Talking a young man from my church out fishing this coming Friday if the weather holds. Hopefully get him his first salmon. Will be in a 14" cataraft.

Had thought about West fork to hwy 12 but it's a pretty short float. I haven't done any of the satsop before... Anything to watch out for? Any float recommendations? We'll have all day to fish.

Thanks for any info.

Things may have changed a bit with the recent surge, but generally, the Satsop is easy, especially in a cataraft. I haven't floated it this season, but I've never had any real issues in several years of floating it.

Anyone been up or down since the rain?

Wondering if it's clear from Schafer down to the bridges.

I've gotten myself in trouble before floating stuff with no reports... a low water drag down the solduc summer 2016 comes to mind.

If I don't hear anything thinking we'll do Oakville to Porter instead, lots of fishy looking water in that stretch.

Put in at Decker Creek rather than at the park. Easy drift to the highway from there.

Thanks Dan.

How's the row up the West fork if i wanted to take out there? Figured the lower stretch would be picked over by sleds pretty good.

River will be clean.

The row up the West Fork is getting a little harder each year, but it's still reasonable.
Couple notes if you put in at Decker: When the water was low, there were several logs in the mouth that blocked passage completely. It would have been a real "drag" in a drift boat. With the water up, you might be able to get through on the inside, but you also might just get pushed into the wood and ruin your day before it starts. It's pretty easy to take out above the curve on river right and drag your boat around if you have to. Just below there, at the S Curves hole, more of the river is starting to go into the slough on the left side, and there's a tree lying right in the current seam you would like to use to float through. Would have been impossible to avoid at low water, so watch for that. You could also drag around that on river right, but if you do, get out at the tailout of the hole above on river right, because once you commit to the drop, you're pretty committed to rowing through (and you'll probably be fine). Once you get past that, it's pretty easy. There's a split below Satko Glen, at the confluence of the East Fork and the Turnow Branch. You'll probably make it either way, but I much prefer the left channel (at least I did last year). There were a couple trees to navigate on the right, and the drop pushes you right at the first one, so you had to backrow pretty hard if you went that way.

This will feel like a walk in the park after the Sol Duc, but I'm like you. I like to know if there's anything I don't want to learn the hard way if possible.

I have rowed a drifter back up the West Fork plenty of times, it's pretty easy...rowing my cataraft up the West Fork at any larger flows is a sweaty and not fun job, as I forget every time I do it until I get there ;-)

Fish on...

Todd

As regards the West Fork... There was a new side channel on river right about a quarter mile upstream from the confluence last year that apparently flows to the West Fork, upstream of the takeout. I didn't risk it, because I didn't know what was in there, but I saw a guy in a Clack go down it behind me, and he was at the takeout when I got there, so he must have made it. It seems there is a way to avoid rowing up if you're more adventurous than I.

FF,
Last year you could take the side channel. There's a tree laying all the way across it as of Saturday. Too bad because it's a heck of a lot easier than rowing up.

Damn!

I was hoping that might have got cut out over the summer. That side channel was the cat's ass for accessing the west fork takeout. Rowing up the west fork is NOT fun at higher flows. Last I tried, it was a narrow thing making it up to the ramp as my arms locked up from rowing so hard against the current.

You guys would have like the "old days",,,,mid 80's. The East Fork came into the West Fork, just about right across from the old boat launch....3 or 4 cranks on the sticks you were there...

Fished the lower river today, bridges to Cemetery Hole. Running up river, above the old hiway bridge, could be interesting in lower water, its gotten wide and skinny. Cemetery Hole is a far cry from the my early retirement years, 1997 - 2010......channel is about 1/3 the width and not anywhere near as deep. 2 boats there today.......I can remember 10 boats and everyone catching fish....

I still don't like the boat launch, launch easy but take out for 1 person can be a bitch!!!!!

Take out with a small sled and a fine running Yamaha was no problem ! But it's still a poor design.

Horrible design.

Nice chatting with you yesterday DrifterWa (Koffler).

Not at high flows it isn’t. Anything over 2,200 and I highly suggest using the cut through into the West Fork before the confluence.

Thanks, same back at you..... to bad the area we were fishing has changed so much, just not the same as the "days gone by"

I really appreciate the info. Made this young man's day (and mine).

Beasty chum was a 15 minute fight. Weighed in bled at 16lbs.

Does anyone know if that tree is still across the side channel into the West Fork? Thinking about fishing this weekend but looks like the flows will be up over 3K and last time we had to be pulled up the West Fork by a sled to reach the takeout. No bueno.

Take a chain saw and cut the log so next flood it goes Bye Bye.