmon had been stacking up in the Smith for weeks, as the fish were biting aggressively during the opener.
The next day, heavy rains blew out both the Chetco and Smith. From that point until now, the salmon fishing has been tough on both rivers, as many of the kings spawned as soon as the water levels rose.
Customers hold a bright Chetco king caught with guide Michael McGahan of Wild Rivers Fishing.
The Chetco produced decent salmon fishing the first week it was open, with bright kings spread throughout the lower river. But with rains arriving late this year, the majority of the salmon spawned soon after the first big rise in flows. The last several days, fishing has been tough.
Capt. Andy holds a big king caught on a MagLip plug.
For the past week, salmon fishing has been slow, but adult steelhead are beginning to show up on the Chetco. There have been reports of four steelhead Thanksgiving week on the lower river, along with big numbers of halfpounders.
A customer battles a king salmon on the Smith River.
Salmon will continue to trickle in for the next month, while the steelhead run will accelerate. Expect steelhead fishing to be good by late December. Some seasons, limits are possible by the second week of December. January and February are the peak season for steelhead on the Chetco and Smith rivers.
Longtime customer Dave holds a nice Smith River king caught with guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing.Longtime customer Jerry holds a Sixes River king caught with guide Shane Brooks of Wild Rivers Fishing.Longtime customer Vince holds a bright Chetco king caught with guide Michael McGahan of Wild Rivers Fishing.A bright Smith River hatchery king caught with guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing.
Last season, salmon fishing remained good on the Elk and Sixes rivers into late December. Good flows are needed to get down these small coastal rivers, and they will remain options as weather conditions allow.
One of the highlights of fall fishing on the Smith and Chetco is the beautiful scenery, and autumn colors. Colorful trees still line the banks of the rivers. By January, the leaves will be gone, and the cold weather will trigger the main migration of winter steelhead.
The highly anticipated fall salmon season has begun on the Chetco River, where anglers are focusing on the area near the mouth and awaiting fall rains to start fishing upriver.
Big numbers of jack salmon have already shown up. An abundance of jacks early in the season is generally a strong indicator of good fishing during the peak season upriver, according to longtime Brookings-based guide Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. Andy has been fishing several Oregon Coast rivers in recent weeks, but will now focusing mainly on the Chetco and Smith rivers since salmon have arrived. He was on the Coos and Millicoma rivers near Coos Bay, Ore., last week, as well as the Umpqua and Rogue rivers in recent weeks.
Customers of Wild Rivers Fishing hold nice kings caught last week on the Coos River.
The Chetco River is the biggest draw in early October because of the potential for a trophy fish. In 2008, one of Andy’s customers caught a 58-pound king at the mouth of the Chetco, the biggest king in recent memory there. He also guided customers into a 65-pound king upriver in recent years, and has guided anglers to more than a dozen salmon over 50 pounds on the Chetco and Smith rivers.
Bright jack salmon caught Sept. 28 with Capt. Andy of Wild Rivers Fishing on the Chetco estuary, plus an adult king.
This year, despite ODFW’s forecast of a less-than-stellar return to the Chetco, big numbers of jack salmon have arrived. Several nice adults also have already been caught in the Chetco. The salmon are a bit early, an indication of a strong run, Martin said. The popular bubble season, where anglers fish in the ocean off the mouth of the Chetco in October, was canceled this year by ODFW, but there is a silver lining. That means 1,000 king salmon will not be harvested in the ocean by sport and commercial fishermen this year, adding to the in-river fishery. In years without an October bubble season, the fishing in the estuary and upriver after the rains is often above average.
A 29-pound king caught Sept. 28 at the mouth of the Chetco by a customer fishing with Capt. Rich of Brookings Fishing Charters.
In recent years, the Chetco estuary has fished better than normal because of the release of 15,000 fall chinook smolts that are acclimated to Ferry Creek, the first tributary of the Chetco above the estuary. Those salmon tend to hold longer in the estuary, fueling the sport fishery in late September and October. Another 100,000 fall chinook smolts are released at Social Security Bar. Lots of hatchery fish are already showing in the catch of the 2020 salmon return. Since the majority of the salmon on the Chetco are wild, that indicates there are a lot of bigger wild fish to come.
Ana of Brookings caught this big salmon over the weekend on the Coos River with Capt. Andy.
Anglers and guides will focus on the Chetco estuary until fall rains come. They will then head upriver on the Chetco, or to the Smith River in Northern California, with their drift boats. Both rivers produce big salmon. Capt. Andy said he will be bobber fishing with eggs, back-bouncing eggs, and running plugs, especially MagLips, HawgNose and FlatFish from Yakima Bait Company.
A pair of nice salmon caught on the Coos River in September 2020.
