What was shaping up as a couple day window for some other coastal rivers to finally drop into shape, has been firmly slammed shut. The rain that began Wednesday dashed all hopes of being able to finally drift the South Fork Eel, Van Duzen and Mad. So once again, we are back to high and muddy water. And these series of storms that are forecast to roll through the area will keep all of the rivers high, including the Smith and Chetco. As of Thursday, it looks like the Smith and Chetco will round back into really good shape by mid next week. All the other rivers will take considerably more time before they’re fishable. Looking ahead, a potential dry pattern is on the horizon beginning next Wednesday. Let’s hope the weather window stays open a little longer.

The weather ahead
Following some decent rainfall on Wednesday and Thursday, the next system is set arrive Saturday. According to Kathleen Zontos of Eureka’s National Weather Service office, the stormy weather will likely stick around through early next week. “The system that came through Wednesday and Thursday saw more rain up in the Smith Basin,” said Zontos. “With the one arriving Saturday, we’ll see heavier amounts of rain fall to our south. From Redwood Creek north, we’ll likely see 1 to 2 inches. From the Mad south to the Eel basin, we could see anywhere from 2 to 3 inches. The next system will arrive Sunday and is forecast to stick around through Tuesday. This system will again see the heaviest rainfall to our south. Southern Humboldt and into Mendocino County could see 2 to 3 inches. Here locally in Humboldt, we’ll see from .5 to 1.5 inches. As of now it looks like we’ll start to dry out sometime Tuesday and possibly begin a drier pattern beginning Wednesday.”

2024 Salmon information meeting coming March 1
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Annual Salmon Information Meeting will be held via webinar on Friday, March 1, 2024 starting at 10 a.m. The meeting will provide informational presentations on topics such as last year’s spawning escapement, estimates of forecasted ocean abundance and management goals for 2024 ocean salmon seasons.

“The 2024 Salmon Information Meeting marks the beginning of a two month long public process used to develop annual sport and commercial ocean salmon fishing regulations and is also used to inform development of inland salmon fishing regulations later in the spring. The process involves collaborative negotiations between west coast states, federal agencies, tribal co-managers and others interested in salmon fishery management and conservation.

California representatives will work together to develop a range of recommended ocean fishing season alternatives at the March 6-11 Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) meeting in Fresno. Final season recommendations will be adopted at the PFMC’s April 6-11 meeting in Seattle.”

Salmon Information Meeting details, informational materials and instructions for attendance will be published in advance of the event on CDFW’s Ocean Salmon webpage,  Please see the Ocean Salmon webpage at https://wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Ocean/Regulations/Salmon/preseason for a complete calendar of events and contact information regarding the Salmon Preseason Process, including other opportunities for public engagement in the season-setting process.

CDFW seeks input on 2024 sport Pacific Halibut fishery
California anglers who are interested in the recreational Pacific halibut fishery are invited to participate in an online survey to help inform the CDFW about angler preferences for open fishing dates during the upcoming 2024 season. Results of the survey, which is open until Feb. 21, will be used to develop recommended season dates that will be provided to the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Pacific Fishery Management Council. The 2024 California recreational Pacific halibut quota will be 38,220 net pounds. The online survey can be found at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KPDDVQP. For more information on the Pacific halibut fishery in California, visit wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Pacific-Halibut

Free fishing days this weekend in Oregon
It’s free to fish, crab or clam on the Saturday and Sunday of President’s Day Weekend, Feb. 17-18. During these two days, no fishing licenses or tags (including a Combined Angling Tag and a Columbia River Basin Endorsement) are required to fish, crab or clam anywhere in Oregon. Although no licenses or tags are required, all other regulations apply including closures, bag limits and size restrictions. For more information, visit https://myodfw.com/articles/2024-free-fishing-days-and-events

The Rivers:
Mad
The Mad was just starting to drop into really good shape prior to the latest round of storms. Flows as of Thursday were right around 5,000 cfs (11 feet). With additional rain coming over the weekend, it won’t be green anytime soon. Projected to peak at 9,500 cfs (13.75 feet) on Monday morning. The river fishes best between 7 and 8 feet.

Main stem Eel
The main stem had just begun to turn green Tuesday, but now it’s big and muddy and on the rise. As of Thursday, flows at Scotia were 23,000 cfs. Flows will be up and down through early next week, but nowhere near fishable. It’s predicted to peak Tuesday at nearly 65,000 cfs. It will start to fish once it gets below 5,000 cfs.

South Fork Eel
The South Fork was a day away from prime conditions when the rains returned Wednesday. Now it’s back to high and muddy, with flows over 6,000 cfs at Miranda Thursday. Rain through early next week will keep it unfishable for the near future. Flows are predicted to peak at 13,600 cfs Monday evening. Will need a least of week of dry weather before it’s green and fishable again.

Van Duzen
The Van Duzen was green and fishable earlier in the week, but Wednesday’s rains put it back on the rise and turned it muddy. As of Thursday, flows were over 4,000 cfs. After up and down flows through the weekend, it’s predicted to peak at 6,200 cfs Monday morning.

Smith River
Nearly 4 inches of rain fell between Wednesday and early Thursday morning, blowing out the Smith for the next couple days. As of Thursday afternoon, flows were over 28,000 (17 feet) at the Jed Smith gauge and still rising. It’s predicted to hover between 12 and 12.5 feet Saturday through Tuesday. The color should be good, but flows a little on the pushy side. Fishing has been tough this past week as there doesn’t seem to be a lot of fish around. This type of rain will usually start to bring some of the downers out of the tributaries and should bring in some new fish as well.

Southern Oregon rivers
Steelhead fishing has been a struggle on the Chetco, but there are a few fish around reports Andy Martin of Wild Rivers Fishing. “Nearly half of the fish caught in the last week were down runners, an indication of a big spawning escapement during the high water in January,” said Martin. “Fishing has been better on the Upper Chetco compared to the lower river. Guides are getting one to three fish a day. Plunking has slowed, but will likely improve with rain the second half of this week. 
Steelhead fishing is also on the slow side on the Elk, Sixes and Rogue. Plunkers did well in the lower Rogue a week ago, and will likely see a fresh batch of fish with rain this weekend. The rain also should bring in new late-season fish in the Elk and Sixes. Still early for spring salmon on the Rogue, but the first fish of the year is usually caught by a steelhead angler the end of February or early March. Peak season isn’t until late April and early May.”

Brookings ocean update
According to Martin, the ocean out of Brookings calmed down on Tuesday, with good fishing for rockfish and decent lingcod action. “The Miss Brooke of Brookings Fishing Charters caught limits of lings and rockfish, with some smaller lingcod released. Rough weather returned Tuesday night.”

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.