Congressman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael), Chair of the House Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife, announced last Saturday that his first two fisheries roundtable discussions will be held in Northern California; the first this Saturday, October 5th, from 2:30-4:30 p.m. in Arcata, and the second on Monday, October 7th, at 1:00 p.m. in San Francisco. These are the initial stops on a nationwide listening tour on federal fisheries management designed to engage diverse perspectives, interests, and needs of individuals who have a stake in management of federal ocean and fisheries resources. The events are both free and open to the public and press. The Arcata event will be held at the D Street Community Center, 1301 D Street.

Each of Huffman’s roundtable panel discussions with experts and stakeholders will include a detailed, technical examination of current and future challenges in federal fisheries management and will explore potential solutions. Guests will be able to submit written questions during the roundtable and provide public comments at its conclusion. Members of the public can register for the events and submit questions ahead of time at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rep-huffman-roundtable-on-magnuson-stevens-act-and-federal-fisheries-tickets-74157562265. The ideas Huffman receives from this listening tour, and from other stakeholder outreach that is already underway, will inform his introduction of a reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the primary law governing fisheries management in U.S. federal waters.

Young Anglers Tournament this Saturday
The Trinidad Pier Youth Fishing Tourney will take place this Saturday, Oct. 5 from 11 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The free event is open to all children ages 6 to 15. Prizes will be awarded in each category and fishing gear and bait will be provided. An adult must accompany children. Hot dogs and refreshments will be served following the event. Catch and release is encouraged and no fishing license is required. Look for the sign-up table on the Trinidad Pier. For more information, contact Ken Jones at kenjones@pierfishing.com

Low Flow River Closures now in effect
North Coast rivers that are regulated by low flow closures, including sections of the Eel, Mad, Redwood Creek, Smith and Van Duzen are all closed to fishing as of Oct. 1 due to low flows. The Mattole, also falls under low flow regulations, but doesn’t open to fishing until Jan. 1, 2020. For more information and up-to-date closure info, call the North Coast low-flow closure hotline at 707-822-3164 or visit https://bit.ly/2QsZUQ9

Klamath River quota update
According to Dan Troxel, an Environmental Scientist on the Klamath River Project, we’re just about halfway through the sub-area quota below 101 bridge, and just under halfway through the Lower River quota. Through Sept. 30, 1,872 adult kings have been harvested towards the Lower River quota of 3,819, leaving 1,947 left for harvest. The spit fishery still has plenty of fish to catch as well. Anglers have harvested 581 adult kings below the 101 bridge, leaving 564 left to catch. Once this quota is met, only the spit area will close to fishing. Fishing will remain open upriver of the spit until the 3,819 quota is met. Once the lower river quota is wrapped up, anglers may still retain a limit of Chinook salmon under 22 inches in length. Anglers may keep track of the Klamath and Trinity river quotas by calling 800-564-6479.

Weekend marine forecast
The ocean looks to be fishable through the weekend, with Sunday looking like the best day. Friday’s forecast is calling for N winds 5 to 10 knots with waves NW 7 feet at 11 seconds. Saturday is calling for winds out of the N 5 to 10 knots and NW waves 6 feet at 8 seconds. Sunday looks better, with N winds up to 5 knots and W waves 4 feet at 9 seconds. These conditions can and will change by the weekend. For an up-to-date weather forecast, visit www.weather.gov/eureka/ or https://www.windy.com. To monitor the latest Humboldt bar conditions, visit www.wrh.noaa.gov/eka/swan. You can also call the National Weather Service at (707) 443-7062 or the office on Woodley Island at (707) 443-6484.

The Oceans:Eureka
Ocean conditions finally improved, allowing boats to once again head offshore. On Tuesday, Tim Klassen of Reel Steel Sport Fishing took advantage of the weather and made a run to the Cape. He said, “Fishing was pretty good, but we didn’t find a lot of variety. We were able to limit on blues, blacks and canaries. We also had a few Cabazon as well as a few lings. Prior to the weather lying down, we spent most of our time in the bay targeting California halibut. The fishing is still good if you’re in the right location. Most days we had limits or close to it. There’s still lots of anchovies in the bay.

Brookings
“This week’s return of calm seas and light winds allowed boats to get offshore again for lingcod and rockfish, with good fishing,” said Andy Martin of Brookings Fishing Charters. “Crabbing also has been very good out of Brookings, especially in deeper water. Tuna remain too far out for sports boats in Brookings, but charters in Newport and Depoe Bay did very well over the weekend.”

The Rivers:
Chetco Estuary
Salmon fishing is off to a good start in the Chetco estuary, with several fish a day being caught reports Martin. “Jacks comprise most of the catch, but fish topping 20 pounds also are being caught. The Chetco is closed above river mile 2.2, but will open after significant fall rains increase flows,” added Martin.

Smith River
Last Sunday was pretty good at the mouth of the Smith according to Britt Carson of Crescent City’s Englund Marine. He said, “I saw a total of five salmon caught, which is the best day so far this year. Most of the fish are being caught tossing Cleo’s on the outgoing tide. Not many fish have made it up to the Sand Hole yet.”

Lower Klamath
There are still plenty of fresh salmon pouring into the Klamath and the fishing remains excellent. There’s still plenty of jacks around to make for a great day, and more adults are showing up all the time. The grade also seems to be improving.

Lower Rogue
According to Martin, salmon fishing has slowed on the Rogue Bay, but a few adult kings and wild Coho are still around.

Chetco low flow angling closures
The Chetco will be closed to angling upstream of River Mile 2.2 until opened following arrival of fall rains and increased river flows. This closure may be lifted when fall-run Chinook salmon have distributed and forecasted flows are expected to remain high enough to allow fish to migrate, expected for early to mid-November based on historical river flows. From Oct. 1 through December 31, anglers are allowed one adult salmon daily, and two total.

Find “Fishing the North Coast” on Facebook and fishingthenorthcoast.com for up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information. Questions, comments and photos can be emailed to kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com

Kenny Priest operates Fishing the North Coast, a fishing guide service out of Humboldt specializing in salmon and steelhead. Find it on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and www.fishingthenorthcoast.com. For up-to-date fishing reports and North Coast river information, email kenny@fishingthenorthcoast.com.