The limit on the Chetco is one adult salmon a day, wild or hatchery, beginning Oct. 1. Anglers also can keep five jacks a day less than 24 inches. New this year, after an adult salmon is retained, the angler must rack their rod.
The Chetco estuary is currently open. The river above the estuary, marked by the powerlines across the river at rivermile 2.2, opens after significant fall rains. ODFW’s Gold Beach office will decide when to open the river.
The Smith River opens above Rowdy Creek any time flows pass 600 cfs. Until then, fishing is limited to the Sand Hole and mouth areas near Ship Ashore. Capt. Andy will spend some of his time trolling herring at the Sand Hole. He also bobber fishes the area.
Along with Capt. Andy, guides Travis Sallander, Rye Phillips, Michael McGahan and Shane Brooks run trips for Wild Rivers Fishing. Rich Signorello, Mick Thomas and Sam Stover also help out with larger parties.
To book a fall salmon trip, visit www.wildriversfishing.com or call (541) 813-1082.
The river guides who spend the fall and winter fishing for salmon and steelhead the Chetco and Smith rivers for Wild Rivers Fishing are also saltwater charter boat captains. Through our sister company, Brookings Fishing Charters, they run lingcod, rockfish, salmon, albacore tuna, California halibut and Pacific halibut charters out of Brookings and Gold Beach.
Capt. Andy Martin and his daughter Alexandra hold a pair of vermilion rockfish caught off the coast of Brookings in early April 2020.
The Miss Brooke, Papa B, The Dash and ‘Bout Time have been running ocean charters since January. Ocean fishing was good in March, before stay-home orders brought charters to a standstill just before Spring Break. Lingcod fishing has been especially good this year, and the number of large vermilion rockfish has been above average. With the charter fleet grounded because of social distancing mandates, the crew has been taking their families fun fishing, and getting nice limits of lingcod and rockfish.
A nice lingcod caught in April 2020 by Jim Martin, Capt. Andy’s father, near House Rock.
We hope to resume ocean charters in May, just in time for the Pacific halibut opener. Pacific halibut season runs May 1-Oct. 31. Fishing is hit-and-miss off the coast of Brookings, but Brookings Fishing Charters has the highest success rate of any local charter company catching these prized fish. Several Pacific halibut are brought in by the Brookings Fishing Charters crew each year.
Pacific halibut, lingcod and rockfish caught last season aboard the Miss Brook near Mack Arch.
The ocean salmon season out of Brookings will run June 20-Aug. 7 this year. Late June and early to mid-July are the peak season for king salmon. Brookings Fishing Charters is one of the most successful charter fleets on the entire Oregon Coast at catch king salmon in the ocean for customers. This year’s ocean season is promising, with a combined ocean abundance forecast for the Sacramento, Klamath and Rogue rivers of nearly 1 million adult king salmon. Salmon from the Sacramento River make up the majority of the ocean catch off of Brookings. This year’s forecast for the Sacramento is almost 500,000 adult kings.
Anglers hold California halibut caught last August with Capt. Andy Martin out of Brookings.
California halibut have been off the coast of Brookings for decades, but the fish have been fairly elusive. While Cali Hali are incidentally caught each summer by anglers targeting bottom fish or salmon close to shore, few skippers have been able to dial in how to catch them. Last summer, Capt. Andy had several impressive days fishing for California halibut, with catch rates of three to five fish per angler. The best time for Cali Hali is July through September.
Capt. Rye and Capt. Mick with albacore tuna caught last summer off the coast of Brookings aboard The Dash.
Brookings Fishing Charters also was successful last summer at getting customers into albacore tuna. The six-pack charters were able to quickly get offshore and find the prized fish, with very good catch rates. Tuna trips are based on a call list. Call (541) 813-1082 to get on the list. Trips are booked when weather and fishing conditions allow.
Alexandra with a nice rockfish caught in April.Customers of the Miss Brooke hold lingcod and rockfish caught in late March, before ocean charters were put on hold because of covid-19 stay-home orders.
To learn more about our ocean charters, visit www.brookingsfishing.com. We off daily trips, weather permitting, out of the Port of Brookings. We also have a dock slip in Gold Beach for Rogue Reef lingcod and rockfish in June, July and August. For information, call (541) 813-1082.
All of the ocean charters working out of the Brookings Fishing Charters office are six-pack charter boats, with local owners and operators.
The Miss Brooke is owned by Capt. Andy Martin and operated by Andy and Capt. Travis Sallander.The Dash is owned and operated by Capt. Rye Phillips.The Papa B is owned and operated by Capt. Mike Brouillette.The ‘Bout Time is owned and operated by Capt. Rich Singnorello.
