I parked my drift boat for the weekend and took my family and the power boat down to the mouth of the Columbia for a couple of days. The fishing was great. I'm told it had been slow up until about last Wednesday, when fish started pushing in in good numbers. It was a good mix of hatchery and native silvers, and of kings, both tules and upriver brights.

The highlight of the trip for me was watching my wife rodeo her first king to the boat (first ever caught).


The kids were troopers in lue of getting soaked to the bone (a picture is worth a thousand words).


One for the "kid."


We stayed far away from the mayhem at Bouy-10, and trolled back and fourth between the 3 and 5 fence a mile ot two NW of Chinook. If you go just look for the guide boats. They're generally on the fish. Good Luck.

Yeah, if you watch the boats with the phone numbers on the side out there, you can usually see what's happening. Looks like a nice family outing, congrats.

I heard the first of the month should start getting better, fished it friday and saturday and it was hot for us, out of the four of us we had 8 chinook & 6 silvers one of the silvers was 18 lbs, the others about 10lbs, the kings were 40lbs 35, 32 30 28 and the rest in the lower twenty's, we also had a 15 lb wild steelhead, (released unharmed) the dark green fishflash seemed to be the hot set up with 18 hook ups (1 rod) and 2 big enough to snap 40 lb leaders then the rains came on saturday and my brother inlaw's brother (califorian) with no rain gear shut us down early 2 silvers shy of or limit the second day, all in all it was a blast, Doug

I've never been down to the mouth before, but am heading there next week. I have some out of town wedding guests visiting on 1/2/3 of Sept. I hear it's a diver fishery, but I'm a downrigger guy. I'm traditionally a flasher/herring, spoon, hoochie, guy, can you give me a tip or two to success at the mouth? I'm willing to do the diver thing.
If you have a secret or two and would rather email, please send to me that way. thanks in advance folks-

Striper, I hope your guests aren't from Cali. Like Doug we to had some people from California on the boat to cut our trip short. No raingear and they were wearing shorts. :rolleyes: It was pissin' pretty good out there.

At least we don't have to worry about them moving up here now.

As for gear, we were using #1 and #2 deep sixes then about 12- 18 inches of line to a Big Al's Fish Flash (we caught on green/silver and silver/silver) in the small and medium sizes. From the flasher we were using about 5' leaders to a 4/0 upper hook with a 3/0 trailer. Get some green or blue label herring and you should be set. I was using 30lb for leaders but think I might upsize to one size bigger hooks and 40lb test. We did get busted off a few times.

There's some big fish out there. Good luck.

Striper26, we used the same set-up Benny described, with the exception of line test (25-pound). We did lose some big fish.

Spend the extra cash for sardines instead of hearing. They worked much better.

Just got back from down there. Fished Sunday and caught 3 coho and a 30 lbs. king (2 people). We were using downriggers and the green flasher with a cut plug. Use heavier leaders (40 lbs), lighter leaders don't have a chance. The 30 lbs. leader that I was using broke a couple of times! It broke right when we netted the king, a second sooner bye, bye fishy. Their are some huge pigs down there, we lost a 40+ at the boat.

I had a couple 5/0 mustad stainless bend out and 30lb Ande bust. There are some piggies out there, that is for sure. We had a mixed bag of mostly kings and a few silvers. I'd expect a BIG push of fish after this rain. I am really looking forward to next weekend.

DOGOFF

Thanks for the information folks. Any other tips surrounding navigating the water? I have a 26ft deep v boat, so I guess I should be okay, but I keep hearing about the tides (fish only after incoming) and how rough it can get?

Striper 26, get a map for water depths, just west of the astoria and to a wood pileing in the middle is a sand bar, it also runs to the east , i never would have thought a mighty river as big as the columbia in the very middle would be so shallow at low tide you can see the waves breaking over the bar, if you tryed to run across you would run a ground, just something i learned this weekend luckly not by experanceing it, Doug P.S. in the morning fish the east side and the west of astoria bridge and evev the church hole, later in the after noon when the tide starts coming in head for buoy 10, after it mellows start moving in towaed Hammond just watch the other boats and do as they do, with a diver dark green & silver fishflash and at least 40lb leaders there is some pigs out there, hope this hleps Doug

USCG volunteers are handing out maps/boating information packets at the ramp in Chinook. Very useful information on tides and such that you can use for navigating the big CR.

DOGOFF

Have you seen those training videos the Coast Guard puts out of their 40' life boats in the super rough water? Well those were taken on the Columbia Bar. This can be some of the most dangerous water in the world!

Gary J:

"Have you seen those training videos the Coast Guard puts out of their 40' life boats in the super rough water? Well those were taken on the Columbia Bar. This can be some of the most dangerous water in the world!"

Any tips then? Tides to/not to work? Places not to visit, etc. I have a "fishngo" map w/depths, etc., and depth sounder. My GPS does not have mapping this far south although I'm considering it. Any help is appreciated! Thanks in advance-

Striper26,

Get the USCG packets that they are handing out FREE at the Chinook Boat ramp. They are extremely detailed with bouys, sandbars, tides and places to avoid during certain tides. Make sure you have VHF, PFDs, flares, etc...This is no place to go out blind. BE PREPARED.

DOGOFF

If you've got a boat, get down there this weekend.

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